A Warlord's Heart (5 page)

Drawn to the fight, more Raasa came over to
watch. For them it was a normal sight to see the Kabanians battle
for small slights. They could not possibly understand that this was
more. Vaan hurried down the stairs intent on stopping them. As soon
as he neared, Tolan leaped to his feet.

“What is this?” Vaan asked, unable to believe
Ramar’s actions.

Tolan’s chest heaved and blood stained his
mouth. “My apologies, Overlord. Ramar attacked for no reason.”

“Ramar?” Vaan faced the Warlord, expecting an
explanation but Ramar stared over Vaan’s shoulders. Vaan followed
his gaze and the male Raasa, Maen, had an arm around Vesa, soothing
her ire. Ramar didn’t answer Vaan. He charged over toward the two
and shoved the male hard enough he hit the ground with a loud
groan.

Vesa shrieked and tossed her bow and quiver
to the side as she tried to reach the fallen male. Ramar blocked
her attempt easily. Intrigued though he usually wouldn’t be, Vaan
continued to stare.

“Move, Warlord Ramar,” Vesa hissed, green
eyes narrowed.

“You have leave to call me Ramar as I have
told you.”

Vesa flung her hands up. “I don’t want to
call you anything, now move.”

Ramar braced his weight and leaned forward.
His voice remained calm as he stated, “This I will not do.”

Everyone present listened to their exchange.
Maen rose to his feet and Vaan noted that aside from the dust and
grime on his hands, the Raasa remained unhurt by his fall. His
chest loosened. He did not tolerate unnecessary injury to those
under his protection and more so for the Raasa, who had not the
benefit of the coccar armor in extreme dangerous situations. The
Raasa could produce deadly venom in their mouth and use it in
defense but overall they were a peace loving people.

Vesa screamed at Ramar’s refusal to move then
balled both fists and pushed at his Warlord’s chest. Maen’s
diamond, green pupils dilated and his forked tongue flickered as he
stomped to Vesa’s side and curved an arm around Vesa’s waist. Vaan
tensed as everything in Ramar’s posture changed. His Warlord went
from calm to battle rage in seconds. Vaan knew there was no time to
warn Maen to step aside.

“Hold, Ramar!” Vaan shouted.

Arms bunched and fists knotted but Ramar
refrained from taking the next step which surely would have
involved serious harm to Maen.

Vesa glared at Ramar then eased Maen’s arm
from around her before going back inside without another word to
Ramar. The others were silent for all of a beat then talking
resumed. The Raasa conversed in the rapid-fire dialect of their
native tongue which Vaan had no hope of following, while Tolan’s
eyes widened and he exclaimed, “You have feelings for the
female?”

Ramar flushed bright red and stalked off. To
Vaan’s relief, his new right hand headed for the hapfe stables
instead of indoors. Tolan faced Argan. “My apologies again,
Overlord Vaan. I would not have been as forceful with Vesa if I
knew it would offend Ramar.”

Vaan thought over all the changes he’d gone
through since awakening. He’d once considered the renewed treaty
with the Desani the most difficult task to accomplish but now he
wondered if the most difficult task was not having his best friend
and mate around at all times to handle such emotional
situations.

Chapter 6

The next morning his youngling stared at him
with identical green eyes and repeated their request. “Hapfe.
Pease, pease falo?”

Like their mother, Erana and Arane loved
hapfe and visited the bi-pedal mounts often to rub furred noses and
sneak treats to the animals when they thought no one looked.

Vaan kneeled, placing himself at eye level.
“I will have Balal and Amrod take you but remember what we spoke
of?”

Arane’s chin tipped up but she stayed silent
as her eyes shifted from soft to stubborn, reminiscent of Mikayla.
Erana, ever eager, answered with a shy smile. “Galip no beg.”

Vaan’s lips curled up. “Close enough.”

Vaan rose to his feet and patted the tops of
their heads. He signaled Balal who paused to kiss Assa longer than
necessary and rub her belly before coming over. Vaan glared but
Balal’s grin held no remorse. “My youngling wish to visit the
stables and I must respond to a missive from the Desani in
reference to setting up a trade agreement. The Council has longed
for this, so I will give it full consideration. Take Amrod with
you.”

With Kavan away guarding his mate, Amrod had
offered to assist Balal in the protection of his youngling. The
Warlord had been at Vaan’s side for less than a year when Vaan’s
uncle Dakar and Warlord Thenl had betrayed them. Amrod was not as
young as Kiel but as a newly appointed Warlord, the two had the
same experience level. What both warriors lacked in battle at
Vaan’s side, they made up for with passion and honor.

All of his men loved the youngling but Amrod
showed a decided soft spot for Arane and Erana and would enjoy the
extra time around them.

“Bal!” Arane squealed, her annoyance with her
father fading in light of her favorite Warlord. She held up her
ever present sword. “Fight?”

Vaan waited for Balal’s response. His Warlord
picked Arane up and propped her on his forearm expertly, his large
palm bracing her back for added support. “We will fight later,
yes?”

Vaan could see Arane debating if this was
worthy of tears and fortunately for them she grinned and kissed
Balal on the cheek. “Yes.”

Erana stepped closer, her small hand tugging
on Vaan’s leather pants. His brows creased as he went back to one
knee and caressed her petal-soft cheek. “What is amiss?”

Her sword hit him on the shoulder as she
wrapped her arms around his neck as far as they could reach and
whispered in his ear. “Miss mala.”

At her somber tone, Vaan’s gut clenched. Of
course. This was the longest Mikayla had been away from either of
them. He made eye contact with Balal and after a moment his Warlord
walked away with Arane to give them a moment of privacy

“I miss her as well.” The truth he spoke
increased Vaan’s frustration with Mikayla’s overlong journey. She
and his Warlords were due to return in several days if all went as
planned. He understood the reasoning behind her decision but
promised himself they would not suffer a separation of this length
again.

Vaan straightened with Erana in his arms,
feeling his chest expand with the love his youngling brought out in
him. “Tonight,” he promised, overcome with the need to fix this
problem, “we shall battle one-on-one.”

Her smile made the decision worth while.
During swordplay he allowed his youngling to work in tandem against
him. The practice served a dual purpose by teaching them to work
with another in battle and also showed them they held equal
importance in his heart. But tonight he and his softhearted Erana
would fight together.

Vaan found Balal and Arane waiting outside
with Amrod. Amrod broke off his conversation and smiled.

“Lady Erana, it is my pleasure.” He offered a
deep bow, fist to chest, causing giggles from both girls. Vaan
lowered Erana to her feet and she shot straight for Amrod,
accepting him as a substitute for Kavan easily.

A stirring of unease chilled his spine at his
youngling’s open affection toward everyone. Never had he considered
the impact of the peaceful life they lived among the Raasa compared
to youngling in Kaban who were reared on tales of battle and death.
Erana and Arane witnessed the intense training he conducted daily
and had a good time with their sword play but how much of true
danger could they comprehend?

He’d longed for peace but perhaps the
benefits were not all good. Vaan promised himself to go over his
concerns with Mikayla to assess her thoughts.

***

Ramar

Sitting next to his Overlord at the mid-day
meal, Ramar did his best not to react to the Raasa female who
slammed a plate in front of him before serving his fellow Warlord
in a gentler manner. Kiel grinned his thanks at Vesa before diving
into his fragrant meal.

“Why do you not speak with her?”

Vaan’s question jerked Ramar’s attention away
from Vesa’s swaying hips as she made her way down the table pouring
ale and offering everyone save him a glimpse of her bright
smile.

“Speak with her?”

His Overlord snorted not fooled in the least.
“If you seek to pretend a lack of interest perhaps you should not
stare so when she leans over.”

As Vesa did now when she reached for an empty
pitcher. Ramar inhaled sharply and his toqa hardened. Today she
wore a slim-fitting dress in black that fell to her ankles. The
short sleeves and rounded neck should have made the dress demure
but each step the female took revealed a knee-high split that
flashed a hint of sleek golden legs. Ramar recalled the touch of
those golden legs around his hips when he’d buried his toqa in her
toque.

When Maen neared Vesa to take a container of
fruit from her, Ramar stiffened. Neither made a secret of their
interest in one another and it took all of Ramar’s warrior training
not to end the Raasa male each time he touched Vesa. At first,
Ramar had not noticed the growing affection between them. Ramar
tried to ignore them as he’d done over the last year and some for
any males around Vesa since his one night of bed play with her.

The Raasa expressed their fondness and like
with overt signs of affection. Their behavior was so different from
Kabanians that he and the other Warlords spent many nights
discussing it. But lately Vesa spent more and more time with Maen,
caressing his bald head or stroking his thin chest. The male’s
physical build was lacking compared to a Kabanians’ strong frame.
The two exchanged more glances and smiles.

Vesa’s smile hit Ramar in the gut. Once upon
a time she’d smiled at him thus and to his surprise the sight of
her fangs alone had caused his toqa to stir. A piece of bread hit
Ramar in the cheek, disturbing his thoughts and pulling his
attention away from Vesa and the male he planned to kill.

As soon as he looked across the table, Balal,
the offender smirked. “Your eyes tell your thoughts and make me
blush, Ramar.”

Vaan grunted from the right.

Ramar tossed the bread on the table to the
side of his plate. “Worry not for my thoughts, youngling.”

The lighthearted warrior he called friend
continued to smile as he braced his elbows on the table, chin
propped on a curled fist. Ramar sighed, not having an interest in
where this would likely lead.

“I would have you share what is amiss between
you and the Raasa female.”

As if he’d tell Balal, the only one among
Vaan’s Warlords who told the tales as soon as he heard them. “There
is nothing amiss.”

Assa came over and ran a hand through Balal’s
hair. The Warlord wore it loose about his shoulders more often than
not, knowing it would draw his mate’s attention and have her
stroking it. Ramar rolled his eyes at the obvious ploy and waited
until Assa moved on to continue serving the mid-day meal before he
spoke. “Your actions are desperate.”

Balal’s gaze followed Assa then with
reluctance faced him. “It is not desperate to enjoy her affections.
It pleases her to be free with her touches and it pleases me to
please her.”

Ramar paused at the serious sentiment. None
doubted Vaan’s love for Mikayla and she for him, though many of
them did not understand the how of it. Recently Argan had left them
for an Olak’din woman he claimed held his heart. The Olak’din were
Shadow Warriors and his brethren reported that Argan’s bride fought
at his side as fiercely as any Warlord. The very thought created
curiosity among all of them.

Ramar found himself asking, “You are happy,
though she is not a Kabanian woman?”

Balal straightened and dropped his arms to
the table as he reached for his drink. Ramar waited, tension
filling him for some unknown reason. He sensed Vaan waiting and
listening as well.

“I love Assa,” Balal said firmly and with no
little pride. His brown gaze sought her again as he muttered, “She
is all I hold dear. Sleep in her arms is better than the high of
any battle.”

Stunned, Ramar sat back in his chair. He had
expected something big. The Raasa loved hard as evident by their
belief in True Unions, which did not allow for couples to separate
even if they found dissatisfaction with one another. But he had not
expected the strength of Balal’s faith in that love.

Ramar was deeply moved by the idea. “I thank
you for sharing, Balal. You honor me.”

Balal faced him again and shrugged. “I honor
my mate.” Then he leaned forward and knocked Ramar back with his
next words. “You should not let doubt rule you. If you have
feelings for Vesa it would be wise to speak to her now for there
may not be a later.”

Balal nodded in the opposite direction and
Ramar turned. Maen held Vesa, their heads placed close together as
they stared into one another’s eyes. Ramar’s gaze lowered to Maen’s
hands covering Vesa’s rear. It was enough to sour the portion of
the meal he’d consumed. Ramar’s hand dropped beneath the table to
touch the hilt of the knife strapped to his thigh.

“Do not let fear rule you,” Vaan counseled,
speaking at last. “The rewards of such courage are without
end.”

And with that, his Overlord rose to his feet
and gathered his youngling to set them on their feet. Food crumbs
fell to the floor from the matching green dresses they wore. Arane
placed her foot over two berries and squashed them, staining her
shoes in purple mush. Vaan sighed but his touch remained gentle as
he placed his palm on the top of her head when she snuggled against
his thigh.

“More hapfe,” Erana chirped.

Vaan frowned. “You have need of naps.”