Demand to Submit: Bound Series, #2

By Jaci Burton

In a secret laboratory on Earth, Waia is discovered and rescued. Genetically altered and abandoned by those who changed her, she's suffering extreme pain. The DNA inside her demands her submission to a master, yet she can feel no sexual joy of her own. She's taken to Dargon to be trained by Master Kyr, who demands that Waia learn to accept her own pleasure before she can satisfy him.

 

Through the bonds of emotion, submission and trust, Kyr reawakens Waia's sexuality, embarking on a voyage to discovery that provides surprises even for him. But danger lurks for Waia at the end of her journey, and she must learn to put her trust in her own instincts and a man who claims he can train, but never love.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jaci Burton, Inc
• Release date: Jun 22, 2017
• ISBN: 9798201860837

Book preview

Prologue

They’d left her in the dark. She’d heard their movements and the hurried whispers as they rushed to destroy the evidence of what they’d done. All that time she’d waited, wondering when they’d come for her.

But they never had. For some reason, they’d let her live.

She knew it had been their plan to destroy her. They’d told her as much. She’d waited, locked in this cage without food or water for…how long? After a while, she’d looked forward to death, actually wanted to die. Why not? It wasn’t as if she was wholly human any longer. Better dead than live with the way they’d changed her.

Time had ceased to exist. She no longer knew the day or hour. No sounds permeated her dungeon. Not even the rhythmic ticking of a clock, a lifeline to reality. Deprived of sound and light, her senses dulled. She’d even stopped talking to herself just to hear a voice. What was the point? Her stomach had long ago stopped rumbling. Now she just felt weak, filthy, her fingers torn and bloody from her efforts to break the locks on her cage.

She was alone on the island. They’d packed up and run.

Why hadn’t they killed her? If she was discovered alive, all their efforts to cover up or destroy evidence would be wasted.

It would have been better if they’d terminated her. Anything would have been preferable to starving to death alone in this lab. She shivered, wrapping her arms around her too-thin, naked body. Her own smell sickened her. How long had it been since she’d bathed?

For the hundredth time that day, she licked her cracked lips, desperately wishing for a single drop of water to quench her thirst. She lay down on the cold slab and curled up upon herself, praying that today would be the day death would come.

Because even as tired, hungry and sick as she was, the need still boiled within her— the desire that had been forced upon her and wouldn’t go away.

The only thing that kept her going was anger. Flashes of vengeance warred with despair and she had waffled between the two for the past couple weeks. She latched on to the anger when she needed to remind herself not to give up. It burned inside her, giving her the strength to stay alive, if only to heap curses on their souls.

If by some grace of God she ever got out of here, she’d find them someday. And when she did, she’d kill them. Slowly, leisurely, making experiments out of them and treating them exactly as they’d treated her. Callous and without feeling.

Damn them for what they’d done to her!

Chapter One

Marina of the Intergalactic Enforcement Unit shook her head at the devastation of the lab. Whoever had run this illegal operation had taken off in a hurry. A big damn hurry. And they’d had plenty of time to get out, considering it had taken Marina and Kaden over a week to traverse the mountain ranges here in the South Pacific. Having to fly over meant they couldn’t see deep within the valleys to find the lab. Thankfully they’d spotted metal glinting off sunlight and zeroed in on this location—one of the smaller islands.

We missed them. Looks like it hasn’t been long since they left, though. There’s still fresh food in the cooling units.

Check for survivors, Kaden said, his lips set in a grim line.

She nodded and began to move aside pieces of debris. God, it looked like a bomb had exploded in here. They’d been hunting these bastards for months now, after seeing some of the poor women who’d been altered by their experiments. Basket cases, most of them, too far gone for any help before they died.

Genetic experimentation was sometimes a good thing and more often a very bad one. Especially when it was done for personal gain, as it had been on this island.

Not that Marina minded a short visit to a tropical island. She and Kaden were usually sent to some icy, forbidden planet. This place was warm, sunny and she’d love to linger on the beaches awhile with her husband.

She looked over at Kaden and sighed. Hard to believe they’d been married six months already. Her pulse still raced and her sex moistened every time she looked at him. Working with him was a plus, too, since Kaden never wanted to be apart from her. They worked side by side as equals, patrolling the galaxy and bringing in wanted criminals. At night he dominated her, pleasured her, teased her and took her to the very brink until she begged for an orgasm.

At first she thought she’d hate having him around all the time. But she was wrong. The thought of being separated from Kaden made her physically ache.

The sound of a moan quickly diverted her attention away from her dark, brooding husband. She followed the sound down a long, dark hallway, stepping into a room that looked like a damned zoo. Smelled like one too. She wrinkled her nose at the foul scent.

Cages lined every wall. Huge, human-sized cages. Fortunately all were empty. Rectangular slabs were in the center of the room, stirrups and straps attached to them. Needles and broken vials of strange liquids sat beside each table. All were shattered, their contents dried and caked over the edges of the trays.

Marina heard the moan again and headed toward the darkened corner of the room. She yanked aside discarded furniture and pulled a tarp off, hearing only a whimper and the skittering of something shifting in the cage. The foul scent grew more prominent here. She grabbed her palmlight and clicked it on, resting it in her hand and raising it over the enclosure.

Her heart dropped to her feet as she spotted a figure huddled in the farthest corner. Obviously female, as the bastards who ran this lab had only messed with feminine genetics. How else to make the perfect submissive, right? Anger bubbled up inside her and threatened to explode. But somehow she doubted the poor creature would appreciate her rage right now.

Honey, I’m here to help you, she said, keeping her voice low and nonthreatening. Can you understand me?

No answer. Then again, she hadn’t really expected one. She clicked on her dialect converter and spoke again, hoping whatever language the woman spoke could be understood. Still no answer.

Marina crouched down in front of the cage, shining the light toward her own face so the woman could see her. My name is Marina. I’m an officer with the Intergalactic police and I’ve been sent to rescue you. No one will harm you.

They want me dead, the woman whispered, her voice hoarse as if she’d been screaming for hours. The woman’s rage and frustration were clear, her response coming in a guttural growl.

Fury filled Marina, but she forced it back. Whoever put you in there is gone now. The place is empty. I’m going to unlock this cage and let you out.

Marina reached for her tools, setting to work on the door’s double locks. She stilled, spotting the blood right away. It covered the locks and dripped down the bars onto the front of the cage floor. She’d bet any amount of money that the woman’s hands were torn and bloody from trying to get out.

Bastards. They’d pay for this. Training her anger on severing the locks to the cage, she worked on cutting them off. She made no progress, though. The locks must be made out of some kind of impenetrable metal. She might need Kaden’s help with this.

What are you doing? he asked, appearing behind her.

Marina jumped. The woman shrieked and tightened into a trembling ball at the back of the cage.

Lower your voice! she hissed at Kaden. She’s alive and probably not too damn happy to see a man. I need your help getting this lock off.

Then get out of my way.

Hang on a minute. She looked into the cage, once again shining her palmlight onto her own face. Honey, this is my husband, my mate. He will not harm you in any way. He’s going to help me get these locks off so we can get you out of there, okay?

The woman didn’t answer, but she did nod. Marina motioned to Kaden, who slowly lowered himself to the side of the cage and used a laser to cut through the thick metal. The locks fell off, clanging to the stone floor.

Back away, Kaden. She’s scared and more than a little pissed off, I think.