Savage Desire (Savage Lagonda 1) (45 page)

[THE INDIAN] SAID THAT TO THE SOUTHEAST IS
A KINGDOM THAT THEY CALL MARATA, WHICH
USED TO HAVE MANY LARGE SETTLEMENTS;
THAT ALL HAVE THE HOUSES OF STONE AND
STORIES, AND THAT THOSE WERE AND STILL ARE AT WAR WITH THE LORD OF THE SEVEN
CITIES.

—
Friar Marcos

29

Mara was awakened by the pain that ripped through her body. She was lying in a tepee, on a stiff buffalo robe. The sounds that came to her from outside told her she was in an Indian camp. The tepee flap was pushed aside and an Indian woman entered.

"Help me," Mara said weakly. "I think my baby is coming."

The woman stared at her and Mara saw hatred in the dark eyes.

"Tanka, it is you."

"Yes, it is I. You look quite different from when I saw you last," she said in a spiteful voice.

"Help me, Tanka. The baby . . ."

"Help you, why should I help you? It is because of you that I cannot return to my home. You have caused me much grief."

Mara heard the hate in the woman's voice. "Did you love Tajarez, Tanka?"

"What woman would not? He was everything that a woman could want. I loved him, but that was a very long time ago."

"If you loved him, will you not help his child to be born?"

"You dare to ask me to help you, when it should be I that bore him a son?"

Mara felt another pain knife through her body. She cried out from the intensity of it.

Tanka knelt down beside Mara. Her face was distorted with the hatred that was mirrored there. "The pleasure you found in his bed does not feel so pleasant now, does it? Oh, I remember well how he could make a woman feel. He planted his seed in you, and I shall enjoy watching you suffer to deliver his child."

Mara gripped Tanka's hand. "Please help my baby."

The flap was pushed aside once more, and Anias entered. Tanka stood up and faced him. "The creature you have brought among us is having her baby. You did not count on this, did you? If you killed the king, as you say you did, and if the baby is a boy, he will be the prince royal. Tajarez will never stop hunting for you. He will find you and he will slay you."

"I expect him to search for me, and when the time is right, I will allow him to find me, but it is I who shall slay him, not the other way around."

Tanka glared at Anias. "You have cried out in your sleep for this woman, Anias. Look at her, is she the beauty you remembered?"

Anias shoved her aside and knelt down beside Mara. "Does the child come?"

Mara nodded, her eyes beseeching him to help her.

He touched her face gently and watched as she turned her head away. His was the hand that had killed Hamez and Palomas, and she felt revulsion at his touch.

"You turn away from me now, but the time will come when it will not be so."

"Never!" Mara said through clenched teeth. "What do you plan to do with me?"

His fingers tangled in her golden hair, and he jerked her head around so she was facing him. "If you are kind to me, I will be kind to you."

"And my baby?"

Anias's eyes narrowed. "The baby will have Tajarez's blood coursing through its veins. I have not yet decided its fate."

Mara felt another pain. She dug her fingernails into the palm of her hand, trying not to cry out. Her body twisted in agony. She saw Anias's eyes soften. "See to the delivery of the child, Tanka, and if either Mara or the child is harmed, you die."

He left the tepee without a backward glance; his threat still hung on the air.

"I will help you, but the day will come when you will pay for all I have suffered on your account."

Mara looked at Tanka, feeling helpless. Her life and her baby's were in the hands of the woman who hated her.

The hours passed slowly as Mara labored. The tepee had become unmercifully hot and sultry as the afternoon sun beat down upon it.

Tanka bathed Mara's face in cool water. "It is taking a long time for your baby to come. I need help," Tanka told her.

Mara held on tightly to Tanka's hand. "Do not leave me," she whispered through parched lips. She twisted in agony. She felt that her whole body would rip apart as pain dulled her senses. She was pushing with all her might as she expelled her baby. Then she fell back, exhausted, as Tanka lifted the tiny infant into her arms.

"It is a boy," Tanka said. She laid the baby beside Mara as she cut and bound the navel cord. Mara tried to look at her baby, but another pain ripped through her body. Tanka knelt down beside her once more, and looked at Mara, puzzled. "Another pain?"

Mara was bearing down once more. "Another baby," Tanka said in wonder as she reached for a second tiny infant. "A girl. Twins!"

Mara felt weak and exhausted as she watched Tanka cut the navel cord and tie it off.

"Tajarez has a son and a daughter," Tanka said. "They have the look of their father; I feared they would be white like you. Tajarez would be very proud this day." Her voice drifted off as Mara fell asleep.

Tajarez returned to the city after searching for over four weeks without a single trace of Mara and Anias. He looked haggard and weary as he entered the anteroom.

Sagas rushed forward to greet him. "You have not found her?"

Tajarez sat down wearily. "I cannot find a trace of them. I have questioned all the nearby tribes, and no one has seen them. It is as if the earth has swallowed them

U
P;

"Do you give up then?"

"No, I need fresh horses, then I start out again." He buried his head in his hands. "He may have harmed Mara, Sagas. I cannot bear to think what she has suffered."

"I do not believe he has harmed her, and we would have heard by now if she were dead. Anias would make sure you found out. He seeks revenge, but it would not suit his purpose to kill her."

"That is my only hope, but what about the baby? It will have been born by now. Tell me, Sagas, have you seen any visions or had any dreams?"

"No, but I have a feeling that Mara is not far away. I do not know where the feeling comes from, but it is very real."

"You feel nothing else?"

Sagas blinked. "No, nothing. I have had a recurring dream, but it does not involve Mara, it has to do with Tanka."

Tajarez jumped to his feet. "In what way, Sagas?"

"I dream that Tanka is in the Ute village. I am afraid that will not help you find Mara."

"It may help more than you think, Sagas. Anias and Tanka were partners in trying to take Mara from me before. Maybe they are partners once again, or maybe Tanka knows where I can find Anias."

"You are leaving now?"

"Yes. Keep good faith, my old friend. This may just be what I have been hoping for."

…THIS EVENING ONE OF THE WIVES OF
CHARBONNEAU (SACAGAWEA) WAS DELIVERED
OF A FINE BOY. IT IS WORTHY OF REMARK THAT
THIS WAS THE FIRST CHILD WHICH THIS WOMAN HAD BORN, AND AS IS COMMON IN
SUCH CASES HER LABOR WAS TEDIOUS AND THE
PAIN VIOLENT.

—
Meriwether Lewis

30

The twins were five weeks old now and Mara never tired of watching them. She would take turns holding them, and already she could tell that they had two entirely different personalities. Her son, and the firstborn, was alert and inquisitive. He would lie for long hours looking about him as though interested in his surroundings, while his sister slept most of the time and liked to be held in Mara's arms when she was awake.

Mara felt a deep sadness that Tajarez could not see his son and daughter. Maybe he would resent that they had her green eyes, but she thought he would be proud of them all the same. They were beautiful, so perfectly formed. Their skin was a deep golden color. They were good babies and hardly ever cried.

They were so like Tajarez it was a comfort to her just having them with her. It was as though she had a part of her husband in his offspring. Their eyes were the only thing that testified to Mara's being their mother, for they were a bright green color. The combination of honey-gold skin and green eyes was very appealing in the tiny, dark-haired infants.

So far Mara had refused to name them. She did not know what the future held for her or her babies. Anias had come to visit her each day, but when she questioned him about her future and that of her babies, he would become evasive.

So far he had treated her with nothing but kindness, but according to Tanka's snide remarks, his plans for her would change as soon as she was fully recovered from the birth of her babies.

Sometimes when Anias was in her tepee, Mara would see him look at her with something in his eyes that she could not put a name to, and it would frighten her more than any verbal threat he could have made.

Tanka had become less hostile to Mara over the last two weeks, and spent a great deal of time with the twins. At first Mara had been frightened that Tanka would try to harm the babies, but as time passed, it became apparent that she was genuinely fond of them, especially Mara's son. Tanka would hold him and sing Indian lullabies to him.

Mara had a lot of time to think of the brutal slayings of Hamez and Palomas. The two of them had touched her life and affected her deeply. She grieved for them, most of the time in silence; but sometimes she would give way to tears and sob brokenheartedly for their loss. Hamez, who had been so kind to her, and who she knew had genuinely loved her, and Palomas, her faithful friend, whose life had been forfeited on her account. She knew she would always feel an emptiness in her heart for them both.

Mara also had time to reflect on her tall, dark husband. Would he ever find her? Did he still search? Maybe Anias had done him a favor by taking her away. Mara had half convinced herself that Tajarez would be relieved that she was no longer a problem to him. She knew that Jeffery would not give up searching for her, but what chance would he have of finding her? He was not familiar with the country, although that would not stop him. How long would it be before even her brother would give up any hope of finding her?

Mara had no idea where she was herself. That she was in an Indian camp was apparent. But where? And what tribe?

Anias had made it plain to her that she was not to go outside her tepee. The two times she had tried she had been stopped at the entrance by an Indian who stood guard. She soon gave up the effort and became resigned to remaining in her prison.

If only things could have been different between her and Tajarez. If she had been born of his world, or he of hers, could they have avoided all their problems? She sighed deeply. Most probably not. But she loved him so much, and felt a deep ache for him. It did not matter that he had been cruel and unfeeling to her. She knew she would always love and need him.

He would be king now that Hamez was dead. If he thought her dead, would he take another wife, one of his own race, to give him the children he wanted?

Mara let her mind wander back to the first few weeks of their marriage. Tajarez had been so loving and gentle with her then. It was only when he learned about her carrying his child that he began to change toward her, making her feel unwanted and rejected.

Hot tears clouded her eyes as his handsome face flashed through her mind. My love, my love, she thought, now that you are free of me, will you find happiness with another?

Anias swept into her tepee with his usual arrogance, and stood over her with a scowl on his face. "Tears, Mara? I was beginning to believe that you were made of ice, you accepted your fate so easily. I am glad to see that you are human after all." His eyes darkened with passion as they fastened on her beautiful face. "I will soon test whether you are indeed a flesh and blood woman."

"Never!" she said defiantly. "I will never let you touch me. I would rather be dead than have you come near me."

Anias looked about the tepee. His eyes fell on Tanka, who was holding Mara's son. "Get out," he ordered her in a harsh voice.

"I am not your servant that you can order me about," she told him hotly, as she laid the child down.

Anias was across the tepee in two strides and grabbed her by the arm and yanked her to her feet. Mara watched in horror as Anias struck her hard across the face with his open palm. The blow snapped Tanka's head back, and blood poured from her nose.

Mara was on her feet in a flash and rushed to Tanka's aid. "How dare you strike her?" she said as she tried to stem the flow of blood with a piece of cloth. "Does it make you feel like a man to strike a woman? You are a beast, and I hate the sight of you," she stormed.

Tanka's reaction was one of shocked surprise that Mara had come to her aid after the way she had treated her in the past.

"So, you hate me, do you?" Anias said, pulling her into his arms.

Mara struggled against him. "Do not touch me. I cannot stand your hands on me."

He laughed at her puny efforts to free herself. "I will do more than touch you, beautiful one, and I think you will enjoy it, or at least pretend to."

"What do you mean?" Mara asked.

He gave her a smile, looking deeply into her eyes. "I mean, in the space of this one day, my cousin, your husband, will be here."

"How do you know this?" Tanka intervened.

Anias threw back his head and laughed. "Ah, the two women who love my cousin. If all the women who have loved him were here with us, there would scarcely be room to stand." He looked at Mara's ashen face. "What, Mara, no questions as to how I know Tajarez will soon be joining us?"

Mara could not speak. He had taken her completely by surprise.

Tanka faced Anias bravely. "What are you up to, Anias? How do you know he will come?"

He smiled and looked at Mara. "If you were a man, Tanka, you would know that Tajarez would stop at nothing to get Mara back." He caressed Mara's cheek softly. "Have I not faced untold dangers to take her for myself?"

Mara shied away from his touch. "Have you seen him?" she asked, not daring to hope that she would soon see Tajarez.

"He is my prisoner. He was captured not far from here last night. How will you like seeing your proud, arrogant husband bound and tied and at my mercy, Mara?"

"Even if he were bound, he is twice the man you are, Anias," Tanka said through clenched teeth.

"Oh, so quick to defend him, Tanka. What a pity he is not as loyal to you as you are to him. Leave me now. I will have a word with Mara alone," he said as he shoved Tanka toward the tepee opening.

Mara sank down on the buffalo hide and clasped her hands tightly in her lap. "What will you do with Tajarez?" she asked softly, afraid to hear his answer.

"That depends on you, Mara."

"What do you mean?"

"It is no secret that I desire you. I have gone to great lengths to prove how I feel about you."

"Do you mean by murdering Palomas and Hamez?" she said dully.

He shrugged. "It was necessary. Have you stopped to consider that my actions have made Tajarez king?"

"He would not thank you, Anias, nor do I."

"Enough," he hissed. "You have it within your power to save him, Mara. Do you wish me to tell you how?"

"You know I would do anything to save his life. What do you want of me?"

Anias reached for her hand and drew her up beside him. "All you have to do is play a part." He paused. "When my cousin comes, you will tell him that you prefer me to him." He watched her face closely. "You must be very convincing and appear very loving to me."

Mara shuddered as his hand slid down her smooth neck to cup her breast.

His eyes narrowed. "You are not very convincing, Mara."

"I do not believe you. It is a trick to get me to . . . you could never have overpowered Tajarez. He is much too intelligent to allow himself to be captured."

Anias's hand tightened on her breast, and she cried out in pain. "Make no mistake about it, Mara. Tajarez is my prisoner, as you will see. I need no trick to take you. I could have you now if I wanted to, but I much prefer that you come to me willingly. Do we bargain for his life, or do I simply slay him and take you anyway?"

"Why are you doing this, Anias? Why can you not let me go free and allow Tajarez to return to his people?"

Anias raised her face and stroked it gently. "I cannot let you go Mara. In my own way I love you. For long months I have hungered after you, hoping you would one day belong to me." His voice deepened. "I have given up much for you, not the least of which is my self-respect."

"How can this be? I have never given you the slightest inclination that I could feel anything for you. It is Tajarez I love. I could never love you."

"Never is a long time, Mara." There was sadness in the eyes that looked into hers. "The passing of time can change many things. I shall be very good to you, if you will only give me the chance."

"I despise you, Anias, I cannot stand it when you touch me."

He looked as if she had struck him, then anger danced in his eyes. "This is not the way to save Tajarez, Mara." He released her and she staggered backwards, trying hard to retain her balance, and finally succeeding.

"You will let Tajarez go free if I do as you ask?" Mara remembered Sagas's words. He had told her she would have it in her power to save the king. At the time she had thought he had meant Hamez. Tajarez was now king, and it was now he whom she could save.

"I have given it much thought, Mara. If I slay Tajarez, he will merely be dead, and that will no longer benefit me now that I can no longer return to my home. But if I take what he treasures most, he will feel pain every day of his life."

Mara laughed bitterly. "You are wrong if you think that I am a treasure to Tajarez. He does not love me."

"Do not take me for a fool, Mara. I know how my cousin feels about you. Was I not with him as he searched for you? Did he not tell me of his love for you, and how he burned to possess you? Do I not know myself that once a man has looked into your green eyes he could never be satisfied with any other woman? Tajarez has had you in his bed. He must be out of his mind by now wondering if you have been in mine. How you torment a man," he said, pulling her tightly against him. "For so long I have wanted you."

His lips covered hers in a passionate kiss. Mara suffered in silence. She dared not draw away from him as she wanted to. She hated the feel of his lips on hers, but suppressed the desire to shove him away from her.

Anias raised his head, his voice thick with passion. "Tajarez will live the rest of his life tortured by the thought of you in my arms. He will live the life of the damned."

Mara stepped back a pace. "Will you allow Tajarez to take my babies with him, Anias?" Her voice was pleading, her eyes wide and frightened.

"You have anticipated me, Mara. I do not want you to be tied to Tajarez's seed. I do not want you to have any reminders of him. You and I will go far away from here to a place called Canada. There will be no chance of Tajarez's finding us there. Will you do as
I
ask, Mara?"

"I will make Tajarez think I love you, Anias, if you will let him and my babies go unharmed."

"Remember, you must be very convincing or Tajarez will die. Now, make yourself beautiful. I want Tajarez to see what he cannot have."

He left her abruptly. When he had gone, she collapsed on the buffalo robe. To make Tajarez think she did not love him would be the hardest thing she would ever have to do, but she must not falter or Tajarez would die.

Mara remembered Sagas telling her that one day she would have to make a great sacrifice for love. That day was today. Sagas had told her to face it bravely. She would have to, she had no choice.

Mara could not let herself think of what her life would be like without Tajarez and her babies. She shuddered in fear as she thought of what Anias had in mind for her. I will not think of it, she told herself. After Tajarez was safe there would be time enough to plan what she must do. She thought of Tajarez's sister who had chosen death above dishonor. She would do the same, but for now she must make her mind a blank and try not to feel.