Free Burning Ceres by Viola Grace Page A

clutches of your own people, than for one of my species to be trapped on a mining planet.” Her leather-clad legs crossed and she watched Ceres until she stopped struggling.
    The com unit chirped.
    “We are in Nyal space.”
    “How long have I been out?”
    “Oh, I kept you out for a couple of days. No sense in having you getting all upset on me. Your metabolism is running a little fast or you would still be out. By the time you hit the Arena, you are going to be in full heat.”
    She groaned and banged her head against the mattress under her head. This was not what she had in mind when she thought about returning home.

 
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter Two
     
     
    "Do you understand the protocol of the private sale?” Auctioneer Zosia paced up and down in Ceres’ cell.
    “They can see me, but I can’t see them.” Ceres was tired of being naked in the cage. She had been stripped as soon as she arrived, cleaned from head to toe and put into a ‘single’ cell. She could feel her hormones rising, her mind fumbling around the ideas of sexual possession and her pulse pounding with every hour in the cell.
    The slick traces of cream that her body was producing had enough pheromones in them to drive every male guard out of the area where she was being held . It was worth castration if they touched her, so they left before it was uncontrollable. Only female guards had been allowed in her vicinity since.
    She hadn’t bothered masturbating, as she knew from experience that it only made the heat worse. It turned her body from a simmer to a boil until the very air burned at her flesh. It was the reason for the tank. Immersion in the thick liquid kept her body from stimulation and let her ride out the hormone wave.
    That option was not available to her as she faced auction. They wanted her heat ; the hotter the better.
    The private auction was the only concession to her rank that had been allowed .
    “I will be dressed in the sheerest fabric you can find, chained at the neck, belly, wrists and ankles. The bidding will start and as soon as it stalls you will bring me out and begin to describe me in graphic terms.”
    Zosia nodded, elegant in her simple tunic and sandals. She was one of the best auctioneers available and the commission that she was going to receive of Ceres’ sale was astronomical. “That is precisely it. You will be asked to pose seductively, and the gown may be taken from you if we don’t get enough response.”
    Ceres sat on her bunk and closed her eyes. Great, just great. It was one of her little fantasies to be ogled by strangers. But she had always hoped to keep it a fantasy.
    “Fine then, Dame Avedis , get up and follow me.”
    Silently, Ceres followed the woman who was about to sell her to the highest bidder. She was bathed, dried and denied any perfumes for enhancement . She was then subjected to being chained. Silver cuffs were put on her wrists and ankles, a collar was wrapped around her neck, and a slender chain was placed around her belly, hanging just below her navel and drawing attention to the slight tuft of hair at the juncture of her thighs.
    “Huh, I didn’t realize that they made silk gauze that thin.” It was the only thing she could say that would calm her nerves as the l’nal spun silk was draped over her shoulders, and tucked under the belly chain . The chain was an integral part of her clothing, as it kept the silk from sliding and floating off her as she walked to the holding area where they attached her final chains.
    Her collar received a tangle of chain, one attached to her right wrist, one to her left, a center link to her belly chain and two more light chains leading to her ankles. Though they were delicate in appearance, they would support her body weight with ease. She wasn’t going anywhere.
    She fidgeted and waited for the signal that all parties invited had arrived. Behind an opaque screen, they were gathering to bid on her. She heard the murmur of masculine voices