“Take off your hood,kalles,” the horde king ordered in the universal tongue, still looking straight at me. “Let me see the face of thefemale who dares to challenge the Dakkari.”
Chapter Two
The horde king wanted me to take off my hood?
I didn’t hesitate, though Kivan began to protest. Anything to save him, to take the attention away from him, I would do readily.
The horde king’s nostrils flared and the singular yellow ring of his irises contracted with a visible pulse when I pushed back the thick hood, letting it settle around my shoulders.
My chin lifted, meeting his gaze, though he towered over me.
“Bravekalles,” the horde king murmured and I could actuallyseethe way his pupils studied me, how they shifted over my face. “Foolishkallestoo.”
I stiffened at the slight insult. I assumedkallesmeant ‘woman’ or ‘female’ in the Dakkari language. Either way, it set my teeth on edge.
My spine went taut like a bow string, all too aware that Kivan still remained within the circle of gold swords, in front of a horde king that wanted his blood in exchange for burning their land.
“Call me what you wish,” I said, the cool night air brushing my face like a soft touch. “But my brother’s life is not yours to take. I will not let you.”
The Dakkari surrounding us shifted, the movement hardly perceptible, ever so slight.
As for the horde king…he didn’t even twitch.
“Letme,kalles?” he repeated, his voice sharp. “I will do whatever I wish.”
Perhaps that had been the wrong thing to say.
“Please,” I said, my hands trembling from adrenaline and nerves. The yellow band around his pupils contracted again, his head cocking slightly to the side. “Take my life in exchange.”
“Luna—,” Kivan tried to cut in, but I pushed him back when he made to grab for my arms.
“I am responsible for my brother,” I rushed out, “and therefore I am responsible for his actions.Please. He is young. He will never do this again. I promise.” Even though we were only five years apart, sometimes I felt ten or twenty years older than Kivan. “Take me instead.”
“Luna, no!” Kivan growled, frustrated, swinging on the horde king. “Don’t listen to her.”
But the horde king never took his eyes from me. I felt trapped by them, like I could never look away.
The messenger beside the horde king addressed him in a low tone with, “Vorakkar, kivi nekkari dothanu un kevf?”
The horde king didn’t respond immediately to whatever the messenger asked. As the moments stretched on, my blood grew hotter and raced faster until I heard it rushing in my ears. Still, we watched one another, as I wondered what he would decide.
Because I knew his words to be true…he could do whatever he wished. The Dakkari had the authority and power and strength over any being that found a home on their planet, however unforgiving that home might be. It was the deal the Uranian Federation had made with the Dakkari, for access to their closed planet.
“Vorakkar,” the messenger repeated after a long moment.
I stiffened when the horde king stepped forward. In one fluid motion, he unsheathed a small dagger from the thick band around his waist. His movements were surprisingly graceful, smooth, and yet still impatient as he gripped my cloak.
I didn’t have time to feel fear—for surely he meant to end my life, as I’d requested—before that dagger dragged down with one quick motion.
Instead of pain, I felt cool air shift across my skin. He’d cut the front of my cloak and he pulled the sides away for a better glimpse…of mybody. Humiliation, or perhaps relief, made my cheeks hot as I realized what he was doing, even with my nonexistent experience with males.
Kivan, however, didn’t seem to know since he demanded, his voice surprisingly outraged in front of the Dakkari, “What are you doing to her?”
The horde king didn’t answer him. It was as if Kivan didn’t even exist in his world. Though I was wearing old, worn pants and a dirt-smudged tunic underneath the cloak, the way he looked at me…I felt naked under his gaze, bared for him, as if he could see every inch of my flesh.
Outrage slowly began to burn in my belly, but I kept it leashed within. He was inspecting me like I was something to be bought at the marketplace, a new tunic or a shiny bauble.
“Kassikari,” the horde king said suddenly. His tone was low, the words like a rough caress across my flesh. My eyes flashed up to his, surprised bysomethingI heard in his voice, though I couldn’t identify what. I found he wasn’t looking down at my body any longer, but atme.
