Surrender to the Cyborgs(15)
Rachel looked to Maxim, then me, lifting her chin in a gesture of resolve. “Yes, that is correct.”
“Are you now legally married?”
“No.”
“Do you have any offspring?”
“No.”
“Very good. Normally, you would be processed for your matching planet and then transported, however we are dealing with rather unusual circumstances. Your mate and his second are here. Therefore, I now strip you of your Earth citizenship. You are now an official citizen of Prillon Prime and their secondary planet, the Colony. You are now officially a Prillon bride.”
A little sound escaped Rachel’s throat, but she said nothing. Her new reality was upon her. She was officially—legally—ours.
“Thank you, Warden,” Maxim said. “Rachel, I give you my word, we will never harm you. You have nothing to fear from myself or from Ryston. It is our job to protect you, cherish you. Claim you.”
I watched her swallow, then nod, her eyes quite wide.
“You belong to me, to Ryston—” no one in the room could miss the way she was bothered by the word belong, her eyes narrowing to thin slits as she crossed her arms beneath her breasts, “—and we must ensure your safety. You can’t transport to the Colony without this.”
He held up the collar, the one that would one day match the one about my neck, and the one about Maxim’s. It was a trinity collar and the circle would only be complete when she had hers about her neck.
She looked at it oddly. “What…what is it for?”
“This will mark you as a Prillon bride and alert all others that you have been claimed.” His voice was a deep growl, but she didn’t appear to be intimidated. Thank the gods. When Maxim used his commander voice, grown fucking men pissed themselves.
She looked at Warden Egara. “Like a wedding ring?”
The warden lifted a brow and gave a slight nod. “Kind of. As a visible sign that you have mates, yes. But it’s a bit more than that.”
“I don’t understand.” Rachel looked from Maxim’s neck to mine. Her gaze lingered as I answered her question.
“Without the collar, we would be challenged for you. There are very few women on the Colony. We are banished warriors, forgotten. You are the first Interstellar Bride sent to us. Without the collar around your neck, every warrior who sees you will try to claim you for his own.”
“No.” Her denial was instant and vehement.
“I share your sentiment, mate.” Maxim stepped closer and watched as her pulse raced. “You are mine. I will destroy any other who tries to take you from me.”
“I’ll help,” I added, and Rachel’s gaze darted between us, but it was not fear that clouded her vision now, but desire.
Her hand circled her throat in a sweet display of nerves and I wanted to secure her hands behind her back and kiss her, right there. But it was Maxim she addressed. “Caveman much?”
Warden Egara laughed. I did not know what my mate’s question meant, but was saved trying to answer by the warden. “They are intense, Rachel. But I promise you, they’ll treat you like a goddess. It’s in their DNA.” The warden indicated the collar with a lift of her chin. “The collar will connect you to your mates in a way that’s hard to explain. They will be able to sense your emotions, and you will know what they’re feeling when you are near one another.”
Maxim held the collar up and his jaw clenched when her small hand brushed his skin, taking it from his much larger palm. “Fascinating. How does it work?” Her gaze lifted to mine and I was relieved to see curiosity there, not fear.
“I’m no scientist, mate. I do not know.”
Maxim agreed. “Nor I. I was a commander. Now I am governor of Base 3. But, once we arrive, you can ask the doctor anything you’d like. I will bash in his skull if he does not give you satisfactory answers.”
“You guys are too much.” Her fingers stroked the smooth black strip. Embedded within were microscopic circuits that would link her to us forever. And once we officially claimed her, the collar would match Maxim’s and mine, the deep fiery copper would look magnificent against her creamy flesh.
She sighed and lifted her head. “I really have to wear this to go?”
She was questioning everything, and I couldn’t blame her, but I was becoming impatient. I wanted her on the Colony where no one could take her from us, where we could protect her. Where she couldn’t run.
Maxim offered her a rare smile. “You do not know much of the Colony. You must trust us. You are the only thing that matters to us now. We will never allow any harm to come to you.”