Savage Desire (Savage Lagonda 1) (20 page)

Tajarez took her by the elbow and steered her to a spot just in front of the big white tent; then he spoke in a commanding voice, in words that she did not understand.

"My people, I present to you the Golden One, and your future princess royal."

Mara was surprised when the strong, fierce-looking warriors went down on one knee before her. She looked at Tajarez for some explanation, for she was truly at a loss as to what to do.

"They pay you homage, Mara," he told her.

"Tell them for me that I am honored to be among them, and look forward to meeting each of them individually."

Tajarez translated for her, and she could have said no words that would have endeared her more to the fierce fighting men who had traveled far with their prince, just on the hope of getting a glimpse of her. She did not understand the looks of adoration that were plainly written on all the faces that were raised to her. All except for one. Tanka felt bitter hatred for the beautiful Golden One. It did not please her that Mara was indeed as beautiful as she had been told. In fact, Tanka assessed Mara with a most flattering realization. Here was probably the most beautiful girl Tanka had ever seen. Her green eyes were truly wondrous to look upon, as was her golden hair. Her white skin was pure, and extremely delicate in color. But this did not endear her to Tanka. Indeed, it made her hatred burn that much deeper.

There were other eyes that watched Mara, those of Anias. But where Tanka felt hate for the tiny goddess, Anias felt something akin to adoration. It made him feel good just to look upon her. His heart quickened when she looked in his direction and smiled at him, nodding her head in recognition. He noted the possessive hand of his cousin that rested on her arm. He wanted to force Tajarez to remove his hand from the one who had taken his heart. Looking past Tajarez, his eyes met and locked with Palomas's. The message he read in those dark, hostile eyes was all too clear. Palomas knew that Anias would stop at nothing to possess the Golden One, and the look he gave Anias told him that, while he lived, Anias would not succeed.

Anias arched his eyebrow, showing Palomas he was not intimidated by his silent threat.

As the Indians rose to their feet, Tajarez steered Mara into his tent, where they found Sasha and Jeffery waiting for them. There was a table laden with what looked like enough food to feed all of the men outside the tent and still have some left over.

Mara looked around the interior of Tajarez's tent. She had been told by her family what to expect, but the beauty and splendor still took her by surprise. She was startled by the wealth Tajarez possessed.

She was impressed by the cleanliness, for although the ground covering and cushions were white and would be hard to keep clean, everything was immaculate. Mara doubted there was a speck of dust in the whole tent.

"Shall we dine, Mara?" Tajarez said, as he led her to one of the white cushions. They were waited upon by Sasha and the other two women. Mara paid little heed to the taste of the food that had been prepared in her honor. The plate she ate from was made of gold, as were the flagons from which she drank. Mara found the flagons extremely heavy to lift.

The deer meat was roasted to perfection and was seasoned with some unknown herbs and spices. There were no utensils to eat with, so she followed Tajarez's lead and ate the meat with her fingers.

After the meal was over, Tajarez stood up and offered her his hand. She looked at him, wondering what would take place now. Jeffery excused himself and bid them good night, saying he would see them in the morning, and Sasha had disappeared, leaving only the two women, who were clearing the table.

Mara turned to the two women and smiled. Maga grinned widely in answer to her smile, but Mara could not fail to notice the malice directed at her from the other woman. Mara drew in her breath and looked quickly at Tajarez, who did not seem to be aware of the woman's hatred for her. When Mara looked back to the Indian woman she had turned her back, and Mara thought she must be mistaken.

"Come," Tajarez said. "I will walk you to your tent."

The night was dark, but the many campfires gave off a friendly glow against the overcast sky. Lightning streaked across the sky, and the first drops of rain began to fall as Tajarez led her to the only other white tent, which, though much smaller, was not unlike the one he occupied.

"Can I not stay with you?" Mara asked wistfully, dreading being parted from him. She knew Tajarez did not consider himself her true husband as of yet, but everything was so strange to her, and she longed for the comfort of his presence.

"Unfortunately, Sasha will have the great honor of sharing a tent with you. I wish it were otherwise."

Mara noticed Palomas had fallen in step behind them and had stopped a few paces away as Tajarez led her to the entrance of her tent.

"I want to stay with you," Mara said in a small voice. "Could we not be together as we were in the cave last spring:

Tajarez reached out his hand to touch her, then let it drop helplessly to his side. "Do not make this harder on me than it already is, Mara. It is a long way to my home. One of us must be strong."

"But by the law, we are man and wife."

"By your law, Mara, not by mine. I have told you this before."

She shook her head. "Stay with me, Tajarez."

"Mara, do not continue," he said harshly. "I must leave you now."

"Tajarez, could you not kiss me good night?"

"Mara, I am the prince royal. It would not be wise to be seen in a public show of affection. There are many things you must learn if you are to be my wife, and the first and foremost lesson is that you must appear above displays of affection in public."

His words, although spoken softly, stung, and had the power to wound deeply.

"Is it permitted for me to wish you a good night, then?'
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she said, her voice clearly showing her hurt. She did not stay to hear his reply, but turned away from him and entered the tent. She did not see the answering hurt in his eyes, nor was she aware that he stood outside her tent for long moments. But Palomas saw. He thought this would be a long journey for his prince, and if he was to follow his king's orders, a journey where he would be called upon to stand between his prince and the Golden One to prevent their coming together.

Palomas looked toward the heavens and felt the raindrops fall on his upturned face. Yes, he must make sure the Golden One did not become too much of a temptation for his prince. If the king was going to join them in marriage, he must guard her well and make sure she remained a maiden. He watched as Tajarez walked the short distance to his own tent, thinking that the rain that now fell in sheets might serve to cool the prince's ardor.

The next morning, Sasha shook Mara gently to awaken her. As Mara dressed in her green riding habit, preparing for the day's journey, she noticed it was still dark outside the tent.

Sasha served Mara her breakfast, which consisted of fluffy yellow corncakes with honey, wild strawberries, and a cup of coffee.

"Sasha, where did you get the coffee?" Mara asked, between bites of the delicious corncake.

"I told my cousin that you always drank the coffee and tea, and he had Jeffery purchase a large supply of both, so you may continue to enjoy it."

Mara smiled. "He is the most thoughtful man I have ever known."

"He is most anxious that everything be just right for you, Mara. I believe he likes to do things that will please you.

Mara was thoughtful for a moment. "Sometimes I do not understand Tajarez. He is a very complicated man."

"Yes, "but then, he is the prince royal. It is not necessary to understand him; it is enough to know one must obey him."

Mara finished her breakfast and stood up. "To obey one blindly is not always wise, Sasha. I would never allow anyone to order me about, if I did not agree with what he asked of me."

"Is it not that way with your king or prince royal?"

"We do not have a king, Sasha, but a president. He is elected by the people, and it is his job to do the will of the majority of the people. The office of president is not a lifetime appointment, so therefore our president is not absolute ruler. He is a servant of the people."

Sasha looked thoughtful for a moment. "Mara, I do not understand. How many presidents do you have? It would take many men to serve the people, would it not?"

Mara smiled. "I do not mean he waits upon them, Sasha. What I meant is he does what is best for the people and for our country. And we only have one—at a time, that is. He is elected for a four-year term."

"I am afraid I will never understand, Mara. It is comforting to the Lagonda to know that the ruler is someone who has been trained since birth to look after their best interests. My uncle, the king, is a very wise man, and the people love him above all else. It is comforting to know when the king dies that Tajarez, who has also been trained since birth to rule, will become king. When your son and Tajarez's is born, he will be trained to rule the Lagonda. It has always been so; I hope it will continue to be."

Mara was quiet for a long time. It was a new idea to her that her son would become king of the Seven Cities one day. There was much she did not know about the new life she was going to. "Sasha, you will have to explain many things to me. It seems I must do a lot of rethinking about many things."

They heard movement outside the tent, and the sound of many horses.

"I believe it is time to leave," Sasha said, pushing the tent flap aside and peering out into the darkness.

Mara tied the ribbon of her hat beneath her chin, and straightened the folds of her riding habit. Walking outside, she saw Palomas holding the reins of her horse, Blanco. Looking about her, she did not see Tajarez or Jeffery.

As she rode away from the campsite, she looked back over her shoulder. This was the last sight she would have of the woods that surrounded the home she had loved so well. She thought of her brother David, who was no more than five miles from her at the moment. He would most probably still be in bed. She felt an ache deep inside. It was very painful leaving behind all that was familiar, but she must look to the future.

Palomas rode to one side of Mara, and Sasha rode to the other. It was a pattern that was to be repeated often in the weeks to come. Mara noticed that Tajarez still had not joined them, and she wondered where he was. The least he could have done, she thought, would have been to wish her a good morning and tell her he would not be riding with her. It would probably not occur to him to let her know where he would be, but she was his wife, and as such, entitled to some courtesy.

Around noon, they halted. Mara sat beneath the shade of a large oak tree. She watched as the horses were being watered and the warriors began to eat. Sasha gave Mara a slice of deer meat and a corncake. Mara would soon discover that deer meat and corncakes would make up most of her diet until they reached the Seven Cities. There was little time to prepare food such as she had eaten the night before.

Mara felt as if someone was staring at her. Glancing over her shoulder, she noticed the Indian woman she had seen last night, and there could be no mistake about the look of hatred she saw in the woman's face.

"Sasha, who is she?" Mara asked, nodding her head at the Indian woman.

"Her name is Tanka."

"What purpose does she serve?"

Sasha was quiet for a moment and avoided Mara's eyes. "She is servant to the prince."

Mara turned back to look at Tanka and found that she was still staring at her. "In what capacity does Tanka serve Tajarez?" Mara asked suspiciously.

At that moment, Tajarez himself rode up. Halting his horse in front of Mara, he looked down at her. "How are you faring so far, Mara?" he asked, as he dismounted.

Mara turned her face up to him. How outstanding he was. His dark hair was slightly windblown. There was a smile on his handsome face.

Sitting down beside her, he waited for her to speak.

"I am very well, thank you," she told him coldly.

It did not make matters any better when the woman, Tanka, came forward and handed Tajarez a slice of deer meat. There was no mistaking the look she gave Tajarez. It was a look such as one would give a man she had been very intimate with. Tajarez did not seem to notice, however, as his eyes were on Mara.

"Are you displeased about something, Mara?" he asked.

Mara did not wish to discuss what was bothering her in front of the whole camp. So instead, she ignored his question. "Where is my brother?"

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We killed two deer this morning. He and Anias are skinning and loading them on packhorses," he told her, frowning slightly. "It takes a lot of meat to feed so large a party, Mara."

Mara became angrier as Tanka handed Tajarez a drink from a leather water pouch. Mara knew it was no accident when Tanka brushed against Tajarez. Tajarez shot the woman a glance that Mara could not read.

Not wanting to witness any further contact between them, Mara stood up and dusted the leaves and grass from her skirt. "Come, Sasha. I wish to wash my hands and face in the river." Without another word, she walked away, leaving Tajarez to ponder her actions.

As Mara mounted her horse once more, she noticed Jeffery had joined the group, and now rode beside Tajarez. She felt sick inside, fearing her suspicions were true. Tajarez and Tanka had been lovers; perhaps they still were. Mara was determined she would have the truth from Sasha before one more day passed. Suppose Tajarez had spent last night with Tanka? Her eyes widened in horror. Suppose he spent every night with her?