aftermath of what he had
just shared with Jordan, Laith’s heart seemed to beat
with a new rhythm, and he was now uncomfortable about his previous plans for
her. Because he knew, without a doubt, he could never follow through with them
now. And although it meant letting go of his carefully organized scheme, he
realized it didn’t sting as much as he thought it would. All he had to do now
was think of a different path, one that didn’t
compromise his new values.
“Why did you bite me?”
“We bite to mate. It marks you with
our scent. You will bite me, too, next time.” He kissed the top of her head. They’d
dressed, and she currently sat cuddled on his chest. “Do you know anything
about Xyran culture?”
“Other than what you’ve told me, no,”
she murmured. Her head lay on his shoulder, and he wrapped his arms around her
lithe body. She touched the gemstone again.
“Our society is formed through
tribes, and our status within the tribe is based on wealth. My father was not
born wealthy. In fact, he was born poor with no rank inside social standings. But
he was determined to rise above his birth and signed into the military at a
young age.”
“Are you in the military?”
“I was,” he said. “I’m not anymore,
but I’ll address that later. My father used his commission to work his way up
the ranks, and with each promotion he earned more wealth. It’s a common
practice within Xyran society. And then my father
landed on the ship of Commander Kath, and he was able to amass a huge fortune. He
worked his way up the chain of command until he was Kath’s lieutenant, but even
though he did all the atrocious things that Kath demanded, secretly my father
could never really stomach the life of a raider.”
“What do you raid?”
“Females, mainly. Many Xyrans , like Kath, gain their wealth through the
sex slave markets. We are in conflict with planet Alpha to gain even more
spoils of war.”
She tensed but didn’t say anything,
and he knew she had to be thinking about her own abduction at his hands. Regret
filled him, but that was an emotion was used to. He lived with regret every
hour of every day.
“And then everything changed when Kath
raided a medical convoy and abducted a high ranking woman, one of the stepdaughters
of a tribal leader. Usually such women are considered off limits, but Kath was ruthless.
My father strongly objected, tried to overthrow Kath, and was imprisoned for mutiny.
But he broke free, rescued the woman, and Kath was fined half his wealth. He
swore a blood-oath to avenge his honor, which my father ignored when he bonded
with the female he rescued.”
“Your mother,” she said.
“Yes,” he murmured. “My mother is unusual.
She’s a staunch advocate against sex slaves, and her social position makes her
almost untouchable. She recruited my father into her beliefs.”
“Are they your beliefs?”
One corner of his mouth curled, but
he felt no amusement. “No, but that’s part of the bigger story. It is not
unheard of for there to be many half siblings throughout the family tribes, but
my father and my mother stayed true to each other and were blessed with several
male children and one female, my sister. Her name was Julyah .”
“Something happened to her, didn’t
it? I can hear it in your voice.”
Laith nodded and felt his gut clench with the memories. It still hurt to think about
his beautiful sister. “ Xyrans wear gemstones in their
chest as battle trophies, and once upon a time I had some. But when I resigned
my commission I got rid of them. I thought I’d never have the desire to put
gems into my body again until I wanted to honor my sister. This gem was in a
necklace she owned.”
“What happened to Julyah ?”
“Kath found his revenge,” he said
softly. Sadly. “You see, my sister was involved in a
network that gave secret routes and safehouses to
smuggle women from slavery into freedom.”
“An underground
railroad.”
“I am unfamiliar with
just shared with Jordan, Laith’s heart seemed to beat
with a new rhythm, and he was now uncomfortable about his previous plans for
her. Because he knew, without a doubt, he could never follow through with them
now. And although it meant letting go of his carefully organized scheme, he
realized it didn’t sting as much as he thought it would. All he had to do now
was think of a different path, one that didn’t
compromise his new values.
“Why did you bite me?”
“We bite to mate. It marks you with
our scent. You will bite me, too, next time.” He kissed the top of her head. They’d
dressed, and she currently sat cuddled on his chest. “Do you know anything
about Xyran culture?”
“Other than what you’ve told me, no,”
she murmured. Her head lay on his shoulder, and he wrapped his arms around her
lithe body. She touched the gemstone again.
“Our society is formed through
tribes, and our status within the tribe is based on wealth. My father was not
born wealthy. In fact, he was born poor with no rank inside social standings. But
he was determined to rise above his birth and signed into the military at a
young age.”
“Are you in the military?”
“I was,” he said. “I’m not anymore,
but I’ll address that later. My father used his commission to work his way up
the ranks, and with each promotion he earned more wealth. It’s a common
practice within Xyran society. And then my father
landed on the ship of Commander Kath, and he was able to amass a huge fortune. He
worked his way up the chain of command until he was Kath’s lieutenant, but even
though he did all the atrocious things that Kath demanded, secretly my father
could never really stomach the life of a raider.”
“What do you raid?”
“Females, mainly. Many Xyrans , like Kath, gain their wealth through the
sex slave markets. We are in conflict with planet Alpha to gain even more
spoils of war.”
She tensed but didn’t say anything,
and he knew she had to be thinking about her own abduction at his hands. Regret
filled him, but that was an emotion was used to. He lived with regret every
hour of every day.
“And then everything changed when Kath
raided a medical convoy and abducted a high ranking woman, one of the stepdaughters
of a tribal leader. Usually such women are considered off limits, but Kath was ruthless.
My father strongly objected, tried to overthrow Kath, and was imprisoned for mutiny.
But he broke free, rescued the woman, and Kath was fined half his wealth. He
swore a blood-oath to avenge his honor, which my father ignored when he bonded
with the female he rescued.”
“Your mother,” she said.
“Yes,” he murmured. “My mother is unusual.
She’s a staunch advocate against sex slaves, and her social position makes her
almost untouchable. She recruited my father into her beliefs.”
“Are they your beliefs?”
One corner of his mouth curled, but
he felt no amusement. “No, but that’s part of the bigger story. It is not
unheard of for there to be many half siblings throughout the family tribes, but
my father and my mother stayed true to each other and were blessed with several
male children and one female, my sister. Her name was Julyah .”
“Something happened to her, didn’t
it? I can hear it in your voice.”
Laith nodded and felt his gut clench with the memories. It still hurt to think about
his beautiful sister. “ Xyrans wear gemstones in their
chest as battle trophies, and once upon a time I had some. But when I resigned
my commission I got rid of them. I thought I’d never have the desire to put
gems into my body again until I wanted to honor my sister. This gem was in a
necklace she owned.”
“What happened to Julyah ?”
“Kath found his revenge,” he said
softly. Sadly. “You see, my sister was involved in a
network that gave secret routes and safehouses to
smuggle women from slavery into freedom.”
“An underground
railroad.”
“I am unfamiliar with
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