Darkness Read online

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  Darkness [Celeste's Captivity VI]

  by David Jewell

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  Erotica

  Copyright ©

  ISBN

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  NOTICE: This ebook is copyrighted. It is licensed only for use by the original purchaser. Duplication of this ebook by beaming, email, network, disk, paper, or any other method is a violation of international copyright law and subjects the violator to severe fines and/or imprisonment.

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  CELESTE'S CAPTIVITY IV

  DARKNESS

  By

  TERRI PRAY

  ISBN 978-1-60089-124-3

  All rights reserved

  Copyright © 2006 Terri Pray

  This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission.

  For information contact:

  SizzlerEditions.com

  Sizzler Editions/B&D

  A Renaissance E Books publication

  CHAPTER ONE

  He'd stood there and treated her as if she had been nothing more than an interesting piece of meat...

  The Raven. After all her hopes and dreams, the slender thread that she had clung to had been ripped into a thousand pieces. He was worse than Davien. At least, with the man who now owned her, she knew just what her position in life was. And he wasn't about to toss her to one side. The Raven was another matter. He was not only a coward, but the discussion that had followed in the carriage on the way home after that brief meeting had opened her eyes to more than a few matters.

  Despite everything the Highwayman had tried to tell others, the rumors he had spread about his bravery and strength, he was nothing more than a liar and thief. Stealing from anyone he could get close to. Every legend that she'd clung to through her time in captivity was now bared as the lie it truly was. Stories spread by the Raven himself in order to make himself look better. Now, as she walked back into the house, following her owner, she couldn't help but feel as though her world has been snatched out from under her feet— yet again.

  If he had been the strong man she'd dreamed of then he'd have stepped up, taken her from Davien and the risks be damned! But the more she thought about it the more she realized just how deeply she'd fooled herself.

  “If he truly has an interest in you then he'll try to steal you.” Davien leaned back in his padded leather chair, gesturing to the rug in front of the fire. “Tearlach has done that on more than one occasion. He fancies himself a ruler of women, but he's little more than a submissive male cowering from others behind his mask and cloak.”

  “Steal? But that would mean going against you. And he had the chance to do that back in the forest. If he were truly going to do that wouldn't he have grabbed me then?” She stared at him, perhaps there was some small level of hope still left? Had he played a part just to fool Davien?

  “No, he was hoping that I'd simply kowtow to him and hand you over. He wasn't expecting a fight.” Davien's words were calm, carefully thought through. “He has the ability to fool many a man and woman, and I will be honest, once he fooled me. But never again. I'm well aware of his tricks now. He is a man without honor, without respect and without courage. The sort that would sneak out on a friend in the middle of the night, spreading lies about them to make himself look better. He's had more than one woman fall for his tales, his whispers, but sooner or later he always trips himself up.”

  That didn't sound like the man she had fallen in love with in the middle of her dreams, but then Davien had dealt with him more than she had. A single kiss and dream spun meetings were not on the same level. “So you truly think he will attempt to grab me? That would mean entering your home, or attacking you publicly, wouldn't it?”

  “Yes. Yes it would, however I'm prepared for that.” A cold smile flashed across his face. “He can try, he might even manage to grab you for a day, two at most, but then I'll claim you back and teach him a lesson. One he will take with him unto his dying day.”

  A shiver ran through her body, touching every part of her being. Sometimes she forgot just how dangerous he was. Then he'd see him like this, hear that tone in his voice, and the knowledge of everything he was capable of doing would come flooding back. She only had to remember what she'd seen him do so far, from being used as a target in a hunt to being handed off to both servants and hosts alike as piece of flesh for them to play with. If he was capable of doing that to a woman he had some mild interest in, what could he do to a man who tried to steal from him?

  She'd seen him kill one man, right in front of her eyes, and then take her, with the still warm corpse within grabbing range.

  “Master, perhaps he will just leave me alone?” Celeste whispered, brushing a strand of white blonde hair aware from her eyes. “You're a powerful man, everyone knows that, so why would he try to... ”

  “Because he wants you, my slut. And he's not the type of man to just walk away on something he wants. But he will be sneaky about it; he won't come and face me openly. I'll make sure my people keep an eye out for him.” Davien's gaze flickered over her kneeling form. Her skin crawled even as a small flame of hunger rippled along her inner walls. She wasn't ready for whatever he had planned, but she already knew well that she had no choice. If he wanted her, regardless of what he had in mind, then she had better be obedient or she would pay the price.

  Davien was not a man to be crossed.

  “You will sleep on the matt at the end of my bed tonight, Celeste. I don't believe the cage will be needed, though you will be chained in place. Tomorrow we have a dinner to attend, some people I wish you to meet. Tomorrow will be very important and there are two women in particular that I want to introduce you to.”

  “Yes, master.” She murmured the words. The very thought of being introduced to more of Davien's friends sent a chill through her being. Those he knew were dark, dangerous men and women, whose taste for adventure ran to the delinquent side of life.

  “I am sure they will be very intrigued by you, Celeste.”

  “Yes, master. As you say.” Calm. She had to remain calm or he would see her fears and play on them until she was a knot of tension. Still, that didn't stop her muscles from tightening across her shoulders, or the cold sweat from forming across her back. She let out a long, slow breath, focusing her thoughts on anything that would offer a measure of calm.

  “Interesting.”

  “Master?” She lifted her gaze, searching his face. His steel grey gaze was fixed on her kneeling form.

  “You want to fight me still, but you end up turning that in on yourself. Why?”

  She sucked in her bottom lip, the color draining from her cheeks, her voice little more than a whisper. “Because if I fight you then I pay for it, master. If I'm going to resist you I've learned that's wiser if I pick my battles carefully.”

  “At least you've learned that much.” He glanced away from her, staring into the fire. “Strip.”

  She blinked. The order had come from nowhere. Her fingers shook as she reached for the fastenings on her dress. One by one she undid the hooks on her dress, then tugged the dress down, remaining on her knees. The corset still covered her body, as did her stockings as she knelt on the floor. She didn't want to just strip down like this, but as she'd already told him, she'd learned to pick her battles.

  “Very good my property.” His voice was calm, cold and lacked any hint of emotion.

  “Thank you, master.” She spoke softly, and lifted up from her heels, yet took care to remain on her knees as she reached behind her back and fumbled with the laces on the corset. He made no move to help her as she tugged at the laces. Then again why would he? She knew, only too well, that he enjoyed watching her struggle to perform the tasks he set her. It was all just another form of entertainment to him.

  One day she'd show him just how much she hated him.

  Sure she would. And then she'd also forget that she actually had come to need him.

  She sucked in her breath and finally managed to undo the laces, then tugged them, one by one, out of the small, annoying hooks. She let out a low sigh and wriggled out of the corset, tugging it over her head, before setting it down on top of the dress. That just left the stockings and garters. “Master, if you wish me to undress fully I need permission to shift from my knees.”

  He arched one eyebrow, peering down at her. “Denied.”

  Her stomach knotted. “Did you wish me to keep them on, master?”

  “Obviously, as I do not wish to see them ripped in your annoying little attempts to remove them whilst on your knees. No, for now you can keep them on.”

  Did he live to insult her?

  Sometimes— that much was obvious.

  She didn't make annoying attempts, all she'd tried to do was obey him and avoid being punished. Sometimes she wondered if it would be worth trying to punch him, not on the nose, no, if she was going to do something that would get her punished then she might as well aim for a part of his body that would be worth the beating that would follow.

  Like right between his legs.

  No. She wasn't about to do that. Not unless she truly had no choice. Would she do that if it meant buying a few minutes, enough to run from him? Of course she would. He'd not broken her down enough to cancel out all of her thoughts about returning home one day. Even if her dreams about being saved by the Raven had come to a rocky end, but that didn't mean that she wouldn't, one day, find a way to be free of the man once and for all.

  “You expected him to save you, didn't you?”

  “Master?” She blinked, looking
up at Davien.

  “The Raven. Tearlach. You had hopes that, as he was Irish, that he would snatch you to safety, perhaps even return you to your family.”

  Her shoulders slumped, was she that easily read? “Yes, master.”

  “He will not return you to them. But by all means cling to whatever hopes you still have, they will be dashed when he keeps you as his slave, property until I come to reclaim you. That's if he manages to take you from my home in the first place.” He leaned down, cupping her chin firmly, his fingertips threatening to leave bruises on her pale flesh. “But remember this, a man that has to sneak in and out of another's home, stealing instead of fighting for what he wants or believes in, is no man at all.”

  Hearing that was one thing, believing it was another entirely.

  “Onto your hands and knees.” He pulled his hand away from her face.

  Celeste didn't hesitate and leaned forward, planting her hands down on the floor, fingers spread wide as she shifted into position. Her breasts depended toward the rug, nipples hardening as blood rushed into the tight pips. As much as she hated her reaction it didn't stop her body from heating. She'd become used to his touches and even through her anger, her cunt rippled, a spark of hunger bursting into life.

  “Pretty little beast.” He watched from his chair, making no move to touch her just yet. “You need a strong hand, one that tells you the truth and will never back down with you. Not words of love, or care, but strength, pain, correction and domination. I knew that from the first moment I laid eyes upon you.”

  She blushed instantly, color seeping across her nearly nudge form. Why did he do this to her?

  Because he could.

  “Turn and present your ass.”

  Her throat threatened to close over as she shifted on her hands and knees, until her ass was facing Davien.

  “Thighs apart.”

  A shiver ran through her being, thighs parting a little more. Her cunt lips opened to his view. That was the entire point. He wanted to view her like this, exposed, vulnerable and obedient. Her knuckles turned white, fingers pressing hard against the floor. Her lower lips throbbed, her cream seeping over the soft, pliant forms as she struggled to hold position when every nerve ending screamed at her to move away from him.

  “Such pale skin.” His voice soft, little more than a whisper. She tensed as she heard something else, something long being slid out of hiding? Rope sliding over fabric? No, that wasn't quite right. She wasn't sure what the sound was at first. “Don't move.”

  She tensed fully, a low whistling sound split the air in the moment before it hit. The leather belt bit into her ass with a crack that tore a scream from her lips. A line of fire erupted over her taut ass, tears streamed down her face and she almost dropped onto her belly, but the knowledge that his anger at being disobeyed would make matters worse, kept her on her hands and knees. The greatest desideratum she had was to remain in place and avoid punishment.

  Twice more the belt lashed through the air, striking her upturned ass. Her shoulders locked, muscles tensed as she held position. Tears coated her cheeks, dripping onto the floor. It took everything she had in order to hold in position. She didn't even dare ask him why she was being beaten. She already knew the answer, because it pleased him to do so.

  Her breath burned in her lungs. She couldn't hold much longer, but there was no other choice, unless she wanted to feel far more than the touch of the belt.

  Minutes stretched out into hours as she remained in place waiting for the next blow, one that never came. The three welts seared their presence into her being and she forced herself to remain still, motionless but for the shaking sobs that now wracked her body.

  The next one never came.

  “Good, that should serve as a reminder of just who you belong to.”

  “Yes, master.” She forced the words out.

  “Now crawl to my room, it's time we settled for the night, you have a long day ahead of you my slut.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  She crawled ahead of him through the house, navigating the stairs with a growing confidence. She glanced back over her shoulder, catching sight of Davien following close behind her, his gaze focused, for the most part, on her swaying ass. With a tremble, she arched her back a little more, her breasts pressing toward the floor, nipples hard, the welts across her buttocks making it hard for her to focus on anything beyond the small task she had been set.

  “That's it my little beast, show me every inch of sensuality you lay claim to.”

  Celeste whimpered, shivering at his words. She knew, only too well, what he was capable of doing. Sooner or later she'd crawl to his feet, begging his touch as she couldn't deny the desires that she now lived with thanks to Davien. But disobeying him wasn't an option either.

  She parted her thighs a little more, lifting her ass as she crawled ahead of him and into the bedroom. Her inner walls clenched, a liquid hunger coating her lower lips with a thick, sensual cream. He had to know she was aroused, it was the sort of thing he wouldn't, or couldn't miss.

  “Such a tempting little slut, aren't you? But you know that, you've learned how to be the sensual, wanton beast that any man would desire, even a rogue like the Raven. Yet you belong to me, you'll always belong to me, body, mind, heart and soul until the day you die.”

  No, that couldn't be true. She wasn't meant to be like this until the end of time. People didn't keep women as slaves for the rest of their lives, did they? He'd find someone else that interested him, a woman, younger, prettier, someone he would exchange her for. Perhaps she'd be able to find a way home, or take a place in his household as a maid, the head of his house?

  Whatever her future held she had no say over it right now and had to find a way cope with what her Master threw at her. And with Davien there was no way of knowing exactly what he would do next to her. Or demand of her. He was a cruel man, but one that seemed, at all times, to be in control of his desires.

  Davien settled down on the chair by the side of the bed, loosening his pants, letting them fall about his ankles. He shook out his cock, thickening in his hand, his gaze fixed on her trembling form. “Pleasure me, my slave.”

  She hesitated, then looked at him knowing full well what he wanted of her in this moment. Her mouth, his cock, and if she were lucky there would be something in it for her, a way of sating her needs, but that wasn't promised. With a soft whimper she crawled toward him, her gaze lowered, soft strands of hair brushed across her cheeks, danced over her breasts, each touch just enough to tease her a little bit more.

  It didn't take her long to reach his feet and without thinking she lowered herself a little more, brushing her lips over his shoes, licking and kissing the leather, a soft whimper slipping past her tender lips. With gentle kisses she eased her way along his legs, pressing her cheek against them, squirming closer to his legs until she knelt up enough to take hold of his cock with her fingers.

  The thickening organ throbbed in her delicate touch. The skin smooth under her caress, the head of his cock peeking out from beneath the soft folds of skin, tempting her tongue to seek him out that little bit more. She groaned against his cock, teasing her tongue into the skin about the head of his cock, tempting him outward.

  Davien's hips jerked softly, his head tipping back as he slid one hand into her hair, holding her close to his cock. A soft smile touched her lips, at least she knew she was doing the right things with him. She purred into the head of his cock, feeling it thicken that little bit more, a bead of pre-cum pearling on the smooth skin until she lapped it off, swallowing the salt heavy taste.

  He groaned, his pleasure carrying easily through the air, his grip tightened in her hair as she slowly took his shaft in her mouth, down to the root of his cock. His taste filled her senses, the smell of his arousal almost more than she could cope with and still she lapped, suckling at his cock. Heat grew between her thighs, but she had nothing she could do to ease her own arousal, her focus had to be on the man who owned her.