Truce Page 2

Valerian was normally a man of great patience. All good leaders had to be patient, to know how to wait and choose the proper moment. But it was hard to know with one hundred percent certainty where Melena’s loyalties lay.

  What surprised him was that it wasn’t the parley that worried him. It was Melena leaving him… betraying him by going with her brother and remaining in his protection. It confused him why it should matter so much to him. She was just a woman. A pet. But she was his pet. She belonged to him, and he would risk much to get her back, even if it meant fighting a full rebel army with just fifty men.

  No. He wouldn’t do that. He would go back and get the whole of his army. He would think clearly, not act on impulse. It wouldn’t be that hard to track the movements of an army of rebels.

  Provided they moved together and as a whole. One of the reasons it had been so hard to find them had been because they rarely gathered anywhere as a whole. They worked in pockets, smaller bands causing trouble here and there. But they were all here now. He would track them to the ends of the earth to get Melena back, even if she didn’t want to come. The betrayal would sting, but she would not get away from him that easily.

  The woods were heavily silent. Only the restless huffs and stomps of the horses could be heard. That and the sound of his feet as he paced in the snow. How long had it been? An hour? Two?

  Too long. It had been too long. Was she gone? Was his Melena gone?

  Suddenly one of his sentries in the leading edge of the word hurried out of the tree line. “I hear something. A large group of people.”

  Valerian snapped his fingers sharply, and everyone mounted back up, instantly on alert. He recalled the other sentries, not wishing them to be caught out alone. If the entire rebel army was on its way, his small contingent of men could never stand against them. “Stay alert. Be ready to fly if we are badly outnumbered,” he instructed his men.

  “We will stay and protect you, sir, if you need to flee.”

  The idea of fleeing stuck in his craw. He was not a coward. He had fought against great odds in the past. However, there was far more at stake than the level of his pride and the power of his ego. His bid to take the throne would be over before it began if he were taken captive. The rebels could capture him and turn him over to his brother… who would end his life. He had gambled much on the loyalty of one woman. Had he been a fool for doing so?

  He kept a steady eye trained on the trees. Suddenly he saw dark shapes moving toward him, and at their head… a woman. A woman with long, blond, beautiful hair.

  Pride swelled inside him. She was coming back to him.

  Still he was cautious. She could be a diversion. There could be an entire army waiting in the trees beyond this contingent.

  Not all of them were on horseback. In fact, few of them were. The rebels didn’t have enough horses to go around it seemed. Then again they could have been holding their horses back for a second wave of attack.

  Melena emerged from the woods, a man at her side on horseback who looked very much like her, though his features were not as youthful as hers. Life had been hard on him. No doubt the rebels had had it hard wintering without gold or food to support them other than what the woods provided. They all looked a bit thin. But they also looked hard… ready for battle should the moment call for it. They all had their hands resting on their swords.

  Grulon… for he assumed it was Grulon… moved forward at his sister’s side. She turned and came abreast of Valerian, speaking without words where her loyalties lay. He wanted to reach out to her. To touch her in praise. But it would be a sign of weakness he would not give to his enemies. He would reward her in private… later.

  “You wish to speak to me?” Grulon said.

  “I wish to end this war,” Valerian said directly.

  “Why should I believe that?”

  “I could have easily brought my entire army and wiped you from this earth. I did not.”

  Chapter Two

  Grulon shifted in his saddle. He knew Valerian spoke the truth. His words had some weight. “Why would you end a war you have already won?”

  “Because I have newer concerns now. I am willing to pull my entire army out of your country, leaving you in peace.”

  “But you want something from me. Otherwise you would just go.”

  “I do want something from you. I want you and your men to join me as I take the throne from my brother.”

  “Why should we help you after the way you have decimated our country?”

  “Because if I do not win against my brother he will return here, and the next time there will be no hope of ever getting your country back. I have no interest in Moglu. I give you my word that when I am emperor I will let your country go in peace. But first I must become emperor… and for that I need an army of men… good fighters. You and your rebels have proven to be resourceful and clever. My men could learn a lot about your tactics.”

  Grulon digested Valerian’s words a moment. He looked to his sister and then back to Valerian. “My sister seems to think you are a better man than your brother. I am not convinced.”

  “What can I do to convince you?”

  “Let my sister go free.”

  Valerian tensed. He looked over at Melena, but her face was unreadable. “If she wants to leave, then I do not want her. But if she wants to stay with me… it is up to her. She is free to choose.”

  Surprise filtered across Melena’s features, but then her gaze softened on him. The look was so full of devotion that he felt his heart tighten in his chest.

  “I choose to stay with you, Sir,” she said clearly. “I do not wish to leave. I have already told my brother this.”

  Valerian’s relief was profound. He had to keep himself from grabbing her up right then and kissing her. Instead he turned an emotionless gaze onto Grulon. “She has made her choice of her own free will.”

  “You have clouded her mind,” Grulon accused. “You have taken her will from her.”

  “I have done nothing of the kind. Melena understands loyalty will be rewarded. She seeks that reward. That is the act of a clear mind.” Valerian narrowed his gaze on Grulon. “Will you let one woman come between you and the freedom of your people?”

  Grulon shifted in his saddle. “No. I will not. If she wishes to stay with you, then I say good riddance. I will consider your offer carefully. I must discuss your terms with my men. I cannot say they will go along with this, but I will try to present your proposition in as wise a light as possible. Vicktor is our enemy. We will never be free as long as he rules. You are not much better in my opinion, but I don’t see how we have much of a choice.”

  “I will ride back to my encampment tonight and await your response. I expect to hear from you by noon tomorrow,” Valerian said.

  “I will send messengers with our decision.” Grulon turned back into the woods. He and his men disappeared within minutes.

  * * *

  Valerian turned to look at Melena. She sat tall and proud in her saddle, looking infinitely pleased with herself and the situation.

  “Come, Pet, let’s ride back. The hour grows late, and I do not want us riding in the dark.”

  “Yes, Sir. Whatever you desire,” she said with a soft smile.

  He would let her know later how much her words and her behavior pleased him.

  * * *

  Melena’s entire body ached. She had been used and delightfully abused by her master the entire night. Now it was coming close to dawn, and it seemed he still had a hunger for her. She was presently bound, her wrists to her ankles, on her knees and her back bent slightly to accommodate. She was sitting back on her heels, but still there was a small point of stretching of her body. Her knees were on the carpet that had been laid inside their tent, so she was spared the sensation of the ground digging into her knees.

  She shivered as she thought of the possibilities. She never knew what he was going to do next to her. The only thing she could count on was that he would surprise her somehow. He always did
.

  “Are you cold?” he asked her.

  He was standing behind her so she craned her neck to see him. He stood naked behind her, not having dressed again after the last time he had been inside her.

  “No. I’m not cold,” she said. From her perspective she could see he was aroused again, his cock stiff and heavy and pointing in her direction. Her lips curled into a little smile. The hunger he felt for her made her feel powerful. It made her feel cherished just as everything he did made her feel that way. She knew he did cherish her… but that letting her leave and trusting her to come back to him had tested his patience and his control. Now he was acting out because of it. Like a child unable to express his emotions clearly, he used punishment and lovemaking to tell her how he felt.

  “Then why do you shiver?” he asked.

  She had forgotten she had done so. She was a bit weary, not yet having had sleep after all the events of the day.

  “I was only thinking of the cold,” she said.

  He was silent a long minute, and this worried her. Whenever he grew silent it was usually followed by some other clever scheme for testing her body and her passions. Excitement fluttered in her chest at the understanding.

  “Perhaps the memory of the cold isn’t enough,” he speculated after a moment. “Perhaps you need a lesson in extremes.”

  He approached her, and by the time he reached her, her heart was thundering in her chest. He reached down and untied her hands from her ankles. She took a moment to rub at them, her fingers tingling a little as circulation was restored to normal. He had bound her tight, but not too tight. He was always conscious, it seemed, of just where her limits were as far as that and everything else was concerned.

  He took her arm in hand and helped her to her feet. Her knees ached a little and she stumbled, but he caught her and guided her into sitting on the bed. He stepped away from her and pulled on pants and his boots, leaving himself bare-chested. Then he took her arm in hand and led her to the foot of the bed. There was a trunk there and he reached inside for something wrapped in cloth. Then he had her arm again and led her to the rear flap of the tent.

  This exit from the tent led to a small rather private area abutted against a cliff wall. There was snow on the ground in a small circle, no more than ten feet in circumference. They were completely hidden from the rest of the encampment, something she was grateful for because she was naked and had yet to grow used to the idea of being on display.

  “Lie down,” he commanded her.

  “In the snow?” she asked incredulously. As it was her feet were stinging with cold. The private alcove blocked any serious wind, but it was still bitterly cold. Especially in comparison to the warmth of the tent they had just left.

  “Are you questioning me?” he asked harshly.

  “N-no, Sir,” she said, her teeth beginning to chatter a little. She moved to the center of the area and, shivering before she even touched her bare skin to the snow, she lay down as gingerly as she could.

  The cold stung her everywhere, like thousands of little bees. But it wasn’t long before she began to feel numb where she contacted the snow, and shivered violently where she felt the frigid air.

  She lay there shivering, watching him as her teeth chattered. Then he slowly unwrapped the thing he had taken from the trunk at the foot of the bed. She couldn’t really see it well in the dark, but it was heavy and thick. He stepped closer and reached down with it, making sure she could see what it was.

  It was a marble phallus, so eye-popping in size and thickness she instinctively drew her knees together. Surely he didn’t intend to…

  “Spread your legs,” he said, making it clear that was exactly what he intended to do.

  But now that her knees were together, between the cold and the daunting size of the phallus, she couldn’t seem to pry them apart. “I c-can’t,” she said with a shudder harder than the rest. She knew that to disobey him risked punishment she might not necessarily enjoy, but she couldn’t seem to help herself.

  He reached for her knee with a single hand and jerked her legs apart. She gasped as he knelt between her legs. He reached forward with the hand that held the phallus, and he touched the tip to her lower belly. Now she was shivering for all kinds of reasons.

  “Should I set it in the snow? Make it cold? Marble is cold by nature, but to make it colder still, then place it inside you… Do you think you could bear it?”

  He was testing her, she realized. She had resisted him once already. He would not brook a second time.

  “Whatever you desire,” she said through stiff lips and clenched teeth. “Sir.”

  He rubbed the hard marble beneath her navel, and then drew it downward. He caressed her with the phallus gently, sliding it over her skin. Then he moved it down between her nether lips and pressed the cold tip to her clitoris. He rubbed the unyielding marble against her until she didn’t know what she was feeling any longer. Fear? Cold? Excitement? Pleasure? It all ran together. All she knew was that she was no longer tired and that her every nerve ending was alive and aware.

  The phallus moved lower, pressing hard at the rim of her vagina. Then it was pushing past, slowly, inexorably beginning to fill her. She moaned loudly as the weight of it filled her, her shuddering muscles clenching down on it as the cold of it penetrated her from the inside out. He pushed the marble phallus into her until she was full of the heavy weight of it. It was cool and unyielding, filling her and stretching her to her limits.

  “I did not want to use this until you were better used. But I thought about it often,” he said.

  “S-sir, I’m so c-cold.”

  “Don’t worry. I won’t let you be harmed. Just a little while longer. I can feel you clenching down on it,” he said as his fingertips gently began to massage her clitoris. “Does it give you pleasure?”

  She moaned, her head thrashing about in the snow. She couldn’t take it. The cold and the pain of being stretched even as her body clamped down. It was too much.

  “One orgasm is all I seek. Reach that pinnacle in spite of all these hardships and your reward will be worth it. Although the orgasm itself should be considered the reward.”

  “Y-yes, S-sir,” she stuttered, barely able to speak her teeth were clenching so hard.

  “That’s my good Pet,” he said, reaching to stroke her belly.

  She wanted to please him, wanted to do as he said, but she didn’t see how it would be possible. She was much too cold to think of pleasure. However, there was something incredibly pleasurable in the conflict between the cold and the weight of the marble that was stretching her so much. She wondered if he could understand what she was feeling. He was a man. He could not be penetrated in the same way. Yet he acted as if he knew very clearly what it felt like for her. For some reason she didn’t doubt his empathic abilities. It was almost supernatural the way he always seemed to know what she was feeling at any given moment.

  “Do this, Pet, and you will earn your collar. You already earned it by coming back to me, but I want this one last thing before I give it to you.”

  “One l-last? Y-you make it sound as if I w-will never see you again!” she cried. “Th-that isn’t so, is it, Sir?”

  “No. It isn’t so. You will never be rid of me. Keep your mind at ease about that. The collar not only binds you to me, but it binds me to you. It is a promise. A vow. For you it is a vow of love and loyalty and devotion and submission. For me it is a vow of love and loyalty and protection and mastery. I will always make it clear to you what it is you need to do to prove you love me, and by doing so will prove I love you.”

  She suddenly stopped shivering as his words sank in. Love? Was he telling her he loved her? Yes. He was making it as clear as he knew how. It was an expression of emotion she had never dreamed of seeing from him. She realized then that he was very capable of deep emotion. At least he was with her. She didn’t know about others. She didn’t want to think about others. But then again, she had not seen the others wearing the collar�
� or anything similar.

  Now she truly did feel special. Extraordinary. It was the most exhilarating feeling she had ever known. Now as he massaged her clitoris she felt waves of pleasure shuddering through her otherwise numb body. The cold had stopped stinging. Now all she felt was his hands on her and the phallus inside her.

  “Turn over,” he instructed, pulling away just enough so she could do so. Now the warm side of her body was lying in snow and the sting of the cold of it was fresh. “On your hands and knees,” he said.

  She wanted to obey him, but it was like lifting a hundred pound weight on her back. His hands came out to curve around her body and help her onto her hands and knees. She was shivering anew.

  “Now,” he said, “we shall see.”

  He caressed her numb back and buttocks, while the other took hold of the marble inside her and worked it out of her tense body and then back in. The feel of the fullness leaving her and then returning was incredible. He found a slow, persistent rhythm, timing the inward thrust with the exploring touch of his hand. Out, in as he caressed her back. In as he toyed with her clitoris. Out, in as he drew a finger through the crease of her buttocks. Here he stayed a moment, pressing against her tight anus.

  “Shall I penetrate you here, Pet?”

  She knew very well he wasn’t asking for permission. He simply wanted to hear her say, “Whatever you desire, Sir.”

  “Such a good Pet,” he said with a growl. He worked the phallus some more until she didn’t think she could withstand any more. All her attention was sharply on the lower half of her body, the fullness in her pussy, the strokes and pressing against her anus. Then his hand came away a moment, only to return and drop a handful of snow between her buttocks. He rubbed the snow in, the sensation making her gasp. Sharp pleasure was building inside her, more with every touch he bestowed upon her. When he inserted a finger inside her ass she moaned long and low. Now he worked his finger and the phallus in tandem, both stretching her, both sending waves of unfathomable pleasure through her.

  She came. Hard. Shudders of pleasure and pain rippled through her as the ecstasy conflicted with her shivering state. Then he was turning her, lifting her into his arms, and carrying her into the warm tent. The warmth almost seemed to make her shiver more. He brought her to one of the stoves and laid her down on the ground before it. All the while the phallus remained in her body. She did not remove it; he had not given her permission to do so.