Viking Claimed (Triad Series Book 4) (12 page)

“
Keep Aki safe. I will go and find Elli Slavin.”

Einarr nodded and went to head his brother off while Morek went down the stairs, following Elli’s scattered flight. Just that small glimpse of her thoughts and holding her hand had imprinted her indelibly in his mind. She was his mate. He no longer doubted that. Now all he had to do was find her and convince her that he and Aki would never give up their claim to her.

He traced her into one of the far-flung gardens where few visitors to the Temple ever ventured. Had she fled here the first time Carlin had humiliated her in public? She sat with her back against a stone wall, with her knees drawn up to her chin. A glint of tears remained in her eyes. Morek wanted to kill Carlin himself.

“Be my guest.”

She looked up at him, and he dropped into a crouch beside her.

“He deserves killing,” Morek remarked. “But I suspect Aki would be the first in line to accomplish that task. I left Einarr and Ungar holding him back.”

She sighed. “I just want to run away right now.”

“I can quite understand why.” He took her hand and gently squeezed it. “By the way, my name is Morek. I am your Second Male.”

She searched his face. “Why would you want to be that when all I do is create embarrassment for everyone?”

“Because you are my Female.” He held her gaze and gently cupped her chin. “I can already feel you in my mind.” He reached for her in his head. “Can you feel me?”

She swallowed hard. “I’m not sure if I want to make any more connections today. I can’t bear the thought that I’ll mess you up as well.”

“I am more than willing to bear your pain, my lady. Aki and I have already agreed that whatever the Oracle says, we consider ourselves to be your males for as long as we all shall live.”

“That’s… very sweet of you.”

“My thoughts are not entirely sweet,” Morek confessed. “I cannot help but imagine what it will be like to share your bed.”

Her pupils widened, and she licked her lips. “Don’t say that.”

“Why not?”

“Because now you’ve got me imagining things and thanks to stupid Carlin they might not happen.”

Morek held her gaze. “They will happen, Elli. I promise you that. By tomorrow night if you so desire it you will be naked and in bed with Aki and me. I cannot wait.”

He used his thumb to wipe away the salty tracks of her tears. “You will need to be strong today, my lady, and have faith that by tomorrow everything will be resolved to your satisfaction. The Oracle is wise. She will not fail us.”

She took a deep breath and finally smiled at him. “I damn well hope so.”

He took one of the perfumed white flowers out of his braided hair and placed it gently behind her ear. In her own way she was as much a warrior as he and Aki. “That’s the spirit, my Female.”

He rose to his feet and held out his hand. “May I escort you back to the Temple? The Oracle wishes you to stay with her handmaidens this evening.”

“Thank you.” She put her hand in his and faced him. “Thank you for everything.”

“I did nothing but reassure you of that you already know in your heart. Aki and I are yours for all eternity.”

She slowly went up on tiptoe to kiss his mouth.

Morek allowed the kiss to remain as platonic as she wished. He had no doubt that she would soon come willingly to him and Aki, and that the Oracle would make a decision that would destroy all Carlin’s foolish dreams.

After depositing Elli back with the Oracle’s handmaidens, Morek made his way to the guest quarters where Aki was staying with his brother. When he arrived he wasn’t surprised to find his First Male pacing the floor, his expression furious, his dagger in his hand.

“Did you find her?” Aki demanded.

“Aye, she is safely within the sanctuary now.”

“Thank the Gods,” Aki breathed. “Is she all right?”

Morek grimaced. “She is mortified and believes you and I would do well to stay away from her.”

Aki stopped pacing. “You told her that wouldn’t happen? That we were hers whatever the Oracle said?”

“I did. I believe she was beginning to accept that we meant it by the time I left her.”

“If I could just stab that fool through the heart….”

“And be banished for desecrating a holy shrine to our Goddess?” Morek shook his head. “That would hardly help our cause.”

“Then what do you suggest?”

Morek spread his hands wide. “That we rely on the Oracle to make the correct decision tomorrow. I have faith that she will.”

Aki collapsed into a chair and put his head in his hands. “By all that is holy, I hope you are right.”

Morek moved over to touch his bowed head. “By all that is holy, so do I.”

Chapter Seven

Aki allowed Morek to help him dress and then followed his mate down to the inner sanctum of the Temple. There weren’t many people about on the terraces. It was late afternoon, and the temperature was high and the shadows long. His thoughts were fixed on Elli, who seemed to be hiding behind her superior shields. But even she couldn’t hide completely from him anymore. Morek had explained that mated couples shared more deeply than was common, and Aki now knew that was true.

At the door to the Oracle’s private apartments, the two men stopped and Morek wrapped his arm around Aki’s shoulders.

“We must believe that the Oracle will make the correct decision.”

“But what if she doesn’t?” Aki argued. “What will we do then?”

Morek’s eyes were troubled. “I cannot imagine disobeying the Oracle, but in this instance when I am certain in my soul that Elli is our mate, I admit I am conflicted.” He nodded decisively. “I will do whatever you wish, First Male, but I will not let you kill this Carlin.”

“Agreed,” Aki said. He brushed a kiss on Morek’s forehead. “Let’s pray it doesn’t come to that.”

The Oracle was seated at an oval table and beckoned to the men to join her. She wore her usual white robe and her long auburn hair was held back from her face with a crown of flowers.

“Aki and Morek sit on my right. Carlin and his Triad members on my left, please, and Elli take the place opposite me.”

Everyone sat down, and Aki took a covert glance at the couple sitting opposite him. They looked upset and were holding hands, their bodies turned toward each other and away from Carlin who sat stiffly beside them.

The Oracle inclined her head and began speaking. “Ilic and Tria, thank you for coming to my Temple at Quoxor. I am hoping that you can clarify the situation between you and Carlin.”

The male bowed. “Thank you, Goddess. Carlin believes he made a mistake in choosing to mate with us. We do not agree with his decision, but he refuses to honor his commitment to us.”

Aki snorted and muttered under his breath to Morek. “See? He is a man who has no morals and lacks loyalty.”

Morek elbowed him to be quiet.

“Carlin? What do you have to say about this?” the Oracle asked.

Carlin shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “They want to have children. I don’t.” She continued to look at him expectantly, and he frowned. “What else do you want me to say, my lady?”

“Surely such matters can be talked out with the aid of a counselor?”

“Carlin refused to seek help. He said that his decision was irreversible,” the female Tria spoke up. “We tried
everything
…”

“Then you should have presented yourself as a Triad at the Temple here and asked for my counsel.”

Tria nodded. “That’s what we thought Carlin was here for. We didn’t know he was planning to disrupt another mating.”

“Ah.” The Oracle’s gaze swept over Elli. “Then Carlin’s presence here at this moment was an unhappy coincidence.”

She went silent, and Aki held her breath as she considered.

“Carlin, I intend to dissolve your Triad. Not for your benefit, but for your two mates who have been treated very badly.” She glanced over at her daughter Neeve, who was listening intently. “Draw up the proclamation, First Daughter, and make sure it is announced to the Temple guests this very evening.”

She bowed to Ilic and Tria. “I wish you both well in your lives and can assure you that your union will be long, prosperous
and
fruitful.” Her smile was beautiful. “If you linger in the lower Temple and ask one of my handmaidens to introduce you to a man named Wren, I believe you will all be very happy together.”

The couple rose from their chairs and came to kneel at the Oracle’s feet. Tria was crying openly now. “Thank you, Goddess. Thank you so much.”

Neeve escorted them out of the room, and the door was shut behind them. Aki tried to relax, but he had a sense that things weren’t resolved yet.

“So you are setting me free so that I can reclaim my place as Elli’s First Male?” Carlin asked.

Aki growled low in his throat and cracked his knuckles, wishing he’d been allowed to bring his dagger into the room. Morek patted his arm soothingly.

“No, Carlin. I am setting your Triad partners free of you.” The Oracle paused. “The only person who has to make a decision at this point is Elli Slavin.”

All eyes turned to Elli who sat frozen at the foot of the table.

“It is only fitting that
Elli
gets to make her own decision is it not?” the Oracle asked. “She is the one who has been publicly embarrassed
twice
by the behavior of her males.”

Aki slowly stood up, his heart hammering like Thor in his chest.

“Yes, Viking?”

“I agree with your decision, Goddess.” He looked down the table at Elli. “I think Elli has a right to choose to become part of a Triad—or not.”

Morek nodded and rose to stand shoulder to shoulder with Aki. “And I agree with Aki.”

“You would both give her up if she preferred to be free?”

“Aye,” Morek said.

Aki grimaced. “I would never stop loving her, but having been trapped myself for four thousand years, I wish her to be free.”

Carlin shot to his feet. “I don’t agree. Elli needs to abide by her original promise to
me
.”

The Oracle smiled at Elli. “The choice is yours, my dear. If you don’t wish to mate with any of them, just say the word and I will make it so.”

As Elli stood up, Aki held his breath.

She inclined her head respectfully to the Oracle. “I would like to be mated to Aki and Morek.”

“Then that’s what shall happen.” The Oracle raised her voice and held out her hands. “With the power of the Gods within me, I bind you three to each other for all time.”

Aki felt the force of her power sear through him and the sense of bonding with his two mates as though their very thoughts were welded into one complex strand. Morek grabbed his hand, only emphasizing the connection and they both rocked on their feet.

When he opened his eyes, Aki felt the Oracle’s mind brush against his.

“
I give you permission to dispose of the unwanted one, Viking.”

With a savage smile, Aki pushed back his chair and advanced upon Carlin who was still whining about how unfair everything was. When he saw Aki coming, he tried to run but he was no match for an enraged Viking. Scooping him up by the throat, Aki picked him up and strode out of the room and down the stairs into the most public of the Temple chambers.

Holding Carlin over his head he dropped him into the depths of one of the ornamental ponds surrounding the series of fountains. The onlookers clapped and laughed as if Aki was part of a traveling show.

When Carlin resurfaced and sat on his arse coughing up water, Aki leaned close.

“Do not trouble my Female again
Kukalabbi!”

He dusted off his hands and walked away.

Several hours later, Elli was sitting in her bedroom nervously brushing her hair. She and Aki and Morek had eaten a leisurely meal together and then sat and talked on the verandah until they’d joined Einarr and his mates for a double celebration. Now the two groups had separated again, and Aki and Morek were waiting patiently outside to see whether she had the nerve to admit them into her bed.

They probably weren’t aware just how nervous she was. Having only spent one night with Aki, her skill set wasn’t advanced. The thought of having
two
virile warriors in her bed at once was remarkably daunting.

But she’d accepted them as her mates. She
wanted
them, so why was she so worried? All she had to do was be honest. They would understand. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and went into the small chamber between her and Aki’s rooms.

It was empty.

So much for them waiting eagerly for her summons. Elli wanted to smile.

She heard a murmur of voices, and gathering her courage, went through Aki’s door and stopped short. Morek sat on the bed clad in nothing but his long dark hair, and Aki was in the middle of shedding his clothes.

“Oh!” Elli blurted out. “I didn’t mean to intrude.” Perhaps they’d decided not to wait for her at all and were making their own fun.

“Intrude on what?” Aki’s head emerged from his shirt leaving him just in unlaced black pants. Elli checked to see that her tongue was safely inside her mouth and she wasn’t drooling. “We were just debating how many clothes we should wear when we came to your bedchamber.”

Morek slipped off the bed. “We were not intending on starting without you, Elli. Please do not think that.”

She held up her hands. Morek was far too astute to miss anything. “That’s okay, actually, that’s kind of what I came in here to say and—”

Aki’s smile disappeared. “What’s wrong?”

She stared at them helplessly, her tongue tied in knots.

“
Elli?”

Morek took one hand and Aki took the other, and she just let the jumble of her thoughts fall into their minds. Sometimes being a telepath was incredibly useful.

“Ah.” Morek nodded. “There is no rush, my Female. We have the whole of our lives to make love together.”

“He’s right,” Aki said. “Mayhap tonight we should just try sleeping in the same bed?”

“Won’t you be disappointed?” Elli asked. “And I don’t mind if you and Morek want to… you know, in fact I’d quite like to see how that works.”

Gods she was babbling again. It seemed that she’d shed her calm and cool persona right along with her past.