Taken Read Online Free Page B

quick to console her, even when she wept bitterly. Why couldn't the past just leave her be? It was dead, her future bright, safe, and protected. She knew it... but her subconsciousness seemed to be lagging.
    Kosmas had reassured her it would just take time. She hoped he was right. There was nothing worse than waking up in the darkness while locked in a terrible nightmare, especially when the nightmare originated from reality. The things she dreamed were things that she'd experienced. It was hell on her to keep reliving the memories. And though they were slowing, the nightmares not as common as they once were, all it took was one to reanimate the fear.
    If she were having them, it was likely that the other women from Earth were, too. After all, they'd each experienced similar circumstances. It didn't matter what city or country they were from, the world was bad if you weren't from the rich class. And as far as Keely knew, none of the concubines were.
    She arrived at the hallway that would lead her to Kosmas. It was the first time she'd been back since landing on Legionnaire. Stopping to inhale deeply to calm herself, she vowed to put her past behind her. None of it mattered, not anymore. The present was perfection, her future to be envied. She was loved by the most powerful male on Legionnaire, if not the entire galaxy. Anything that had happened before was over, never to return.
    A guard walked out of the double doors, leading a blindfolded female with her hands tied in front of her. They startled her, as she stepped back to get out of the way. Keely didn't speak. There were no words that would have been appropriate, considering the circumstances. The terrified woman whimpered as the guard marched her away. Keely swallowed hard before stepping through the doors.
    The corridor that awaited her was long and silent. At the opposite end stood Kosmas, but he wasn't alone, much to her surprise. Zander stood beside him, his blond hair gleaming underneath the muted lights, his face set in an impassive mask. They hadn't spoken since the night she'd mated, much to Keely's disappointment. She hoped that the last several months had altered his feelings in regards to her, and that they could settle into an easy friendship. She genuinely liked the tall, fair-headed vampire... she just wasn't in love with him.
    With the exception of the two powerful males, the hallway was empty. It appeared that the unloading of the concubines was at an end. The vampires had stuck with their pattern of only collecting five at a time, or so she hoped. Secretly, Keely was relieved to have missed the other four. It had been a mistake for her to come. She wasn't quite ready to participate in this part of Golden Harbor's society, at least not yet.
    It was too late to leave. Kosmas winked at her from across the hallway, as he moved in her direction. Zander followed him, nodding at her cordially before looking away. It was a start. Seeing her mate lightened her mood. Keely smiled as she walked forward to join them.
    “Missing me already?” Kosmas teased as he pulled her to him, leaning forward to press a kiss to her lips. He towered over her, his muscular chest and arms chasing away the last of her worries and fear.
    “That's an understatement,” she muttered in a low voice, but he heard it anyhow, judging from the sexy grin that spread across his face. Zander looked away from them, as if he'd suddenly spotted something interesting on the wall across from them. He looked uncomfortable. The atmosphere shifted within the corridor, leaving Keely feeling awkward and out of sorts.
    Kosmas cleared his throat, pulling her eyes up to his face. As usual, he looked calm and collected, as if there wasn't a force great enough in the universe to ever shake his cool facade. It comforted her. No matter what happened, Kosmas could always be depended on to handle it. And as the months had passed by, Keely had slowly started to lean on him, instead of depending only on