by Auryn Hadley
Just remember ta stop me, Cyno's voice whispered in her head before he yelled, "Get yer fuckin' hands off her."
The kiss ended when Blaz was shoved away from her, Cyno glaring up at the human.
"Back off, Cyno," Blaz warned him, glancing to Sal. She flicked her ears forward playfully, hoping he'd understand. He nodded, set his jaw, and turned back to the little assassin. "Oh, I see. So you two used to have a thing?"
"Did na realize ya were the reason it was over," Cyno growled, his hand reaching for a knife that wasn't there. Sal couldn't help but wonder where he'd thrown his belt.
"Hey, can't blame a girl for wanting something a bit darker," Blaz taunted, then turned to Sal. "Let me tack your mare down, and I've got the afternoon off."
"That's who ya loaned yer damned horse ta?" Cyno demanded. He tried to glare at her but his eyes never rose above her jaw.
"Yeah. And that's where I was when you were on the border. I told you, Jase. We're done. Orders changed."
"Fuck orders," he snarled, "Yer gonna wish ya had never touched my girl."
Blaz threw the first swing but Cyno was on him without slowing. Within seconds they were on the ground, rolling in the dirt, the sound of the hits proving they weren't pulling the punches.
"Enough!" Captain Tolan yelled.
"Quit!" Sal snarled.
"Get the fuck on your feet!" Ran Sturmgren bellowed, and every soldier in the area froze.
Cyno and Blaz pulled themselves apart, the iliri growling loud enough to be heard by those around him. Ran stormed down the stairs and into their faces, his jaw set.
"Eason, tack down that damned horse and check your own. Cyno, stop fucking growling. Sal! Damn it, girl. I said to end it, not cause a cock fight in the middle of the compound. Captain? Major? Clean this shit up and then report to my rooms. This is unacceptable!"
I'm good, Sal. Make sure he knows it's all in good fun, Cyno said, his mental tone amused as he shot a deadly glare at her and stormed back to his rooms. Zep, bare-chested in the heat, met him at the stairs and followed him up. She couldn't help but notice that the shirt in his hand was rather solid. At least she knew where Cyno had put his weapons.
"Care to join me?" Blaz asked her meekly, wiping at his bloody lip.
She shrugged, prying her eyes away from the sweet crimson stain. "Might as well. You caused enough drama."
He glanced away shyly, well aware that everyone was watching. "I wish you'd told me you had a thing with the best assassin in the country. I might not have been so quick to take you home."
"Oh?" Sal asked. "Changing your mind already?"
"No way," Blaz said pulling her close.
Sal laughed but looked down, avoiding giving him a chance to try to kiss her again. She knew that the blood on his lip might set her off if she tasted it. The smell of it was enticing enough.
"C'mon, my girl's tired." She tugged him toward the stables.
He followed, leading Arden on a draped rein. Sal patted her mare, pleased to see she looked well, and not as tired as she'd expected. Blaz waited until they were near the barn before he spoke.
"Sal," he said softly.
"We're not talking about that," she warned him. "And your face looks like my dinner."
He chuckled. "Ok. I'm sorry. I was out of line, but you can't tell me iliri don't get jealous."
She shrugged, pleased to see he understood that they were still within range of too many others. "We do, but I'm not about to reward you for it."
"Fair enough."
Tilso met them when they entered the barn. He looked once at Blaz's face, then sighed before grabbing the mare. "There's a sink in the feed room," Tilso told him. "Trust me, you look like a mess."
"So I've been told. How's Rax?"
"I'll tell you when you've washed." Tilso glanced pointedly at Sal.
Blaz followed his eyes, and nodded. "Ok, ok, I get the hint." He ducked into the feed room and she could hear water running.
Tilso's attention turned to Sal. "Star Fall's bedding down their horses on the far end, but I kept Arden's stall open. Anything I need to know?"
"She looks fine," Sal said, "But you need to ask Blaz."
Tilso just led the mare into the stall. Sal followed him. Inside, he tilted his head at the wall beside them, and Sal heard the sounds of a man in the straw. She moved closer and began unbuckling the girth as Tilso removed the mare's bridle.
"Cyno was better for you," he told her, raising an eyebrow.
"I know, but what am I supposed to do, Ahn? He reports to me soon. It's over between us no matter which way it goes, and you know that's not something he could hide. Cyno's about as open as a damned book."
"Yeah, fair enough. What's this one's name?"
"Blaz."
"He did pretty well with Arden." Tilso sighed loudly. "Ok. If he treats the mare this good, I'll keep an open mind. His boy's not a bad horse either. Has some good manners."
"Is it all about horses with you humans?" she asked.
Tilso just laughed. "Only the good ones, Sal. Didn't expect to see you with a human, though."
"Blaz is different." He was. Not in the way she was pretending, but he wasn't like most humans. He made the fourth one she actually liked.
"I'm what?" he asked, leaning into the stall.
Sal cocked her head at the wall beside her, and he winked. "You're not like most humans," she said.
"Not sure if I should take that as a compliment, or not."
Tilso started to giggle. "Yeah, ya should. Iliri have a few advantages that humans didn't get."
Blaz laughed at that, nodding. "Ok... well, not what I expected to be talking with the stableman about. Thanks for taking care of Rax, Mr. Tilso. Sal had good things to say about you."
Hoisting the tack, Tilso offered it to the human. "Put the saddle in the tack room, bridle laying across it – I'll clean those in a minute – and I'll get your boy out."
"Fair deal," Blaz agreed, grabbing the leather from the little man and turning away.
Tilso patted Arden then slipped from the stall, leaving Sal alone with her mare. She checked the horse over, looking for any old injuries and rubs from the tack. There was nothing, except for a small chip in her hoof, for Sal to even complain about. Arden nuzzled her hair, looking for a treat, and Sal gave in.
"You spoiled her," she called out when she saw Blaz walking down the alley.
He grinned. "She deserved it. Come tell me how you managed to fix my boy." He held out his hand, and she took it, leaning into him as they walked down the aisle.
"Yer fucking sick," the man in the stall next to Arden's grumbled.
"Don't give me shit, Patris, I know about your kinks," Blaz taunted back.
"Fucking scrubber lover," Patris whispered under his breath.
Sal tugged Blaz away. Tilso, leading the big black stallion from his stall, caught the cavalryman's eye, and he followed willingly, watching carefully for the horse to take an off step. Down the aisle and into the arena, Blaz said nothing, his body tense as he began to hope that his horse would really be ok.
"He's fine," Sal told him.
"He's more than fine," Tilso said. "Massage four times a day, in hand exercise twice, and worked at the lunge twice."
Tilso clicked, let out the line, and Rax began to walk around him in a circle, each step as easy for him as the one before. Tilso clicked again and Rax picked up the trot, surging across the ground easily. Each step came from the hind end and the massive horse seemed to float. When Tilso clicked a third time, the stallion began to canter. Tilso lifted his hand on the line and the horse collected, shortening his gait but maintaining the energy in each step, then lengthening at a subtle command from his handler.
"Fuck me," Blaz breathed. "He's really sound."
"Light work for two days," Tilso told him, bringing the horse back to his side, "then treat him like you always have."
When Tilso offered Blaz the lead, he was shocked to get a hug instead. Blaz squeezed him tightly and
pounded on his back, a wide grin on his face.
"Mr. Tilso, you're amazing. All of the Blades! I was sure he was dead by now. How can I thank you?"
Tilso pulled away and put the lead into his hand. "Two things, sir. First, keep taking care of Sal. You're good to her, we'll be good to you. Second, treat Rax just as good."
"I will," he promised. "Sal, come help me put him away?"
"Of course." She fell in step beside him. Tilso shook his head and turned in the other direction.
Blaz followed Rax into the stall, making room for Sal beside him. He removed the bridle, draped it over his shoulder, then pushed the door closed. Ginning, he leaned back against the wood, pulling Sal against him.
"Hey," he said, glancing across the aisle from the corner of his eye. "You on duty?"
"Nope," she said softly. "I have some research to do, but that's it."
"Come back to my place? It's been two days, and I missed you."
"I missed my horse," she teased.
"You had mine, wasn't that enough?"
"No. I kinda missed you, too."
"Just kinda?" he asked, feigning insult. "At least I know you won't get jealous of the attention my horse gets."
"Yes, just kinda," she purred. "You'll have to remind me why I should have missed you more."
"Oh, you tease! I can do that, and I have a bath big enough for two, Sergeant."
"It's Lieutenant," Sal corrected.
He glanced at her shoulder, and nodded. "Promotion while I was gone. Nice. Too bad I can't make you salute me now."
"In your dreams," she teased, pulling away.
"Maybe." He laughed as he opened the door.
Rax got one last pat, then Blaz followed Sal out, hanging the bridle on the hook at the front of the stall with one hand, draping his other arm across her shoulders. She reached up, twined her fingers in his, and let him lead her up to the officer's wing. At his door, he pulled away and unlocked it, swinging it open for her to precede him. When the door closed behind him, he sighed.
"Thought you were an assassin, not a damned spy," he said, sounding impressed.
"How do you think we get close enough to kill?"
"Good point. You have a bit? I really do need a bath and Cyno didn't help any."
She nodded. "Yeah, I am actually off duty. I just have research to catch up on."
"Well, make yourself at home, Sal. I think you might be spending some time here for the next few days." He caught her shoulders and guided her a step forward.
"No," she said, twisting away. "The bath first. I can't think with you here."
"Sal," he said, stepping back. "I was serious when I said I'm not ready."
She chuckled. "I was serious when I said you smell like my dinner. Please, Blaz, my control is only so good."
Chapter 35
Blaz retreated into the other room, removing his shirt as he went. Sal made her way to his liquor cabinet and looked inside, pleased to find a bottle of rum even if there wasn't mead. She poured herself a small glass then returned to the couch, kicking her boots off to tuck her feet under her.
You ok? she asked Cyno.
I'm good, kitten. How bad did I fuck up his face?
He's going to be a bit swollen and rather purple.
K. Feel him out. I think yer right about him. If ya can get him drunk enough, we'll get Shift ta heal him a bit. No need fer him ta suffer for us.
Good idea, she thought. I'll see what I can do.
So ya know, he was holdin' back. He fights like Zep. Cyno broke the link, leaving Sal alone with her thoughts.
She looked around the room, trying to find signs that would tell her more about the man she wanted to think of as a friend, but there was nothing. Everything was standard-issue, as if his entire life was temporary. It almost felt like he hadn't planned to ever return and had left the room ready for the next soldier to pass through.
She heard the sound of a body stepping out of the bath and decided to refill her glass. In the other room, a drawer opened, then she heard cloth rustle. She was almost back to the couch when the sound of his sleeping chamber door made her glance up. Blaz walked out, his mouth open to speak, and met her eyes.
"That's uncanny," he said.
"Yeah, I hear better than you do."
"Is that what it is?"
She nodded. "And you have rum."
"I actually like it. Knocks me for a loop, but I usually have it around."
"How bad is your face?" Sal asked him.
"It's been better." He laughed and touched his jaw before heading to claim his own drink. "Ok," he said as he poured, his back to her. "I need to get this out there. I haven't kissed anyone since... you know. So I'm sorry I made a mess of it."
"You're fine, Blaz. And thank you."
He just nodded and grabbed his glass, moving to the chair beside her.
Sal smelled his nervousness. Leaning forward, she looked at him pointedly. "Let me get this out there. You're not my type, I'm not your type, and this game we're playing is just that. I'm not going to take anything from it if you don't. Deal?"
"I just -" He sighed. "I kinda realized that I didn't exactly let you in on my plan. You fell into it easily enough that I started to wonder if maybe I'd given the wrong impression, you know, after the other night when I looked at you wrong."
Sal shook her head. "You're human. I don't smell the attraction from you. Secondly, you're human. We're just friends, Blaz."
"Is that why Cyno didn't kill me? Sal, he moves faster than I can track. There's no way I could have stopped him."
"No, but I could."
"How?"
She just smiled and took another sip of her rum. "I tell him to. I out-rank him and that will stop him as quickly as Blaec's word will stop me."
"The Blades are just that disciplined?"
"Not exactly. You know how as a child, if your mother said not to do something, it was hard to disobey?"
"Yeah, as a little kid, like three or so."
"We never lose that. Someone more dominant says to do, or not to do, something, and we have trouble disobeying. It's why the Blades work like we do."
"Where does Sturmgren fit in?"
She smiled, her sharp teeth making it look cruel. "He made me submit. He outranks us all." She waved that away. "We can challenge it, but that rarely happens. Our new guys, that's different. They haven't found their place yet, so there'll be a blow out with them. We're all pretty sure Geo will take on Cyno at some point."
"You got the new Blades?"
"Yeah. Geoni and Audgan. I think they'll do well."
"You've been busy while I was gone. Ok, so my turn. Star Fall is out for you."
She nodded, encouraging him.
"They were bragging about the fourth load and how they're going to hit it south of Ryass. Said there's nothing you all can do to stop it."
"There is," she said, "but go on."
"Then your mare came up. Asked me how I ended up on a scrubber horse and wasn't I ashamed, and," he shrugged, looking away. "I'm not sure how much you've been around human males."
"A lot. So, you bragged?"
He raised his glass in a mock toast, then took a long drink. "You're one hell of a woman in bed, or so they think. Made a few lewd comments about the teeth, a few of my guys joined in the fun. Lorenz, you remember him? He got into it too, saying he knew I was trying for ya when I begged for rum." Blaz chuckled. "I always drink rum, Sal, so my guys know."
"Mine do too, so it's ok."
"And evidently iliri teeth and ears are a thing."
Sal nodded. "The teeth are terrifying, and the ears? I'll never quite understand that."
"Well, they asked what your ears do, when we," he shook his head in embarrassment, "you know. I told them it was dark."
"Forward when we're enjoying ourselves, down and back for orgasm, but not folded tight."
He took another long drink. "Gotcha. Never thought I'd have this talk. They'll ask. You know that, right?"
&nb
sp; Sal nodded, trying not to laugh at his embarrassment. "Think you can play this game for two days?"
"Yeah, why?"
"I won't be here after that."
"Should I ask where you're going?"
Sal looked up into his dark eyes. "What's your clearance?"
"Second level."
"Then no. Don't ask."
"You've got a first level mission?" He sat up straight.
Giving nothing more than a blank look, she took another sip of her drink. "Fourth load is reclassified as well," she said, the corner of her lip turning up.
"Remind me never to fuck with the Blades. You gonna turn that in?"
Sal shook her head. "You are."
"Sturmgren's going to kick my ass for that shit out there, Sal."
"He knew it was coming."
"Sturmgren's in on this too?"
Sal sighed and leaned back. "I don't know how much to tell you. This is a mess and you're far enough in already."
"Let's see if I'm on the right page. Blue Party is anti-iliri. They're driving this shit and doing their best to catch the Blades in something to get rid of the 'problem'. Sturmgren doesn't approve, so he's keeping your asses clean. He also knows way more than anyone should about every damned soldier that reports to him. While all of this is going on, he's somehow managing to keep the CFC from getting our asses kicked in this war. How'm I doing so far?"
"Pretty close. You ever been to his office?"
Blaz nodded.
"He ever offer you a drink?"
"No, but he has Tolan. Once or twice. Why?"
"Over a drink, he and I talked about a few things, from Cyno to Blaec to you. Next week, Cyno reports to me."
"Ah, so that's what that was about. Gotcha. So how can the 112th help?"
"Blaz, you're in neck-deep as it is. I think we're good."
"Tolan's playing politics on this, Sal, but that doesn't mean he isn't on your side. He thinks it's going to bite us again later, and the 112th needs to stay above it. My orders are that if it can't be traced, it's allowed."
Sal tossed back the last of her drink and caught his eye. "Teach me how to pack a horse for a long trip. No pack animals, fast moving, able to be resupplied."