Page 23 of Rhaz's Redemption
“Never underestimate him,” my father replied. “This male and all those in his dekes are capable of vile things. They were evil from birth. Even as children they were capable of killing innocent sirrets like your mother and sire.”
I wanted to shout that we’d never killed anyone but I was still struggling to breathe.
“It’s time for revenge,” Dameron continued. “Kill him and I’ll bring the rest to you as well.”
The other male said nothing. They both stood in silence hovering over me for what felt like an eternity when the ground shook again with the large male’s footsteps.
My world turned dark as his large body blocked out the sun. I looked up and up and up and saw before me a sirret shifter that was as tall as a tree, had four arms, strange round ears, and brown fur that went up his arms and down his back.
I’d heard rumors of a family who’d left shortly after their son was born, I had to guess that this was him. He looked slightly older than me, and he wore an agonized expression on his face.
“It doesn’t feel right,” the male shook his head. “Taking blood for blood.”
“Do you think they’ll stop with your parents? They have unmated females being held hostage in their mountain home. What do you think they’ll do to them when they refuse to mate?”
“We’d never do that,” I snarled.
“Don’t listen to him,” my father kicked me again.
“I’m going to get them to bring the females here so they can’t hurt them. But I’m going to need your help fighting them off.”
Dameron stepped in front of me with a snarl on his face and pointed. “Prove to me you can fight for what’s right. Prove tome you can keep those females they’re hiding safe. Kill this vile beast right here, right now.”
The big male turned his attention to me and scrunched up his face with an anger I knew all too well. He was so big that he didn’t need claws or a weapon to kill a person. All he needed were his fists.
“That’s right, Gil,” my sire encouraged. “Bring vengeance down upon him. Punish him for your parent’s death.”
Gil raised the fists of his top two arms above his head. Then brought them down upon my skull with shocking speed and force. The last thing I heard was the cracking of my own bones and then the world went dark.
Chapter 13
Beatrice
Two weeks later
“I’d love a tropical vacation right about now.” Fatima sighed. “I’m so tired of the cold and the winter season just started.”
Anusha, Fatima, and I all sat on cushions near the cookfire as we knitted sweaters from the yarn Drondia made for us.
I did my best to keep myself from looking at the entrance to the main cavern, but I couldn’t help glancing in that direction every time someone entered the room. Each time, I was sorely disappointed when it wasn’t Rhaz returning home.
It’d been two weeks since he left for the other dekes. Two weeks and no sign of the grumpy badger shifter.Don’t send anyone after me. His words rang through my head. Tarak had replied by saying that was his decision as the Savrix, but I was getting nervous that he might not send anyone to check in on Rhaz.
I knew I shouldn’t care about the male who’d rejected our bond, but the fact that he hadn’t returned yet, gnawed at me.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if you went south for long enough that you’d find a place with more tropical weather than they’ve got here,” Anusha added. “I’d be interested to see if all the water on this planet has that same purple algae or if it's just limited to this region.”
“Well if I ever get to travel down south, I’ll let you know,” Fatima laughed.
“I bet if you ask some of the guys they might be up for traveling with you,” I suggested, but Fatima shook her head. “I’d like to wait until I’ve luminesced with someone. I think it’d be a nice honeymoon type trip.”
Anusha and I exchanged a look. Fatima had a hard shell on the outside and liked to mother everyone in an eldest daughter kind of way, but deep down she was terrified of living life for herself. I think she was terrified to fall in love too. She sincerely believed luminescence would solve all her problems, and it was my fear that she would discover that wasn’t the case.
“I’ve given it some thought, and I don’t think I want to lumines at all,” Anusha admitted.
“Why not?” Fatima looked shocked by our botanist friend’s confession.
“I… I haven’t had a lot of luck with love, and I just don’t trust myself to pick a good person.”
