BONDS OF JUSTICE 4: STEELE TRAP
Elayne S. Venton
Changeling Press
Elayne S. Venton
Changeling Press
Pandora Raye stared in shock at the latest 3D hologram Steele had sent her. It had to be a mistake.
A trick. A joke. The checked the date stamp on the handheld modulator. He'd definitely
transmitted the image this morning.
Since live communiques got distorted once his transport cruised beyond Jupiter's solar system,
Steele now sent holographic recordings. She waited impatiently for each transmission, her heart
soaring when he stood before her looking so real, so sincere, telling her how much he missed her.
But this... atrocity... She had to sit down.
Unable to stop watching, Pandora reached behind her for the plush sofa. As soon as her fingertips brushed the soft
fabric, she plopped down on the seat cushion, not caring how unladylike she appeared. No one could see her in the privacy of her bedroom suite.
Steele faced her as usual, but this time he stood naked, and he wasn't looking at her. Half-closed lids shuttered his green eyes. A deep breath flared his nostrils
and puffed out his smooth, muscular chest, and then he threw his head back and groaned. His fingers dug into the blonde hair of the woman kneeling at his feet.
The stranger's bobbing head and the slurping sounds of a wet mouth left no doubt she sucked his cock.
Anger and heartache amassed into a burning lump in her throat. Immobilized by the betrayal playing out before her, she sat and stared, barely able to think. This
can't be real!
The woman's bright orange nails bit into the flesh on Steele's hips. Pink stripes covered his torso where she'd raked her nails over the taut flesh. Steele obviously
hadn't wasted any time telling the slut what he liked.
"Suck me, baby. Oh, you're the best," he sighed. "That's right. Deeper." The traitor hummed with pleasure.
The best? Pandora wanted to hurl something heavy at him. Too bad it would fly right through the image. Why the hell had he sent her this trash?
"Oh, fuck!" He pushed the woman's mouth away and jerked her to her feet. His brawny arm whipped around her back, pulling her close. He slammed his
mouth down on hers in a hungry kiss.
The puncture in Pandora's heart ripped open. Tears welled in her eyes. "I thought you loved me. Yesterday, you told me you wanted to reconcile, you couldn't
live without me anymore." This sordid scene made no sense!
The vid angle panned, following Steele's back as he turned and pressed the woman against the side wall. Had someone been in the room recording them?
Pandora's stomach churned.
"Are you wet, baby?" His hand dipped between her legs. He leaned back and to the side so he could watch his fingers slide between her folds and nudge into
her vagina. Pandora got a clear view too, and it sickened her.
"Oh, yeah. You're ready for me." He drew a wet squiggly line up her belly and tweaked a nipple. "Let's fuck," Steele growled. With a shift of his hips, he
positioned his cockhead at her entry, and then slid his thick rod deep into the woman's glistening cunt.
"Mmm, yes," the woman moaned, wrapping a leg around his hip.
Pandora's gaze shot up and she got her first good look at the woman's face. The blood drained from her cheeks. Bile rushed up her throat. Pandora slapped a
hand over her mouth and thrust her head between her knees.
Ohmigod...Ohmigod! Steele, no! Not your brother's wife!
* * *
"Where's your wife, Blade?" Pandora demanded, glancing at the image of Steele's brother on her wall monitor as she paced around her office at Healing Waters.
"Thea's suppressing a riot on Tilia Ten. Why? What's the matter?"
Pandora froze, her back to the screen. Her nails dug into her palms. Tilia Ten, the small planet best known for its tubular plants called Fallus, had been Steele's
destination too. He'd hoped to negotiate the purchase of a few Fallus seedlings for his experimental greenhouse, a difficult task since exporting the native plant
was illegal.
Pandora swallowed hard. "Did she say anything about seeing Steele there?" she asked softly.
The last time Thea and Steele had shared accommodations, Steele had escaped to Pandora's place as horny as a teenager. Thea had done that to him.
Both she and Blade believed Steele had never touched Thea, but now she wondered...
She couldn't watch Blade's face on her vid screen. It had taken her a long time to gather her wits after viewing the callous hologram. If she looked at her
ex-brother-in-law, she'd break down and cry again.
Silence persisted so long she thought Blade might not have heard her question. Or the wise Solarian Judge had just put one and one together.
"No, she didn't mention seeing Steele at all," he finally said.
Which proved nothing, of course.
"Look at me!" His bellow made her jump.
Pandora slowly pivoted. Shoulders back, chin up, she prepared to deal with a raging, cuckolded male. It wouldn't be the first time she'd had to calm someone's
upset mate, nor the last. As owner of the most opulent pleasure center on Callisto, she'd dealt with a gamut of nasty situations. She could handle Blade.
He ran a broad hand over his face. "You received a copy of the hologram too, didn't you?"
Blade didn't appear nearly as upset as she expected. "Of Steele and Thea?" she asked carefully.
His sigh whooshed through the speakers. "The woman isn't Thea. I knew right away the body didn't fit. My love's legs are much longer. Thea's feet are
narrower. Other subtle differences. I had the program analyzed. Just as I suspected, a very talented programmer superimposed Thea's image in that
transmission. Whoever sent that image wanted to pit brother against brother and lover against lover. "His eyes narrowed. "Don't worry, I'm going to find out
who sent it."
Pandora sank onto her clear desk chair. "An overlay of Thea.?"
"You don't look convinced, Pandora. Believe me, the timing is off. Thea arrived on Tilia Ten after Steele left."
She folded her hands in her lap. "Who is the woman then?"
Blade's eyebrows rose. "You don't remember?"
"What?"
"Remove Thea's image, darken the hair, and it's you -- your face, your shape. Someone got hold of a hologram of you and Steele and altered it. I'll send you the
stripped version so you can see for yourself."
Pandora stared at him stupefied. She racked her brain. Hot, urgent sex with Steele? Yes. Sex in the cramped quarters of a transport ship? Possibly. However,
the woman lacked one key identifier. A gold ring pierced the hood of Pandora's clitoris. Steele had placed it there after they'd first made love. He'd claimed her
as his own with a promise to love her, protect her, and be faithful to her. Despite all the arguments, the separation, and the dissolution of their union, she'd never
taken it out.
The video stream of Steele and the woman popped up in the lower corner of her monitor. Now the woman looked like her, although Pandora wouldn't be
caught dead wearing fluorescent orange nail polish. She didn't know whether to be angry or embarrassed that Blade watched a sexual encounter between his
brother and...
Anger won. "Blade, that woman is not me." Her teeth hurt from the pressure she exerted on them. "I don't know who she is, but I'm going to find out!"
A trick. A joke. The checked the date stamp on the handheld modulator. He'd definitely
transmitted the image this morning.
Since live communiques got distorted once his transport cruised beyond Jupiter's solar system,
Steele now sent holographic recordings. She waited impatiently for each transmission, her heart
soaring when he stood before her looking so real, so sincere, telling her how much he missed her.
But this... atrocity... She had to sit down.
Unable to stop watching, Pandora reached behind her for the plush sofa. As soon as her fingertips brushed the soft
fabric, she plopped down on the seat cushion, not caring how unladylike she appeared. No one could see her in the privacy of her bedroom suite.
Steele faced her as usual, but this time he stood naked, and he wasn't looking at her. Half-closed lids shuttered his green eyes. A deep breath flared his nostrils
and puffed out his smooth, muscular chest, and then he threw his head back and groaned. His fingers dug into the blonde hair of the woman kneeling at his feet.
The stranger's bobbing head and the slurping sounds of a wet mouth left no doubt she sucked his cock.
Anger and heartache amassed into a burning lump in her throat. Immobilized by the betrayal playing out before her, she sat and stared, barely able to think. This
can't be real!
The woman's bright orange nails bit into the flesh on Steele's hips. Pink stripes covered his torso where she'd raked her nails over the taut flesh. Steele obviously
hadn't wasted any time telling the slut what he liked.
"Suck me, baby. Oh, you're the best," he sighed. "That's right. Deeper." The traitor hummed with pleasure.
The best? Pandora wanted to hurl something heavy at him. Too bad it would fly right through the image. Why the hell had he sent her this trash?
"Oh, fuck!" He pushed the woman's mouth away and jerked her to her feet. His brawny arm whipped around her back, pulling her close. He slammed his
mouth down on hers in a hungry kiss.
The puncture in Pandora's heart ripped open. Tears welled in her eyes. "I thought you loved me. Yesterday, you told me you wanted to reconcile, you couldn't
live without me anymore." This sordid scene made no sense!
The vid angle panned, following Steele's back as he turned and pressed the woman against the side wall. Had someone been in the room recording them?
Pandora's stomach churned.
"Are you wet, baby?" His hand dipped between her legs. He leaned back and to the side so he could watch his fingers slide between her folds and nudge into
her vagina. Pandora got a clear view too, and it sickened her.
"Oh, yeah. You're ready for me." He drew a wet squiggly line up her belly and tweaked a nipple. "Let's fuck," Steele growled. With a shift of his hips, he
positioned his cockhead at her entry, and then slid his thick rod deep into the woman's glistening cunt.
"Mmm, yes," the woman moaned, wrapping a leg around his hip.
Pandora's gaze shot up and she got her first good look at the woman's face. The blood drained from her cheeks. Bile rushed up her throat. Pandora slapped a
hand over her mouth and thrust her head between her knees.
Ohmigod...Ohmigod! Steele, no! Not your brother's wife!
* * *
"Where's your wife, Blade?" Pandora demanded, glancing at the image of Steele's brother on her wall monitor as she paced around her office at Healing Waters.
"Thea's suppressing a riot on Tilia Ten. Why? What's the matter?"
Pandora froze, her back to the screen. Her nails dug into her palms. Tilia Ten, the small planet best known for its tubular plants called Fallus, had been Steele's
destination too. He'd hoped to negotiate the purchase of a few Fallus seedlings for his experimental greenhouse, a difficult task since exporting the native plant
was illegal.
Pandora swallowed hard. "Did she say anything about seeing Steele there?" she asked softly.
The last time Thea and Steele had shared accommodations, Steele had escaped to Pandora's place as horny as a teenager. Thea had done that to him.
Both she and Blade believed Steele had never touched Thea, but now she wondered...
She couldn't watch Blade's face on her vid screen. It had taken her a long time to gather her wits after viewing the callous hologram. If she looked at her
ex-brother-in-law, she'd break down and cry again.
Silence persisted so long she thought Blade might not have heard her question. Or the wise Solarian Judge had just put one and one together.
"No, she didn't mention seeing Steele at all," he finally said.
Which proved nothing, of course.
"Look at me!" His bellow made her jump.
Pandora slowly pivoted. Shoulders back, chin up, she prepared to deal with a raging, cuckolded male. It wouldn't be the first time she'd had to calm someone's
upset mate, nor the last. As owner of the most opulent pleasure center on Callisto, she'd dealt with a gamut of nasty situations. She could handle Blade.
He ran a broad hand over his face. "You received a copy of the hologram too, didn't you?"
Blade didn't appear nearly as upset as she expected. "Of Steele and Thea?" she asked carefully.
His sigh whooshed through the speakers. "The woman isn't Thea. I knew right away the body didn't fit. My love's legs are much longer. Thea's feet are
narrower. Other subtle differences. I had the program analyzed. Just as I suspected, a very talented programmer superimposed Thea's image in that
transmission. Whoever sent that image wanted to pit brother against brother and lover against lover. "His eyes narrowed. "Don't worry, I'm going to find out
who sent it."
Pandora sank onto her clear desk chair. "An overlay of Thea.?"
"You don't look convinced, Pandora. Believe me, the timing is off. Thea arrived on Tilia Ten after Steele left."
She folded her hands in her lap. "Who is the woman then?"
Blade's eyebrows rose. "You don't remember?"
"What?"
"Remove Thea's image, darken the hair, and it's you -- your face, your shape. Someone got hold of a hologram of you and Steele and altered it. I'll send you the
stripped version so you can see for yourself."
Pandora stared at him stupefied. She racked her brain. Hot, urgent sex with Steele? Yes. Sex in the cramped quarters of a transport ship? Possibly. However,
the woman lacked one key identifier. A gold ring pierced the hood of Pandora's clitoris. Steele had placed it there after they'd first made love. He'd claimed her
as his own with a promise to love her, protect her, and be faithful to her. Despite all the arguments, the separation, and the dissolution of their union, she'd never
taken it out.
The video stream of Steele and the woman popped up in the lower corner of her monitor. Now the woman looked like her, although Pandora wouldn't be
caught dead wearing fluorescent orange nail polish. She didn't know whether to be angry or embarrassed that Blade watched a sexual encounter between his
brother and...
Anger won. "Blade, that woman is not me." Her teeth hurt from the pressure she exerted on them. "I don't know who she is, but I'm going to find out!"
AN EXCERPT...
