Page 11 of Warrioress

“Really?” Kam stared at their brother in open surprise. “I did not expect that from you. Were you not the one who insisted on having a female who was small and meek? I am surprised you are not clamoring for us to steal her away back to our den.”

A growl rose from Vrin as he made a face and drew back warily as if Kam were on the verge of forcing the female into his arms to take back with him. Laro bit back a laugh at the male’s miserable appearance but kept silent as he too was far too interested in their triad brother’s response.

Vrin’s ears twitched uneasily and flattened. “I was certain she was about to cry,” he admitted in a low grumble. “I do not want that one.”

Kam barked a laugh and shook his head as his mouth parted in a grin. “Look at him thinking that we have all the time we want. Can you afford to be so choosy when we are about to be expelled soon from the citadel?”

“But we have not been yet,” Vrin countered with a sharp grin and snap of his teeth. “As long as we do what we are told, we can keep looking at other citadels. I am in no hurry. But as for females—not that one.”

A taunting smile flashed briefly across Kam’s face as his arms continued a rhythmic pump. There was nothing vicious about it, however, so Laro did not bother to correct him. Even Vrin remained unbothered in the face of it, though he feigned a growl of annoyance that had Kam laughing with a playful flag of his tail.

“Okay, not that one,” he agreed easily. “I was only trying to help. I do not have the same specific tastes. But, as you say, we can keep looking, though I would remind you how far the other citadels are from us.”

Laro nodded. “A good point. It is important that we choose Old Wayfairer for a reason because we do not leave our territory vacant for too long. Once our scents began to fade, it would be too easy for another to try to claim it.”

Vrin and Kam silently nodded in agreement but with nothing further said about the small guard.

Kam glanced between them with a playful smile. “I am all for just stealing the captain.”

“No,” Laro growled in unison with Vrin.

That their protests lacked any true strength behind them was something he chose to ignore. They had a clear idea of what they wanted. He would not let this strange, temporary fascination distract him from what would be better for all of them in the long term.

Chapter 9

The males were practically piled on top of each other as they stretched out in the bottom of their cage. Their luminous eyes were turned toward her as they sprawled as comfortably as possible on the bedding that Uma arranged for them with Katiera’s help the first night, despite the other woman’s halfhearted protests. After establishing a routine the last few days, the males had dropped onto it easily, now without a hint of awkwardness. Meanwhile, the first of the seasonal storms was moving in, and she could hear the wind whistling against the roof and walls as she finished up her end of the day rounds. Kam’s ear twitched lazily in response to the sound but otherwise the males didn’t seem to give the storm itself much notice.

They weren’t asleep, of course, even if they appeared to be at a casual glance. Uma could feel their eyes on her, watching her every movement warily. It was highly doubtful that they would trust her enough to actually fall asleep in her presence, though they were not above using the pretense of it to study her at their leisure if they believed she was unaware of it. She scoffed silently to herself as she replenished the water supply on the dispenser that serviced the cell through a tap in the barrel holding the clean water. Clean wooden cups had already been delivered into the cell and were sitting on the narrow plank that usually served as a bed for anyone overnighting in the cell. Of course, it was useless as such with the Ragoru. Even Kam, who was slightly smaller than the other two males, was far too large to squeeze onto it comfortably.

At least it made a handy table if the males couldn’t make use of it for their comfort. She made sure that it not only held extra cups and plates, but also clean cloths for grooming. Small things, but it was the least she could do. And for their part they were surprisingly clean—not only in terms of personal grooming, which they seemed to spend time every morning seeing to before she came in as their fur hadn’t been matted at all or even smelled bad in the morning, but they also kept whatever they used just as carefully organized on the bunk.

All in all, they were a lot easier and lower maintenance than she had expected.

The water dispenser filled to a satisfactory level, Uma straightened from her task and blinked when her eyes lifted and immediately collided with Laro’s cool regard in surprisingly close proximity to her. Although she knew they were watching her, he had somehow moved without her noticing so that he was crouched unnervingly close to the bars. He didn’t bother straightening when she did—but at his size he didn’t have to. His eyes pinned hers with a piercing focus. If she didn’t know better, she would have sworn that he could see every hidden thought and emotion. Unable to help herself, she stared back at him for a long moment, caught in his unblinking gaze while her breathing became slower and shallower. Her awareness narrowed in on his eyes and the rapid flutter of her pulse pounding within her veins.

Was this what prey felt like? Or perhaps not quite because she was somehow caught in a strange spot between fear and excitement. Or if it was how prey felt, perhaps it was lucky for them to have some small pleasure before they were brought down.

His nose twitched and slowly his ears rotated toward her, pricking attentively. Uma’s jaw clenched and she forced herself to take a step back and slightly to the left, intentionally breaking the tension between them as she put a respectful distance between herself and the cell. She wasn’t the least bit surprised when his eyes followed her.

The corner of his mouth suddenly hitched, and he leaned against the bars between them. Uma’s eyes narrowed on him in turn. What was he up to? Her gaze drifted to other males for some sort of clue but came back with nothing. Kam still peered up at them from where he was sprawled with fascination, but Kam was the naturally curious sort. Vrin, however, had lost interest entirely and had closed his eyes, effectively shutting everyone and everything else around him out. Perhaps that was a good sign. Whatever it was, it wasn’t coordinated or planned in any fashion at her expense.

Meeting Laro’s gaze once more, her eyebrows rose in challenge. “Is there something I can help you with?”

He shook his head slowly, his ears twitching restlessly. “I am curious if you are prepared for what is coming.”

“And cumming,” Vrin added, his eyes still closed. They slitted open briefly, giving her a glimpse of brilliant gleaming shards of yellow before closing again. “There will be no helping it, not with an unmated female so close nearby. I hope you enjoy the aftermath. It will be a mess.”

Her nose immediately wrinkled in disgust. Seriously? She figured there would be some lewd and suggestive displays and urgings, but she hadn’t actually imagined... fluids. And from three large males, it would definitely get everywhere. Great Mother.

Kam choked on a laugh at that moment, and Uma shot him an annoyed look to which he grimaced, his ears tipping back repentantly.

“I was not laughing at you,” he rushed to assure her. “I was laughing at the situation because Vrin is right. No matter how we wish otherwise, we will not be able to control it. The need to breed will be overwhelming with your scent so close. There just will be nowhere for it to go.” He gave her what she took to be an apologetic smile as his ears dropped to the sides.

“It is natural,” Laro said flatly, his faint smirk disappearing. “We will not apologize for it or feel guilty about it when your lead told you to keep us here. It is nothing more than a warning.”

“What, you would rather be kicked out in the snow outside of the citadel without shelter to suffer through it?” Uma demanded irritably. She shook her head and drew a deep breath. “I couldn’t do that even if I wanted to. It is my responsibility to see you out, and that can’t happen until after the midwinter storms pass. I can’t just release you within the territory of the citadel, especially not when the details of what happened at the Lucky Bull. Like it or not, we are all stuck here... together.”

Laro inclined his head. “So long as you are aware of what is coming.”

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