PrimalDemand (3 page)

Leah paddled the boat and looked at the man sprawled at the
other end of the canoe. She was glad to be away from Tyrse. The city was filled
with monks, their warriors and people loyal to them. Those monks controlled
that city.

The sun had risen over the treetops some time ago. Now she
could see him clearly. He was every bit as disturbingly attractive as she’d
thought. She tilted her head as she studied him. He definitely wasn’t the same
as most men. The funny thing was he reminded her of the man who’d been courting
her sister Fae.

Not that they looked the same, outside of being
extraordinarily muscular and tall. Fae’s man had some kind of tattoo or birthmarks
on his face. All of the men with him had it, so she suspected those splotches
had been inked on. No, it was something about their attitude or bearing. Arron
had that same wild essence and arrogance even though his memories were gone.
She had a feeling he’d be even more so when his memory returned.

She had changed her plans to go get him. The detour to Tyrse
had cost her two days, but there hadn’t been much of a choice. She knew what
they’d do to him. She couldn’t let them turn him into one of their guards when
it might be her fault they’d targeted him.

Now, she had to get back to her search for her sister. Not
that she even knew where specifically to look for Fae, but she needed to keep
moving. Leah suspected that her brothers would follow her when they discovered
she was gone. They wouldn’t let the knowledge she held slip away from them. Not
after they’d already handed Fae over to those monks when she refused to
cooperate with them.

Arron should wake up soon. She didn’t know how he remembered
his name. Maybe that was what the priests had decided to call him. No one knew
much about how or when they started feeding their captives information. It
might start soon after they administered the Tares potion.

That drug they used blocked all knowledge of the past,
providing an almost complete loss of memory. Only skills and physical abilities
remained. The monks could then tell the person what they wanted them to
believe. Even after the drug stopped being administered, the effects lingered.
Memories wouldn’t return on their own.

How that memory block remained for so long was a mystery.
Her father had never been able to explain that persistence, other than there
must be some kind of residual trace of the drug left in the body.

It was a perfect way for those monks to acquire the men they
used to protect their monasteries and cities and fatten their pockets by taking
those people others wanted out of the way. The monks didn’t stop there. They
took money to remove specific people.

They’d done that to her sister. Someone had come to their
isolated little mountain village and stolen her as she worked in their garden.
Leah knew that her mother and brothers had been aware of it, if not behind it.

Her brothers only cared about their warrior clan and power.
Her mother wanted anything that would bring her a higher position within their
village. They all wanted to give their warrior clan the knowledge of how to
counteract the Tares potion. She had no idea if it was the clan leader’s idea
or her family’s idea. It didn’t matter though.

Fae had refused to go along with their plans. So they’d
gotten rid of her. Leah had no idea what they intended to do when she refused.
There was no way she was going to marry one of the warriors from their clan.

She wasn’t giving them what they wanted. Her father had kept
separate from the village and warrior clans for a reason. Their behavior and
that of the warrior clan only reinforced that the decision had been right.

She tilted her head and looked at Arron as thoughts swirled
through her mind. He was obviously a warrior, but she didn’t know what he’d
been doing in that library.
Was he looking for someone or searching for
knowledge? Why was he alone there?
Warriors hardly ever traveled alone, yet
she hadn’t seen another man like him in the city. She’d been watching him since
before sunset and hadn’t noticed anyone trying to get to him.

As the day wore on, she stopped once to rest and once to
gather fruit and nuts from nearby trees. She kept a steady pace, but didn’t
hurry. There was no way they’d reach a city today.

They’d have to stop before darkness made traveling
treacherous. With the trees surrounding the river, that would be well before
sunset. She needed a little rest and the next leg of the journey needed to be
done carefully. If it was too dark, she might not see the branching of the
river and go down the wrong fork.

She didn’t want to get lost physically. Too often lately,
she felt uncertain and disoriented. She’d never done anything like this and had
only been outside Dahal, the mountain valley where she lived, because she’d
needed to gather herbs that grew near the outer base of the mountains. Even
then, her father guided her for years before she went alone.

She’d been amazed at the variety of trees and plants she
recognized. Of course there was the dark-barked
manoga
and the conical
vetin
.
She’d heard that those two grew almost anywhere trees could grow, but others
surprised her. She really hadn’t expected to find the silver-leafed
netria
tree on this planet. It grew in abundance in the mountains, but she hadn’t seen
it on her own planet after she’d left the rocky peaks behind.

Arron had slept through the sunrise and now it was after
midday. He must be exhausted. The drug would have made him drowsy, but wouldn’t
have made him sleep long. As time passed, her curiosity grew. She’d like to
know what he was doing in the city and if Arron was his real name.

Just from the very short conversation they had before, she
knew he had many of the same questions. She’d answer enough to satisfy his curiosity
and see him on his way at the next town. Her journey was just beginning and she
knew that it would take time to find her sister.

He stirred some time later as she began looking for a good
spot to stop. She didn’t pay much attention to him as she studied the riverbank
for a clear area to beach the boat until they were ready to go tomorrow. He sat
up and looked around as she guided the boat toward a narrow gap in the bushes
lining the river. From what she could see, it was as good as it was going to get.

“If you need to rest, I can paddle for a while,” he offered.

“No, there’s a spot along the river where it forks. The
river narrows and it’s so overgrown there with thick trees that it’s hard to
see even in midday. If we don’t take the right direction, we’ll have to
backtrack and it will cost us days in travel time. I don’t want to approach it
near dusk.” She gave him a small smile.

“Then we should probably wait. We could talk. You probably
have as many questions as I do.” His head tilted and his eyes narrowed.

This definitely wasn’t the man she’d rescued. She’d seen the
wildness in him, but now that raw power was focused almost as if he was trying
to see her secrets without her saying a word. The intensity in that look made
her a little uncomfortable.

“That’s probably true. I’ve wondered ever since I first
talked with you if your name really is Arron. Or maybe something one of the
soldiers who secured you to that pole called you.” She smiled at him, but
focused on guiding the little boat into the narrow, bare spot.

“It’s my real name.” He looked at the path and then back at
her with a frown on his face. “You don’t plan on setting up camp near this
spot, do you?”

“Well, yes, I don’t want to be too far away from the boat.”
She smiled. She wasn’t getting into the reasons why she wanted to stay near the
canoe. It didn’t concern him.

“That’s not a good idea. Being near that trail is inviting
danger.” His voice lowered and his eyes narrowed.

“Why wouldn’t it be a good idea? I camped near one similar
to it on the way here.” She didn’t see what the problem was. Nothing had
happened last time.

“Even from here I can see the animal tracks on the ground.
It’s where they come to get water. Places like this are an ideal place for a
predator to lie in wait for an easy meal. Or they can take a chunk out of
unwary passersby.” Arron took a slow deep breath although his words sounded a
little clipped.

“So we’re going to tie it up here and walk who knows how far
away from it to find a place to sleep.” She raised a brow. It seemed like a
waste of time. It hadn’t been necessary before.

“Yes, because I’m not waking up to some opportunistic
predator trying to gnaw on you or me.” His look dared her to argue with him.

He was prepared to argue. That look in his silver eyes said
he wasn’t backing down. Although she still didn’t think it was necessary, she’d
walk the extra distance. The camping site wasn’t an important issue. She didn’t
know much about where to put one anyway. The only times she’d used the small
tent and other gear had been at the established sites her father had shown her
when she was gathering herbs and roots.

“All right, you can show me where you think it would be
safer.” She nodded.

“Good, why don’t you step out and I’ll tie this up so that
we don’t have to worry about animals inside it in the morning.” He smiled.

Leah climbed onto the shore and waited as he secured the
canoe. He waded through the water at the edge of the river and joined her. He
looked around the area. She didn’t know what he expected or wanted to see.

Without a word, he began leading her away from the game
trail that led to the river. She walked at his side and surreptitiously studied
him. What was it that drew not only her eyes, but her thoughts, to him?
Normally, walking with a man didn’t make her think about kissing them, but with
him, she did. She wanted to run her hands over his chest to see if those
muscles felt as hard as they looked.

“You know why I was there. Why were you in that library?”
She looked over at him, but quickly turned her attention back to the terrain in
front of her.

As they moved farther away from the water, the sharp, tangy
smell of sap and leaves increased, underscored by the damp, almost musty smell
of the soil and decaying vegetation. Grass and leaf litter covered the ground.
It could mask holes or rocks to trip the unwary.

She couldn’t afford the loss of time being injured would
take. Her brothers or some of the warriors from their clan would find her. She
couldn’t let that happen.

“I was there looking for the monks. We’ve been tracking the
disappearances linked to them. They’ve taken a few of our people and we want
them back. I don’t remember yet where the others with me were while I was in
the library, but I know I wasn’t alone.” He frowned.

“They’ll come back over the next day or so.” She adjusted
the strap of her bag.

“I expected to get whole memories back maybe one at a time,
but everything’s jumbled and small pieces. When I think about home, I get a
flash of one place and the name of another, but I know that they’re not the
same place.” Arron’s hand clenched and he shook his head. “It’s frustrating.”

She looked over at him. “That’s normal. You’re lucky. It can
take weeks or months with prolonged exposure to the drug.”

“This is far enough and a good spot to set up a camp.” He
stopped in a grassy area between the trees.

They’d walked away from the river and the trail. She
couldn’t see or hear the water any longer. It was a nice spot, but it looked
like a good deal of the rest of the trees and grass they’d passed. She didn’t
know what made it so much better than somewhere closer to their canoe.

“You’re trying to rescue some of your friends?” Leah lowered
her bags to the ground. That was something she really didn’t expect from a
warrior. The warrior clans at home wouldn’t even hunt for one of their own if
they were taken by the monks unless it was someone really important.

“Yes, we’re not walking away from them. How did you get that
stuff you gave me to drink?” He cleared away grass and used a flat rock to dig
out some of the earth beneath it.

“Old family recipe. One of my ancestors found it.” She
couldn’t remember if it was her grandfather’s grandfather or if it was even
older than that. But for as long as they’d had it, they’d kept it within the
family.

“Why don’t I see if there’s some fish in that river while
you get a fire going?” He gestured to the pit he dug. “We can talk some more
while our food is cooking.”

She nodded. She could handle gathering wood and starting a
fire. The break would be good for her. What was it about him that kept her so
focused on him? And his body. She admitted that her eyes drifted over his broad
shoulders and muscular arms and chest at every possible opportunity. Was the
strangeness of the situation behind that intense attraction?

She shook her head and focused. She had enough basic food
for them both, as long as they supplemented them with fresh-caught food and
what they found as they traveled. As for clothing, he had what he now wore and
what she had for him.

He hadn’t had a bag in the library and there certainly
hadn’t been one near that pole where they’d chained him. She’d known he’d need
something extra to wear. It was why she’d bought pants and a shirt from a man
at the edge of the market. She hoped that the clothing wasn’t too small. All
she’d had was her short glimpse of him in the library.

She gathered wood and started a fire before she finished
spreading her bedroll. Two saplings provided a brace for the treated canvas
lean-to. Her normal camp for one now had to accommodate two. They’d have to
share her bedding unless he preferred the ground. She didn’t have extra.

While the thought of sharing that pallet made her nervous,
it didn’t scare her. Considering that she’d never had sex, that lack of fear
surprised her. She was intrigued and a little excited. He’d walk away at the
next city. She knew it. He had people to search for just like she did. Still,
she wouldn’t back away if he returned the interest she felt burning within her.

When he returned, a fish dangled from his fingertips. He
erected a spit over the fire and skewered the cleaned fish over it. He sat down
beside her on the ground. He sat quietly for a few moments and then turned to
her.

“Why are you on this journey alone? Don’t you have brothers
or a father to help get your sister free?” Arron’s eyes locked on hers.

“My father’s dead and my brothers wouldn’t help get her
free.” She took a deep breath and pushed down the anger. They had more loyalty
to their warrior clan than they did to their family.

“You’re angry at them.” He tilted his head. “Why wouldn’t
they help?”

“The leader of their clan had her taken by the monks.” She
wasn’t going to go into why or that they’d follow her. That was her problem.

“Their clan? Aren’t you of the same clan?” He leaned forward
a little.

“No, there are three warrior clans in the area I come from.
My brothers joined one of them. They’re part of it. I’m not.” She stretched out
her legs and looked up at the sky for a moment.

It still seemed as if she were walking through a nightmare.
They’d given Fae over to those monks without a qualm. The bastards knew what
could happen to her. The male captives were treated relatively well as long as
they could contribute in some way, but the females, sometimes, were beaten and
worse.

“Their clan wanted your sister gone and they did nothing?”
He scowled.

“Yes. Do you think you’ll be able to find the people you
were with?” She changed the subject.

He seemed prepared to ask about every little detail of what
she was doing here. She wasn’t telling him that. In fact, she’d already told
him more than she planned. He was a warrior. He might think exactly like her
brothers.

“Yes, if I don’t find them, they’ll find me. There was no
one you could turn to for help?” He asked it, but he looked confused, not
doubting.

“There was no one. Can we talk about something else? This is
only making me angry again. I still can’t believe they’d go that far.” She
tried a smile, but her mouth felt as tight as the rest of her muscles.

He nodded. “Maybe later we can talk more about that drink
you gave me.”

“That sounds good.” She relaxed as relief rushed through
her. They shouldn’t be together long enough to get into too many details.

Having a male who was obviously a warrior around her would
draw too much notice in the towns around the monasteries. She didn’t want to be
noticed. If she was lucky, she could find her sister and they’d be on their way
without anyone noticing.

She didn’t know what to talk about since she wanted to keep
him from asking for too many details. The silence wasn’t strained, but she
wished she could relax and simply talk with him. When the fish was fully
cooked, they ate it and a little of the berries she’d gathered earlier.

Arron watched her, his gaze heated and considering. She had
a feeling he was beginning to feel protective toward her. Maybe because she had
gotten him out of the city or maybe that was simply how he was.

“We’ll sleep together.” Arron’s voice cut through the
silence.

Although she didn’t hear a question there, she thought that
he might be asking for confirmation. The single pallet was fairly obvious, but
he might not want to take it for granted.

“I only have the one pallet so we’ll have to share. I was
going to get another later. When I started the journey, I wanted to move
quickly. I didn’t know when I’d find my sister or where.” She nodded and
shrugged. It wasn’t something they could change unless he wanted to sleep on
the ground, because she wasn’t doing it.

“I don’t mind sharing with you.” His eyes locked on her and
he had this determined look that she couldn’t understand.

“That’s good since we don’t have much choice.” She was a
little nervous about it.

Folding her hands in her lap, she tried to keep them still.
She couldn’t understand the pull to him when she knew nothing about him. It
wasn’t simply because he was a handsome man. She’d seen plenty of those before
and hadn’t felt immediately drawn to get closer to them both physically and
emotionally.

“Have we met before this?” He tilted his head and a small
smile curved his lips.

“Not before the library.” She frowned, a little confused.
He’d been seared into her mind because of what happened and her immediate
attraction to him, but the meeting had been brief.

He’d remember that eventually, but she wondered what made
him ask. Did he know someone who looked like her? Some resemblance to a woman
from his memories was the only way she could think to explain his question.

“We should probably get some rest then, because the morning
will come soon enough.” He looked at the pallet.

She wanted to ask him why he thought they’d met or if he
remembered someone who looked like her, but held back. She wasn’t telling him
everything. She had no right to pry into his thoughts.

He was right. They did need to get some sleep. Well, she
could, the last few nights she hadn’t slept so well. The hard ground and
nervousness kept her from relaxing even in her sleep. Even though she hadn’t
stopped moving since she’d left, she knew this wasn’t going to be as easy as
she hoped. Her brothers wouldn’t let her get away without trying to stop her.

“Why don’t you go on and get ready. I’ll make sure those
embers aren’t going to flare and then join you.” He moved away even before she
nodded.