Page 7 of Temel

And it’s already working for one of my males, he thought with a smile, although perhaps that was due to the fiery female Borgaz had chosen as his mate rather than hard work and natural surroundings. He suspected his other two warriors would have a more difficult time. As if the thought had conjured him up, Kalpar appeared in the doorway.

A tall, lean male, as deadly with his tongue as with his ever present knives, Kalpar rarely displayed any emotion other than a slight, mocking amusement, but Temel knew the pain that ran beneath the sardonic facade. The mockery was on display now as he leaned against the doorframe.

“We have received a request for help.”

“Help? From whom?”

“From Artek. I’m not sure I completely understand how he knew—something about a banker and the shopkeeper—but apparently a pair of females and two children were headed in this direction prior to the storm. The horse that had been pulling their carriage returned without them.”

Females and children out in the unexpected storm that had raged for many hours before finally blowing itself out overnight?He shuddered at the thought and rose immediately, his protective instincts on high alert.

“I will go in search of them.”

“Do you want me to accompany you?”

He thought for a moment, then shook his head.

“I need you to finish repairing the fences damaged by the storm before any more cattle escape. And keep Naffon from killing himself when he replaces the boards on the barn roof.”

The two males exchanged a grim look. The youngest member of their squad had a reckless disregard for his own safety that worried both of them.

“Yes, Commander. Although I may need to use one of my knives to pin him to the ground.”

Kalpar’s fangs gleamed in a mocking grin, and Temel sighed yet again.

“Without violence, please.” He picked up his comm and strode towards the door. “Now tell me what you know.”

“Apparently they were headed for the place where the road to our valley intersects with the trade route.”

“There’s nothing there except a large tree and a worn out shack. Why would they go there?”

“From what Artek said, they are planning to rent the, err, shack,” Kalpar said dryly, and he gave him an appalled look.

“It’s completely unsuitable for females and children. Perhaps we should offer?—”

He broke off in mid speech. Most of the abandoned farms that made up their cluster were in no better shape and they were intended for warriors, not stray females. He would just have to do his best to discourage them and send them back to town. Once he found them, that is. His pace increased as he headed through the kitchen towards the barn.

“I’ll make my way along the road in that direction. Hopefully they just took shelter in the house and the horse got loose.”

Not that he thought the shack would provide much protection, but it was undoubtedly better than being outside during the storm.

Kalpar nodded, and Temel went to the stable to saddle his horse. The animals the humans called horses were genetically modified versions of a species from their native planet, as were many of the farm animals. He’d had little experience with riding animals in the past, but he quickly developed an appreciation for that mode of transport.

If he hadn’t been worried about the subjects of his search, he would have enjoyed the ride through the crisp morning air. The road ran next to a pasture already lush with spring growth before curving around a hill and dipping down to travel alongside a usually shallow creek. Everything appeared clean and new in the aftermath of the storm, although he could see signs of the destruction it had wrought.

A section of the pasture fence had been blown down, and as he approached the wooded section of the road next to the creek, the path was scattered with branches and debris. The creek had also overflowed its bank in several places and parts of the road were underwater. While it wasn’t deep enough to hamper his mount,he slowed, keeping a careful eye on the dark muddy depths to his left.

Once he thought he heard voices calling, only to realize it was a group of wild birds repairing their nests, also damaged by the storm. It seemed unlikely that the missing family had made it this far away from the crossroads, but as he continued on he found himself scanning the edges of the road. The side opposite the creek was dotted with low trees and thick shrubbery that could easily conceal a body.

The thought haunted him, bringing back horrific memories of the war, and he hurried on, determined to reach the crossroad as soon as possible. Then he came around a curve of the road and found the way blocked by a wide stretch of water. The ground must have been lower there because water spread all the way from the creek to a rocky outcropping.

A carriage stood on the edge of the road—or more accurately, it lay on its side next to where the road must once have been. Water churned through the spokes of the wheels, and even as he watched it shifted slightly in the rushing water. The presence of the carriage suggested that he’d found his missing family, and he quickly dismounted, tying the reins to a tree before approaching the swirling expanse of water.

His heart skipped a beat when he saw a human female clinging to a boulder with one hand while she reached desperately for something with the other. Another female crouched on the rocks above her, staring down at the water as she clutched an infant to her chest.

CHAPTER 4

Temel vaulted onto the back of the overturned carriage to get a better view of the situation. As soon as he did, he realized the female was trying to reach a small boy clinging to a log, his hands white with terror. The log was wedged against a tree, just out of the female’s grasp, but that wouldn’t last. The force of the water was already pushing it away from the trees. When it began to move, the female gave a choked cry and started to let go of the boulder.

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