Page 65 of Claimed By the Alien Barbarian

Her hands stilled on the berries before she began picking again, dropping handfuls into the basket. “Some things are better left buried in the past.”

“Not if they still have a dreadful impact on the present.” I sought her gaze, and she must see the steel in mine. “Nevarn didn’t kill her. Nothing anyone says will convince me of that.”

“I don’t believe he did either.”

That eased my burgeoning irritation. “Who do you think did?”

Her gaze flicked to Khol before returning to the bush. “I don’t know who did it, but I do know I saw Weela leave the village that morning with someone and they returned without her.”

Her lover? “Who was it?”

“I didn’t see his face.”

“But you think it was a male.”

“From his build, yes.” Frowning, she scraped the tips of her tusks across her upper lip. “I saw her leave the village many mornings with someone, and they appeared to be taking care not to be seen together. When someone is trying to hide something, it’s clear they have no good intentions in mind. He wore a tunic with a hood that created shadows on his face, and they slunk through the back paths rather than boldly striding out in the open. Her, I could identify. Him . . .” Her frown deepened.

“What about him?”

She sucked in a breath and released it with a sigh. “He walked with a subtle limp.”

“Who here has a limp?”

“No one I can think of at the moment. Believe me, I’ve wondered about that detail ever since.”

“Did you tell the traedor you saw her with someone that morning and that he returned without her?”

“I did, but it was hours after Nevarn was found with her dead and his bloody knife lying beside her on the ground.”

“How did someone get his knife?”

“I imagine his weapon was inside his home like most of ours are. Few of us travel armed unless we leave the island.” Her gaze slanted toward Khol before returning to me. “We don’t need to here, only when we venture into the sea or journey to the mainland. No one would dream of harming another.”

Except whoever killed Weela.

“There are no sky predators?” I’d seen a few huge birds fly over the forest.

“Our ryvars chase them away.”

“Someone took Nevarn’s knife and used it to kill Weela, knowing that he’d be blamed.” Such a simple way to frame someone and obviously, effective.

“I assume so. Our traedor didn’t believe Nevarn, nor did many in the village. My husband and I, plus a few others, spoke up for him, but our elder made the final decision, convicting him of the crime and sentencing him to three years banishment.” She placed another handful of berries in the basket and moved around to the side of the cluster of bushes to pick more, facing me. “Few survive such a thing. Nevarn has done well, which tells me that the gods saw the injustice and protected him. Some in the village believe this as well, which is why he was welcomed back.”

“Do you think your gods saw her murder?”

“I doubt it. She was found out in the open, not within the village walls, and even if they did, they don’t speak to us, not like some gods I’ve heard of in other parts of Zuldrux.”

They appeared to watch what happened and listened in order to deliver something if a Zuldruxian asked for it. Was there a way to ask them to speak out about this?

“I see what you’re thinking,” she said, topping off the basket with more berries. “You hope that the gods will tell us who killed her.”

That would clear his name in a definitive way. “Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”

Marlesta smiled sadly. “It would, but they won’t intervene in this manner.”

“They kidnap women from Earth and bring them here to gift to your warriors as mates. I imagine if they wanted to, they could do whatever they pleased.”

“Perhaps. I suppose there’s no harm in asking them, though you need to be prepared for no answer.” She waved to the trail. “We should head back. I have a dessert to make.”

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