Page 71 of Twisted Sins

His jaw tightened when he recalled what had happened a few days ago when he dropped his shield for a brief time in the holy land tent. It had nearly cost his life and also the safety of his people.

Pushing away the thoughts of his cunning, seductress wife, he focused on the critical task at hand.

He got on his horse and looked at his men. “Let’s go to the east border,” he ordered.

With a low whistle, he called for his eagle.

The giant eagle flew to him and landed on his outstretched elbow. The rest of his men called for their eagles as well.

Letting out a war cry, he led his men out of the encampment.

CHAPTER 20

Nandini tried not to glare as she watched the demon training with his men.

Her oldest brother Shivay often told her that she should control her temper because display of anger indicated loss of control, and it would give the opposite person an undue advantage.

She tried her best to control herself from lashing out at the demon in anger, but it was getting harder by the day.

Nearly a week passed by since the demon ruined her escape from the holy land. She was once again forced to live in the Kabali encampment as the demon’s wife. Each morning, he left before sunrise to either train in the encampment or go somewhere. Each evening, he returned and then carried her back to the tent.

She continued to demand how he knew about her bracelet and why he lied to his people about her role in his attack.

He continued to ignore her questions, and she was forced to sleep in his arms with anger and fear. She hated that she felt helpless and angry that she couldn’t get the demon to answer her questions or come up with a plan for him to let her go.

How can I get the demon to let me go? The savage is incapable of feeling anything!

She watched as a guttural, primitive cry was let out by the demon as he fought through his men attacking him during the training.

“He pushed one man to the ground; he lifted his spear and brought it down with a fierce look on his face.

She gasped out loudly, thinking the demon was going to kill the Kabali man. But the demon’s three-prong weapon dug into the soft sand, barely a few inches from the fallen man.

Her gasp caught the attention of the demon and he looked up. His grey eyes flashed seeing her standing and observing the training.

His jaw clenched. But he ignored her, and he looked down at the fallen man and said something sternly. The man nodded with a downcast face.

“That’s Kailash,” said Uma. “He’s the youngest Kabali warrior. He turned seventeen a few days ago.”

Nandini was shocked. “Seventeen? He’s practically a child!”

Uma shook her head. “The Kabali clan trains their warriors from the age of fifteen. Kailash is a trained warrior. He had accompanied the warrior group that brought you here, but he left the encampment as he was injured during the battle and had to recover. Your clansman attacked Kailash from behind, which is a grave offense during a battle. That’s why your clansman’s body was brought here for the eagles. Rudra didn’t give him the honor of a warrior’s death.”

Nandini realized Uma was referring to the Thakvar clan security head who had picked her up from the airport. A shudder passed through her as she recalled the security head’s body being hung from a pole and his eyes being pecked out by the eagles.

Rudra Kabali had ordered such a brutal display.

“Although many from the Kabali clan don’t trust Kailash, Rudra takes care of him well.”

Nandini frowned. “Why don’t they like Kailash?”

“Apparently, he was the previous Kabali head’s son.”

“Why is that a bad thing?” Nandini asked, having no idea how the Kabali clan dynamics worked.

“Oh, Rudra challenged and killed Kailash’s father and took over as the Kabali clan head. So, many think Kailash might want to avenge his father’s death.”

Nandini was shocked. “What? Why did the demon… I mean, Rudra killed his own clan head?”

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