Their Marked Mate (Rydarian Mates #5)

Chapter 1

“Stop pawing me, you freak!” Luna Roisin yanked against the wolf shifter’s meaty fist as he led her along the well-worn path encircling the lupine village. She didn’t know his name, but he was one of the brutes who had climbed in through her bedroom window in Eagle Village three nights ago.

The wolf hunters had executed the abduction so expertly that Luna wouldn’t be surprised if no one realized what had happened until the following morning.

Unlike the other wolf attacks, the abduction had seemed targeted and well organized.

Luna had no idea why the five women in room six had been chosen, but she suspected that they were about to find out.

She kept jerking her arm against his hold and his fingers tightened in silent warning. “Are you going to gag me again?”

The corners of her captor’s mouth lifted in an unapologetic smile and Luna shivered.

“I didn’t have a sedative mister, and you were making too much noise,” he reminded with a casual shrug.

She’d kicked and screamed the night he kidnapped her.

He put up with her struggles for about three seconds then shoved a cloth into her mouth and bound her hands behind her back.

She was carried from the bunkhouse over her captor’s broad shoulder.

He hit the ground running, literally. The forceful impact of his shoulder against her belly compounded her inverted position and Luna blacked out.

She woke up in the lupine village, bruised ribs and a splitting headache proof of his brutality.

She, along with her four roommates, had been locked in a rustic cabin ever since.

The captives had been given food and additional blankets.

There was plenty of firewood in the cabin.

The bathroom, complete with a walk-in shower, had been a pleasant surprise, but each female still wore whatever they had been sleeping in the night they’d been abducted.

For Luna that meant flannel pajama bottoms and a clingy T-shirt with an obscene finger gesture on the front.

She had a blanket wrapped around her shoulders for warmth and she’d been given slip-on shoes by the wolves.

Luna glanced behind her to check on her friends.

The others were walking along peacefully, but cooperation simply wasn’t in Luna’s nature.

“You stole us from the cats, then the birds rescued us from you, then you took us back from the birds. Does that mean it’s the cats’ turn now?

” Her captor was clearly unmoved by her sarcasm, so Luna tried a slightly different tactic.

She stopped jerking her arm and softened her tone. “Where are you taking us?”

“You’ll see,” he told her, his voice a low rumble. “We’re almost there.”

All the villages on Rydaria were similar, which wasn’t surprising.

They had all been established by the human/animal hybrids illegally created by Nuevo Biotech.

Because the DNA of apex predators had been used to transform hybrids, they were deemed unsafe to remain on Earth.

They were rounded up and transported to Rydaria, a primitive planet on the edge of Earth-controlled space.

Each community had idiosyncrasies, but the layout and function of their villages were comparable.

Wooden fortifications protected each village.

The raptor shifters had guard platforms while the feline shifters had built actual towers.

The wolves made do with a simple fence. They spent most of their time attacking the other villages rather than developing their own.

A central square or green used for social activities and communal services had also been adopted by each village.

It was to the lupine green that Luna and the other females were led.

Luna motioned toward the large building straight ahead. “What do you guys call it?”

Her captor looked at her curiously. “What do we call what?”

“The cats call theirs a lodge,” she explained. “The birds call theirs a bunkhouse. What do you guys call the meeting room?”

“A clubhouse,” he admitted, his features becoming more animated.

Though still harshly masculine, his face appeared less severe.

He was older than the other hybrids, but Luna still found him appealing.

While he scowled, she had placed him in his late forties, yet the lack of tension rolled ten years off his age.

Hints of gray threaded through his dark hair, the combination even more pronounced in his close-cropped beard.

He wore faded jeans and a military-green coat with large, square pockets.

“I hadn’t thought about it, but you’re right.

Each village has some sort of clubhouse. ”

This was as close to pleasant as he had ever been, so Luna asked, “What’s your name?”

He seemed surprised by the question. “Why do you want to know?”

“I was just curious.” She dismissed the subject with an impatient wave of her hand. “Forget I asked.”

“Nathan, but I prefer Nate.”

“Nice to meet you, Nate. How concerned should I be about this meeting?”

He shrugged as his features reestablished the expressionless mask. “Alex will explain everything.”

Alex was the new village alpha. Luna had learned that fact from Evelyn, Luna’s favorite roommate. Evelyn was quiet and unassuming. Most thought she was shy, but in truth she soaked up information like a sponge and came alive in small groups.

A hush fell over the females as they were led into the clubhouse. It was larger than the bunkhouse, but not as spacious or well-constructed as the lodge. The cats had some fabulous carpenters, so many of their structures were impressive.

Luna looked around with a combination of surprise and confusion.

The building itself was roughly constructed and rustic, but the wall directly across from the door had been covered with a mural.

Graphic battle scenes, sexual tableaus, and stunningly detailed animals fit together into a mosaic both colorful and expressive.

The effect was so evocative that Luna could barely breathe for a moment.

“Was the mural painted by one artist?” she asked Nate as he motioned the females to the center of the room.

He glanced at the wall but said nothing as he moved to stand to one side of the door.

Alex Dawson, the ruthless leader of the lupine village, entered a few moments later.

Dressed in jeans and a synth-leather jacket, he appeared comfortable in his position.

According to Evelyn, there were ten wolf packs, and each had its own alpha.

Alex led Riverside pack, the largest and most powerful pack.

This also gave him the right to command the other nine alphas.

Luna had seen Alex several times before, but she’d never interacted with him.

She had witnessed his pack in action, however.

The bloody fight to overthrow the previous village alpha had taken place in front of the captive females.

Many of the women had been traumatized by the brutality.

Luna just found it interesting. Survival of the fittest was a concept she knew intimately.

If Luna were honest with herself, there was a lot about the wolves she found interesting.

Of the three hybrid groups, the wolves were the most savage.

They took what they wanted without regret and damn the consequences.

Alex Dawson was no exception. Half a head taller than the males surrounding him, Alex had thick golden hair that fell past his shoulders in distinct waves.

His beard was darker than his hair, but the whiskers did little to disguise the handsome arrangement of his features.

His nose was straight and well proportioned, but his eyes were his best feature.

They fluctuated from light brown to vivid gold depending on his emotions.

Alex walked up to the females and stated in a deep, commanding voice, “I need to speak with Evelyn Miani and Luna Roisin. Step forward now.”

Tension gripped Luna’s belly, but she didn’t move. Why were they being singled out? How the fuck had he learned their names?

“That was not a request,” Alex warned. “Luna and Evelyn, step forward. Now.” The growl in the last word was unmistakable.

Luna stared straight ahead. If her friends chose to give her up, so be it. But she was not identifying herself.

No one moved, and no one said a word. Luna fought back a smile. This group of females had been terrorized and shuffled from captor to captor ever since arriving on this godforsaken planet. Did he really think he could browbeat them into submission?

Alex walked in a slow circle around the five defiant women. His features were locked in a fierce scowl, golden eyes flashing. “Luna and Evelyn,” he prompted for the third time. “Identify yourselves so I can release the others. You will not be harmed if you cooperate.”

“I’m Luna,” Luna said with a challenging smirk, hoping he wouldn’t believe her.

“Aren’t you the mouthy hellion my beta had to gag?”

Nate was second in command to the village alpha? His inherent authority suddenly made sense. She swallowed hard but said nothing.

After a cursory glance at Luna, Alex focused on the others.

“I thought she was Luna,” Tianna, a curvy redhead smarted off. She pointed toward one of the blondes. “I’m pretty sure it was her turn.”

“No, I’m Luna,” Jill insisted. “She got to be Luna last week.”

“Evelyn wasn’t in room six,” Tianna continued, unable to conceal the amusement in her eyes. “She couldn’t stand Naomi. So, she traded beds with Satcha.”

“There is no point in these games. I have a roster of Nuevo employees,” Alex told them, clearly annoyed by their antics.

“The roster contains headshots of each of you.” He looked at his unwilling guests, likely assessing their features and coloring.

“You,” he pointed to Luna. “You,” he pointed to Evelyn.

“And you,” he indicated Shannon, the only other blonde.

Then he motioned to Nate and ordered, “Take the other two back to their cabin.”