For the Sake of an Empire Ch. 02

She struggled, but his hand closed hard around her wrist to keep her from running from him as he led her across the camp to his tent. The torches were already lit as he tossed her unceremoniously onto the pallet in the corner.

"I am not going to harm you, but if you run or make any attempt on my life, I will throw you to the mercy of my men. Is that understood?"

Yanamari said nothing. She sat quickly upright, putting her back to the wall of the tent and hugging her knees to her chest. Her legs crossed protectively at the ankles. She understood, but she kept her silence. She considered her word binding even to a man this savage and she would not lose any chance to help her father.

"Do you understand me and do you give me your word that you will obey?"

When she said nothing, Marcus moved to the flap of the tent that was still open. The officers had retired with bed-mates, but there were plenty of lower ranking soldiers who were lonely this evening and willing for a bit of company. He looked back to her, his point clear. His were a people bound by their word and by their honor; a habit he employed always.

She seemed determined not to speak, her head held high and proud. But there was a flicker of fear in those dark eyes as they followed Marcus.

"Suit yourself," he said quietly. "Brutus, come here.".

The soldier appeared quickly. "Yes General Aurelius?"

"We have an intruder in our midst. I wish the guards on King Mikalous tripled and we move before daybreak. This girl is to be considered a captive of war and treated as such. You may have her to do with what you like with tonight, but do not kill her."

Yanamari moved quickly, the bells on the anklet jingling. She pushed off the pallet and put herself in the corner farthest from the tent flap, watching him warily. Her heart pounded and her knees were weak. She would not allow him to taint her. The shame of having her maidenhead take by force while the sands in her father's hourglass sifted away, would be unbearable.

Her breath caught when she felt Brutus's gaze wandering over her slender form. Arousal was clear in his eyes as his gaze lingered on the exposed length of ankle and calf.

His gaze shifted to Marcus who was watching Yanamari silently. His jaw was tight but his expression was blank. "Take her back to your tent. We move before dawn."

She felt sick. To swear to this Celaenian would be to commit treason against Agsidian, yet as Brutus advanced and took her roughly by the wrists, Yanamari broke.

"No!"

She dug her heels into the earth and struggled against the soldier, wrestling one hand free to swipe her nails across his cheek. He growled and returned the favor with a rough backhand, splitting the flesh of her lower lip. He released his hold long enough to give Yanamari the moment she needed. She scrambled backwards, daring to turn her back to Brutus and fall at Marcus's feet.

"I swear," she said in a watery voice. She took hold of his ankle and even took the knife from beneath her clothes, stabbing it into the ground by his foot. "I swear, General Aurelius."

Brutus advanced on her again, but this time it was Marcus's sword that kept him back. The rage showed momentarily in his face as the point of Marcus's sword remained just beneath his throat.

"Your duty was done, soldier. Stand down."

The other man tensed, but Marcus did not relent or look down at the girl at his feet until Brutus stepped back. He waited until the angry salute came and then lowered his sword.

"This woman is off limits to you and the rest of the camp. She is beneath my protection. There are 8 other dancers who will make the rounds tonight on my orders. Do not mistreat them. Is that clear?"

"Yes General Aurelius."

"Good. Dismissed."

When Brutus left, he re-sheathed the sword and reached a hand down to the girl. Her face was already bruising. Again he fought back that wave of memory.

"Come."

Tears pricked her eyes. Her face throbbed and there was the coppery taste of blood on her tongue when she gently touched it to her swelling lip. Yanamari took his hand and used it to pull herself to her feet, but she didn't look at him. She kept her eyes on the floor, careful not to glance at the knife she had given up.

Marcus tucked the blade into his own belt. He led her back to the edge of his bed pallet, leaving her there for a moment as he moved to get his canteen and a small leather pouch. A piece of linen was dampened with water and wrung out before he touched it to her mouth to wipe away the blood.

"You will not be harmed as long as you are obedient. You did well to defend yourself but I value loyalty. Do you understand?"

Yanamari sank heavily onto the pallet, hands curled tightly around the edge to keep from shaking in the fleeting rush of adrenaline. Wincing as he touched the cloth to her mouth, she drew in a sharp breath through her nose and pulled slightly back to nod.

"Good," he said quietly as he tended to her mouth, then got out his last share of the rations that he had until they reached Celaenian walls. "Eat that. You will need your strength on the journey tomorrow."

She wasn't hungry, but she knew his words rang true. Yanamari chewed silently on the dried meat, careful to keep the salt cured strips from the cut on her mouth.

"What is to be my fate, then?," she asked after the silence had stretched for a long while and the last of the meat was in her stomach.

Marcus handed her his canteen silently, watching as her throat worked when she drank it down with gusto. A delicate hand wiped across her mouth when she pushed the canteen back.

"That depends on your obedience and the loyalty you show."

"I cannot answer that if I do not know what your idea of loyalty is."

She had once again found the presence of mind to not only look him in the eye, but to hold his gaze as only the daughter of a king could.

"If you are speaking of your honor I have no interest in it," he said evenly. "But I am willing to bargain with you. I will spare your life if you can prove to me that you are loyal." He paused, meeting her eyes. "You will go into service for the Empress as a handmaiden and you will report to me daily about the activities of your lady. Should you attempt to betray me I will cut your throat myself."

Yanamari closed her eyes as the full weight of his words sank into her. "And should she discover my.. loyalty.. lies with you, she will cut my throat herself," she said with a weak laugh. "Why not try me as a traitor like my--" She almost slipped. "--King?"

"Because your life is of little consequence to me," he said harshly.

The words stung though he could not possibly know how much. To him she was nothing. To her people, she was the future and rightful Queen of Agsidian. She wanted to rail at Marcus and cast herself at him like a she-devil.

How could he be rumored to be such a good, wise man and still not see the truth that lay before him? He was not a weak man. He could do so much and yet he chose to follow the wrong causes. She had no other choice but to agree to his requests if she was to restore Agsidian to its glory.

"You have my loyalty."

He simply inclined his head before he stood. When she instinctively flinched back, he paused, then stepped a bit away, his tones a quiet rumble.

"You have nothing to fear from me as long as you keep your vow. I will not tie your hands or feet, but if you try to run, I assure you that you will be caught." He paused again. A hand rubbed briefly over tired eyes.

"You may sleep here with confidence. No one will touch you. Rest because we will be marching early to Celaenia."

It was finished? He was keeping his word and not harming her? Yanamari felt her delicate features contorting in confusion when he remained standing there instead of falling upon her as Brutus had done. She had seen the arousal spark in his eyes when she had tumbled onto his bed pallet, yet he made no move to hurt her. It was confusing to a woman who had prepared herself for the worst.

"No one will come in while I sleep?"

"No. You have you my word. I will remain outside. Your virtues will remain your own."

"Why would you do such a thing? Do you not desire me as your men do?"

"I take no pleasure in rape. Those who have shared my bed have always done so willingly."

"Ah so you only take captives in war then?"

His jaw tightened, but he remained where he was. She was trying to bait him deliberately as she shuffled back a bit on the pallet, her blouse having slipped to one side to expose the delicate curve of her shoulder. Her skirt had also ridden up, exposing long, shapely thighs which in his memories, were wrapped around his hips as his wife moaned his name and gave herself over to him freely.

Marcus inhaled and looked away for a moment. Aurelia had been a virgin when she came to him, but he had taught her about passion and she became a source of solace for him when he came home from the wars. In her body, he had found his moments of comfort. She was a passionate woman, and when he had found himself on the edge of sanity, she had used her mouth to tear him from memories of war and bloodshed and bring him peace.

He could not see that same peace in the eyes of the woman who called herself Mara. She shook with her fury, yet his loyalty was to Celaenia, not to an unknown member of an enemy resistance.

"Do not try my patience, Mara. It is not without limit."

"No? Is your resolve to abstain from my body, without limit?"

Yanamari felt her heart skip a beat. She offered the bold challenge even as her knees felt weak. She didn't know where the words had come from other than her fear. She was a proud woman and a princess in her own right. To be so humiliated, burned her sense of justice and pride and made her foolish. She knew better than to challenge a man like Marcus Aurelius of Celaenia, who stood a head taller than most men and exuded a quiet virility that even she was not blind to.

Her breath caught when she saw his eyes narrow, her breasts rising and falling with the speed of her quickening pulse. She had baited him and still he made no move. She was a virgin and her chastity was important to her, yet for a moment she didn't wish him to be a gentleman jailor. She could not hate him as she needed to if he was kind to her and her hatred was all that she had now.

"You continue to bait me," he said softly. "Do you wish me to take you against your will? "

Her heart was suddenly in her throat, and she felt as if she couldn't breathe. He had still made no move towards her, but neither was he leaving.

"I wish to be set free."

"That I cannot do."

"You mean you will not do it."

"Yes," he agreed. "Now be silent. I have given the order to my men that you are not to be touched, but if you bait them as you have done to me tonight, they may forget themselves. It is in your best interest to be still."

"So only you will refuse a woman?"

"If she is unwilling, yes."

"And if I was willing?"

A dark brow arched as he watched her face a moment. He could see her pulse fluttering like a trapped bird in her throat. Despite her bold challenge, she was trembling, her hands tightly clinging to the edge of his bed pallet. Her cheeks were pale in the dim lighting. Whatever her motivation for this seduction, desire had no part in it.

"You are not."

"How can you tell? You are not a woman."

"And neither are you," he commented mildly, watching the rage build in her face. "You are trying to manipulate me and you are not offering me to yourself as a willing woman."

"How dare you!"

She flung the canteen he had left by her pallet at him. It bounced harmlessly off of his shoulder, but when she launched herself a moment after, his control broke.

She shrieked as strong hands pressed her back to the mat, pinning her flailing wrists over her head in one of his hands. His knee slid between her thigh to pin her with his weight and his other hand covered her mouth before she could scream. She whimpered against his palm.

"Be still! "

Tears forced themselves from her eyes and his heart tightened, but he did not release her till she offered a slight nod. He moved his hand slowly but kept her beneath him.

"You are just like your men! After all of your high talk, you are still just an animal!"

"An animal would be inside of you by now, Mara. He would already have torn away this frail skirt and shoved your thighs apart so he could find his own pleasure with no thought of your own. "

"You would not dare!"

Her tones weren't as strong as she had wanted them to be, and she berated herself for the fear in her voice. She did not want this man to have any more control over her other emotions, but when he pressed harder against her, she whimpered.

She was innocent, yet her ears burned when that hard, male part of him pressed snugly against the vee of her thighs where her skirts had tangled up high around her hips. Her breath came hard and fast, but he made no move to carry out his threat. He was looking into her eyes as if searching for something. Her breath caught when he leaned down till their faces were very close. She couldn't find her voice and when she didn't protest, his mouth slowly brushed over hers.

She had been expecting an angry caress, but his lips though chapped, were gentle when he covered her mouth with his. She froze as his tongue traced the outline of her mouth, slowly urging her lips to part. She reacted on instinct, lips parting. The warm, foreign pressure of his tongue was unexpectedly thrilling as it stroked into her mouth and she found herself slowly responding.

Marcus hadn't intended to touch her, but when she had issued her last challenge, the line that his mind was waking had become obscured by his own fatigue and desire for a life that he had long stolen from him.

She was warm beneath him, her body soft and pliant as his hand tangled in her thick curls to urge her response. She was hesitant, but when his hand stroked down the side of her throat and feathered across her collarbones, he felt her pulse quicken. Her head fell back when he broke the kiss and Marcus trailed his mouth from her shoulder then farther down where her blouse had fallen open. Creamy skin scented like lavender and sage was soft against his mouth.

He groaned as he allowed his cheek to rub over her body through the cloth that separated them. The material became damp from his mouth and Mara was making soft keening sounds as his teeth teased one taut nipple through the fabric.

Her eyes were wide when he pulled back and undid the simple laces in the front of her shift. Within a few moments she was nude from the waist up and his desire strained beneath his armor. His tongue traced the delicate curve of her ear as his hand slowly released her wrists so that he could stroke down her outstretched arms and over her breasts. They were full and lush, tipped with large rosy nipples that begged to be touched and tasted.

Yanamari arched beneath him as his mouth trailed further down her body, past the flatness of a belly toned from dancing, to the waistband of her skirt tangled around her hips.

Mouth and hand met in the middle, before his lips passed down to the tangle of fine, tight curls between her shapely thighs. She gasped when his tongue found that elusive heat that made his own desire threaten to spill over when he felt how wet she was. Her scent was faintly musky and sweet at the same time, and she slid across his tongue like honey.

His tongue worshiped her as he reached between them to loosen the ties that bound him, swearing beneath his breath when his fingers clumsily tangled them together. Instead he left it, taking it as a sign from the fates. She was a prisoner of war, no matter whose face she wore and he could not bring himself to fill her belly with a child who in another life would have been everything to him.

She moaned when his hands pushed her quivering thighs farther apart so that he could slide one finger slowly into her, groaning when her secret muscles clamped down on him desperately. Had he been inside if her, he would have been lost immediately. He growled as another finger slid into her, careful not to breach that thin resistance he felt when he pushed too high. She cried out and his tongue stroked upward to suck rhythmically on that little bud that was the source of all of a woman's pleasure. It took only a moment before she broke beneath him screaming, but not in pain. He felt her flood his hand and he leaned up to capture her mouth so he could buck against her, riding her orgasm to bring his own in a rush of heat.

When he found his breath again, he was braced above her. Her eyes were wide as she stared up at him, her lips parted but she wasn't saying a word.

"Mara?"

What had she done?

She had meant to strengthen her resolve by proving that he was a beast who was after only what he wanted, and instead she had given herself freely to the same man who would hang her as a traitor if he knew her true identity. She felt her breath catch as a single tear slid down her cheek.

She heard him say her name again as his hand touched her cheek with more gentleness than she would have expected from him even now. She closed her eyes and after a moment, she felt him move away from her. His clothing rustled in the dark as he adjusted himself.

It was finished.

She had betrayed her country.

She had failed her father.

She was no Queen.

Speaking no more of their bargain or anything else, Yanamari rolled to her side. Slender hands pressed tightly against her ears, tying to block out the voice she heard in her own head. He had not used force and yet she had been willing in that moment of heat, to give him everything. Her body still craved his and she choked back a sob as she curled on her pallet.

To Celaenia, she thought with a heavy heart.

To the life of a traitor.

Marcus sighed as he paused there in the doorway of the tent. When she had breathed his name and brushed her lips over his cheek, she had made him forget who he was and what he was meant to do. His duty came first. It always had to come first.

He watched her for a moment. When his heart could take no more, he stepped out onto the night, allowing the flap to close behind him.

To Celaenia.