Page 19 of Condemned

Chapter Nine

Zo might have lostthe scent of blood, he might have continued on, except for the flash of white then the shivery wave of some plants to his right. As he moved toward the area, the white flashed again. Something small had run across his line of sight, fast, and he was sure it was the creature the girl huleon kept as some sort of pet.

He’d known she was alive, had followed the crooked path she’d taken through the grass on the way to this forest.

There.The curve of something that could only be the bare calf of a female. Slowly he took three more steps, bent a little, then slid his gaze to the left. If this was a girl there should be... yes, as predicted, there was the high, pale mound of her ass. Most of her was hidden, but not enough. Zo smiled.

He’d found her. He straightened, sensing the likelihood of her fleeing, imagining himself wrestling her down.

The blood on her had only given him a clue as to where she had gone. Her pet had revealed her.

Pet.

She would make a fine pet for him, and the others. His balls told him so.

Cautious, he advanced another step, twigs crackling despite his attempt to be silent.

She broke for it, rising from the undergrowth and dashing.

With a roar, exulting at the chase, Zo sprinted after her, sweeping aside the hanging plants, his boots crushing over the mess on the forest floor. In ten strides he ran her down, caught her arm, and wrenched her to a halt, spinning.

She tried to kick him. He caught her leg and threw her down, pinned her under the weight of his body. The struggle was crazily intense, with her bucking and flailing, but it was over in seconds.

Both of them were panting, but he was the one grinning with all his teeth.

“Be still. It’s no use.” He smacked her butt, gulped in a breath. “I’m bigger than you.”

She bucked again, cursing him, and he trapped both her hands at her back, sat on her harder.

Despite her wriggling between his thighs, he leaned in and bit the angle of her shoulder.

Fangs fastened deep—though not quite enough to break her skin.

He shook his head lightly, jaw tight and twisting her muscle, tasting her. Dirty, grimy, but all female. Her spluttering exhalations could be felt through his thighs and seen on her face where she’d turned it to the side, her mouth half-buried in leaves.

His growl and the bite-hold made her freeze, whimpering.

“Be good.” He released her shoulder then slowly sat up. “I’ll let you stand. I can run you down again if you force me.”

Zo looked around, noted the signs of a nearby creek.

“Come.” He rose, dragging her with him.

The defiance in her eyes and his own perverse inclinations made him whip loose his smaller weapons belt. He turned her, spun her really, wrapped the belt about her wrists, and cinched it tight with the buckle. He wasn’t inclined to be gentle at this moment, not with a raw scratch from her claws burning down his neck.

That she barely protested as he handled her sang to the dominant side of him. His gaze ripped down her and he greedily took in her curves, her scent, the taste of her in his mouth. Sucking on her between her legs while she was tied up like this...

He swallowed and tore his focus higher. The red bite mark on her neck was no less arousing.

“Ouch.” Her fingers flexed and she twisted her hands against each other.

“I’ll let you loose when you’ve calmed, and we’ve talked. Go before me. We’re heading for that water you can hear.”

With one finger he nudged her into moving, found it pleasing how tall he was compared to her. The sway of her ample butt was distracting. His eyes kept straying there as they walked. Twice he had to hop after walking into a branch then a tangle of vines.

His reactions bemused him.

When had his libido decided to return? It could’ve given him fucking advance notice. The erection was making his pants uncomfortable and he was certain he’d leaked into them.