The Breeding Lands (An Epic Erotic Fantasy Novel) (17 page)

She noticed that more Usari tribe members were returning with their wives, and she watched as they began to make their way towards the village. “Do you live in one of those houses?” Leila asked curiously. She imagined living in one of the picturesque cottages, having her very own small yet lovely rooms.

Tol'sar laughed a hard laugh. “These? These are nothing!” Leila wasn’t sure what Tol'sar meant, and she looked around as they moved closer to the houses.

“I don’t have any clothes!” she protested again, acutely aware of the fact now that she could see women in the distance.

This seemed to finally register with Tol'sar, as his eyes traveled over her body. “I don’t want anyone else to see you,” he admitted, and he strode up to the first house, with Leila ducking behind his large frame.

“I need a dress!” Tol'sar barked. The woman who was cleaning her porch scampered into the house and returned seconds later with a gray dress. Tol'sar grabbed it and threw it to Leila. Leila hurriedly pulled it on, and offered a mumbled thanks to the woman who had provided it. A few clusters of women were grouped together. They watched as Leila, now dressed in the shapeless gray frock, followed behind Tol'sar. Their eyes seemed to linger longer than what was acceptable, and Leila flushed crimson as she wondered if they had all seen her nude. If Leila perceived correctly, it seemed that some of the women gave her looks of envy.

Leila continued following Tol'sar, taking in everything around her. She noticed that the homes were getting larger. Up in the distance, she could make out a large white house nestled on a wide hill of earth that jutted out from the river. The ground sloped down to the river, and a number of large, majestic trees framed the incline. Leila wondered who could possibly live in such a home. It looked larger than the high school of North Point, which had been the largest building in the entire city.

A horse and carriage came into view and interrupted her thoughts. “Master!” a young man cried as he abruptly pulled the carriage in front of Tol'sar and Leila.

“Where have you been?” Tol'sar snapped, yanking open the simple wooden door and helping Leila in. Floored, Leila stepped into the carriage as Tol'sar jumped in behind her.

“I’m sorry, sir!” the young man said, hanging his head with shame. He looked straight ahead as he snapped the reigns. Leila watched as the scenery began to move more quickly, and she wondered where Tol'sar could live. Perhaps he lived in an isolated area? That wouldn’t surprise her. He didn’t strike her as one who liked to socialize.

Tol'sar cleared his throat. “Sparrow, this is my wife Leila. Leila, this is Sparrow, he works for me.”

“Hello, Sparrow,” Leila said quietly.

Sparrow turned around and flashed Leila a wide grin. “Hi Leila!” His enthusiastic tone was catching, and Leila found herself smiling in spite of herself. At least someone from the Western Mountains was friendly. They continued to move north, and Leila could see the large house growing closer. Perhaps Tol'sar worked for the lord who owned the large home? Maybe he had a house on the property or nearby?

“Is everything ready?” Tol'sar asked, leaning forward to speak to Sparrow.

“Yes, sir. I made sure the others had everything prepared for her. There is a room set and ready, stocked with everything she might need.”

Leila frowned, not following Sparrow’s strange words. The others? Who else would there be? And a room was ready and stocked? Could there be other females besides Leila? The large white house disappeared from view, and Leila saw that they were at the bottom of a large tree-lined driveway. Sparrow turned up the driveway and the horses groaned under the strain of going uphill. The enormous white house came into view and Leila’s eyes nearly popped out of head. Surely,
Tol'sar
didn’t live in this grand house!

“Is this where you live?” she asked stupidly, knowing how silly she sounded.

Tol'sar grunted. “Yes.” He scowled at her. “Does it meet your approval?”

Leila opened her mouth to speak, but couldn’t. She could feel Tol’sor’s eyes on her, and she suddenly felt uncomfortable; Tol'sar had hardly paid any attention to her. “It’s so big,” she whispered.

Tol'sar continued to stare at her, and now she could feel Sparrow staring as well. “Where are you from?” Tol'sar asked curiously and Leila could detect no malice in his question, simply curiosity.

“North Point.”

Tol'sar burst out laughing. “No wonder! You’ve never seen anything this big!” The hard edge was back in his voice. Shaking his head in amusement, he jumped out of the carriage and made his way up to the house.

Sparrow came around to help Leila down. “It
is
a very large house,” he agreed, quietly. “The largest one in this part of the Mountains.”

Leila nodded, speechless, as she made her way up to the house. Tol'sar had already disappeared inside. The house was intimidating and even bigger up close. Sparrow led her inside, and Leila looked around with wide eyes. How could she ever get used to living in such a house?

She looked around for Tol'sar, but he was nowhere to be seen. “Follow me,” Sparrow said softly, and grateful that someone cared enough to help her, Leila followed him.

Leila tiptoed around the corner of the study and looked inside.

Empty.

She quietly made her way toward the dining room. The room felt lonely and hollow, but Leila sat in one of the large chairs anyway, looking out over the beautiful rivers and trees. Maggie bustled in, her gray hair piled on top of her head. She placed a tray before Leila with two warm biscuits, fresh fruit, and three eggs.

“Thank you, Maggie,” Leila said gratefully, her stomach already growling. She patted her growing belly and began to eat. She saw Maggie smile, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Maggie, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, Miss,” Maggie said automatically.

Leila rolled her eyes. “Maggie, I’ve been here for six months. You can call me Leila. And I can tell something is bothering you. You can talk to me.”

Maggie hesitated. “It’s Siamas,” she said quickly, referring to her grown son. “They’ve been searching for Bethany for two days but they can’t find her.”

“Bethany is missing?”

Bethany had been brought to the Western Mountains at the same time as Leila. She was one of the few women who had been kind to Leila. Many of the other women viewed Leila as some sort of superior, afraid to befriend her due to Tol’sor’s status, not to mention his foul reputation among the community. Leila didn’t know Siamas, but Bethany had thought highly of him. He was closer to Leila’s age than Tol'sar, and the men occasionally had business together.

“I’ll say something to Tol'sar,” Leila said firmly.

“Would you?” Maggie asked, hopefully.

Leila nodded. “Of course.”

While Leila was afraid of her husband, she was slowly becoming braver and beginning to assert herself in certain situations. Since Tol'sar was the most prominent warlord in the area, he would be expected to help.

“Thank you,” Maggie whispered, hurrying out of the room.

Leila ate her breakfast, not really tasting the food. Her mind was too consumed with thoughts of Bethany. How could she have gone missing? Leila pushed up from the table, leaving her dirty plates behind her. Until just recently, Leila had insisted on carrying her plates to the kitchen, but it had made everyone uncomfortable and Tol'sar had snapped at her again, telling her she needed to start acting the part of a warlord’s wife.

Leila laughed humorlessly to herself as she made her way down the hall and up the wide spiral staircase. The light from the numerous windows cast the house in bright sunlight, and Leila looked around at the beautiful paintings and furnishings. Tol'sar had the best of everything, and now so did she. Leila pushed open the French doors to her bedroom and she looked over all her lovely possessions that she had once dreamed of having. Of course, Leila enjoyed the bountiful luxuries Tol'sar was able to provide, but her marriage was devoid of love and respect. Leila was only property to Tol'sar; a beautiful woman on his arm, a thing he liked to show off. He had no true feelings for her, and it was apparent in every aspect of their life.

For starters, Tol'sar and Leila did not share a bedroom; they each had their own private sleeping quarters. Naturally, Tol'sar gave Leila everything she could ever desire, so there was nothing she lacked. Her bedroom had the finest furniture, the plushest carpets and jewelry boxes filled with the most exquisite jewels. Leila’s closet was filled with the finest clothes, and her bed was covered with the most luxurious silk sheets money could buy. Tol'sar enjoyed his carnal pleasures, and most nights he let himself into Leila’s room to have his way with her. Her pregnancy had not deterred him in the slightest, and once he was finished, he would lay with Leila for a few minutes before climbing out of bed and making his way back to his own room.

During the day, Tol'sar would work in his study, or tend to business in his district. He presided over a large number of people, and Leila hated how that alienated her from many of the wives. She had tried hard to be friendly to the women, but she was still new to this life, and young. She found that the new wives, like herself, were easier to befriend than the older ones.

Once in her bedroom, she noticed that her bed had already been made and the curtains drawn. Leila looked out over the gorgeous blue river and could see the small green streams that flowed into it. Everything about the Western Mountains was stunning, and she relished the twelve hours of sunlight. She missed nothing of North Point’s grimy streets and dirty air. Truthfully, Leila didn’t even have any friends to miss in North Point. Her only friend had been Gemma, and she tried not to think about what had happened to her. Since the Usari Ravagers had taken Leila, she knew that she would not see her eldest sister Elisa who had been chosen by the Sabre. Leila had tried to search for her sister Katherine, but no one had heard of her, and Leila had given up, assuming that the Lycan tribe must have claimed her.

Leila played with her hair as she opened the massive doors to her armoire. It was bursting with clothes, and she sifted through the garments until she found something she liked. She chose a deep orange empire-waisted dress that highlighted her growing belly. She twisted her hair up onto her head and fastened it with an emerald encrusted clip, before putting on a few more pieces of jewelry. Leila wasn’t sure when Tol'sar was returning, but she was going to be sure to mention Bethany to him. On very rare occasions, Tol'sar seemed somewhat tender towards her, but Leila could never predict when those moods would strike him. While living in North Point, she had dreamed about a better life, but now Leila yearned for companionship. She had given up on the ideal of love, but even a friendship between her and Tol'sar would have been welcomed.

A quick glance in the mirror told Leila that she looked the part of the warlord’s wife. A well-cut dress of excellent material, well-coiffed hair, and jewels. Her blue eyes popped against her peachy skin, and her hair was bright and shiny. Leila had noticed that pregnancy had only made her complexion more lovely and her hair even thicker. She wasn’t waddling yet, but she could feel her belly beginning to affect her gait. It was getting uncomfortable to sleep, and Tol'sar had learned that Leila was no longer able to accommodate some of his favorite sexual positions. Not surprisingly, Tol'sar had quickly come up with new positions—pregnancy would not put a damper on his needs.

Leila had nothing to do inside the house, and the river was calling to her. After spending eighteen years in a dirty city, it was hard for Leila to get used to her lush surroundings. Tol'sar had set up an area overlooking the river, and Leila made her way towards her own haven from her strange new world. She settled herself into one of the plush lounges and wiggled her feet out of her sandals. The river rushed below her and Leila let her mind wander. She imagined she was a leaf. She pictured herself drifting down to the river, being carried away on its current. She wondered how far the land stretched, and where the river eventually ended. Did it flow through the mountains? Did it pass through the stronghold and the protective crystal? Perhaps it flowed right through the gates that protected Nihilo Terra from the Dragon Lords?

Leila didn’t realize she’d dozed off. She awoke a few hours later, disoriented. The sun had changed position in the sky, and a light breeze was ruffling her dress. She twisted to look back at the house and saw Tol’sor’s horse tied up outside. She got up as quickly as she could, and she made her way back to the house, wanting to catch Tol'sar in case he were to leave again.