The two men danced to the left, their swords clanging like stags with antlers, locking together. I took the opportunity to dart right. Not quick enough. They slammed into me, pinning my body to the brick building, their forms heavy and muscled. As they stumbled away, I fell to my knees into a puddle of sludge. My phone went skidding across the ground. My anxiety turned to outright anger. I’d had enough.
I pressed my hands into the ground and managed to regain my feet. The legs of my pants were soaked. “You idiots!”
“Watch out!” Brynjar cried.
I saw the blade flash under the low streetlight. I had just enough time to drop to the ground, my knees hitting the asphalt hard. The swoosh of the blade overhead stirred my hair. For a stunned moment I couldn’t move, realizing just how close I’d come to death. As my shock faded, my rage simmered. Furious, I grabbed my Cherry Coke that lay on the ground a few feet away and threw it at them. The bottle just missed Makaiden’s head. He didn’t even notice.
“You’ll allow your uncle to destroy our kingdoms?” Brynjar spun out of the way of Makaiden’s swing. “You know it’s wrong what he’s doing.”
“That accent,” I muttered, staring hard at them. I’d heard their accent before, but where? Realization hit like a sledgehammer to the side of the head. “Mom.”
Fear sent me fleeing. I darted forward, determined to shove my way between them, with one goal in mind: get home. Warn my mother that these two lunatics were looking for her. For us.
Brynjar dropped his sword to his side. “Rallora, no! Stay back!”
Too late. Makaiden stepped in front of me, blocking my path. I stumbled to a halt. The fierce look of determination in his light gaze made me more than nervous. My breath caught, held until my lungs burned. But it was his eyes that truly caught my attention. I swore they glowed green.
Mistake, I realized. It had been a mistake to draw attention to myself.
“Get back!” Brynjar raced forward just as Makaiden lifted his sword.
I tensed, preparing for the impact of that blade slicing through my soft tissue, but it didn’t come. With a growl, Makaiden spun around and hit Brynjar in the side. Brynjar’s eyes went wide with shock. The injured soldier stumbled back into the brick wall. I screamed. His gaze met mine, an apology in those blue eyes. He’d failed. To protect Rallora? To capture her? I wasn’t sure. Slowly, he slid down the wall and collapsed to the ground. Blood spread across his gray shirt, darkening the material to black.
It was real. Too real.
Bile surged up my throat. I swallowed hard, shaking my head. “No. This isn’t happening. This isn’t…”
I darted toward Brynjar. Makaiden caught me around the waist and swung me back. “You’re coming with me.”
I struggled. “Let me go!”
I had no doubt he could lift that sword and detach my head from my body, if he wanted. Years of warning rang through my mind. Confront my attacker, don’t turn my back, scream, was taught to every city kid by the time they could walk.
“Who the hell are you?” I demanded.
“You’re coming with me,” he repeated. ‘It’s time to go home.”
All in one fluid, graceful movement, he released his hold, lifted his palm and blew a puff of air into my face. A golden powder caught the breeze, and swept toward me. Before I had time to duck, the dust went up my nose. I had just a moment to look into his fierce eyes, green eyes, glowing eyes, and then…
And then I sneezed.
And then the ground seemed to drop away. The alley spun around and around, or maybe that was me. The golden lights exploded. The world faded.
Everything went dark.
Chapter Two
Makaiden
She didn’t look important. And she sure as hell didn’t look like a woman who held the power to destroy my kingdom. Then again, training the last few years had kept me on the fields with other soldiers. Women were few and far between. What did I know?
Her hair was shorter than most females, coming just below her shoulders. She wore an odd jacket and trousers that looked more like men’s clothing. But her body…that screamed femininity.
I knelt beside her and studied her delicate features, her curvy form that pressed at her clothing in all the right ways. Breathed in her sweet, feminine scent, all in an attempt to understand this creature before me. She looked so small. So vulnerable. So…innocent. The setting sun pierced the opening of the tent and highlighted her brown hair, making it glow like a halo around her oval face.
She might not have looked important, but there was something intriguing about her. Something that called to me, fascinated me, made me slightly wary all at once. I should have been thrilled she was here. And I was thrilled. Yet, I couldn’t deny that I felt something else…what? Guilt? My shoulders stiffened. Nonsense. I’d done what had to be done. In war, there was no room for guilt.
I heard Gregor’s voice outside the tent and surged to my feet. All I needed was for him to catch me hovering over the prisoner like I was some daft, love-sick fool. I’d never live it down. He ducked under the tent flap and entered the small abode, bringing with the scent of horses and smoke from the campfires.
“She’s still unconscious?”
“Yes.”
He pulled off his helmet, his blonde hair sweat-dampened to his skull. I had followed the Acadian soldier on a whim, but I was more than relieved I’d listened to my instincts. I’d left the camp in Gregor’s capable hands, the only man I trusted. He hadn’t let me down. He never did.
“Interesting,” Gregor mumbled, studying the woman who slept on the cot. “Doesn’t look very important.”
“Exactly!”
We shared a grin. Having been friends since we were five, we often had the same thoughts. He’d been my personal servant, until I’d promoted him when we’d turned fourteen. He knew more about me than my uncle, even more than my sister. We’d gotten into multiple scrapes and had helped each other out of every difficult situation we’d encountered. He was a servant no longer, but a friend, a brother.
He tucked his helmet under his arm, the metal clanging against the metal of his chest plate. “Your uncle will be proud.”
I released a wry laugh. We both knew that was a lie. He’d be furious. Irate that I’d done something he’d failed. “Yes, and we must make Uncle proud.”
A stiff wind rattled the tent, snapping the flap back and forth. We needed to leave early in the morning, before a storm swept down from the mountains as it was quick to do in the spring. Trails would not be passable for days. I couldn’t wait days.
“He is the king…for now.”
“For now,” I repeated.
We both knew who was the rightful ruler. And Gregor understood that when I became king, he, too, would move up in the ranks. It would benefit him, and the entire kingdom.
“Alright then, your father would be proud.”
I nodded. Did I care? Father had been dead for five years now. He was no longer a presence in my life, or even my memory. I’d long since given up hope of making my parents or uncle proud. Yes, I wanted to prove that I was good enough to lead this kingdom, but I supposed I wanted to make myself proud most of all.
“Not bad to look at,” Gregor said.
For some reason his comment irritated me. She was a prisoner, not a concubine. “Rather normal-looking.”
She lay on her back on the mat, her brown hair spread around her. She had an oval face with dark lashes and brows, arched in a feminine way. Her nose was small, her lips plump enough, I supposed. An average looking girl in plain, odd clothing that did nothing for her status.
However, in that moment in the alley in her world—that moment when she’d lifted her gaze and met mine—I couldn’t deny there’d been a sting of attraction. Something I didn’t need. Something that annoyed me more than it intrigued.
“Dressed strangely,” Gregor murmured, studying her long legs.
The trousers clung to her limbs, leaving little to the imagination. And Gregor n
oticed. Other men would too. I reached out with my foot and nudged her odd blue shoe. “I’d say so.”
“Find anything on her?”
I pulled the small package from my pocket. Exhaustion weighed heavily. I felt drained of life. Jumping through portals took energy out of a person, energy I hadn’t had time to replace. What I wouldn’t give for a good night’s rest, but I had a kingdom to save. “Found this.”
Gregor took it and narrowed his eyes. “Sn…snickers? How very peculiar. Does it make one laugh?”
“I wouldn’t know.”
He ripped open the package, to reveal a long dark bar. “Try a bite?”
“Is it food?” I asked.
He lifted the thing to his nose and sniffed. A nose bent and humped from one too many hits to the face. It was a major difference between us. While I’d been pampered most of my life, he had the injuries to prove his worth. “Smells like chocolate.”
I shook my head. “You want to try, go ahead. I’m not.”
He tossed the chocolate bar to the ground. “Best not to trust it or her.”
As if on cue, she groaned, shifting on her small mat. I admit I was intrigued. How would she react to seeing us? How would she react to being back in this world? She would no doubt beg and simper, plead for her release. I looked forward to it. There was nothing more unattractive than a pampered woman who whined. Once she opened her mouth, I’d lose this inane attraction fast.
“Where has she been all this time?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. But when I found her, she was strolling around the city without protection, as if she wasn’t the least worried.”
He raised his brows. “Brave or stupid?”
I scratched the scruff along my jaw. Not only did I need a shave, but a bath and change of clothing. My privileged youth was still there, especially on days like this. “I’m not sure yet.”
“What is she like?”
“I saw her for only a few moments, and I was rather busy at the time.” I crossed my arms and studied her face. “But she was bold. Daring. She didn’t seem afraid in the least. She didn’t seem…”
“What?”
I sighed. “I could be wrong, but she didn’t seem to know who she was.”
“Could that be possible?”
“Anything is possible. If her protector never told her about this realm…”
“Why wouldn’t she?”
I shrugged. “Good question. Perhaps she thought to keep her naïve, ignorant.”
“Ignorance gets one killed.”
“Or captured by the enemy,” I added.
She groaned, shifting on her small mat.
Gregor and I paused, waiting for her to wake. Slowly her lashes lifted and stunning blue eyes captured mine. For a brief moment I forgot to draw breath. Had I thought her plain? Perhaps she wasn’t beautiful, but she was too interesting to be average. I hadn’t been able to tell in the dark alley but had assumed her eyes would be brown like her parent’s. Those eyes cleared, widened, and I cringed, knowing what would come. Yet, no scream erupted.
“Where am I?” she demanded in a husky voice.
She spoke with the authority and arrogance of someone who believed in her worth. There was no fear in her eyes, only pure hatred. I would have to be very, very careful with her. She would not take an order well.
“Stay calm, my lady,” Gregor tried.
She bolted upright, her hair falling in waves around her face. “Where did you take me?”
Gregor bowed slightly. “You are in the Mangata Realm, my lady, in the heart of the Cashel Kingdom.”
“I don’t know what the hell that means, but you better let me go,” she hissed, stumbling to her feet. She was a good foot shorter than us and about half our size, yet there was a fierceness in her demeanor that I greatly appreciated. “I swear, the police are looking for me right now!”
I laughed. Really, she’d be quite amusing, at least. A pain to deal with, but amusing all the same. “Ah, yes, I’ve seen your officers with their machines and brute force. No finesse.”
Her hands curled; her eyes flashed. Apparently, I’d offended her. “Finesse enough to kick your ass.”
“Even if that were true,” I moved closer, capturing her angry blue gaze and giving her a cocky grin, “my dear, you’re not in Earth Realm anymore. You have no one here to help you.”
****
I stumbled out of the tent, hopping on my injured leg.
Gregor followed, doing a piss-pour job of containing his laughter. “She took that well.”
I glared back at him, rubbing my shin. Hell, I could feel a bump forming. Damn that woman, and damn her hard shoes. “So well, it took two of my best soldiers to hold her down and tie her arms and legs together?”
He grinned. “Who knew she could kick?”
“Who knew ladies kicked,” I muttered. “My sister has certainly never kicked.”
He snorted. “I’m sure she could if she wished. Your sister isn’t one to shy away from a confrontation.”
Dismissing the woman causing chaos in the tent, we started across camp. The familiar scene was comforting. The clang of swords, the scent of cooking rabbit, the soft murmur of conversation as men sat in groups. I belonged out here, not stuck in a stuffy castle with my uncle going over laws, trading violations and plotting the demise of our enemies.
As much as I didn’t wish to return, I had something worth returning for. I would win over my people. And the Acadian woman would help, whether she wanted to or not. “We need to leave as soon as possible.”
“There are two routes,” Gregor said, looking at the meadow surrounding us. “The hills or the woods. The hills are safer. The woods take us close to Acadia land but are quicker by three days.”
I searched the surrounding countryside. We seemed alone out here in this spring field teeming with wildlife and dotted with white daisies, but who knew. I, more than anyone, understood how surprising life could be. I couldn’t lose my prize. Not this time.
“The Acadian should not be expecting us. The sooner we get there the better.” I hesitated. “Thoughts?”
Around us soldiers prowled the area, pretending they weren’t curious, weren’t eavesdropping. Too many eyes. Any of them could be spies for my uncle. Hell, maybe all of them. The clang of a hammer smoothing out dented armor interrupted our conversation. We moved away from the hub of the camp and toward the tents along the perimeter where it was more peaceful.
“We are only on Acadian land for a few hours.” Gregor sighed as if he hated admitting it. “I agree. Quicker we get there the better, even if we must skirt Acadia. I don’t like being out in the open here.”
A sudden commotion drew our attention to the woman’s tent. She burst through the flap, racing toward the trees at the far end of the meadow. A soldier hit her hard, taking her down. “For the love of…Why isn’t she tied?”
“Sorry, my lord,” the soldier called back, hefting her to her feet. Sweat clung to his brow. He looked as if he’d just come from battling an army, instead of one woman. She swung around, clipping him across the chin. “She said she had to relieve herself.”
I didn’t miss Gregor’s low chuckle and sent him a hard look.
He shrugged. “Well, really, it’s quite amusing.”
It took four of my men to drag her back to her tent. She cursed and struggled the entire way, spitting more than one vulgar word at me. Yes, indeed, the sooner we got home, the better. Perhaps chains in the dungeon would keep her quiet. Hellion. Any other time I would have been laughing with Gregor, but not now. Not when she was so important.
“You there!” I called out as a soldier moved by.
He bowed his head, his gaze nervous as he flicked a glance up at me. The lad couldn’t have been more than sixteen, his face pale under the dirt. “My lord?”
“The Acadian soldier…is he conscious?”
“Yes, my lord.”
I started toward the doctor’s tent. “And has his wound been stitched?”
<
br /> The soldier hurried to catch up with me. “Almost, my lord.”
I wasn’t their king, but they knew I would be eventually. To my face they treated me with respect, but did they truly think of me as their leader? Not bloody likely. Not with my uncle sitting on the throne, spreading vile rumors.
However, since dragging the woman into camp, I’d felt a shift in their reaction to my presence. They looked at me with a sense of awe upon their grimy faces, regard in their eyes. I admit, I liked their respect. If I wanted to gain their loyalty, I needed this victory. I knew when it came down to it, my uncle would fight me for the crown.
“The girl, make sure she’s protected. No one is to touch her, understand?”
He bowed. “Yes, my lord.”
“Protecting her?” Gregor said, as the soldier scurried away. “After how she behaved?”
“She’s scared.”
He shrugged. “She should learn her place.”
“How?” I snapped, in no mood to have my commands questioned. At times Gregor forgot himself. My fault, I treated him too much like an equal. “How do I make her learn her place?”
He had the decency to look sheepish. “I don’t know.”
Mayhap my uncle had no qualms about physically punishing women, claiming men were to be the masters of the house, women submissive. However, I wasn’t so pathetic that I would resort to harming someone half my size.
He sighed. “I’m worried, my friend. If we don’t get her to the castle—”
“We will.”
I brushed aside the tent flap and entered. The Acadian soldier lay on his side on a small cot that bowed under his weight. A piece of wood was clamped between his teeth, providing something for him to bite on as the doctor stitched his wound. His pale face glistened with sweat, his blue eyes glaring at me. I hoped his anger would keep him conscious long enough to get information.
Warrior Page 2