Amatista

Liana pressed herself against Galina’s back, certain that she could hear the rustle of the underbrush as the humans neared.

Then that high-pitched, native battle cry rang in her ears.

She cringed, fighting her first impulse to run and hide, and then the second one to drop to her knees and play dead.

“I go.”

It was all she heard from Galina before she found herself alone, quivering behind the tree, wincing every time she heard steel clashing with steel.

“He’s the one! Get him!”

It was Lyle’s voice that pulled her out of her fear. Lyle’s command echoing in her mind—leaving Liana no doubt as to whom he was referring. Who he’d ordered the men to capture.

Kavi.

And all Liana could think of was not seeing those haunting gray eyes again. Never feeling his lips on hers. Never feeling him inside her.

Oh no, Lyle wouldn’t!

It was that iron will clamped around her heart that gave her legs the strength to move.

She held fast to it as she stepped around the tree, spotting Kavi easily in the battlefield, towering even among other Fohers. For the barest second she gloried at the sight of him, all magnificent strength as he rammed his forehead against the first man to reach him, sending him toppling to the ground. Then her eyes scanned the chaos for Lyle.

The coward. That son of a bitch.

She spotted him, undefeatable with a gun in each hand. Her long breath felt bumpy in her throat as she quickly thought of a distraction. “It’s me you w-want, Lyle!” Her words were neither steady, nor strong—as she’d have liked them to be—but it seemed as though every one had heard that pitiful sound, and now they all paused to stare at her.

Lyle’s eyes widened at his first glimpse of her. Liana was sure he hardly recognized her. With her uncombed hair and animal-skin dress, she must look like a Neanderthal.

Seconds passed, stillness spreading in the area until, lithe as a predator, Galina slowly inched her way to her side, obscured by the very tree Liana had hid behind only seconds before. Liana almost fainted with relief when she felt the warmth of her friend’s lean body so close to hers. “Liana?” Concern edged her friend’s voice.

“He wants me, Galina,” Liana murmured, hoping to God her friend would understand her meaning. She leveled her gaze on Lyle once again and raised her voice. “I have something he wants—don’t I, Lyle?”

Lyle stared, looking genuinely surprised for the first time since Liana had known him.

“So. Take me,” she said, her voice growing steady.

“Forgive me, my friend,” Galina whispered, curling a hand around he

r arm, “but you are not going anywhere.”

Liana sucked in a breath as the sharp point of Galina’s dagger pressed against her chest, Galina’s threat piercing her ears. “I will kill the woman,” she shouted, the sound of her voice holding as much impact as her meaning. “If you don’t retreat now, I will tear off her skin and will not mind at all if you stand there and watch.”

Liana knew Galina would never do that to her but her heart raced anyway. For her. For Kavi. For all Fohers. She felt the color drain from her face, her legs unsteady as she waited for Lyle’s reaction. It seemed that not even a leaf dared move under the pressure, the air itself crackling with tension.

It took a while for Lyle to move. When he hesitated, Liana wondered if he would call Galina’s bluff and let her strip off the skin from her body. But no. He wouldn’t. What Liana held was priceless to him. Precious. And he finally made a silent signal to his men who, several unnerving heartbeats later, began to retreat.

“You may keep her—for now,” Lyle said, his gaze directed toward Kavi. The unspoken promise in Lyle’s words made Liana’s skin prick with unease.

Galina’s hand tightened reflexively on her arm. “We will see about that,” she said.

Not turning his back to them, Lyle took a retreating step, then another, then several more until he was far enough to turn around amidst the trees and sprint out of sight.

“A group should follow them,” Galina said, “to confirm their retreat.”

Kavi did not reply but Liana supposed he’d agreed, for Luka and two other Fohers quietly made their way toward where the humans had disappeared.

As Galina lowered her dagger, Liana bit her lower lip and chanced a glance toward Kavi.