Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 75388 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75388 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
I head for Sevvah and Oshen’s cave, but I do not make it further than a few steps before Rokan bumps into me. I snarl a warning, pushing him backward. “Watch where you walk!”
Rokan blinks, and his eyes seem clouded. “Eh?”
“You nearly stepped on my tail, friend.” My irritation turns to concern. “What troubles you?”
He glances around the cavern, and his gaze settles on his mate for a moment, before turning back to me. “My apologies, Hassen. I am…not myself.”
“What is it?”
“Nothing…yet.” His frown deepens and he rubs his neck, casting a worried look at the entrance to the cave. “Is the weather bad?”
I shake my head. “Many clouds and fog but no snow.”
“Fog?”
I shrug. “The air is thick today.” Sometimes it is, sometimes it is not. It is not worth worrying over. I am not like Rokan to fuss over the weather. Hunting must be done, even if the clouds are thick with snow.
Rokan rubs his neck again, then drops his hand. “Nothing seemed unusual to you?”
I frown at him. “I do not understand. Speak plainly.”
A hand touches my shoulder, and Vektal—my chief—appears at our sides. He gives me a nod of greeting. “I would speak with you, Hassen.”
“And I, you.” My snarls to the other hunters will have to wait a short time.
We walk a few steps away, still in the main cavern. I glance over where Rokan is standing, but he is clearly distracted and not paying attention to us. I wish that I had a private cave of my own where I could talk to Vektal, but that is my reason for being here today after all.
I want Mah-dee in my bed. Forever.
Vektal’s expression is stern as he gazes at me. “You brought in a large kill.” His words are mild, and I know he is leading up to his real questions.
“I did,” I say, unashamed. “There are many more mouths to feed now.”
He nods slowly. “Taushen says that you kept to the trails near the cave while the hunters were gone.”
I cannot hide my scowl. Taushen is more observant than I thought. “Many of the caches close to the cave are full, thanks to my efforts.”
“I did not say you were not doing well. I am pleased with your efforts.” But he does not smile, and his expression is not an easy one. “But I would know your reasons for staying so near to the cave.”
“The brutal season will be upon us soon,” I say, plunging forward. I must get to my request before my chief hears more sour words from others. “I want my exile to end.”
“That is not your choice. It is mine.”
“You would not leave me alone through the brutal season!” I am shocked—and heartsick—at the thought. Even one night alone feels endless. I cannot imagine being by myself through the endless, heavy snows of the brutal season, unable to leave my cave. Unable to see anyone.
Unable to stop the others from courting the mate I have chosen…
“I did not say that,” Vektal continues. His voice is low, and he glances over as a distracted Rokan wanders past, touching the cave walls. “That is why I wished to talk to you. So you could explain yourself.”
“There is nothing to explain. I have nothing to hide. I want to return.” My hand curls into a fist, and I clench it over my chest. “I am truly sorry for taking the female Li-lah. I am happy that she and Rokan have resonated, and I no longer wish to claim her as mine.” Even saying it aloud, it feels wrong. The day I stole Li-lah away feels like so long ago, even though it has been less than two full turns of the moons.
I am a different hunter than that grasping, desperate male. I have seen what I have to lose. And I have found someone else…someone endlessly stronger and braver and far more clever. Someone that sees me and comes to me with her worries and her tears. Mah-dee is my family now. She is my mate.
So I continue. “I wish to take the female Mah-dee as my pleasure-mate and take a private cave for ourselves.”
Vektal’s expression grows hard. “Leave the humans alone.”
I shake my head, my teeth gritting with frustration. I can tell that he does not like that idea. His shoulders are stiff and his tail lashes—much like mine is lashing. “I am not forcing her. Mah-dee and I have mated. She wants to be with me.” I say it, and at the same time, I hope desperately that it is true. That Mah-dee would not turn me away if I had a cave to share with her. That she would welcome the chance to be my pleasure-mate. “She carries no hate for me.”
“You stole her sister and tried to force resonance.” Vektal’s nostrils flare. “Because you did not wish to wait for it to happen. You endangered her life. And now you wish to mate with the other sister? Are you mad? Has being in exile made your brains turn to meltwater?”