Page 3 of Mastering their Maiden
I lifted my eyes and watched Kaiden’s lip curl. It was a lie. He was covering for me because he had his own discipline in mind.
“She’s disobedient and rude. Even your tribe agrees that women should not talk back. It was the chief complaint your king made when he sent his soldiers down here last month,” Micah said. “The women from this village are insolent and Aria is no different. She must be punished and the sept—”
“The sept is not where maidens are taken to be punished,” Kaiden said, his voice lowering. “To that end, it’s not where any of the women should be taken. Not the ones who are up for procurement come harvest time.”
“Then what would you suggest we do with her, Master Kaiden?” Hoval hissed the title as though each letter was poison in his mouth.
Kaiden smiled, and I tensed as I watched him tug his leather gloves off, exposing his long, thick fingers and heavy callused hands. He tucked the gloves away, then reached for the belt latched around his waist.
“Zander.”
Zander was steps away, acting as though he wasn’t listening to the conversation. But when his name was called, he stood upright and walked straight to me. He did not smile, or flinch when I put my hands against his chest and pushed. Instead, he seized my bicep in one large hand and yanked me in front of his body, then wrapped an arm around my waist to lift me off my feet.
“Pin her to the rack,” Kaiden announced, and I heard a few gasps from the crowd, some whimpers from other women I knew from the barracks. “I’ll be there in a moment.”
Zander grunted in reply, and before I had a chance to fight him, I was pinned to the large X-shaped rack in the town square with nothing but his weight. He yanked my arms up, fastening them in place while a second pair of hands took each of my legs, spreading them and binding them to the bottom of the X-shaped frame.
“You can’t help it, can you.”
I ground my teeth together when Zander whispered in my ear, thrashing as he slid his hands down my arms and over my ribs, his fingers skirting close to the sides of my breasts before circling around and settling over my lower belly. He held me tight, grinding his hips against my ass, groaning softly in my ear.
“I think you’re the one who needs help,” I hissed.
“Oh, no, Princess. I’m just fine. I’ll be even better once I watch Kaiden whip this pretty little ass of yours again.” He grunted as he rubbed himself against me. Beside us, Umber leaned against the cross, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
“Such a bad, bad girl, aren’t you, Aria.” Umber smiled, trailing a finger down my cheek. I jerked away, but he took my chin in his hand and turned my face to his, clicking his tongue. “What did she do the other day, Zander? Remind me.”
“She flashed her tits at one of the guards to get extra bread.”
“Extra bread for…”
“For the women you’re letting starve under your watch,” I snarled. “You can’t even assure them safety here and you expect them to want—”
Umber squeezed my cheeks, shaking his head and dropping his voice to a whisper. “We’re on the same side, Princess. You’re not the only one sneaking in rations, but we have to be cautious about it. There are complexities happening that you don’t—”
“If you think I care about the squabbles you’re having with the new soldiers, I don’t,” I sneered. Umber released my jaw, tracing a thumb over my lips then grinning when I jerked away. “I only care about my people, and if this is what keeps them fed and safe, then I’ll take a thousand lashes.”
I said the last bit for Kaiden’s benefit, and his eyes narrowed as he approached, looping the leather belt in his hand. Zander pushed his hips one more time against my ass, and Umber trailed his fingers down my arm before they both stepped away, leaving me at Kaiden’s mercy. He stayed close to my body as he tucked up the skirt of my dress, pinning it out of his way with a knife before he pulled my panties down in one swift movement. He clasped a hand over my ass, squeezing softly before leaning in and putting his mouth against my cheek.
“Careful what you wish for, Princess. I might give you a thousand strokes from my cock when I’m done.”
CHAPTER 2
Kaiden
I did not need this right now.
On the table in the quarters I shared with Umber and Zander were three letters. Three directions I could take. Three paths. Three circumstances needing my attention, threatening to tear me apart.
Draven’s letter was filled with innuendo, carefully chosen words to remind me that the men who’d come to ‘support’ my troops were here under orders to watch, not help. It’s always good to watch the shadows, nephew. They seem harmless but they have eyes, and teeth that are sharp if you aren’t on guard.
He could have easily been talking about the Skepna, but he wasn’t.
The second letter, from Ryne, my father—surrogate father—spoke of treachery from within, telling me not to watch the shadows, but the men in front of me.
Draven, Gaige, and Kael stole more than a maiden from me. They stole allegiance. They stole men. My palace is surrounded by traitors on all sides, my son, and they are tempted by lust for my throne and lust for women. Women of all things. Women who are meant to be bound and bred as they were in the first days of our tribe, when our gods and goddess sent their soldiers into this realm. They are spaces for our seed to grow life. Nothing more. Do not let those harlots in the village tempt you, or any traitor convince you my time should come to an end. I am strong and virile as ever, my son, as are you. The throne is mine, and you as my son will claim it when my time is ended.
Ryne would sooner cut off his balls than be done with that throne, and on the incredibly rare chance he were to father a son, I would be cast aside as quickly as a bone from dinner. Calling me ‘son’ was a way to feed off the loyalty I’d had for him when I was a boy and didn’t know any better. When my eyes were cloudy with fear and confusion. I’d had them forcefully pried open over the years, starting when I was in training with Umber, Zander, and our fourth partner Dex. We were set under the steadying influence of my uncle Draven and his men, and taught strategy and history from the author of the last letter I’d received this morning. The one I’d been waiting for over a week.
