Mastered by Her Mates (Interstellar Bride Book 0) (12 page)

“I’m sorry. I don’t know where it came from.” Grigg looked so lost, so out of his element that I believed him. Which was just fucking sad, and further testament to how badly his unfeeling asshole of a father had fucked him up.

“It’s normal, Grigg. It’s called love. Concern. Affection. You’re my cousin, and I love you. I’d die for you, kill to protect you. It’s perfectly normal that you’d feel the same. That just makes us a family. And all those feelings now extend to our mate. I feel it, too.”

“I’ve never felt any of that before.”

“The fucking collars,” I muttered. “I know. But now
you
know.”

“Know what?”

“What family is supposed to feel like.”

Grigg rubbed his chest and I felt the pang of emotion that was ripping him to shreds. He had no idea what to do with all of the sentiment, so I helped him out with a bit of distraction. “So, back to our mate. I think we might have a problem.”

“The guilt?”

“Yes. She’s hiding something. Those collars sense everything, even that.”

Grigg frowned, his mind now focused on solving a real problem, something he could deal with so much more efficiently than his unfamiliar emotions. “What do you suspect?”

I hated to say it, but when I’d found out our mate was coming from a new member of the Interstellar Coalition, I’d done some research. “I looked up her planet, read every report about Earth.”

“And?”

“Her people are primitive, still fighting wars over resources and land. In many parts of her world, women are still denied basic rights and education. They are treated as slaves without honor or power in their own right. They allow their poor to starve and die in the streets. They kill over skin color and religious beliefs. They’re barbaric.”

“She’s no longer an Earthling. She’s a citizen of Prillon Prime. She belongs to us now.”

“Yes, officially.”

“But?”

“She had two men with her at the processing center. She said they were her family, lied to the Warden, but they were not related to her. Suspicious, the Warden reviewed the recording of their conversation.”

“And who were they?”

“Spies. Apparently, Amanda is a spy for her government.”

Grigg’s eyes widened. “Amanda, a spy?”

I nodded.

“Yes. She’s the first Bride. It makes sense to use the program to their advantage. I assume they sent her here to send information to Earth, to steal advanced technologies that the Coalition has denied them.”

“I see.” I could literally feel his mind working, calculating odds, formulating a plan. “And how do you know this? Is the information about our mate reliable?”

“Absolutely. I asked the primary Warden on Earth, Lady Egara, to dig into her past.”

Grigg leaned forward. “I thought Earth just found out about the Coalition. And I know Commander Egara. What is his mate, a Prillon Lady, doing on Earth?”

The answer to that question was sad, indeed. “Both of Lady Egara’s mates were lost in a Hive ambush a few years ago.”

“Gods have mercy.” Grigg frowned at that and I felt his sadness over the news. “No children?”

“No. And she refused another match. She was taken from Earth years before official contact was made with the planet. I don’t know the details, but after her mates’ deaths, she offered to serve on Earth as the leader of the Bride Processing program there. In any event, her loyalty is to the Coalition. I trust her information.”

Grigg rose to pace and I watched, inclined to let him decide a course of action. I was trained to heal, not deal with subterfuge and battle. And I knew for a fact that the war for our bride’s heart and loyalty had barely begun.

Arms across his chest, Grigg turned to me. “Do you wish to give her up? Ask for another mate?”

“No. She was matched to us. The testing was done. It was ninety-fine percent accurate. There is no question from Warden Egara, or me, that she is the one for us. She’s ours now, whether she realizes it or not. Whether her loyalties lie with her government or with us, her mates.”

“Agreed.” Grigg resumed pacing the small space. “This would explain Earth’s eagerness to send their first group of warriors into Hive combat.”

That was a surprise. “They are eager to send their soldiers?”

“Yes. Too eager. They didn’t even want to allow their soldiers to complete the training protocols.” He shook his head. “Which is stupid, and suicidal. Their general’s report claims these men are something they call
Special Forces
, and will not require extensive training. They are Earth’s elite warriors.”

I smiled at Grigg’s expression. Game on. “So, what are you going to do?”

“Let them come, and use our beautiful little mate to lead us to the traitors among them. Surely they would not just send one spy.”

“And after?” The idea made me nervous. I knew Grigg would never harm a hair on our mate’s head, but I wasn’t so sure about the soldiers who would be coming from Earth.

“Kill the traitors and spank her ass a fiery red. She has been matched to us. Like you said, there is no question as to that, that she’s ours. We’re going to fuck her and fill her until she knows exactly who she belongs to, and it’s not the tribal rulers on Earth. They can’t fuck her and love her like we can.”

“No. She might be their spy, but she belongs to us.”

* * *

Amanda

I stirred at the sound of an odd beep. It happened only once, so I ignored it, rolling over. Being used to sleeping in new places all the time because of work, I woke knowing exactly where I was. Space. It also helped that my pussy and ass were both quite sore and I could never forget what Grigg and Rav had done to me. The plug had been removed directly after Grigg fucked me, while I’d been wilted and sated, then I’d fallen asleep between them.

The beep came again. Lifting my head, I looked about the bedroom. I was alone, the bed cold on either side of me. I didn’t stir when the men left, so they were either stealthily quiet or I’d been dead to the world.

Beep!

Grabbing the sheet and wrapping it around me, I went out into the living room, noting for the first time the small table with three chairs, the oversized couch bolted to the floor, the stark walls and utilitarian emptiness of the plain brownish walls. The whole thing screamed bachelor pad, and I wondered what kind of decorations I might find to make it feel more like a home and less like a hospital room.

Regardless, the room was empty.

Beep!

It came from the door. It seemed to be a space doorbell. I went over to it, but there wasn’t a doorknob. Perhaps it was motion activated, for as soon as I was within three feet of it, it slid open.

A woman was there, smiling at me. Garbed in a similar uniform to the one Rav had worn the day before, while his shirt had been green, hers was a pale peach color. But she was not human. Her shoulder-length hair was pulled back in a braid, but that didn’t hide the dark orange color of the strands. She towered over me in the entryway, almost a foot taller than I. Her eyes, while kind, were a golden color I was getting used to, her skin a dark gold similar to Grigg’s. Her voice, however, sounded perfectly normal.

“You are the commander’s mate? Lady Zakar?”

Her voice was soft, kind, yet she had the erect posture of a soldier, of a woman who did not cow to anyone.

Gripping the sheet snugly, I flushed, for I could only imagine what she thought of me. I felt like I was doing the walk of shame, but had nowhere to go.

“Yes,” I replied. “I…um. I’m Amanda.”

When two soldiers entered the hallway, the woman glanced at them as I shifted back behind the doorway, then returned her attention to me.

“I’m Lady Myntar, but you can call me Mara. Your mates sent me. May I come in?”

Hearing the soldiers’ voices coming closer, I nodded and stepped back, not wanting them to see me like this, naked, used and wearing only a sheet.

She entered and the door slid closed behind her. I breathed a sigh of relief.

“As I said, your mates sent me as they could not be here when you woke.”

That was considerate of them.

“I’m in charge of family integration and socialization and have mates of my own. One of them, my Drake, works with Commander Zakar. You are a lucky woman to find such an exemplary mate and a highly respected second.” She leaned forward and spoke in a hushed tone. “But don’t let my own mates know I said that.”

I smiled then, for she was quite nice and I hadn’t realized I needed…someone. Someone who wasn’t planning on stripping me down and fucking me. At least right now. I needed reassurance that being on a Prillon ship was about more than just being mated to two warriors. While I had enjoyed what they did to me the night before and my body ached for them—their seed still trickled from my pussy—I was more than just a mate. If I had to sit inside this small room and stare at the walls for days on end, I’d go stark, raving mad.

“I’m here to help you with clothes and food, to start. And if you need anything else, just let me know. I will help you find work you’ll enjoy. Friends. Something to fill your days while your mates are busy. I think it must be quite different for you here than on Earth.”

I had no idea yet exactly how it was different, but I tugged at the sheet. “Anything will be better than this sheet. Thank you. But I’d love to shower first.”

She smiled then. “Of course.”

Mara spent the next hour showing me how to use the bathing units—there was both a shower and a bathtub, although she told me they were for pleasure and not strictly necessary. She showed me the S-Gen, where the green lights scanned my body and created new clothes for me to wear. The living space was completely unlike those on Earth as there was no kitchen, no closets and I followed her around almost blindly, with a curiosity only seen in small children. Several compartments were hidden in the walls and I anticipated finding and opening them all just like a treasure hunt. I felt like an excited child being hand held and I was thankful for it. I told her so.

“You’re welcome. I will take you to the cafeteria. After that, you should be set with everything. Oh!” She spun on her heel and faced me. “Your mating box. I understand it was not claimed in the medical unit.”

“Mating box?”

She waved her hand through the air. “It’s a box of supplies for new mates. We’ll just go and retrieve one from the commissary. Would you like to see some of the ship before we eat?”

The idea of seeing more than just Grigg’s quarters was appealing and I ignored the rumbling in my stomach. I was hungry, but I could wait. Not only would it slake my curiosity, but it would allow me to investigate and study the ship so I could report back to Earth.

“Yes, please.”

Dressed now in a midnight-blue uniform of dark pants and matching tunic, I finger combed my hair and left it down in a wild tangle around my shoulders and eagerly followed Mara out into the hallway. There wasn’t much to see, only a plain orange hallway. The walls changed from orange to green to blue as we progressed through the ship, Mara explaining as we went that orange or cream shades indicated we were in civilian or family areas, green was medical, blue engineering, red was command and battle stations. The ship was color-coded, as were the uniforms, with gray being general support staff, the color of the insignia on their chests indicating in which area of the ship they served. High-ranking officers, such as doctors and engineers wore uniforms that matched their ship’s section. Which explained Rav’s dark green uniform.

Warriors, like my Grigg, all wore an intriguing black and dark brown camo armor that Mara insisted was nearly indestructible, explaining, “The commander has tested it, often.”

I didn’t like the sound of that.

We passed several people who all nodded their heads deferentially. At first I thought it was how they said hello, but it appeared they were only doing it for me, not Mara.

“Why are they nodding to me? They don’t even know me.”

“They know you are the commander’s mate, our Lady Zakar. We have waited several years for your arrival.”

I frowned as we turned a corner. “How do they know it’s me?”

Mara pointed to my neck. “Your collar. Your clothing. Your alien appearance. The commander insisted you wear the Zakar family color. The color is different for each group of mates. See—” She pointed to her own neck. “My mate’s family line, the Myntar warrior clan, is represented by dark orange.”

“I’m honored, but confused. Why would anyone here be waiting for me?”

Mara stopped walking and turned to face me. “The commander’s mate has great power and influence. In regards to civilian matters, your orders are to be followed by all on board, warriors and civilians alike. None but the commander himself may order you around, and all on board would die to protect you. You are like a princess now, or a queen. Our queen.”

What the fuck? I couldn’t keep the shock, or the nerves from my voice. “Why? What am I supposed to do? Why would a warrior follow my orders? Am I supposed to go into battle?”

“Oh, no, dear.” She patted me on the sleeve, then dropped her hand. “No. Although, if you really wanted to, and could convince your mates to allow it, you could. No. I will help you find a job that suits you. As the highest-ranking Lady of the ship before your arrival, I have been in charge of the civilian side of life in space. The warriors are busy fighting and expect the non-combat personnel to handle the rest.”

Holy shit. “Like what?”

“Adoptions, matings, maintenance, socialization, community, schooling—”

I held up my hand, interrupting, “So, they fight and we take care of everything else?”

“Exactly.” She grinned. “And I would love to have your help, if you are interested.”

“But, how do you know I won’t make a horrible mess of things? I don’t know anything about your ships, or your way of life. I didn’t even know a space ship existed outside of movies until recently.”

Mara’s smile was fill of confidence, and I couldn’t stop the warm glow her words elicited. “You are his match. Perfect for him, which means you must also be perfect for us. The protocols would not have mated our commander to a woman who could not handle him, or responsibilities of her own.”