by Lia Black
*~*~*
Once back at the campsite, Veyl mashed together herbs, berries, tree sap, and wine into a paste with his fingers as Ruthgar stared at him earnestly. Ruthgar was shorter in stature than the others and bulky with muscle, but Veyl felt no threat from him. His curiosity was like a child's. Ahbrim was putting together a stew with a few root vegetables and some salted meat, and Lirin was little more than evidence of smoke curling around a tree at the edge of the clearing.
But the one whom Veyl was most aware of was Kaidos. Even without looking directly at him, Veyl felt the man's eyes boring into him. Kaidos had untied him when they'd returned to camp, but the ropes had not gone far. Kaidos was sitting near the campfire, drinking from a wineskin, probably trying to join his brothers who already seemed quite drunk.
"How did a boy get to be so beautiful?" Ruthgar grinned at Veyl, who offered a hint of a placatory smile.
He closed his eyes and brought the bowl of salve to his face, blowing on it softly.
"Does it smell right?" Ruthgar asked, misinterpreting the gesture.
"It's fine." Veyl lifted his face and turned towards Kaidos, feeling the heat of his possessive gaze. Property, Veyl reminded himself. He was nothing but merchandise to this man.
Kaidos stood up from the fallen log where he'd been seated and strode over as Veyl held the bowl up for him to take. He accepted it, frowning into the vile-looking goo.
"Put some on your cut as well," Veyl said, his eyes falling to the bandaged stab-wound on Kaidos' arm.
Kaidos scooped a large portion of salve from the bowl and handed the rest to Ruthgar.
"Take this to Lirin. Ahbrim, go with him."
"Huh?" Ahbrim looked dumbly between Kaidos and Veyl for a moment, but moved away from his stew to follow Ruthgar.
Kaidos brought Veyl's attention back to him when he said, "Show me your hands."
Veyl sighed and dropped his head as he raised his wrists to be bound. He knew it wouldn't have lasted, though he'd still hoped for a few more hours of freedom. But instead of binding him, Kaidos dropped the blob of salve from his hand into Veyl's.
"Put it on me."
Veyl raised his gaze to Kaidos' dark and stern face once more, looking away as the man dropped to his knees in front of him, unwinding the makeshift bandage on his forearm.
"Let me see," Veyl said quietly.
Kaidos extended his arm and Veyl took it in one hand, then began to carefully apply the salve to the wound. He could feel the warm corded muscles beneath his fingertips and noticed the complimentary colors of their skin. Silky dark hair created a soft mat, broken up here and there by the bleached lines of old scars. Veyl realized he'd been appreciating more than treating and stopped. "Now your face."
Kaidos leaned in close, so that their faces were only inches apart.
"You're too close." Veyl frowned. He felt his heart skip a beat. Kaidos had beautiful, tormented eyes surrounded by long, thick lashes. He could imagine why a woman might compromise her station to share one night in his arms.
"Am I really?"
Veyl reminded himself of his current situation. "You've been drinking; your breath is curling my eyelashes."
Kaidos tipped his head slightly to examine Veyl's eyes. "How did you get eyes of such a color?" There was a strange tension in his voice. His eyebrows drew together and he licked his lips, his gaze dropping to Veyl's mouth. Veyl could feel the heat rising off of him and wondered if he was drunk enough to consider kissing him. It didn't seem like the best idea currently, so Veyl got his hand between them and smeared some salve over Kaidos' nose.
Kaidos grimaced and sat back on his haunches as Veyl applied more salve to the injuries on his face. Whatever had possessed him moments ago slipped quietly back beneath his stony exterior.
"Now your hands."
Veyl's skilled fingers moved over Kaidos' battered knuckles. He had the feeling that Kaidos wasn't nearly as drunk as he was making himself out to be, because he could feel the earnestness of his gaze as Kaidos continued to focus on his face. Veyl sensed that he confused the man. He confused a lot of men, and that was why he always had so many customers. While the money he brought in was pleasing to the house, it was not so to the women who worked within as prostitutes. He'd taken many of their clients without trying--often very rich and influential men. His brothel sisters would not be sad to know that he wasn't coming back, and he wouldn't have been surprised to learn that they had actually helped Kaidos get rid of him. The thought was sobering. Perhaps this was some punishment for his pride and vanity.
"Anywhere else?" Veyl asked, his palms slick with oils from the salve.
Kaidos opened his mouth as if to answer, then abruptly shut it, and shook his head.
Veyl smiled lightly, his default response to discomfort. "I suppose you'll be tying me up again then?"
"No," Kaidos said. "You're going to make us dinner tonight."
*~*~*
Veyl's fingers had been so gentle. As he'd put the medicinal on, Kaidos had felt the area cooling and the pain was already gone. His mind was less muddled by liquor and more so by the intoxicating scent that clung to Veyl. That was, of course, until the salve had been applied to his nose. Now all he could smell was the pungent aroma of mashed leaves with a hint of wine.
Ahbrim and Lirin had gone out hunting for fresh meat and Ruthgar lay on his back, murmuring the strains of some childish song as he stared up at the treetops.
Kaidos was almost happy to have his idiot brother around. It kept him from thinking about doing something incredibly foolish. He watched Veyl combing his long fingers through his hair, trying to keep it from knotting as he worked it into plaits. He imagined that Veyl probably had a boudoir full of brushes and combs. As for himself, Kaidos had recently cut his hair. Certainly, doing it oneself with a sharp knife and no mirror did not make for the best haircut, but he hadn't been concerned with his looks at that point. It bothered him that he felt concerned about them now.
"Dinner!" Ruthgar announced the brothers' return when Ahbrim entered the clearing holding up two dead rabbits.
"Give them here," Kaidos said and took the animals from him. "Here." Veyl was sitting on the log and Kaidos tossed the rabbits towards him.
Veyl flinched, making a squeak as the carcasses landed beside him."W-what?" Veyl stammered, looking between the rabbits and Kaidos.
"I'll skin and quarter them, you cook them." Kaidos wasn't going to be fool enough to hand his hostage a knife so he picked up one of the animals and began to skin it.
Veyl's eyes went wide and he slapped his hand over his mouth as the blood drained from his face.
"Is he going to be sick?" Ruthgar asked, cocking his head.
"What? That's ridicu--" But Kaidos' expression of incredulity was silenced by Veyl's retching over the back of the log.
"Oh for the love of... Ruthgar! Take over!" Kaidos hoisted Veyl up by the back of his frock and walked him to the edge of the clearing.
"What is wrong with you?" Kaidos growled releasing him with a little shove.
Veyl dropped to his knees. "I--" He swallowed hard, trying to recompose, "I can't stand to see..." He closed his eyes and swallowed again, pursing his lips tight. He pressed the back of his hand to his forehead, taking long, slow breaths.
"You really are like a woman." Kaidos curled his upper lip in scorn, shaking his head. More like a pampered princess.
"I beg your pardon--I am certain you know plenty of peasant women who would be all too happy to butcher your meals. In fact I'm sure you've slept with at least a few of them."
Kaidos felt the heat of his temper flare, but for some reason it faded and he found some irony instead.
"It almost sounds like you're jealous," he snorted.
Veyl's amber eyes narrowed. "Don't flatter yourself, rogue. Maybe you're forgetting, it's not my choice to be here."
The comment struck Kaidos' hard and cold. He hadn't quite forgotten that Veyl was his captive, but he hadn't quite remembered it, either.
/> "Fine. Stay here." Kaidos returned to his task of preparing dinner, casting angry glances towards Veyl. The whore was right--nearly all Wanderer women knew how to butcher and hunt. Maybe if he'd just settled for a tribe-girl he wouldn't be here now. But he didn't want a Wanderer wife, and after Adria he'd never want a noblewoman. The problem was, what he'd once thought he wanted no longer held such appeal, and what he did want was too far out of reach. For now he'd have to be content with delivering the merchandise to Dandre and trying to settle into a life on his own.
*~*~*
They'd eaten in silence. Veyl barely had an appetite between his current situation, the scent of freshly butchered rabbit still pervading his senses, and Lirin's lecherous gaze devouring him from the other side of the fire. Before the bizarre fight, Kaidos had demanded that Lirin leave, but they appeared to have fallen back into an uncomfortable companionship, and Veyl saw no sign of being rid of Lirin soon.
Finally, he'd had enough and stood up. "I'm going to sleep, so if you feel the need to tie me up, you'd best do it now."
He didn't wait for a response and moved slowly towards the pallet that Kaidos had made for him, trying to ignore the sensation of the many eyes staring at him from behind. It wasn't the same as those long, lingering glances from admiring clients back at the Silver Tree Manor. There he'd felt appreciated for what he could offer even by appearance alone. He'd been a piece of art, an object of desire and joy. Here he was just an object; damaged by the very real threat of his mortality. At least back at the Silver Tree, had he chosen to die he could have been a beautiful—and clean—corpse. Out here he'd likely rot from infection and end up buried in his own filth.
He plopped down on his bottom, wincing softly as he pressed his fingers against his bandaged feet. He caught Kaidos staring back at him and looked away quickly. Lying down, he pulled the rough, wool blanket up to his waist and presented his back to the group.
Veyl's long braid snaked over his shoulder and he fingered the plaits as he stared off into the darkness between the trees. He missed Ahrn. He missed the familiar and the mundane. At least if he were in his own bed he'd be safe, and know exactly what strengths he should play to.
He didn't acknowledge Kaidos until a few moments after the rogue sat down behind him. Glancing over his shoulder, he watched Kaidos take a long swallow from his wineskin, leaning back against the tree nearby. He was staring back towards the rest of the group. The man's face was a mask of stone as he seemed to be paying special attention to his eldest brother, Lirin.
Veyl closed his eyes, turning his face away once more. A few minutes later, he was aware of Kaidos lying down beside him, and after a few minutes more, the rogue was snoring softly.
Veyl sighed, trying to ignore the sounds of the brothers talking quietly by the campfire and will himself to sleep. He would not cry, he would not cry. He started slightly as Kaidos murmured in his sleep and rolled over, putting an arm around him and pressing against him from behind. Veyl braced himself for the inevitable molestation, but Kaidos breathed a drowsy kiss to his neck and remained soundly asleep.
This man was an enigma to him. At times, he was cruel and it seemed that his only concern was fulfilling his obligation to deliver Veyl as merchandise. But at other times, Kaidos seemed almost lost. The change that had come over him when he and Lirin had been fighting made it obvious that there were demons hidden in his past. There had been terror in his eyes, and while it was understandable considering that he'd nearly had the life choked out of him, what Veyl thought he'd seen was too familiar. Perhaps they had some things in common, though nothing Veyl would be callus enough to mention. Kaidos didn't seem to revel in his criminal exploits the way his brothers did. Perhaps he was also like Veyl in this way--he had a talent and that talent helped him to survive, but it wasn't what he would have chosen, had he been given a choice.
*~*~*
Kaidos woke slowly from his dream of making love to Adria. It had been so vivid, that even now, he could feel her in his arms. No, not Adria... Adria was a memory lost to him now. Kaidos tried to remember whom he'd taken to bed last night... he'd been planning to head to the Wanderer's camp--had they arrived already? He snuggled against the body's warmth, pressing his growing hardness against her firm, round bottom. He breathed in the scent of her hair--something strangely comforting and familiar. It wasn't perfume, and yet the fragrance smelled clean, with a hint of some exotic floral.
Kaidos sat up with a jerk as he realized whom it was that he'd held in his arms. He scowled down at the beautiful whore still sleeping beside him, his face burning from the shame of his arousal. Was this then how other men brought themselves to join with him? Perhaps the married guard captain pretended that Veyl was a woman when he slid inside. If only looking at the whore's face, it would be very easy to mistake him as such; though to be considered the man's lover, Kaidos believed there had to be more to it than that.
Kaidos allowed his eyes to move slowly along the line of Veyl's body. No curves as such like a woman's, and yet his lean figure was still graceful and alluring.
He looked across the clearing and saw that his brothers were still sleeping soundly in their bedrolls. Ruthgar and Ahbrim were snoring softly in tandem, and Lirin's back was to the group. Kaidos relaxed once more, propping his head on his hand. He had no idea how to handle someone like Veyl. Had Veyl been like any other man, Kaidos likely would have mashed his face into paste by now and kept him bound like a wild animal; or maybe he'd be indifferent. Anything would be better than the constant wavering between befuddled lust and occasional disdain.
CHAPTER EIGHT
The Princess
Ruthgar and Ahbrim had left early and now returned with three horses they'd let roam while they'd been encamped. These were Wanderer-bred animals and remained loyal to their masters' call. Unlike Kaidos' newly-purchased horse who had to be tethered to a tree to keep from wandering off.
Veyl was just rising as the party gathered their belongings and made ready to break camp; when the new horses saw him, they began to dance nervously.
"What's gotten into them?" Ruthgar frowned as he and Ahbrim did their best to hold the uneasy animals and calm them down.
"They must not like the way your princess smells." Lirin sniggered, saddling up his own mount.
Kaidos shot him a scowl, but was at a loss as to the reason for the animals' reactions. Veyl hadn't done anything to spook the horses. Being Wanderer horses the animals were more than used to seeing brightly colored-clothing, so the purple frock Veyl wore shouldn't have made the animal panic.
"Oh," Ruthgar said, nodding his head, "Elf. Lirin said the pretty boy was some parts elf."
"What difference does that make?" Kaidos led his own horse over towards Veyl. The stallion was docile compared to the others.
"The reason the horses were spooked is that elf-blood of his." Lirin said conversationally.
Kaidos narrowed his eyes "What are you talking about?"
"Oh, that's right...it was a couple of years ago. Well after you'd left," Ahbrim said with a nod. "One of the caravans had a run-in with the forest folk—the elves. Didn't ask their permission to make camp in their territory. The elves charmed away the horses and left the tribe stranded, then ambushed them…killed seven men. So all of the tribes started training the horses to be wary, and all of the tribes despise elves." He looked at Veyl and quirked his mouth with a little shrug.
Kaidos cursed softly under his breath. He hadn't been in a camp long enough recently to hear about any such trouble. Always there was talk of which towns were hostile to the Wanderers and who in the tribes had been caught stealing. These were the kinds of idle fireside chatter that Kaidos ignored, having grown up with it. But the fact that there had been a feud with the elves was not good news. It had been wrong of the affected tribe to venture into their forest unannounced. Normally the elves kept to themselves, rarely seen by humans who kept to the roads. Asking the elves for permission to travel or camp in their territories was just common courte
sy; or so he'd presumed. Perhaps, like himself, no one had ever realized just how dangerous a trespass could be. This could present a problem. They had come so far from any town that they really had no choice but to head to the Wanderer's camp for supplies. Besides, Kaidos was also sick of lying on the hard, cold ground.
"Looks like you're going to have to keep a close watch on your princess, Kai. Wouldn't want anyone finding out what he is and taking their anger out on the poor thing." Lirin sighed insincerely, swinging up onto his horse.
Grinding his teeth, Kaidos tried to formulate a way to keep Veyl's identity secret. "You're riding with me...I guess you'll need some breeches." He dug through his pack on the back of his horse, pulling out a pair of worn grey breeches, then tossed them to Veyl.
"Are they at least clean?" Veyl scowled, catching the clothing. He held them up between two fingers.
"Of course they're clean!"
The three brothers were apparently finding the argument entertaining, chuckling as they watched. Veyl shook out the breeches, holding them to his waist with a defeated sigh.
"Would you all at least be so kind as to turn around?"
"Turn around," Kaidos barked but only turned enough himself so he could maintain a vigil out of the corner of his eye. At least that was his excuse for watching. He knew Veyl wouldn't be fool enough to think he could slip away while their backs were turned. Aside from his talent with herb-craft, he man seemed to have no survival skills whatsoever. But then why would he? He was a whore from a fancy brothel, kept perfumed and pampered.
Ruthgar giggled, nudging Kaidos lightly. "Is he really a boy?"
Kaidos grimaced, not wanting to have to explain to anyone how certain he was of Veyl's sex.
Veyl let out an exasperated huff but pulled the breeches on beneath his frock. He lifted up the hem, frowning down at the gathers of silky flowing material.
"I'll solve that problem." Kaidos took out a dagger and, pulling the jumble of skirting from Veyl's arms, he sliced and began to tear the garment around the middle. "There, do the rest."
