The Slave's Barbarian Lover

  Contents

  Acknowledgements

  Title Page

  Follow me on Twitter

  CHAPTER ONE Lili

  CHAPTER TWO Bjorn

  CHAPTER THREE Lili

  CHAPTER FOUR Bjorn

  CHAPTER FIVE Lili

  CHAPTER SIX Bjorn

  CHAPTER SEVEN Lili

  CHAPTER EIGHT Bjorn

  CHAPTER NINE Lili

  CHAPTER TEN Bjorn

  CHAPTER ELEVEN Lili

  Epilogue

  A Package for the Delivery Girl Preview

  Chapter 1 - Sarah

  Many thanks to Engin Akyurt and Pexels for the use of the photograph on the cover.

  The Slave’s Barbarian Lover

  Alicia Reynolds

  Follow me on Twitter at @areynoldserotic

  CHAPTER ONE

  Lili

  Liliana rolled back and forth in her bed, arms and legs thrashing, kicking the blankets to the floor. With a start, she awoke, sweating and confused. For a moment, she didn’t know where she was. She had the strangest feeling of having lost something incredibly valuable and important, but she could not remember what.

  As her eyes darted around the small room she shared with the other female household slaves, she felt her whole body tingling, every touch of the bedding on her sensitive skin felt better than anything she’d ever felt before. Beneath her shift, she realised that her nipples stood firm and hard, noticeably stabbing at the thin material, the touch of the fabric on her nipples making her whole body quiver.

  “What’s wrong, Lili?” Asked one of the other slaves with whom she shared the bed. “You were making a lot of noise and tossing and turning. You woke me up.”

  “Nothing… nothing’s wrong, Emilia. I’m fine now. Just a bad dream,” she replied. It was a lie, of course. If anything, Lili’s dream must have been exceptionally good, because she felt elated and energised rather than fearful.

  Still, dawn remained a few hours away. She’d better try and get some sleep before the day started. As she pulled the threadbare blanket from the floor back onto the bed, she reflected on her life so far, trying to think if she’d ever experienced anything like this before.

  ** *

  Lili had been a slave with this Roman family for the past 12 years. It somehow felt simultaneously like she’d always been here and like she’d just arrived yesterday. Still, she’d celebrated her 18th birthday just a few days before, and a bittersweet day as that same day 12 years ago she’d been taken as a slave and had not seen her parents since.

  Lili knew she’d never forget her 6th birthday, because that was the day she lost her parents. Or rather, that was the day her parents had sold her off. Lili knew that the place she was born was far away from the city of Rome. In her memory, the Roman soldiers arrived at the her village shortly after the harvest. There had been a drought that year, so they brought in very little food.

  The people of the clan knew they owed the Romans, as visitors, a glorious feast full of food and drink, so they gathered everything they had and prepared one. Lili fell asleep quite early in the night, believing the feast had been thrown on her behalf, utterly overcome with excitement. If only she’d known the truth.

  The next morning, the leader of the Roman soldiers demanded gold and silver from the villagers, but they had none. The Romans believe them to be lying and searched the whole village, finding not only no gold and silver, but also no more food to allow the villagers to survive the winter.

  The Roman officer made a proposal, offering to buy children to bring to Rome. Fewer children meant fewer mouths to feed and a better chance of making it through the winter. And the villagers could spend all winter practicing making new children to help in the fields and cement the future of the village. Besides, these barbarian children would be raised in the greatest city in the world and perhaps the Romans could civilise them.

  Lili’s parents pounced on the opportunity, eagerly selling their daughter off to the foreigners. Lili remembered how confused she was as the Romans carried her and the other children away. She remembered crying and wailing and begging to stay with her mother and father, trying to pull away from the iron grip of the Roman soldier holding her.

  “Mama! Don’t let them take me! Papa, please,” she’d screamed as the Romans dragged her away.

  “You may not understand this now, little one, but you’re better off without them. What kind of parent sells their own child?” said the legionnaire. “Besides, we’ll be coming back soon enough to take everything else they’ve got. If we don’t somebody else will. You’re safer with us.”

  Lili hadn’t understood what the soldier meant at the time, but she thought she did now. It was his way of telling her that her village was doomed, that the Romans could not be stopped by anyone, and that the safest place for her would be in the belly of the beast. Twelve years later, she believed all of those things. The Roman legions consistently expanded the borders of the empire. Deep in the heart of Rome, meanwhile, it would be hard to tell that there was a war on.

  The soldiers had sold Lili to a slave trader leading a caravan through Hispania, who in turn had brought her to Rome itself. Here, Lili was purchased by a senior Roman officer, first as a playmate for his own daughter, then to work in the household as his wife and daughter’s maid. Lili maintained a friendship with the child Julia even as they both grew into women. Cornelia, on the other hand, constantly sought to remind Lili of her place and that she was a slave with no rights. Lili had come to realise that Livia feared her husband turning his attention to her and abandoning his marriage bed. Lili, like Cornelia, hoped that wouldn’t happen, but for very different reasons.

  ** *

  When Emilia prodded her awake, Lili realised she must have fallen asleep again. Judging by the blanket still covering her and feeling otherwise normal, she guessed she must not have had that strange dream again.

  “Come on, Lili! We have to get ready to go. Don’t you remember? Today’s the day the master’s marching off to the front in Germania!” cried Emilia, poking Lili in the ribs to punctuate each word.

  “All right! I'm awake!” Lili had forgotten that the master left today. Although he generally treated her quite well, Lili didn’t mind him being away as it gave her more time to spend with Julia. She didn’t know why, but the thought of Germania sent a little thrill through her core.

  Lili and Emilia pushed through their usual morning chores, with the added responsibilities of packing the master’s food provisions for his ride to join the legion at the front.

  “Where is Germania, anyway?” Asked Lili.

  “It’s at the edge of the world,” replied Emilia.

  “So… is it near Hispania?”

  “I don’t think so. I think it’s the other way.”

  “Oh, ok,” said Lili, a little disappointed.

  “What are you two doing?” A man’s voice interrupted their conversation.

  “Sorry magister. We’re just preparing your provisions for the journey, magister,” answered Lili turning and lowering her head as their master, Julianus, entered the room.

  “Well you’ll need to pack more than that! My wife and daughter are to join me. And that means you’re coming along, too. Now, hurry along and fetch everything you’ll need for the journey as well.”

  “Yes magister” the girls answered in unison before scurrying off back to their quarters.

  “Did you hear that? We’re going to Germania!” squealed Emilia to Lili.

  “I know! It’s so exciting,” said Lili, packing her few garments into a bag along with a polished black stone on a leather band that her parents had given her as a child. Lili couldn’t explain it, but hearing her master
tell her that she’d be going to Germania had again sent a ripple of excitement racing through her body. It somehow reminded her of how that dream she’d had the previous night and how she’d felt when she awoke. What was happening to her, she wondered?

  CHAPTER TWO

  Bjorn

  Bjorn awoke with the sun as he always did. He’d had the dream again, of the woman. He struggled to remember the dream, hoping he’d be able to hold onto some details this time. She’d been young, with dark, almost black hair and dark skin. And that was it. He could remember no more, not even what they did together in the dream, though his raging erection told him he’d been enjoying himself.

  This dream meant something, he was sure of it. Was this woman his future? Was she on her way to him, or was he to seek her out? What were the gods trying to tell him? He stood and dressed, wrapping himself in a bearskin to stay warm. These lands near the border with the Romans were cool at the best of times, and this year had brought a late snow. Still, he didn’t mind the cold weather, as the Romans usually only campaigned in the warmth and sunlight of summer.

  Walking through his people’s village, he greeted everyone by name. Bjorn knew everyone and everyone knew him. As their leader, Bjorn felt the heavy responsibility of ensuring the prosperity and future of his people, and he knew the Romans sought to take all of that from them. Maybe this year the Romans would stay on their side of the river, he thought, but he doubted it.

  One of Bjorn’s scouts approached him. “Chief, we’ve just seen a small convoy of horses and carts approach the Roman garrison. I believe they may have a new garrison commander, and after what you did to their last one…” The scout left the last bit unfinished.

  Bjorn felt a strange excitement at the news about the new commander, and it wasn’t just bloodlust. For a moment he couldn’t understand why, but then it struck him like a flash.

  “She’s there…” he whispered almost inaudibly.

  “Sorry?” said his scout.

  “Never mind,” he replied. “We must disperse. Tell our people to fall back deep into the woods. We cannot stay this close to the Romans. As you say, they will want their bloody vengeance.” He turned and strode toward where his horse stood grazing.

  “Of course, sir,” the scout said, walking along beside him. “But where are you going?”

  “I must see the new commander for myself. Offa will be in charge until I return.”

  Less than a minute later, he had flung his leg over the steed and kicked it into motion, turning to gallop toward the river and the Romans, leaving the village and his people behind. They would be in good hands with Offa.

  Bjorn couldn’t explain how, but he knew that the woman who was destined to be his had come to the garrison with the new commander. He wondered if she were a Roman. It wouldn’t matter to him if she were, just so long as she was his.

  The journey to the river took most of the day. The tribes had all learned years ago to keep their distance from the Roman border lest they invite attack from the legions. Still, Bjorn’s need for his woman was so great that he pushed his horse as hard as he dared.

  As he approached the edge of the woods beside the river, Bjorn slowed his horse and dismounted. He kept behind the woodline, tying his horse to a tree so it wouldn’t run off. The Romans had fortified most of the river, but Bjorn knew that they had grown sloppy, making it possible for a single man to slip past their posted guards and infiltrate their camp.

  Bjorn could hardly contain himself, knowing his woman lay separated from him by nothing more than a river. Still, Bjorn knew that slipping into the Roman camp before the sun had completely set would be suicide. So, he found himself a comfortable place to lay down and took a nap.

  When he awoke a few hours later, a plan had formed in his mind. He slipped out of his bearskin and then the rest of his clothes, his muscles rippling, and slipped up to the edge of the river. He could see the torches of the Roman guards on the other bank. Silent as a wraith, he slipped into the water and began swimming across. The strong current pushed him downstream, but Bjorn’s strength and skill as a swimmer allowed him to maintain his path.

  Bjorn and his men had found a weakness in the garrison fortress’s design several seasons previously, and Bjorn had decided that now was the time to take advantage of it. At some point, a previous commander had his men dig an emergency escape route from his quarters down to river level with a short path leading to a small boat which could take his family to safety should the need arise. The commander had not considered that his exit could also be an entrance.

  Bjorn aimed for the small dock where the boat was tied up, pulling himself ashore several yards upriver. Looking toward the boat, he could see the torch of another guard near the mooring and the escape hatch. Smooth as a snake, Bjorn approached the man, staying low to the ground and creeping up on him. The man turned to him just as Bjorn rose to his feet behind him. Before the man could shout an alarm, Bjorn wrapped his arm around the man’s throat, silencing him and cutting off his breathing. As the man lost consciousness, Bjorn lowered him to the ground.

  Bjorn stripped the man and put on his clothes and armour. Bjorn’s height meant the clothing fit him tightly, his muscles straining against the armour’s ties. He slipped over to the escape hatch and tried the door. Locked. He returned to the guard and searched him, finding a small key stored in the guard’s pouch. Moving swiftly back to the door, Bjorn unlocked it and gently pushed it open.

  Bjorn slipped inside, closing the door quickly, but quietly, behind him. He seemed to be in the dungeons, deep in the bowels of the fort. With any luck, he’d be able to work his way up to the commander’s quarters without being spotted. He had no interest in starting an all out war with the Romans by killing Roman soldiers. He didn’t believe his people could survive such a war.

  Bjorn walked down the hallway, trying to look inconspicuous, like he belonged there. At the end of the corridor, he came upon a set of stairs leading upwards, deeper into the garrison, a lit torch smoking on either side. This may have been a bad idea, he thought to himself before mounting the steps. If I run into any trouble, I’ll have a hell of a time getting out of here.

  Somehow, Bjorn climbed two flights of stairs without spotting a single Roman soldier. They really were letting their standards slip. At the top of the third flight of stairs, Bjorn stuck his head into the corridor and looked around. Something about this floor felt right. He couldn’t quite explain it. Looking around the dingy hallway, this seemed to be the floor where they kept their slaves.

  Making his way down the hallway, Bjorn let his instincts take over. His heart would guide him to the woman the gods had destined for him.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Lili

  Lili jerked awake, feeling hot all over and oddly excited and tingly deep in the pit of her stomach. Lili sighed and reached for the bed covers when she heard a noise. She froze, unsure of what to do. Was that what had awoken her? After a few moments hearing nothing else, she relaxed back onto her cot, thinking she just wasn’t used to the sounds of her new home in the garrison commander’s headquarters at the empire’s border with Germania.

  Then she heard it again. Quiet footsteps in the hallway, then a pause, then more footsteps. The sound frightened her. Had barbarians snuck into the garrison to murder them all? Her heartbeat quickened. The footsteps stopped at her door and she waited for them to move on. They didn’t. Her door opened slowly, letting torchlight spill in from the smoky corridor, the hinges creaking slightly.

  Beside her, Emilia opened her eyes, looked at Lili in confusion.

  “What’s going on?” she asked.

  “Shh!” hissed Lili, pressing herself against the wall.

  The door opened the rest of the way, and framed in the doorway light stood the biggest man Lili had ever seen in her life. His bulk nearly blocked out the light from the hall, and the man had to duck to enter the room.

  Lili froze in fear, but also felt the strange excitement coming back. She felt her ni
pples tightening and suddenly realised that she was clad only in a light shift, her blanket crumpled down around her feet. Beside her, Emilia also seemed to be frozen in fear, her mouth open as if to scream, but no sound came out.

  “You should go back to sleep, little one,” came a deep, gravelly voice from the beast of a man as he stepped into the room. His voice sent a shiver through Lili’s body, and she had the strangest sensation that she’d heard it before. Lili noticed that he spoke Latin with a strange accent that she didn’t recognise.

  Lili couldn’t be sure if he meant her or Emilia. He stepped up to the bed and said “I apologise for this” and quickly tied and gagged Emilia using the bedsheets.

  Lili finally found her voice. “What about me?” She asked.

  “You’re mine,” he said simply. He tore off a piece of the bottom of her shift and balled it up to shove in her mouth as a gag.

  “No, please, don’t gag me. I won’t make a noise, I promise,” Lili begged, terrified.