Pounding Earth

by ERIN BEDFORD

  Geez, Louise. I rolled my eyes.

  “Aeis!” I shouted, making her clam up. “Stop your flirting, we’re leaving.”

  She sent me a death stare that only a sibling could give you before saying something to Blake. He nodded and brushed a hand across her cheek, making her face redden. Aeis walked toward us, a bit of a sway to her step.

  I coughed to cover up the laugh at her obvious display.

  “What?” Aeis asked with a raised brow.

  “Nothing.” I grinned and then coughed, “Harlot.”

  “What was that?” Aeis’s eyes narrowed into slits, and I grinned.

  “I didn’t say anything. You must be hearing things.” I pushed forward with Jack and Raiden, leaving my sister’s suspicious glare burning into my back.

  Once we had left the camp and made our way into the trees, we could breathe freely again. We had gotten Firestar back, had fewer enemies out to get us, and Lord Amun’s men to help us in the fight to come. Overall, I didn’t think we came out of it too badly.

  Lord Amun waited for us just on the edge of the woods, his eyes on the soldiers assigned to hold Blorder and his men. When we approached him, he turned that watchful gaze our way. I forced myself not to wilt against the heavy weight of his eyes. Though, after the last hour, I was more than ready to collapse into bed.

  “I was unaware that you had more than one mate,” were the first words to come out of Lord Amun’s mouth.

  I winced at finally being caught and then wished I could take it back. I was far from being ashamed of having more than one mate, and it was time to fess up to all our lies. How else would we expect Lord Amun and his men to help us?

  “Lord Amun, I admit Firestar and I had misled you before.” I stepped away from Jack and Raiden, needing to do this on my own. “The truth is I am mated to all three of them, and I love them each equally.”

  “I thought as much.” He shifted and then nodded toward my stomach. “And the child? Who does that belong to?”

  My lips spread out into a wide smile as my hand curved over my belly. “All of them.” Lord Amun raised a curious brow. “I’m having triplets.”

  This time, Lord Amun laughed. Head thrown back, belly shaking laughter. I chanced a peek at Raiden and Jack who only shrugged. When I turned back to Lord Amun, he wiped his eyes with the pad of his thumb.

  “You, girl, are something else. If I didn’t know your father, I’d wonder if you were crazy.”

  I didn’t know if I should be offended or not. So instead of saying anything, I said nothing at all.

  Lord Amun sighed and stared back at his men gathering to leave. “Should I assume the promise to pay my debt is also a falsehood?”

  “No!” I answered louder than I meant to. I cleared my throat and tried again. “I mean, no. It was not my intention to lie about that. I do plan to pay your debts. After all, we can’t have the South being taken over by some loan shark.”

  “Loan shark?” Lord Amun chuckled. “That’s a funny way to describe Drac. He’s more of a pirate, but not any less dangerous.”

  Raiden and Jack exchanged a look before turning to me, but I was way ahead of them. Taking a step closer to Lord Amun, I asked, “How would you like to wipe that debt out altogether?”

  15

  Lord Amun and his men set up camp a bit further into the southern region. The camp wasn’t much different than that of the unaligned, except we had a lot more armored dragons patrolling the area.

  “How can he afford this if he has been sending all his money to Drac?” I asked Jack over dinner, which consisted of some meat broth stew that’d been cooked over the fire. The babies didn’t really care for it, but I was so hungry that I ignored them for once, forcing it down.

  “I can imagine Lord Amun stopped paying him the moment you promised to help him, which probably didn’t make Drac very happy.” Jack paused, a thoughtful expression on his face. “I wonder if that was around the time that Lady Nariko called on his services? Perhaps that is why Lord Amun has not seen any retribution for his actions.”

  “Drac is pulling all his resources to help Lady Nariko keep the East,” I mused aloud, dipping my spoon back into my bowl. “He probably can’t be bothered with an unpaid loan right now.”

  “Which is what will bite him in the ass,” Raiden added with a grin and a wink.

  I grinned in return as I stuck the spoon in my mouth. I rolled the meat around, savoring the juice like it was going to be my last meal for a long time. For all I knew, it might be.

  After I told Lord Amun of our plans to take back the East and who currently held the border, he was more than happy to supply his men to the cause. Now, we had men from the North, my father’s whole army from the West, and the Southern army. If that wasn’t enough to take the kingdom back, then I didn’t know what would.

  “When are we going to make our move?” I swallowed the bit in my mouth. “We can’t wait too much longer. I’m sure they have spies just like Orion does. They must know what we are up to.”

  “Oh, I’m sure they do,” Raijin answered, taking a seat across from us by the fire. “If I know my mother, which I do, then she will have already found out we have the backing of the North and West.”

  “Hopefully, she doesn’t know about the South yet,” Fujin added, sitting down next to his brother. “We can get the jump on them if they think they outnumber us.”

  I frowned my brow furrowed. “How many men does Drac have?”

  “Thousands,” Fujin answered, picking up a bowl from the ground. He took a bite of the stew but didn’t make a face like I had. Guess it was just me.

  “And we have?” I glanced around the camp, calculating how many men I saw and how many were waiting back up north.

  “Well, we have the few hundred from the North.” Jack started, tapping his spoon on the side of his bowl.

  “We do have a few hundred still on the inside,” Raijin contributed and then glanced around as well. “I’d say Lord Amun has about five hundred or so. Not enough to take on Drac, or he’d have done it before.”

  I nodded my agreement. “My father’s army the last time I counted has close to a thousand.”

  “Two thousand,” my sister corrected me, stepping around the twins to take a seat between them. I stared at her, unsure of her count. She raised a brow and smirked. “You’ve been gone a long time, and we haven’t had a war in a while. What can I say?” Aeis shrugged. “Our father likes to be prepared.”

  “Amen for that.” Fujin grinned at her, bumping his shoulder against hers. She smiled shyly in return. I’d bet my left foot something was going on there. Maybe not to the mating stage but definitely something.

  “So, we have about as many as he does, if not more.” I stared down into my bowl, not really seeing it as my mind whirled. “Have we sent word to your men yet?” I asked my sister, glancing up from my bowl.

  Nodding, she accepted her bowl from Raijin. “As soon as we made camp, I sent word. They should be on their way along with the Northern men as well. I told them to stay on their side of the border and out of sight. No need to give them the advantage of seeing our hand.”

  “Good call,” Raiden said. He reached out for my bowl. “Are you done?” I let him take my bowl and help me to my feet. “I figure Firestar is probably waking up soon. We better fill him in before someone else does, and we have to hear about it for the next week.”

  I giggled and tucked my hair behind my ear. “Not like you wouldn’t have done the same.”

  “At least I didn’t get captured,” Raiden retorted, leading me away from the others. I let my hand brush over Jack’s shoulder as I passed, his fingers coming up to touch mine.

  They had put Firestar in a tent next to his father’s, one we were supposed to share but weren’t while he was healing. We were lucky they had brought a medic along with them when they came, something we had forgotten to do ourselves. Then again, we hadn’t expected to have to carry him out.

  Guilt ate at me as I remembered how he l
ooked when we first got him back. On the outside, he looked near beaten to death. Why they hadn’t gone ahead and finished the job, I didn’t know. Maybe they wanted to draw it out, make him really pay. Or maybe they even wanted to use him as bait to get to me. We wouldn’t know until Firestar woke up and told us.

  Raiden pushed open the flap to the tent and ushered me inside. He didn’t follow me though, closing the flap behind me. I appreciated the time alone with Firestar and wondered how Raiden had guessed I wanted it.

  He was probably trying to get me to rest some too. I tended to overdo it, especially lately. Though I was three babies deep and couldn’t see my toes, I felt like a real superhero. That’s when I wasn’t looking at the wrong side of the toilet.

  “Maya,” Firestar’s voice pulled me from my thoughts. My eyes trailed over the dirt floor they had covered with a beat-up rug to the cot they’d set up on the far side of the tent. The room was barely lit with a lantern sitting on the wooden table. It was hard to see much of anything but shadows, much less Firestar’s condition. I supposed that was the point.

  “Hey,” I murmured, coming over to him to kneel by the cot.

  His face was swollen and bruised from the beating, but he still looked like himself. I had no doubt that a few days from now, he would be in tip-top fighting shape. We healed faster than humans, but we still needed time. Sadly, time wasn’t something we had in large supply.

  “How are you feeling?” It was a stupid question, but I needed something to talk about besides the impending fight. He didn’t need to worry about that, not right now.

  Firestar shifted and groaned. “Like I got beaten to hell and back.” He huffed and laughed. “I can’t believe they got the jump on me.”

  “Shh, now.” I brushed his hair back from his face. “You couldn’t have known they were coming. It was that damn Gretchen.”

  His eyes narrowed at her name. “That’s who did this?” Firestar jerked in bed, trying to sit up, but I put my hand on his chest to keep him down. “Please tell me you killed her. That they didn’t just cast her aside again.” The pure fury in Firestar’s eyes was understandable, and I hated to see how he’d react when he found out she was still out there.

  Why did I always get stuck with the shit jobs? Damn Raiden. Now, I knew why he left me with him alone. Sneaky bastard.

  “I don’t know what happened to her. We left her with Orion, the leader of the unaligned.” It wasn’t a lie. I really didn’t know what being sent to the restricted section of the camp meant. We’d taken the majority of those living there. So, maybe she would die of loneliness or spite. One could dream.

  “How’d we get out?”

  I relaxed, knowing he’d let it go. “Your father came riding in to the rescue, or rather flying.” I frowned, remembering an important question I needed to ask. “So, what did Blorder want from you? Just to get revenge?”

  Firestar jerked at his blanket, visibly irritated at just the name of his ex-guard. “The asshole never really said. Some days, it was just to get back at me for dragging them away from their families. Other days, it was because he wanted me to tell him where you were. When I refused, he broke my arm.”

  My heart ached at his words, and once more, I wished I could be the one to kill the bastard. I’d have to just trust that Lord Amun would take care of him and that justice would prevail. And there was always the option of sneaking in and killing him myself. You know, if it came down to it.

  “Hey, one good thing did come out of all this.” I smiled at him. “He’s even agreed to help us taken down Drac and Lady Nariko. Did you know Drac is the man he owed money to?”

  Firestar frowned. “No, I didn’t. I knew it was some rich crook, but he never told me who it was.”

  I stroked his arm and took his hand in mine. “Well, as luck would have it, our enemy is one and the same.”

  “Well, at least, that’s taken care of.” Firestar’s hand held mine tightly, his thumb sliding along mine. “I’m assuming he figured out I’m not the only one.”

  My lips twisted into a grimace. “Yeah, and about the power stuff. Though he took it surprisingly well and even helped deter anyone else from trying to do what Lady Nariko wanted to do.”

  He hummed but didn’t say anything. We sat there in companionable silence, both of us lost in thought, which was fine with me. I’d had enough action for the day. Hell, the week. If I didn’t have to fight again anytime soon, that would be great, though it wasn’t likely. Not when there were still people out there who wanted to hurt us.

  “How are the babies?” His eyes went to my stomach and he shifted on the cot to touch it. I placed my hand over his, moving closer so he wouldn’t have to strain so much. “Any new developments?”

  “They’re fine. Missing their daddy.” I grinned at him. “But good.”

  “And their mother?”

  I ducked my head, paying close attention to our hands linked together. “Tired, but that could be because I kicked some major ass in the unaligned camp.” I glanced up at him with a smug grin.

  “You what?” Firestar’s eyes widened, but it wasn’t from surprise but concern. “What were you even doing there to begin with, let alone kicking ass?”

  Irritation filled me. “I’ll have you know that while you were getting kidnapped, I’ve been practicing. I’m a bad mama jama now. I can take care of myself.”

  Firestar scoffed and turned his head away before sighing, meeting my eyes once more. “The problem is that you shouldn’t have to take care of yourself. What’s the point of us all being together as a team if you don’t let us do our part?”

  “Do your part?”

  Firestar grabbed my arm and dragged me down to him, his lips covering mine in a heated kiss. When he was done, he pushed me back, his eyes hot with anger.

  “How can we protect you if you don’t let us? You aren’t the only one who is afraid of losing someone. I’d die a million deaths. Let them torture me. Cut me. If it meant keeping you alive. Our children alive.”

  My eyes burned, and I swallowed thickly. “I know. I know.” I patted his chest, glancing down at the rise and fall of his breathing. “But would it be so bad to let me do the saving every once in a while?”

  Firestar chuckled. “I suppose not.” His hand caressed my face, and he kissed me again. When he pulled back this time, he didn’t let me go. “So, tell me about this ass kicking.”

  I leaned back on my heels and smiled as I retold what happened before we saved him. The look on Firestar’s face was worth every minute of the drama that occurred. The way his eyes widened, and he laughed. The awe and wonder at my newfound control over my powers, there was really nothing like it. I couldn’t wait to show him how far I’d come in real life. He’d be so proud of me.

  “I’m proud of you,” Firestar said as if reading my mind. “You continued your training even after I left, even after you found out I’d gone missing. I’d half expected you to come charging in half-cocked.”

  My mouth dropped open. “I would do no such thing. I’ll have you know I was as cool as a cucumber.” Firestar quirked a brow, and I laughed. “Okay, okay. I wasn’t. At first, I wanted to chase after you the moment we found out that you were missing. Then Jack and Raiden pretty much gave me the same lecture you did. They need me, and you’d be pissed if they let me get killed.”

  “Damn straight.”

  I smirked. “Not that it really helped much.”

  Firestar’s lip drooped. “Then how did they convince you to stay?”

  Licking my lips, a wicked grin covered my lips. “Let’s just say they had to tag team me.”

  The look of confusion on his face made me laugh, but I didn’t elaborate. He’d figure it out, if Raiden didn’t fill him in later. Just imagining that conversation made me grin.

  “Anyway, it was even worse when I found out where you were being kept. I wanted to come after you right away. Fuck politics. Fuck having a plan.” I waved my hand in front of me to emphasize my point.

  �
�Well, looks like it all worked out.” Firestar let out a heavy breath and then winced as he shifted.

  “Yeah, besides you getting your ass kicked.” I stood and patted Firestar’s hand. “I should let you rest. You’ve been through enough.”

  Firestar snorted. “Like you haven’t?”

  I gave a tired smile. “I’ll go to bed soon too, but I want to find out when we are going to march on the East before that happens. I’d had my fair share of being left out of meetings to last me a lifetime.”

  Rolling his eyes, Firestar grunted. “I guess that means I’ll be taking your place in the dark.”

  I snickered. “I’ll come and fill you in, promise.” I squeezed his hand and backed away slowly. “Though I can’t promise it won’t be without my own commentary added. Those things can get really boring.”

  Firestar chuckled. “I can’t wait.”

  16

  Four days. It took four days for Firestar to heal and get back on his feet. The rest of our army would be in position by the next day. Everything was almost in position. Soon, it would be over.

  “Damn it!” Firestar shouted, batting my hand away as he stood in the middle of our tent. “Not so tight.”

  I rolled my eyes and continued to lace up Firestar’s armor. “Stop being such a baby.”

  “I’m injured, woman. I can be a baby if I want to,” Firestar growled, shooting me a look over his shoulder.

  “You’re not injured anymore. The medic gave you a clean bill of health just last night. So, don’t be trying that bullshit on me.” I finished, tightening the last tie before moving around to the front of him. We’d decided to try on his armor before the big day to make sure it fit. We were lucky his father had the foresight to bring Firestar’s armor. Otherwise, he’d have to borrow someone else’s. I couldn’t imagine the drama queen he’d be then.