Prime Imperative (The Prime Chronicles Book 3) (12 page)

“Our father would welcome you. But expect a lot of notoriety,” Wulf said. “Both good and bad.”

“I’d heard there was unrest about the Council’s decision to join the Alliance and seek mates outside of the Prime culture.” Borac grimaced. “Is it true? Prime are turning against Prime?”

Damon had said nothing during this exchange. But from his alert posture and the intent look on his face, he was listening and not liking what he heard. The man would use any ammunition he could to convince Brianna to stay away from Iolyn and her people.

“The unrest is small. We have already rooted out some of the traitors,” Iolyn said. “And we will find the rest.”

“They’ll come after Bria. Several have already tried to kidnap her, masquerading as Alliance soldiers.” Damon stopped and glared. “Her research will make her a target for the fanatics. Why should I let her go into such danger?”

Iolyn stepped forward until he was toe-to-toe with Damon. The man’s emotions were loud and clear. He loved his sister, and not just in a brotherly way. The two types of love were so intertwined in the man it was hard to figure out exactly which love reigned supreme. Damon was conflicted about her mating, but underlying the man’s agitation was the fact—he’d die to protect his sister.

So, instead of punching Damon in the face, Iolyn made him a promise. “I’d die before I let anything happen to Brianna. She is a gift I will cherish, protect, and love for the rest of my life. And if something should happen to me, she will have the protection of the Caradoc family. It is the Prime way.”

Iolyn didn’t know how long he and Damon stood, staring at one another, reading each other, testing the other man’s mettle. But it couldn’t have been more than a minute or so when Nadia’s humor-filled voice broke the tense standoff. “Mr. Martin—”

“Damon.” The word came out rough.

Nadia smiled. “Damon, then. Have you ever seen Prime warriors in full
batel rabia
?”

“No.” Damon shifted his attention to Nadia. Iolyn stepped back and let his sister-kin charm the man. “Borac has spoken of such, but it sounded like an exaggeration.”

“Well, I have. And let me tell you, it’s a fearsome thing to behold. I’m Siberian with Hunnish bloodlines and thought my relatives were fierce berserkers. Prime warriors are much, much more feral.”

Borac laughed and slapped Damon on the back. “I told you so, my friend. This is why the Antareans haven’t taken over the Milky Way. My people have stopped them time and time again.”

“And almost caused the end of our people in the process,” Wulf added. “But we are still strong in spirit, if not in numbers, and with the Alliance partnership, we’ll continue to protect the galaxy—and your sister. My sister-kin.”

Damon grunted, obviously not convinced. “Bria’s suite is through here. We’ll avoid the bar area. I’m not sure my patrons would like to see all those Alliance uniforms parading through.”

Borac choked on his laughter. “
Diew
, it would be a mass exodus.”

Iolyn could care less about the bar or whoever populated it. He wanted to see and touch his mate, take in her unique scent—and then whisk her away to the
Galanti
where he could begin the more intimate aspects of their bonding.

He rubbed his
gemat
mark. It had begun burning as they’d gotten farther from the passenger docks and closer to
Hades
. Her scent had lingered in the air in just enough quantities to trigger the neurochemical response in his brain. If he exposed the mark, he’d see the colors getting richer.

He inhaled deeply. She was so close now he could barely contain his need.

Iolyn and the others followed Damon down a plain hallway and then into a nicely appointed suite. Here, her scent was fresh and undiluted. He almost moaned at the richness of her essence. She smelled like exotic flowers found only in the Cejuru Prime rain forests, crisp ocean air, and her personal, intoxicating feminine musk.

His loins throbbed, his mark pulsed, as his body anticipated the final step of the mating bond.

But where was she? The place was quiet and had an empty feel. He glanced around, then moved to look in the other rooms. She wasn’t here.

Damon had come to the same conclusion, because he threw back his head and roared, “Bria! Goddammit!”

Iolyn grabbed the man and shouted, “Where is she?”

“Calm down, both of you,” Borac ordered. “She’s probably with Cissy. Remember, Damon? She said something about wanting to do a physical and take some samples for her research in Prime/non-Prime fertility.”

Borac touched Iolyn’s arm to tug him away from Damon.

Iolyn shrugged off the other man’s touch. The pain was unbearable now, whereas it had only been irritating after he’d first heard Brianna’s voice.

“Sorry,” Borac said. “Forgot. Her scent must be driving you mad.”

“What does that mean?” growled Damon, looking between the two of them.

Borac shot a look filled with exasperation at his friend. “I explained the mating bond to you. Brianna confirmed all I said—and still you don’t comprehend?”

Damon shook his head.

Borac sighed. “Until Iolyn and Bria mate fully for the first time, they will suffer pain and need.”

“That’s crap. She’s had that mark since I found her in the pod. She was fine growing up.” Damon had a bullish look on his face. “She hugged us all the time. She had no pain.”

“The young age at which she received the marking has a lot to do with that,” Wulf explained. “My
gemate
was a Lost One. She led a fairly normal life. But, when we first heard, then scented one another, there was never any chance she could ever be with another man again. It would hurt too much. We suffered greatly until we came together.”

“Jesus,” muttered Damon. “I thought it was all cultural bullshit. Bria said a lot of the stigma was misplaced.”

“And that may also be so. My having children with Cissy proves that one of the Elder Council’s edicts was wrong.” Borac moved to look his friend in his face. “Iolyn and Brianna have no choice. Your sister, a very intelligent and logical person, has accepted the parameters of the bond even while she is debunking a lot of the old dogma.”

Damon’s expression was still mulish, but Iolyn sensed a shift in his emotions from anger and hurt toward grief.

Borac shook his head at the look on Damon’s face and then turned to the others. “Come with me. My family’s quarters are this way.”

They followed Borac out of Brianna’s rooms and down a long corridor. There was excellent security on all the marked exits. It would take laser blasters or explosives to get through the doors, or inside help.

When Borac opened the door into his suite, Iolyn spotted a pretty, petite, dark-haired Terran with a toddler on her lap. Her pregnancy was obvious. She looked as if she would explode any second.

“Cissy,
lubha
.” Borac’s voice was filled with love and adoration for his woman. “Where’s Bria?”

“She was here for a while.” Cissy smiled. “She’ll be back soon. There was a medical emergency in the bar. A knife fight. Dozer said one of the dancers was hurt and a patron was severely injured in an attempt to protect her. The station paramedics were already dealing with another emergency. So, Bria went with Tomas to care for the injured.”

When Iolyn growled and Damon cursed, Cissy frowned. “Was that wrong? Tomas and Dozer will be by her side the whole time. She should be safe.”

“Fuck.” Damon hit the wall by the door with his fist. Then barreled out of the room.

Iolyn followed on Damon’s heels with the rest following both of them.

Borac shouted as he moved to catch up with his friend, “Damon, calm down. Brianna is a doctor. She did what she felt was necessary. Cissy is correct. Tomas and Dozer will protect her.” He then looked at Iolyn. “Be assured. Your
gemate
is safe.”

Iolyn nodded as he listened to Damon speak into his com unit. “Tomas, please tell me Bria is with you and safe.”

Damon’s face grew dark, and his emotions raged higher and higher.

Iolyn’s stomach clenched as his battle rage rose once more in response to the Terran’s chaotic emotions. What was wrong?

“Stay put. Call in more security. No one gets near her other than the patients she’s treating. Understood?” Damon snarled. “We’re coming. I’ve got her mate with me. Out.”

Iolyn asked, “Is Brianna safe?”

Damon looked at him. “On a normal day, the bar could erupt into an all-out brawl. Today isn’t normal. Tomas has…concerns. So, no…Bria is not safe, since she’s in a dangerous place.”

Iolyn paced Damon as he began to run. “You really didn’t answer my question. Is Brianna all right?” He’d heard some really bad stories about bar fights in
Hades
from some Volusians now stationed on the
Galanti.
He didn’t want her caught in the middle of a drunken riot.

Damon growled. “Bria’s fine…She is triaging and treating patients on the fucking bar floor. Tomas, Dozer, and the bartender have created a ring of protection around her. But the status could change in an instant.” He shoved his hand on a security plate and let them into a kitchen area. “Most of my patrons know the rules. But we have some real bad asses on the station right now who don’t think the rules apply to them.”

“Bad asses?” Iolyn growled. “Like the RimPz we saw on the passenger docks?”

“Yeah.” Damon threw him a dark look as he led them through the maze of the kitchen area. “There are also some mercenaries on station led by an Erian who took one look at Bria and decided he wanted her. I locked his ass up after he tried to take her off the freighter dock.”

Iolyn’s blood began to boil. “Take her?”

“Yeah. But I cut his throat before he even touched her.”

He owed this man for keeping Brianna safe. So he’d cut Damon some slack for having sexual fantasies about his
gemate
. At the end of the day, she would leave with him.

“If the Erian is locked up, why do you still seem so worried?” Nadia asked Damon.

Bria’s brother looked at her and said, “Was locked up. Tomas just told me. The Erian’s friends helped him escape. My security people are looking for them now.”

Ice-cold fear swept through Iolyn’s body and settled in his gut. “Get us moving, Damon,” Iolyn growled out. “Get us to Brianna. Once we’re sure she’s safe, get out of the way so I can go after the
bak
who threatened her.” His hands fisted. “And if she’s been harmed in any way, you’d better hide until I calm down, because I’ll want to skin you with my battle-blade—after I’ve covered it in the blood of any man who dared touch her.”

“Fucking hell.” Damon, reluctant respect in his eyes, opened the door into the main bar area. “Can’t say I’d blame you.”

Once inside, all Iolyn could see was a massive crowd making a lot of noise. No fighting. The all-male crowd seemed to be entranced by the various sex acts. The largest crowd seemed to have fixed their attention on what appeared to be the main stage.

Obviously, someone had gotten the idea of taming the majority of the savage beasts with something more interesting—group sex, with five men taking on one naked woman. Her screams and moans could’ve been anything between ecstasy and pain.

Searching the area, he couldn’t see a dark-haired woman treating any injured. But the place was huge, with multiple stages, dozens and dozens of tables, and more than one bar set up. And lots and lots of big, rough males.

“Is it always this crowded?” Wulf asked.

“Yes.” Damon pulled a passing barmaid to him. “Where’s my sister?”

“At the second-stage bar with Tomas and Dozer.” The woman cast a curious, appraising look over the landing party before scurrying off with a tray of empty glasses.

Iolyn shoved past Damon and moved through the crowd in the direction the barmaid had indicated. Whatever had happened to injure two people to the point of requiring medical attention hadn’t seemed to slow down the bar’s main activities of serving drinks and entertainment. Besides the action on the main stage, there were sex vignettes, including several of the sado-masochistic bent, going on in alcoves around the edges of the room.

He punched Damon on the arm. “You let your sister be exposed to this?” He waved a hand at the five-on-one action. While Iolyn was no prude and actually quite dominant in his sexual proclivities, he believed sex was meant to be private, not shared with hundreds of drunk, lusty, rough men.

“No. I told her to stay out of the bar no matter what happened.” Damon stopped, shoved back a freighter captain who looked as if he was going to join the on-stage action, and then proceeded to walk toward what looked to be the main entrance to the bar. “She doesn’t listen. Good luck with that, by the way.”

“You’re going the wrong way.” Iolyn pulled on Damon’s sleeve. “Brianna is that way.”

Iolyn pointed toward a stage which was empty and the bar serving the area. The crowd was lighter in that area of the room, and he spotted several large and armed Volusians dressed in the station’s security uniform.

Even with all the noise and odor of over-ripe males, spilled alcohol, and greasy food, his ramped up senses told him Brianna was within the protective cordon—and that she wasn’t afraid for her safety. His tension calmed somewhat, but for some reason, Damon’s had racheted upwards.

“Bria is safe. But remember the Erian I spoke of?”

Iolyn would never forget and even now mentally plotted all the ways he’d hurt the
apayebo
before he beheaded him.

His brothers, Nadia, and the rest of the landing party surrounded the two of them, both to provide protection from the unruly bar crowd and to hear what Damon had to say.

“Yes,” Iolyn answered. “What of him?”

“He and his buddies just entered the bar. To get inside, they had to get past the Volusian guard I had on the door.” Damon’s voice and gaze were frigid. “They’re armed and heading for Bria. So, go to Bria. I’ve got some killing to do.”

Iolyn let loose with the Caradoc battle cry as his
batel rabia
broke loose of the chains he’d placed around it. It echoed off the high ceiling of the large barroom. His brothers’ rage aligned with his, creating a wave which pulled in the other Prime in the landing party along with Borac.