by Vonna Harper
“At first I believed he was a hawk but smaller than any I have ever seen,” Tau continued. “Why, I wondered, were the spirits handing me this vision. Then during one dream, the hawk took flight and I began to understand.”
Tau’s voice lost some of its volume. Just the same, Jola had no difficulty hearing every word, not that she needed to because she already knew what he was going to say. At least she believed she did.
In the dream after the flying one, Tau had watched two hawks soar and sweep around each other. The smaller bird had repeatedly passed food off to the larger one, the larger flying upside down and effortlessly taking a fresh kill from the small one’s talons.
“I have never seen anything like what happened,” Tau continued. “They rose high into the sky as one, circling each other as if they were dancing with the wind. Then, together, they turned and dove for the ground. Their speed—unbelievable! My eyes couldn’t keep up.”
“That dream ended, leaving me in awe. The next night there was another vision. When it was over, I understood that I’d been watching a mating pair. The male, smaller than the female, killed prey after prey and took it to his mate so she could eat it while flying. After feeding, they mated, also in the sky, their bodies blurred. Following that, the female scraped a hollow in dirt and vegetation on a high ledge, and they nested there. She lay four snow-white eggs with red markings and spent every night keeping the eggs warm. In the day, the pair took turns caring for their offspring. When the chicks were born, their down was creamy white, their feet huge.”
Although she’d tried to relax, her heart continued its fast tempo. Her knees ached, but she didn’t want to draw attention to herself by changing position. If only she could get him to stop speaking!
“Are you ready to hear about the next dream?”
No! Knowing she had no choice, she nodded. Her hands and feet were cold, her torso hot.
“No longer did I feel as if I were standing on the ground watching. Instead, it was as if I had been given wings and was flying only a few feet away while the hawk hunted. I don’t know what kind of bird the hawk caught, just that the prey was larger. He did so in midair. One instant I saw a blur of movement speeding toward earth, going faster than the fastest arrow. The next, the prey was spinning out of control, whirling in circles and dropping with its feathers swirling like a snowfall around it. It fell only a few feet before the hawk clamped its talons around the body and took it to the ground where it ate it. I have never seen anything move with such speed, not by half. I’d think if the hawk had struck its prey in the middle of its body, the blow might have killed both birds. Instead, the hawk struck a wing, which is why the prey spun the way it did.”
Tau obviously expected her to be disbelieving, but although she should give him what he was waiting for, she couldn’t. In fact, she was tempted to tell him the rest, that what he was calling a hawk but was a falcon had reached that great speed by folding back its tail and wings and tucking its talons against its body. In essence, the falcon became an arrow.
“There was one more dream,” Tau said after a short silence. “In it, I learned two things.”
Be patient. Wait him out. Say nothing.
“First, that those hawks are called ‘falcons.’ And second, that what we first believed was worthless land is where they live.”
She’d grown up believing her kind were different from all others. Even though Falcons assumed human proportions some of the time, they weren’t true humans. Instead, they were rare and special, gifts from the gods. But why would a god or spirit let Tau see as much as he had?
Even more important, what use did he intend to make of those dreams and how did his plans involve her?
“You know where falcons live when they aren’t hunting,” she heard Tau say despite the fog descending around her. “Don’t tell me you haven’t seen their nests.”
Almost before he finished speaking, the fog started to lift, allowing her to comprehend it for what it was. She’d been afraid Tau knew everything about her and the rest of the Falcons. But he didn’t understand that predator and human shared the same heart.
“Answer me! Where do the falcons live?”
“You’ve been here for several moons,” she countered. “Surely you don’t need me to tell you what your scouts should have discovered long ago.”
Tau didn’t rise to his feet with Nakos’s easy grace, but he still made her aware of the difference in their size as he stood. When she was in predator form, size didn’t matter. Unfortunately, she couldn’t change here.
“That’s what I hoped and believed when we began this quest, but I was wrong. This place”—he all but spat the words—“keeps its secrets well.”
He was standing over her now, looming really. He’d spread his legs and folded his arms across his chest to intimidate her; she couldn’t shake free of his impact on her senses. Her useless arms had something to do with it, of course, but her fear came from a deeper place. He could hurt her. He was capable of inflicting pain and would do whatever it took to try to strip everything she knew from her.
As suddenly as her fear had swamped her, it died under powerful anger. He might be able to control her human body, but in her heart she was a Falcon. She’d die before she betrayed her kind.
“Why do you care?” she demanded. “A falcon is a bird. Nothing for a shaman to concern himself with.”
“How can you, a simple creature, begin to know of a shaman’s plans?”
Spittle had formed at the corners of his mouth. But if she didn’t push him, she might never learn what she needed to.
“Falcons have long been part of our world,” she said, dancing around the truth. “We admire their speed and skill, but they live their lives the same as every other creature. I don’t understand—”
“Of course you don’t. You’re incapable of seeing their potential.”
The chill she’d managed to ignore swept over her again. “Potential?”
“To benefit the Ekewoko.”
“How can that be? They’re wild birds. No one can possibly capture them.”
The way he shook his head put her in mind of a parent whose patience has been tested by a misbehaving child. About to say something to alter his low opinion of her, she changed her mind. Maybe, if she played into his ego, he might reveal more than he would otherwise.
“We have never tried—I mean, it has never occurred to my people to try—to make some use of them.” She frowned. “But you are right. No other creature can match their hunting prowess. That’s what you’re thinking of, aren’t you?”
He nearly smiled. “Think. A falcon can bring down birds much larger than themselves as well as rabbits, squirrels, young raccoons, snakes, and rodents.”
“Yes.”
“And once my warriors and I have trained them to kill on command, they will turn their skills on our enemy. They know nothing of fear. The Outsiders’ weapons will mean nothing to them. Ekew will again belong to us.”
“Train them? How is that possible?”
“Even if I was inclined to tell you, which I’m not, only someone, like me, with spirit-given patience and understanding can mold a newborn falcon into a killer. The blood of the Outsiders will flow—”
“Newborn?”
“Enough! I’ve told you everything I’m going to. Now”—his joyless smile grew—“do you understand what use I have for you? The Ekewoko will reclaim Ekew, they will!”
He wanted her to take him to a falcon nest! Expected her to stand by while he stole chicks, maybe first killing their parents!
“No!”
“Yes!” His foot flew out, catching her shoulder and knocking her back so she sprawled on the ground. “Do you think your refusal will get you anywhere? My poor creature, breaking you will be far easier than training a falcon.”
Although her shoulder throbbed, she sat back up. Much as she wanted to jump to her feet and pummel him, she forced herself to remain still. A single shout from him and the Ekewoko warriors would
charge into the tent and overwhelm her. Maybe Nakos would join them.
“If your dreams showed falcons preparing their nests, then you must know how inaccessible those places are.” She deliberately kept her tone level. “None of my people have ever tried to climb up there.”
“Climb where? Where do they nest?”
“I don’t know.”
“You said—”
“Because my people have never come across a falcon nest, we assume they’re high in the mountains far from here. We see them only when they’re hunting.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Why would I lie to you?”
His smile had flattened even before she’d finished asking her question. In some ways she relished pitting her mind against his. Even more, she longed to stand face to face with him and see which could battle the other into submission.
“You, my simple creature, will do whatever you believe you need to to stay alive—even fuck your captor.”
“That’s why you think I—”
“You’re not denying that you and Nakos had sex?”
Why was the conversation taking this turn? Cautious, she shrugged. The gesture sent sharp pain into where he’d kicked her.
“Don’t you understand?” Although he reached behind him and touched his stool, he remained standing. “If you wanted sex as much as he did, which is what I believe, that’s all the proof I need.”
Proof of what? Hating this man who believed he could do whatever he wanted to her, she refused to respond.
“Interesting,” Tau muttered. “You’re thinking. I didn’t expect that. However—yes, yes, this is better. The more complex you are, the more I have to work with.”
Eyes open, she imagined herself soaring over Tau. In her mind, he was standing at the base of Raptor’s Craig looking for a way to the top. She wouldn’t care if he spotted her. In fact, she wanted him to see the deceptively small raptor floating in endless circles above him. She’d pace herself so it looked as if she had nothing in mind except playing with the wind and letting it play with her. She’d keep her talons close to her body and her beak closed, occasionally drifting low so Tau could make out her yellow rimmed eyes.
Eventually he’d lose interest in her. That’s when she’d dive, extend her claws, and tear open his cheek. Half a heartbeat later, she’d reach his throat and rip it apart. He’d try to stem the blood flow by clamping his hands over his neck, but within moments he’d sink to the ground, weak and dying.
Just as he wanted her and other Falcons to do to the Outsiders.
“Stop it!” Erasing the distance between them in two steps, Tau slapped her. Her head snapped back; her cheek stung.
“What?” she asked, determined not to give away her fury.
“Your eyes—what was that? They started changing color, becoming—”
What? “You’re an old man. Your eyesight isn’t what it used to be.”
She thought he’d strike her again, but he only pushed her back. Although the tent opening was behind her, she didn’t try to escape. Instead, she wrapped what he’d just told her about her eye color around her. Was it possible? Could a Falcon change form anywhere except at Raptor’s Craig? That had never happened, but if the Falcon was desperate enough—
“You are a wild animal,” he told her, his hands fisted and his nostrils flared. “Too primitive to know when you’re facing death.”
“If you kill me, your dreams won’t be realized.”
Something flicked in his eyes only to fade before she could be sure it was fear. But much as she needed to examine the depth and length of his fear, if that’s what it was, she also needed to understand what he was capable of.
“It was nothing for Nakos to capture you,” he said. “If something happens to you, he’ll get another of your kind.”
“Maybe. And maybe my kind, as you call us, saw my capture. Maybe they’re preparing to attack.”
Tau’s gaze flickered from her to the tent flap, then back to her. He opened his mouth only to close it. Watching his reaction was almost laughable. His dreams might have given him a sense of direction, but they’d told him nothing about Falcons. Otherwise, he’d know who and what she was.
“Do you think I haven’t thought of that,” he finally said. “Where do you think Nakos went this morning? He, along with several others, are looking for your kind near where he found you. If, when they spot them, they are met with hostility, there will only be one outcome: victory for the Ekewoko.”
Nakos wasn’t in camp; he had no way of knowing what was going on between her and Tau. At least she hoped he didn’t. “Your warriors won’t find anything,” she said belatedly.
“How can you—”
“My people know this land, its hiding places, secret caves and narrow valleys.”
Once again Tau looked at the opening. She shouldn’t, but she almost felt sorry for the older man. What was it like to be ruled by one’s dreams, to be controlled by powerful and mysterious forces?
She wanted to believe that the so-called Ekewoko spirits and gods couldn’t possibly speak to the shaman and his dreams. Surely they were nothing more than his overactive imagination. But some powerful essence had created her kind. Anything was possible.
“Hiding places are important but not just to your people,” Tau mused. “That’s why we’ve been unable to find where the falcons nest. If Nakos and the others discover no indication that your kind will try to rescue you, then he will concentrate on you. He’ll force you to take him to where the falcons lay their eggs.”
“Never!”
“Never?” Tau shot back. “How wrong you are.”
“I would die before I betray either my people or anything else that lives here.”
Before she could escape, Tau grabbed her neck. His fingers pressed down, threatening to cut off her ability to breathe. “Your death won’t be necessary, slave. However, once we are done with you, you might prefer that to your fate.”
“Let—me go!”
“Never!”
14
Although Nakos and the three warriors who’d accompanied him had each brought along two water-filled bladders, it hadn’t been enough. Judging by the way his companions sucked on theirs, he wasn’t the only one to feel the sun’s impact. At least they’d accomplished what Lord Sakima had ordered them to and were on their way back to camp.
“Did you think we’d find anything?” Ohanko asked.
Nakos looked over at his equally sweaty and dirty friend. “No. The Wildings are like ghosts.”
“Maybe they are ghosts. What better explanation for why we so seldom glimpse them?”
“Do you really think that?”
“I don’t know what to believe.” Ohanko wiped sweat off his temple. “You’re the only one I’d tell this, but I will never understand why we came here. Of all the places—”
“I agree.” Even though he’d convinced himself that they were alone, Nakos again took in his surroundings. “The land is worthless. And the Wildings—”
“Are welcome to this godless place.” Sighing, Ohanko shook his head. “Something I’ve wondered about. Do you think the other Wildings look like the female you captured? From a distance it’s hard to tell.”
“Her name is Jola,” he told the man he’d long thought of as a brother.
“Jola? I’m surprised she told you that.”
“So am I.”
“Hmm. It sounds as if the creature has caught your interest, not that I blame you. She is beautiful, in a wild way. The moment I first saw her, I wanted to fuck her.” Ohanko laughed. “But then I haven’t seen a woman for so long that, given the chance, I’d probably bury myself in anything with a pussy. She does have one, doesn’t she?”
Although he wasn’t sure he wanted to continue this conversation, Nakos nodded.
“What do you think’s going to happen to her?”
“Tau insists he has use for her.” He had to work the words past the tightness in his throat.
&nbs
p; “Of course he does. He won’t rest until he’s done everything he can to turn his spirit-dreams into reality. But that’s not what I’m asking.”
Stopping, Nakos faced the other warrior. His legs ached, and he couldn’t stop wondering what Lamuka was preparing for dinner. “Say it.”
“She’s yours by rights of capture. Not only that, you saved her life.”
“Maybe.”
“What do you mean?”
“Nothing, maybe. I’m just not sure—Ohanko, she might have lived even if I hadn’t pulled her out of the lake.”
“How? With the poison in her—”
“I know.” Although the sun was heading for the horizon, it wouldn’t reach it for a while, and there was no shade where they stood. Between the heat, his thirst, and hunger, he could hardly think. “From the moment I first saw her, I knew I’d have to turn her over to Tau and my lord. I told myself it didn’t matter, that I had no use for a simple captive, but she fascinates me.”
“Is it her,” Ohanko softly asked, “or the thought of having something that’s yours and only yours?”
“Don’t!” His outburst swirling around him, Nakos looked to see if the others had heard him, but they were a fair distance away. “I’m not the little boy I once was.”
“I know.” Reaching out, Ohanko patted his shoulder. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought that up. Tell me, would she make a good sex slave?”
Ohanko’s question didn’t surprise him. Just the same, he couldn’t think how to respond. Maybe, if he could clean his mind of thoughts of what he and Jola had shared, it would be different.
“You know what I’m talking about,” his friend continued. “Does she enjoy sex? Does she welcome your cock?”
“She welcomes it.”
“Ah.” Sighing, Ohanko cradled his flaccid cock. “With heat?”
“With heat.”
“Did she come?”
If anyone else had asked, he wouldn’t have answered. “Yes.”
