Deceptive Lord (Lords of Bondage)

  DECEPTIVE LORD

  (Lords of Bondage Series)

  CORINNE BALFOUR

  FIRST EDITION: MAY 2012

  COPYRIGHT 2012 BY CORINNE BALFOUR

  Brindamour Media

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Introduction

  In an alternate Earth, the world is dominated by three races: Flourdans, Asstrumnians,and Romans.

  Flourdans were ruled by their warrior queen. The males of Flourda were hardened warriors as well; however, they were completely subservient to their queen, their noblewomen, and if lucky enough to have one, their mate. Males had few rights and were unable to inherit or own property. Lands, titles, and wealth of noble families were always passed to the eldest daughter. Females in Flourda, like the rest of the world, were extremely limited in number. An aristocratic female with abundant wealth and property was allowed to take multiple permanent mates (luxorems), as well as temporary mates from the noble classes (paramours). These males, along with concubines and slaves, formed her harem. The female head of the family had absolute control over all of the members of her family, including authority to arrange mating unions, appoint positions within her household, sell members into slavery, and punish or put to death any family members displaying disobedience.

  Asstrumnia was the home of the Asstrum race. The Asstrum were of Celtic and extra-terrestrial descent. They were hybrids, with so much alien DNA that they did not even consider themselves human. They looked human enough, but they displayed extraordinary abilities that no humans possessed. Many hundreds of years ago, they were seen as a threat. Anyone sharing the distinctive changeable eyes, dark hair, and golden skin were exterminated. The survivors settled in the area now called Asstrumnia; they built fortresses and defenses, formed armies, and acquired more modern technology. They did not allow outsiders to enter their country and they rarely ventured outside Asstrumnia. The rest of the world had forgotten their existence until recently, when Romans began to invade their territories. War had been brewing ever since.

  CHAPTER ONE

  Drest Kavanaugh had found the place at last. According to some villagers nearby, this mansion in Avenal was reputed to be the home of the Countess Nefertiti Avenal. The countess was rumored to be the most wickedly depraved individual in the land, notorious for hosting lewd and obscene entertainments of the most lurid kind. Her lust for masculine flesh was so great that her harem was filled to capacity with scantily clad male bodies. She was said to have a tendency to apply herself vigorously to the task of mounting her stallions. Even male visitors, especially those who were unusually attractive, were rarely left unmolested by her lecherous hands.

  Drest hailed from Ravenwood, a territory in Asstrumnia. He served as a bard for his tribe, the Tuatha Broin. More specifically, he served as a Master Seanacha, which was a type of historian. Like all bards, he had been trained by druids at the College of Bards and he had been required to master other basic skills such as poetry, music, and healing. In more recent years, the bards had acquired the additional duties of information and intelligence gathering. It made sense for the bards to take that role, as they were the only ones allowed to freely come and go from Asstrumnia on a regular basis. His King had sent him to Avenal to search for a kinsman who was the progeny of an Asstrumnian nobleman and a Flourdan princess. The nobleman’s issue had been birthed in Flourda and would now be an adult. There was also a good chance that the offspring was unaware of his or her true heritage. Drest had reason to believe the missing progeny could be found in Avenal. Rumor had it that Nefertiti’s harem housed a male possessing very unusual physical traits, unusual at least for a nation of fair haired, pale skinned, and light eyed people called Flourdans. The male, said to be the grandson of the Queen of Flourda, was described as having dark hair and eyes. Those features were rare in Flourda, but not in Asstrumnia. Drest’s people, the Asstrum, were of Celtic and extra-terrestrial descent. They were hybrids, with so much alien DNA that they did not even consider themselves human. They looked human enough, but they displayed abilities that no humans could possess. In recent years, the Asstrumnians had been warring with the Romans, but they had had little contact with Flourda.

  Drest wondered if the Flourdans realized that alien hybrids continued to exist. Many of their race had been wiped out long ago, nearly exterminated during a genocide perpetrated by Flourdans and Romans. Regardless of their awareness, they would not suspect that a hybrid walked in their midst. He studied the outside exterior of Nefertiti’s abode, seeing no potential barriers to his entry. He walked inside the mansion with no difficulty; no one stopped him or asked him what he was doing there. He heard laughter and music drifting from a room on the first floor, so he walked in that direction. He assumed the noise was indicative of one of Countess Nefertiti's famously lewd spectacles. As he walked inside a very large chamber, he could see that it was much worse than he had anticipated. The woman had a harem of males; some were the sons of Flourdan nobles and some were virtually enslaved peasants. All of them at present were naked, lined up on a stage in full view of the countess, her ladies, eunuch guards, and strangers like himself. Nefertiti was slowly appraising all of the males in the queue, leering at their particular endowments and making her opinion of them known to all. The female was powerfully built and she appeared more like a man than a woman. Her shoulders were broad and her arms bulged with muscles. Her long blonde hair was filthy and hung around her head in oily clumps. She formed her cruel words and insults with lips as thin as parchment paper, and every few minutes, she bared her yellowed teeth in a vicious snarl. After she was done inspecting her collection of masculine playthings, she chose the one she had pronounced to be “the most eager and dedicated” and led him to a sofa, where she pulled off her translucent gown and mounted the man. He watched in stupefied fascination as the shameless woman conducted herself as if she was in her private bedchambers, which she was not. She was on an elevated pedestal adjacent to a stage and she appeared intoxicated with the attention gleaned from the watching crowd.

  Nefertiti worked her strapping body over the male’s in a domineering manner. “Lord Julian, I do believe you are less endowed than your brother Jules. Ariana was so proud to own your brother’s cock. She praised its magnificence and talked about it incessantly, so much so that I have a permanent image of it burned into my brain. She used to brag about his use of it, claiming that it delivered her so many orgasms that she was rendered immobile for days. Therefore, I was expecting something similar in its magnificence, given that you share the same blood. You, my lord, are less than magnificent. I shall not make that mistake again.”

  “Feel free to choose another if you have such a problem with it,” Julian admonished through clenched teeth. His humiliation showed in his reddening face and his eyes reflected deepening animosity.

  Nefertiti emitted a loud sigh as she continued to aggressively copulate with him. “I will try to make do with you. I should have chosen Payne this night. He has a more forceful thrust. Your thrusting is a tad deficient; you should take some pointers from Payne. However, I do enjoy looking at your comely face whilst I ride you. It nearly makes up for your deficiencies.”

  As Nefertiti rode the lord, she continued to loudly critique his physical prowess and his sexual technique. Drest was appalled, as the woman was treating her own people worse than the Asstrumnians treat their captives of war. At least, now that the woman had chosen her stud, the other males were able to clothe themselves. Within m
inutes, one of the men noticed him and approached. The male, blond with a large build, asked for his name. From the confident way in which the male carried himself, Drest deducted that the man held a high status in the household. He assumed an equal air of confidence and proceeded to introduce himself using his prepared alias. “Lord Kane Woodcock of the Woodcock house of Flourda. My family sent me here to be a new paramour to the Countess Nefertiti. And you are?”

  “Lord Jules Beaumont of house Beaumont. You may call me Jules. I’m unfamiliar with the Woodcock family.”

  So this was Jules, the one with the magnificent cock. It was no surprise that he had never heard of the Woodcock family, as it did not exist. It was the name he had chosen to be called while in Flourda. He planned to be far away from Avenal by the time his deception was uncovered. It was unlikely that they would suspect he was not from Flourda, as he had studied their culture and language in detail. He was able to speak their language fluently and he was wearing the authentic garb of a Flourdan lord. Unlike most Asstrumnians, his particular features reflected the Celtic blondness and blue eyes rather than the darker coloring normally associated with the Asstrum race. “Here are my papers.” He passed the documents, which were forgeries, to Jules. The documents contained a contract between his family and the countess which agreed to place him as a paramour in Nefertiti’s harem. Drest knew that Flourdan females were allowed to take multiple mates and they housed their males in harems. The permanent ones were called huxors, but the wealthier females often kept mates of a more temporary nature as well, which they called paramours. The paramours were generally of noble birth and were placed in harems to learn and practice duties associated with the role of huxor. Eventually, the family of the male would attempt to contract a more permanent union with an eligible female. Since the world’s population was only twenty percent female, not all males were given the opportunity to mate.

  Jules accepted the papers and offered to introduce him to the rest of the lords. He was glad to accept the offer, as he needed to familiarize himself with all of the lords, and more importantly, he needed to meet the uncharacteristically dark haired one. Twenty minutes later, he reached his target. The male introduced himself as Lord Devereux Langley. His features were characteristic of the Asstrum, but he would need to observe him a little longer to determine if he was one of their own.

  ***

  “Who is that?” Lady Eden Avenal asked as she stared at an exotic looking male specimen with golden hair. He was tall and broad of shoulders, with well-formed arms and calves suggesting natural strength. He wore an expensive looking tunic that reached his knees. She was quite familiar with all of Nefertiti’s males, but she had never before seen that one.

  “I heard that his name is Lord Kane Woodcock,” Lady Audrelia stated. “He’ll be staying in the harem.”

  “Woodcock? I’ve never heard of that family. From where do they hail?”

  “Southwest Flourda, according to Jules,” Audrelia stated. “I also know nothing of the family. It’s strange that the countess did not mention a new arrival. She usually plans something extra special to mark the occasion.”

  Eden shuddered as she recalled some of the more recent festivals of indecency and debauchery. The special entertainments were horrid, perverse spectacles and they were all forced to attend them. Her wishes did not matter, as she was expected and required to obey the countess, who was the head of her family. In Flourda, the female head of the family (the materfamilias) had complete control over all of the members of her family, including absolute authority to arrange mating unions, appoint positions within her household and to assign job-related tasks and duties, and sell members into slavery. She also had the authority to punish or put to death any family members displaying disobedience, which left Eden feeling vulnerable. She had felt apprehensive about her future ever since the death of the previous countess, her older sister Ariana. Ariana was all that was kind and good, but their sister Nefertiti was self-centered, narcissistic, self-absorbed, and cruel. She had not really known Nefertiti until recently, as they had been reared in separate households. So far, she did not think her sister had a good opinion of her, as she criticized her often and insulted her intelligence. The countess had been ignoring her for the most part ever since their other sister, Briella, had arrived. Briella now appeared to be her favorite target and was catching most of the insults.

  Eden glanced at the male concubines who were essentially slaves. She felt sorry for them, as their misery was difficult to conceal and she knew they would much rather be somewhere else. She felt sorry for herself as well, because she was hardly free. Although she was a noblewoman and was addressed as Lady Eden, she was basically a slave of Nefertiti. She could not leave Avenal, work, or select a mate without the countess’s approval. She had to watch her sister openly mate with multiple males, yet she was denied the privilege of having one of her own.

  “Come,” Audrelia stated. “Let us go to the small salon for drinks.”

  Eden nodded her agreement and followed the crowd to the Red Salon, where refreshments were served and the ladies mingled with the lords. She was surprised that the countess allowed them to congregate with each other. Historically, such interactions were used to facilitate appropriate matches between unmated males and females. However, the countess did not seem inclined to approve any matches for her ladies. She watched Lord Woodcock with curiosity. For some reason, he intrigued her. He appeared different from the other lords, although she could not figure out why he seemed so to her. At first glance, he appeared to be interacting in that slightly superficial manner the other lords employed during Nefertiti’s events. However, she noticed that he scanned his surroundings with an intelligent and assessing eye. Every now and then, his gaze landed on her. He looked at her directly, as if he had a right to announce his interest in such a forward manner. Hardly any of the other males did so, as they followed the rules of conduct without fail. All males were expected to conduct themselves in a submissive manner when in the presence of a lady. However, when she looked at Lord Woodcock, she sensed something about him that was far from submissive. This time, when she caught him watching her, she boldly held his gaze. Surprisingly, he did not appear the least bothered by his indiscretion. She had expected him to look away from her, but instead she could have sworn that she saw him smile at her before he returned his attention to the lords. His brazen behavior aroused her curiosity and she wondered what the males were discussing. She moved closer to him, pretending to head toward the refreshment table. His voice was smooth in tone and tantalizing, although his direct manner of speech was rather odd.

  “The countess is rather homely and revolting. I should hope she doesn’t require to be serviced orally, because I would not be able to stomach it. That landfill’s been dumped in far too frequently.”

  “Not to your taste, Lord Woodcock?” Lord Payne Hastings asked. “Thankfully, she has not asked for that. It’s a good thing, because the woman does not bathe very often and she smells putrid, not to mention the difficulty it would pose maneuvering through that immense jungle of hair between her legs. She even has more hair under her armpits than the concubine Ermanio has on his head.”

  “Has she never heard of a razor?”

  “She prefers a completely natural look,” Payne stated. “She says that the denuding of hair is for slaves and concubines.”

  Eden was unprepared to hear such brutal appraisals of the countess, although she did not disagree with their perceptions. She supposed it was easier for them to criticize Nefertiti’s appearance than to express any deeper concerns, but she had heard about the countess’s recent foray into bondage and beatings. She had seen for herself the bruises and red marks left on some of the masculine chests and throats, and she had noticed that the males were doing their best these days to avoid being chosen for a night of pleasure. She was so absorbed in their discussion that she had forgotten to take steps toward the refreshment table.

  “It’s awfully rude of you to eavesdrop o
n a private conversation, Lady Avenal,” Payne stated. “I wouldn’t recommend repeating anything you may have heard to the countess. I would have to deny those things were said and I would have to paint you as a foolish, jealous child in need of chastisement.”

  Eden shook her head and smiled. “I would not betray you. I’ll speak so highly of you that you will be foremost on her mind when she next calls for a lover, because no other is more deserving of her attentions.”

  Payne softened his tone and tried to appear apologetic. “I would rather you not do that, Lady Eden. Please do not.”

  Eden turned to Lord Woodcock and gazed into his clear blue eyes. “What about you? Shall I sing your praises to the countess? I can be very convincing.”

  Lord Woodcock held her gaze a little too long and smiled at her. “Who are you?”

  “That’s Lady Eden Avenal, the countess’s half-sister, and it would be best not to talk to her,” Payne said.

  “He can talk to me if he chooses, Payne.” Eden was often irritated by Payne’s overbearing attitude and it was a wonder that the countess tolerated him. She had to admit to herself that Payne was handsome, despite his eternal crankiness. Due to that, the countess would not be sending him home to his mother any time soon. She hoped the male’s domineering attitude did not rub off on Lord Woodcock. “Lord Woodcock, what are your talents and gifts so that I may expound on them when I next see the countess?” When he delayed in providing a response, she asked, “You would like to be chosen by the countess, right?”

  “I’d rather be chosen by you,” Lord Woodcock said.

  Eden blushed, unprepared to hear such a blunt invitation. The male’s regard made her feel suddenly shy. “That’s not possible. You belong to my half-sister.”

  “What do you do for the countess?”

  Eden was not sure she had any important role in the household. She was considered too young to be one of the countess’s advisors. She was not especially skilled in matters of war, like some of their females, nor was she adept with politics. She was expected to wait on the countess hand and foot, assist her with dressing and grooming, arranging all of her many gowns and shoes in her many closets, and helping her decide what to wear. An over-glorified servant, that was what she was. A complete waste of her brain, which according to her tutors, was extremely adept in acquiring knowledge. She had been interested in studying other cultures, especially ancient ones, but the countess would not allow her to attend Flourda College. She claimed that she was needed in Avenal. “I assist her in her chambers and provide companionship.”