A Slave to the Servants Ch. 24-1

"Little Brother," he addressed the smaller man, "she did not get upset at you. It was the drink, right Ciara?" he asked turning toward me.

"I love you, Kein," I said watching them. "I want you to touch me. It was just the drink...It was too strong. I'm so sorry."

Kein looked troubled as he finished his chore. These men hated discord in the family. I knew how they sought stability in their relationships with one another and now with me.

"Please Kein," I begged reaching for him, "come cuddle with me."

A brow quirked and he sat the now folded garments in a bag. "What is cuddle?" he asked sitting on the bed.

"Hold me, little Brother," I answered using Bane's pet name for him.

A smile flickered across his features as he crawled up beside me. "I am not little to you," he grinned pressing against my side.

I passed an arm beneath him as he propped himself on an elbow. His other arm I pulled around me.

"This," I told him pulling him closer, "is cuddling. It means to lay close and wrap around one another."

He dropped his face and nuzzled my cheek. His hand slowly stroked up my side and pulled the blanket down. His fingers wrapped around a breast. Kein wasn't interested in fondling it; he just held it and stroked the soft flesh.

In return for his attention I rubbed his back with one hand and his shoulder with the other. Softly, I murmured affection and apologies in his ear.

"I like to cuddle," Kein said grinning and pecking me on the lips.

He bounded off the bed a second later, back in good spirits. I was going to tell him cuddling lasted longer than he had allowed, but he was quickly replaced by Damien.

I apologized to Damien and he scoffed. Unlike Kein he'd not been overly bothered when I fought him. We'd had fun fighting before sex in our dreams; he didn't take it personally.

All the men took a turn cuddling for a moment and then were back to packing. Laying still and quiet in the middle of the morning was not their favorite thing to do. They were too energetic to lounge around like I was currently being forced to do.

Once the small timer that Bane had indicated earlier read the time was up I was pulled from the bed and cleaned in the shower. I gratefully accepted the rub down with the healing cream. My body felt like I'd been through an intense workout, everything was a little sore.

After breakfast I was dressed up warmly in the blue dress I associated with the mountains. Evan also carefully wrapped me in a brown outer layer. The men brought up a transport and loaded it with the bags. Wherever we were going, we were staying for a while.

"This will not end quickly?" I asked sadly looking at the amount of clothing and supplies they had brought. They never traveled heavy. "This is a chore I would rather not do for her and I had hoped it would end quickly..."

A look passed between the Brothers and Bane squeezed my shoulder.

"You will not suffer, little Sister," he said. "We will make it pleasant for you."

My smile was sad as I put my arms around his waist and hugged him.

"You always make it pleasant for me. I just wish I did not know what we were doing. I wish this was just for us and would not result in my heart being broken..." I whispered.

There was no answer for that and the men just loaded everything onto the transport Kein had brought up.

Kein drove the transport and we flew toward the mountains. Nu-reeh wanted us close while we bred. She'd told the men she would not interfere, but she would be watching.

We flew across the rugged terrain and I held Christof's hand. He didn't seem to mind the contact and I needed it. Miles passed beneath us effortlessly and I knew wherever we were going was going to be right against the mountains.

Would Nu-reeh want us outside so she could literally watch? I wondered. It had been strange enough getting used to these five watching me. How weird to have Nu-reeh standing and staring as we mated.

Perhaps she'd even come into the cabin with us, I thought and shivered.

Would Nu-reeh 'check' to make sure I was doing what I was supposed to?

Would she do the physicals now?

How was I supposed to react to my family if Nu-reeh was near?

Did I call them Master or use their names?

Suddenly my hood and veil were pulled off and Damien was looking deep into my eyes. He looked concerned. The transport slowed to a stop, in the middle of nowhere, so all my men could stare at me. Christof pushed Damien away and took his place in front of me.

"You are breathing very quickly," Christof observed using the hand I wasn't holding to stroke my cheek, "and the grip you have on my hand has gotten tighter."

I apologized for hurting him and they laughed out loud.

"You are not harming me," Christof said still smiling, "but we wish to know why you are upset. We believe you are thinking of something that has caused you discomfort."

The men listened to my concerns. It was obvious they didn't understand my point. My performance anxiety confused them. They tried to soothe me.

"We had sex in front of Nu-reeh today," Kein finally said. "You were not bothered by her presence. If you have to do it again, it will not be the first time and we will not let you be upset."

I turned like a robot to stare at Kein. Evan swatted Kein's shoulder and Bane swatted Evan in return.

"Kein is right," Bane said. "No secrets in the family. The fact we kept this from Ciara is embarrassing and shows our weakness."

Evan argued it would just upset me. Damien agreed with Evan and they all looked at Christof. He was the deciding vote apparently.

I looked up at my friend feeling very confused and a little left out. They had obviously kept something from me. I appreciated the concern, but my curiosity was peaked.

Christof looked around at his Brothers and it was obvious they were having an internal discussion. He didn't lose his physical connection to me and looked at me frequently. Whatever they were holding back must be quite a big deal.

"The pad," Damien finally said exasperated, "that you use to write your stories is also a monitoring device. If you know how to use it you can speak to someone else that also has a pad. When you became obsessed with killing yourself we opened a connection to your pad. We listened as your friend talked to you and we monitored your reactions. She had been told to fix you, which she did. That girl knew we would be listening, but she did not know how."

That was interesting, but not didn't really explain how Nu-reeh had watched us.

"We were ordered," Christof said gently, "to put the pad in the bedroom while we mated you this morning. Nu-reeh wished to ensure we did what we were supposed to do."

My mouth was dry and I gasped. To think she had born witness to my embarrassing display this morning was awful.

"Oh God," I said in English causing the men to raise their brows. I quickly changed back to the correct language, "Will she continue to...monitor?"

"If we'd brought the pad she might have," Bane said cooly crossing his arms and grinning.

Kein nudged Bane as he spoke, "Shame she never told us specifically she wanted it."

"She only said she wanted to keep watch over us," Damien continued. "Nu-reeh never said how she wanted to do that. We assumed she meant she would watch the cabin."

I panicked and grabbed Christof's other hand. "If she wants it, you have to go back and get it."

He looked incredulously at me before he spoke. "No, we don't like it either. It stays at home. She can 'monitor' us when we are there."

"Unless we leave it somewhere," Kein said.

"Accidentally," Bane amended and they laughed.

In my panic I forgot myself and said what I should not have said, "But then she will make you do it!" I cried. "You can't let her do that, just make the decision on your own. Don't let her control you!"

The wind swirled around us and my eyes widened in horror. I'd never told them about this and now was not a good time. If it broke them I'd be stuck in the middle of nowhere with five disabled men. Unfortunately, I'd been too emphatic, they knew something was amiss.

"Explain that comment," Damien demanded staring me down.

Like a complete idiot, I lied to him, "You know, she'll make you go back and get it. It's a long trip," I said lamely.

"That was not the truth," Bane said stepping next to Damien and watching me with the same interest.

Even Christof had cocked his head and was eyeing me critically. His purple eyes narrowed as he came to the same conclusion the other men had. He dropped my hand as confusion darkened his face.

I was panting and tried to get ahold of myself. In my haste I tried to put back on the hood and veil, at least then they couldn't watch my eyes. Christof stopped me and handed the head cover to Damien, who stood further away.

"You have a secret," Christof said watching my face, "don't you?"

I didn't answer. I just stared back at him. Kein and Evan stepped around so they could watch me.

"It's late," I said desperately looking up, "the Healers said twice a day and the sun is-"

Bane interrupted me to explain it wasn't even mid-day. We had plenty of time to make it to the cabin. It wasn't as far as we usually went.

"So, back to the secret, little Sister," he continued. "How is it that Nu-reeh will make us and why does this upset you so?"

There was no way to answer them. I just stood staring from one to another.

"Nu-reeh is our owner," Damien reasoned, "do you fear she will beat us if we don't have the pad?"

I nodded, because yes, I feared her hurting them. It was the perfect out and I started to relax.

"Is that the only thing you fear her doing to us?" Damien continued and I froze.

I was trembling and they were not relenting. In fact, they looked more interested every second that ticked by.

"Answer me!" Damien barked and I jumped.

I said the only thing I could think to say. I wanted to be somewhere safe before I risked telling them.

"I'll tell you at the cabin."

Damien became livid. He hated it when I kept secrets from him. This seemed like a bad time to remind him he'd been keeping a secret from me. I watched with fascination as his secondary teeth grew. Soon his mouth was full of razor sharp teeth and combined with the look on his face, it was not comforting.

He took a step toward me and I held my ground.

"You can't hurt me," I said in the most forceful voice I could muster. "I am her breeding slave and she doesn't want me damaged. Take me to the cabin and I'll tell you there."

I'd never seen them look so surprised. For a moment no one moved and then Bane pushed Kein back toward the controls.

"Little Sister," he said facing forward, "you are a dangerous creature."

We rode in silence toward the slopes of the mountains. Damien handed me back my hood when the air got colder. He didn't say a word to me and only motioned to Christof to pull up the hood on my blue outfit first.

I lamented the fact they were so angry with me. It wasn't my fault I knew this and it wasn't my fault I was afraid to tell them here. Obviously I realized I should have told them at home many moons ago. I was fairly certain Damien would let me know that, though.

We pulled up to the cabin a fairly short time later. It had seemed like an eternity on the silent transport, though. Nothing like a good fight to kick off a breeding, I laughed humorlessly to myself.

Evan, Bane, and Damien jumped off the transport and went inside to inspect the dwelling. It took less time than I ever remembered it taking before. Evan reappeared in the doorway and walked back toward us looking disgruntled.

"They've been here," he said kicking a rock on his way back to the transport.

Kein and Christof both sighed and I wondered what had them moody all of the sudden, so I asked.

Damien glared at me from the doorway and Christof seemed to be forcing himself to answer.

"Nu-reeh and her Sisters appear to have fixed the cabin for us. The fire is going and our colors are spread throughout. It has also been thoroughly cleaned. She also left fresh food in the cupboards. We will not have to hunt unless we wish to," he finished.

The men motioned and I stepped off the transport and toward the door. Damien watched every step I took. I knew he would want his answer as soon as I stepped inside.

I tried to stall walking to the doorway, but Christof pulled me along. I was ushered past Damien, who moved out of doorway, and my eyes adjusted to dimmer light inside. What I saw was a shock.

For a moment I was too stunned to speak and had to be pushed forward, so the rest of my family could enter. The central fire pit burned brightly. All the normally worn furniture in the room had been replaced with new looking items. Across almost everything was Damien's family color.

Bane stood in the kitchen area pouring himself a generous portion of the steaming drink that was served at special occasions. He saw me standing and staring and motioned me closer.

"Come," he demanded, "take a drink and see what has been left for us."

In the kitchen area there was a platter full of orange wedges and twelve strawberries. I touched the fruit in wonder. I had no idea how they'd gotten this here. Picking up a ripe, red berry by it's green stem I inhaled the familiar scent.

Strawberries were expensive. We only got them fresh like this when Mom had extra money. I remembered the special times we'd stood in our kitchen together making strawberry shortcake.

I had no idea how they'd gotten this here.

"What is it?" Christof asked appearing behind me.

He picked up a berry and smelled it, like I had been doing.

"Straw-berry," I pronounced slowly, "it is food and you eat the red part."

Christof picked up a note beside the tray of fruit. It said the men could eat these things with me if they wished. This food would not make them ill.

This was a reward, the note continued, for me being good this morning. If we all continued to do well, Nu-reeh would continue to leave us gifts. There were many things she knew we would like, we only had to earn them.

I set the berry down as Christof laid the note back down. It was quite evident from the energy in the room; I did not deserve a reward.

"Eat one," Damien said harshly from behind me. "If Nu-reeh finds you did not appreciate her gift she may become angry. We must be able to tell her you enjoyed this."

I nodded and picked the berry back up. At home I would have shoved the entire thing in my mouth and been eating the next one before I'd swallowed. That kind of gluttony would be a waste now. I wanted to savor this bit of Earth.

Nibbling the fruit slowly I enjoyed everything about it. The texture, the flavor and the scent brought back vivid memories of home and summer. It was a wonderful treat.

I caught Christof smiling at me as I ate and sucked the last bit of red from the stem.

"You are expressive," he said softly.

"So expressive it seems odd you would keep a secret from us," Evan said moving beside me on the other side.

He picked up a berry and licked it. Evan seemed unaffected by the fruit.

"Bite into it," I said softly, "the juice is what tastes good."

Evan took a small bite and chewed it slowly. He handed the bitten berry to Christof, who also tasted it.

"I like it," Christof said sounding surprised and then taking a larger bite.

Evan made a face. "We will leave it for you and Ciara then," he said wiping his hands. "This food does not appeal to the rest of us."

Kein made a loud noise causing everyone to look at him. "Are we done with this? Can we find the answer to our questions or is our Sister a woman now and has no need for us?"

I turned sharply and looked at Kein. Their disgruntled attitude made much more sense now. They thought I was siding with the women.

"I'm not a woman and I don't side with the women," I answered him quickly. "I didn't want you to break apart in the middle of...that," I said gesturing toward barren area we'd just come in from.

That infuriated them. I was reminded they were not weak men. They had broken apart one time and the situation had been very strange. My men would not do that again.

I was about to tell them the truth when I had a horrible thought.

What if the cabin was bugged with listening devices?

I looked around carefully and started to inspect the walls. Bane cursed and stood staring daggers at me from across the room. Kein stormed outside with Evan and I thought that was a great idea.

"Follow me," I said bolting out the door and running away from the cabin.

I looked around for the perfect area. I wanted to be somewhere no one would be able to hear us. I darted around for a while before I settled on a flat area to the right of the cabin. Stopping I looked toward the men and motioned for them to come toward me.

"What are you doing?!" Damien roared from the cabin door.

I waved frantically to get them to come closer. They just stared at me like I had gone mad.

"Please!" I begged loudly.

Christof came first. He seemed like he was torn on what he was doing, obviously his decision was in opposition of his Brothers. When he was close enough, I grabbed him.

"I'll tell you the secret," I whispered drawing him down to my level. "The house might have devices in it so Nu-reeh could hear us. She might be watching."

My voice sounded a little raw and panicked to my ears. Christof must have thought the same thing; he looked concerned. He brushed my hair away from my cheeks and turned to look at his Brothers. They came immediately.

"Is it a breaking of the mind?" Bane asked when he was close.

Christof said he didn't think so and Damien said he wished they had brought the other human female.

I was offended. They thought I was crazy. Admittedly running around outside like I had done might have looked odd, but my concern was valid.

"Listening devices might be in the cabin," I insisted. "I'm not crazy. This is a really big secret and Nu-reeh doesn't know I know."

The gathered men looked at me with faces ranging from amused to concerned.

"Little Sister, we feared you would react badly to the pad. Our cousins told us humans can worry with great imagination. You must not do that. We will be honest with you in the future," Bane soothed. "No one will watch you when you do not know about it."

"Come back inside," Kein encouraged. "The trip was long, come sit with us by the fire."

"I'm not a crazy person," I said rolling my eyes. "Do you want the secret out or not?"

A small laugh rumbled through them before Damien spoke.

"Tell us what secret you kept about Nu-reeh. We are all listening to you," he said in a patronizing voice.

I didn't have to have access to the bond to know what they were thinking. There was nothing I could know about Nu-reeh. They believed whatever this secret was involved some wild paranoia I had imagined.

"She can control you," I spat out angry at their superior attitudes. "She has a chip implanted...somewhere that gives her access to your bond. The women can control the men. They can even control what you see and hear."

They stared at me for a moment looking shocked. I felt quite superior in my knowledge for just a moment and then Christof spoke gently.

"How long have you had these thoughts?" he asked stroking my arm. "You didn't ever tell your other friends these things. They must have weighed heavy on your mind."

They weren't upset at all. I looked at their calm faces and saw...pity. Evan told me he would draw me a nice, hot bath. He and Damien would rub me and I would feel better. Kein would play music I liked. Perhaps after the bath I could cuddle on the bed with Christof or Bane and relax more.