Surrendered Read online

  “I was hers,” Thorn said harshly. “Look—look at what she did to me.” Pulling off his shirt, he turned to show his bare back where the angry red lines of Neh’sa’s brand stood out between his shoulder blades.

  “This little female did that to you?” The Krine growled, sounding angry. “Branded you as her own—put her mark upon you?”

  “She did.” Thorn turned to face him again. “Among…other things.”

  Oh Goddess…Neh’sa felt cold all over. Could it be the only reason Thorn had come after her was to get vengeance for the way she had dominated him? But surely not—Thorn must just be playing a part. She hoped.

  The Krine nodded.

  “Very well, I see now that your claim to punish this female is at least as great as my own. However, my vengeance has been delayed long enough. It must be fulfilled today for this is the twentieth cycle marker since my son was taken from me.”

  Neh’sa felt her heart sink. So the stories about the crown prince—the Krineling—and what had happened to him on Yonnie Six, were true. And now his father wanted vengeance.

  And I’ll be the one to pay somehow, she thought dismally. Goddess help me!

  But Thorn clearly wasn’t ready to give up.

  “If you will not give her up then I challenge for her,” he said, glaring up at the Krine.

  The big male looked surprised.

  “You think to challenge a Berroff?” he demanded. “You may be large among your people but you are nothing to us.”

  “Nevertheless, I challenge,” Thorn said strongly, lifting his chin. “Bring your strongest warrior and I will best him and claim Neh’sanna for my own.”

  The Krine nodded thoughtfully.

  “I respect your spirit. I will allow you to challenge for the right to vengeance.” He raised his voice. “Let Judoth step forward.”

  Out of the ranks of the guards, which encircled the massive stone throne room, stepped possibly the biggest male Neh’sa had ever seen. He was even bigger than the Krine and bulging muscles stood out like boulders from his arms and chest. He wore only a kilt-like garment made of many leather strips. Between the strips she could see a shaft longer than her arm swinging down between his knees.

  Gods, he’s huge everywhere! The thought made her sick with fear though she tried not to show it on her face.

  “I am here, my Krine.” The gigantic male’s voice was like thunder, echoing in the vast room.

  “Judoth—finest of my warriors—you were the chosen instrument of my vengeance. Now another challenges you for that place. Will you risk your life and your honor to retain your position or do you yield?”

  “Yield?” The immense warrior laughed so loudly the echoes rang in the vast stone room. Neh’sa was forced to cover her ears. It was deafening. “No, my Lord Krine—I will not yield,” he said at last.

  “Then you must fight this Kindred.” The Krine indicated Thorn, whose face was absolutely impassive.

  “As the Supreme Krine wishes,” the warrior rumbled.

  “Very well—then let the challenge commence.” The Krine clapped his massive hands together, making a painfully loud echo in the vaulted room.

  “Wait,” Thorn said quickly. “Let me move my female back to safety before we exchange blows.”

  “As you wish.” The Krine inclined his head.

  Thorn gripped Neh’sa by the arm and walked her swiftly back to the edge of the circle of guards surrounding the huge room. Behind them, the huge Berroff warrior loosed another deafening laugh.

  “That’s right, little male,” he called to Thorn. “Take the female away to where she cannot see you being bested and torn limb from limb.”

  Thorn ignored him.

  “Listen to me,” he muttered in Neh’sa’s ear. “I’ll try not to but I might have to flame-up. You need to stay well back in case that happens.”

  “What?” She looked at him uncertainly. “But…but can you control it?”

  “I don’t know.” Thorn sounded grim. “But this entire room appears to be made of stone. So it’s not like that damn club where I was afraid I’d burn it to the ground with everyone inside it. Just stay well back and hopefully everything will be all right.”

  “Fine. I’ll try.” Neh’sa looked at the huge Berroff guards towering around them like tall gray, muscular trees.

  Thorn must have seen her discomfort because he steered her towards the captain of the space pirates who had brought her here in the first place.

  “You—” He poked a finger in the pirate captain’s chest. “You brought my female here—now keep her safe while I fight for her.”

  The captain nodded gravely.

  “As you say, Brother. And I would not have brought her if the Krine hadn’t compelled me. Kidnapping females isn’t to my taste.”

  “Fine. Just stay well back and put Neh’sa behind you if things get rough,” Thorn instructed.

  He turned back to face the huge Berroff warrior who was watching with a look of apparent amusement on his lumpish face. He dwarfed Thorn, towering at least four feet taller than the big Kindred and his shoulders were fully twice as broad as Thorn’s.

  “Well,” the pirate captain murmured in Neh’sa’s ear, “Your male’s got balls—I’ll give him that. I wouldn’t want to go up against that brute barehanded. Or even with a handcannon blaster for that matter.”

  “Thorn will be fine,” Neh’sa said through numb lips, hoping it was true. “You’ll see. He’ll be just fine.”

  But would he?

  * * * * *

  Thorn faced the huge Berroff warrior and tried to get a sense of the other male’s weaknesses. Well, he was big—his size might make him slow. Other than that, Thorn had an idea that the third eye all Berroffs seemed to have might be vulnerable. Although this warrior’s eye wasn’t open as the Krine’s was. In fact, none of the other warriors had third eyes which were open more than a slit. Thorn wondered what the significance of that was. Was it—

  And then an immense gray fist was coming at his head, effectively cutting off his train of thought.

  Thorn dodged quickly out of the way of the first blow and then the second one. He’d been right—the giant was slow—though not nearly as slow as he’d hoped. Also, there was only so much dodging he could do. Eventually he would have to get close enough to strike a blow of his own and the other male had a much longer reach than he did. Still, he had to chance it.

  Thorn danced around behind, forcing the Berroff to follow him, turning clumsily. He needed to finish this quickly and get out of here with Neh’sa before the Krine changed his mind about releasing her.

  He turned again, then dodged to the left. When the other male took the bait, he rushed him, head down, and plowed into the Berroff’s midsection.

  He’d been hoping to knock the giant off his feet—to bring him down to size so he could reach him. But though the huge male let out an “Oof!” and doubled over, he didn’t fall as Thorn had hoped. Worse, he shot out an arm and got it locked around Thorn’s throat.

  “Now, little warrior,” he growled in Thorn’s ear, as he straightened up, his grip growing tighter, cutting off Thorn’s air supply. “Now we shall see who gets the female.”

  “Get…off me!” Thorn growled, aiming a kick behind him. It connected with the Berroff’s rock-hard thigh but the other male didn’t even stumble.

  “Oh yes, she’s a pretty little one,” he rumbled, squeezing even harder until Thorn felt like his fucking head was going to pop off. “So pretty and so tiny. I can’t decide whether I want to fuck her or make her suck my cock first. Of course…” He thundered laughter again. “She’s so little once I get my cock up in her, it’s likely to fill her from cunt to mouth so she can do both at once!”

  The thought of Neh’sa in the arms of another male—the idea of this big brute taking her—forcing himself on her, inside her—was more than Thorn could stand. He could feel the sparks in his eyes turning to flames as the fire inside him started to rise.

  “You’ll…n