Page 29 of Blood and Fate

Satori shook her head again, attempting to rid her mind of the intrusive thoughts. Today. She needed to get through today. Then she would worry about tomorrow. When she looked up, her eyes fell on a paper-wrapped parcel, tied with twine. Unease flooded her again as her eyes ran around the small space. There was, of course, nowhere for anyone to hide; it was only the thought that someone had been in her tent while she’d slept and she hadn’t known.

She stood and moved slowly to the package, hesitant to touch it. Finally, she stopped, rolling her eyes at herself. This package wasn’t going to bite her. She reached out, hooking her finger through the twine, and carried it back to her cot. She sat and pulled at the ends until the bow unraveled and the strings slackened. Tearing the paper, the package fell open to reveal its contents.

Her brow creased. Clothes? A light olive green shirt, and she lifted the heavier brown material—a pair of pants, clearly tailored for a woman. They matched her corset perfectly and the size looked right. Where had they come from? Was there a woman her size in the camp they had swiped these from? They didn’t look worn or damaged. In fact, they almost looked new.

It took Satori less than thirty seconds to decide she would wear the items. She didn’t particularly want to accept gifts from her current captors, but the dress she was in had seen a lot of trouble in the past couple of days and was currently sporting several rips and tears.

She pulled the dress over her head and stepped into the pants. They did indeed fit her, and fit her well. The material was soft on her skin, and she ran a hand lightly over where it fit to her thigh. She pulled the light green shirt over her head and laced her corset over top of it. She was amazed how well the trousers matched the corset. She didn’t allow herself to dwell on that fact for too long—someone had brought these into her tent.

A shiver ran down her spine. One of them had been in her tent while she was sleeping. From now on, for as long as she was stuck in this camp, she intended to put something in front of the flap. At least if someone came in while she slept, she would know it when they tripped.

She surveyed the small area, looking for something, anything, she could place at the door to alert her of an intruder. Her eyes fell upon the pitcher of water, and she moved to pick it up when raised voices caught her attention. This was more than joking between comrades, more than just a spirited conversation. She stopped moving and turned her ear toward the voices. They were coming from the direction of Kais’ tent.

“Mason!” Teague’s voice barked out the name in a reprimand. “Remember who you’re speaking to.”

“No, no, that’s why we’re here. I invited them to voice their concerns.” Kais’ unmistakable, deep accented voice raised the hairs on her arms. A stupid reaction she hated.

“What good is voicing our opinion if it’s going to be ignored?” This was another voice that she didn’t recognize.

What were they arguing about? She assumed it was important to make Kais’ men feel justified in raising their voices to their leader. The voices grew softer, but her curiosity did not ebb with them. She moved to the tent flap, pushing it aside slightly to peek out. She saw no one. She slipped out of the tent.

She was greeted by a surprising chill, one her tent had managed to keep out, and a light frost coating the ground. She wrapped her arms around herself as she moved on quiet feet in the direction of the voices.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

KAIS

Kais’ hands rested on his hips as he listened to a few of his men sharing their thoughts. But it was beginning to get carried away now. Yes, he wanted opinions, but he was ultimately still in charge, and it was his choice. “We are—“

The hairs on the back of his neck rose, every bit of his skin tingling, at the same time the warmth that was becoming so familiar slid over him.

He held up a hand and all voices around him ceased. “Forgive me, gentlemen, we’ll have to resume this at a later time. ”He stepped around the edge of the tent, knowing exactly what he would find. “Princess?”

She froze mid-step, looking like a deer caught in the path of an arrow. Her eyes, dark amber rimmed in dark lashes, were wide. But it was her clothes that he noticed. She wore them. He actually hadn’t expected her to.

“The clothes fit, I see.” They more than fit. They hugged her curves like they were tailor-made for her, and Kais inhaled deeply.

If she noticed his extra concentration, she didn’t show it, she only blinked rapidly a few times and then glanced down at her outfit. “Yes. They were in my tent. Did you—“

“No,” he cut her off.

He wanted to be perfectly clear, wanted her to understand that he had not been in her tent without her knowledge. Sawyer had delivered the clothes and, apparently, she had been asleep when he had left them.

“One of the other men did. I apologize, I didn’t realize you hadn’t been awake.”

She glanced away before asking, “Did you get them from someone in the camp?”

He laughed. “Not in my camp.”

There were very few women in his camp, and none that came even close to sharing the dimensions of the one before him.

“Where did they come from?”

“They were purchased for you.”

Couldn’t she tell that they were new? He could see from where he stood that they were fresh clothes, not worn through by the day-to-day life in the camp.

“Purchased?” She looked down at herself and back to him. “For me?”

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