Unquiet Slumber (44 page)

While they ate, everyone shared stories of their travels, their home villages, and Haven. Charles explained, “These last few weeks, we’ve been on a quest for the Seer. She’s been sending many Draaks out on mercy missions. When she requested Craftsmen to fix some of the damage done to a few local villages by the Drenn, Samuel and I volunteered. We met up with Raven at the last village. She was also traveling on behalf of the Seer and was offering her healing skills. We decided it would be safer to travel back to Haven together and we hoped to arrive in time for the upcoming Festival of Fire.”

Tianna couldn’t help but feel like an outsider as everyone shared the many adventures in their Draak lives. When Raven told a funny childhood story about Nathaniel, Tianna asked, “I didn’t realize that you knew each other that well. When did you meet?”

Raven’s eyes twinkled as she gave Nathaniel an affectionate smile and said, “We’ve known each other all our lives. We grew up together and have shared many firsts. Although we might not see each other for long stretches of time, we just keep running into each other. It’s as if fate is trying to tell us something.” Raven nudged him playfully with her shoulder. “The stories I could tell…” Nathaniel sat up tall and gave her a look that told her to keep her stories to herself. She chuckled at his reaction and then her expression turned more serious as she added, “Actually, we became close after both sets of our parents died. It was a tough time and we tried to help each other through it. Since then, we’ve been there for each other in many other awkward situations.”

Tianna recalled when Nathaniel had told her about his parents’ death and that he had to rely on a few close friends to help him through it. Raven must have been one of those he leaned on. Guilt quickly built in Tianna’s chest over some of the not so pleasant thoughts she had about Raven since she arrived at camp. Given Raven was the first friend of Nathaniel’s that Tianna had met, she wanted to try to get to know her. Tianna asked, “Are you mated?” and held her breath waiting for her answer.

Raven shook her head while looking pointedly at Nathaniel. “I’m not mated yet, but I have my eyes on a few that might fit my needs quite nicely. I’ve a feeling that this may be my year to finally settle down.”

Even though it was painfully obvious Raven was attracted to Nathaniel, Tianna was grateful that he wasn’t responding to her comments in any way that could encourage her to continue her pursuit.

As Raven kept her stories of Nathaniel on safe subjects, Nathaniel’s body relaxed and he joined in. Soon they were laughing and sharing stories like old friends. As Tianna listened to their exchange, she realized that she knew very little about Nathaniel.

Raven, seeing Tianna sitting quietly, tried to make conversation. “Tianna, Nathaniel told me you’re from a human village called Trille and that you recently found out that you’re part Draak. To learn that you are a mixed breed must have been quite a shock. It’s unheard of for Draaks to mix between Setts and we thought it absolutely impossible for a union to be blessed between a Draak and any other creature.”

Tianna really didn’t know what to say about herself since the truth was just too unbelievable. She didn’t want to have to explain her existence when she wasn’t really sure about it herself, so she responded simply, “I’ve always known that I was different, but I could never have guessed the truth. I’m slowly learning to accept it and hope to learn more about myself in Haven.”

Raven was curious about her and asked, “Given you’re not full Draak, can you shift? Do you have a dragon mark?” Before Tianna could respond, Raven added, “I would imagine your body wouldn’t be enough Draak to let either of those happen.”

Marcus knew this was a very touchy subject for Tianna so he saved the day when he interrupted by going to get his bottle of Fire Wine. As it was passed around the campfire, Tianna longed to take a drink, except that she knew it wasn’t a good idea with strangers in their mix. She reluctantly passed the bottle on.

To avoid having to answer Raven’s questions, Tianna stood, excused herself, and said that she was going to reinforce the camp. In reality, she just needed to step away for a few minutes to regroup.

After Tianna had been gone for a while, Samuel joined her and asked, “May I walk with you? I’ve never seen anyone secure a camp with magic.”

Tianna nodded.

While she worked, he asked about her hometown and she asked about his. She knew that he was trying to figure out who, or more accurately, what she was. Samuel decided he was distracting her from her task. He bowed and kissed her hand before returning to the fire.

Given the constant looks over in her direction, Tianna knew Marcus must have been filling them in on her situation. Up until now, Tianna had been excited to arrive in Haven. Now she wasn’t so sure. Given the stares and questioning looks from their guests, she knew those in Haven were going to have a hard time accepting her as one of their own.

Tianna was grateful when it was time to call it a night. She had secretly wished their visitors would go to their own camp, but her hopes were dashed when Gabriel announced that it would be safer for everyone to stay together under Tianna’s protective shield. Marcus also invited them to travel together until they reached the next village. Raven was obviously thrilled with both invitations and enthusiastically agreed for herself and her companions.

Tianna thought sarcastically, “
Great
.”

As with all Draaks, nudity wasn’t an issue. They just started to strip wherever they stood. Although she tried not to stare, she couldn’t help but look at Samuel’s Dragon mark. It was the first Craftsmen mark she had seen.

Tianna was a bit intimidated by Raven when she was dressed, she was even more intimidated seeing her naked. Raven had a gentle glow to her body from head to toe and, other than her Blue Dragon mark, her skin held no scars or other imperfections. Tianna’s Draaks didn’t seem to be able to take their eyes off of her. When Tianna peeked down at her own body, she thought that maybe Draak’s preferred Raven’s less curvy figure.

Tianna wanted to be discrete, so she turned her back and tried to change behind Nathaniel. Her companions respected her privacy and always turned their backs. Obviously, the visitors didn’t feel the same way. She knew she was being watched because as soon as she had her shirt off, she heard someone ask, “Tianna, what’s that on your back?” She guessed it was Samuel.

Tianna wasn’t sure how to respond. The truth was that it was created by a wandering wizard from a vision. She slipped on her nightshirt in record time and replied simply, “Oh, it’s nothing. Just something I had done when I was younger.” Tianna was very grateful they hadn’t seen her Black Dragon mark. To avoid follow-up questions, she quickly changed the subject. “Put your bedrolls down wherever you want. There’s plenty of room under the shield I put in place.”

When Nathaniel moved toward Tianna, Raven grabbed his hand and said, “Why don’t you sleep with me tonight.” She was offering him everything that was now presented naked in front of him.

Nathaniel patted Raven’s hand and said, “Thank you, but I’ll sleep with Tianna.”

Raven was non-deterred. She added, “You’ve been traveling together for a long time, and she’s been your only option. Maybe she would like a break as well. She could sleep with one of my Craftsmen.” Raven motioned to the Draaks standing beside her. “You say she has multiple Setts within her. Maybe she’ll want to try both of them to see if either of them are compatible mates.” She said it like it was as common as asking to pass the Fire Wine.

Samuel’s eyes lit up as did other body parts. He smiled at Tianna, and she knew he was more than willing to share his bed with her.

 Nathaniel’s protective instincts spiked and, in a flash, he appeared in front of Tianna and snapped, “No!” He couldn’t bear the idea of anyone else touching Tianna.

While he took a moment to calm his reaction, Tianna responded, “I think our current arrangements are just fine.” She was feeling very uncomfortable with where the conversation was headed.

Seeing the look in Tianna’s eyes, Raven asked Nathaniel, “Haven’t you explained our ways to her?”

Nathaniel replied, “She was raised human and isn’t familiar with all of our customs yet. You’re the first female Draak she’s ever met.” He pointed to the other visitors. “Other than those of us that she has traveled with, she hasn’t met other male Draaks either.” He added to himself, “
Other than Kai within her dreams
.”

Raven peered over at Tianna and suggested innocently, “This must be very strange for her. I would be happy to enlighten her in the proper behavior of a
normal
Draak female.”

Tianna felt like a child, realizing how little she really knew about what it meant to be a Draak. Before Nathaniel could respond, Tianna replied politely, “Thanks for the offer, but I think I prefer to figure things out for myself.” Tianna walked over to her bed and crawled in and was relieved when Nathaniel followed close behind.

Tianna could hear Raven whisper to Nathaniel in a very sexy voice, “If you change your mind, you know where I’ll be. I’ll be ready and waiting—just like old times.” She growled playfully.

Raven’s words sliced through Tianna’s body like a knife. As she suspected, Nathaniel was already very familiar with Raven. Tianna knew he had been with many females, however, she had never considered the fact that she would meet one of them. She wasn’t sure how a normal Draak would react to news like this, but she found that the reality of the situation was awkward and made her heart ache. Tianna was grateful that Nathaniel didn’t seem to respond to Raven’s call.

Tianna and Nathaniel tucked themselves in and he pulled her to his chest, holding her exceptionally tight. He could feel Tianna’s unease and whispered in her ear, “Don’t worry, My Sweet. Raven and I were over a long time ago.”

Tianna squeezed his arms to acknowledge she heard him. Not knowing what to say in response, she just remained silent.

In the morning, they all ate together and then prepared to continue their journey. Nathaniel was so distracted and deep in thought that Tianna pulled him to the side to ask him if he was alright. Although he said he was fine, she knew there was something going on and feared it was Raven related. She worried that seeing Raven again rekindled old feelings.

They traveled throughout the day and camped together at night. The second evening was just the same as the first. Raven and Nathaniel shared stories of past adventures they had together, while the males tried to attract Tianna. Although Nathaniel didn’t openly encourage Raven in any way and slept holding Tianna so tight she could hardly breathe, he slept restlessly. She feared he wanted to embrace his old life and sleep in someone else’s arms.

The next morning after they rode a couple of hours, Seth double-checked his map and announced,” It should be just around the corner. The village is called Semora.” He picked up his pace.

Tianna raised a concern. “Normally I’d be feeling their shield by now but I don’t feel anything.”

They all understood why when they came around the next bend. The village of Semora was in plain sight, no shield. As they got closer, they saw smoke coming from some of the huts and there were people running around, many of them crying. The village had been attacked.

The travelers picked up the pace and raced into the village. The devastation was shocking. Tianna, without even letting her horse stop, grabbed her healing bag from her saddle and jumped off. She ran to the first injured person and began to offer healing. The rest of her group followed.

Marcus tried to find someone that could explain what had happened. One of the villagers said, “We were attacked yesterday evening. Some warriors came and knocked down our shield when we wouldn’t lower it for them. They didn’t even ask for anything. They just started to attack us. We have no defenses other than our shield.” She began to cry.