Owned by Luna Voss

31

Melyta

“Every time you call me, you’re either harboring a fugitive, faking someone’s death, or hiding a dead body,” Korva grumbles as he steps into the living room early the next morning and sees Nullion’s corpse.

“Hey, this is the first dead body, isn’t It?” I joke.

He glances at Barion. “Yeah, the first. Let’s just go with that.”

Both men chuckle nervously, and so do I.

“Quite some partners in crime, aren’t you two?” I tease them, trying to lighten the mood.

Korva puts on a very serious expression. “We’re the Vostra. Crime is what we do.”

I bite my lip. “How sure are you that Nullion hasn’t told anyone what he discovered about us?”

“Very sure,” says Korva confidently. “He wanted to verify everything before he told Sarizor. He, uh— might have shared his suspicions, but that was early on, nothing solid.”

“Bet you’re glad you don’t have to work with the fucking guy anymore,” says Barion.

Korva nods. “It almost makes up for having my day interrupted to go dispose of his body.”

Barion claps him on the shoulder. “Hey. You know how much this means, right? To both of us. I don’t know how we can repay you.”

“Just stay on Sarizor’s good side,” he replies, grimacing.

After Korva leaves, Barion and I are ready to collapse. Although we managed to sleep for an hour or two after he marked me, we’re still both exhausted, running on empty. Barion looks pale, and the bruises on his face are starting to show.

“Fuck,” he grunts, staring at his communicator in disgust.

I give his shoulder a squeeze. “What is it?”

“It’s that wedding. Fullo’s kid is having a whole-ass reception, human style.”

“Today?”

“Yeah, today.”

I sigh. “Dammit.”

Barion’s shoulders slump. “Yeah. I do not have a fucking wedding in me today. But it’s going to look bad if we don’t show up.” He flops down on the couch, looking spent.

I take a deep breath. “What time is the wedding?”

He shrugs. “Who cares? We’re not fucking going.”

“Didn’t you just say it would look bad if we don’t show up?”

“Yeah. But fuck it.”

I walk over to him and give him my hand. He takes it, looking confused, and I start to pull him to his feet. “What are you—”

“We’re going,” I tell him firmly. “We’ll get dressed, and then I’ll use makeup to cover your bruises and cuts. This never happened. We spent an intimate night together, you marked me, and we have no idea what happened to Nullion. That’s it. We need to keep up appearances.”

Barion stays where he is on the couch, looking taken aback. “Seriously?”

“What, do I need to spank you? We are not going to arouse suspicion after everything we just went through. Up.”

I yank harder on his arm, and he allows me to pull him to his feet.

“Thanks,” he says quietly, keeping my hand in his. He pulls me closer to him, and I allow him wrap his arms around me. “I don’t know what I would do without you.”

* * *

Barion

Unlike with human weddings, a Voorian wedding doesn’t include a ceremony. That’s because the actual matingpart happens in private, when the man marks his woman’s neck. The “wedding,” as we call it, is really just a big party for friends and family, and I’m pretty sure it’s something we took from human culture. A lot of Voorians don’t bother with it. Honestly, I find it ironic that so many vostrata have adopted the custom, considering our emphasis on maintaining Voorian cultural traditions. But either way, big, impressive “weddings” have become a common method for important members of the life to show off their wealth and influence.

“Let’s not ever have a wedding like this,” Melyta whispers to me as we walk into the venue together.

“You read my mind,” I whisper back, managing a tired grin.

Like most Vostra weddings I’ve attended, the best way to describe this reception would probably be gaudy.Which is really just a nice way of saying tacky. Bold, sparkling decorations line the walls, with an all-human wait staff dressed in matching outfits with perfectly starched shirts. There’s a chocolate fountain on every table, and plates of fruit from all corners of the galaxy. I would probably describe the overall theme as “fuck you, we have money.”

I grit my teeth to hide a wince. Everything hurts. My face hurts. My body hurts. The cut on my arm hurts. But it will all heal soon. And with Melyta by my side, none of the pain matters.

“Does my makeup look okay?” I whisper to her, feeling a sudden jolt of worry. It took a lot of skill on her part to cover up my facial injuries.

“Yeah, you’re fine,” she assures me. “I’ll bet that’s the first time you’ve ever asked that question.”

I chuckle weakly and squeeze her hand. She’s right about that.

As we make the rounds, I find myself overcome with pride to see the mark on Melyta’s neck. I keep stealing peeks at it whenever I can, and every time it fills me with giddy satisfaction. She’s wearing a dress that shows it off perfectly, two dark little splotches on the skin still in the process of healing over. Now everyone who sees her knows she has a mate.

Me. I’m her mate.

I’m so fucking lucky.

I put my hand on her waist and pull her close to me as we wind up in conversation with an older couple. The wife catches sight of Melyta’s very fresh mark and asks her about it excitedly.

“Yeah, it’s new,” she admits, blushing. “Last night, actually. But I don’t want to draw attention away from the couple. This is their day.”

“Barion,” comes a gruff voice from behind us.

I turn and see Sarizor approaching, flanked by two bodyguards.

“Sarizor,” I greet him, nodding.

His eyes land on Melyta’s mark and he raises his eyebrows at me. “Since when did you mark her?”

“Last night, if you must know,” I tell him, giving her an affectionate squeeze. “Allow me to introduce you to Melyta Dultaz. But we’re not trying to steal the spotlight. Where’s Nullion? I thought he would be here.”

“I was hoping you would know where Nullion was,” says Sarizor, eyeing me suspiciously. “I’ve been trying to contact him all day.”

I shrug. “I’m sure he’ll turn up. He always does.”

“He did manage to turn something up yesterday,” the boss growls. “And now we’re one step closer to finding Gurtion’s killer.”

I don’t allow my face to react. “Oh?”

“Melyta’s roommate,” he says, eyes flashing. “Different Melyta, of course,” he clarifies, glancing at my mate. “The one at the bottom of all this. The one you couldn’t find.”

I look down. I know this is his way of chastising me in public, and it’s my job to respond graciously. I’m also processing his words, and realizing Jenyta might be in danger. With everything that happened, I completely forgot Nullion mentioned her last night. Fuck. I squeeze Melyta’s hand, urging her not to react.

“You… you found her roommate?”

“Yes,” says Sarizor, a little too proud. “Nullion did. We have her. She hasn’t said anything yet, but she will.”

“I have to go to the bathroom,” says Melyta suddenly, looking distraught. She excuses herself in a rush and disappears.

Now I have to perform the balancing act of trying to get more information without seeming too interested. “What are you going to do with her?” I ask.

“Keep her, for now,” growls the boss. “Until I can get a hold of Nullion. He’ll be able to get whatever information out of her we need. He has his ways.”

He raises his eyebrows, as though daring me to object. He knows I don’t always approve of Nullion’s tactics, or of anything to do with hurting women. The fact that I actually give a shit about our traditional Vostra code of honor is one of our long-standing disagreements, and probably why he’s been so much closer to Nullion than to his own underboss lately.

I nod. “Makes sense. Keep me posted.”

As Sarizor walks away, I notice two of the older captains nearby glancing at him and then trading worried looks. Interesting. Perhaps not everyone is as happy with his leadership as they might seem.

Korva catches up with me as I look for Melyta. “Barion! I need to talk to you.”

He tells me quickly what he knows about Jenyta: apparently Nullion drugged her and kidnapped her yesterday morning.

“I only just found out,” he whispers, keeping his face jovial, as though we’re having a light conversation. “She isn’t hurt, just under guard. Word is Sarizor is waiting for Nullion to do his thing. Buys us some time, considering I have a funny feeling Nullion won’t be showing up.”

“You know what, Korva,” I say, stealing a glance at Sarizor across the room, “if I didn’t know any better, I might actually think you were a good person.”

He shrugs. “Shades of gray. We’re all scumbags. But I try.”

Melyta looks shellshocked and pale when I finally find her.

“Is Jenyta safe?” is all she asks me, her voice small and worried.

I nod. “Yes. For now. I’ll explain more later.”

Her shoulders slump in relief as we walk around the reception making our goodbyes. I repeat to her what Korva told me as we drive home.

“Thank god for Korva,” she sniffles. “He’s a good guy.”

“That’s what I told him.”

“We’re going to rescue her, right? We’re going to get her out of there?”

“Of course. First thing tomorrow, we make a plan.”

“Tomorrow? We should start now! We can’t just leave her.”

I take her hand. “No. Look at you. Look at us. The first thing we need to do is sleep. We won’t be any good to her at all if we’re dead on our feet. I know you don’t want to hear this, but rescuing her isn’t going to happen overnight. It’s going to be a matter of days, maybe even weeks. We’re going to do it, but we’re going to do it right.”

I can tell from her face that she understands, but she still protests. “But we have to—”

I shake my head. “Melyta, as your mate, I’m telling you that we need to rest. I can barely even think right now, and everything hurts. You used your power in a massive way yesterday, for the first time ever. Neither of us has slept more than an hour or two. If we try to bumble into a rescue attempt now, it’s not going to do your friend any good.”

She doesn’t like it, but she nods. “You’re right. I just hate it. I fucking hate it.”

“Jenyta isn’t in any immediate danger,” I assure her. “Sarizor is waiting for Nullion to interrogate her. And Nullion is, well, you know. Busy.”

She actually cracks a smile at that. “That makes me feel a little better.”

“I promise you, Melyta. We’re going to rescue your friend.”

We arrive back at the house, and the living room is still an absolute mess. Right down to the broken coffee table and the red spot on the carpet.

“This is going to be one hell of a cleanup job,” Melyta remarks. I force a chuckle, distracted by my thoughts.

I take her hand as we walk up the steps, and stop her as we reach the bedroom. “I have to tell you something,” I say.

She looks up at me. “Oh?”

I take a deep breath. The words I’m about to speak now are treason, and could mean brutal consequences if they were to reach the wrong ears.

“I’m planning to do more than rescue Jenyta,” I tell her, my voice low and deadly serious.

Melyta frowns, and then nods, her eyebrows raised. “What are you planning?”

I speak clearly, filled with a growing sense of grim conviction. “We’re not going to live like this anymore.”

“Oh?”

“Sarizor is done as leader of this Family. He’s leading us in the wrong direction, and has been for a long time. I can see it, and others are seeing it, too.”

“So what do you want to do about it?”

“I’m going to kill him,” I growl. “I don’t know how yet, or when. But I’m going to kill him. I’m going to kill him and I’m going to take his place.”

Her expression doesn’t change. “You want to be the boss of the Family?”

“I want a life with you,” I tell her seriously, “and not under that old fuck’s thumb. This shit with him keeps going on, and it can’t anymore. I won’t let it. I won’t let him threaten you, I won’t let him hurt your friend, and I won’t let him drag our Family down.”

Melyta bites her lip. I can’t tell if she thinks this is a good idea, or the stupidest, most dangerous thing she’s ever heard in her life.

“Say something,” I beg, stroking the hair from her face. “If you’re not on board with this, I need you to tell me. I’ll never speak of it again if I don’t have your blessing.”

She smiles, then kisses me on the cheek. “It’s your decision, Vostra. I support you 100%.”

“I like you, you know that?” I whisper, taking her chin between my thumb and forefinger and guiding it to my lips.

“I’ve been starting to get that impression,” she giggles, grabbing my ass with both hands.

I grab her ass, too. She giggles even harder. We peck each other on the lips a bunch of times, our shared laughter slightly manic with exhaustion, and I walk her over to the bed.

“I probably look like shit,” she chuckles, trying and failing to unzip her dress. “Help me?” She flails her arms helplessly.

I grin at her cuteness. “Here, turn around. And you don’t look like shit. You look like my mate. You could never be anything but beautiful with that mark on your neck.”

Her dress comes over her head, and she falls backward into my lap. I hold her there, stroking her face, so glad to have her.

She nuzzles me. “I want to move but I’m so tired I can’t. I’m stuck.”

“That’s okay,” I whisper. “You can sleep now, vulta. Your Vostra’s got you.”

* * *

Melyta

I’m warm and comfortable when I wake up. Barion is behind me, the big spoon. We’re on top of the covers, him fully clothed, me about halfway undressed. I’m grateful that he seems to have taken my bra off before I fell asleep. The clock next to the bed indicates it’s been about two hours.

Barion stirs, and his eyes blink groggily. He starts to take his jacket off, and I help him.

“Thanks,” he murmurs, barely awake. “What time is it?”

“It’s only been a couple of hours,” I whisper, kissing his forehead. “We can stay in bed. Here, let me help you with this.”

I unbutton his shirt for him and he blinks at me gratefully. For a little while I just look down at him, stroking his chest, his tattoo, his chiseled abs. He makes eye contact, and there’s a silent respect and understanding between us. We’re a team now. No matter what happens.

“I love you, vulta,” he whispers, his voice barely more than a breath.

“I love you too, Vostra,” I tell him, settling back into the spooning position.

He wraps his arms around me and I take one of his big hands, bringing it to my mouth and kissing it. It feels so strong, the skin so rough, thick veins tracing up the forearm. Our fingers interlock. Barion’s touch is almost enough to make me forget why I’m carrying this awful feeling of dread in my stomach. It’s an escape I welcome.

“Is that a plasma pistol in your pocket?” I tease him, feeling something unmistakable pressing against my butt.

He laughs. “Not quite. You can ignore it if you want.”

I wiggle my hips against him. “Mmm, but do I want? It seems like I have options right now.”

“You do indeed,” he whispers in my ear, and his hand moves down to cup my breast.

I sigh, goosebumps spreading across my neck at the feeling of his breath. For a little while I just grind my butt against him, and then I reach back and try to unbutton his pants from behind.

“I got it,” he grunts.

I shimmy out of my underwear as he takes off his pants.

“You’re my mate now,” he grunts, wrapping his arm around me and using the other to position his shaft between my legs. “I’m doing this with my wife.”

“Guilty as charged,” I reply, showing him the mark on my neck.

Barion lets out a grunt of happiness as his cock slips inside me.

“Go slow,” I whisper, my eyes closing. “Oh, that feels nice.”

His rough hands grip my hips as he begins to thrust, keeping up a slow, consistent rhythm. His breathing becomes ragged, and soon he’s letting out groans of pleasure every time he slides his cock into me.

“Can I come, Vostra?” I ask him, basking in the comfortable submission of giving him the power to choose. “I’m getting close.”

“Yes, vulta,” he breathes, squeezing me tighter as he thrusts. “You’re allowed to come as many times as you want.”

His big shaft moves in and out of me, stretching my sensitive inner walls, and I cry out as my orgasm overwhelms me. He just holds me as he rocks his hips, his presence warm and firm, breath heavy in my ear.

“I want you to knot me,” I moan, pressing myself into him.

With a grunt, he draws himself up on the bed, flips me onto my back, and starts to give me everything he has, his groans rapidly becoming more fevered. My climax continues, rolling into a second explosion, and my voice turns into a whimper as I feel his knot expand.

Barion sighs his thrusting turns into gentle rocking. All I can do is moan, overcome by pleasure, every little movement of his knot bringing me another toe-curling jolt.

“Vostra, I love the way your knot feels inside me,” I whimper, looking up at him and meeting his eyes. “I love being yours.”

He grins, and he moves his hand to my neck. I let out a little squeal of happiness, putting my hand over his, enjoying the feeling of being owned.

Yours,I mouth, not breaking eye contact.

“Mine,” he repeats, rocking his big knot inside me.

His excitement grows visibly as his pace increases. I put my hands on his hips, guiding him, drinking in the sight of his muscular body.

“We’re going to take over this Family together,” I whisper, another climax building inside me.

Barion’s eyes flash. “Yes,” he growls, burning determination in his voice. “Soon.”

I keep going. Anything to feed that fire in his eyes. “You’re going to be the boss,” I moan gleefully. “Of all of us. You’re going to make it happen. I know it. We’re going to make it happen.”

My mate’s fangs extend and he lets out a triumphant snarl. He brings his face next to mine, hand firmly gripping my throat. Then he gasps, buries his head in my shoulder, and I feel the wet, growing warmth of him coming inside me. I shudder underneath him as my own orgasm hits and I’m reduced to nothing but uncontrollable moans and labored breathing.

“I’m going to run this city,” he growls, his voice strained with climax, “and you’re going to be my fucking queen.”

* * *

to be continued…

The story continues in Book 2, Kept.

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Luna Voss