The Mercenary's Bounty

by Kristen Banet

  “I’ll come get you. How’s just after breakfast? We’ll work until midday. Five times a week.”

  “Every day works too, but if you need the days off for other things, that’s okay.”

  He didn’t like the challenge in her tone, but ignored it. “Five days. You’ll want the time off.” He didn’t ignore it well enough. If she thought he was the one who would need it, he was going to prove her wrong.

  They stared each other down. He’d gotten her damned eyes to drop once; he could do it again. Now she faced off with him. He had never wanted to play this damned game more in his life. He normally only had to prove his dominance with Alchan, who needed a reality check every so often. Mave was a different beast entirely.

  In the end, the door opened up and they both looked in its direction, the situation unresolved. It would come up every day until they figured it out.

  “Yeah, Bryn?” she asked Bryn, who peered out at them.

  “Breakfast is ready. There’s not enough for more than us, though…Wasn’t expecting company.”

  “I’ll be on my way. Tomorrow, Mave, after breakfast.”

  “See you then,” she said, leaving him on the porch to go inside.

  “Damn it,” he muttered, shaking his head and flying home. What a great way to start their time in the village.

  47

  Trevan

  It was another day of the same. Another day of waking up in a cramped hole that someone had decided to call a room, without even a cot like the other gladiators had. He had yet to feel brave enough to try and steal one, even just a mattress, for himself.

  It felt like he’d been down there for an eternity. He waited a long time after the bell rang for first meal, hoping he wouldn’t meet any Andinna on his path there, which he had to change nearly every day. He was thankful that as a guard, he’d been required to learn the paths better than the gladiators that lived in them. It was one of the very, very few things he had to be thankful for.

  He made it to the chow hall without incident, glad to see most of the Andinna were relatively subdued. It was a good omen for how his day would go, unless some outside force riled them up. It was always a possibility.

  These were things as a guard I had to worry about.

  He tried to remind himself that not much had really changed. His life had been chained to these pits the moment he decided he wanted to save the Champion, seeing her fight on the sands. Hearing about her, the way his own people talked about her and the other Andinna. He couldn’t comprehend the idea of a woman down here on her own. He’d wanted to be a hero for her.

  Fucking idiot, that’s what I was.

  He partially regretted it, but he kept holding on to the belief he’d succeeded. He’d gotten her out at his own peril. Wasn’t that exactly what he wanted? Well, he had wanted to get out too, but he’d decided to stay behind in that blasted alley and give her and those others time.

  They better be happy, wherever they are.

  He was probably forgotten by them at this point. He tried not to let that thought fester. He was stronger than that.

  He grabbed his breakfast and had just enough time to eat before the next bell rang and they had to go up for training.

  Another day, same as before. He trained alone, using the wooden sword to beat on the dummy until his arm wanted to fall off. He worked even harder now than he did as a guard. He was putting on muscle mass somehow, even with the basic food they had to eat day in and day out.

  The bell rang and he put the sword away, waiting for the Andinna to make it down to the chow hall before him.

  “Slave,” a lenasti called out. “Stay.”

  He turned to them, knowing it was him. He was the only one they called ‘slave’ as a name. The others were addressed by their numbers, but no one wanted to say his. One. He knew the Empress chose it on purpose. It was a reminder of what he did. Helping her property run - her Champion, her whore, her slave. Everything in the Empire was hers and she was a possessive bitch.

  “Yes, sir?” He lowered his gaze.

  “There’s guards here to escort you to the palace.” The lenasti shoved him towards the group coming out of the building. He didn’t bother fighting. He just let the group surround him and lead him out of the training area and into Elliar proper.

  The palace. Why was he being summoned to the palace? Had he done something he shouldn’t have?

  He didn’t get answers from the guards. Men he once worked with. Men who now beat him when they found the chance. Luckily, today they didn’t have that chance. He was handed over to the palace guards, who led him deep inside the white marble palace, decorated with rich colors to contrast.

  He was led down, down, down. The marble grew darker, until it was an unearthly pitch black and the only light was from the torches.

  They were taking him to the palace cells. He’d toured the place once while in training. This was where the greatest of traitors against the Empire were held until their fate.

  Was she finally deciding to just kill him and let it be? He had accepted death when he’d let the Andinna run ahead of him. He was hoping for it now. It would end his suffering with his honor mostly intact.

  He wasn’t locked into a cell. They grabbed him at the last minute and tossed him into a chair with a brutality he couldn’t find the source of. He was strapped down, struggling.

  They’re going to torture me. Why? What did I do now?

  One of the guards delivered a slug to his jaw, something cracking in the process.

  “Don’t. I need him to talk.” Cold, feminine. He knew the voice well. The Empress stepped to where he could see her. “Olost. The free Andinna have found a new home there. What do you know about it?”

  “Nothing.” He knew Olost was their new home, but that was public knowledge. He didn’t know anything else.

  Someone slugged his gut. He coughed, groaning as a second blow hit him.

  “Are you sure?” She didn’t seem angry until he looked at her eyes. Her eyes held a fury he didn’t want to toy with.

  “Yes.”

  “Make him hurt. Maybe in a few hours, he’ll be more forthcoming.”

  They did. They made him hurt. From blows, to water, to knives. He was man enough to know screaming wasn’t a bad thing. They wanted his screams, and no real being would ever be able to survive what they did to him without it.

  He was more ashamed of how he begged. He begged them to stop. He didn’t know anything, nothing at all. He had no idea where the free Andinna were. He had no idea how they stayed free. He didn’t know anything. He had hoped to join them, but he didn’t know. They had never told him where they planned on ending up.

  “Empress, we know they have most of their population in the southern-”

  “I need more!” she screeched. “I need to know exactly where they are! I can flood that damned nation with my men if I knew - I could get into those mountains and find them, but that range is huge! I won’t get my men killed for it. You have until the new year, spymaster. Do you understand me? The new year. Come spring, I want to know where they are. I will have her back. I didn’t spend a thousand years forging her for them to have her.”

  “Empress, I don’t think she’s a threat…”

  “Not a threat? Look at what we made her. She’s going to be just like her damned father and mother, walking into the Empire, taking what they want like the barbarians they are, and there will be no stopping them. She’s dominant enough to get them to kneel to her, and with the Ivory Shadows…” She took a deep breath. “Stop. He’s not giving us anything. There’s no reason to kill one of our own, no matter what he did.”

  “Is that why you threw him in the pits? So he would live?” The Prince? It was a youthful voice, but Trevan wasn’t so sure. He’d never been close to the Prince.

  “No, I threw him in the pits to teach him a lesson, which I think he’ll learn in time. If he lives through it. And if he dies, it’ll be by the very barbarians he cares for so much. It’s a win-win to m
e.” She was calm again and walked back into his view. “Actually, that reminds me. I wanted to change your sentence a little. Since you have no information for me, I don’t feel like I need to work to keep you alive anymore. I want to see you on the sands, and I’ll make you a little deal in the process.” She leaned closer to him. He could barely make out the details of her face. While he knew it was her, his vision was blurry and one of his eyes was swollen shut now. “You’ll fight every month. If you survive for one century, I’ll change the punishment to banishment and let you leave the Empire. By then, I have a feeling you’ll hate the Andinna so much, you’ll understand why I keep them down there. If you don’t make it a century, well, you aren’t really my problem then either.” She reached out and gently touched his cheek. “Do you understand what I’m saying?”

  He tried to nod. Gods, he understood. He understood so well. A hundred years of the pits and the sands, without a break. He would live her life, always fighting, except he could earn his own freedom, one day.

  “I’m only giving this to you because you’re an Elvasi. You understand that too, right? You’re one of mine, and I should always look to make sure you know who you belong to. Me. You don’t belong to them. You don’t help them. You belong to me and you help me. I’ll let you think on that.” Then she walked out of the room, ordering that he be taken back to the pits as she went.

  He was yanked from the chair once the straps were undone. He couldn’t walk and wouldn’t be able to until he found any sort of sleep and healing. It wouldn’t be as fast as the Andinna’s healing sleep, but he would survive. They had to drag him through the night back to the pits. They dropped him in the training area, where he was told to get moving.

  “You can have tomorrow off,” one of the lenasti said, his voice laced with the only bit of sympathy he’d heard yet. Then the lenasti cracked his whip and loudly told him to get moving and out of their sight.

  He stumbled and tried to find his sleeping hole. He would heal, but he couldn’t let the Andinna see him like this. They could easily and accidentally kill him if they decided to jump him now for a bit of fun.

  He fell into the first small, dark room he could find and hoped he would be safe for another night. The moment his eyes closed, he was asleep, the Empress’ words on his mind. She would free him.

  And the hidden message was that she would free him faster if he somehow helped her.

  Dear Reader,

  Thank you for reading!

  You’ll notice… No maps this time! I’ll bring them back soon, promise. In other news, this was a huge book! When I was writing it, I remember celebrating when I was finally getting the cast off the boat, but it was all just too important! I hope you all enjoyed the ship, the cast, and where their journey may be leading them. I wonder who has changed their guesses for who will and won’t be in the harem. And no, I’m not sorry for that ending. Let’s all hope together that Trevan doesn’t do anything stupid. Until next time, everyone!

  Reviews are always welcome, whether you loved or hated the book. Please consider taking a few moments to leave one and know I appreciate every second of your time and I’m thankful.

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  Andena Glossary

  Feminine- ‘am’

  Amin- Female

  Ami- Baby

  Amra- Mother

  Arra- Mommy/Mom (Informal mother)

  Amara- Daughter

  Amir- Sister

  Amrya- Aunt

  Amyra- Neice

  Amran- Grandmother

  Amanra- Lover/Wife

  Masculine- ‘bod’

  Bodin- Male

  Bodi- Baby

  Bodra- Father

  Baba- Daddy/Dad (Informal father)

  Bodara- Son

  Bodyr- Brother

  Bodrya- Uncle

  Bodyra- Nephew

  Bodran- Grandfather

  Bodanra- Lover/Husband

  Alternative Male and Female

  Ahin- A gay female

  Ahren- A female that is excessively submissive. Normally isn’t strong enough in personality to attract males.

  Ahyara- Committed female-only relationship.

  Bedin- A gay male.

  Bedru- A male that is excessively dominate and possessive. Normally considered unsuitable to females due to dominance issues.

  Bedyara- Committed male-only relationship.

  General Terms

  Ahea- Hello

  Ohea- Goodbye

  Al- The

  Ut- You

  Uta- Them

  Et- Me/I

  Rai- The term for the Andinna temper. No real translation.

  Mativa- A ‘tradition keeper’, or someone, normally female, who passes on important cultural knowledge and leads a community.

  Olda- Blood

  Oldura- Official Andena word for a ‘Blackblood’. No real translation.

  Tatua- The Andinna ‘ink’ normally done by a Blackblood with blood magic.

  Mayara- Andinna family unit. The band of males who center on a female to protect serve, and in most cases, love. Generally husbands/lovers, but can also include brothers, fathers, sons, or just close male friends.

  Illo- Big, large (Illon- bigger, larger)

  Illi- Little, small (Illin- smaller, littler)

  Oto- Old (Oton- older)

  Oti- Young (Otin- younger)

  Ildan- Friend

  Ilanra- Beloved

  Ildar- Adopted/Adopt/Adoptive in terms of family.

  Raki- Mixed blood/mutt.

  Ensam- An Andinna without social place. Forced out by the community or by choice.

  Mara- Life

  Olmara- Birth

  Moro- Death

  Somaro- Elite warrior

  Morok- Classic Andinna curved blade

  Svamor- War group of Andinna.

  Semara- Soul

  Sema- Skies or just the sky.

  Sita- Submit/Submissive

  Andin- Dragon

  Andinno- Wyvern

  Vahne- Strong

  Nola- King

  Lera- Walk (Lerani- run)

  Vorha- Mountain

  Curses and Sayings

  Kak- Shit

  Amov/Bodov- Bitch for female and male respectively

  Kuk- Ass

  Voek- Damn

  Linti- Pigeon

  Voek al Sema- Damn the Skies

  Na al Sema- By the Skies

  Skies/Sema- a way Andinna reference their gods without blaspheming. “Damn the Skies.” “By the Skies.”

  Anvea et- I’m sorry or ‘forgive me’

  Et anvea ut- Apology accepted or ‘I forgive you’

  About the Author

  KristenBanetAuthor.com

  Kristen Banet has a Diet Coke problem, smokes too much, and cusses like a sailor. She loves to read, and before finally sitting to try her hand at writing, she had your normal kind of work history. From tattoo parlors, to the U.S. Navy, and freelance illustration, she’s stumbled through her adult years and somehow, is still kicking.

  She loves to read books that make people cry and tries to write them. She’s a firm believer that nothing and no one in this world is perfect, and she enjoys exploring those imperfections—trying to make the characters seem real on the page and not just in her head.

  Also by Kristen Banet

  Witch of the Wild West

  Bounty Hunters and Black Magic

  Werewolves and Wranglers

  Age of the Andinna

  The Gladiator’s Downfall

  The Mercenary’s Bounty

  Complete Series

  The Redemption Saga

  A Life of Shadows

  A Heart of Shame

  A Nature of Conflict

  An Echo of Darkness

  A Nig
ht of Redemption

  Wild Junction

  The Kingson Pride Series

  Wild Pride

  Wild Fire

  Wild Souls

  Wild Love

  The Wolves of Wild Junction Duet

  Prey to the Heart

  Heart of the Pack