Siege (The Warrior Chronicles, 5) (7 page)

“She would’ve pounced on us by now. Shit.” Gracas’ eyes widened. “What if it’s one of those cats? Or one of the beasts?” He froze, his body rigid, staring out to his left, listening. One quiet beat, two…

He jumped at some phantom sound, and then surged right, without any destination in mind. He just sprinted away from whatever imaginary thing he thought he had heard.

Leilius poked his head through the top of the bush like a mole, first looking where Gracas went, then turning just his head, swiveling on his neck, looking back in terror in the direction Gracas had been looking when he startled. He was frozen for a second, listening.

A rodent scurried away into the undergrowth.

“Shit!” Leilius started thrashing, trying to escape the bush, squealing like he was being eaten alive.

Finally escaping, he ran after Gracas, wild and panicked. Shanti just barely heard, “I think I pissed myself…”

Shanti almost fell out of the tree, she laughed so hard. After climbing down, Rohnan drifted out of the brush, having been completely missed by the boys. A moment later, the dying sun caught a flare of bright orange hair as Sonson strode into their vicinity. “Found you.”

“By cheating,” she said, heading back to camp. “Why is everyone looking, that’s the question.”

“Dinner is being set out. The Captain insists that the women get their plates first. I’m hungry. Chop, chop.”

“Mela loves how the women are favored in this land,” Rohnan said softly.

“Whatever keeps them from bitching.” Sonson flashed Shanti a grin.

Shanti rubbed her eyes as she entered the camp. Steam rose from pots set over the fires as stew bubbled. A dozen or so Westwood women awkwardly held spoons as men scooped up their dinner and slopped it onto their bowl. Other men waited for their turn to crowd in and get some grub.

Shanti met Mela at the end of the line. “Where are the other Shadow and Shumas women?”

Mela pointed off to the right. Another campfire was surrounded by women who were happily talking and eating. “
The Westwood women made a fuss that the men wanted them to go first. If it hadn’t been for that handsome Captain, the Shadow and Shumas men would’ve agreed with the Westwood women,
” she answered in the Shumas language before laughing. “
Such foolery. I’m hungry. If these men want me to eat first, I will gladly oblige
.”

“
The women don’t want to be treated any differently
,” Shanti said, noticing Maggie’s surly, defiant expression. “
They want to be equal.”

“They fight the same.”
Mela shrugged. “
That makes them equal. What does eating have to do with it?”

“Their culture is changing. It is a slow process. Instead of being grumpy, however, the women need to realize that at least they weren’t asked to cook. It is a step forward.”

“It would probably taste better if they had,”
Rohnan mumbled, eyeing the lumpy brown stew.

“The food is not good?”
Mela bent to the side to see the man scooping out the stew. “
The food in the city was great.”

“That was made by cooks. This is made by men who have lost their taste buds.”
Rohnan looked away, unimpressed.

“Then maybe I’ll have to cook. Or Sayas.”
Mela scratched her jaw, contemplative. She loved her food.

Ruisa slowed in passing, holding a dirty bowl from a finished dinner. She nodded at an uncomfortable Alena, hesitantly holding out her bowl at the front of the line. Ruisa shook her head. To Shanti she said, “This chivalry wears off quickly. I tried to tell them all to take these niceties while they can get them, because as soon as these men think of us as warriors, and not woman warriors, they become men again. The spitting and the farting is annoying. I’m going to enjoy this social etiquette stuff while it lasts.”

“Why did you get to eat?” Marc asked as he wandered closer, shooting a scowl at Ruisa. “You’re not new.”

Ruisa gave Mela and Shanti a suffering look. “See? I’m one of the boys. They pretend I don’t have a vagina.” Marc made a face and stepped away. Ruisa gave a sly grin. “And the younger men really hate the word.”

She started walking again, throwing a verbal
vagina
at Marc as she passed. He flinched and then scowled harder, staring after her.

“
Strange,”
Mela said, glancing at the two younger people.

“
Yes. It’s best not to question.”
Shanti grinned.

“Didn’t need to be said.”

Shanti grabbed two bowls and went to find Cayan. The flap of the tent sprinkled dirt on her as she moved it aside. Cayan, Daniels, and Lucius stood inside, squinting down at a map.

“Dinner.” Shanti set the bowl on the very edge of the makeshift table, careful not to disturb any of the maps. She would’ve put it on the ground if she wasn’t worried about one of the cats—which were lying, curled up, in the corner—getting it.

All three men straightened up and looked at her as if she’d appeared out of thin air. Lucius stretched, not as worried about being as proper in Cayan’s presence. Daniels rolled his neck, keeping his signs of fatigue to a minimum. He clearly pretended that Cayan couldn’t sense his tiredness and desire to be done with the day.

“Are we set for tomorrow?” Shanti asked, sinking to the ground in the corner, cross-legged. Her cat looked in her direction. “Don’t get any ideas, you.” She pointed at it before hunching her food away a little.

“Please excuse me, sir.” Daniels nodded at Shanti as he ducked out through the flap of the tent.

Cayan glanced back down at the map. “It’s a two-day trek. We’ll stick to a relatively unused travel-way. The land is easy to traverse. It mostly skirts along the base of a mountain. I doubt we’ll see anyone tomorrow. That is, if the Mugdock have been taken over, as I fear.”

“You fear? I thought you didn’t get along with the Mugdock?” That was a nice way of putting it. The two peoples had been at war for generations. Shanti speared a soft potato.

“
No one deserves to be taken over.” Cayan took up his bowl and handed it to Lucius.

“No, go ahead.” Lucius waved the stew away. “I’ll get mine shortly. I’m sure they’ll save some for me.”

“I wouldn’t count on it,” Shanti warned. “The younger men can eat more than is natural.”

“More than Sanders?” Lucius grinned and made for the flap. “I can’t believe it.”

Shanti noticed his grin and the elation pouring off him as he left. He wasn’t like most of the others, somber and slightly anxious. He was almost joyous at the prospect of action.

She shook her head and speared a soggy carrot. “He’s happy you brought him. He can do more than fret in a prison cell, is that right?”

“Yes. I should’ve left him behind to help run things. A lot falls on Commander Sterling, but…” Cayan lowered to the ground next to Shanti, for once adopting her way. Usually he’d insist on bringing over a chair and getting her out of the dirt.

“You want a childhood friend around, or is it you couldn’t deny him coming?” Shanti nudged Cayan with her shoulder. “Getting soft, Captain.”

Cayan nudged her back. “Both, I think. I thought he’d died at one point. That…hit me. I didn’t make the decision with logic, as I should’ve.”

“We’re human. Sometimes we need to feel our way instead of think it.”

“I’ve come to that conclusion.” Cayan gave her a sideways glance before digging his fork into a piece of meat. “What do you think we’ll find in the Mugdock lands?”

Shanti’s hunger evaporated. She pushed the contents of her bowl around. “You were there when we took down the Inkna-occupied city. You saw it firsthand.”

Cayan’s eyes went distant. A spark of rage flared inside him. He bent to his bowl and lifted a piece of carrot slowly to his mouth.

“We should have less trouble than with that city,” Shanti said quietly, forcing herself to eat. “From what I’ve heard, the Mugdock don’t have much of worth. The Inkna or Graygual will only be there as a gathering point closer to the Westwood Lands. I doubt Xandre has filled it with competent fighters. Not yet, anyway. As you said, he couldn’t have moved so many across the land that fast. Not without us hearing about it.”

Cayan didn’t speak for a moment. He finished the rest of his meal in silence, and then just sat for a moment, waiting for Shanti. When she’d finished, he rose and helped her up before opening the flap for her to pass through.

“Your women are unhappy you let them eat first,” Shanti said, forcing a lightness to her voice she didn’t feel.

“They aren’t used to army life, and the cooks never make enough the first couple nights. I didn’t want them to be pushed to the back and then go hungry. Plus…I want them to fight for their pecking order. I don’t want it given to them.”

“But aren’t you giving it to them now by making them go first?”

“I’m making them angry. The anger will overcome any hesitation to assert themselves. Hopefully. Do you want to sleep among your people, or inside my tent?”

Shanti slowed as her cat glided ahead of her. Two army men backed out of the way, and then swiftly changed direction. Cayan’s people were still leery about the animals.

Cayan’s expression was unreadable, and strangely, so were his emotions. She couldn’t decipher what his intentions were. “Why, don’t you want me with you?” she asked.

She could barely make out the ghost of his dimples in the flickering firelight. “I will stay with you. I wondered if you wanted us to be among your people?”

“Oh.” His forearm was smooth as she let her fingers drift down and into his hand. She wrapped her fingers between his. “Your tent. I was never one of the pack in that regard. It has always made me stand out.”

“And Rohnan?”

“He’ll probably stay with one of the women. Which one, I have no idea. He always has more than a few options.”

Cayan’s deep chuckle drifted into the night. “Then let’s retire. I have some things I want to do with you.”

As always, her worry about what lay ahead shed from her like a coat in summer. Cayan’s gentle tug into their secluded quarters turned into a loving embrace and a deep kiss. His hands roamed her body before shedding her clothes, coating her skin in a soft touch. She slipped into their furs and accepted him between her legs, sighing when his body entered hers. It was hard to imagine she could ever cross the line into being the monster Xandre could create with Cayan to keep her grounded.

Hard, but not impossible.

Her climax stole her breath, but the horrors Xandre was capable of were not erased from her mind. The worst might yet be to come.

S
anders held
up his hand to stop the train of horses behind him. He braced in his saddle as Shanti jumped off her horse—that bastard animal who wouldn’t let her ride any other stallion, regardless of the fact that he was still injured. She paused beside him and placed a hand on his foot.

Her gaze scanned down the line. “There are bodies within our mental range,” she said in a low voice. “I think they are Graygual. I can’t be certain from just their minds, but there is a familiarity that I wouldn’t have with the Mugdock. It is likely this place has been conquered, as Cayan thought.”

“Okay.” That was why they were here.

“I realize your people don’t like the Mugdock, but they are not complete strangers. There is no telling what we will find in that city. If the Graygual are of a lesser caliber…it might not be something your army will want to witness. Knowing the victims, no matter how disliked, will hit harder.”

Sanders blew out a breath and leaned back. “What are you thinking?”

She glanced back at Cayan, and then at Rohnan. “We’ll take a team closer to feel what we can. If possible, we’ll go so far as it takes to be able to see. It depends on whether there are Inkna. We’ll take the hardest fighters in first, and see what we’re up against.”

“And you’re asking me which are the least sentimental?” Sanders turned in his saddle. The more experienced men would have no problems. His gaze skittered across a few of the women, and kept going. Except for one.

He did a double take on Maggie. She sat straight and tall in her saddle, her eyes hard, her mouth set. In one hand she held an explosive, not armed. She was fast and deft at mixing the chemicals now, with perfect timing in her throw. More than that, she was open to the ways of the army, to the Shadow, and somehow fit with Shanti’s people. She was a career man, dick or not.

He nodded to himself before scanning the boys and picking out another handful of people. “Horses?”

“No. We go on foot.” Shanti tapped his toe. “My damn horse might follow anyway, though. I can’t get rid of the bastard.” She turned back to the Captain.

Sanders jumped down from his saddle and rounded up those he’d chosen. If it proved to be too many, he knew who he’d leave behind, in order. As he motioned Maggie down, Alena said, “What about me?”

Sanders didn’t bother looking at her. “No. Thank me later.”

“But—”

Sanders caught her gaze as his temper rose.

“Don’t push it when he looks at you like that,” Marc mumbled, turning his gaze to the horn of his saddle. “Trust me.”

Alena’s mouth had already snapped shut, though. Unlike the boys, she wasn’t an idiot.

“Let’s go.” Sanders led the dozen to a gathering in front of the horses at the head of the line. Half the Shadow, all the Shumas, and the higher officers waited on Sanders to stop within their fold.

The Captain said, “We are going in waves. Shanti, myself, and her kin will go in the first wave. Sonson, organize your team to follow.” Sonson reached back to tie his hair in a bun at the top of his head. The Captain’s piercing blue eyes hit Sanders. “You will come with Shanti and I, and Lucius will lead our army. You’ve been within the Shumas before.”

Sanders grunted. It was disconcerting when a group of people expected you to know what they were doing without actually telling you. It involved so much more work than just talking.

He got all the shitty jobs.

“We are just gathering knowledge,” the Captain said to those gathered. “We will not be engaging, if at all possible. I want to know what we’re up against.”

No one moved. This team was experienced, and lethal.

A chill arrested Sanders. The army had become something else with the addition of Shadows and Shumas. He wasn’t sure what to expect.

“Let’s go.” The Captain turned and started off at a fast walk, Shanti at his side.

Sanders stepped forward before the Shumas swarmed around him. No one took out their swords. Instead, they armed themselves with knives in silence. They were ready for the stealth kill.

Another chill raced up his spine. Shit had just got real.

Without a word, the pace slowed. The Shumas fanned out to the sides, Kallon giving him a tiny nudge as Sayas plucked at his sleeve from the other side. Apparently they wanted him to follow Sayas.

“Just say it,” Sanders whispered.

“You read language when words steal us.” Sayas flashed him a grin. “Hope you learn speed, yes?”

“Never mind. Don’t say it. You’re out of your league.” Sanders followed the thinner man to a covering of trees. Once there, they advanced slowly. Sanders marveled at the soft steps and careful feet of the Shumas. With exceptional balance, they let a foot hang in the air before deciding where to put it, avoiding anything that could rustle or crackle. Often, with the foot off the ground, they would also contort their bodies, avoiding dried leaves or low-hanging branches.

“You’re putting me to shame,” Sanders mumbled. The sound deadened on his lips.

After about a hundred yards, they stopped and crouched. Sanders, not able to feel anything, crawled forward on his hands and knees, and then dropped to his stomach.

A couple of hundred yards in front of him, cleared of trees, squatted the dingy wall of the Mugdock city. Great holes marred it in places, crumbling the stone into rubble. One side of the gate was ripped from its hinges and lay to the side, a bent and damaged mess. A black-clad man stood at the mouth, leaning against the wall.

Thick fingers drummed Sanders’ shoulder. He looked back.

Sayas used those fingers to point to the right.

Sanders followed the vague point and saw another pointed finger.

Words. Words were so much simpler.

Sanders crawled backward until he could stand, and then went in the direction of the waggling digits. He found the Captain.

Sanders dropped to one knee as the Captain started speaking in a low tone. “I’d say a battering ram took down that gate. The wall wasn’t made of strong stuff—it might’ve fallen with the forced entry. The Mugdock never worried that we’d come for them—unless they’d stolen something of ours. They’ve never needed a heavy defense.”

“They attacked us, though.” Sanders shook his head. “The Inkna initiated the attack, using the Mugdock. Why would the Mugdock agree to work with a people that forced their way in?”

“I suspect they didn’t at first,” Shanti said, still facing the city. “The Inkna probably offered material rewards. Then when the Mugdock didn’t fulfill their obligation, the Inkna would’ve had no use for them apart from their city. If the people aren’t needed for harvesting goods, then they are disposed of.”

The Captain’s knuckles turned white on his sword hilt. “Their mental power would’ve pushed them away from the walls, leaving the Graygual free to force their way in.”

Shanti pushed forward onto her knees. “I can identify one higher officer. I know their type. There might be a few sex slaves, but…” She lowered her head in concentration. A small movement had her turning toward them. “I think they might be prostitutes. They are there for some purpose, not out of fear. I would guess a working woman.”

“Know something of them, do you?” Sanders growled.

“Yes,” she said.

Sanders knew a shocked moment before he let it go. That was the Captain’s problem.

“How many Inkna?” Sanders asked.

“A handful, only one with higher power,” the Captain answered, moving away from the crest of the hill before standing. Sanders did likewise. “We can take them down easily.”

Shanti’s people flocked in from the sides. “A host of Graygual, kept in line by a few officers. It is like the Hunter’s camp, only with much less skill.”

“Are you sure about that?” the Captain asked.

“Mostly,” Shanti answered.

“Oh, well, that’s reassuring.” Sanders spat to the side.

“Let’s talk with Daniels.” The Captain pushed through everyone, headed back to the line of horses. “I only want to bring as many forces as we need.”

“All due respect, sir,” Sanders said as he kept to the Captain’s side. “We may not need all our number to take out the enemy, but we do need to learn to work together. We have some greenies with us—we have three different peoples, plus one or two of the Duke’s men thrown in for kicks. We need some none-too-threatening practice before the time comes when we
will
need our whole force, and then some.”

The Captain paused. A low equine moan made his head snap up. A warning flashed through his blue eyes, shutting Shanti’s animal up. “You have a point,” the Captain said, fingering his chin. “A very good point. I’ll speak with Daniels. Let’s aim for tomorrow at dawn.”

“No. We should go tonight. At dusk.” Kallon shot a sharp look at the Captain. His tone brooked no argument. “Don’t let inexperienced fighters stew all night over what is to come. Let them go while their adrenaline is at its peak. There will be less dying.”

“That counts as a challenge in this land, Kallon,” Shanti said in a singsong voice. “Now you’ve stepped in it.”

The Captain’s jaw clenched and his eyes flashed for the second time. His arms came away from his sides a little, lending just a little more size to an already large, muscular man. Sanders would not like to be in Kallon’s shoes. Not for all the peace and quiet in the world.

“We’ll deal with this another time, you and I,” the Captain said in an even tone. The hair prickled on Sanders’ arms. Shanti’s lips spread into a smile.

The Captain stalked away but Shanti lingered behind. Her smile grew brighter. “Here’s what went wrong.” She ticked off a finger. “You’re assuming he doesn’t know how to lead and you do.” She ticked off another finger. “You are forgetting the days before I developed our communication technique and the chaos during even small battles.” Sayas started laughing as she ticked off a third finger. “You challenged a man like that.” She patted him on the shoulder. “And won’t admit that I still don’t want to fuck you.”

The rest of the Shumas bent over in laughter as Kallon’s expression flashed confusion. “I thought
fuck
meant something gone wrong… It means sex?”

They all laughed harder.

Sanders shook his head and moved away to his horse. “I miss the quiet life where everyone had some kernel of sanity.” He poked the air with his index finger, picking out people. “Scout out the location, get sentries organized, and see if you can find the places to hunker down.”

“Yes, sir!” they shouted in unison.

“And remember that we’re in enemy territory. Keep your voices down.”

“Yes, sir.” Still too loud.

Sanders stalked after the Captain. Battle was on the horizon. Sanders wanted to know exactly what he was going to be up against.