Hunted: The Warrior Chronicles #2 (15 page)

S
hanti was so tired
she could barely feel her body. Limbs plagued with a tremor she couldn’t control, numb feet, eyelids coated with iron and trying to lock shut—she was a mess. Even her horse was spent. The animal’s sides heaved, its breath puffing white through the chilled air.

All eight fighters had escaped with their lives. Tobias had sustained a gash on his leg from a sword that wouldn’t be too big of a deal, and Jaime, a man Shanti barely knew, had taken an arrow to his left arm. The arrow had barely sliced into the flesh just below his shoulder before it fell away, the barb not sticking, but the wound would hinder him. Marc could patch him up, but he’d need rest to make a full recovery, something he wouldn’t get. He’d just have to make do.

Cayan’s crew had already arrived by the time the horses walked into the designated meeting point. As they neared the other horses, Shanti slumped even further into her saddle, almost lying on the neck of her horse.

“What’s wrong with her?” Cayan stalked up with decisive movements to accompany his harsh tone. “Is she hurt?”

“The
Sarshers
strong. Very strong. Strongest we have seen. They nearly overcome her.” Rohnan slid to the ground as Cayan came to the side of her horse.

Shanti felt his hands slide around her middle gently, careful not to jostle her.

“I’m fine, Cayan.” She feebly pushed at his unyielding arms. His hands hooked around her waist and upper shoulder before sliding her over the side of her horse. As her balance tipped, she clutched onto him with numbed arms. Her legs dangled as he hoisted her like a child and cradled her next to his body.

“It’s a good thing you treat me like your equal and let me walk on my own,” she muttered, focusing all her power on not dropping her head to his shoulder.

“You’d just fall down. You’re a woman—letting you crawl toward the fire would make me look bad,” Cayan said softly.

“Oh great. Look after
your
reputation.”

“What happened?”

Shanti pushed through the tired fog of her brain, ignoring the spicy feeling of their mated power bubbling up, to the quick skirmish with the Hunter. “He couldn’t have meant to sacrifice those
Sarshers
. They were incredibly strong for Inkna. Xandre won’t be happy we took them out.”

“Rohnan couldn’t help?” Cayan walked up to a roaring fire surrounded by stones to keep the blaze contained. Somewhere close the smell of cooking wafted up and flirted with Shanti’s senses.

“His
Gift
doesn’t work like that. He can give me some power and energy, but his
Gift
is all receptive. When Burson masked your power, it mostly cut me off from you, and then there was the distance. I had a hard time blocking their attack.”

Her head felt like it was full of water, heavy and slow-moving. Cayan’s warmth, and the strength of his arms surrounding her, made her eyelids droop in fatigue. Her arms tightened around his neck as the thought of sleep, cradled in warmth in safety, stole her focus.

Her scoff had her eyes fluttering open again. Safety, what a pleasant fantasy. “Put me down, Cayan. I’m not a toddler.”

“Act like toddler,” Rohnan said, standing close—probably monitoring Cayan’s hold. Regardless of what Shanti had said, Rohnan still didn’t trust Cayan’s motives.

Shanti sighed as she was set on soft furs near the fire. Cayan’s people always did everything to extremes, including comfort. In the future, it would just eat time, but for right now, she was thankful. “Marc saved the day. It was his shot that prevented the Hunter from finding his mark.”

“And everyone else? Tobias is limping slightly and Jaime is grim…” Cayan said, straightening.

“I’m good, sir. Just a cut. Marc said he can put some salve on it,” Tobias called from behind them.

“Marc will see to me as well.” Jaime’s voice held strain. Shanti knew that he was trying to ignore the pain.

She sat with a hunched back as the warmth from the fire seeped into her skin. Burson sat opposite her poring over a map. Gracas and Leilius stared at her with solemn eyes and thin lips. Leilius had seen action before, but she knew it scared him when he thought about it for any length of time. This was the first time for Gracas, and though he’d probably start to love the excitement, the first plunge had left him in quiet contemplation.

Or maybe it was just being in the vicinity of the Captain. It was hard to say with the spirited youth.

The rest of Cayan’s group must’ve been at the small fire on the other side of a line of trees. She could see the glow and the shadows of men, but she was too far away to make them out. Rohnan was seated beside her. He put his hands near the fire and rubbed them together.

“The Hunter?” Cayan asked, finally sitting down.

“Alive. Wounded, but not terminal.” Shanti looked at Cayan. Dressed in a barely creased blue shirt and pants, he sat tall and firm, like he hadn’t just fought his way out of his city. “His men ran at us in perfect formation, herding me into the center while the others were shepherded out. Marc happened to be right behind me, or I would’ve been left alone. He is… cunning. An excellent tactician,” she shook her head. “He worries me.”

“Do you think he’ll follow?” Cayan asked with tight eyes. He worried about his city—about leaving it unprotected.

“Yes,” Shanti said with certainty. “We killed those two
Sarshers
, and taunted the Hunter. He’ll come after us. He won’t worry about your city, not yet. There’s nothing there for him.”

A vein throbbed in Cayan’s jaw, but he said nothing as he turned his gaze to the fire.

“Did you kill all your
Sarshers
?” she asked.

“Of course. The two stationed on the sides, as well. They chased us, so Tepson and I hung back to dispatch them with our bows. All the
Sarshers
are accounted for.”

“And you weren’t followed?”

A small smile twisted Cayan’s lips. The fire danced in his eyes. “You’re the only one who left anyone alive.”

Shanti couldn’t help her huff as she turned back to the fire. “I’d like to see you kill one of the elite while combating two huge powers and trying to hang onto an insane horse who would rather stop and kick another horse than run on out of danger.”

“S’am’s horse was vicious!” Rachie laughed as he sauntered up to the fire. “Gracas, I did it! I showed up Tobias,
and
I did my part!” He sat next to the other members of the Honor Guard with a goofy grin.

Xavier walked into the firelight next with a smug swagger of his own. His eyes took in who else was sitting around the blaze. As soon as he noticed the Captain, his walk straightened and his shoulders hunched. He quietly sank down next to the others with a bowed head. Rachie, having noticed the same thing, albeit belatedly, snapped his mouth shut. All the boys’ eyes found the flickering flames.

Shanti rolled her eyes—she’d never understood the deference the boys showed, but she’d learned to ignore it for the most part. She turned to Cayan, “I need energy. You can provide it. This will be your first lesson because you are way behind.”

“I will monitor,” Rohnan murmured, scooting closer and putting a hand on Shanti’s neck.

Shanti jumped and shied away. “Rohnan! Get that block of ice off me. Warm it up, first!”

“Do we get lessons, too, S’am?” Gracas asked. Leilius elbowed him before pointedly looking back at the fire. Gracas scowled and looked at his attacker, not understanding the abuse.

“Yes, but not tonight,” Shanti answered. “We have a long journey ahead of us. In the lulls, I’ll help train you boys, as will the others.”

“To which others are you referring?” Tobias dropped a saddle away from the fire. The light flickered shadows along the indents of his face. Sanders dropped another saddle next to him.

“Why didn’t you have the Honor Guard look after the horses?” Cayan asked Sanders with a hard stare.

“Figured I’d let them get used to battle, first. They’ve got their adrenaline up right now, but when their heads start replaying events, they won’t be so keyed up.” Sanders walked over to a tree behind Daniels and Burson and leaned back. He bit into an apple.

Cayan’s gaze followed him. “That’s the best time to keep busy.”

“Yes, sir. I also wanted to look over the animals myself, to see if any were hurt. Two have shallow scrapes. A little blood, but nothing too bad. One was Shanti’s horse. That thing has great breeding. Fast as lightning, muscular, seems fearless—I’d bet it was intended for a war horse but fell short with its attitude. I’ve never seen a finer horse—never in my life, sir. Mean as the blazes, though—thing tried to bite me! Rohnan’s horse is nearly there. Good stock. And that Hunter’s horse was sure a pretty thing with the added bonus of following its master’s command. We can learn a thing or two, there. The Duke would be buying
our
stock.”

“Always hearing gold coins jingling, huh Sanders?” Tobias smirked as he took up position at the tree next to Sanders’. He let his good leg take most of his weight. Marc was probably working on Jaime.

Sanders grunted. “When I see something worth seeing, I remember it.”

“If we have the opportunity, we’ll try to… acquire more,” Cayan said.

Shanti and Rohnan both started to laugh. Shanti said, “Steal more. Just say it. If you get the chance, you’ll steal more.”

Tobias started to chuckle. “Let the blondes do it. They seem to have had practice.”

“I do. Much,” Rohnan said. He placed his fire-warmed hand on Shanti’s skin.

Shanti met Cayan’s eyes. “Okay, we need to start. Are you ready?”

The dancing humor drained from Cayan’s gaze. He shifted so he faced her and flipped his hand so their palms were touching. Shanti sucked in a breath as his fingers entwined between hers. Electricity spread throughout her body. Warmth pooled in her core.

“You allow so intimate a hold with him?”
Rohnan asked in a murmur.

“He fears losing control. This makes him feel more grounded. And since I’ve already relived the horrors of feeling this hold again, I’m immune to it now. Surely you can feel the comfort he radiates when he does it?”

“That’s rude, you know,” Sanders growled. “Why don’t you talk in a language we all know?”

“Why don’t you learn more languages?” Tobias shot back.

“Are you trying to be a bard? Because if so, you need to find a sense of humor first.” Sanders took another bite of his apple.

“Just spreading the good cheer of a narrow victory by running away.” Tobias winced as he shifted his weight.

Sanders snorted. “We did at that. I didn’t like the look of that Hunter. Didn’t seem human.”

“His fear is growing.”
Rohnan ignored the chatter around him, focusing on Cayan through his link through Shanti.
“As your power merges with his and blossoms, he can feel the power at his disposal through you. The two of you have a large well of power, but his is deeper. His deepest reserves… bottomless, it seems. But locked up. Covered, somehow. We need to break through that barrier to allow a surge—a deep undertow—of power. He is stronger than you, Chosen. Much stronger. I’ve never seen the equal.”

“You’d never seen
my
equal, Rohnan.”

“And I hope I don’t see his. I wonder if he can feel what lays deep within him—if he has always felt it, and is afraid of the free-fall into it, worried the power will overcome him. Or maybe he is afraid of what else resides down there. He lost his parents young, did he not?”

Shanti closed her eyes and focused on Cayan’s touch. She felt the hum between their skin, and the electricity that originated at her hand then spread out. She pushed harder into his mind, trying to get deeper. Rohnan could see things without trying that most people couldn’t find, even with a deep connection. Still, she had to try.

Her mind whirled and spiraled, sinking deeper into his. He enveloped her presence, welcoming her in, holding her within himself. The spiciness saturated her body, humming. Erotic stirrings tickled private places, mirroring his deeper desires. Fire erupted in her core and her skin broke out in a sweat, making her breath come out in fast pants. She leaned in as he stroked a thumb across her skin, relishing that pulsing heat she’d never felt before.

“That is an effect of your succinct mating, and will probably be very pleasing one day, but it is not why we are here,”
Rohnan warned.
“Focus.”

Shanti fought the tightening in her body. She fought her yearning and his lust. Above all, she fought the begging need for completion by his touch. Instead, she weaved within those emotions until she found what Rohnan had recognized while she had been siphoning off some of his energy and replenishing her
Gift
. Some sort of blockage nestled within deeply scarred emotions. Jagged and cutting, she sensed pain. Loneliness. Uncertainty. And beneath that the world almost seemed to drop away. She felt a void so deep it sucked her toward it.

Rohnan was right. Power. A vast store of world-shattering power. She wasn’t the most powerful in the land by far. He was. He just didn’t know how to access it.

“This would overcome him. If he doesn’t know how to use his current power, he shouldn’t break into an even bigger store of it,”
she surmised. Rohnan grunted his assent.

Out of curiosity, and maybe because he had been scraping away her defenses and pain to get at the roots of her since she’d known him, she honed in on that scarred place, on that loneliness, just to get a glimpse of what he was hiding.

As if she’d triggered a trap, his defenses reacted. He crushed her within his mind. Jagged edges stabbed at her consciousness. Claws pierced.

Heart hammering, she pulled back and yanked herself free. She ripped her hand out of his and felt Rohnan pulling her body away. Her eyes blinked open, shocked and shaken. Cayan stared at her, confusion filtered through a haunted, desperate sorrow. His eyebrows drew low over his pleading eyes.

“So, that’s a do-not-enter area, then?” she asked lightly, straightening. She gave him a smile, trying to ease the situation. Rohnan took his hands away and turned toward the fire, giving them a little privacy, such as it was.