by Hope Hart
Tecar nods. “Our tribe is small, but our warriors are fierce. We will meet the Voildi with the full force of our rage.”
“Dexar is sending warriors to join us, and he has sent messengers to other tribes as well. In the meantime, we must improve your defenses.”
At this, Tecar’s eyes narrow. “Our camp is well defended.”
I do not have the time to spare this warrior’s ego, even if he is a king. I get to my feet. “I studied your camp for barely a few moments, and I could already see more than one opportunity for improvement. On the east side, it’s clear to see which kradi is used by the healers, and it is located much too close to the outskirts of the camp. This will be the first kradi to be attacked. It should stay in place, as the Voildi will target it, assuming that they will be able to take out your healers. In the meantime, you will need to remove all sick and injured and shift the healers to a kradi that is more easily defended in the center of the camp.”
Tecar grits his teeth and nods. “What else?”
I shrug. “It took too long for your sentries to notice us and react accordingly. They need to be spaced further apart and hidden so they can see the Voildi coming. You must also untie the mishua and allow them to roam free in their pens. If the Voildi get close, the mishua won’t hesitate to strike them down. Would you like me to continue?” I raise my eyebrow and attempt to ignore a slight choking sound from Beth as she obviously tries to hold back her laugh.
“No,” Tecar says. “This is Yurix, my head of security. He will take your suggestions under advisement.” Tecar shifts his gaze to the grizzled male, who nods, and then glances at one of his other warriors, a wide-shouldered male who gives us an easy grin.
“Verkas will show you to a kradi so you can rest, and we will meet in the morning. In the meantime, I must talk with my advisers.”
Beth
Verkas is a talker, and he chats to the other warriors while we walk toward the kradis reserved for guests. Zarix is silent apart from the occasional grunt, but he strokes his hand along my lower back as I hobble into the space.
Zarix, Javir, and I will share one kradi, and the other warriors will share another, swapping out so two of them can sleep while the others guard our backs.
Unlike the kradis at Dexar’s camp, these are sparsely furnished and decorated. A few chairs sit low to the ground while three sets of furs are lying in different spots along the outer edge of the kradi. Our saddlebags have been placed neatly against one wall, and my knees practically go weak at the idea of clean clothes and a few hours of sleep.
Zarix murmurs in my ear, “Get some rest. I’ll be back soon.”
Verkas motions to a servant as Zarix leaves me alone. “Inniz will show you where you can bathe if you like?”
“I’d love that.” I should be cleaning my stitches more often than I have been, and the last thing I need is to risk a nasty infection.
Javir lays down my crossbow and stares at Inniz suspiciously. He’s been quiet since we left, and I haven’t wanted to push him.
“I’ll come with you,” he says, and Inniz simply smiles.
“Of course. The male bathing area is located nearby.”
I grab a change of clothes, and we follow Inniz. Luckily, the bathing area is close by, and I feel my eyebrows rise as I take in the hot pools.
“Wow, they look amazing.”
Each pool is surrounded by greenery, giving bathers privacy. Inniz leads me to one of the more secluded pools and gestures to where soap and a cloth-like towel have been laid out for me. Then she points to a little bell.
“If you need anything, please just use the bell.”
“Thank you so much,” I say, practically vibrating with the need to get clean.
Tiny wrinkles appear near her large brown eyes as she smiles again, and then she turns, leading Javir away. I listen to them murmuring for a few more moments, and then his low laugh fades into the distance.
I glance around, shrug, and strip. It feels weird to be naked outside, but my need to get clean outweighs my modesty right now.
I sit down on the edge of the pool and pull off the bandage, studying my stitches. The stitches look okay, with none of the angry red that would indicate infection. I avoid poking at it for now and slide my butt over, sinking into the pool.
The water is warm and clean, and I sigh as I slip deeper, dunking my head.
This is the life.
For a moment, I can forget that I’m on a strange planet with a man who makes me question my determination to return to the career that I worked so hard for.
I’m basically at an alien spa, and I’m going to enjoy the hell out of it.
I soap up my hair and rinse it twice. Then I wash every inch of my body. I’m gently cleaning my stitches when female voices sound.
I slap my hands over my breasts and sink deeper as the voices get closer.
A woman laughs, and I hear splashing as someone slips into a pool. Her friend murmurs something, and they must move closer to me because I can hear their conversation.
I almost announce myself, letting them know I’m here, and then I hear it.
“—Zarix,” one of them says, her voice young and girlish.
I freeze, slowly moving closer to the voices, careful not to splash and draw attention to myself.
The other woman’s voice is throaty. “Mmm, I would love to tumble him.”
A snort. “Maybe before all of this. No longer.”
“He has no idea, does he?”
“Why would he? Herick disappeared years ago. They probably think he’s dead.”
“It would be better if he were dead. Imagine the gall of him to join a tribe that would work with the Voildi.” Disgust coats her words, and I stare at the water in shock.
They can’t possibly be talking about—
“All I want to know is whether these warriors from Dexar’s tribe can even be trusted. You know what they say—like father, like son.”
The words are in Braxian, but my translator turns them into a saying I’ve heard many times on Earth. It turns out that people really are assholes everywhere.
This will kill Zarix. The guy is already so hardened by life. He thinks I can’t tell that under his rough exterior is a man who has been kicked down by his circumstances and pushes people away because he can’t face losing them.
He already carries so much blame for what happened to Hana. What will happen when he finds out that his own father has betrayed his people?
I shift, accidentally banging my leg against the stone side of the pool. I let out a yelp as pain runs up my leg and slap a hand over my mouth as the women’s voices go silent.
Shit.
I have a vision of my naked ass flashing through the camp as I attempt to hobble out of here, and I close my eyes. I’m not going anywhere.
After a long, fraught moment, they finally resume their conversation, although their voices are lowered. I blow out a breath and slowly pull myself out of the pool, reaching for the towel.
My mind is racing with my next move. Maybe the women are just gossips, and Zarix’s dad has nothing to do with Lafa’s tribe.
But what if they’re telling the truth and Zarix is about to go to war, with no idea that his father will be on the opposite side? If that’s the case, then he’ll need a little warning so he can mentally prepare himself.
I pull on my clothes, leaving my leg unbandaged. Elliz gave me some salve to put on the stitches, so I’ll do that in the kradi. In the meantime, I have to figure out just exactly what I’m going to tell Zarix.
One thing is for sure—I have to tell him something. Zarix would never tolerate a lie of omission, even if it’s with the intention of protecting him.
Zarix is nowhere to be found when I return from my bath. A much sweeter-smelling Javir is curled up, snoring in his furs, and despite myself, I smile.
I must doze off while waiting for Zarix because I jolt when his arms come around me.
“Shh,” he whispers. “It’s just me.�
�
“I’ve got something to tell you,” I blurt out.
“What?” His voice is low and gruff, and I turn in his arms, blinking up at him.
He looks exhausted.
“Where were you?” I ask instead. “What time is it?”
He shrugs. “Almost dawn.”
He’s been awake all night, likely finding holes in the camp security.
I snuggle close, closing my eyes. He’ll never sleep if I tell him now.
“Never mind,” I say. “Let’s talk in the morning.”
Chapter Thirteen
Zarix
I growl in satisfaction as I pull Beth close, both of us panting as we recover from our morning tumble. Exploring her delicate body is a million times more invigorating than the scant hours of sleep I have just had. She feels perfect in my arms, and I shake off the thought even as I bury my hand in her long, silky hair.
Beth will leave. Just as everyone else has left me, Beth will return to her planet and to the kind of males who would never think to torture a Voildi for information.
I saw the look in her eyes yesterday. She was revolted—both at the words the Voildi was saying and the actions I took to make him talk.
Usually I would never allow a Voildi to live. But the thought of seeing any more disgust on Beth’s face stilled my hand. It was only after, when I imagined the Voildi explaining its injuries to its pack, that I realized death would have been a more merciful end.
Beth is gentle and soft. While she has a smart mouth and a quick wit, she was not made for the harsh realities of this planet and even less so for the reality of life with me.
“Zarix,” she begins, and I roll, careful not to knock her leg.
“We need to remove those stitches today,” I say, and she nods.
“I’m going to switch to only using one crutch and see how I do. Listen, we need to talk.”
I feel a sharp disquiet at her tone, and I lower my head, pressing a kiss to her soft mouth. She relaxes under me, warm and welcoming, and I growl, raising my head as voices sound outside.
The other warriors are waiting, and I must get to work.
“I will be back later,” I say, getting to my knees.
She glowers at me and then sighs. “Fine. What will I do today?”
I frown. “I suppose it would be too much to ask you to stay in the kradi where you will be safe?”
“That’s right,” she says sweetly, but her eyes flash dangerously. A laugh rises in my chest, and the sound seems to echo in the kradi. I cut it off, raising my eyebrows, and Beth snorts even as a slow grin spreads over her face.
“Not used to that, are you?” she teases, and I narrow my eyes back, well aware that the voices have silenced outside. Likely the warriors have died in shock at the idea of my showing any expression of humor.
“I’m not,” I say honestly, reaching for my sword. I slide my feet into my boots, and my whole body aches to rejoin her as she stretches in the furs. Her breasts pop out from beneath the blanket, and my mouth waters for the taste of her small nipples.
“Your cruelty knows no bounds,” I say, gritting my teeth as my cock hardens.
“That’s what you get for suggesting I stay in this tiny tent all day,” she smirks, and I barely resist the urge to kiss the smirk off her lush mouth.
“Stay within camp,” I say instead, and she nods, the humor leaving her eyes. “I mean it,” I say. “One of our warriors should be with you at all times.”
She nods again, and I turn, finally joining Tazo, Perik, and Dekir. All of them examine me as if I have walked out of the kradi without my clothes on.
“What?”
“Nothing,” Tazo says after a long moment. “I was simply unaware that you knew how to laugh.”
I show him my teeth, and Perik snorts in amusement.
“Let’s go” is all I say, striding away.
Beth
I feel like a complete badass as I pick up my crossbow. Shortly after Zarix left, Verkas stopped by our kradi, his eyes twinkling as he checked if I needed anything. I immediately asked for a crossbow lesson, and now we’re set up on the other side of the camp, where a large, solid piece of wood hangs from a tree.
Verkas steps forward, adjusting my stance. The majority of my weight is on my right leg, which would leave most people off-balance.
Luckily, as a dancer, I’m used to spending large amounts of time on one leg.
“Okay, now raise the crossbow.”
I bring it up, gritting my teeth slightly at the weight of it. I didn’t notice how heavy this thing was when I fired it at the Voildi in the tavern, adrenaline taking over.
Right now, muscles in my arms, back, core, and thighs are tense as I work to hold the crossbow steady.
Verkas grins. “You will need to practice holding the weapon for minutes at a time to strengthen these muscles.”
I nod. “Okay. Now what?”
“Now, the number one rule when using a crossbow is to always keep your hands under this long piece of wood here. Keep your fingers away from this string.”
I stare at the string that creates tension in the crossbow. Yikes. After the way I shakily handled this thing at the tavern, I’m lucky I’m not down one finger.
I blow out a breath, and Verkas chuckles.
“Ready?”
I nod, staring past the crossbow and at the target. It’s about fifty feet away—much further than the Voildi I shot the last time I fired this thing.
I squeeze the trigger, and we both watch as my bolt sails past the target, hitting another tree.
“Well,” Verkas says as I lower the crossbow. “At least you hit something.”
I send him a dirty look, and he laughs, gesturing for me to try again.
By the time we’re finished, I’ve hit the board twice, and the trees surrounding it are studded with bolts.
“Wow,” a voice says from behind us. “You’re really bad at that.”
I turn and glower at Javir, who sends me a shit-eating grin. Someone is obviously feeling a little better.
“It’s a matter of practice,” I sniff. “Give me a few days, and I’ll be excellent.”
From the look on Javir’s face, he doesn’t quite believe me, but he begins collecting my bolts and handing them to Verkas, who loads the crossbow and slides the rest of the bolts into the canvas bag.
“Thanks for the lesson.” I smile at Verkas, and he winks at me.
“Anytime.”
Braxians are flooding into camp as we move back toward our kradi. I keep an eye out for Zarix and spot him talking to Tecar as they watch the warriors arrive. Zarix’s dark eyes are hard, but his gaze warms as he turns his head, watching me walk toward him.
“Which tribe are these guys from?” I ask.
“Dexar’s. We still have not heard word from the messengers who traveled to Rakiz’s tribe. There are three other tribes who have promised to send warriors, but their numbers are low.”
I gnaw on my lip. I’m starting to realize just how much danger we could really be in. I’m about to be involved in a battle on an alien planet. But it’s Zarix I’m worried about. If I know anything about the warrior, it’s that he’ll be on the front lines, cutting his way through the Voildi. From the savage expression on his face, he’s looking forward to it.
My chest clenches at the thought. What if he gets hurt? What if someone manages to get past his defenses and takes him from me?
Javir moves to Tecar’s side, immediately regaling him with a story. I scowl. From the amused look on Tecar’s face as he glances at me, I have a feeling Javir is telling him about my lack of skill with the crossbow.
One of Tecar’s warriors steps forward to talk to him, and Javir turns away. Perik walks past, and Javir’s eyes narrow as he tilts his head, his body tensing as if he’s a cat about to pounce on a mouse.
He leaps forward, pulling his knife out of the warrior’s pocket. He’s not subtle this time though, and Perik turns, his huge hand lashing out to cuff Javir ar
ound the head.
Zarix tenses, and then he’s there, shoving Javir behind him as he glares at Perik.
“Don’t touch the boy,” he growls, and Perik’s eyes widen in surprise. He glances around, taking in the many eyes on both of them, and then he shrugs, throwing up his hands and walking away.
We’re all on edge, none more so than Zarix. I glance up at him as he moves close, gently turning me to face him.
“What’s wrong?” he murmurs.
“Nothing.”
He gives me a look, but I clamp my mouth shut. The last thing he needs right now is to hear all about how worried I am that he’s going to end up seriously hurt or worse.
“What can I do to help?” I ask. With so many warriors flooding in here, surely I can set up some kradis or something.
He opens his mouth, and then we both turn as someone begins shouting.
A warrior is heading toward camp, his mishua galloping past the flood of Braxians. He’s pale, and the area goes quiet as he reaches Tecar.
“Voildi,” he growls. “An army of them. According to one of our sentries, they’re less than three days away.”
Tecar nods, sending the warrior into camp to rest and refresh. Then he turns to Zarix.
“It appears you were right,” he grits out, and Zarix just nods, his gaze scanning the camp.
We’re standing on a small hill and can see most of the camp from here. Dexar’s warriors are currently setting up kradis so they have somewhere to sleep, and we watch as the last of the healers leave their kradi, moving to the new one that’s more heavily guarded in the center of the camp.
“We need to move the females and children to the safest kradis.” Zarix glances at me, and I narrow my eyes at him. If he tries to send me away from him, I’ll make him wish he’d reconsidered.
The corner of his mouth tips up as he studies my face. I fold my arms in front of my chest.
“Tell me you won’t try to send me away,” I say.
He hesitates for a long moment and then finally gives me a sharp nod, although I can see the concession costs him.
