Dragon Memories: A High Fantasy Reverse Harem Romance (Legacy of Blood and Magic Book 2)

by Lacey Carter Andersen

  He nodded and glanced back ahead of him, his back rigid.

  “What are your parents like?”

  His back stiffened even further, and she felt sure he was going to be snarky. “My father is dead. My mother… suffers every day. As a Seer, I can feel her. We have a connection that can never be severed, and I can feel how lonely and miserable she’s been.”

  “Why is she so unhappy?”

  “Because she’s lost everything she loves.”

  “She hasn’t lost you,” She said, her heart aching in response to the pain in his voice.

  “She has in all ways that matter.”

  “Acker?”

  He looked back at her.

  “I--I’m sorry. It seems like you haven’t had an easy life.”

  He shook his head. “Don’t feel sorry for me. I’m the reason for all my unhappiness, no one else.”

  “That can’t be--”

  “It’s true. Believe me. If you knew half of what I’ve done, you’d hate me too.”

  She didn’t know how to respond, but luckily, he turned back around and focused on getting through two particularly close trees. Black Hawk hesitated as she approached the thick trees, but his mount, Gremly, pressed through as if this was something he did every day. She patted her horse’s neck, trying to reassure him that she didn’t like having to be near the trees either.

  They continued on for several hours until the sun sunk lower and lower over the horizon, and only the last few streaks of day remained. The air around them had grown chiller and chiller as they’d continued traveling, and Kadelynn was exhausted, both from the harsh winds and from riding with so few breaks.

  “Are we ready to stop?”

  Acker looked back at her. “There’s a safe place to rest, not much further. But we’re still too close--”

  “Close to what?”

  “Danger.”

  Danger? “What danger?”

  “Just keep going. We need to go faster, or we’ll be traveling in complete darkness.”

  She didn’t know what Acker was afraid of after days traveling in the creepy woods, but she wasn’t about to second guess him. So, she picked up the pace, continuing to ride through the empty space between rows, and push between the branches of the trees. They did it over and over again, until full night had fallen, and only the bright moon and stars lit the way. When they came to two particularly entwined trees, Kadelynn gritted her teeth and hoped the safe place to rest was near.

  As she shoved through the last of the branches, she nearly ran into Acker who had stopped short.

  “What are you doing?” She steered her horse around him, then froze.

  A dozen Cahula warriors were waiting, carrying spears that were pointed at them, or bows and arrows that were trained at them. Kadelynn’s heart raced, and she looked to Acker. Surely as a Seer he could use his powerful magic to save them. Couldn’t he? His people could kill with a thought. Their magic was renowned, so why was he hesitating now? Again?

  A massive Cahula warrior moved out in front of the others and spoke in a low, threatening voice to Acker, in a language Kadelynn didn’t understand. Acker responded, his words seeming to be carefully chosen. They went back and forth until at last the warrior looked at Kadelynn, pointed to her, and spoke to Acker. The Seer responded, and then everyone fell silent. At last, the warriors lowered their weapons.

  The big one smiled. “You and your woman will stay with us tonight! Guests of the Cahula!”

  The other warriors grinned, and then led them down one of the rows. Some of the men in front of them, some of the men behind them. Like prisoners. But Kadelynn had no idea what they were to the Cahula, only that she had to be careful.

  Acker road close to Kadelynn and spoke to her softly. “If you aren’t my woman, you’re a woman any of them can claim.”

  She felt sick. “Then it’s a good thing I’m your woman.”

  He nodded, but his expression was grim.

  She wanted to ask him what would happen next. Would they really spend the night with the bloodthirsty tribe? Even if they’d accepted her and Acker, she couldn’t imagine they’d be safe. Still, with the Cahula all around them, she kept her thoughts to herself.

  A few hours passed. The largest Cahula man introduced himself as Jovian. He was the Chief of their tribe, and head of the warriors. He seemed the strangest mix between friendly and terrifying. It wasn’t just that he’d sharpened his teeth to points, just as the other Cahula had. It was also the strange dark blotches that covered his face that almost looked like a skull. Again, they were so different from the elegant tattoos on Acker’s face that she was beginning to wonder if there were any tribesmen like Acker.

  She smelled smoke and heard the noise before they spotted the Cahula village. Just at the edge of the seemingly neverending rows of trees, the village suddenly seemed to appear. Short wooden buildings spread out around a big fire. Kids with dark splotches all over their bodies, and fabric tied around their waists, were running between the buildings. Women cooked over the giant fire, and all the men of the village seemed to be with her group.

  As they came closer, the children spotted them, and shouts went up. The kids came pouring toward them, and the women stopped cooking, glancing up and watching them with cautious eyes. Kadelynn couldn’t understand what the children were saying, but they seemed excited. Acker, on the other hand, looked like he had a death hold on his reigns, which worried her.

  Men picked up the children as they approached, and there was laughter and loud conversations. They continued through the village, past the women by the fire, and the many smaller structures, until they came to a large tent. There, Acker dismounted, so she followed suit. Women came forward and took their reigns, and Kadelynn reluctantly let them take Black Hawk. As Acker spoke with the men, she watched as the women tied the horses up next to the large tent. They removed all their gear and began to brush the horses down, bringing them water, and food.

  As nervous as Kadelynn was, she was glad the people were tending to their horses well.

  At last, Acker turned to Kadelynn. “I’m going to go with the men to trade. They’ve promised me you’ll be well cared for with the chief’s wife.”

  “You’re leaving me here?” She tried not to sound panicked and failed.

  Acker nodded toward the large tent. “Just go in there, with the chief’s wife, she’ll take care of you. You’re a guest of the tribe.”

  Her mind went through every terrifying thing she’d heard about what the Cahula did, and it was suddenly hard to breathe. Acker pulled her into his arms, and pressed a light kiss under her ear, that sent strange sparks of warmth through her body.

  “Stay in the tent. You’ll be safe with her, but I can’t promise you’ll be safe out here.”

  He pulled back, and his expression gave nothing away as he turned back with the men and began to walk away.

  Kadelynn took a deep breath and a young woman came out of the cabin, gestured for her to come in, and opened the flap they used in place of a door. She forced a smile, then ducked to enter.

  Inside, a fire roared in the middle of the tent. It was far smokier than she would have expected, but most of the smoke seemed to curl up and drift toward the opening at the top of the building. A woman stood from beside the fire. She was short, just like all the Cahula, but muscular. She wore a pale-colored tunic that went to her thighs, with long sleeves. Her face was covered in splotches, but they were delicate compared to the other Cahula she had seen.

  “I am Keva.”

  “Kadelynn.”

  The woman gestured to some pillows on the ground, and Kadelynn forced another smile and entered the room, sitting on the pillows. Keva said something in her language to a young woman by the door. The young woman turned and headed back out into the village.

  Keva sat beside Kadelynn and grinned. “We prepare a celebration for you.”

  “Oh, uh, thank you.”

  Keva reached out and touched her hair. “Looks like gold
.”

  Kadelynn tried not to flinch away. “Yes. Your hair and, uh, tattoos are beautiful too.”

  “Tattoos?” She frowned for a moment before her grin returned. “Not tattoos. Born with our marking. They are part of us. Not like Acker. He marks himself to look like us.”

  “Look like you?” I’m confused. “Aren’t your people similar… from the same… place?”

  Keva laughs and points to me and her. “As different as the Cahula and the Stonebuilders.”

  Kadelynn doesn’t understand. How was that possible? Kadelynn’s people had always seen the Cahula and the Seers as similar. Two people who had lived in the Prairie Lands from the beginning. The only difference was that the Seers were a small group with almost limitless powers, and the Cahula were short, couldn’t go out during the day, and used their magic for cruel, strange things.

  “I’m sorry,” she finally managed. “I know so little about your tribes.”

  Keva didn’t seem bothered by her ignorance. “Let me teach you.” She rose and offered Kadelynn her hand, which she reluctantly took.

  The Cahula woman led her through the village, where every eye seemed to cling to Kadelynn, and then to the edge of the strange trees. “These are our most important. What we live and breathe for.”

  “What are they?” Kadelynn asked, not even liking to look at the trees again.

  “Let me show you.” Keva looked back at her people and gestured to one of them, speaking in her language. The woman ran off, likely to obey whatever command the chief’s wife had given.

  Kadelynn shivered and looked back at the trees. The whispering was beginning again. Like the murmurs of ghosts. She couldn’t quite make out the words, but they were sad and pained.

  “Here.”

  Kadelynn turned back around as two Cahula women carried a man between them. She instantly stiffened. The man appeared to be dead or unconcious and had to be a Stonebuilder. As they laid him at their feet, she recognized his torn and dirty uniform. He must have been a servant of her cousin’s because there was no mistaking the dark green and pale green colors that his household staff wore. But how had the man ended up here? And what was wrong with him?

  Keva knelt at his side, but the man didn’t react. The only indication that he lived was the rise and fall of his chest. The Cahula woman looked up at her and smiled. “We have been feasting on this one since his capture. Very good. So much Life Force. But there is little left now. He is ready.”

  Feasting on him? Her stomach turned. Kadelynn had heard the Cahula left pieces of their victims scattered at the places they caught them, but the man didn’t look injured, so what was she talking about?

  The Cahula woman knelt down and placed a hand on his chest. A pale red glow came from her hand, and then she dug her claws into his chest. Kadelynn froze, too shocked to move, too shocked to react. The red light grew brighter and more intense, and then it was like an explosion of light. But it wasn’t just light, she could hear, in her mind, the man’s tormented screams, his pleading to be set free. It was so similar to the voices in the trees, that tears filled her eyes.

  When the light faded away, Kadelynn blinked into the darkness. The Cahula woman had risen and gone to the tree. As she approached, the leaves and branches bent up, clawing up to the sky. She went to the trunk of the tree and pressed her hand against it. A red glow ran from her hand, up and down the trunk, and even filled the leaves, as if the tree had caught fire. Suddenly, a ghostly face rose, a tortured, miserable face that wailed, and then it was sucked into the tree.

  The light slowly began to fade, but it remained on the edges of the leaves and melting down the trunk, like blood. Kev turned back to Kadelynn with a smile. “See? We take Life from living things, every spark of their magic. It feels good inside, like a good meal, but we can’t keep it inside of us. Not much of it. So the trees keep them forever, and we drain them more as we wish.”

  Fuckery. Kadelynn felt sick as her gaze slid back to the man. His chest no longer rose and fell. But technically, he wasn’t dead. He would be trapped forever within the tree, drained when the Cahula wished, like slowly slicing off his body parts and eating them. That’s why the trees seemed so miserable. That’s why they wanted… they wanted her to stop their suffering.

  “Come then,” Keva said cheerfully.

  Kadelynn felt bile rising in her throat as she followed the woman back to the big cabin. Behind her, other women had knelt by the servant’s body with knives, and the tree’s branches moved back to the ground as the scarlet-color continued to fade.

  “Surprise for you,” Keva said, up ahead, smiling as she opened the tent flap. “You enjoy first as guest. Then me.”

  A surprise? For some reason, Kadelynn was sure she wouldn’t like it.

  Still, she entered the house and watched as the flaps were closed behind her. Her heart raced as she entered the smoky room. Nothing seemed out of place until she moved closer and spotted what looked to be a body behind the big fire pit.

  Ignoring the chill that raced down her spine, she moved around the fire pit and saw a man. His mouth was bound, as were his hands and ankles. When her gaze met his, she froze. It wasn’t just any man. It was her cousin, Bronson. He had changed in the years since she’d last seen him. His dark hair was still cut short, but he looked more man than boy, at just a few years older than her. One side of his face was bruised, and a cut on his cheek had just begun to heal.

  It seemed to take him a minute to recognize her, and then he tried to speak around the fabric in his mouth. He struggled against his bindings, but it was in vain. He was secured, like a pig ready for the spit.

  Kneeling down, she hesitated, then pulled the cloth from his mouth.

  “Kadelynn, is it really you? Thank the Gods! Our town was attacked and several of us were taken prisoner. The last survivor was just taken, and I know that means he’s dead. I thought when they came for me, it was over for me too. But now you’re here, and you can set me free!”

  She stared, unable to form words. Bronson had been her friend when they were children. His parents made several trips a year to their home, and her father would take her to his town at least once a year. She considered him one of her closest friends.

  And then he’d betrayed her.

  Since then, she’d never gone to see him. And when his family visited, she feigned sickness. She had told herself that she would never set eyes on him again. But, it seemed, the fates had a sense of humor, because here she was, seeing him in the least expected place imaginable.

  “Kadelynn? What’s wrong?”

  She licked her lips, trying to form the words. “If I untie you, they’ll know I helped you escape, and I won’t be safe.”

  His brows rose. “You’re kidding, right? You’re thinking of leaving me here?”

  “What did you say that day?” she asked, and her words came out cold. “That sometimes we have to make hard choices?”

  He went pale. “I was… young then.”

  “Probably the same age I am now.”

  He stared, his expression desperate. “You survived. I won’t.”

  “But you didn’t know I’d survive when you left me.”

  “Those men just wanted to have a little fun,” he said, his tone pleading.

  “Fun?” The word came out clipped and angry.

  The events of that day came back to her with a roar. She and Bronson had snuck out late at night from his parent’s home. He’d promised her an adventure because she was so desperate for something outside of the routine of her life. And then they’d gone out, and been cornered by a group of men. Bronson had abandoned her without thought, knowing that the men planned to do awful things to her. He went home, crawled into bed, and pretended that he had been there all night. He passed guards he could’ve sent to help her. Their parents were still up, and her father would’ve unleashed the fury of his men on her attackers.

  But Bronson did none of those things. He was more worried about getting in trouble than protecting her.
She honestly thought he hoped she would die from her injuries.

  Unfortunately for him, and her attackers, the sword beneath her cloak wasn’t just for looks. She knew how to use it. And that night, she fought with every ounce of strength she had. She was hurt, but the men were in a hell of a lot worse shape when she was done with them. And her black eye, swollen lip, and broken rib were only a reminder to her that things could’ve been so much worse.

  No thanks to the coward before her.

  “Kadelynn. I’m sorry, okay. But this is my life we’re talking about, not your virginity.”

  She put the cloth back in his mouth and stood, furious. “My body isn’t some insignificant thing you can give away to protect yourself. But maybe your life is. Right now, I don’t have a reason to save you. No reason other than my own conscious.”

  He struggled against his bindings, his eyes wide and frightened.

  Staring down at Bronson, Kadelynn had never felt such anger in her life. That night seemed to wash over her over and over again. But not just that night, his words now too. He still felt he’d done the right thing. She had no idea how any person could not regret abandoning someone they called their sister. If that was loyalty to him, why did he possibly deserve her help?

  He continued to struggle, growing more and more frantic with his movements.

  Unable to help herself, she pulled the bindings from his mouth once more.

  Words sprang from his lips. “Okay, so, I’d seen those men before, and I promise they wouldn’t have deflowered you and left you alive. You wouldn’t have to live with the shame of your mistake--”

  The bindings went back in his mouth, and she just started kicking. And once she started, she couldn’t stop. She didn’t care if he groaned. She didn’t care if he winced. She planted her boot in his groin, in his stomach, his chest, and his legs. She kicked him until her legs grew tied.

  Then, panting, she said, “don’t worry, it’s only your body, not your life.”

  He pleaded, but she couldn’t make out his words. Nor did she want to.

  If she saved this man, she had no doubt that the Cahula would blame her and Acker. They wouldn’t be safe. So, she did the only thing she could bring herself to do.