Unbondable: Book 1 of the Kindred Birthright Series (Brides of the Kindred) Read online

  “Shad has his ways,” Daniel said, smiling mysteriously, showing white teeth, gleaming in the gloom of the artificial twilight. “But I have mine too—and I know the Goddess has someone for you, Kara. She has someone for everyone.”

  “Everyone normal you mean.” Kara sighed and ran her mostly-healed tongue over her fangs again.

  Daniel frowned.

  “Kara—”

  “Never mind.” She waved a hand at him and tugged with her other at Kaleb. “Come on—we need to get home. Mom and Dad will be worried.”

  Despite being fully grown, the two of them still lived with their parents. Part of it was because the massive Mother Ship had begun to fill up with all the mated couples and part of it was because Kara just didn’t feel quite ready to leave the nest yet. She liked looking around the dinner table and seeing her family’s familiar faces. Her parents were in their mid and late forties now but they were still wildly in love—Kara couldn’t help wishing she could find such love for herself someday.

  Not that it will ever happen with these, she told herself ruefully, running her tongue over her fangs once more.

  “See you later,” Kaleb said to Daniel as Kara dragged him out of the parklands. “Talk to you tomorrow.”

  “See you at the family dinner.” With a final wave, Daniel wandered off, probably following his sensitive Beast Kindred nose to sniff down War, Peace, and Ziza.

  “Come on,” Kara tugged at Kaleb again. “I want to get home. I’m tired.”

  “Okay.” Her twin shrugged compatibly and they walked in comfortable silence towards the public transport station, which was unusually crowded, Kara saw.

  “Hey, what’s going on here?” she asked, watching as a trio of strange, long-necked aliens with purple skin ducked into the glass-walled transport beside them.

  “The Convention of Acceptance,” Kaleb explained in a low voice as the transport hummed to life and started moving them smoothly through the Mother Ship. “Don’t you remember Dad talking about it? It’s the one time of year when the High Council accepts applications for acceptance from other species—especially ones we Kindred have made a genetic trade with. If the Council votes to recognize the trade, they can consider themselves a new branch of the Kindred with legal rights to representation, mediation, and protection from the Kindred as a whole.”

  “Oh, right.” Kara’s eyes flickered around the crowded transport and lighted on a large male who was facing away from them. He stood a head taller than anyone else in the crowd—even Kaleb—and he had long, wild dark hair and very broad shoulders, made even broader by the heavy, silver-toned uniform shirt he was wearing. The shirt was trimmed in black and tucked neatly into tight black flight leathers, which most Kindred warriors wore as part of their uniform. Was he a Beast Kindred?

  But when the male turned towards them, she saw that his eyes weren’t the pure liquid gold of a Beast Kindred but midnight-black ringed in pure silver. The strange combination gave the stranger a piercing look that made Kara want to drop her eyes the moment she met his.

  But she didn’t like feeling intimidated. Instead of looking down or away, as would be polite on a crowded transport, she lifted her chin and gazed evenly at the big stranger, giving stare for stare and refusing to look away. She had the strangest feeling she had seen him somewhere before but that was impossible—she would have remembered such a striking-looking male, she was certain of it.

  The silver-ringed black eyes, as dark as bottomless pits, widened slightly in apparent surprise, and then crinkled at the corners. The strange male had strong features to go with his striking eyes—a knife-blade nose and a full, sensuous mouth with naturally red lips framed in a neatly trimmed black beard and mustache. Seeing that she was still studying him, he bowed mockingly, as though saluting her bravery in some way.

  “Kara, what are you doing?” Kaleb yanked on her hand, drawing her attention away from the handsome, irritating stranger.

  “What?” Kara jerked guiltily. “What do you mean? I was just looking around.”

  “Looking at that strange male, you mean,” Kaleb growled, frowning. “He’s a Y’lyn—one of the Unbondable.”

  “Unbondable? What are you talking about?” Kara snuck a glance at the stranger again who appeared to be listening, though he was surely too far away to hear their conversation. There was a faint smile on his sensuous mouth, as though he found them amusing.

  “Unbondable because they’re part demon,” Kaleb explained impatiently. “Demons have no souls. You can’t form a soul bond with someone who has no soul.”

  “Oh…I guess not. How can you tell, though?” Kara risked another glance and the stranger gestured subtly at his eyes, as though trying to answer her question.

  “The black, silver-ringed eyes,” Kaleb said at once, though he was looking pointedly away from the stranger and hadn’t seen the gesture. “As well as the extra height and mass. Unbondables are always on the larger side.”

  “Shouldn’t you call them Y’lyn Kindred instead?” Kara asked. The term “Unbondable” seemed rude to her, especially since she was fairly certain the stranger was hearing their conversation.

  “No,” Kaleb said shortly. “Because they haven’t been recognized by the High Council as a legitimate branch of the Kindred. And they won’t be, either,” he added. “The Council will never allow Unbondables the legitimacy they’re seeking—that would send a clear signal that it’s all right for other Kindred males and females to mate with them.”

  “Are they really so bad?” Kara couldn’t help looking at the stranger again. He wiggled his bushy black eyebrows at her and made a mock-evil face, pretending to twirl his mustache. She started to giggle and put a hand over her mouth self-consciously to hide her fangs.

  “They’re unbondable,” Kaleb repeated patiently. “That means they can abandon their mate at any time.”

  “Humans do that when they mate with other humans,” Kara pointed out. “They call it divorce.” The concept was completely alien to Kindred, who mated for life because of their soul bond but she knew it was fairly common on Earth.

  “It’s not just that,” Kaleb said darkly. “The soul is the source of morality—of decency. Without a soul, a person can be as evil as they want without a pang of conscience. Which means that all Unbondables are essentially sociopaths—they don’t give a damn about anyone but themselves and they don’t care who they have to hurt to get what they want.”

  “Oh,” Kara said in a low voice. The handsome stranger at the back of the transport no longer seemed quite so intriguing. Still, she couldn’t help risking one more glance at him.

  This time he was standing quietly, the grin wiped off his face. When Kara looked at him, he nodded once, soberly. She wondered if he was confirming what her brother had said about him. Was he admitting that he was an evil person? Or at least, an amoral one? But would a truly evil person admit they were evil?

  She made herself face front and look away. Soon after, the transport came to their stop and she and Kaleb made their way out. Kara didn’t allow herself to look back at the Unbondable male but she could swear she felt those strange eyes, the silver-ringed pools of blackness, staring at her back until the transport pulled away.

  Two

  “I’m worried about her, Sylvan.”

  Her mother’s voice made Kara freeze in the hallway and hang back instead of entering the family living area on her way to find a midnight snack in the food prep area as she had planned.

  “She’ll be fine, talana. She just has to find her place, that’s all.”

  “But she’s so different…she can’t even keep a human boyfriend because of those awful fangs!”

  Peeking around the corner, Kara saw that her mother had tears in her large green eyes. Though she was forty-five now, Sophia still looked like she was in her early thirties. Kindred aged slowly and anyone soul-bonded to one aged slowly as well. Sylvan, her father, looked distinguished with just a hint of silver at his temples—it was nearly invisible in his
pale blond hair. Besides that, he had a few wrinkles around the corners of his eyes which made him look wise.

  “May I remind you, talana, that it was by my ‘awful fangs’ that we were bonded and have stayed together all these years?” Sylvan said dryly. He was sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace and Sophia was curled up at his side.

  “Yes, but you’re male—it’s socially acceptable for you to have fangs,” Sophia pointed out. “I’m afraid that Kara having them will condemn her to a life of loneliness. She’s such a beautiful girl but none of the warriors on the ship want anything to do with her.” She put a fist to her chest. “It just hurts my heart, Sylvan.”

  “From a father’s point of view, lack of suitors isn’t exactly a problem.” Sylvan sighed. “But I understand how you feel, sweetheart. It’s hard when your child is different—hard to see them rejected and hurt. At least Kara has her brother to stand by her.”

  “And what happens when Kaleb finds a mate?” Sophia demanded. “It won’t be long now. Shad is already bonded and you know War and Peace have had their eyes on Ziza forever. And Daniel’s bound to find someone soon too. What happens if they all pair off and Kara is left all alone?”

  “I don’t believe that’s going to happen,” Sylvan said calmly. “I remember when I myself despaired of ever finding a bride. I even took an oath never to call one—don’t you remember?”

  “That was just because that old girlfriend of yours on Tranq Prime broke your heart,” Sophia objected. “Speaking of Tranq Prime, I heard a rumor somewhere that they have a treatment for fangs there. They use it on Kindred males but—”

  “Don’t even consider that.” Sylvan’s voice was uncharacteristically harsh and Kara saw her mother’s eyes widen at his tone.

  “I just thought…your aunt and uncle, Zeelah and Grennly are there—”

  “No!” Sylvan’s voice cracked like a whip in the quiet living area. “It’s dangerous, Sophia. Something the Primes invented because of their hatred of the Kindred. Don’t speak of it again.”

  “I’m sorry,” Sophia said in a low voice and the tears that had been glimmering in her eyes rolled down her cheeks. “I just worry about her so much, Sylvan! And if it wasn’t for those fangs—”

  “Fangs or no, Kara will find someone in the fullness of time,” Sylvan said firmly. He gathered his mate into his arms and cradled her close to his broad chest, kissing her tears away. “Don’t cry, talana—the Goddess has someone for everyone. She brought you to me, didn’t she? She won’t allow Kara to live a lonely, unfulfilled life. You just have to have faith.”

  “It…it would be different if she wanted to be alone.” Sophia sniffed miserably. “It’s not because I want grand babies, although you know I do someday. Some people are made to be single but I just don’t believe Kara is one of them.”

  “The Goddess will send her the right male,” Sylvan said again. “It’s all right, sweetheart. Everything will be all right…”

  As he went on comforting Sophia, Kara slipped back to her room. Her appetite had deserted her—her stomach was tied in knots. Her mother must have heard about the break-up with Jason and that was why she was so upset. But her assumption that Kara would never find a male who would accept her as she was shook Kara to the very core. If even her own mother didn’t think there was any hope for her, well…then what hope was there?

  At least Daddy still has faith in me…or he has faith in the Goddess, anyway, she thought darkly, crawling into bed. Closing her eyes, she tried to go to sleep.

  But the conversation between her parents kept running through her mind and the memory of her mother’s tears kept Kara up long past the time she usually drifted off.

  Those awful fangs, she heard her mother saying over and over. It was something Sophia would never have said to Kara’s face—no one would have. And her mother meant no harm—she loved Kara and just wanted her to have a happy, normal life.

  But what chance did she have of that when she wasn’t normal herself?

  I wonder what that procedure she was talking about was—the one on Tranq Prime?

  Her father had seemed to think it was dangerous but Kara was beginning to feel desperate. Maybe it was something to consider, whatever it was. She did have relatives there—her father’s aunt and uncle. Kara had never met them but she knew the people of Tranq Prime were intensely clannish—she was certain if she could get to her father’s home planet they would welcome her as part of the family.

  Maybe, she thought as her eyelids at last began to grow heavy. Maybe it’s something to consider. She didn’t want her fangs pulled or anything drastic like that, but if she could somehow shrink them so they became unnoticeable…

  And maybe if my fangs shrank, the urges that go with them would shrink too, Kara told herself. It would be such a relief not to have the desperate urge to bite anymore…to sink her fangs into willing male flesh as that same flesh was sinking into her…

  Unbidden, an image of the Y’lyn Kindred—the Unbondable—rose in her mind’s eye. He was so tall…his shoulders so broad. Kara could imagine sweeping his heavy curtain of wild black hair to one side and sinking her fangs deep into the strongly corded throat…she could almost hear his low rumble of pleasure as he gave himself to her. And down below, she would be giving herself to him…riding him…taking his shaft deep inside her pussy…

  No, she told herself uneasily. No, that would be wrong. I can’t let myself think like that… can’t fantasize about letting him change the color of my eyes…

  She knew enough of Tranq Prime heritage that once she had sex with a male it would have an obvious outward physical effect. Her eyes, which were the same ice blue as Sylvan’s, would change color to reflect the fact that she was no longer a virgin. And Kara could just imagine her parents’ reaction if she came to the breakfast table one morning with different colored eyes and she was still unbonded.

  Her mom and dad were fairly progressive about a lot of things but her father was extremely old-fashioned when it came to sex—specifically sex outside of a bonded relationship.

  And you can’t bond with an Unbondable, she reminded herself uneasily. Still, why was she getting worried about such things? The Unbondable male was only here for a short time and the Mother Ship was a big place. Kara would probably never see him again.

  I don’t even know his name, she thought sleepily.

  Yet it was his darkly handsome face and those silver-ringed eyes that followed her down into sleep when she at last began to dream.

  Three

  Kara had a job in the tech hub of the Mother Ship and the morning commute on the public transport was unusually crowded. To one side of her she was jostled by three Kindred warriors with a glittery sheen to their skin, which appeared to change colors subtly as they moved. Kara wondered if it was some kind of camouflage. To her right, were two venerable-looking elders of the Fr’Enson people.

  The Fr’Ensons had excess skin all over their bodies, much like a Shar Pei dog, which puffed up when they felt upset or threatened. The unfortunate fact that they also had their organs of sexual reproduction protruding from their foreheads like some kind of floppy, obscene unicorn horn, made them look decidedly strange—at least to Kara.

  She wondered why they were here—as far as she knew, no Kindred had ever wanted to bond with a Fr’Enson. Maybe the two elders had other business with the Council. She looked away from the odd-looking aliens and instead tried to concentrate on the scenery of the Mother Ship rushing past the clear panels of the transport.

  At every stop on the way to the hub, it seemed to get more crowded until Kara was practically squeezed into a corner. At the next-to-last stop, she heard a deep voice saying, “Excuse me. Make a little room, would you?”

  Looking up, she caught sight of the big Unbondable Kindred she and Kaleb had seen the night before. He pushed his way through the crowded transport, politely excusing himself but shoving forward all the same, which made some of the people around him grumble in protest. At last he
came to rest beside the Fr’Enson elders, his back half turned to Kara.

  He was much closer to her than he had been the night before so she could truly appreciate his size. Goddess, he must be seven and a half feet tall at least! He made even Kara feel short in comparison, which wasn’t easy to do. His wild mane of black hair fell to his shoulders and from where she stood she thought she could catch his scent—something wild and spicy and undeniably masculine.

  “Well, I never!” grumbled one of the Fr’Ensons as the Unbondable wedged himself in beside them. “The nerve of some people, pushing their way in like they own the transport!”

  The words were spoken loudly enough for anyone to hear them—clearly the Fr’Enson had meant for his complaint to be audible to its intended target.

  If someone had complained about her that way, Kara would have gone scarlet with embarrassment and tried to make herself small and inconspicuous but the Unbondable male obviously wasn’t one to be intimidated.

  “Excuse me?” He leaned down, looking directly into the Fr’Enson’s saggy face. “Are you talking about me? You got a fuckin’ problem?”

  “I most certainly do.” The Fr’Enson puffed up, his saggy skin going round and rigid as a beach ball. Unfortunately, this had the effect of making his sex organ, which had been sagging from his forehead, go rigid as well. It pointed like a purple oversized finger directly at the Unbondable Kindred.

  “You better get the fuck away from me,” the Unbondable growled. “I don’t think you can complain about anyone else taking up too much room in the transport when you’re sticking your dick in people’s faces.”