Retribution (Kall Alien Warriors #3) - Sue Lyndon Page 0,57

reasons to put the manacles on her. But what about change? What about working that gray area to his advantage? There had to be a way for her to stay on his planet without being led through Sumlin in manacles and having to receive a tracker.

Maybe she wanted too much. Aunt Colleen used to tell her that. You can’t always have the moon and all the stars in the sky, dear, sometimes you have to choose. Just the moon today. Or just a few stars tomorrow. But you can’t have everything all the time. It simply isn’t possible.

Layla had never really understood what Aunt Colleen was talking about until now. Maybe she needed to endure the manacles, just to keep peace with the general, and also to protect herself. Appearances.

And maybe she needed to accept her place as his mistress. What more could she hope for, when freedom clearly wasn’t an option? She shuddered at the idea of being captured by Kall forces and brought before a Kall courtroom once more, should she ever set foot on Earth again.

Mistress. She wasn’t a particular fan of the word and how it made her feel—dirty and used and undervalued. It made her feel like a whore, and it made her yearn for something more that she was almost too afraid to admit.

She thought about Betsy and her marriage to Commander Edek and how happy Betsy claimed they were, and a surge of jealousy and longing rushed through her.

Kall didn’t court one another like humans did. There was no dating. Marriages were arranged or occurred out of convenience, and the general hadn’t mentioned marriage once to her, even though in his culture they moved fast in this regard.

It was a silly thought to entertain, because they’d known each other for such a short time, but she would rather be his wife than his slave/mistress.

Commander Edek had married Betsy, despite Betsy being his slave, and they also lived in Sumlin District. It had to be possible. It had to. Yet Zamek hadn’t breathed one word of marriage to her, and her heart abruptly sank. Maybe he couldn’t envision her as his wife, maybe she really was less in his eyes, a human who was fit to warm his bed but nothing more.

Was she a fool to hope for too much?

The moon and all the stars?

“Layla, if you don’t open this door immediately, I will punish you.”

She backed away from the door, torn by indecision and also angered by his threat. Didn’t he realize how furious and vulnerable she felt at this moment?

Snap! The door handle twisted and broke off, clattering to the floor. A second later, General Zamek pushed inside, his face a mask of fury.

He set the manacles down on the sink and reached for her.

“General, wait. Please. I’ll wear the manacles. Just put them on me.” She tugged at his grip, but he wouldn’t release her.

“You had your chance, little human, and now you must pay the price for your defiance.” He bent her over the sink and immediately began gathering her dress up to her waist.

Her heart raced and she tried to escape, but he pressed a firm hand to her lower back, holding her in place. The edge of the sink was rounded and didn’t cut into her stomach, but it still wasn’t the most comfortable position.

“No, please!” she cried when he tugged her leggings and panties down. “General, stop!”

He didn’t listen. Instead, he cupped her left cheek and gave it a firm squeeze.

“Planet Kall is nothing like Earth,” he said, leaning over her and speaking directly into her ear. “You must obey me without question. Someday your life might depend on it. Now, you know very well that I’ve already bucked tradition by not killing you. What you likely don’t realize is that I’ve already drawn attention for it. My own warriors have questioned my actions. All I want is to get you safely to my home, far from prying eyes and wagging tongues. I won’t risk you being taken away from me. You. Are. Mine.”

She sniffled, feeling wretched. She’d had no idea his warriors were questioning their relationship. The manacles were starting to make sense now. The general intended them as a safety measure. If she wore manacles and looked more like a slave, particularly an unhappy one, then his warriors and anyone else might assume he had nefarious plans for her, namely enslavement and torture.

“You will never run from me again, human,” he said, giving her right