by Lee Hayton
He turned to the wall again, closing his eyes to concentrate on his breathing. His body vibrated with the depth of each inhalation.
“You’re protecting your clan brothers. Fine. I understand that. You’re not the only one with brothers to care for and keep safe from harm.”
Shandra grabbed hold of Mal’s arm and swung him around to face her. The fire in her face was glorious, taking his breath away. “Me and my brothers have lost our parents, we’ve lost our elder brother. I shouldn’t even be in line to inherit this farm, yet, here I am, trying to make it work. Why shouldn’t I take any opportunity that comes my way?”
A strand of hair caught in her mouth and Shandra spat it out, stepping forward so her face was only an inch away from Mal’s. “The only difference between us is that if my mother came to me, asking for help, I’d give it!”
The words felt like a blade, slicing open his veins so the blood spilled out of his body. Mal stepped back but the barn wall was behind him. Trapped. He stared at the woman in front of him, her chin tipped up, her head back, a warrior having delivered a death blow.
“All right. If that’s how you want it.” Mal pushed Shandra back and strode out into the light. “I’ll collect my clan brothers and we’ll be on our way.”
When she gasped, he didn’t turn, didn’t break his stride. Outside, the increase in light had him blinking, even with a hand up to shield his face, Mal couldn’t see well enough to find his brothers. Never mind. He kept walking until his vision cleared and he saw them out in the fields. They’d gone back to planting, leaving him and Shandra alone to decide their future.
For a moment, the weight of responsibility felt too heavy on Mal’s shoulders. Couldn’t someone else take the lead for a change while he rested and recuperated from the constant fight for survival?
He’d led the brothers for so long now, it should have been second nature. Still, as he called them aside to tell them to ready themselves, they were moving on, it felt like he was directing them for the very first time.
Making stupid mistakes born of inexperience.
Chapter Ten
Shandra ended up back in the field, planting alone. Mal had gathered together his clan brothers, and she had no doubt he was telling them of the plan to leave. Halv and Ricci had also intuited something was up—either that or they’d just eavesdropped on all the shouting going on in the barn.
The look of disappointment Halv threw her way made Shandra want to curl into a ball and cry.
With angry movements, she dug a hole in the soil and shoved the tender seedling into it. The fragile plant’s stem snapped, the head and leaves collapsing. “Damn it!”
Shandra pulled it back out and cast the plant aside. Its bright green leaves were in stark contrast to the dark brown earth. She sat back, covering her face with her hands while willing herself not to cry.
So what if some strangers were leaving? Two months ago, she hadn’t even known these men existed. It wasn’t like they were family. Just some men who she thought about all day and dreamed about all night.
Raised voices signaled discontent coming from the direction of the barn. Shandra pulled her hands away to see Halv hanging onto Io’s belt, trying to drag him backward. At a foot shorter, he didn’t have much of a chance. Her brother’s build might be solid, short and squat, but it still didn’t add up to the muscle that Io carried around on his lanky frame.
Don’t look. They’ve made the choice to leave. It’s not like you forced them to go.
No. But as soon as the cruel words left her mouth about Mal’s mother, Shandra had known she’d shut the door on any rapprochement. It didn’t take a genius to fathom out you can’t insult men one second and expect them to stay forever the next.
Another plant crumpled into certain death under her rigid hand muscles. Shandra stabbed this one deep into the dirt with her finger, digging it a funeral pit then covering it over. See, all gone.
It was stupid to sit out here, wrecking destruction on their crops. Better to go inside and make everyone a meal. Even if the men were leaving—goodbye harem—Shandra wasn’t selfish enough to make them do so on an empty stomach.
The clan brothers had done their part. True to their word they’d worked long and hard to turn the fortunes of the farm around. It might even be enough for Ricci to build on when Wella heard the news and came back to fetch her. With any luck, he could survive and perhaps even prosper.
Until he was dragged off to war, too.
She brushed herself down and headed to where the men had gathered together their meager belongings. “I’m sorry you’re leaving,” she said, swallowing hard as she saw Sulli’s bewildered expression. If only she could shrug her shoulders and say she didn’t know why they were leaving, either. If only Shandra could turn back the calendar one stinking, rotten day.
“This is silly,” Halv cried out, close to tears. “Tell them they have to stay. I’m almost at the point where I can beat Ricci in a sword fight. How’m I meant to get better if my instructor just walks away?”
Shandra swallowed hard and tried to smile at her brother, her face landing on a grimace instead. “How about you go inside and get washed up? It’s your turn to cook and I’ll come along in a minute to make sure it’s a feast.”
She turned back to the brothers. Mal into the distance, refusing to let her catch his eye. “At least let me give you a decent meal before you go.”
“No. We have to leave now, otherwise, we won’t be able to set up a decent camp before nightfall.” Mal did turn to her now but his eyes still skirted the edges of Shandra’s face, avoiding her direct gaze.
“Now, come on.” Sulli stepped forward, putting a hand on Mal’s arm. “Shandra’s right. It’s better if we’re well fed. The nights are still warm enough that even a meager shelter will see us through. No need to turn down hospitality when it’s offered. There’ll be precious little of it out on the road, as well you know.”
“Then it’s decided,” Shandra said, clapping her hands together before Mal could lodge another protest. “If you get yourselves ready, I’ll see if there’s some cured meat left in the back of the pantry.
She flew into the house, not giving them the chance to change their minds. While busying herself in preparing the meal, Shandra tried to engage Halv in conversation but every opening was met with a glower or a grunt.
Fair enough. If someone took all her friends away in one foul swoop, she’d be resentful, too.
Ricci slunk into the kitchen as the stew bubbled on the stove. “Shouldn’t we try to have them stay? If they leave now, we’ll struggle to reap the late harvest.” He paused and swiped the toe of his boot across the floor. “We’ll have a hard enough time getting it grown.”
“Give it your best shot.” Shandra wiped her hands on her apron. “See if you can change their minds.”
“But…” Ricci stared at her, his face a mask of confusion. “You’re the one who’s joining them in a harem. I can’t… I don’t…”
“That won’t be happening now. Mal made that perfectly clear.”
“Why did you lie to him?” Halv burst out, his hands curled into pudgy fists. “If you’d just been straight up with them from the start—”
“You don’t know anything about it,” Shandra said, cutting him off with a raised hand. She saw a shadow come near the door, a man pausing just out of sight. In a stronger voice, she said, “I’m not the only one who’s been keeping secrets.”
“What secrets?” Halv stamped his foot, tears of loss and rage standing out in his eyes. “That they’re five strong men who want to make a home? That we were lucky enough that they wanted to form it here, with us?”
“Stop it.” Shandra spoke more quietly this time, but the steel in her voice cut Halv short. “We can discuss this on another day, but for now let’s celebrate the short time we have left together.”
Halv squeezed his lids together, a single tear slipping out of his left eye to tumble down his cheek. After a moment, he nodded. “Okay. I�
��ll go get the trick I wanted to show Baile. He’s the only person I know who’ll appreciate it.”
Shandra could no longer swallow past the lump in her throat and gave up trying. Spit gathered in her mouth and just sat there, pooling.
“Even if you can’t convince them to stay,” Ricci said in a low voice. “It’s probably best you part on good terms. You don’t know where they’ll go next and if Wella’s looking for them, it might pay to keep them on side.”
Shandra jerked her head up, startled. Ricci held out the crumpled flyer from the first night the clan brothers spent in their farm. So much for keeping her brothers in the dark to protect them. “What else do you know?”
She waited, every muscle tense in anticipation of Ricci speaking the word, dragon. For him to know placed both him and the men in danger.
When the only answer was silence, Shandra looked back toward the exit. No shadow graced the floor. Whoever had been standing out there must have retreated when Halv went barreling out the door.
“Keep an eye on the stove,” Shandra directed. She needed to talk to Mal and warn him that her brothers might know more than was good for them. Although she was already framing the information as a message, nothing more, she hoped it might be the tipping point to change his mind. Perhaps he’d stay on, just to ensure Ricci didn’t mix with the wrong crowd, saying the wrong thing at the wrong time.
As Shandra edged toward the barn, she saw a cloud of dust rising along the pathway. Yet another arrival to bring bad tidings their way? She stopped and waited until the shape of the riders was clear enough to identify them.
Once again, Wella and her biggest harem members were riding her way.
Sick to her stomach with what new horror the overlord had in store for her now, Shandra hurried to meet the travelers before they reached the house. If Wella spoke to the clan brothers and determined the idea of a harem lay in tatters, they’d haul her away on the spot.
Even running as fast as she could, Shandra took a few minutes before she intercepted the riders. In the dusk, distances were deceiving, and the party was further away than they’d first appeared.
Her lungs screamed at the effort, the muscles in her upper thighs twanging as Shandra came to a stop. She held a hand up and called out, “Hey,” in a loud voice, in case the group didn’t see her in the deepening twilight.
“Running away from home, are you?” Wella said with a snide smile as she dismounted her horse. Her harem guards stood by her, but she sized Shandra up with one glance and waved them away. “Or has your harem decided to kick you out of your own ancestral property?”
“Of course, not.” Shandra stood firm even though she still panted from the long run. “I just didn’t want you getting up near the farm. You upset my brothers with your visit earlier.”
“Not just them.” Wella gave a low snigger, leaving Shandra to wonder how much of Mal’s dismay had been on show.
“What do you want?” Shandra tossed her hair back and tipped up her chin. “Nothing has changed since noonday. I’m still not joining up with the draft.”
“You will, or you’ll fight for it.” Wella stepped close, trailing her fingers lightly down Shandra’s cheek. “You’re quite a pretty thing, you know. It’d be a shame to watch this destroyed in the ring.”
All the blood in Shandra’s body turned cold.
Wella clicked her fingers and one of her harem guards stepped forward. He towered above Shandra’s head, so she needed to crane her head back in order to see the man’s face. It was scarred with the remnants of a hundred fights, with him victorious in all of them.
“This is Alnerrac. If you insist on continuing your challenge, he’ll be your opponent.”
Ricci’s voice called out from behind them. “Shandra? Do you need any help?”
She wanted to say yes. Dreamed of ordering him to slaughter the party standing in front of her, tear them limb from limb. If it had been her elder brother she would have, but Zen had been lost to the battlefield. Ricci wouldn’t get in two thrusts with his blade before the man standing before her tore him to pieces with his bare hands.
“I’m fine,” Shandra called out. “Just finishing up a few details, then I’ll be with you.”
Shandra could sense him waiting, not believing her. She turned and shooed him away with a gesture. “Go and make sure Halv doesn’t burn everything we’ve prepared for supper. I’ll come along shortly.”
Ricci stared hard at her face, still not moving. He cast a worried glance at the two hulking men, one standing right in front of her, one flanking Wella.
“It’s nice to see how your family obey your commands,” Wella said with another snigger. “If you need instructions on how to handle men, I’d be glad to lend a hand.”
Shandra whirled around to face the overlord, heat suffusing her cheeks and a pulse ticking high in her throat. “Where and when?”
Wella’s eyebrows raised in surprise. “You’re choosing to fight?” After a second of silence, she continued, “Or, are you sending one of your harem into battle in your stead?”
Shandra’s straightened her back and lifted her chin. “I asked you when. Who comes to the arena is none of your concern.”
The smirk returned and Wella tapped the gigantic warrior on his arm. Even with her height, she couldn’t reach up to his shoulder. He retreated a few steps, standing by his horse and dwarfing the poor creature. Shandra hoped they had a treat waiting ready for the hard working animal when they arrived home.
“All fights are held in my castle at midday. That gives you over half a day to decide.” Wella inclined her head in a mocking bow. “Tomorrow. I’ll see you or one of your men, then, on the dot of noon.”
Shandra offered her own curt nod and turned on her heel. Ricci had finally taken her order and was back at the farmhouse. She could hear him calling to the men inside even across this distance.
With a sigh, Shandra followed in his footsteps, her mind pulled in a dozen different directions.
Half a day left until her certain death. What a wonderful way to end this disastrous day.
Chapter Eleven
The meal was forgotten as Ricci laid out the conversation happening far away from the house. Mal listened to the boy’s speech and felt the knife twist in his gut.
“The guy is huge”—Ricci demonstrated by lifting an arm high above his head—”and he has a sword as tall as Shandra.”
Sulli turned to Mal. “We can’t let her fight that beast. She’ll lose.”
Shandra walked into the barn. “Thanks for the vote of confidence. I’ve been beating men bigger than me since I was a teenager. There’s nothing to frighten me about this fight.” She looked each man in the eye in turn. “It’ll be over by this time tomorrow, and I won’t have Wella continuing to nag me about enlisting.”
Ricci leaped to stand beside her, his face glowing with pride. “You’ve never seen my sister fight, but I have.” He mock-fought a few blows, thrusting and parrying with an invisible sword. “Shandra is the best fighter I know.”
“Better than me?” Io said. He threw a worried glance toward Mal, then led Ricci away from the barn. “Surely, you know I’m the most talented swordsman in the land. Do you really believe your sister could beat me?”
The answer was lost as the two walked inside the house. The remaining clan brothers all turned as one to face Mal, waiting for a decision.
Shandra stamped her foot. “Don’t look to him for an answer, I’ve already told you my decision. I’m more than capable of handling this fight myself.” Her cheeks flooded with color as they continued to look at Mal. “Get inside and eat the dinner I spent hours cooking you. I’m going to bed.”
She spun on her heel and left the barn while Mal continued to stand in place. The anger that had erupted in him earlier was still burning, embers glowing with color ready to reignite into a raging fire if he fed it some fuel.
Why should one of his clan die at the hands of that beast just because Shandra had gotten herself entangled
in an obligation she couldn’t set herself free from? The woman couldn’t even be bothered to ask them for help.
The men standing around him were his responsibility. If he’d known the full circumstances at the time they arrived here, he never would have traded the chance of losing one for shelter and food.
For any clan brother to go in her place, exposed the rest of them to Wella Ufsprig. She would recognize their faces from her wanted posters the minute they stepped foot in the ring. Soon, she’d come for all.
Shandra could take care of herself. It was his job to look out for these men. He turned back to face them. “As Ricci said, Shandra is a skilled fighter, able to handle herself well in the arena.”
Chance stepped forward, placing a palm against Mal’s chest and shoving him back. “Do you mean to tell us you’ll let a woman fight a battle meant for a man?”
“It’s designed for a warrior, and it’s Shandra who chose the option. This is nothing to do with us.” Mal tightened his jaw and turned his face to one side, not meeting Chance’s gaze. “If I knew Shandra was obligated to Wella’s draft, I never would have remained here.”
“But we are here.” Sulli stepped up beside Chance and laid a hand on his shoulder. “Shandra let us stay, even knowing we were on the run. She’s provided a haven for us for months, though it could have cost her dearly.”
“It cost her nothing. We more than earned our keep through hard work.” Mal lifted his chin and met Sulli’s gaze straight on. “This fight is to do with Shandra’s obligations to her overlord. It’s not our battle and would occur whether we were here or not.”
“Didn’t you see how big Ricci showed her opponent to be?” Baile also moved forward to stand beside Sulli. Three against one. “If we let this fight go ahead as is, she may well die. Then we won’t be anybody’s harem.”
“We’re not anyone’s harem now.” Mal planted his hands on his hips. “I told you, that’s all over. We would have left here already if Sulli hadn’t wanted to feed his belly.”