Chapter 18

 

“Your back is looking much better, massina,” Naveen said happily.

Quinn shrugged into her shirt and buttoned it. “It feels much better.”

“You should keep putting the salve on it at night.”

Quinn made a face as Naveen handed her another bag of the smelly salve. “I know your back is better but it’s only been a week. You still need the salve.”

“It’s been almost two weeks,” she corrected him.

He thought back before nodding. “Aye, I guess you’re right. How is fucking the danen?”

“Naveen,” Quinn said, “you know I’m not going to talk to you about that.”

Naveen laughed. “At least tell me if his cock is large, massina.”

“It is,” Quinn replied.

“Lucky girl,” Naveen said with a wink. “No wonder you seem so happy as of late.”

“I’m no happier than I was before,” Quinn replied.

“You are,” Naveen said. “You enjoy being with the danen.”

“I enjoy fucking the danen,” Quinn corrected.

“It’s more than that.”

“It isn’t,” she insisted.

Naveen frowned at her. “Why do you refuse to admit you enjoy the danen for more than just his big cock?”

She sighed. “Because I’m married, Naveen. It’s bad enough I’m sleeping with him, I can’t have affection for him as well.”

“No, massina, you are widowed,” he said gently, “and have been for many years. It is time for you to move on. Affection for the danen is not a bad thing.”

“I don’t feel guilty about my…affection for him,” Quinn said abruptly. “I keep waiting for the guilt and there’s nothing. Does that make me a terrible person, Naveen?”

“It does not,” Naveen said. “Your husband has been dead for over a decade. It’s time to move on.”

“Move on?” Quinn said with a bitter laugh. “I have no interest in fucking a different breeder each month. I know it’s the way of this world and I understand that but it isn’t what I want. It’s why my affection for Silas is so dangerous. Already the thought of him sleeping with the queen – of sleeping with anyone else – fills me with jealousy.”

“Oh, massina,” Naveen said softly. “I am sorry.”

“Aye, so am I,” Quinn said.

“Perhaps you should start distancing yourself from the danen,” Naveen suggested.

“I cannot,” Quinn said softly. “It’s too late for that. I want him for myself and in two weeks I’ll have to give him to the queen.”

She gave Naveen an anxious look. “The danen says he won’t fuck her.”

Naveen’s eyes widened. “He has to, massina.”

“I know.”

“If he doesn’t, she will - ”

“I know better than anyone what she will do, Naveen!” Quinn shouted at him.

He didn’t reply and she took his hand and squeezed it tightly. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have yelled at you.”

“Massina, you must convince the danen that he has to fuck the queen. It will only be for a month and after that you can claim him at the next ceremony. There is nothing that says you can’t fight for him each time he is available. I know it isn’t ideal but it’s the best you can hope for here. You know that.”

“Is it?” She said. “We could leave.”

“And go where?” Naveen asked in alarm. “You would not survive on your own outside these walls and joining another clan wouldn’t allow you to keep the danen.”

Quinn sighed and Naveen took her hand. “You could take the throne for yourself.”

“I have no interest in ruling,” Quinn said.

“But you do wish to kill the queen.”

She gave him a startled look. Naveen was her closest friend on this world but she had never spoken of her plan to murder the queen. It was too dangerous for the both of them to speak of it.

“Keep your voice down,” she said with a nervous look at his front door. “I am loyal to our queen and it is my job to protect her.”

Naveen lowered his voice. “Aye, that is what you say but your heart speaks differently.”

She opened her mouth to argue but nothing came out.

Naveen gave her a solemn look. “You must be careful, massina. The queen is still powerful.”

She leaned down and kissed his wrinkled cheek. “I should get going. Have a good evening, Naveen.”

“Are you not having dinner with the queen?”

Quinn shook her head. “No, there was no request from her for dinner.”

Naveen gave her an odd look. “I received a request as did Akia.”

Quinn didn’t reply and Naveen said, “Massina, it is worrisome that she invited Akia and not you.”

“Perhaps,” Quinn said.

“Perhaps? Akia has wanted to be massina for many years. If she is worming her way into the queen’s good graces…”

Naveen trailed off and gave Quinn a nervous look. “You have been the massina for a long time. I’m not trying to insult you but you’re not getting any younger.”

“Aye, nor is the queen,” Quinn said.

“It is not the queen you would have to worry about,” Naveen said. “I know you can still beat Akia in combat but her fighting skills grow more advanced by the week. She is preparing to become massina. You know that, do you not?”

“Aye, I do,” Quinn said calmly as she headed for the door. “She will eventually challenge me for the position.”

Naveen trailed after her. “What will you do when she challenges you, massina?”

“Kill her,” Quinn said bluntly.

 

* * *

 

“Good night, danen,” Dacia said as she stopped in front of Quinn’s home.

“Good night, Dacia,” Silas replied. She walked away and he let himself into Quinn’s home without knocking. He supposed he should have knocked but after only two weeks Quinn’s home felt like his as well.

“Stupid and dangerous to think that way,” he muttered quietly as he slipped off his shoes.

He was a little early which suited him just fine. The more time he had to spend with Quinn, the better. Over the last few days she had begun to relax around him. He still refused to fuck her more than once a night even though the swelling on her back was gone and the bruising had faded to yellow. It left plenty of time for talking. She didn’t actually talk about herself at all but she asked plenty of questions about him. He had told her about his childhood and his job. Hell, he had even tried his best to explain how awful it was when his parents died. How afraid he was that he had failed Gage and his worry that his brother would somehow realize that a small part of him was resentful about quitting university.

He walked silently down the hall toward the kitchen. Quinn was a good listener and there was no judgment on her part when he confessed he was bitter about never finishing university. In fact, she had –

He stopped abruptly and cocked his head as the sound of Quinn’s singing floated down the hallway. She had a nice voice but it was the song she was singing that made his heart pound with excitement.

 

* * *

 

Quinn cut up more cheese before laying it on the plate next to the carrots and the pork. She popped another piece of dranina into her mouth. The purple fruit tasted vaguely of pears and was her favourite from this world. She did a little shimmy before breaking out into song again. Silas would be brought to her in half an hour or so. Despite her conversation with Naveen she was feeling happy and, she grinned wryly to herself, horny as hell. Her back was finally better and she was certain she could convince Silas to fuck her more than once tonight.

She sang the chorus of the song and did another hip shimmy. God, she couldn’t wait to –

“Big Rolling Stones fan, huh?”

She shrieked and whirled around. Silas was standing in the doorway grinning cheekily at her. She returned his grin and said, “Yeah, my mom had a huge crush on Mick Jagger. When I was a kid we listened to them all…”

She trailed off as his grin widened.

“Fuck,” she said.

“You’re from my world,” he said.

She sighed loudly and turned back to the plate of food. “I suppose it’s too late to convince you that Lloyd told me about the Rolling Stones.”

He laughed and strode forward to wrap his arms around her waist. He kissed her on the neck. “Way too late. Why didn’t you want me to know?”

“Most people in the clan believe I’m from this world. I want it to stay that way.”

“Why?”

“It’s just easier.”

“Does the queen know?”

“She knows I’m not from this world but beyond that she has no interest in where I come from.”

“You’ve been here for over a decade, right?” He asked curiously.

“Yes,” she replied.

“Jesus,” he said. “You don’t miss our world?”

“I used to,” she said. “But it’s been a long time.”

“You don’t want to try and get back?”

She turned in his arms. “Silas, there is no way to return to our world. You need to understand that. There is no guarantee that an orb would take us back to our own world.”

“It might,” Silas said. “You don’t know for certain that it wouldn’t.”

“If it didn’t?” She said. “What then? You start all over on another world? What if it was worse than this one? We have a breeder who came from a world that was being overrun with vampires. Real vampires, Silas. One came through with the breeder. It killed Patina and would have killed more of us if I hadn’t realized what it was and stuck my dagger through its heart. Would you want to live in that world?”

Her voice was rising and Silas rubbed her lower back soothingly. “Okay, Quinn. Okay. I get your point.”

She rubbed wearily at her forehead and Silas pressed a kiss against her mouth. “Eat your dinner, Quinn, and we’ll talk about our world, okay?”

“I’m no longer hungry,” she said. “I’m going to have a hot bath. Can you help me heat the water, Silas?”

He nodded and gave her a troubled look as she left the kitchen.

 

* * *

 

“Are you sure your back is good for this, Quinn?” Silas asked. He had helped Quinn heat water for her bath and at her insistence joined her in the tub. They bathed quickly before she took his hand and led him to her bedroom.

She was lying on her back on the bed and he studied her naked body as she cupped her breast and pulled lazily at one hard nipple. “Yes. Come to bed, Silas.”

She spread her thighs invitingly as he approached the bed. He smiled and kneeled between her legs before leaning over her. He kissed her deeply, tracing her tongue with his. She stroked his naked back and tried to pull him down onto her body.

“Patience, Quinn,” he said.

“I need you,” she whispered.

“Soon, honey,” he replied before tracing her collarbone with his tongue. He kissed his way to her breasts and traced each tight nipple with the tip of his tongue. She moaned loudly and clutched at his head, urging him with breathless cries to suck on them.

He sucked hard on each nipple and bit them gently before laving them with his tongue. She arched her back and dug her nails into his back. She rubbed her pussy against his erect cock. “Please fuck me, Silas.”

“Not yet.”

She glared at him. “Don’t tease me.”

He laughed. “Honey, I haven’t even started to tease you yet.”

He kissed her flat stomach before nipping at her ribs. She inhaled sharply and squeezed her thighs around his waist. “Silas, please.”

He licked a slow path to her navel and circled it with his tongue before blowing lightly. She shivered and tugged on his thick hair as goosebumps rose on her skin. He nibbled at her hipbones before sliding back and lying on his stomach between her thighs. He kissed the tender skin of her inner thigh and she moaned loudly.

He pushed on her thighs. “Wider, Quinn.”

She let her legs drop open and he stared at her glistening pussy before leaning forward and slowly licking the entire length of her pussy. She cried out, her fingers digging into his scalp. Her clit was swollen and peeking out from between her lips. He parted her lips with his thumbs and licked the swollen bud. She arched her back and he sucked experimentally at her clit. Her hands pulled painfully at his hair and he tugged them away before pinning them at her hips. She strained to free herself and he nibbled at her pussy lips until she was crying his name.

With slow deliberateness, he licked and sucked her clit until she was writhing on the bed and her thighs clamped around his broad shoulders. He lifted his head and growled, “Keep your legs open, Quinn.”

Her entire body shuddering, she spread her thighs wide and he kissed the dark curls at the top of her pussy. “I want you to come for me, honey.”

“Yes,” she moaned. “Yes, Silas.”

He smiled and buried his face into her pussy again. Less than a minute later she was arching up off the bed, her hands clenching and unclenching helplessly as her orgasm swept through her. When she collapsed on the bed he released her and straightened. His cock was painfully hard and precum dripped steadily from it. He pressed the head against her tight opening and slipped inside of her easily.

He took her wrists and lifted her arms over her head, pinning them to the bed. She stared up at him as he slid in and out of her with long, powerful strokes.

“This is what you want, isn’t it, honey?” He said.

She nodded and he leaned down to kiss her. She returned his kisses eagerly, her hips rising to meet each of his thrusts. He drove in and out, watching the way her breasts moved with every thrust. She pulled experimentally at his hands and he shook his head before tightening his grip on her wrists. Excitement and lust flickered across her face. He kissed her again, sucking hard on her tongue before nipping at her bottom lip.

“Oh God,” she moaned quietly. “Silas, oh God…”

Her pussy squeezed around him as her body shook. He slanted his mouth over hers, swallowing her loud scream of pleasure. He thrust wildly as his balls tightened and the base of his spine began to tingle. He tore his mouth from hers and made a low roar of pleasure as he climaxed. He collapsed against her body, releasing her hands and burying his face in her throat. She stroked his back soothingly and pressed kisses against the top of his head as he waited for his heartbeat to return to a normal pace.

“Heavy,” she whispered before pushing lightly at him.

He rolled off of her and she curled up on her side, resting her cheek on his chest. He stroked her dark hair and said, “Is your back okay?”

She nodded and kissed his chest. “It’s fine.”

They lay silently for a while before she sat up and smiled hesitantly at him. “Do you – can we talk about our world?”

He smiled at her. “Yes, I’d like that.”

 

* * *

 

“Facebook,” Quinn said again before popping a piece of cheese into her mouth. “Honestly, it just sounds really stupid to me.”

Silas laughed. “I know but trust me, it and Twitter are very popular.”

“Twitter,” she repeated. “That’s the program people use to insult other people in 140 characters or less, right?”

Silas laughed again. “Close enough.”

“God, so many things have changed. You really can just do a video chat with people using your cell phone?”

He nodded and she shook her head in disbelief. “Crazy.”

“Where is my cell phone and wallet, by the way?” Silas asked.

“Naveen would have given them to the queen,” Quinn said.

“What does she do with them?”

“Nothing. She has a remarkable lack of interest in the technology from other worlds.”

“Does that seem strange to you?” He asked.

“The queen is far from normal,” she said.

“What happens in two weeks?”

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean,” Silas said. “In two weeks the queen will take me for herself. Will you bid on me at the next claiming ceremony?”

She looked away and he cursed loudly before pushing back the covers.

“Silas, wait!” She grabbed his arm and pressed her naked body against his. “Let me explain, okay?”

“What’s there to explain?” He said. “You don’t want me as much as I want you.”

“That isn’t true,” she said.

He sat back in the bed. “Then why aren’t you going to bid on me?”

She pulled the covers around her and sat cross-legged on the bed. “When I came through the orb I wasn’t alone. There was a man with me. His name was Kevin and he – he was my husband.”

“Holy shit,” Silas said.

“We were captured by the current massina. Her name was Dahlia. She and the other members of the queen’s guard brought us back here. Kevin was taken to the breeders’ quarters and I was put to work in the kitchens. It was only a week since the last claiming ceremony so we had three weeks to try and adapt to what had happened. I pleaded on a daily basis for them to allow me to see Kevin but they refused. I caught occasional glimpses of him working in the gardens but I wasn’t allowed to speak to him.”

She studied her hands for a moment before continuing. “Kevin was a big man. Not as large as you but tall and muscular. The night of the claiming ceremony the queen chose Kevin. He refused to sleep with her and she slit his throat. He bled to death on the floor of her bedroom.”

Silas took Quinn’s hand. She was pale but dry-eyed and she squeezed his hand tightly. “I wasn’t at the claiming ceremony. I was chosen to stay in the kitchens and make the food for the ceremony. I didn’t find out that Kevin was dead until the next morning when Naveen told me. He took pity on me and let me see Kevin’s body before they buried him.”

“I’m so sorry,” Silas said quietly.

“I was devastated. Not only was I on some weird new world but the person I loved most was dead. Killed because he honoured his vows to me.”

She swallowed before whispering, “So many times I wished that I was there that night. I would have – have somehow conveyed to him that it was okay, you know? That it didn’t matter. That I knew how much he loved me and he had to do what he needed to survive.”

Silas rubbed her thigh soothingly and she stared briefly at him before lowering her gaze again. “Standing next to Kevin’s dead body, I made a vow that I would kill the queen for what she had done. I wanted revenge. Do you understand, Silas?”

He nodded and she sighed loudly. “I think I went a little crazy the first year or so. I joined the queen’s army and learned how to fight. I was terrible at it at first. I had no natural talent for it and I was afraid of dying. I shouldn’t have been. There was nothing left for me on this world and if I died, I would have been with Kevin again. But I was afraid. I was weak and afraid.”

“Being afraid doesn’t make you weak,” Silas said.

“Does it not?” She said.

“Are you still afraid?” He asked.

She shook her head. “No.”

He waited for her to elaborate but she said, “When the warkins attacked us and Dahlia panicked, I knew that was my chance. If I were to have any hope of killing the queen, I needed to be the massina. Only the massina was given unguarded access to the queen. I took control of the queen’s guard and destroyed the warkin clan that was attacking us. I even saved the queen’s life when a group of them made it into the castle. The queen is very good at fighting and is extremely dangerous but she was outnumbered. Without me there she would have been killed. The queen abhors weakness of any kind. When the fighting was over she killed Dahlia and named me the new massina.”

Silas didn’t say anything and Quinn sighed heavily. “I am not a monster, Silas. The queen would have killed Dahlia regardless of what I had done.”

“I know,” he said.

She took his hand and held it tightly. “That is why I can’t sleep with you after you’ve been with the queen. She took everything from me and I hate her. The thought of being with you after you’ve been in the queen’s bed, it…”

She trailed off and then whispered, “I’m sorry, Silas. Truly I am.”

When he didn’t reply, she squeezed his hand. “Say something, Silas. Please.”

“What do you want me to say?” He said woodenly. “You’re still in love with your dead husband, you won’t go near me again in two weeks’ time and you’re planning on murdering the queen. It all seems pretty clear and simple to me.”

She shook her head and crawled into his lap. She cupped his face and made him look at her. “I am not still in love with Kevin, Silas.”

“It’s fine,” he said bleakly. “I understand why you - ”

“I’m not!” She insisted vehemently. “I will always love and miss Kevin but he has been dead for over a decade.”

She brushed her mouth against his and then threw caution to the wind. “I could fall in love with you, Silas. Very easily. There’s something special between us, is there not? You feel it too.”

“Yes,” he said in a low voice. “I feel it too.”

She hugged him, sighing with relief when he returned her hug and pressed a kiss against her throat.

“This is why you must sleep with the queen when she takes you to her bed,” Quinn said quietly. “I – I don’t want to lose you either, Silas.”

“If I sleep with her I’ll never be with you again,” Silas said.

“But you’ll be alive,” she replied.

“Some life,” he said. “I’ll spend it having to fuck God knows how many women when the only woman I want won’t have anything to do with me.”

“Silas, I - ”

“Why haven’t you killed the queen?” He asked abruptly. “You’ve been the massina for nearly ten years.”

“At first it was because I needed to gain her trust. I will never have it fully, she has survived this long precisely because she doesn’t trust anyone, but she at least believes that I am loyal to her.”

She laughed bitterly. “Do you have any idea how difficult it has been over the years to protect a woman that I hate?”

He kissed her throat again and she stroked his thick hair. “Once she believed in my loyalty, I began to plan my revenge in earnest. I was going to murder her in her sleep. Cowardly, I know, but I needed to make it look like an assassination. If the others knew that it was me who killed her they would have killed me despite their fear and dislike of the queen.”

He rubbed her lower back as she said, “As the queen aged she grew more and more paranoid. A few years ago, she requested guards to stand outside her bedroom while she slept. I lost my chance to kill her in her sleep.”

“Why didn’t you do it before that?” He asked

“I found love again,” she said softly.

He stiffened against her. “With who?”

She cupped his face and kissed him until he relaxed. “As the massina, my job is not only to protect the queen but her child as well. Kila was almost eleven when I became the massina. She was a sweet child. Kind and loving and the exact opposite of her mother in every way. I tried to ignore her at first but she found her way into my heart. I love her like she is my own child, Silas, and she loves me. When I kill her mother that love will turn to hatred.”

“Gage says that Kila is afraid of her mother,” Silas said. “He thinks she even hates her.”

Quinn sighed. “Kila is afraid of her mother but she doesn’t hate her. She is a horrible woman but she is still Kila’s mother and she will always love her.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“Yes,” Quinn replied. “My love for Kila has made it more difficult to do what I swore I would do. I’m no longer afraid but I’m still weak.”

He didn’t know what to say to that so he pulled her closer and rubbed her bruised back lightly. She nestled against him and they sat silently for a few moments.

“What will you do after you kill the queen?” He asked.

“Leave, if the others don’t capture me and kill me first.”

“You keep saying that leaving the safety of these walls would get you killed.”

She didn’t reply and he leaned back so he could look at her. “I’ll go with you. I’ll help you kill the queen and we’ll leave together.”

“It is a death sentence, Silas,” she said. “I won’t do that to you.”

“But you’ll let yourself die?” He said angrily. “Quinn, we have a better chance of surviving outside the walls with two of us.”

“No,” she said, “we don’t. Men are precious in this world and having you with me will only bring the other clans after us in greater numbers.”

“We can live in the forest,” he said. “We can - ”

“What of your brother?” She asked. “You would leave Gage? You would never see him again, Silas.”

Shame coursed through him. He wanted to be with Quinn and he hadn’t given a single thought to his brother. What was wrong with him?

“Quinn, I’m sorry,” he said hoarsely.

She cupped his face and smiled at him. “Do not feel bad, Silas. You should stay with your brother here behind the walls where it is safe. I will kill the queen and leave this place and you will forget me. It’s what needs to happen.”

“There’s one little detail you’re forgetting,” he said morosely.

“What?”

“I can’t seem to fuck anyone who isn’t you.”

Fear crossed her face and her hand tightened on his jaw. “You have to, Silas.

“It’s not that simple, Quinn,” he said.

“It is!” She insisted. “Have you not heard a word I’ve said? She will kill you if you don’t sleep with her. I don’t – I can’t stand the thought of losing you like that. You don’t have a choice.”

“What if I did?” He asked. “What if there was another choice?”

“There isn’t,” she said impatiently.

“The orb,” he said slowly. “We could use the orb to go to another world.”

“I already told you – that’s just as dangerous as living beyond these walls.”

“Maybe, maybe not,” he said. “We could be taken back to our world or we could find a different world that isn’t as awful as this one.”

“Or we could find one that’s worse,” she said.

“I’m willing to take that chance if it means I can be with you.”

She stared silently at him. “And what of Gage?”

“I’ll convince him to come with us.”

“Will you? He already cares deeply for Kila.”

“I know but I can convince him,” Silas said. “He barely knows Kila and I’m his brother.”

“Even if you could convince him and even if we could escape without the queen finding out, we don’t know when the next orb is coming,” she said desperately.

“Don’t lie to me, Quinn. I know about the majii, remember?”

She scowled at him. “There may not be another orb for months or years.”

“Or there could be one next week,” he said. “Lucky for us, we’ll know exactly when it’s going to happen. This could work, Quinn.”

“Another world could be far worse than this one,” she said again.

“It could be,” he said steadily. “But we’d be together.”

“This plan of yours would only work if there’s going to be another orb within the next couple of weeks. Plus, it would have to be an orb that takes not gives,” she said.

“That’s true,” he said.

“Silas, the odds of that happening are astronomical.”

“Probably,” he said. “But what if it did happen? Think about it, Quinn. This solves our problems. You don’t have to kill the queen and we can be together.”

“I want to kill the queen,” she said tightly.

“You did,” he replied. “Are you still so certain now? Can you live with Kila hating you forever?”

She hesitated and he squeezed her waist. “Can you talk to the majii? Can you find out at least if she knows yet when there will be another orb?”

“Aye, I could,” she said.

“Then do it. What harm is there in asking?”

“Plenty if the queen were to find out,” she said.

He didn’t reply and she tried to ignore the small trickle of hope that was filling her belly. The majii was in her debt and had been for many years. Quinn had never called in the favour but now…

Quinn! Have you gone mad? You can’t leave this world. Just kill the queen and take the throne.

Kila will hate me. I’ll lose her forever if I kill her mother.

You’ll lose Silas forever if you don’t.

“Quinn?” Silas touched her arm. “This could work. We can be together and away from that crazy bitch.”

She smiled bitterly at him. “I will talk to the majii, Silas. But do not get your hopes up. The odds of another orb happening is very low.”

He suddenly grinned cheekily at her. “It’s time for my luck to change, Quinn. This will work. I know it will.”

He cupped her breast and rubbed his thumb over her nipple. “How’s your back feeling, honey?”

“Fine,” she whispered.

He trailed kisses down her throat and licked a path over her collarbone.

“Silas,” Quinn tugged on his hair until he was looking at her, “promise me if this doesn’t work that you will sleep with the queen.”

“I don’t have to,” he said before nipping at her earlobe. “It will work, Quinn.”

“Silas - ”

He slanted his mouth over hers and kissed her deeply before threading his hand through her dark hair. “Enough talking for tonight, honey.”

He pushed her onto her back on the bed and covered her body with his own. She moaned quietly when he pulled her thighs apart and rubbed his erect cock against her pussy. She squirmed beneath him. Shamefully she was already wet and she cried out with pleasure when Silas pushed into her with one hard thrust. As he began a slow, deep rhythm, she closed her eyes and clung tightly to him.