Page 85 of Scarred

“Fine.” She crossed her arms and glared at Kellan.

“Warriors,” Kellan turned his attention to the brothers. “How did you become enslaved by the High Coven?”

“When my brother and I were calves, our home was attacked. Every male calf was stolen,” Jabari said. “I was only seven winters and my brother five. We were chained, starved, and subjected to daily torture. That disfigured our bodies.”

“Are you serious?” Amma asked. “They did this to children?”

“Yes.”

“How many?” Kellan asked. “How many calves have been stolen, and why have we not heard of this?”

“We lived in dorms of one hundred. There were over twenty dorms,” Kofi answered. “Each dorm served a different part of the coven.”

Kellan scratched his chin. “This is disturbing news. If they are able to steal so many of our young without us knowing, we are already at war.”

“Since my brother and I were taken, no new males have arrived,” Jabari said. “Several winters have passed. We were the last ones.”

Suni growled. “We need to rescue those males and burn the coven to the ground.”

“Wait,” Amma looked up at him. “Some of those witches could be there against their wills. Jabari?”

“There were a few nice witches,” Jabari answered. “They were slaves like us.”

“We do not have enough warriors here to go up against the High Coven,” Kellan said. “I will send out messengers to the surrounding villages and call for a meeting of chiefs. It will take time and resources, but I am sure I can find other chiefs who are willing to march on the High Coven.

“But first, do you or your brother hold any allegiance to the witches?”

Kofi shook his head. “We do not,” Jabari answered. “We owe our lives to Amma and her mate. We only want to live the rest of our lives in peace, and be able to make our own decisions about what we do when we wake up.”

Kellan grunted. “You speak the right words, and one of my best warriors and his mate speaks on your behalf. You can stay here on a probationary basis,” he finally said. “You will be given a home of your own, but will have a curfew. If you leave the village, you must take an escort.”

“This is a fair decision,” Jabari said. “We will prove to you that we are trustworthy.”

“Do you speak for your brother?” Kellan asked.

“He does,” Kofi said hoarsely.

“Welcome to Lnuuk.” Kellan raised his voice and proclaimed, “Jabari and Kofi will be accepted and treated fairly. Anyone who has an issue can talk to me.”

“The house next to mine is empty,” Suni said. “May the brothers stay there?”

“Yes,” Kellan answered. “You can keep an eye on them. Everyone, back to work or whatever you were doing. This meeting is over.” He sat back down and started talking to his advisors.

Jabari and his brother faced Suni and his family. “Thank you,” Jabari said. “We are forever thankful for what you have done for us.”

“I saw your spirits, and they have not been damaged by the witches,” Amma said. “I can’t wait to see you blossom with freedom.”

“Welcome to the family.” Nora gave each of the brothers a hug. “I can always use more sons, because that means more daughters, and more daughters mean more grandcalves.”

“Dam,” Suni chuckled. “Maybe give them time to settle in before you start demanding grandcalves.”

“You are right.” Nora turned her attention to him instead. “You have a mate, and I expect a grandcalf very soon.”

“How about we all go have dinner?” Amma suggested. “Maybe have some small talk and get to know each other?”

“I should introduce you to my brothers.” Suni pointed to each male as he introduced them. “Ni’em you know. He is the oldest. Jul and Kul are twins and troublemakers. Lasko, the one who cannot stay still, is the youngest.”

“Again, you do not need to introduce us that way,” Lasko fumed. He glared at his older brother.

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