“The Merc giveth, and the Merc taketh away, huh?”
She stood up, but slowly this time, and looked at Murdok, who was still lying on the bed, drinking.
“I think I’ll have that wine now,” she said.
As Murdok filled a goblet for her, Aeron smiled. He turned and went back to the window. The storm had finally arrived in full force, and the dirty rain was hammering the glass, washing down the surface in rippling sheets. The streets below were all but empty now, and so were the rooftops of the neighboring buildings. There was no one out there to see what was about to happen, no one at all, but Aeron wanted to be absolutely certain.
He pulled the curtains closed.
CHAPTER 18
The wine went down like liquid fire.
Rona knocked the whole goblet back in two hard gulps. It was only after it had already hit her stomach that she started to taste it, dry and earthy, not too sweet. An offworld vintage, not the syrupy, hydroponic crap they fermented here in Jeriko. But Rona didn’t really care too much about the flavor. It was the eth-alc she cared about. The soothing waves of warmth rippling outward from her belly, shifting her senses slightly out of focus. Blurring, softening, numbing.
She held the empty goblet out toward Murdok, who was sitting on the edge of the bed in front of her.
“Another.”
The Merc flashed a crooked grin, fangs sharp and bright amidst the grizzled darkness of his beard.
“One’s enough,” he said. “No point spanking you if you’re passed the fuck out.”
“I can hold my liq,” Rona said.
“Later,” Murdok said. “First, we’ll see if you can take your spanking like a big girl. Then,maybe, we’ll let you drink like one.”
Without thinking, Rona whanged the empty goblet straight at the Merc’s ugly face, putting all of her strength behind the throw. Murdok caught it easily. He didn’t even flinch. For a longmoment, nobody said anything. All Rona could hear was the rain hammering outside, and her heart hammering within.
Then Murdok tossed his head back and laughed, a deep bellowing sound that shook the walls. The other two Mercs joined in, and Rona was hit with the uneasy realization that she was trapped in a room with three men who were not entirely sane. Outside, thunder boomed.
“Take off that towel,” Aeron said, still chuckling.
Rona hesitated. The towel was the only thing she had on, the only thing separating her body from the mercenaries’ hungry eyes. But she knew if she didn’t take it off, the Mercs would take it off for her.
She unfastened the towel and let it slough down to the floor. The room grew silent again.
“Well fuck me,” Murdok said.
Rona wasn’t sure why he was looking at her with such intensity. He’d already seen her naked. More than once, in fact. Then she noticed where his eyes were aimed, and she understood.
This was the first time he’d seen it without any hair.
Her pussy heated. The Merc’s gaze was like a physical touch gliding over her bare skin. She suddenly felt more naked than ever before. More vulnerable, more exposed. She folded her hands in front of herself, shielding that part of her from view.
“Tch, tch, tch,” Aeron said, striding slowly toward her. His eyes were fixed on her face, the red embers of the augmetics glowing deep within. “What do you think you’re doing, hiding that sweet little pussy from us?”
He took her wrists and gently pulled her hands aside, exposing her again. Rona didn’t even try to resist.
“Damn,” Aeron said, staring hard between her legs. “Zeth did a good job of cleaning you up down there. That’s gotta be the prettiest little pussy I’ve ever seen. What d’you think, Murdok?”
“Only thing that would make it prettier would be a nice hot load of cum leaking out.”
“Agreed,” said Aeron. “Or better yet,three.”
He took Rona’s right hand and placed it against the front of his pants. She could feel the shape of him through the rough fabric, long and rigid and alive. Her pussy fluttered in response, as if someone had tickled it from the inside.
“Feel that?” Aeron whispered, slowly dragging her palm up and down the front of his pants. “Youdid that, woman. You make me so hard it fucking hurts.”
