Traveller's Refuge (14 page)

“Don’t they? Everyone walks around us like we’re walking wounded. Poor Arturo!” Arano sneered. “You wonder why he retires to our room? It’s because he can’t stand to see the expression on your faces! He won’t ever get better because no one will let him!” Arano got up and stalked around the clearing. “Did you know that his students are afraid to touch him? The simplest touch during training is not possible.”

“What? Why?”

“Who knows? Maybe they think his experience will rub off on them!”

Dai frowned angrily. “Why didn’t he say something to your papa? Something must be done.”

Arano snorted in disgust. “Sometimes you demonstrate the brains of a pea and that’s insulting the pea. What exactly do you think you can do to change how his students feel?” Silence echoed around the clearing after Arano’s outburst.

Then Dai coldly inquired, “You have a solution, I suppose?”

“Arturo and I have talked about it. He must go away to one of the other villages and start over. He has skills and sufficient barter credits to support himself. If he stays here, he’ll end up a hermit.” Arano flopped down next to Dai. “He has to go so that both of us can have a life.”

“And what about you, Little Eagle? What will happen to you after he’s gone?” Dai asked softly.

“Maybe I will finally get my bond mate to agree that I’m good mate material.”

“A woman?”

“A woman,” Arano confirmed. “I did tell you that Arturo and I are different.”

“Who?”

“None of your business.”

Dai was shocked by Arano’s refusal to identify the woman. “Why?”

“Because I don’t only have visions about invaders from the out-valley,” Arano replied coolly. “I also see my own future and know the objections there will be to my mate. Until the pledging is complete and accepted by the valley…” He shook his head. “No one will know until then.”

Chapter Eleven

Over the next couple of weeks, Dai observed the swift progress Traveller was making in the healing process. Curiosity finally got the best of him, so he peeked in one day to see exactly what kind of therapy Wrenna was performing on Trav. What he observed made everything clear, for Wrenna was leisurely massaging and suckling a muscle that had nothing to do with broken bones and though Trav appeared to be in agony, Dai had a feeling that was a very temporary condition. Shaking his head, he silently retreated and went away to think about what he must do, since Merlyn and Jade had gone into
burda
.

The next afternoon, after Wrenna left Trav, Dai and Bishop came to visit. Dai carefully closed the door and motioned for Bish to sit down next to the bed. Pulling up another chair, he said, “There is a thing I must explain to both of you.”

“What’s wrong?” Trav asked, frowning at Dai’s serious expression.

“Yesterday, I saw Wrenna with you,” Dai replied baldly. “There are things you must know before you do something irrevocable.” Bish just looked at them in bafflement. “In the valley, men and women must have the proper rites and ceremonies before consummation. If you are not serious, you must not do this!”

“What was he doing?” Bish asked in growing concern.

“It is not for you to interfere, Bishop. Listen and learn that you may not make the same mistakes!” Dai said sternly. Looking at Trav with growing concern, he asked, “Has Wrenna talked to you any more about our pledging and bonding-rite?”

“No.” Traveller was most definite. “As a matter of fact, conversation hasn’t been a strong point in our encounters.” He shifted restlessly in the bed. “Granddad, can I get up and sit in the chair over there? I’m getting a headache from trying to see your face.”

Tilting his head to one side in consideration, Dai decided that Trav was ready to make that transition. With Bish’s help, Traveller was settled in the chair, his still-fragile bones cushioned by blankets and pillows. Trav gingerly stretched his neck, trying to work out the kinks. “What do we need to know?”

Dai carefully explained about pledges, bonding and
schalzah
. He explained the purpose of the
shardas
and described
schalzina
and the
schela
.

Traveller looked at him as though he’d lost his mind. “Let me get this right. You’re telling us that once a woman begins
schalzina
, there’s no cure for it except sex.”

“With her bond mate. Yes.” Dai nodded his head.

“And this includes this locking where her
schela
grips his cock behind the head and he can’t withdraw until her
schalzina
episode is over—which might be anywhere from a short time to half a day?”

“Yes.”

“And
schalzina
episodes continue through most of the year after the oath-binding.” Trav shook his head. “That’s some honeymoon.”

“Merlyn has explained this ‘honeymoon’ to me. It is not the same, I think.”

“Hell no!” Bishop said fervently. “What’s the difference between
schalzah
and
schalzina
?”

Dai chuckled and poked Bishop’s leg. “You would worry about that, Bish! Merlyn says that
schalzah
is akin to being on fire for hours without any water to put it out.
Schalzah
is total sexual frenzy with no possibility of completion. It lasts for hours.”

Bishop shivered. “It sounds like stories you hear about being on Spanish Fly or something. Ugh.”

“It can be dangerous,” Dai acknowledged seriously. “It draws both partners into a dangerous spiral of desire so that neither is aware of their surroundings. Once Merlyn and Jade were caught out in the woods and Arano narrowly saved them from being attacked by a
grimahr
. That is why we encourage new and pregnant bond mates to stay in their bonding cottages.”

“Yeah, I can see how that would be important. So this is why Dancer hasn’t been back to visit me?”

“Partly.”

Since Dancer and Eppie had entered
burda
, Dai finished by discussing
burda
and covenant bondings. By the time he was done, both men were staring at him with a strange mixture of horror and incredulity. “They’re doing what?” Trav asked when Dai explained that Jade and Merlyn were in
burda
, also.

“They are in
burda
. It is like incubation for the minds of the babies.” He searched for the words to make it plain to them. “Here, the people have certain mental skills like mind-to-mind speech—and others—such as healing. They develop during
burda
. Also the bond between parents and child.” He looked down at his clasped hands. “During
burda
the parents sleep always joined, maybe one week, maybe two weeks, both day and night, developing a mental bond with their baby. The bond lasts a lifetime so it’s very important. During
burda
they have a watcher, who wakes them to eat and take care of other things. Then after
burda
, they return from the bonding cottage but stay close to home in the village. It is all in the first trimester—bonding,
schalzina
,
burda
.”

“And this is where Merlyn and Dancer are? Bonding with their babies?” Traveller was clearly trying to envision his brother involved in something so alien.

“It is why I have explained it all to you plainly. Children and women are very precious here in this valley. Until Dancer came and bonded with Eppie, the last pregnancy was over seven years ago. It is a very great responsibility to care for a bond mate. It is certain death if the man is not available in the last stages of
schalzina
or during
burda
. My cousin’s wife died and the child was lost also. This was a very great grief to him and his entire clan.”

Traveller was pursuing his own train of thought. “Why didn’t Wrenna say anything?” he asked in bafflement. “She’s never mentioned a word to me.”

“Perhaps she thought her brothers might have explained this to you, or even that I had talked to you. Or since she mentioned it to you before you came to the valley, maybe she’s waiting for you to ask her for more details,” Dai observed thoughtfully. “She is acting in accordance with the custom, letting you know that she has found you a suitable bonding mate. If you continue to take what she offers, you are telling her that you are also interested. The obvious conclusion would be a pledging and oath-binding when you are well enough.” He smiled very grimly. “If this is not what you want, you must tell her at once, as gently as possible, though
she
believes that you both have a genuine
attachment
. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“If you take what she offers without the intention of bonding it is considered rape. In the valley, rape is a death sentence offense.”

Trav sighed deeply. “It’s a good thing I’m not capable of much more than playing because I would have never guessed how serious this is.”

Bish nodded. “Right before Merlyn and Jade went to Elyria, he told me to stay away from the women. This must be why he was so anxious for me to not go near a woman.”

Dai laughed. “You! Until your hair grows out, a woman will not offer to pledge or bond with you. Did he not tell you that?”

“He wasn’t exactly forthcoming. I think he was focused on Jade right then. You might as well lay it on me…”

“Short hair is a sign that you have no virility, no promise
or
you have no wish to bond. Perhaps you are barren. No woman will want a barren man, just as no man would want a barren woman,” Dai pointed out soberly. “Traveller and Dancer arrived here with long hair, a sign that they have much promise. There are not enough men in the valley to be bond mates. A woman must be careful to choose a
good
bond mate—someone she can entrust with her life and the lives of her children. To do otherwise is to sign her own death warrant.”

“What am I going to tell Wrenna tomorrow?” Trav fretted, troubled by the implications.

Dai stood up, signaling that the interview was over. “You must think carefully on these things. It is your responsibility as a man.”

His brow wrinkling in a frown, Bishop hesitantly inquired about something that had been bothering him from the first day in the valley. “Dai, you said a covenant bond is for anyone not involved in the bond that leads to childbearing. I take it that would mean two men or two women or something like that?”

“It is primarily for
garzhan
pairs,” Dai agreed. “But bond mates may also take a third or rarely a fourth partner with a covenant bond.”

“Then please explain why Tyger and Llyon have a covenant bond,” Bishop demanded softly.

“Ahhh. Tyger and Llyon.” A quick smile crept across his withered face and a twinkle lit his eyes. “Tyger and Llyon are twin-bond—two-as-one. It occurs about every two or three hundred years. They are bound to each other from birth until death. When one of them dies, so will the other. In their case, the covenant bond is a formality, signifying their readiness to begin life as a mated pair. Some twin-bonds also take a woman into their bond. One pair took another man.” He shrugged. “According to the Talking Wall, they are considered sacred pairs that are protected by the laws of the valley.”

Bishop and Trav looked at each other. Trav quirked one eyebrow and posed the question he had longed to ask. “What is your position in this household, exactly? I mean, you seem to be in charge and all of the kids defer to you.”

Dai pursed his lips and then replied, “I am Merlyn and Jade’s third partner.”

They probably wouldn’t have been more shocked if he had announced that he was the love child of Elvis and Mamie Eisenhower. Ménage was not one of the possibilities that had occurred to either of them. Just to make sure that he clearly understood, Trav said, “You have a covenant bond with them? Why?”

“Because we love each other.”

The simplicity of his answer left little room for questions but Bishop found one to ask. “What do the children think about that?”

Dai shrugged. “It has always been that way, since before Eppie was born. I was their
semtorn
when they came to the valley. We have been together for many years now. I have always been the children’s
jloni
. Stepfather?”

“Huh.” Trav pulled his earlobe and thought about that for a while. “Two more questions then. What is a
semtorn
? And why aren’t you with Merlyn and Jade now, instead of here managing the household?”

A quick snort of derision and then Dai said, “Have I not clearly explained that
schalzina
is for the bond mates? A covenant bond is
not
for conception! Love—yes! Support—yes!
Schalzina
—no!”

“So Wrenna’s not my aunt or something weird like that?”

“
No
!” For the first time since their arrival, the men saw Dai truly appalled. “There are laws!”

“Okay, okay. Calm down, Granddad.” Trav reached out and took his hand. “Isn’t it better if we know things so we don’t upset people? I’m sorry we hurt you.”

Dai took a deep breath and shuddered. “Never would a covenant mate intrude on an oath-bond. It would be a form of rape and punishable with death.”

“I understand that now,” Trav assured him quietly. “Please, do you mind telling us what a
semtorn
is before you go?”

Visibly struggling to calm himself, Dai breathed in harshly and then nodded his head. “A
semtorn
is the one who shares the valley enzyme with a newcomer. If the newcomer mates with a valley inhabitant, then usually their
semtorn
is their bond mate.”

Trav and Bishop shared another mystified glance and then Bishop asked as delicately as possible, “How is the enzyme shared? And what does it do?”

Abruptly, Dai began to laugh—a great deep laugh from the belly. “What does it do?” Suddenly overcome, he slapped his knees and shook. “Oh, Traveller. The enzyme is the reason you will turn blue and change your appearance.” He leaned forward and whispered loudly, “Wrenna will share it with you when you bond. She’ll
bite
you!”

“Like a vampire?” Bishop demanded loudly.

“Exactly.” Dai sat back and surveyed them with satisfaction. “Any more questions?”

Both men shook their heads morosely. “I think we already know more than we wanted to. Too much information,” Trav admitted.