I hadn’t?
“I don’t know,” Ashley shakes her head. “I’m just glad all it was… It was a smart decision. A necessary decision.”
I shake my head slowly. “Was it? We can never go back to the Aurelian Empire, now. They’ll kill us for desertion.”
Ashley furrows her brows again. I wonder if she even notices that she does so. It’s adorable, and despite the fact that I’m three times her size, even a little bit intimidating.
For a moment there’s silence. Then Ashley demands:
“So… What’s your plan? Take over Lipa? The whole fucking planet?”
I can feel Augustus and Evander focusing through the Bond. Not far away, they’re pouring over ledgers and stats, finding out how the Paradooli empire operated. We’ll take complete ownership of it – and then whatever else we set our minds to.
“Maybe,” I murmur. “After all, what’s wrong with that? Something brought us here, Ashley. You’re a part of that.”
I gesture to the finery of the room we’re in – finery purchased with the rewards of Peter Paradooli’s criminal activities.
“This entire planet weeps, Ashley. Slavery is rampant. It needs Aurelians like us.”
She bristles at that, and I know I’ve said something wrong.
Ashley purses her lips tight.
“So, that’s the idea? Take over a city. Then a planet. Create a criminal empire, just because you’ve abandoned the Aurelian Empire?”
I sit there, stunned.
“Just because you went Rogue, it doesn’t mean you have to become crime bosses!”
She doesn’t understand.
“Ashley, do you know what it means to desert the Aurelian Empire? It’s not like quitting a job. We’re on the Kill List now. Execute On Sight List. To the Aurelian Empire, we’re criminals of the worst sort.”
I shake my head.
“And it gets worse. Now that we’ve been to a slave auction, you’d better believe that when words gets out – and it will – we’ll be branded Most Wanted as well.”
“So, that’s it?” Ashley retorts. “You’ll handle that by taking over the casinos here? The drug trade, and the protection rackets? You’ll become scum, just like him?”
“No!” I retort. “We’re going to clean this city up!”
“And make a fortune doing it.”
Her words sting, but I don’t let her know it. I stare at this gorgeous woman – our fated mate, destined to sire my sons – and she looks at me with a disgusted expression.
It breaks my heart.
“I need some time to think, Conan. Maybe… Maybe I need to be away from you guys for a time.” She pauses, raising her eyes to meet mine. “Or won’t you let me leave? Am I just a slave to you after all?”
My mate’s rejection burns to my core.
“What’s wrong?” Evander’s voice suddenly rings inside my head.
“She wants to leave us.”
“You can’t let that happen,” Augustus replies instantly.
He’s right. Ashley was a slave for her entire adult life. Without us, she’s going to be snatched up by the first bastards to see an easy target. Sure, she’s fierce inside – but the world beyond these walls is cold and cruel place.
I clench my jaw tight. I steel myself like I’m going into battle.
“You can’t leave.”
The words hang in the air. There’s a look of sudden understanding on her face, as though she’s suddenly seeing things clearly for the first time.
“I understand. It’s been a very long day. Could I just take one of the rooms to rest?”
“She’s staying. Don’t worry,” I telepath to my triad. Their tense aura relaxes. So does mine.
I know the moment I seed Ashley – if she truly is my fated mate – she’ll blossom in my mind. I will feel her aura, just like that of Evander and Augustus, and I’ll know that it will ease my mind to have her within me, always.
“Yes… of course. I’ll escort you to it, and I’ll watch the doors – so you can rest easy. I won’t sleep the entire night.”
I’d have thought Ashley would be reassured by that promise…
…but the look on her face suggests the opposite.
18
Ashley
He’s going to watch the doors the entire fucking night?
The message is clear. Don’t even try to escape.
I hadn’t truly been thinking of leaving until this exact moment.
I’d tested him, just like Danielle told me too, and I found out his true nature.
Their true nature – because Evander and Augustus must feel the same.
I know they must think this is the best for me – that they must view the Bond as the most beautiful thing possible.
But all that mattered to me was having a choice.
I had been about to let myself fall for them, to truly give in to everything they offered me. I ache to let myself be with them.
But not like this.
I force myself to smile at Conan, hiding the turmoil in my soul. I then let him walk me down the hallways. We must look like a ridiculous pair, both in matching bathrobes – one that fits, and one that’s comically tiny on Conan’s towering frame.
Only, I don’t feel the laughter inside me that I should. I just feel cold.
I realize that the Aurelians can offer me everything…
They could give me riches beyond my wildest dreams. They could provide me with romance so devoted it’s like it represents their very essence. They could give me the greatest carnal pleasures...
Being with them would open the doors to the universe…
…but they shut the door to my freedom.
I can’t go from spending years in slavery to spending the rest of my life a servant. Conan dodged the question when I asked him about the Bond – and as such, I have to assume that the worst is true.
I have to assume that the rumors have merit to them – that once Bonded, you become nothing more than a breeding slave to those three, powerful men.
I’ve seen the holo-vids of Queen Jasmine. She might carry a royal title, but her triad mates her roughly whenever they desire, sometimes even in front of an audience.
And, when she’s with child – which is as often as they can breed her – Jasmine’s breasts swell up to
