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CHAPTER1
Pacing the confines of her quarters like a caged animal, Raina Hays struggled to calm her racing thoughts and ignore the ache deep inside her body. Her agitated steps took her through the compact sitting area then around to the workstation. The door to her bedroom was open, but the restlessness seemed to intensify in there so she continued to circle the outer room.
She’d come to the Citadel three weeks ago, angry and filled with resentment. She’d been brought to this star system against her will and thrust onto a life path she found degrading and hopeless. But Nadis, her mentor, had been patient and kind. And more important, Nadis had accomplished the things expected of Raina and found happiness and fulfillment in the role.
Raina had started to accept the changes, to imagine herself as part of this world. And then the dreams had come. They were indistinct at first, impressions and swirling images that left Raina confused and agitated. The images grew more graphic with each passing night. The sexual elements didn’t bother Raina. She’d always enjoyed sex and had been curious about new experiences. It was the other scenes, bondage and discipline, some harsh and painful. When the dreams turned dark, she always woke up wet and aching for something she didn’t quite understand. Why would she long to be controlled, dominated, and humiliated? Those impulses were in direct opposition to her personality.
It was late, or actually early, but Raina desperately needed to talk to someone. She could and would speak with Nadis in the morning. But that didn’t ease the unrelenting ache right now.
Raina sat down at the workstation and activated the access terminal. Would either of her cousins be up? Flora had been here the longest. She’d experienced everything Raina feared and more. Flora was likely snuggled between her two mates, warm and content after their most recent bout of lovemaking. Raina shook her head. It was still hard to believe that Flora hadtwo mates.
Altorian mating practices were just one of many changes Raina was expected to accept. It didn’t matter that she’d been raised on a different planet with very different ideas of how males and females should behave. She was Altorian by birth, and Altorians with paranormal abilities formed power triads, two males and one female.
An audio pulse would disturb Flora’s mates and Raina didn’t want that. She wasn’t even sure if Flora was here at the Citadel or at their estate on Altor. Instead, Raina opted for a telepathic ping. It was one of many skills Raina had learned since coming to the Citadel. If Flora was awake, or sleeping lightly enough to be awakened by the ping, she would respond with a holo-comm. If there was no response, Raina would comm her in the morning. Or later in the morning. Midnight had come and gone several hours ago.
Sighing heavily, Raina rested her head back against the seat. She’d spent the first twenty-five years of her life in Alaska believing she was human. She’d had an ordinary job and a few casual friends. She’d lived with her grandmother and two sisters. At least Raina had been told that Flora and Cara were her sisters. In reality, they were her cousins. Raina shook her head. It didn’t matter. Learning the truth didn’t make her love them any less.
A musical chime sounded, alerting Raina to an incoming comm. She accepted the transmission with a wave of her hand. The system was in sleep mode or the alerts would have been verbal. Sleep, deep dreamless sleep. What a wonderful concept. She just hadn’t achieved it in days.
Flora’s image appeared on the wall in front of Raina and she cringed. With sleep-blurred green eyes and tousled auburn hair, Flora had clearly tumbled out of bed to answer the telepathic ping. “What’s wrong? I was having a really good dream.”
Feeling even guiltier than before, Raina took a deep breath and assessed her condition. “I’m pretty sure my power is activating.” Raina’s mystic energy had been bound when she was a child. She’d needed to blend in with humans so everything that made her Altorian had been contained so her abilities would never manifest. Unfortunately, the woman who’d constructed the containment died five years ago and the shields had been deteriorating ever since.
Flora’s eyes widened and the sleepiness instantly vanished from her expression. “What are your symptoms? How bad have the urges gotten?”
“Waves of heat and disturbing dreams, achiness, restlessness. The restlessness is the worst.” Her legs bounced, proving her point. “I feel like I’m crawling out of my skin.”
“Can the vibrator I gave you still get you off?”
A hot flush crept up Raina’s neck, but she knew Flora had a good reason for asking. Once Raina was fully in the grip of bonding fever, only her mates would be able to bring her to orgasm. “It’s starting to take forever, but so far it still works.”
“Nadis said you’ve narrowed the candidates down to six. Do you favor any of the teams over the others?”
Raina swallowed hard. Flora was not going to like the answer. A rare and extremely powerful ability ran in their bloodline. They were both ‘conduits,’ from a long line of highly prized conduits. So Altorian males with powers equal to Raina’s had formed teams of two and then applied for the privilege of mating with her. The system might be efficient, but it was not at all romantic. Raina felt like she was assessing a business venture, not choosing the males who would father her children and spend the rest of their lives at her side.
“I don’t like any of them. There’s no spark,” Raina admitted. “No… tingling in my lady parts.”
Despite the seriousness of the situation, the phrase made Flora chuckle. She recovered quickly and asked, “Have you been in physical contact with any of them? Sometimes it takes a touch or a kiss to get things started.”
Raina shook her head. She didn’t want to get things started. She didn’t want to bond with a team of ambitious males determined to control her magic. The Citadel was a training facility for those with paranormal gifts. In this star system such people were divided into three categories. Sources were the wellspring from which elemental magic flowed. However, for the most part they couldn’t control their own abilities. That was the job of controllers. The name said it all. Controllers were ultra-aggressive males who kept the others from being consumed by raw power. The last category was the conduits. Magic flowed through conduits. Conduits guided and shaped the energy. The most powerful conduits, like those found in Raina’s family, could transform one element into another, fire into water or water into air. This was called power exchange and was the most coveted of all abilities.
“I’ll start scheduling in-person outings with each team,” Flora was saying. “If your power is activating, we don’t have time to start over.”
Flora was focused on the applicants, but Raina had an entirely different idea of how to solve the problem. “What if there’s someone that I’m attracted to but he hasn’t submitted an application?”
Confusion knitted Flora’s brow and she scooted closer to the camera. Judging from the room behind her, she was here in the Citadel. “Who are you talking about? Does he have paranormal abilities? Is he attracted to you too?”
She needed to believe that the attraction was mutual because she didn’t want anyone else. “It’s forbidden for him to indicate that he is attracted to me, but I’ve seen how he looks at me.”
“Forbidden?” Flora’s eyes widened as she sucked in a breath. “Are you talking about Cylex?”
Raina didn’t answer immediately. Flora didn’t seem pleased by the idea. Clearly, Raina needed to handle this carefully. Until a few months ago, Cylex was a spy for Emperor Jevara, their sworn enemy. One of Flora’s mates had been instrumental in recruiting Cylex to their side, but it didn’t look like Flora was a fan.
The idea of having two mates no longer upset Raina. In fact, she found it intriguing. As long as the males were good with sharing, why not enjoy the attention of two devoted mates? And from what her cousins said, their mates were demanding, but also protective and determined to make them happy.
Raina could easily imagine that sort of future, but only if Cylex was involved. Together they could choose a third, someone that would fit in well with their personalities. But she didn’t want to start the process without Cylex. The first time she’d seen her handsome bodyguard, her entire body had flushed, and her panties had grown so wet she’d had to change them. And the weeks since only made the attraction more pronounced. He was smart and skilled, protective and valiant. How could she even think about bonding with anyone else when she was in love, or at least strongly infatuated, with her bodyguard?
“Can’t we at least find out if he’s interested in me?” Raina asked hopefully. “I know he qualified as a source with strong controller instincts. Maybe I don’t even need a controller if Cylex can fill both roles.”
