Fallon shook his head. “Of all the things I thought we’d face, I never thought we’d be in danger of Lowlanders making off with our unborn children.”
“It’s an ever-changing world, my friend.” Darius drained his wine and stood, leaving the half-finished bottle behind. “Well, I’m off.”
Shea looked up, a little surprised at the abrupt departure. Fallon, with his typical granite facade, didn’t even twitch. He took a slow sip of the wine and acknowledged Darius’s departure with a nod.
“Before I go, I suggest you take a look at your personal chambers.” With that last remark, Darius made his departure.
Fallon’s head tilted as he stared into his wine. Suspicion dawned on his face and he stood, making his way to their personal quarters without a word. Shea let him go as she calmly sipped her wine.
Three, two, one.
There was a crash in the other room and a stream of curses reached her ears. She trained her eyes on the front entrance and was only mildly surprised when no one ventured in to see if they were in any danger. Darius must have warned them. Smart man.
“Would you like to explain why there is a new entrance to our bedchamber?” Fallon’s silky voice came from behind Shea.
“You’re smart. I’m sure you can figure it out.” Shea took another sip of her wine.
He prowled closer, his movements containing a lethal edge.
“You were going to leave me.” He sounded like the very idea that she would contemplate such an action enraged him.
She raised an eyebrow. “Now why would I want to do that?” She gave him a long minute to answer. His eyes narrowed, taking on a dangerous glint “Ah, yes. Perhaps that’s because you treated me like a prisoner, having your guards keep me here whether I wanted to or not.”
He looked away. She felt a spurt of grim satisfaction. He knew he was in the wrong.
“That was for your own safety.”
“Bullshit. That was because you were angry and wanted to take it out on me.” She waited for him to correct her. When he didn’t, she continued, “I’m here because I want to be here. The next time you do something like that, expect me to be gone.”
She set her glass down and stood. Shea walked past an unmoving Fallon to their chamber, saying over her shoulder, “I suggest you station one of your men at our new entrance so that we’re not murdered in our sleep by one of your many enemies.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
SHEA WOKE to an empty bed. Again. She rested one hand on the indent from Fallon’s body before rolling over and facing in the other direction. It had been several days since their argument, and neither of them had made any effort to make amends. Their exchanges had devolved into a series of icy greetings.
She’d busied herself with helping Clark and Charles and their beast classes. Something she enjoyed more than she wanted to admit. They had taken her proposal of teaching tracking and recognizing the different signs of beasts to the next level. The class size had doubled in a few short days and they were having to put people on waiting lists.
Shea knew that would change once patrols started back up in full force. A few had been sent out, but Fallon hadn’t lifted all restrictions yet.
She heaved herself to her feet and shuffled over to her trunk, pulling out a clean set of the scout uniform she’d taken to wearing when she taught. It was really just a pair of pants and a linen shirt missing any patches that would have signified her unit, division and clan.
She ducked out of the tent, using the entrance she had made in her fit of anger. Wilhelm waited for her. He gave her an easy smile and handed her a roll filled with spicy meat, the Trateri’s version of a quick breakfast. The smell tantalized, causing her mouth to water and her stomach to rumble.
“Here, I thought you might need this since you always skip breakfast,” Wilhelm said.
Shea grunted. Her relationship with her guards had been damaged by that night, and she wasn’t quite willing to forgive them for following Fallon’s orders. She accepted their presence, but she made no attempt at friendly overtures. The same couldn’t be said of them.
“Are you heading for the beast class again today?” Wilhelm asked, falling into step beside her.
She nodded, her mouth full of the roll he’d brought her.
“What’s the name of that beast you were talking about yesterday? The one with three horns?”
“A trihorn boar.”
The trihorn boar got its name from its three horns, two on its forehead and one on its nose. It had a muscular body and easily reached to Shea’s waist. It was carnivorous and extremely aggressive when its territory was threatened. It also hunted in packs.
“Yes, that’s the one.”
“What about it?”
“How big did you say those packs were?”
Shea shrugged. “It depends. Most are between ten or fifteen, but I’ve seen packs of twenty before.”
“And they eat people?”
“They can, but we’re not their main prey. They’re very territorial and will attack anything that trespasses, including people.”
“That is very interesting.”
Not really. It was actually pretty typical of a beast.
They continued for several steps, each left to their own thoughts.
“You haven’t shown up for training for the last few days,” Wilhelm said after a moment.
Ah, there it was. The reason for his questions. Shea had been wondering when that was going to be brought up.
“I’ve been busy.”
“Be that as it may. That training is just as important as the instruction you give in the beast classes. You should make time for it.”
Shea didn’t respond, choosing silence as her answer.
Wilhelm didn’t let that deter him. “It would also go a long way towards making amends with Trenton.”
This time Shea couldn’t help her snort. “It is not my job to make amends with you two. Fallon has decreed that I have to have guards, so I have them. I do not need to be friends with either of you, and your emotional well-being is none of my concern.”
“You know he had no choice but to follow Fallon’s orders,” Wilhelm said softly.
Shea stopped and turned to face him. “Perhaps not. However, he made it quite clear that Fallon—and only Fallon holds his loyalty. That’s fine, both of you are Anateri. I know that means something to you, and I can respect that. You do your job, and I’ll do mine.”
Shea meant every word she said. She understood that their first duty was to their Warlord. That was fine. She’d been the one to confuse matters by thinking they had a quasi-friendship going. That was on her. She wouldn’t make that mistake again.
They’d arrived at the place where she would conduct her class for the day. She gave Wilhelm a nod before turning and heading to the front of the class, picking up a list so she could note the names of those in attendance. Wilhelm let her go without trying to engage her again.
“Alright, let’s get started,” she told the men and women assembled. “Yesterday we went over what trail sign to look for to track a trihorn boar. Today, we’re going a little deeper into the forest and you’re going to practice looking at their tracks. Any questions?”
A woman raised her hand. Shea gestured for her to speak.