Lover Enslaved: Thieves of Aurion, Book 1 (7 page)

The fact she craved it to the depths of her soul scared the crap out of her. She didn’t need or want to have these urges. Not when they were directed towards a Maddoc fae.

“Thanks.” She tugged her feet from his grip and curled them beneath the protection of the cot before smiling brightly. “I feel like a new woman now.”

If Dash saw through her false perkiness, he didn’t let on. He pushed to his feet and his shirt rucked up just beneath his navel. She tried not to blatantly stare at his exposed wedge of bronze skin, but it was real hard.

“What’s the farthest you’ve traveled beyond Zalan’s border?”

Licking her lips, she glanced away from his stomach. She kept waiting for him to pull his shirt down.
Jeez, can’t he feel a draft or something?
“Helias. Why?”

“I need to know what I’m getting myself into. Since you’re a virgin, I’m guessing a whole heap of trouble.”

Mara frowned. “I’m not a virgin. I’ve had sex before.”

Dash’s slow, wicked grin slid into place. “
Sher ’tian
, I think we established that fact. I was referring to your lack of worldly experience.”

She shoved her arms over her chest. “Just because I haven’t jetted all over the planet stealing anything not nailed down doesn’t mean I’m a naïve bumpkin.”

He towered over her, his stance equally combative. “Have you ever stared down a hungry orgeel?”

“Not sure.” She gave him a wary look. “What is it?”

“A red-scaled lizard. It grows to twenty feet and is found mostly in the cave region of Mer’daca.” A devilish gleam sparked in his dark eyes. “They have a particular fondness for the sweet taste of blondes.”

She snorted. “You’re making that up.” Worry crept along her spine when he didn’t verify her statement.

“Mara, there are numerous deadly and strange beings you’ll encounter in Mer’daca.” His lips tugged upward. “Some of them are even the non-fae or non-human variety. Like me, you need to know what you’re getting yourself into.”

Even if she were shaking inside over the prospect of running into a whole herd of salivating orgeels—which she was—she didn’t have any choice but to accompany him to Mer’daca. Nalia’s poisoned ink sealed her fate, so to speak. “Well, wherever we’re going, hopefully it’ll be orgeel free.”

A pensive stillness laid claim to Dash’s face and she swallowed down a lump of fear. “Please tell me we’re not spending the night in any caves.”

“I’m not certain.”

“What do you mean you’re not certain,” she demanded, gaping at him. “Are we or not?”
Please say we’re not.

He scrubbed his jaw before gracing her with a sheepish grin. “Here’s the thing—after we reach Mer’daca, I’ve no clue where we go next.”

Chapter Five

They arrived in Volto before nightfall. In the distance, dark clouds, fat with rain, gathered on the horizon.

Mara waited until the aerocoach coasted to a stop in the shipyard’s unloading dock before tugging her valise from the overhead compartment.
This is insane.
If a raging storm didn’t sweep her overboard during their journey, a hungry orgeel would likely take care of the oversight by making her his late-night snack.

Dash stretched his arm past her head and grabbed his own bag. He caught her stare and returned it with one of his cocky smiles.

If I’m the orgeel’s snack, he damn well better be the main course
. Growling beneath her breath, Mara hefted her valise with both hands and stumbled from the vehicle. The pungent stink of rotting kelp hit her full force. Gagging, she dropped the valise and clamped a hand over her nose and mouth.

Piper flitted from the aerocoach and scrunched her face. “What died?”

Mara cautiously removed her hand and took a shallow breath through her nose. Blessedly, the initial shock of the horrid smell appeared somewhat diminished. “My guess, about fifty tons of fish.”

“What’s the matter—never smelled the sea?” Dash sidled between them and sucked in a lungful of air before releasing it with gusto. “Ahh, now that’s refreshing.”

“There’s something very wrong with you.” Mara wrinkled her nose. Ignoring his chuckle, she searched the bustling docks for sign of their ship and her captain. According to Nalia, Sig Borgander was large of belly, boisterous, and sported way too much body hair.

From what Mara could see, that described nearly every male in the shipyard. A man with an obscenely endowed mermaid tattooed on his upper arm shuffled past carrying a crate. “Excuse me,” she called, rushing after him. She sidestepped a rotting fish carcass being attacked by a swarm of flies.

The dockworker lowered his crate and eyed her over the top of it with lascivious interest. Quite disturbing, considering he was old enough to be her grandfather. He stopped and she crossed her arms over her chest in an effort to block his lecherous stare. “I’m looking for Captain Borgander. Would you happen to know where I might find him?”

He aimed a stream of tobacco at the ground before swiping a hand across his scraggly gray beard. “Girlie, you don’t need him. I’ll be your captain.” The crate’s contents rattled when he thrust his pelvis in and out suggestively.

She fought back a dry heave.

“Careful, mate.” Dash’s hand suddenly rode the small of Mara’s back. “Old fella such as you could end up in traction busting out those kinds of moves.”

A scowl pulled the man’s bushy eyebrows into a menacing vee. “Who the fuck are you?”

The warm hand pressing into her back slid around and settled possessively across her stomach.

Dash silenced her sputtering protest by tugging her tight against his hip. “I’m her husband. Anything else you want to know?” Underlying steel lurked in his velvet tone.

Flat olive eyes regarded Dash cautiously before the man shook his head. “Borgander ain’t left Port Scohope yet. Too much whoring and Ginnish Sours, I reckon.” His robust chortle startled the nearby gulls and they took flight with a chorus of displeasured squawks. “Don’t expect him in before midmornin’.”

“Morning? As in
tomorrow
?” Mara’s mouth fell open. She remembered the nearby swarm of flies and quickly snapped it shut.

“Ain’t that what I said?” Mumbling beneath his breath, the man shifted the crate in his arms and hobbled off.

Piper fluttered up with Ronan hot on her wings.

“Where’s the ship?” Ronan’s narrowed eyes tracked the departing dockworker. “Sooner we leave this shit hole, the better.”

“Seems we’re not leaving until tomorrow.” Dash released Mara’s waist and held up his hands when Ronan gave him a sizzling glare. “Don’t kill the messenger.”

Ronan’s glare pivoted onto Piper. “This is all your fault. We could have hired a jetcraft and been halfway to Mer’daca by now.”

Piper turned up her nose. “Can I help it that I have a fear of flying?”

“You’re a
sprite
.” A vein bulged in the side of Ronan’s jaw. “You fly all the time.”

“Yeah, but not thousands of feet up in the air.” Piper tossed her hair. “
Geesh
.”

“Look, if anyone’s to blame, it’s the luscious maiden responsible for Borgander’s debauched excess,” Dash said reasonably.

Mara shoved her hands on her hips and issued him a challenging stare. “Your theory’s a bit warped. The captain’s a big boy. He should know when enough is enough.”

“Situations like that, men don’t think with this head.” Dash tapped the side of his skull. “The one downstairs always gets the winning vote.”

She hated to admit he had a point. “Well, no sense arguing over who’s at fault. The important thing is finding someplace to room tonight.” Lifting an arm, she shaded her eyes from the late-day sun and surveyed the shipyard. The idea of bunking with the seabirds and foulmouthed dockworkers was cringe-inducing. “I wonder if there are any hotels in town.”

“Only one way to find out,” Dash said, sauntering towards the aerocoach.

Sighing, Mara trailed after him.

~ * ~

They’d not traveled far from Volto’s harbor when Mara spied the large crowd of people waving signs by the side of the road. “What’s going on out there?”

Dash leaned forward and glanced out the window. His breath fogged against the glass, evidence of the near arctic state of the aerocoach’s coolant level. “Some kind of protest.”

The aerocoach slowed. Mara peered at the signs and the irate faces of the people being corralled behind a barricade heavily patrolled by a group of fae law enforcers. Other than the enforcers, everyone else appeared to be human.

“Ah, they’re protesting the free-trade embargo.”

Mara’s fingers slipped from the cold window. She turned towards Dash, her forehead scrunching. “Isn’t this kind of an out-of-the-way place to hold a protest?”

“I think it has more to do with the proximity to the harbor. Less and less human-produced goods are being allowed shipment by sea—the least costly means of cargo transport.”

“That’s terrible. How are people supposed to make a living if they can’t get their products where they need to go?”

Dash’s mouth tipped in a sardonic smile. “I suppose that’s the whole idea.”

Ire welled inside Mara’s chest, threatening to explode. Would the injustices facing her species never end? For over a thousand years, Aurion humans had fought for equality—yet they seemed no closer to achieving the goal than the first humans who toiled in the vineyards beneath the harsh whips of the fae royals.

Out of nowhere, a large rock slammed into the side of the aerocoach. A screech ripped from Piper and she scrabbled for safety under the seat. Another rock hit the vehicle, making it shake.

Mara instinctively hunched her shoulders and ducked beneath the window’s edge. “Why are they throwing stuff at us?”

“The bloody crest on the hood.” Dash growled and rapped his fist on the divider between the cockpit and the rear compartment. “Get a move on. This crowd is out for royal blood.”

Ronan heeded the warning and the aerocoach rocketed past the screaming crowd. Several blocks down they slowed and everyone released a relieved breath.

Dash leaned back in his seat. “Exciting enough for you?”

Mara patted her chest as her heart slowly descended from her throat. “If that’s excitement, I’ll blissfully resign myself to a life of boredom.”

They drove a little farther along the coastline until a small inn popped into view. Ronan parked the aerocoach and stormed outside to check the damage to the vehicle. Once he finished his litany of curses, he joined them in their investigation of the potential lodging.

Weather-beaten shingles drooped from the inn’s exterior, many of them flapping in the breeze with a creaky whine. If a stiff wind kicked up, the entire place stood in danger of sliding into the ocean.

Mara dug for words of reassurance. “It looks…promising.” Okay, so she was stretching.

“It’s a dump.” Ronan—ever the optimist—thrust out his chin.

“Sure, it has its issues.” Mara nodded reluctantly. “But you have to admit the flower boxes on the porch are sort of homey and charming.”

Ronan’s chin regained its stubborn tilt. “There’s nothing in them.”

A sigh rolled from Mara.
There’s just no pleasing some people
.

Piper flew to the porch and settled on the rail. “I bet a crazy woman runs this joint.” She pointed to a pine floorboard jutting at an odd angle. “All three of her dead husbands are probably shoved under there.”

The gravel crunched beneath Ronan’s black leather boots as he slowly backed towards the aerocoach. Shooting Piper a quick
I’ll-strangle-you-later
look, Mara snagged his arm. “You know better than to listen to her insane musings. Besides, do you really want to cross paths with those protestors again?” She patted his elbow soothingly. Glancing over, she caught the amusement splashed across Dash’s face.

Ronan must have noticed it too because he jerked from her grasp and bared his teeth at Dash before swaggering up the porch steps.

Inside, the inn appeared better maintained. The floors gleamed with a recent waxing and a delicious odor of apples and sweet spice filled the air. An older woman with plump, rosy cheeks and a full head of bristly gray curls stood behind a worm-holed desk. She smiled when their group tromped across the entrance.

“You nice folks looking for a room?”

At Mara’s nod, the woman reached for a key hanging from a row of pegs behind her. “It’s the first door on the right, top of the stairs. Room comes with free breakfast. My daughter, Gretel, she handles the kitchen. Just show her your key in the mornin’.”

Mara stared at the heavy brass key swinging from the woman’s gnarled fingers. “We require at least two rooms.”

Regret deepened the pronounced crow’s feet at the corners of the innkeeper’s eyes. “Only have the one. Whole slew of merchantmen came in tonight.”

Shit
. Mara slid a glance at the others. Ronan and Piper didn’t look too thrilled. Dash, on the other hand, wore a grin and a sparkle in his eyes. She turned back to the innkeeper. “Any other lodging in the area?”

The woman shook her head.

“We’ll take it,” Dash said. He reached around Mara and snagged the key.