Draggah (5 page)

“
And hang onto those Graypee hides,
”
Rafe said. 
“
Those are mine.
”

Quntah looked confused.

“
Is that not acceptable?
”
Tiberius asked.

“
Oh, yes, it is very generous, Swanee,
”
Quntah said. 
“
But I do not understand Graypee?
”

Rafe drew his rapier and pointed at the slick gray hides rolled up with the Graypee brains inside.

“
The stinky ones,
”
he said.

“
Ah, the hulpatah skins.  I will see they are prepared for you, Swanee.
”

“
Thank you,
”
Tiberius said. 
“
Which way did the Rogu go?
”

“
They followed Bellana
’
s tracks that way?
”

“
Bellana?
”
Tiberius asked.

“
It means short hair, it is the name you gave her,
”
Quntah said with a smile.

“
Bellana,
”
Tiberius said. 
“
I like that.
”

“
Let
’
s go,
”
Rafe said, turning his horse.

Tiberius felt a little unsteady on the strange saddle.  He was forced to used his legs to secure his seat on the back of the large horse.  He waited until he was out of the Hoskali camp to take hold of the horse
’
s mane again.

“
I miss our old saddles,
”
Tiberius complained.

“
I don
’
t know,
”
Rafe said. 
“
These wouldn
’
t do for a fully armored knight, but you can really feel the way the horse moves.  It
’
s a little more intuitive, don
’
t you think?
”

“
All I
’
m thinking about is not falling off.
”

“
You didn
’
t train enough,
”
Rafe said with a smirk.

“
Paladins don
’
t ride horses.  There
’
s no need for them in the city.
”

“
There hasn
’
t been a need for mounted warriors since the cataclysm, but we still trained on them,
”
Rafe said. 
“
So tell me how your night went?
”

“
What do you mean?
”

“
I mean, a man with a harem must stay busy.
”

“
Shut up about that.
”

“
How many wives do you suppose old Moswanee had?
”

“
Too many,
”
Tiberius said. 
“
Can we please change the subject?
”

“
Why are you so touchy about it?  Obviously they aren
’
t your wives, not really.
”

“
Lexi is missing,
”
Tiberius said. 
“
I
’
m worried about her.
”

“
You sure finding her is the best thing?  I mean if she finds out about all your wives, she
’
s liable to do something crazy.
”

“
Shut up.
”

“
I thought you seemed a little familiar with all those women back at the big shelter.
”

“
The tribe brought me back to that shelter last night.  I had no idea there were women inside.
”

“
So they were waiting for you, huh?
”

“
Look, they helped me undress, but nothing happened.  I was exhausted.  I fell asleep.
”

“
What a shame,
”
Rafe teased.

Tiberius ignored him and urged his horse past his friend toward the group of hunters who were gathered around something not far away.  Tiberius felt a huge knot forming in the pit of his stomach.  If what they had found was Lexi, ravaged by some wild animal as she tried to escape, he would never forgive himself.  He felt unsteady in the saddle, and wanted to slow the horse down, but he couldn
’
t.  He had to know what was lying in the grass that the hunters, the Hoskali Rogu, had found.

He silent prayed that it wouldn
’
t be Lexi
’
s body laying twisted and torn.  The group of men pulled back as Tiberius rode up to them.  For a moment, he had trouble getting the horse to stop, and then he almost lost his balance in the strange saddle.  When he finally got control, he looked down, his whole body tense for what he feared would be a gruesome sight.  Then he felt so much relief that he almost laughed.

“
What is it?
”
Rafe asked as he rode up behind Tiberius.

“
It
’
s the missing saddle,
”
he said. 
“
Just the missing saddle.
”

Chapter 3

Rafe

Rafe glanced over and saw the look of relief on Tiberius
’
face.  He could relate to that feeling.  When Olyva had been trapped by the killer trees, he had thought he might die from concern for her.  When they rescued her, he felt such relief that it was almost too much to contain.

“
Why would she bring the saddle way out here?
”
Rafe asked. 
“
You think she was planning on taking all the horses.
”

“
Tiswanee,
”
Te
’
sumee explained. 
“
The horses here a long time.  See the grass, see the droppings.
”

“
She brought the horses out here,
”
Rafe said. 
“
Maybe she thought that if I died you and Olyva might somehow escape?
”

“
No,
”
Tiberius said. 
“
How could we have known where she was out here in the dark?
”

“
Well then, why the third saddle?
”

“
She needed it to stand on,
”
Tiberius said. 
“
She always had trouble getting the saddle up onto the horses’ backs.
”

“
We follow the tracks,
”
Te
’
sumee said. 
“
That way.
”

He pointed north, away from the camp and to Rafe
’
s surprise, away from Avondale.  One of the hunters carried the saddle back toward the camp; the others set off at a fast jog across the plain.  Rafe and Tiberius followed on their horses.

“
Strange that she would have left the horses there,
”
Rafe said. 
“
I wonder what she was waiting for.
”

“
To see who won the Tuscogee?
”
Tiberius guessed.

“
But if she did that, why not rejoin us?  Why would she leave the camp by herself, in the dark, if she knew we won?
”

Tiberius
’
face dropped.  Rafe still didn
’
t understand what had happened.  He wondered if she had been kidnapped or if she and Tiberius had fought.  Nothing made sense.

“
I think she saw me with the other women,
”
Tiberius said quietly.

“
What other women?
”
he asked.

“
The chief
’
s harem,
”
Tiberius said bitterly.

“
But you said you didn
’
t do anything.
”

“
I didn
’
t, but I was tired.  The tribe carried me to the shelter and I went inside.  I didn
’
t even know the women would be in there.
”

“
So, why would Lexi be mad about that?
”

“
She just would, trust me.  She warned me about being unfaithful.
”

“
You weren
’
t unfaithful,
”
Rafe said.

“
I know.  That
’
s why I have to find her and convince her that I didn
’
t do anything wrong.
”

Rafe was quiet after that.  He knew women and relationships were difficult.  A man knew his duty, he had responsibility to guide him in life, but add a woman to the mix and things changed so radically that it was sometimes hard to decide what to do.  He still couldn
’
t believe the change that had come over Lady Olyva.  She had been so passionate, so exciting when they were in Avondale, but that all changed when Leonosis betrayed them.

He couldn
’
t help but wonder what he would do if he couldn
’
t save her from becoming a tree.  It was so ludicrous that he almost laughed just thinking about it.  Never in his wildest imaginings had he ever considered trees to be a danger, but everything was different in the blighted lands.  The land itself was lush and beautiful, but there were dangers and he had a lot to learn before he would feel comfortable below the thick layer of mists that covered the sky.

They rode at a quick canter for over an hour.  Rafe couldn
’
t help but marvel at the endurance of the Hoskali hunters.  They jogged quickly, never slowing down and never complaining.  They didn
’
t even look tired, he thought.  Finally, they saw a massive herd of animals in the distance.  To Rafe, it seemed like the entire horizon had come alive with shaggy dark fur.  He couldn
’
t make out the creatures, but he could tell there were thousands of them roaming together.

“
Tiswanee!
”
Te
’
sumee said excitedly. 
“
The Tamakas
’
are moving!  We hunt.
”

“
No,
”
Tiberius said. 
“
We have to find Lexi... Bellana.
”

“
The Hoskali always hunt Tamakas,
”
Te
’
sumee said.

“
Not today,
”
Tiberius said.

“
Must hunt... tribe must eat.
”

“
He
’
s got a point,
”
Rafe said. 
“
There isn
’
t much food or water out here.
”

“
Don
’
t you think I know that?
”
snapped Tiberius. 
“
It
’
s obvious that they use these creatures for everything from clothes to shelter.  But I have to find Lexi.
”

“
Tracks gone,
”
Te
’
sumee said. 
“
See, trampled by Takamas.
”

Rafe was not a great hunter.  In Avondale, he
’
d gone on hunts with his father and the Earl, but they had been guided hunts by men who lived in the forest around the lake and managed the wildlife there.  Rafe had no real woodcraft, but he could tell the plain had been trampled and grazed on by the massive herd of bovine creatures.