Born against the odds, Elurra is hunted by her aunt and saved by seven miners who whisk her to safety until her prince can claim her.

Elurra’s mother was infected by a vampire. Magic held the effects at bay, but when her daughter was born, her mother left the world. Raised by her doting father, Elurra was content with the arranged marriage to a young sandman. His species was known for their skilled and devastating armies, and hers was known for magic and agrarian skills. It was a match that had to wait until the timing was right.

Elurra’s father is poisoned, and her stepmother immediately begins a systematic regimen of starving Elurra of the blood that her vampire nature requires. Days stretch into years, until one day, seven dark strangers announced that the sandmen are on the move, and they are coming for Elurra.

Her aunt moves to kill her, the miners set out to save her, and her prince comes to her in her dreams. Elurra is tired of being tossed around, and she gets ready to make her own place in the worlds.

Survival is no longer enough. She wants to win.

The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Betraying Blood

Copyright © 2020 by Viola Grace

ISBN: 978-1-989892-14-5

©Cover art by Angela Waters

All rights reserved. With the exception of review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the express permission of the publisher.

Betraying Blood

Published by Viola Grace

Look for me online at violagrace.com and your favourite ebooksellers.

Betraying Blood

Stand Alone Tales Book 5

By

Viola Grace

Chapter One

Raina held onto the side of the carriage as it careened toward the castle. She kept a hand to her neck and chanted over and over to hold back the change. What should have been the happiest day of her life was now a day of horror and loss.

The unmanned carriage barreled through the gateway. It rolled up to the main doors of the castle, and a beloved and familiar voice called out. “Raina!”

She smiled and waited for her fiancé to come and get her. She just wanted him to hold her before she died. The vampire’s curse was crawling through her veins.

Light filled her eyes where darkness had been closing in on her. The bedroom was bright and cheerful. Her nightgown was clean and soft, and the tearing at her neck was healed. She also wasn’t alone anymore.

Raina looked up at the man who should have been her husband. “I am alive.”

He nodded. “Yes, dearest. I used everything I had to keep you going. The wedding is still on, no matter what.” He stroked her forehead.

She swallowed and looked at him. “I don’t know why he attacked me, but he did. He forced his blood into me, and all I wanted was to get to you before it took me over.”

“You burned him to ash, so you won’t feel the tethering to your maker. You are safe now.” He knelt at her side and kissed her hand and pressed it to his cheek. “The wedding is still on.”

She smiled, and she saw her future with him. She would hold their daughter and breathe her last. That was ten months of joy with him, and she was willing to do it. Her handsome king. The love of her life.

* * * *

Ten years later

“Elurra. Stop running.” Her nanny was huffing as she tried to catch up.

Elurra slowed but dodged her nanny, pelting down the hallway to the throne room where the visitors were.

She sprinted to the back of the throne and peeped out from behind it at the strange golden men who were in her father’s court. They looked sort of like her father, but they were younger and far more intense. Her father’s good nature always preceded him and wrapped around those around him with a golden glow.

One of the older of the men was very serious, another one looked bored, but the youngest man was just barely an adult. He was lanky and was paying attention to the conversation taking place in the room. He met her gaze and blinked in surprise.

She stared at his golden eyes and giggled. People were always surprised by her gaze. Her mother’s people had brilliant blue eyes, and she looked just like her mother.

Her father paused. “Elurra, come out here.”

She stepped out from behind the throne, and the older men gasped.

Her father held his arm out, and she bit carefully so as not to cause him pain.

“This is the daughter that you are making a suit for, Emric. I only have one child. The man who marries her will be a rich man and in control of a very healthy trade corridor and a lush world, but there is a price.”

Elurra stopped drinking and used healing magic to seal his wounds. He had taught her himself when she was old enough.

“This changes things. I had no idea she was a drinker.”

Elurra looked at the older man. “You consume animals wholesale, you tear their flesh and roast it. I take a few ounces of blood from voluntary sources. No one dies. There is no madness, no violence, and there is consent. Always consent.” Well, aside from defending herself but that had only happened once.

The man blinked. “Apologies, princess. I did not mean to offend.”

“I am a drinker by curse. A vampire by design. A princess by birth, and a debater at heart. I am my father’s daughter and my mother’s orphan. Do not play politics with me. Speak plainly.” She smiled. “Oh, and I also absorb what I consume, so as I have been drinking from adults, my mind is the equivalent of three dozen adults, and I can hold infinitely more.”

Elurra smiled, and her father chuckled. “That is enough, dearest. Go and climb some trees.”

She curtsied formally, and then, she sprinted past the men and out the main doors. From there, she ran around the castle and to the gardens. She loved the gardens.

Elurra was up in the tree and hanging upside down an hour later when the young man came to find her.

“Good afternoon, princess.”

She stared at him and finally answered. “Good afternoon.”

He bowed low. “I am Alric Kharmin. Prince of the dream hunters.”

She grabbed the branch and jumped to the ground. “Princess Elurra of Metguard, owner of the interstellar trading route for the sector and chess champion of the castle.”

She looked up at him and cocked her head. He was very tall. If he filled out similarly to his male relatives, he was going to be massive when he was done.

He knelt down and extended his hand to her. “I am pleased to meet you, princess.”

She opened her mouth to bite his wrist, and then, she closed her jaws with a snap. “Apologies. This is how blood is offered to me.”

He looked at his wrist and then her. “Take what you will.”

She bit him and took a sample. His blood was rich, and there was something else in it. She was almost drunk, and that wasn’t good.

She opened her mouth and healed him. “What is in your blood?”

He held her hand. “Nothing. Just the way I am.”

Elurra nodded. “I see. Why did your people come here?”

“Your father sent for us and offered your engagement as part of a very nice financial package if my father could come up with a husband for you.”

“A husband?” That thought was alarming.

He chuckled. “A fiancé. When I have finished my service and you are an adult, I will return, and we will be married.”

She scowled. “Why would you want to do that? Your father really doesn’t like me.”

Alric smiled. “He likes the potential of the union. I think you are going to grow into an interesting woman. I like your ears.”

She covered the pointed ears the vampire curse had given her and made a face. “Interesting is another word for weird.”

Alric eased her hands down to her sides. “They are adorable and part of you. Come on. Your father wants to speak to you.”

She went with him, holding his hand, walking through the gardens.

He asked, “How did you get so far up the tree?”

She smiled. “Matter manipulation. In this case, my own matter. I make myself lighter to climb the tree. It makes up for my lack of upper body strength.”

He paused. “Where did you learn that?”

“My father. It is the same as the healing that he taught me from my mother’s books. Stimulating the clotting factors and generating new skin is surprisingly simple.”

“I see. Are you going to continue your studies?”

“Of course. I read everything that I can get my hands on. My situation means that I don’t socialize with others much.”

He chuckled. “If you are vampire, how is it that you are out during the bright daylight?”

She sighed. “My mother was on her way here for the wedding. A vampire of an unknown species attacked her. He infected her with the DNA-altering virus, but she defended herself, blasting him to ash. She kept enough of her own blood to keep herself alive until she arrived at my father’s castle. He gave her what she needed, and he kept her safe and well until she had me. That is when she died. She could only keep one of us alive, and she and my father agreed it would be me.” Elurra frowned. “I am still not convinced she made the right decision. My father has been so sad without her.”

“Parents choose what they think will be the best in the long run. That is why I ended up here. After meeting you, I think that the decision is correct. I think you are clever, and that is something that I admire most in the people I associate with.”

She snorted. “It will be at least ten years.”

He shrugged. “I have to serve my world for the next twelve, so it’s fine. You will grow up. I will survive my service, and then, we will be together.”

She chuckled. “Well then, hooray for survival.”

He smiled, and when her father saw them standing a normal distance apart, her face cheerful and Alric’s face serious, he signed the contract.

Elurra chuckled. Her mother’s sister was coming next week, so her life was going to change for the better. More social interaction was always a good thing.

Chapter Two

Eleven years, nine months later...

Elurra walked down to the main hall for the formal ceremony. It was time to receive the rare mineral offerings from the mine, and no one else could accept them. It was a bond between her family and theirs.

She stood next to the throne and glanced at her aunt Vietta sitting where Elurra’s father should be, but he died seven years ago, and nothing would change that.

With her expression hollow, she watched the elaborate formalities begin.

“You took your time, Elurra,” her aunt snipped.

“I have been having a hard time waking, Aunt.” Elurra didn’t look at her.

The queen snorted. “Well, if you weren’t such a disgusting creature, that wouldn’t be an issue. You would be able to get your nutrition from food. Not people.”

The slow parade of shadowed figures walked toward the throne. When they stood ten feet ahead of the throne, they bowed low.

“Regent, we bring you the offerings of the mine. What will you give us in return?”

The ritual words were specific. The minerals had to be exchanged for fair value. Every year for the last six years, currency had been exchanged for the data crystals and other gems.

“I offer you the princess Elurra.”

The court gasped.

Elurra paused and was watching the men when one looked up and a flare of a ruby-red gaze locked with hers.

“We cannot accept her, but we will take an hour of her time in exchange.”

Vietta chuckled. “Take her then. You have an hour from the time her door closes.”

They nodded, and the speaker held his hand out for her. Elurra held her head high and took his hand with hers.

“I will expect the gems when you are done with her.” The queen chuckled.

Elurra was stunned. Out of all of the agonizing tortures that her aunt had set up for her in the last few years, sacrificing her body to the emissaries was the worst. She swallowed her pride and focused on her life and surviving. She led him and the rest of his party to her chamber. The bare walls, broken window, and empty chamber except for the bedding on the floor near the fireplace were her only sanctuary.

She curtsied deeply once they were in the empty room with the pallet on the floor. “I apologize for the surroundings. I was not expecting guests. You are welcome to whatever I have, good sirs.”

Elurra’s blurred senses fought to understand when they knelt around her. The dark arm in front of her pressed itself to her lips, and one of them spoke. “Princess, take what you need.”

Her mouth watered, and she snapped her jaws shut. “I can’t. She’ll know, and you will be punished.”

One of them took her wrist, and when he removed his hand, she was wearing a gold cuff.

The speaker whispered, “It will hide your body and the strength you gain. You will be able to consume what you need. She will not see it. She will see you with hollow eyes and sallow cheeks. This is not what your father wanted. Take what you can from us, and we will give it.”

He was stroking her cheek, and she looked at the other red eyes within the dark hood belonging to the man exposing his forearm to her. She leaned forward and bit in, her eyes closing as the hot rush hit her tongue.

She took in the knowledge of who he was and what he was, stopping herself before she began to suck on him.

She licked her lips and inclined her head. “Thank you.”

His skin closed swiftly, and there was a grin. The flash of white teeth disappeared as he moved aside, and the next miner took his place.

Elurra was surprised. “What is going on?”

“Today is your birthday; take your fill.”

She looked at the ruby eyes in front of her and leaned forward, tasting him swiftly, taking the two ounces that she needed.

This was repeated five more times. She could feel the cuff on her wrist humming as it tried to contain what she had just taken in. Elurra was standing with the speaker for the group holding her as she waited out the acquisition energy that burned through her.

The speaker smiled. “So, we have given you what you need, will you give us what we need?”

Elurra blinked, and she said, “Whatever I can do for you will not replace what you have given me. I had forgotten what it was to feel.”

He smiled. “You consume blood; we consume pleasure. We will not make full use of you, but we will seek your pleasure. Is that acceptable?”

She blinked. “Um, all right.”

He held her against him and turned her head so that he could kiss her. She whimpered as she was lifted and held, parallel to the ground, with hands running over her. She twisted in their grip as the hands got closer to her breasts and the juncture of her thighs.

She connected to them by blood, and she could feel their lack of hostility or even lust. They needed what they were doing to her, needed her rising pleasure. If it were similar to what she felt when she took in blood, she would give them all she could. She fought her fear and let their caresses sweep her away.

When fingertips brushed against her core, she blushed and tried to accept the sensation. As the fabric moved away from her and a hand slipped inside, she quivered. Still, the slow motion that took her breath away rocketed her into a shocking sensation that was nearly pain, followed by a heavy, languorous pulse in her body. The fingers circled again, and she jerked as every last reaction eased her to a resting state with her eyes closed and murmurs of satisfaction all around.

She was set on her feet and held steady until she could stand on her own. She could not tell which of them had been touching what, but the satisfying hum in their auras was gratifying. They had gotten what they needed, and they would let her go.

The speaker said, “Princess, you are in great danger. Your aunt is planning against you. Do not trust anyone.”

She looked at him, and feeling stronger; she asked, “Not even you?”

He grinned. She saw the bright flash of teeth.

“Our needs are simple, and we will protect you if you call. We owe it to your father. He gave us our riches and our world.”

She blinked. “You knew my father?”

“Yes. When he travelled, he was often on our asteroid and explaining his plans for the future. His hopes for you. What she has done to you is horrific. You could be so much more.”

Elurra smiled. “Thank you for this day. I will just keep going until either she kills me, or she drops dead.”

He cocked his head. “Don’t you want more?”

“There isn’t anymore. Now, we must return to the throne room, and she will beat me in front of the court.”

He gripped her arms. “What?”

“She watches through the lenses in the corner of the room. She will see that I haven’t been damaged and make up for it.” She straightened her shoulders. “Come along.”

He gripped her shoulder. “She can’t see us.”

She smiled. “She can see the entire castle. Even some of the trees are wired.”

He chuckled. “We put out a signal that is difficult for your tech to see. That is why your father asked us to begin contact after your sixteenth birthday. She knows she cannot see us, so I am afraid that we need to make you look a little more ravaged.”

He kissed her, and his fingers tore the shoulder of her gown. Another set of hands pulled her hair down, and fingers scratched the top of her breasts. She felt like she had been caught in a stinging whirlwind when they were done with her.

The speaker lifted her hand to his lips. “Apologies, but since she couldn’t watch it, she had to imagine it.”

Elurra nodded, held her gown up on her left-hand side, and she walked with them back to the throne room.

Her aunt started laughing the moment that she walked into view. “Well, it seems that they are not as sedate as they appear. Poor mouse. Well, collect the payment for the use of you.”

Elurra went to the wide bowl that was used for accepting the gems and minerals. She picked it up and carried it to kneel in front of the miners, head down. The dress had drooped, exposing her breast and the scratches. The miners formed a line, and each of them spilled a pouch full of exotic gems in front of her. One by one, they filled the bowl. She knelt with her head down as they lined up.

They bowed to the queen, requested their leave, and left. The speaker paused at the entrance and said, “We will be delighted to return for the wedding. We have been looking forward to it.”

The queen shrieked, “What wedding?”

“The princess’s groom has completed his work of war. He is returning for her and for all he was promised.”

The miners left, chuckling audibly as they walked away.

Elurra went to take the gemstones to the workshop where they would be scanned for capacity.

“Elurra, please return when you have finished with the tribute.”

“Yes, Your Highness.” Elurra braced for what was coming. It wouldn’t be pleasant.

“So, Elurra, you have been holding out on me.” The queen was looking into her display screen, and she had a dangerous smile on her lips.

Elurra looked around the throne room and the watching nobles. “How, Your Highness?”

“You have a fiancé.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Why didn’t I know about this?” She growled.

“My father didn’t tell you, Your Highness. It was his contract.” She kept her voice calm.

Vietta put her fingers under Elurra’s jaw and lifted her head. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“You didn’t speak to me when you were married to my father, and after he died, I felt that I would be dead before the contract came into play.”

“What is in the contract?”

“I do not know, Your Highness, but I do know where a copy is.”

The queen grabbed a fistful of her hair. “Where is it?”

Elurra looked at her aunt and stepmother. “It is in my father’s office. Pride of place, on his desk.”

Vietta went white. Burning the king’s contracts and treaties had been her first step to gaining control of the local nobility.

“Who was he?”

Elurra smiled. “Alric Kharmin, of the sandmen.”

She had never seen her aunt terrified, but even in a complete panic, she was beautiful. It was a cold beauty, but she could see why her father had agreed to take her as wife.

The queen got up and was leaving the room when she paused. “Twenty strokes of the cane. Make sure you get a good angle for the lenses.”

Elurra sighed and went to the post. Her aunt’s lover picked up the cane and swung it hard. “One.”

The pain burned, but Elurra remembered the blood she had gotten earlier and wrapped herself in the knowledge of the Dhark.

* * * *

Vietta was standing in the king’s study, sifting through ash. “Where is it!”

Harmon walked up and gave her the blooded stick. “There you are. Twenty strokes.”

Vietta shoved the cane back to him. “I don’t want this. I want to know how long I have before that army is at my door.”

“How do you know it’s an army?” Harmon smiled gently. He always tried to be gentle with her.

“Because it is the sandmen. My asshole husband knew. He knew, and he kept this from me!” She shrieked and whirled around. “I should have killed him slower.”

Harmon remained calm. “Perhaps you should relax and take a break. Take some time away.”

“What? They could be here any day. I don’t know what the contract said. What if they demand something that I don’t have ready?”

She paced back and forth. Finally, she smiled slowly. “Well, if she has run away, that will void the contract, won’t it?”

“Yes. If that was the criteria for the contract, yes.”

“Right. Yes, it is a marriage contract, so no bride, no sandmen.”

Harmon saw the smile on his lover’s lips, and he felt a chill in his guts. “What are you thinking?”

“I am thinking that after she heals from today’s discipline, she needs a little time away to contemplate her future. Only I would like you to not let her return. I want you to cut off her head and pull out her heart.” She smiled sweetly and stroked his chest. “Will you do that for me?”

“Of course, my queen. I will do it in five days. She usually heals quickly, though it has been slowing down lately.” Harmon frowned.

Vietta chuckled. “She has been an excellent example for the nobles to watch, but if she is about to become a liability, it is best that she leave and simply disappear. I don’t need her here when the sandmen show up.”

“You think they will come? It was just a casual mention from the miners.”

Vietta looked at him with eyes like steel. “They don’t lie. They never lie. If they say the sandmen are coming, they are coming.”

Harmon bowed. “I will remove her as soon as she is healed.”

Vietta hissed. “Don’t wait. Take her away tomorrow. If she can sit a horse, she can be taken deep enough into the woods and slaughtered. Just bring back the horse and her heart.”

“What about her head?”

“Let the birds peck out those bright blue orbs.”

Harmon nodded and went to arrange the horses for the following day. As much as he enjoyed beating Elurra, he was unsure about his enthusiasm for her murder. He had overnight to get into the spirit of the thing.

Chapter Three

Elurra held onto the reins, and she winced as the healing tissue on her back tugged with every move. She was wearing boots, a dress, and a light cloak. She really needed more layers.

“Why are you taking me to the temple, Duke Harmon?”

“The queen has decided that you need a change of scenery. Those miners must have been very taxing for you.”

She snorted. “You have no idea.”

They rode on for a few more minutes, and she asked, “Do you ever question her orders to hurt me?”

“She is my queen. I must follow her orders, but I do admit I have enjoyed your sounds of pain.”

Elurra shivered. He was talking in the past tense. Something was going to happen to her.

They had been riding for an hour when he paused near a meadow. “We are taking a break. Dismount, and I will get some firewood.”

Elurra nodded and got off her horse. The blade at her neck was not unexpected. “What is going on, Duke Harmon?”

“She wants you dead before he gets here. If you are dead, the contract will be null and void. You just have to be dead.” He pressed back on her neck, and two days earlier, he wouldn’t have had a fight on his hands. It was not two days earlier.

She gripped his wrist and broke it, turned, and attached herself to his neck. She pulled on his blood until his knees buckled then stopped feeding, walked away, and vomited up the blood she had just consumed. She needed him weak for what came next.

“Duke Harmon, I want you to hear my words and listen closely.” She whispered to him what she needed him to do. He had to find a deer, kill it, and return the heart to the queen. As he killed it, he would see her face, and that would help him bring the truth to the queen.

She healed him and had him sit in place for an hour while she and her horse took off.

Elurra grunted as the pain of her back burned. She was heading away from the temple and country house. She needed to get as far away as possible.

When she was streaking through another meadow, her horse stopped and stamped. It reared up and pawed the air, hooves flashing.

It slammed back to all four feet and sidled with its ears back. It was seeing something that she didn’t.

Elurra got the horse under control and looked around. There was a meadow with the green grasses of spring, but there were several patches that had been mashed flat. “What the hell is that?”

Her horse bucked, and she fell, sitting up as the beast took off. Groaning, she smelled her own blood as she got back to her feet. Her back had torn open again.

She stared at the marks and moved toward them, tasting metal in the air a moment before a seam opened up in the sunlight-dappled meadow. “Princess, we are here to give you escort to safety.”

The Dhark had come for her. She smiled. “Do you have something to eat and a place for me to rest?”

The speaker inclined his head. “We can arrange something.”

She looked around. “So, how do I get up there?”

Inches in front of her, a grey metallic ship appeared. The ladder was a few feet to her right. She climbed the ladder, feeling blood seep down her back. She was going to have to soak her dress.

Hands helped her into the ship, and as soon as she was inside, the hatch was closed, and they were moving.

The Dhark helped her to a seat and strapped her in. They moved as one, but now that she had tasted their blood, she understood, they were one. One mind with seven bodies. Only one needed to speak because only one needed to speak.

The pressure on her body was extreme until they were suddenly free of it. She chuckled and swayed in her seat, the scent of her own blood filled her nostrils.

She looked to the nearest man and asked, “Can you help me?”

He frowned, and she unclasped the dark cloak and turned her back to him. The speaker was at her side in a moment, and they were helping her to the small medical bed that folded down.

“What happened?”

“I had to move before the caning marks healed. The activities of the day have torn them open.”

The speaker murmured, “We thought she would spare you.”

“She was upset about the engagement.”

Elurra felt someone cutting the dress down her spine. The air on the wounds eased the throbbing heat, and the member of the Dhark that was working on her moved with light competence that soon had a numbing agent on her back so he could properly clean it.

The speaker huffed. “She is more of a psychotic bitch than we had anticipated. Is that why you were out?”

“Yes, she sent me off with her lover so that he could kill me and bring back my heart to make sure I couldn’t recover.”

“What did you do?”

She wrinkled her nose. “He pulled a knife on me, so I broke his wrist, and then, I drained most of his blood. I didn’t drink it, it was just going to be more icky memories in me, so after he was down, I puked it up. I programmed him with what my aunt wanted and told him how to present it then I left him stunned for an hour while I got away. I ended up here, but my horse is gone.”

He chuckled. “If your horse was here, it would be an impressive beast indeed. We are heading for the transport to our residence. You will be safe there.”

She smiled. She could feel tugging on her back, but the anaesthetic was holding. “For how long?”

He smiled. “Until you are ready. We have been watching you since your father’s death. You are not what you should be, but that can still be done. Are you willing to work for yourself, for your own survival?”

She nodded. “I will work with all the strength I have. If this is my chance, I will take it.”

“That is the princess I remember. We will do all we can to keep your strength up. Our mates will help as well.”

She blinked. “Mates?”

“Of course. Every grouping has the right to woo the mates of their choosing.” He grinned. “Our grouping has chosen exceedingly well.”

She blushed. “And yet...”

He waved that off. “A necessary fiction to keep from a greater intrusion.”

She nodded. “Well, it did work, sort of.”

“The parting comment was the shot over her bow. It wasn’t until we spoke to some locals that her lack of understanding was made perfectly clear. She is about to get a very nasty shock.”

The sound of a soft spray broke her focus. “Artificial skin?”

“Yes. I am surprised you have so much damage. Your kind normally heals quickly.”

Elurra snorted. “You can see me. Truly see me. I have been starved of what I needed for years. My mind is numb, and my body is slow. I hate the feeble thing that I have become.”

“Didn’t your servants try and feed you?”

“They tried. Anyone found donating blood to me died. They were murdered in the main hall, their blood spilling on the tiles. Vietta said if they wanted to waste it, she would as well.” She shuddered. “I kept my thirst to myself, and she counted it a victory. I lived another day.”

“That is horrible.”

The man working on her touched her shoulder. She caught the indication that she was done.

“You are in one piece. We have a few hours before we arrive, so if you are comfortable, sleep. No one here will harm you.”

She smiled slightly. “I will try.”

It was difficult to sleep when she was gnawingly hungry, but she closed her eyes and told her body that she was safe and comfortable. The cessation of fear let her doze, but she never was able to rest. She hadn’t rested properly in years.

She was dozing when one of them brought her cloak and wrapped it around her. He stroked her cheek softly, and when she lifted her head, the smile was there, glowing in the dimness of his hood.

She sat up carefully and noticed that the ship was no longer moving. They must have arrived at their destination.

The men were moving around and picking up items that she hadn’t seen before, stashed in cubbyholes and compartments. They seemed excited to be collecting the items, and she asked the question, “What is all that?”

The speaker answered. “Gifts for our mates and children.”

“Oh. Right.” She was slightly confused, but when they ushered her out of the ship and saw the collection, she began to understand.

Three lovely women—two of whom were visibly pregnant—waited with half a dozen young men and boys from barely adults to a toddler.

The Dhark around her walked forward with speed to their family. Elurra’s eyes widened more when she saw each of the women greet each of the men in turn. There weren’t couples, this was a family group.

The boys waited to one side, midnight grey skin, white hair, and red eyes glowed just like their fathers’.

Elurra looked up, and she gasped at the huge dome over her head and the vast array of asteroids beyond. She was in the middle of the largest mineral deposit in the galaxy.

A feminine laugh caught her attention, and she turned. “You must be Princess Elurra. I am Dwell, the other women are Heth and Miki.”

The woman had a cascade of blood-red curls that reached her waist. Her simple dress of fabric fastened at the neck and cinched at the waist was a flattering shade of emerald green. Her teeth were familiar.

Elurra smiled. “I like your teeth.”

“Thank you, princess.”

“Call me, Elurra.”

Dwell chuckled. “No, we will stick with princess. My son is nearly a man, and his brain can turn to mush with the words of a pretty girl. Formalities will help you during your stay.”

“Your son?”

“He’s twenty. The Dhark age slower than we do, but maturity is pretty much the same. My first son, Teth, is the eldest. Then comes Mori, Twen, Echk, Lian, and Malto. Teth, Lian, and Malto are mine.”

Elurra looked around. “How long have you been here?”

Dwell laughed. “Thirty years. All of us ladies arrived together. Would you like a tour of your quarters?”

“Please.” After greeting their children and giving them gifts, the children had scattered, and the greetings between the adults had become intense. “Unless you want to join in. I don’t want to distract you from the homecoming.”

Dwell shivered, and then, her expression cleared. “Don’t worry about it. I am feeling it all. The ladies are bound as the men are. Emotionally, it is one big roller coaster. Still, in the beginning, we agreed that when two women were pregnant, the third wouldn’t be, just for stability.”

“Sensible.”

“I am glad you think so. Not many women would consider this as a normal grouping.”

“I bite people for food. I am in no place to judge.”

Dwell blinked and grinned. “Of course. Come with me. You must be starving.”

“Um. I don’t wish to drink from you.”

Dwell giggled. “The boys buy us treats from exotic worlds when they deliver the gemstones. For me, they pick up bloods from alien species. I get most of my blood from them, so this is just a treat. I am guessing that you don’t want to drink from our mates?”

Elurra blushed. “That is not... ideal.”

Dwell cackled. “There is definitely a pheromone around them. We also felt the overspill of their time with you. You have a lot of psychic range.”

Elurra stopped and hung her head, mortified. “I am sorry.”

Dwell took her hand. “It is fine, princess. They asked our permission if that was the only way to feed you. We were fine with it.”

Elurra chuckled. “I am still not fine with it. It felt hollow.”

“Don’t worry. We just have to wait for the sandmen to make their move. That’s why you are here. They want that world, and you are the gateway.”

Elurra nodded. “Right. Of course. I had forgotten my usefulness for a moment.”

“Prince Alric is coming for you. A pity that he won’t find you there. I wonder what will happen when they arrive?” Dwell sang it in a singsong tone.

Elurra was startled into laughing. Her father had told her tales about the sandmen attacking and destroying cities, wiping them out and burying them forever. It would be a pity for her aunt to become the base for a sandcastle.

Chapter Four

Dwell sat with her and giggled over the options of species and blood types. “The downside is that they all have anticoagulants in them, so they taste a little chemically. But, this is a warmer, so they come up to blood heat. If you supplement yourself with one tube at each meal, you should be fine in about a week.”

Elurra smiled. “Thank you, but I would hate to put you out.”

“Don’t worry. They have another mission to the trading station in a month. I can definitely get more then.”

There were at least six dozen vials. “Do you have any sandman blood?”

Dwell paused. “No, they don’t give their blood up. Ever.”

Elurra remembered the heavy taste of Alric on her tongue. She blushed. “Oh. Okay. Thank you.”

“Now, Sho has told me that your back is injured, so you are on sonic showers for the next few days. Our son Teth is going to take you and show you hand-to-hand combat techniques, and if he gets overheated, Lian will take over. He is a better size for you.”

Dwell smiled as she headed to the doorway. “Oh, and we have family dinner in the gardens. It will be ready in an hour. Oh, and if you do need to bite one of the guys, don’t worry. I am not jealous. The forearm is not where I sink my teeth.”

Elurra felt heat in her cheeks as she looked at the container that Dwell had given her free use of, and she looked for something familiar. She looked for two of the same species and put the first of the vials into the warmer. It chimed in a few minutes, and she put the second vial in to warm. Emthec was what was on the vial, but she tipped it back and swallowed, tasting the species for the first time.

She swallowed slowly and closed her eyes. Two ounces of blood from someone she had never met began to course through her bloodstream. She felt better, stronger, and when the second vial was down, she began to feel more like herself. She just wished she knew who she was.

Dinner was a quiet riot. The women tried to make sure that everyone was fed, and the boys tried to make sure that they got all of their favourites. Elurra took a piece of bread, and she chewed slowly.

Dwell looked at her. “You are having more than that.”

“I am fine. This is more than I usually eat in three days.”

“Yeah, but we are trying to build you up. Here.” Dwell moved so fast that Elurra’s vision could barely track her. A tiny portion of everything was now on her plate. Dwell was definitely a mom.

She ate a bit of everything, but she took her bread with her when the grouping dissipated. She nibbled as she walked and was surprised when one of the men stepped in front of her and raised his forearm. She frowned. “I am fine.”

He shook his head and gestured for her to take a bite.

She ran her tongue along her teeth, and she stepped forward, biting as politely as she could. She took enough that she nearly felt full. She healed the wound, and then, she curtsied deeply, holding the dress that Dwell had given her out of the way.

He smiled and patted her head, leaving to rejoin the group.

Dwell was meeting her gaze from a hundred yards away, and she gave a thumbs-up. Elurra knew that it was not the last of the insistence on her consuming offerings. She was just going to have to get used to it.

Teth appeared out of the shadows of a tree, his white hair braided down his back. “Princess, is there anything you needed to learn in particular?”

She smiled. “I need to learn how to incapacitate an opponent that is over twice my size or just how to use a dagger. Either one will do.”

“I will teach you both, princess. Though, your mate should be watching out for you.”

She nodded. “He might one day after we meet again.”

Teth paused. “Will you... take my blood?”

Elurra looked at him and shook her head. “No.”

“Why not?”

“The spirit in which it is given. Your fathers offer it for my strength and because your mother told them to. There is free will and no expectations. You are looking at me and hoping that there will be a sensual aspect. There will not be. My teeth part skin and muscle, they tap into veins, and they pull blood out. It would be different with a mate, but he is not here, and I know what he tastes like. There is nothing like it.”

Teth paused. “You love him?”

She smiled. “I love the idea of him. The idea that there is someone for me and that I am the someone for them. When we meet again, if we meet again, I will have to adjust the idea to the reality.”

“You don’t want passion?”

She chuckled. “I was raised to duty and honour. I would like passion, but I would rather have honour.”

He looked as if he couldn’t work out the concept. “The Dhark choose mates for passion.”

“No, they choose mates for acceptance. The passion grows out of that.”

Teth paused. “Sho needs to check the wounds on your back.”

She smiled. “Thank you.”

A shadow came out of the forest, just as Teth had. She looked at him and nodded. He gestured for her to follow him.

She followed him with Teth trailing behind her. Aside from there being a lot of gynecological scanners, there was also a regenerator. No wonder the ladies looked so young.

Teth translated. “He would like you to remove your clothing and the cuff, and enter the regenerator, princess.”

She nodded and worked at the cuff. Sho had to help her, but once it was off, she simply untied the cloth belt and pulled the dress over her head. She heard Teth’s intake of breath as he looked at the map of scarring on her body.

She followed Sho’s silent instructions for gripping the handsets inside the chamber. It closed, and she felt the heat and hum of the tuned light. Her scars were broken down and diminished. The process took the better part of three hours, and she was hungry when it was over.

The machine was opened, and Sho helped her get her hands off the stabilizing bar, supporting her as he walked with her to a nearby chair.

She took her dress off a table and got it over her head, pulling and tugging at it until she was covered. The belt was tied, and Sho helped her stand so the dress could fall into place.

He offered her his forearm, and she didn’t hesitate. She bit down. Due to position, she wasn’t in danger of over-indulging. When she had what she needed, she sealed his skin.

He patted her cheek and smiled.

Teth came in with a tray of food, and he put it on a rolling table, bringing it up to her. “Here. Eat.”

She chuckled. “So, when will you lose your ability to speak?”

Sho looked around and said, “We can all speak. We just elect a speaker to deal with aliens and our mates. The less we talk, the less trouble we get in.”

Elurra stared at him, and then, she started laughing. She laughed until she hiccoughed, and then, she wheezed to a stop. The meal was cold meat, fruit, cheeses, and bread. She sat, relaxed, and slowly ate as much of the food as she could.

Teth looked at the cuff. “Why were you wearing a psychic projector?”

“Your fathers gave it to me. They needed me to appear to be what the queen was looking for. It hid the signs of the feed that they had given me.”

“But, you still look horribly thin.”

She snickered. “I know.”

“And the scars.”

“I know about them, too. I was there when they happened. Look, Teth. I am not bitter, but I am practical, and I know that the most important thing in my life is surviving.” She quirked her lips. “I am not looking for sweet words and seduction. I want my kingdom back, and I will do what it takes to get there.”

Sho was at the terminal, and there was some kind of com link enacted. She saw the joining of the file to the message, and the send connection was hit.

Sho turned back to her with a smile.

Teth paused. “Father, I want to offer her blood.”

Sho put his hand on Teth’s shoulder and shook his head.

Teth leaned back. “I thought it would feel good, like when Mom bites you.”

Elurra answered. “Your mother doesn’t bite the forearm. She drinks from areas with less bone and tendon. I only take blood from folk from the forearm because it is nearly impossible for me to take too much unless I am startled and tear the skin.”

She kept eating, and soon, she was strong enough to be helped back to the guest quarters. To her surprise, with her belly full and her body not screaming, she slept.

* * * *

“Elurra.” The voice was a deep growl, and it matched the surreal landscape she was standing in.

She was standing on a hill, and wind was whipping around her. She looked around for the owner of the voice, and she saw a shadow. “Hello. Do I know you?”

The shadow chuckled. “We have met.”

He moved toward her, and she looked up and up at the man. It was definitely not a woman.

When he stood in front of her, he was made of stars. She could see space in him. She tried to find any part of him that would be a face. “I don’t remember you specifically. And I would definitely have remembered this.”

She reached up to touch his face, and he caught her arm, spun her, and held her with her back to him, and his forearm was next to her mouth. He leaned down to whisper, “You have grown. Your eyes were nearly too huge for your face when last we met, but now, you are all grown up. So am I. I still like your ears.”

She jolted and turned her head. The swirling of stars was next to her face. “Alric?”

There was a chuckle. “Yes, Princess Elurra, you have grown into a fascinating woman. I can’t wait until we meet again in the flesh.”

She didn’t understand what he meant until the stellar hands moved on her, and she realized that in the dreamscape, she wasn’t dressed as she would normally be when talking to a stranger. She felt the touch over her breasts, and her belly tensed when his long fingers delved between her thighs, and she gasped when he slipped the tip of one finger into her. The finger dipped slowly in and out of her while his other hand cupped her breasts and gently worked her nipples into hard nubs.

She tried to move his hands, but they continued their slow, teasing exploration. There was no way for her to dislodge him.

His dipping finger lifted and circled her clit, and she shuddered as her knees buckled. Her breathing was ragged, and the tingling that he was generating was far different from what she had experienced at the hands of the Dhark.

The tension wound tight, and then, it snapped. She squeaked and collapsed, his hands on her torso held her up as she shivered and twitched.

He lifted his forearm to her lips, and she didn’t hesitate, she bit down and drank. It was her messiest bout of consuming since she was a toddler, but when she tasted blood, her tongue moved against his skin, and she kept drinking until he tapped her on the nose.

“Enough for one night, Elurra.”

She regretfully opened her mouth and lapped up all traces of the super-rich blood, and then, she healed him out of reflex. The tiny pinpoints disappeared.

“Always polite. Sleep well, Elurra, I will be there soon.” He pressed a kiss to her cheek and stroked her belly, and then, she was alone.

Elurra stood in the dreamscape, shivering and wondering how she was going to get home.

Chapter Five

Elurra woke with a jolt and looked around, expecting to see her hands touching her body. Nope. She was on her belly, and her hands were under the pillow.

A chime rang from the small com unit, and Dwell’s voice said, “We are having breakfast in the common space. You are welcome to join us.”

“Thank you. I will be there shortly.” Elurra got up and went to the sonic shower. In a minute, she was out, clean, and still dressed. Sonics were efficient.

She put on the slippers that she had worn the night before and left her quarters, finding her way back to the common area where the family was waiting. She was getting a lot of stares, and she looked at Dwell. “Is something wrong?”

“Are you hiding the holo bracelet somewhere?”

Elurra shook her head. “No. Why?”

Dwell handed her a plate loaded with a small selection of everything. “Oh, you just look a little more alive today.”

One of the Dhark chuckled.

Elurra frowned. “Did something happen? I passed out after the healing and woke up just before you called.”

Dwell blinked. “Do you really not remember what happened?”

“I dreamed. That’s all.” She ate. The children were ignoring the conversation, but the adults were focused.

“What did you dream about?” The speaker pressed the issue.

She blinked and frowned. “Alric. He was different. Definitely not the young man that I met over a decade ago.”

The Dhark were all chuckling, and Elurra looked at the women and their husbands. “What?”

Dwell chuckled, and she ate her breakfast. “I will explain it later. I mean, I knew that it happened, but I just haven’t met the bride of a sandman before.”

The speaker murmured, “No one has. They are usually rabidly protected by their mates.”

She wrinkled her nose. “I haven’t seen him in years.”

Dwell cocked her head. “You said you had tasted his blood.”

Elurra paused and then nodded. “Yes. There was nothing weird about it. I had just dropped out of a tree, and he introduced himself. I went for a bite, apologized, and then, he offered his arm.”

She finished the food on her plate and started to look around for more. Dwell began to pass her platters, and Elurra kept eating.

When the meal was over, she felt stuffed for the ten minutes it took to clear away all the dishes. Teth helped her, as did the young ones, while the adults went to look into the status of orders for the data crystals. Elurra finished putting the dishes into the cleaner, and she smiled at the lack of leftovers.

She asked Teth, “How do you get fresh food?”

“We grow a lot, and meat and medical supplies arrive via drone.” He shrugged. “When the last of the ten are born, my siblings and I will have to make our own base and set up our own supply chain.”

“Ten?” She didn’t want to ask.

He nodded. “When we set up our own mines, it is likely that we will lose a few of our number. That is why the linked minds are efficient. If one dies, we still have their thoughts and memories active every day. They can even take over one of the other bodies if needed.”

“Oh, so...” They were walking into the fight area.

“As long as one of us lives, all of us live.”

“So, why the multiple mates?”

Teth ducked his head. “It is a matter of necessity. As we share a mate, the others without something to do will get... frustrated. Psychic release and physical release are different. So, there are always a minimum of three and a maximum of five brides for the Dhark.”

“Ah. I see. To take on the children?”

“To take on the Dhark.” Teth looked rather uncomfortable with the topic. “The children don’t start to appear until the grouping has been together over a decade. The first ten years are for the adults.”

Elurra chuckled. “Ah. Got it.”

He went to a wall and got some small rolls. “Come on. We are going to wrap your hands against damage. It wouldn’t be right for you to injure yourself while training, princess.”

She watched as he wrapped her hand until she could make a fist that felt like a block of wood. “Wow.”

“Yes, fighting without safety gear leads to broken knuckles and torn skin. We can fix them, but they still hurt.” He nodded. “Now, you will learn to throw a punch.”

She blinked for a moment and then smiled, looking down at her dress and shrugging. She supposed that you could punch in anything.

Teth held out his hands, and she aimed for him, focusing and striking until she was covered with sweat and sitting down.

He grinned. “Enough for today?”

“I haven’t been able to lift more than firewood for five years. I have to pace myself.”

He chuckled. “You have done well. I can show you our entertainment areas. You can watch some vids.”

“I am going to jump into a quick shower first.”

He smiled. “You might want to put a hold on that. The mothers are going to take you dancing later today. They rarely take no for an answer.”

She shrugged. “I can always sonic multiple times a day. It harms nothing.”

Teth nodded. “True. I thought you were going to have a soak in the bathing rooms. I am sure you would find them most relaxing.”

“I am sure that there will be time for that. Who does all the meal prep?”

“My fathers do the gathering of the fresh produce when they are home. They also do most of the chopping. Miki does the actual cooking. Even when she’s heavily pregnant, she has a knack for spices that the others don’t. Heth does the bread.”

“What does your mother do?”

He chuckled. “Everything else. She says if she has one more child, she’s done. If they start a second set, she wants a raise.”

Elurra laughed. She unwrapped her hands and looked at the red markings. She flexed her fingers and smiled. “They worked really well, mind you, I barely landed a punch.”

“You did very well for your first try, and you kept at it. That is more than most of my brothers have done.” He took the wraps and put them in a cleanser cycle.

“You have so much tech here.” She admired the shiny units around the space.

Teth smiled and shrugged. “We need it. There are only a few layers between us and the void.”

She smiled. “When is lunch?”

“Once we are over age fourteen, we make our own food for lunch and clean up after ourselves.” Teth smiled. “You are our guest, so I will make your meal for you.”

“Thank you. I am still going to take that shower. Can I meet you in the... wait. I don’t know where the kitchen is.”

He snorted. “I will have Lian collect you in twenty minutes.”

She nodded. “See you soon.” She lifted her skirts and ran. She hadn’t run for six years. The freedom of letting her body move like the wind was a pleasure long forgotten.

She sprinted back to the guest quarters and took a sonic shower. She felt better and far less sticky when she emerged.

Elurra looked at the collection of vials and warmed a sample from a Metguardian. She was missing home, and it had only been a few days.

After a charming lunch of huge sandwiches and a pile of fried crispy tubers, she helped the boys do the dishes.

Heth came in and grabbed her. “Sorry, boys, but we have a new friend to play with, so you will have to content yourself with math and wrestling. Your dads will be administering your tests tomorrow.”

Elurra was pulled along by Heth. She wasn’t delicate, she was built to deal with the damage. “Where are we going?”

“Do you dance?”

“Not for a while.”

“Good. We are going dancing.”

Elurra was perplexed as she was hauled into a new part of the living space that was stunning and elegant. Rich wood lined the walls, and above them, the asteroid belt glittered in the light of the nearest star.

Dwell and Miki were waiting for them. Dwell smiled. “Heth likes to dance, but since she is a little unwieldy right now, she thought she would see if she could teach you some of her moves. We don’t get to see other women that often... or ever.”

Heth chuckled. “I love dancing, but the others are a little more reserved. Will you dance with me?”

“Um, I don’t know. I have only ever ballroom danced.”

“Ah, this will be fun then.” Heth smiled and put her hands on her hips. Her belly was huge. If she was a month away from delivering, Elurra would be shocked.

Dwell chuckled. “Just go with it. Show her what you can do, and then, we can all go have desserts.”

Miki chuckled. “Yeah, that is the way it works.”

Heth ignored them, and she struck a dramatic pose. The music was started by Dwell, and then, Heth started dancing. Even heavily pregnant, she was hypnotic.

Heth then stood behind Elurra and put her hands on her hips, helping her rock to the music. Elurra stepped away, did the half of one of the dances she knew, and then, when the music rose, she spun wildly to the pipes and stringed instruments. She stepped lightly to the sound of the drums, and Heth spun with her when the music slowed.

It was fun. It was pure, generous fun. Elurra collapsed to the floor, and Dwell handed her a bottle of water. Heth was still stepping and swaying.

One of the men stepped into the room, and he smiled as Heth was lost in her own world.

Dwell beckoned him over, and she gestured to Elurra.

Elurra struggled to sit up as she was presented with his arm. Dwell helped her and held his arm while Elurra bit down. She didn’t even demur. She was feeling stronger with every drop.

She finished and healed him quickly. “Thank you, Nev?”

He bowed and nodded.

She bowed. “This is helping tremendously.”

Dwell asked, “Has Teth offered?”

“He has, but he is still growing. I don’t want to do anything to alter that or affect him in any way.”

Dwell snorted. “I know you don’t want to encourage his infatuation, but if he offers, let him. Knowing that it is painful might deter him.”

Nev paused and shook his head.

“What do you mean it doesn’t hurt?” Dwell was outraged. “Princess, let me see your teeth.”

Elurra opened her mouth, and Dwell leaned back. “Well, hell. I haven’t seen one of your rank before. Your teeth are nearly needles compared to mine.”

Dwell opened her mouth and flexed her lips. Her teeth were three times the width that Elurra’s were.

Elurra blurted out, “No wonder you need to have them distracted with sex before you feed.”

Nev’s face contorted, and he turned and left the room.

Dwell was shocked for a moment, and then, she howled with laughter. “Oh, that is going to have done the rounds before dinner.”

Elurra apologized, but Dwell just hugged her.

Dwell asked, “How do you heal them?”

Elurra went on to explain the principle of healing. The sealing of the skin and knitting of the muscle.

“But how? I mean, vampires can’t do what you do? When were you turned?” Dwell asked the question honestly.

“My father was a warrior mage, and my mother was a healer. She was bitten on her way to wed my father, and they tried to turn her. With her power and his, they kept her condition at bay until I was born. Bringing life out of a vampire-infected body was too much for my mother, and she died.”

Dwell’s mouth was hanging open. “You were born like that?”

“Yes. My father took care of most of the consuming issues, but as I grew, my servants volunteered their blood. When the queen came into power, she started starving me, killing anyone who tried to feed me.”

“But, you were born a vampire.” It seemed Dwell was having trouble with the concept.

“Yes. How did you turn?”

“Um, I was a teen, and I was sick. The vampire’s effect could drive off the illness.”

Now Elurra was confused. “How can you have children with the Dhark if vampires don’t reproduce sexually?”

Miki snorted. “The guys could probably reproduce by jerking off into a pile of rocks. They just need a viable egg, and their own genes take care of the rest. Always boys, always pure Dhark with only enough traces to identify their mother.”

Heth pulled at Elurra’s arm. “Now that you are refueled, dance with me.”

She nodded, but she chose the music. It was slow, involved a lot of stretching, reaching, and twisting. Heth played along, and she was a lot less tense when they stopped.

Miki was gone, and Dwell was ready to usher them along for dinner. Hours of dance and chatting had blurred by.

It was now time for dinner.

Chapter Six

Dinner was riotous, two of the Dhark offered their blood, and then, the ladies hauled Elurra away, claiming that it was girl’s night at the baths.

It was fun to be with them. She was poked, prodded, and dropped in the bath, left to flounder her way to the surface.

Dwell shared her tub, but the other two eased into a bath on the edge of the wide expanse of soaking pools.

“They need a cooler temperature.” Dwell twisted her hair on top of her head. “Too much heat isn’t good for the babies.”

“I can’t thank you enough for your hospitality.” Elurra spoke from the heart.

“It has been our pleasure so far. Now, what is your plan when you meet your sandman?”

Elurra blinked. “Plan? We will get married and hopefully live a long and happy life.”

Dwell chuckled. “Yes, but are you prepared for the more intimate parts of the union?”

Elurra shook her head. “I am not sure what you are getting at.”

Dwell sighed. “Sandmen are big. All over. How long do you want to wait until you can consummate the union? Have sex.”

“Oh. Oh! Um, I just expected to be really uncomfortable for a while.” She blushed. It had only begun to become a concern last night. She had felt him against her back on the dreamscape. That was a bit of adapting.

“There are things you can do to relax yourself, and if he takes his time, then you have no problem, but there is very rarely all the time in the world when you want someone.”

Elurra blinked. “Um, I don’t really know him. How could I want him?”

Dwell leaned in. “Did you ever drink from him?”

“Sure. It tasted strange but nice. He offered it to me the day we got engaged.”

“Uh-huh. I think he slipped a tracker into you.”

“What? He wouldn’t.”

“Oh, he would. Nothing escapes their grip.”

She tried to remember the face of the young man, but it was all a golden blur. She twisted her lips. “How do their trackers work?”

“They can track their own blood and probably other parts.”

“Oh. Well, he was young, and we weren’t actually engaged yet.”

Dwell snickered. “If they had decided to turn you from princess to bride, yeah, you were.”

Elurra tried to change the subject. “What were you doing before you met the guys?”

“I worked on a farm. Heth was a peacekeeper, and Miki was a highborn fourth daughter.”

“How did that work? I mean, all three of you at once?”

Dwell snickered. “It isn’t an orgy. Well, sometimes it is, but that came years later. We have our own chambers that are connected by a long hallway.”

Elurra chuckled. “I mean, how did you all come to the agreement?”

“Oh. Well, we were all past standard marrying age for a variety of reasons, we had a limited amount of men to choose from even if we could lose ten years and be of the right age to marry. Then, there was something in those eyes.”

“They do have kind eyes.” She smiled.

“Yeah, to you they are kind; when they look at us, they are hot and intense. It takes some getting used to, but now, I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Elurra remembered the glowing burn of two stars in Alric’s face in the dreamscape. She shivered.

“Oh, was that a good shiver or a bad shiver?” Dwell whispered.

Elurra sank beneath the water with mortification. When she came up, Dwell was still giggling.

Elurra covered her eyes. “Does the mortification ever wear off?”

Dwell chuckled. “When you are in his arms, and the night is quiet, and your breathing matches his, you know that you are where you were always supposed to be. That is when it becomes a shared moment, and the embarrassment slowly leaves behind a smug feeling of pride. You have each other, and there is nothing to be worried about.”

Elurra smiled. “Thanks. That helps.”

They sat and discussed the importance of foreplay until Heth tried to get out of the tub. “I am stuck again.” She said it in a singsong.

Dwell sighed. “We had better help her.”

“You stay here. I can lift her.” Elurra got out of the tub and walked over to the other side. The water the other two were in was cool by comparison. She helped Heth out slowly, using her own body to brace the other woman as she eased her up to the bench, and then, she helped her step up and out of the soaking tub.

“Thanks. They always try to lift me, and unless the guys are here, it just looks like a botched fishing expedition.”

“You have high molecular density.”

“Yeah. The guys can lift me but only barely. It gets worse when my center of gravity is moving between my ribs and my knees.”

“So, the dancing keeps you coordinated.”

Heth chuckled and ruffled Elurra’s hair. “You are so smart.”

Miki stretched her arms and smiled. “Up!”

Elurra helped Heth into a robe, tied it, and then sat her down on one of the benches. Only after she had her dance partner settled did she return for Miki. She grabbed her by the arms and simply lifted her up and out of the water with a whoosh.

Miki squeaked, and Heth laughed. “Could you have lifted me like that as well?”

Elurra smiled. “Of course, but it lacked dignity.”

Miki was stunned, staring at Elurra. “How strong are you?”

Dwell laughed and got out of her tub. “She is strong enough to take on at least three of the boys if she has to. Or she will be once she finishes getting up to strength.”

Miki blinked. “What do you mean?”

“We know she’s been starved, but I am wondering if she was ever fed to the point where she was as strong as she could be.”

Elurra got a robe for Miki before handing one to Dwell and shrugging. “I know that I am not at my strongest. My father didn’t want me to alienate the population, so he made sure that I appeared to be a normal little girl.”

Elurra yawned. “Apologies. I think I am going to seek my bed.”

Dwell chuckled and said, “Pleasant dreams.”

There was a bit of knowing in that tone, but Elurra curtsied and left the bathing chamber with the robe sticking to her body.

* * * *

Dwell looked at the other brides and said, “Make sure you each have two of the guys with you tonight. I am fairly sure that the sandman is coming to the princess in the dreamscape. Since she doesn’t know how to shield, it is going to be a hot night.”

Miki cocked her head. “She doesn’t know?”

Dwell hadn’t gotten into what living on communications crystals did to the mind. It wasn’t only the men who were bound by thoughts, the brides were as well. Elurra was broadcasting in the night, and it had been quite the dream. Dwell was looking forward to learning what the sandman’s attempts at bonding were going to lead to.

She would need two of her mates with her to satisfy the effect of having desire generated from outside her own body. The third? Sho might be up to help; he was a very handy guy.

As they walked back to their quarters, they chuckled about the shakeup that Elurra had brought to their routine.

She would be returning home shortly, but for now, there were advantages to having her near. This was more than a fair trade for her treats.

Chapter Seven

Elurra looked down and blinked at the delicate gown that she was wearing. She normally slept naked, but the last few days had not been normal. With bare skin, if someone attacked, they couldn’t pin her down with a nightgown.

There was a cool wind fluttering the gown and caressing her skin. It was strange because the castle hall that she was in should have blocked the breeze from that direction. She turned, and the dark figure was walking toward her again, its body made of open space and starlight. Rather his body was made of open space and starlight. There was no mistaking him.

He stepped toward her, and it took all of her nerves not to dive for a corridor or run for the open gardens.

“Alric Kharmin?”

He paused and inclined his head. “Yes, my princess.”

“You recognize me after all these years?”

He chuckled. “I am seeing your soul, as you are seeing mine. What do you see?”

“I see wind in the stars.” She reached out, and he touched her hand. She slid her hand up his arm.

“I see fire in the snow, bright against the dark of night.” His words were slow and soft.

She stepped toward him to hear him better. “Why are we in the castle?”

“I thought that it would be welcoming for you. How did you know it was my construct and not yours?”

She reached up with her free hand and touched his face. “I would never have chosen this as a place to dream of.”

He wrapped his arms around her, and the world swirled around them. When he released her, they were in a copse of trees, and he looked around. “Is this better?”

She spun away from him and danced in the trees to the sound of the night birds. He caught her and lifted her to be even with his face. His kiss was strange because he couldn’t see her and she couldn’t see him, but when she closed her eyes, her senses went into overdrive.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. He turned her and pinned her against the smoothest tree she could have imagined. The gossamer gown was pushed up to her waist, and his hand was between her thighs, easing a finger through her folds.

His tongue dipped between her lips as his finger slid into her, moving slowly and with care. She tried to focus on one thing at a time, but she decided that the kiss was far more important.

Elurra heard the soft sounds that she made as he slid another finger in with the first and moved them with deliberate care. He began to dip two digits in and then circle her clit. She squeaked when he leaned into her, and her panting and high-pitched moans soon overtook her. Her body was on fire, and then, the fire broke.

He held her close while she shook, and when she was still, he kissed her neck, and she could feel the smile on his lips.

“I look forward to meeting you, Elurra. I will be seeing you in a few hours.”

She was going to tell him that she wasn’t at the castle, but she woke up in her bed with her thighs still tingling. “Damn.”

Well, he was just going to be disappointed.

* * * *

Vietta paced in her private chambers. The sandmen were here, and she still had no idea what the contract entailed.

She knew that Elurra was alive. She had seen the footage of the Dhark ship escaping. The duke had paid for his duplicity. Now, she just had to wait until the vials of tainted blood reached the Dhark stronghold. No one could resist Metguard blood. Elurra would think she was safe, she would take a drink, and then, she would die. It was very simple. The concentrate that had killed her father would take her life. Very poetic.

She paced again. She wished she could be there when the little bitch died.

“Your Highness, the sandmen have arrived.”

“Have them wait. I will be there when I am ready.”

When she was alone, she stood straight, pulled her breasts up in her corset, and checked her makeup. She was the most beautiful one in the land and had been since her niece was a child. If the king had chosen her to begin with, this never would have happened. She would seduce Elurra’s fiancé and bewitch him into forgetting all about the pale little cow.

She swept her train aside and walked down the halls that led to the throne room. When she was seated, she nodded to the doormen, and they stood aside for the sandmen to enter the chamber. The eerie silence of their entrance sent a shiver down Vietta’s spine.

They walked up to a polite distance, and the man in front bowed. It was the bow of an equal.

“Gentlemen. Thank you for your visit. To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?” Being polite seemed the best way to go. They were larger and had less clothing than she had imagined.

The man in front spoke, his voice like rough gravel. “I have come for my bride.”

“Who would that be?”

“Princess Elurra.” He smiled. “I believe she is expecting me.”

“I am afraid that she is no longer with us.” Vietta inclined her head and touched her cheek to evoke mourning.

“What?” His good nature dissolved with a snap. “When?”

“Four days ago.”

“Really? Well, in that case, you are in my seat.” He held out his hand, and one of his men handed him a scroll that obviously had the king’s seal. “This is a contract of marriage, and if Elurra is unable or unwilling to wed me, the kingdom is mine.”

Her heart thudded in her ears. “What?”

“This. Kingdom. Is. Mine. If Elurra were here, we would be co-rulers, but now, there is no reason for it.” He quirked a brow. “If you can show me a document from the previous king, or even your marriage scroll, I would be willing to negotiate a nice pension for you.”

Vietta didn’t know what to do, didn’t know what to say. “May I have a few days to withdraw my servants and possessions?”

“Of course. We will lodge in our ships.”

“Ships?”

“Oh, yes. Metguard is going to be the new home world for the sandmen and their armada. Ten ships are already on the ground.”

“Ah. Of course. May I offer you dinner? The cook is preparing a meal.” Perhaps there was a chance to poison them.

He looked at her and shook his head. “No, we will take nothing from your castle until it is my own. I will expect to see my princess’s grave tomorrow. Mourning begins now.”

Vietta looked into his dark gold eyes, and she froze. The court wasn’t in mourning, it was in gay spring colours. Everything was bright and vivid. The courtiers were in scandalously cut garb, and nothing looked like they had just lost a member of the royal family.

The sandmen nodded and left as silently as they had entered. She needed a damned royal body. Where was that little bitch?

* * * *

Elurra was with Dwell the next morning after breakfast. A drone had arrived, and it was full of Metguard vials. Dwell was willing to share. Teth was acting as referee.

They sat and giggled like naughty kids. Dwell went first because it was her house and her shipment. Elurra took the next shot, and she paused, and then, her eyes went wide. She vomited. And then urged her friend, “Throw it up!”

Dwell took in the urgency, but it was too late; her skin had already begun to turn black.

Elurra yelled to Teth. “Get your fathers. As many as you can.”

Elurra bit into Dwell’s neck and sucked with a specific rhythm, filtering the blood and taking in the poison. The cycle in Dwell’s body was slow because of the toxin. It was giving Elurra extra time.

When she was pulling clean blood, Dwell was barely breathing.

Nev was the first to arrive, and he said, “What does she need?”

Elurra pulled away. “She needs a lot of blood quickly. The shipment is tainted.”

Nev gathered Dwell into his arms, and she quickly bit down on his shoulder, tears streaming from her face.

Elurra vomited up the black and contaminated toxin. It smouldered on the floor. She heaved it up again, and then, she sat back as Dwell was handed to her next husband and then the next.

Elurra moved over and healed Nev and the others as Dwell finished returning to her normal pale health.

Everyone was shocky, and Dwell looked at the guys. “You didn’t send any blood from Metguard, did you?”

The speaker shook his head. “We didn’t have time to arrange it. Why?”

Elurra whispered, “This is a poison from Queen Vietta. She dosed it, not knowing that I wouldn’t be the only vampire here. She knows I am alive, and she knows where I am. You are all in danger.”

She swallowed and lifted her head. “You need to take me home.”

The argument about it being suicide didn’t stop until after the blood was destroyed and the floor was clear.

She destroyed quite a bit of Dwell’s snack packs to get her own strength back, but she didn’t feel right asking for any blood since it was her fault that Dwell was nearly killed.

She paced back and forth, trying to figure out a way to do what she needed to do.

“Is there a way to check if the sandmen are on Metguard?”

Sho nodded. “They landed earlier today. Why?”

Dwell looked rueful, but there wasn’t time to stand on the ceremony of one speaker.

Elurra explained. “If she can ship poison here, you can ship me home. Do you have a stasis pod?”

Sho nodded. “Of course. One on each shuttle.”

“Can you put me into cold sleep and deliver me to the sandmen?” She smiled. “That way, no one will know if I am alive or dead until someone activates the unit.”

The speaker nodded in understanding. “So, the queen is screwed either way.”

“Yes. And thanks to you, even if they open it, I will be able to wake and defend myself. I don’t mind being cold, and I don’t mind being hot.”

Dwell frowned. “Well, if you are going to go, you need a different dress. We both puked on that one.”

Elurra laughed. “Thank you.”

Dwell nodded to the other brides and then the Dhark. “Let’s get her dressed for her funeral!”

It was a strange reason for a party, but they all chipped in.

Saying her goodbyes was strange, but kissing Teth on the cheek felt right. “Goodbye, Teth. You were a good instructor, and I can now throw a punch without breaking my thumb.”

He smiled and ducked his head. “You look very pretty, and I have enjoyed our time together, princess.”

The speaker lifted her up and put her in the stasis pod. She was wearing jewels and gems donated by the Dhark and a gown donated by Dwell. She looked royal, and she knew it.

She had said her goodbyes to the rest of them, so she arranged her skirt, lay back, and nodded to Sho. He activated the stasis unit, and she went cold.

* * * *

Twelve hours later, the Dhark escorted the stasis unit to the flagship of the sandmen fleet.

Alric was going through the files, searching for any hint of where Elurra had gone.

“Commander Kharmin, there are seven Dhark here to see you. They are carrying a large piece of equipment. It scans clear, but they say they will only show you.”

He was on his feet and headed to the access ramp in a heartbeat. There was no way that this couldn’t be about Elurra. His fiery snowflake.

Seven cloaked members of the Dhark were silently waiting for him, not that anyone would expect anything less. Their speaker nodded. “Commander Kharmin?”

“I am.”

“We believe you are looking for this.”

He reached out and slid the cover off the large, oblong object next to him.

Alric felt like he had been punched in the gut. Elurra. She was lying motionless, dressed like the princess she was. “Is she...”

The speaker chuckled. “She is yours, and she is a handful. Alive or dead, you will have to open the chamber to find out.”

The Dhark turned and left him with the body of the woman that he had been fantasizing about for years.

Alric moved his hand along the controls, and the unit hummed to life and began to warm. When it had warmed, he opened the lid, expecting Elurra to open her eyes. She remained still and cold.

He touched her cheek, her arm, and cupped her neck, willing her to wake up.

He leaned over and kissed her, trying anything to stop the thudding of despair welling up.

He felt the slightest nip on his lip, and she parted her own with a soft sigh. He teased his way into her mouth with his tongue. The kiss was slow, and her lips got warmer as he continued to acquaint himself with her.

When he lifted his head, her brilliant blue eyes opened and widened as she stared at him.

“Fuck, you are huge.”

He laughed and gathered her in his arms. “That’s what they all say.”

Chapter Eight

He carried her to his quarters, and he had never been so nervous in his life. He had fought entire provinces on his own with less tension than he felt now. She was here. She was real. She was his.

She was leaning against him, and she chuckled. “So, I guess you shrank yourself for the dreamscape.”

“I didn’t want to frighten you.”

“Oh, yes. I can see that.” The bare skin of his chest was warm under her cheek and against her shoulder. “Where are we going?”

“My quarters. I have a med kit there, and we will check and see what effects the stasis left behind.”

She wrinkled her nose. “I wasn’t actually in stasis. We just had to lower my temperature to the point that the incoming scanners wouldn’t recognize me.”

He paused. “So, you weren’t asleep when I opened the pod?”

She shrugged against him. “Maybe I was, maybe I wasn’t. It is a bit hazy.”

He carried her past members of his crew, who stopped and stared. Elurra looked up at him innocently. “What are they looking at?”

He sighed. “I am thinking that they did not believe you were real.”

He brought her back to his quarters and closed the door, setting her on the edge of the bed before getting his med kit. She remained still as he ran the scanner over her. He paused. “Why are you wearing data crystals in your jewelry?”

She leaned up on her elbows and reached into the center of the bejeweled breastplate. She plucked out a crystal and handed it to him. “The Dhark said to give you this. You are to watch it when you are alone.”

He smiled and put the med kit back. “Well, for one of your kind, you are perfectly healthy.”

He looked at her and caressed her cheek, it was cool and silky, the softest thing he had ever felt, except...

* * * *

Elurra watched his expression change. He went from softly caring to intent. She could either be swept away or make another choice. She rolled up into a kneeling position and yanked him down to her. “Okay. That didn’t work.”

She was hanging around his neck, and he was looking down at her.

“What were you trying to do, Elurra?”

“Get you horizontal so that I can kiss you.”

Alric chuckled. “Perhaps we can compromise.”

He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her onto his lap. She sighed and squirmed around until she was straddling him. She sighed happily and kissed him slowly and then with more intensity as she went.

He let her maul him for two minutes, and then, his hands started to move, and he used his tongue to tease her.

She shivered as his hands roamed over her back, nearly covering the entire span. He touched the clasp of the collar at the back of her neck, and the heavy weight slid down her chest to pool between them.

She lowered her hand from his neck and dropped the collar on the floor, followed by the headpiece. Her hair tumbled down her back, and he turned his hands to slide his fingers through it.

She broke the kiss and pressed her forehead to his, breathing heavily. “So, what have you been doing for the last decade?”

He chuckled and twisted so that she was now under him. “I have been following my career path. You?”

She shrugged. “This and that. Hooray for survival.”

He frowned, but she pulled him down to her. “Just move if I try to bite you.”

He grinned, but her kiss was savage, and she knew that her teeth were priming. Something about him made her mouth water. Well, she was wet elsewhere, but that would be dealt with if he could find a way to fit inside her.

He seemed surprised by her offensive, but he adapted by deepening the kiss and sliding a hand down her hip. He slowly gathered the fabric up, and his fingers caressed the inside of her thighs. He paused and hissed. “How can you be this fucking wet from a kiss?”

She smiled and nuzzled his neck, the urge to bite unbelievably strong. “Because it’s you.”

He groaned and sat back, unclasping her belt and pulling her dress off. She smiled. “You had better strip as well because when I say I want you inside me, I am not going to be in the mood to wait.”

She had no idea where the bravado was coming from. Still, the lust-filled gaze that accompanied his rapid disrobing was gratifying. His erection made her glance down at her forearm for comparison. The difference wasn’t large enough to ease her mind.

He returned to the bed, and he murmured, “We can turn the light off if you prefer.”

She smiled and ran her hand through his close-cropped hair. “Light is the least of my problems. Frankly, I would rather you could see where you were going with that thing.”

He paused and fell to his side, laughing.

She rolled to face him and smiled. “You have a nice laugh.”

He rested a hand on her hip. “Thank you. You have a wicked sense of humour.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Thank you.”

He pulled her close. “You don’t mind the light?”

She shook her head. “I have been dealing with the dark for a very long time.”

He kissed her again, and she leaned toward him, her breasts touching his chest. He slid his hand between her thighs and inserted one finger into her. She shivered and closed her eyes, focusing on the new sensation as he began to draw it slowly out of her and slide it back. His tongue took on the same rhythm.

She shivered and bent her knee, sliding it up and over his thigh, opening her to his touch. He groaned and slipped a second finger into her, moving it just as slowly. Elurra gasped and pulled away from his kiss, hiding her head against his neck. She was panting, and the fire inside her was building. He bent his head and took a nipple between his teeth, flicking it with his tongue before sucking hard.

She moaned and clutched at his head; he moved between her left and right breast until her body was twisting, and she nearly dislodged his hand. Her breath came faster until she arched against him, and a low, soft cry tore through the air.

He waited until she had calmed and stopped clenching on his fingers before he rolled to his back and pulled her astride him. “Put me inside you.”

“I will try, but you might want to lend a hand.” Sweat coated her. She wrapped her fingers around his cock and pressed it to the heart of her sex. He helped her keep it steady as she eased onto it, whimpering and twisting, rising and falling until she could take most of him inside.

He was tense, and sweat was dripping down his temples. “Fuck, you are tight.”

She braced her hands on his rigid abdomen, and she slowly lifted off him before sliding back around him in a rush. This time, he was all the way in.

Veins stood out on his neck and arms, she leaned forward to lick one of his nipples, and he grunted, gripping her hips.

He slowly lifted and lowered her until she was moaning with every move. He gripped her hips to hold her and rolled with her until he was covering her, and she was being rocked with every thrust. He looked down at her, supported on his elbows. “Bite me.”

She didn’t hesitate. She lunged upward on an inward push, and she sank her teeth into his chest. He yelled and shoved into her as his cock twitched and jerked within her. She had her mouth full, or she would have joined him as blood coursed into her, and she now understood what he tasted like. Mine.

When she had healed him, Alric rolled them back so that she was on top of him. “I want to stay inside you.”

She smiled and listened to his heart, pounding under her ear. “I think I like that idea.”

He flipped the sheet over them and wrapped his arms around her. “You are finally here.”

She smiled and dozed off. She had had a rough day, after all.

She stood in the middle of a meadow filled with flowers touched by moonlight. She looked around and found Alric without much trouble. “Seriously?”

He laughed. “This is our life now. Every night, every time you sleep, I will be in your dreams.”

She walked up to him and put her hands on her hips. “Was that in the fine print?”

His stellar hand touched her cheek. “Your father knew. He didn’t want you left alone after he was gone.”

“How did he know?”

He sighed. “Your mother’s people were pushing for a strengthening of the alliance. He knew what your stepmother was and what she had done to your mother.”

“Well, that does sound like him. He always was one step ahead, but when he lost my mother, I think something in him broke. He was an excellent father, but part of him was empty.”

He wrapped his arms around her. “He sent letter after letter to me, outlining what was to happen. When he died, I understood what he was saying. I wish I had understood sooner.”

She shrugged and buried her face against his chest. “He wouldn’t have accepted help. He considered her his mistake. He let her live after what she did to my mother. She begged him to forgive Vietta, but she had no idea what that woman was capable of.”

He sighed. “Mistakes of the past leave long marks on the future. What do you want to do with her?”

She looked up at him and smiled sweetly. “Kill her then forget her. But first, we have to get an invitation to lunch.”

He gently pinched her chin. “You are bloodthirsty.”

She smiled. “It comes with the fangs.”

He chuckled and leaned in to kiss her. “This is much more fun when I can see all of you.”

She laughed softly against his lips. “See? I told you that the light was good for something.”

He held her close and eventually lifted her to slowly slide into her. It seemed her state in the waking world translated because, while it was a snug fit, he was inside her. The rest of their time in the dream state was spent with him lifting and lowering her in a steady and fulfilling beat. She lost count of how many times she had cum, but it was just a dream, after all.

Chapter Nine

Alric looked at his wife, sprawled out on the bed, her inky hair covering her elegant spine. He sighed and turned back to the crystal that the Dhark had sent along. As the images began to fill the screen, he began to shake.

The second to last image of Elurra being beaten in front of the throne chilled him. Wide spans of her back were cut open, and she simply sat and took it, rising when the count was over. He knew many men who would have collapsed from the pain of it. The final image was the med scan with the listing of how much damage had been done to her body. None of that damage was visible now, but the fact that she had withstood it all without giving in to despair, that was something.

He looked into the other files, videos of the same incidents. There was one that was blurred out. His curiosity was aroused. It nearly trumped his fury.

He glanced down to see that it was more than his curiosity. He was still with Elurra on the dreamscape. Splitting focus was what the sandmen were best at.

He eased back into bed with her. They didn’t need to rise for four more hours. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her tight to him. His personal princess.

* * * *

Elurra felt a warm, wet touch on her neck. She grumbled and shifted away from it. The touch began to work its way down her spine. She sighed and squirmed a little. “If you wake me up this early every day, we are going to have words.”

He chuckled against her shoulder and then her neck. “Are you sore?”

She looked back at him. “The benefit of drinking from a lover is that I recover five minutes after sex.”

“I am not just a lover; I am your husband.” He lifted her knee to her chest and stroked her with two fingers, and when she responded with embarrassing speed, he slid his cock into her.

The feeling of being filled from that angle drove out all words and oxygen. She inhaled sharply when he began to rock against her. She moved her hips, gasping and twitching as nerves on the front of her inner walls were stimulated with every stroke.

Alric moved his arms around her and held her breasts as he picked up speed. The heavy slamming against her would have been objectionable if she wasn’t already rocketing toward release. She didn’t scream when she came; she let out a little squeak as her nerves burst into flame for just an instant before she began her jolting spasming float back to reality.

Alric thrust deep and groaned, holding her carefully as he held himself inside her. When he was finally still, she raised a hand and patted his forearms. “Next time, give me a cup of tea first. I am parched.”

He rolled her to her back and kissed her. He was grinning when he lifted his head. “Next time?”

She snorted. “Of course, there will be a next time. I will probably be cleaning my teeth one day, and you will take me from behind. There will be a next time for that, too.”

He grinned. “Do you have more of these ideas? I would like to make a list.”

She placed a hand on his chest and closed her eyes at the feel of his pulse under her palm.

He smiled. “What do you feel?”

“Breakfast, but I have heard it might not be pleasant if you are not having sex with me at the time.”

He shrugged. “There is only one way to find out.” He flopped to his back. “My body is at your disposal.”

She climbed over him, looking for the best place to bite that wouldn’t upset him. She focused on his right pec. First, she kissed him then she worked her way down his neck, nipping and licking as she went. When she got to the biting part, his erection was pressing into her thigh again. She drank her fill and smiled when she looked up at him. “So, your size is useful.”

He chuckled and threaded a hand through her hair, bending to kiss her. He had to fold himself nearly in half to make the connection, so she leaned toward him and met him halfway. She smiled when he cuddled her against him. “When do we have to get up?”

“Dawn. Three and a half hours from now, give or take.”

“I really need a shower. Sex is fun, but it is very sticky.”

He carefully rolled to his feet, keeping her pinned against him, and he walked her to the shower of his private quarters. The bathing started arousal, but Elurra called a halt to that. She wasn’t going to confront the queen while there was cum running down her thighs. That was Vietta’s move.

In the short time that they had been in the bathroom tidying up, the bots had stripped and reset the bed. Elurra ran to the bed and crawled between the sheets, snuggling and sighing happily.

Alric crawled into bed behind her, spooning up against her. “Did you get what you need from me?”

She nodded. “I did. Thank you. I will be going to the castle armed and dangerous.”

He chuckled. “It’s cute that you think that.”

She smirked. “It’s funny that you think I am not serious.”

They cuddled together and napped for two hours. When they rose, they got dressed, and she put the jewels back in place. Her aunt was nothing if not avaricious.

He put straps across his chest, and his cloak reminded her of his boy in the dreamscape. She touched the fabric. “I like the stars.”

He chuckled. “Thank you. Now, would you like to have breakfast?”

She beckoned him down so that she could kiss him. “Yes, please.”

He sighed as she kissed him softly, and then, she slowly released his neck. “Now, I would like breakfast.”

He grinned. “Yes, my princess.”

There was a lot of possessiveness in that my. She couldn’t blame him. It was what she felt when she had him under her, and her teeth were in him. Anyone getting between them at that moment would be taking back a stump.

He offered her his arm, and they walked through the halls, the slippers on her feet didn’t make a sound on the floors, which was good. His boots were silent as well.

“So, why are you walking so quietly?”

“I am on a very thin cushion of air. It is handy for making quick changes of direction.”

She chuckled. There were members of the crew stirring, and nearly all of them stopped and stared at her as they passed.

“I am guessing that there aren’t many women on board.”

“None. The colony ship is on the way. Metguard women will be suitable mates if they are available once the rest of the colony gets here.”

She frowned. “Why are you even all coming here?”

He patted her hand. “We have no world. Your father offered us a place here in exchange for taking you as my bride. If you had actually been dead, we would still have come, but we would have invaded. Your people would have been subjugated, and we would still end up in charge.”

She grimaced. “So, I am very glad to be alive then.”

He lifted her hand to his lips. “I am happy about it as we don’t have to exert ourselves for the takeover.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Oh, I am going to make you exert yourself. Taking over Metguard is going to be very hard work.”

He looked at her and grinned smugly. “I look forward to the challenge.”

She winked up at him, and then, they were in the dining area, and he was helping her make selections at the machine when a voice said, “Commander, may I speak to you for a moment?”

Alric kissed her cheek and let her figure out her meal while he stepped away to speak with what appeared to be his second in command.

She could clearly hear the hushed words in Masuae, the language of the sandmen.

“Sir, she’s a vampire!”

“She always has been. She was born to it and was a consumer when I first met her.”

“You can’t trust vampires. They are treacherous bloodsuckers.”

She took her tray and walked past them on the way to the commander’s table. “We are also wonderful dancers and delightful conversationalists.”

The second in command froze, and his head turned toward her.

She sat down, and Alric spoke to him, “She is her father’s heir. She is the face her people recognize. She will be queen.”

The man looked at her. “She speaks Masuae?”

She snorted and looked up at him. “Yes. I was going to marry one, and I do not like secrets. They get annoying after a while.” She said it in what she knew was accented Masuae, but his widened eyes showed her she was understood.

Alric patted his buddy on the shoulder. “We leave for the palace in an hour.”

“She is expecting us for lunch.”

“Then, add one to the count for the palace to expect, and we will see you at the shuttle bay.”

Alric got his meal, and he sat with her. “We could have gotten table service.”

“But, then, I wouldn’t have gotten to play with the dispenser. I really miss being able to work with tech. She had it banned for me. All items in the palace were checked for my prints on a daily basis.”

“Why?”

She smirked. “She was worried I would get into her surveillance system. She worships the images. They are her favourite form of entertainment, but I think she just likes looking at herself.”

“So, the images that I saw... she ordered them?”

“Oh, yes. Wait. What images?”

“The Dhark sent a data crystal full of files of you being beaten.”

She widened her eyes. “Oh. Damn. Right. I wonder how they got them.”

He shrugged. “I am glad that they sent them, it explains why you ran.”

“Oh. I ran because one of her lovers had been told to take me out and kill me. Strike off my head and dig out my heart.”

He grimaced. “Who is it?”

“I don’t know if she let him live once she found out that he didn’t do the job.”

He growled. “If you see him, you will let me know.”

“Yes, Alric, I will let you know. Now, why are we going so early?”

He grinned. “I wish to take stock of my new home and get a feel for what you would like to do with it.”

She sighed and finished her food, setting her implement down. “I would love it destroyed. She burned all of my father’s things. My things. It is an empty stone hulk that has seen far too much pain. All that history has been tainted. If this is a fresh start, it should be exactly that.”

“So, your parents’ time together?”

Elurra smiled. “Is in me. I am the end result of their love and commitment. I don’t need a building to do that. The trees are still there, the pathways. Those are the parts that I treasure. Those are the places where my father held my mother before I was born, they cuddled together and looked at the stars. It was my mother’s idea to choose the sandmen. She told my father that they—you would be good for Metguard.”

“How do you know that?”

“My father knew their time together was short. He had created the surveillance system that let him see his wife in the images. Vietta said she had destroyed those vids as well, and that broke my heart.”

He nodded. “Understandable. We will run through her system and make complete copies before we destroy the castle. Okay?”

She laughed at the caring and violence wrapped in that one sentence. “Yes, thank you.”

He finished his meal and smiled. “Would you like a tour of the ship?”

“Yes, please.”

He smiled. “I’ll show you my home, and I get to destroy yours. It hardly seems fair.”

She grinned. “It will be a romantic gesture. I promise to dredge up some weird fantasies for you to carry out at a later date.”

He laughed. “Deal.”

He offered her his arm, and she linked arms with him to get the tour. It was an eyeopener.

Chapter Ten

The hooded cloak that she was wearing was matched by two of the men with her. The only thing that stood out was her height. She had been given a child’s size that made Alric chuckle.

Alric’s demeanour changed when he was walking to the castle. He was no longer the affable and cheerful man who had helped her braid her hair back into a knot. He was something dangerous. Elurra wasn’t afraid, but she didn’t want to get in his way.

The building was hollow. All the laughter and bustling joy that she had grown up with were gone. The castle was riddled with lenses, and the throne room was an exercise in tension.

She glanced over and saw the duke pinned to the wall and three days into rot. Charming.

Vietta was sitting with her crown on. It was very dramatic, but it worked. She was definitely in charge of the room.

“Commander Kharmin, you are early.”

“I arrived when I meant to. Please, excuse my engineers. They are here to determine the structural integrity of the castle so that I can see what will need to be altered.”

Elurra listened, and he nodded to them. They were given full range to look through the castle. She headed to the rear of the castle and headed toward the queen’s private office.

She put her hand on the scanner and walked past the door. All of the doors were still keyed to her biometrics. It was the reason that she had been forbidden to touch any of it.

The vid terminal was sitting and humming through the new information. She reached for the crystals that she had prepared for this, and she set them into the unit to download everything. Years of data.

Everything of note that had happened within the castle would be on that crystal when the burst was done.

She wondered what was happening with Alric and the queen, but it didn’t matter. She had been given her assignment, and she was going to carry it out.

Once she had finished the download, she took the crystal out, and then, she went to check the king’s study. She kept herself stoic as she looked at the charred remains of her father’s desk and the small chair that she used to sit on when he was working. He told her about the treaties, the spells he was crafting, and the harvest in the village. Her childhood had been spent here, and her heart broke all over again when she went looking for anything salvageable.

A bit of poking and prodding later and she stood with tears tracking down her cheeks. She had found it. The fake wall wasn’t visible, it was just something in a faded memory. The cache of books behind it stunned her. This was her father’s personal stash of books, and her mother’s journal was front and center. On a podium, in the small room, the slim volume had pride of place. It was a treasure, but she couldn’t take it yet.

She closed the door and brushed away the marks of her contact. She wiped her hands on the inside of her cloak and looked around. This place was the past, the books were the present, and Alric was her future. She had to keep things in perspective.

Her recon was complete. The archive crystal was with her. She could now find Alric and give it to him.

She calmed herself and left the burned room. She would seek them in the throne room and work from there.

The other engineers would join them as they finished their assessments.

Elurra returned to the throne room, and Alric caught her gaze and gave her a smile and a nod.

She walked to stand next to him, and she gave her report, ignoring Vietta. “The archive has been completed, and I have also found something of interest that will need to be removed before the renovation begins.”

Vietta was staring at her in dawning horror, so Elurra reached up and dropped the hood back.

She smiled at her aunt, and it was not a nice smile. She didn’t bare her fangs, but she was near it.

“You!”

Elurra chuckled. “Yes, me. I thought you were smarter than that. Did you forget what I looked like when I was no longer appearing in the vids?”

Alric reached out and put his arm around her. “I believe that we are here for lunch?”

Vietta frowned. “It won’t be ready for an hour.”

Elurra smiled. “Perhaps we could just have tea.”

Vietta snagged onto that. “Tea, yes, of course.”

She rose and left the room, the courtiers were staring at Elurra as she passed to go to the private morning room. She knew how different she looked. Her cheeks weren’t sunken, her body had filled out, she had curves, and her eyes weren’t haunted. Alric walked with her, and she smiled. The visible show of strength and support was helpful. She didn’t feel like he would let her get stabbed in the back.

He murmured, “How are you doing?”

“Good. But I need three men and ten minutes before you tear this place down. I found one spot worth keeping. Or at least preserving.”

“Very well. When the engineers join us, they will present their reports. You need to identify the region then. They will work around it.”

She nodded and smiled. “Thank you.”

The morning room was set for four, but when the servant saw Elurra, he immediately removed a seat and place. He put a small wooden stool in the spot where the elegant chair had been. Vietta glanced at Alric and saw his scowl. She tried to laugh it off. “It was just a game we played.”

Alric offered her his chair, and he stood behind her when she sat. The queen stood stuck for a moment and slowly took her own chair, staring at Elurra.

The servant realized that things had changed and replaced the setting and the chair. He would be beaten for it later, but for now, he was doing the best he could under penalty of death.

“So, Elurra, where did you go?”

She smiled, her lips tight. “Away.”

The tea was brought, and Vietta took her pot and poured two cups. “Here, Commander. It is my own personal blend.”

He nodded, and his engineers returned to him. Additional places were set, and Vietta looked devastated not to be alone with them.

Elurra took the teacup and smiled. “This is the first warm beverage I have had here in years.”

Vietta sat with her cup in her hands.

Elurra asked coyly. “Aren’t you drinking?”

Vietta put the cup to her lips.

Elurra took the tea and swallowed it, feeling the toxins zipping through her. She filtered them, and then, she spit them back out into the cup. A teaspoon of smouldering acid.

She got to her feet. “I drank mine, now you drink yours.”

Alric put a hand on her shoulder, but she said. “Let me do this.”

She darted around to Vietta, grabbed her hair, and tilted her head back. The cup of tea went down her throat with a lot of choking and spluttering.

With that done, Elurra walked her back to the throne room. She tossed her to the floor and stood in front of the throne. “For plotting to kill Queen Raina, the sentence is death. For issuing assassins to murder the queen before marriage, the sentence is death. For twelve hundred attempts on the life of the king, the sentence is death.”

Elurra listed all of those that she had killed who had only attempted to help her. “For their murders, the sentence is death.”

Vietta was beginning to feel the pain of the toxin. “If I tried to kill the king, why did he live so long?”

Elurra smiled sadly. “I filtered his blood for him. Each day, each night. I took out the poison and healed him. He knew you were doing it, but there was something that he had set in motion, so he tried to hang on as long as he could. Eventually, his heart simply gave out.”

Alric came up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. “How long does she have?”

“If she is resistant, hours. If not. Oh, there she goes.”

The evil queen arched her back, and her heels drummed on the stone. The courtiers simply watched in horror as the despot turned iron black and died.

Elurra took a deep breath. “That feels better. I would like her dragged into the village square and burned, please.”

Alric nodded. “Of course. Anything else, my queen?”

She looked at the castle around her. “Take it down. I don’t want to see this farce of stability and justice anymore.”

Duke Mring cleared his throat. “Does this mean that you are assuming the throne, princess?”

“No, I will be here as consort to King Alric Kharmin. I am done trying to help the nobility get richer with fertility spells and my blood in the land. The sandmen are coming, and they will set up their own organizational system. I am not part of it.”

She watched the shocked murmur roll through the court.

Alric murmured, “What do you mean, blood in the land?”

“Metguard is bio-locked. My father’s family produces a mineral that completes a fertility cycle and lets the crops grow and the trees bear fruit. The price of that fertility is our blood on the land. It is a simple spell that I was taught when I was a child. The citizens here have been leaving en masse in the last few years. The wealth of our world had been left unused, and there is no reason for me to keep them alive.”

He murmured, “What about my people?”

She stared at him. “I thought they would have another method, perhaps clone my blood and use that?”

He sighed. “I will ask this of you in return for whatever you like.”

“You want my blood?” Her surprise was running through her. She had been on a whirlwind, and her mind couldn’t focus. After her aunt’s death, everything had blurred.

“I will give to you, as you give to me.” He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her.

She went up on her toes and leaned into his kiss. When he lifted his head, he said, “Everyone leave the castle. It is about to be renovated.”

Elurra blinked. “Renovated?”

“Yes, don’t worry, it will have the bones, but the flesh will be gone. Come on, let’s speak with the engineers. That should make things clear.”

She frowned but walked out with him to the gardens, and the engineers came out. A few displays later, and she understood what they were doing.

She pointed out the location of the secret room, and they marked it. More sandmen arrived and soon surrounded the castle.

They did a complete check of the building to make sure that there was no one left, but when it was empty, the hundreds of sandmen faced the castle, and Alric kissed her forehead before he joined his men.

There was a hum that started in the soil, and then, the wind began to take up the note.

Elurra watched as stone rose from the ground, and it began to whip around the castle, scrubbing the rock and removing the sharp edges. The castle changed from a solid block to a brighter building with elegant towers and plenty of light.

The building’s footprint expanded tremendously, but her gardens remained intact.

When the sandmen were done, they collapsed. Well, all except Alric collapsed. She caught him.

“That is amazing. It looks like a completely new place.”

He looked down at her and smiled. “It is. It is made of the interior of the stone that was never cut to be seen. Would you like to go inside?”

“I think you need to wait. You look a little pale.”

He chuckled. “I will recover. Come on, I want to show you our new home.”

She sighed. “Fine, but lean on me.”

“First, we will go to the hidden room.”

“Thank you.”

He walked with her, his arm casually over her shoulders, and only the most intent observer would notice that she was taking some of his weight.

She walked toward the private offices, or where they had been. There was nothing. Her heart sank. “Where did they go?”

“Second floor. A more secure location. The engineers moved the room.”

“Oh. Why didn’t you say so?”

He grinned. “I am just enjoying your curiosity.”

She grimaced and elbowed him lightly. “Come on. I need to check on those books.”

He steered her slightly to the new stairway, and she walked up the stairs, down a hall, and into the library off the king’s bedroom.

The podium was there, her mother’s journal was there, and the walls were filled with empty bookshelves. The two shelves that were most important to her contained the books and scrolls that her father had used to teach her.

She hugged Alric and sighed. “Okay, you have held up your part of the bargain. I will do the ritual for the land tonight.”

“You don’t have to do it tonight.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Yes, I do. The planting season is nearly on us, and the red mist has to travel around the world. I need to get this going.”

He smiled. “Just like that, I give you a library, and you spill your blood?”

“Well, as long as you are my husband, I will protect your people. If the sandmen need the land, I will make sure it will grow crops for them.”

He leaned down to her ear. “Are you hungry?”

She chuckled and whispered back. “You are currently weak and feeble; you wouldn’t be much of a meal.”

He looked at her with narrowed eyes. “Did you just insult me?”

“No, I am caring for your wellbeing. It just looks like an insult.” She smiled. “If you would like to help, though, I can take the sample from your arm.”

He nodded. “Please. You turned even greyer than normal after that poison.”

She shrugged. “It had to be done. Now, please, indicate where I am allowed to bite.”

Alric pointed to his bicep, and she frowned but moved in close and tilted her head to drink.

He said. “Perhaps we should go to the bed platform. I might get weak-kneed again.”

She closed her mouth with a snap. “I don’t have to.”

“No, no, I definitely want you to. Come with me.”

He backed into the bedroom and sat on the stone block that he called the platform. “There. Now we are safe. Hmm. Perhaps I should brace my arm on the platform.”

He set his arm down, and she began to clue in that she would have to straddle his thigh to reach him.

She smiled as she deliberately lifted her skirts and straddled his thigh to take the promised bite. He was flexing his arm, so he slowed things down even more while his free hand slid between them and rubbed at her clit.

It wasn’t the most dignified feeding she had ever had, but it was fun.

Epilogue

Elurra had never done this with a live audience. Still, now, she was standing in the gardens of the palace with a dagger and wearing the sleeveless top and narrow skirt of the sandmen.

Alric was wearing formal wear, which was pretty much the same thing she was wearing. His skirt was a heavier fabric and split to mid-thigh.

The Dhark and their family were watching on the broadcast. Dwell was fascinated by the concept of a fertility ritual that involved vampire blood.

Elurra looked at her husband and took the dagger. She lifted it high and whispered, “Call to the land, time to wake. Call to the sky, time to rain. Call to the sun, time to shine. Call to the wind to carry my blood.”

She whipped the blade up her inner arm, across her palm and outward. The sandmen gasped as the blood left her, formed a roiling ball of red mist, and then, it darted away.

Elurra dropped the blade, pressed her hand over her arm, and tried to chant the healing spell. It slowed the flow but left the long crimson stripe. She was tired.

Alric caught her and lifted her up.

She looked around. “Where did I drop the dagger?”

One of the men tried to pull it from the soil, and she stared as instead of him pulling it up, it was pushed up by the tree that was beneath it.

The young man asked, “Is it supposed to do that?”

She blushed. “Yes, that’s fine. Thank you. I will be able to reclaim it in the winter.”

Alric scowled. “Why in the winter?”

“Um, the tree is sleeping; it isn’t watching like it will be for the next ten months.”

He tensed. “Ten months?”

She blushed. “Stop staring at me like that. The soil knows before anyone else.”

There was a squeal from the Dhark video feed. The ladies were excited, the men were amused, and Teth was smiling like a proud uncle.

One of the sandmen murmured, “How does the commander know it is his?”

She squirmed to be let down, and Alric complied. She stalked over to the gossiper and beckoned for him to bend down. When he did, she gave him an uppercut that snapped his neck back and left him dazed on the ground in shock.

“Now, if any of you have any doubts about my virtue, please, ask me directly and don’t go whispering. I really hate whispers. It denotes a lack of courage. So, since you need to know, the first man to have me was the commander. We had been together on the dreamscape before we met in person, so our first intimacies were... prolonged. The tree has indicated I am carrying. I still do not know if it will stick. Being cursed has certain challenges, and carrying to term is one of them. I didn’t wish to find out that I was possibly pregnant and then immediately have my honour challenged. If you would like to try again tomorrow, I would recommend that you not bend down where I can reach you. I have a devastating uppercut.”

Alric was behind her, and she swayed. He caught her again.

He growled a few pithy statements about respecting women in general and Elurra in particular. While he talked, she squirmed around to get comfortable. She was dozing against his shoulder when the lecture was over, and she only woke up to him when he was naked under her with her head tucked in invitation against his shoulder. She moved down to his chest and bit, her hips rocking until he shifted them both to connect them.

Usually, the sex came before the bite, but she was a rebel, and Alric didn’t mind the sharp piercing of her teeth. Her father had been right, they were a good match.

She was curled against him, stroking his chest with her left arm. He kept looking at it and shaking his head in amazement.

“I can’t believe I healed that.” He was smug.

She chuckled. “Of course. Only you. You know, since I have been feeding from you, I haven’t been hungry. Normally there is a gnawing feeling in my belly, but now, nothing. I am very content.”

He smiled. “Do you think you are pregnant?”

She shrugged. “I think it is too soon, but the magic thinks I am.”

He placed his hand over her belly. “A tiny little sandman with big sharp teeth.”

“Or sandwoman. We could have a little girl.”

“It is unlikely; we have a skewed population. We only have one woman per eighteen males, so we breed out to many other species. The result is always pure sandman.”

She laughed. “Welcome to Metguard, where your rules don’t apply. Whatever science built this world became magic, and that magic parted ways from rules and logic.”

“Right. Speaking of logic, where did the queen keep her poisons.”

“She grew her herbs in a secret grove of apples. That is why the poison was so hard to detect. It tasted good. I can take you there tomorrow and destroy the trees, or at least remove the toxins. It has been on my list of things to do, but I haven’t been strong enough... until now. Thanks for that.”

He wrapped an arm around her hip. “If you are going out to exert yourself tomorrow, you should really gather strength today.”

She laughed and slid her leg to the top of his hip. “Well, if you insist, but you have already given so much today, I should probably do most of the work.”

He grinned and nodded. “I think that is an excellent idea. Let me know if you need any help.”

She snickered and got him to his back, where she could start her newly favourite procedure for getting his blood. It involved focus, attention to her partner, and not letting herself get out of control.

It was an exercise of focus, and she was so happy to be able to practice.

* * * *

Sixteen years later.

“So, Snow, this is what you will have to do one day.” Elurra explained the ritual, and then, she straightened her ritual costume. The vampire curse was remarkably handy for one thing, after every child, her body had bounced back rapidly.

Snow frowned. “Why does it involve blood?”

“Because everything does. The animals we eat, the birds in the trees, even the trees themselves have a version of it.”

“Why do I have to do it?”

“Because you are the eldest. It doesn’t have to be a solo duty. As your siblings come of age, they can help you, but for now, I am here, and I will do it. Are you ready for the procession?”

Snow nodded. She and her six sisters lined up, and as Alric held Elurra’s hand, the entire family entered the expanded garden.

The sandmen bowed as the royal family walked to the center of the garden. There was a line of men vying for Snow’s hand, but it would be her decision.

Elurra had gotten lucky with her father’s choice. Still, Snow definitely had a mind of her own and two parents to encourage her. She was not going to be left on her own. Blood was good for a lot of things.

She smiled at her husband and her children before lifting the knife. “Call to the land...”

When the ritual was through, she went to get her knife, and it was stuck. She looked up at Alric, and he was laughing in delight. “You have to be fucking kidding me.”

Each of their daughters had been announced in this way, and their family was the envy of the sandmen colony. There was no doubt that Alric was the father of each of her daughters. They were all taller than her by over a head, even the ten-year-old, and they had their father’s golden hair and her blue eyes with their skin a creamy gold.

Seven pretty vampires and one more on the way. She was putting the Dhark to shame.

The End

Author’s Note

This book was part of a writing prompt that a friend posted. (Thanks to Dawn Montgomery for the idea and Stephanie Burke for yelling ‘doooo iitttt.’) I know that Snow White has been a vampire before in many, many books, by many, many authors, but this one was mine. (And the 2nd one I have done. Lol)

So, I have decided that next, I am going to take a run at another fairy tale, sci-fi it up, and see what happens. It is called Legacy Contract and will be out in a few weeks. I have already been sharing the cover in my readers’ group. Fairy tale, sci-fi, superheroes... all my favourite things.

Thanks for reading,

Viola Grace

About the Author

Viola Grace (aka Zenina Masters) is a Canadian sci-fi/paranormal romance writer with ambitions to keep writing for the rest of her life. She specializes in short stories because the thrill of discovery, of all those firsts, is what keeps her writing.

An artist who enjoys a story that catches you up, whirls you around, and sets you down with a smile on your face is all she endeavours to be. She prefers to leave the drama to those who are better suited to it, she always goes for the cheap laugh.

In real life, she is now engaged in beekeeping, and her adventures can be found on the YouTube channel, Mystery Bees Apiary. Just look for the cartoon kittens.