Programmed For Power

By Jenna Ives

As the powerful premier of war-torn Tau Cetus, Theus presides over an uneasy post-apocalyptic peace. Many plot against him, including a traitor on his own High Council as well as one rogue woman who dared to steal a precious keepsake from his past. Capturing Leora Smith offers Theus a chance at personal revenge, but she awakens emotions in him he thought long dead. Even so, it takes an assassination attempt to spur Theus to reassess a future with either this prisoner who makes his blood run hot or the Beautiful Doll robotic lover who’s the perfect match for his lifeless existence.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jenna Ives
• Release date: Oct 26, 2015
• ISBN: 9781311114129

Jenna Ives

Jenna Ives has the typical problem that affects a lot of modern authors — multiple personality disorder. She writes for several publishers under a variety of names, but mostly the reason is to keep her poor sainted mother (who used to read sweet Harlequin novels) from having a heart attack over how sexy modern romances have become!And Jenna certainly DOES write sexy...

Book preview

Programmed For Power

Jenna Ives

eBooks are not transferable. They cannot be sold, shared or given away as it is an infringement on the copyright of this work.

This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.

Programmed For Power

Copyright © 2015 by Jenna Ives

First E-Book Edition

Cover by Donna Casey

Formatting by coversbykaren.com

All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

Table of Contents

Title Page

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Epilogue

About The Author

Don’t miss the first installment of The Tau Cetus Chronicles…

Excerpt from Programmed To Please: Book One of the Tau Cetus Chronicles by Jenna Ives…

Don’t miss the second installment of The Tau Cetus Chronicles…

Programmed To Protect

Excerpt from Programmed To Protect: Book Two of the Tau Cetus Chronicles by Jenna Ives…

Chapter One

Keira, my dark one…

Theus watched as his words woke the Beautiful Doll sex robot from her hibernation mode. Her eyes opened, she moved from behind the partially folded screen in the corner of his office, and then walked slowly toward him.

She was beautiful. Hair black as midnight, dramatic blue starburst eyes, and a body tailored to meet Theus’ exact physical preferences. She was naked beneath a sheer silk sarong, the diaphanous wrap leaving little to the imagination but just enough to incite a man’s fantasies. She was the perfect female, designed to fulfill his every sexual need.

So then why was he frowning as she came to a halt in front of his desk?

Because she reminded him of her creator, Anson Carron. Theus’ enemy.

As premier for the last decade, Theus and his High Council had fought to keep the peace on Tau Cetus in the aftermath of the Great War, a conflict which had wiped out nearly half the planet’s population. There were still troublesome areas of Tau Cetus that weren’t under the Council’s control, but for the most part, the planet was at peace.

No thanks to Anson Carron.

Three times Carron had challenged the Council. First, he’d stolen highly-regulated weapons and sold them to rogue regulators bent on fomenting insurrection. Next, he’d attempted to kill the Council’s weapons manufacturer and right-hand man, Marque Callex, in order to assume his position of power. And most recently, Carron had tried to assassinate the five members of the High Council and take control of the planet for himself.

And yet, with all those treasonable offenses, none struck as close to home as Carron’s theft of a particular diamond a year ago. That crime was personal.

Theus set his jaw, his rage at the theft still fresh even after all these months.

Anson Carron was now dead. After taking the robot manufacturer into custody in the wake of his failed assassination attempt, Theus had successfully tortured out of him the missing diamond’s location. Then, with the Council’s backing, Theus had ordered Anson Carron’s execution for his crimes.

And just a moment ago, he’d dispatched two of his best agents to recover the stolen gem.

The one secret Carron had managed to take to his grave was the identity of a potential traitor on the High Council itself. Theus had long suspected that Carron had been receiving information that could only have come from one of his four fellow counsellors.

Zelonis. Troian. Alon. Reigh.

Four men drawn from the most powerful regions of the world. Together with Theus, they directed the fate of Tau Cetus.

For the safety of all, the Council members customarily remained apart, only coming together to decide important matters of state. Those men stayed in their home territories while Theus resided in this thick-walled missile-proof underground headquarters. A subterranean stronghold in which he often lost track of the days, and definitely whether it was light or dark outside.

Theus sighed. Maybe he was wrong about a traitor on the Council. After all, Carron had tried to murder them all, certainly not attempting to spare his inside contact. Perhaps Theus was just so used to treachery that he saw deceit everywhere. He prayed that was it. But it was best to keep his eyes open.

A traitor on the Council could spell disaster for the planet.

You called, Theus?

The bell-like voice of the Beautiful Doll pulled Theus from his troubled thoughts. Keira was one of only two left of her kind. Anson Carron had agreed to convert all the rest of his Beautiful Dolls into robot soldiers and put them under the command of the High Council. It was a way to save his neck after the botched shooting of Theus’ weapons manufacturer, Marque Callex, last year. But even long before that, four years ago to be exact, Carron had gifted Theus with Keira in an effort to curry favor.

Beautiful Dolls were sex experts, legendary for their skill, programmed with an almost infinite number of ways to please. Anson Carron had run a highly profitable business with his Dolls, addicting men and women to sex with his clever male and female robots.

He should have stayed a simple purveyor of prostitution; he should never have reached for more power than that.

Theus swiveled in his chair and reached to unbuckle his belt. Come around my desk, Keira. I’d like fellatio two.

The Doll paused, tilting her head. You’ve requested fellatio or fellatio two 92% of the time I’ve been with you, Theus.

Theus’ hands paused in their work, and he arched an eyebrow in surprise. It’s probably because the suction of your nineteen miles-per-hour mouth can reduce even the most potent man to mush.

92% fellatio, 1% missionary, 1% doggie-style, 1% ride ‘em cowboy, 1% split the bamboo, 1% padlock, 1% pair of tongs, 1%—

Enough. Theus frowned. Was he really so predictable? There’d been a time when – like any normal man – he’d been eager to try out every sexual position a Beautiful Doll was capable of, but obviously those days were gone. Hell, it wasn’t the Doll’s fault. He could still recall Keira’s trick of tightening her body while he was inside of her, squeezing the very orgasm out of him. Or pistoning him like a jackhammer while riding his cock. She was an amazing piece of technology, but these days, he only used her when he needed physical release or a distraction from work. The excitement was gone.

Come here.

The Doll dutifully walked around his desk and sank gracefully to her knees. Theus finished unzipping his trousers and reached for his cock.

Let me do it, Theus.

Theus closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair. Maybe it would help if he imagined that the rubbery-like feel of Keira’s artificial fingers belonged to someone else. But who? There was no one Theus could even fantasize about.

Well, there was one. But that had been long ago. A precious memory, kept tucked in his heart.

From the day Theus had been named premier of Tau Cetus’ High Council, his life had become too dangerous to let in a real woman. That’s why Keira was perfect for him. No one could harm her. No one could threaten her hoping to get to him.

The ruler and his robot were the perfect pair.

If only Theus could be happier about the arrangement.

Luckily, when Keira’s mouth closed around him with her vice-like grip, his mind went blank and his body took over.

***

Leora Smith fingered a leaf on a newly sprouting tree limb as she slowly ambled along a sylvan dirt path. She loved this park, not only for its natural beauty but also for the fact she could temporarily lose herself in its dense foliage. And in her thoughts. Which, these days, were many.

It’s not that she was unhappy. No, she considered herself incredibly lucky.

In the last year, she’d been reunited with her estranged brother Marque, and had escaped from her prison-like gilded cage of a life in the capital when Marque had been relocated after nearly being killed by Anson Carron.

Leora had been ecstatic to move with him, and along with them had come former Tau Cetus police agent Jai Turner. Jai had saved Marque’s life by throwing herself in front of the bullet Carron intended for him. Marque and Jai had fallen in love, married, and now set an example of happiness that Leora tried hard not to envy.

So different from her own past marriage to Chavis Smith, who’d turned out to be a traitor to Tau Cetus and been executed for it.

Stop feeling sorry for yourself! You’re free.

Leora sighed. Through the copse of dense trees, she caught a glimpse of the park’s thirty-acre lake. She could make out Marque’s neon-yellow t-shirt in the far distance, as he stroked his shell across the smooth surface of the water. Her brother loved to row. It was his therapy. As walking in these woods was hers.

It was why Leora always tried to come with him on his early morning workouts.

She let go of the leaf in her fingers and moved down the path a few feet.

In the year since the three of them had been living in this new part of Tau Cetus, they’d tried to remake their lives. Marque had parlayed his weapons manufacturing background into a job as a production manager for cyber plastics. Jai, whose bullet wound had resulted in her needing an artificial heart, now worked at the local hospital. It was only Leora, faced with freedom after a decade of near house arrest and the overbearing protection of Marque’s bodyguards, who didn’t know what to do with herself.

The irony of it was not lost on her. Marque and Jai seemed happy enough in this new life. Why couldn’t Leora find something that would make her equally content?

She’d never worked a day in her life, but that was because Marque had kept her ‘protected’ from the age of eighteen. A decade ago. And in truth, when they’d first moved here, she’d been so giddy to be released from her brother’s iron grip that she’d simply basked in the miracle of her freedom. But her aimlessness was making her restive these days.

The world was her canvas. There were an endless number of things she should be able to do. Maybe she’d ask Jai later today about volunteering at her hospital.

It’s about time I take control of my life.

Resolved, she decided she would run the idea of volunteering past Marque when he was done with his workout.

The soft snapping of a twig drew her out of her thoughts. She turned on the narrow path, noticing two men walking in her direction. Leora rarely saw people on the dirt trail this early in the morning, but that’s not what surprised her most. It was the outfits the men wore. Leora frowned. Workout gear or even comfortable hiking clothes would be logical, but these men were dressed in one-piece matching blue jumpsuits. And they didn’t look like they were park maintenance workers.

They also didn’t look like they were out for a casual stroll.

A shiver ran up Leora’s back at the way one of them eyed her closely up and down, then nodded to the man next to him. As they took a step toward her, her gut told her to get out of here. Fast.

Did they have rape on their mind? It would be a bit difficult with those uniform-like one-piece outfits, but she wasn’t about to wait to find out.

Her brain raced as she considered her options. In her fear, she could only come up with two.

What did you say, Marque? she called loudly. Okay, I’ll be right there.

She started walking briskly down the path away from the men. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw them hesitate but they didn’t turn and run as Leora had hoped. She obviously hadn’t fooled them into thinking someone was close by. That help was close by.

Before they had a chance to regroup and make their next move, she dashed frantically into the woods. If this was a potential crime of opportunity, Leora was hoping the men would find it too much trouble to pursue a woman who obviously was going to put up a fight.

No such luck. One man shouted something to the other, and Leora heard them crash into the thicket behind her. She desperately dodged tree trunks and low-hanging branches, zig-zagging her way deeper into the stand of trees.

Vegetation crunched under her feet, making her direction clear as she hurried, but speed seemed more important than stealth at this point. And she was counting on the fact that she hopefully knew these woods better than those strange men did.

She ran until her lungs ached and her legs felt like jelly. Finally exhausted by the fight-or-flight adrenaline-fueled sprint, she stopped and put a hand out to steady herself on a thick tree trunk. She tried to listen for the location of the men, ignoring the loud pounding of her heart in her ears.

A branch swished. A twig snapped.

Close. They were close.

She took off again at a run. What were the chances she could reach the shoreline and get Marque’s attention? But even if she did, how long would it take him to row ashore and help her? Maybe he was almost done with his workout. Maybe he’d already be on his way back to shore.

Just let me get out into the open. Maybe someone else will be around who can help me.

Daylight was in sight when a hand suddenly reached out and grabbed her arm, jerking her to a bone-jarring stop. Another hand clamped itself over her mouth, stifling her nascent scream. Struggle as she might, Leora found herself caught in an iron grip. And when she felt the stab of a needle in her arm as a hood came down over her head, terror took hold of her heart.

Chapter Two

Leora opened her eyes, but the vision in front of her was blurry. She blinked once, twice, trying to bring things into focus.

It looked like she was in a room of some kind. With pale gray concrete walls. No windows. The air smelled stale, as if it had been recirculated too many times.

Where was this place?

She tried to raise her head to get a better view of her surroundings, then dropped it back down. Her brain was pounding. Reaching up a hand to rub her forehead, she tried to soothe the pain away. What on earth had been in that needle she’d been stuck with?

Obviously something powerful enough to make her abduction easier.

The fear she’d felt when those two men had pulled that hood down over her head came rushing back. Who would want to kidnap her?

When she and Marque and Jai had relocated a year ago, the three of them had taken on new identities. Did someone other than Anson Carron have a grudge against the High Council’s former right-hand man? Was that why she’d been kidnapped?

Leora turned her head gingerly. She was lying on some sort of a cot. Gently, she swung her legs over the side, determined to sit up. Levering herself up with the use of her hands, she gritted her teeth against the pounding in her head. Goodness, it was like having the world’s worst migraine.

She was sweating with effort by the time she managed to sit upright. The room swam, and she closed her eyes until the spinning stopped. She counted the seconds… 40… 50…60…

Gingerly, she cracked an eyelid. The room was blessedly still. Finally.

With a grateful sigh, she looked down. She was still wearing her own clothes: khaki pants, silk shirt, flat shoes. She ran her fingers over her neck, wrist and hands. She still had all her jewelry.

But her personal communication device was gone from her pocket.

In her old life, when Marque had insisted on bodyguards for her protection while he was Tau Cetus’ most notorious arms dealer, Leora had railed against the unnatural confinement. Today, for the first time, she wished those muscled men in their black suits had been with her on the park’s dirt path.

There was no one to rely on here but herself. It reminded her of the time after the Great War, when as teenagers she and Marque had had to fend for themselves in order to survive.

Being fully aware of one’s surroundings had been important then. It was imperative now.

Taking a small breath, she looked around the room. There was a square table in a far corner, with a tray of food on top of it. Her stomach rumbled at the sight. How long had she been unconscious? What time – or day – was it, anyway? How far from home had she been taken?

Leora ran a tongue over her dry lips. Nothing looked as good to her as the bottle of water on that tray. She was absolutely parched, but considering the trouble she’d had just sitting up, there was no way she’d be able to make her way across the room.

That tray was so close and yet so far.

Maybe in a few minutes…

Her kidnappers obviously weren’t looking for revenge, or she’d already be dead. Was