He waited for it but I didn’t give it to him. He was a man who could have anything he wanted and if not, he was a man who was strong enough to take it.

Except one thing.

Me.

He sighed. Then he lifted a hand to my jaw and his thumb swept the skin under my bruise in a whisper soft touch that still caused a hint of pain that made my brows draw together in protest. He caught the movement and his jaw went hard.

Then he spoke again and Diandra translated. “I do not like it that my queen bears my mark.”

Then you shouldn’t have marked her, I thought but remained silent.

He waited. I gave him nothing but my gaze.

Then he spoke again, this time in a mutter as if to himself but Diandra still translated, “She keeps even her claws sheathed from me.”

Damn straight, I thought but made not a sound.

His eyes focused intently on mine then came more. “I’ve no doubt I’ll very soon earn your claws again, my tigress.”

Don’t hold your breath, I silently advised.

He waited and so did I.

Then he spoke again and Diandra said, “Very well, my Circe, I’ll allow you time to retreat and lick your wounds.”

Well, thanks so much, ass**le, I thought sarcastically.

He watched my face, drew in breath and let it out slowly. Then he pulled me closer, his arms going tighter, he bent and whispered something in my ear I did not understand and Diandra didn’t hear.

Then suddenly his body tensed, his head came up and he looked over his shoulder. Then he let one arm drop and he turned to my side.

That was when I saw Nahka, carrying her baby daughter strapped to her chest, her hand holding onto her little boy’s. He also had a hand in Narinda’s who was walking with Nahka, the boy in between them. They seemed to be rushing but not having an easy time of it with the boy slowing them.

In front of them at least five paces was a warrior wearing a grave expression, carrying a long, squat box made of gleaming wood, his eyes were on me and he seemed to be heading our way.

What on earth?

My eyes went back to Narinda who was smiling at me and I knew the minute she caught my mark because her lips parted, her step stuttered then her eyes flashed to Lahn and her face filled with fear.

But Nahka kept dragging her little boy and Narinda had no choice but to keep on coming.

The man stopped in front of Lahn with something obviously on his mind, he did not wait to say it and Diandra immediately started translating.

“Dax Lahn, I’ll have a word with your wife,” he stated.

“You’ll have a word with me first,” Lahn replied, his meaning clear.

“Then you have not heard,” the man declared.

“Heard what?” Lahn asked.

“Yesterday, in front of my wife and many witnesses, our true golden queen saved the life of my son.”

Lahn’s arm around the middle of my back tensed. Then Diandra translated his, “What?”

“He was not breathing. She executed some maneuver she said she learned in her land and expelled a piece of meat he was choking on. If she had not done that, my son would not have lived to serve his Horde,” the man explained and I felt Lahn’s eyes on me.

“Is this true?” he asked and I looked up at him.

“It was nothing,” I said softly and Diandra translated then kept doing it when words flew from the warrior’s mouth.

“I do not agree, my queen, that it was nothing for my son lives today instead of being prepared for his pyre,” the man stated and I looked from Lahn to him.

“Uh –” I mumbled.

Diandra didn’t translate my mumble but did translate his words.

“I serve my king, I serve my Horde and before yesterday, as was my duty, I served my new queen. Now, my debt to you will never be paid. My family stands strong. My wife does not peek from under the veil of mourning. We have our time with him before he leaves us to take the paint. Gods willing, he will live to gather his own bounty and spill his seed in his wife to guarantee the future of The Horde, as I have done and my father did before me. This is not nothing, this is everything, my queen, and when you owe everything, it is a debt that cannot be repaid.”

Um…” I whispered, “okay.”

“But, even so, with Dax Lahn’s consent, I offer you a gift,” he stated then opened up the box and I blinked as the sun flashed on the gleaming silver and jewels.

Then I stared with my mouth hanging open.

It was a dagger made of perfect, shining silver the hilt covered completely in jewels. These were not rough hewn but perfectly crafted so their brilliance reflected everywhere. There were emeralds and sapphires, in abundance, but there were also diamonds and not a small amount of those either. It was not small, it was not large but just the number and size of the jewels made it obviously valuable and the craftsmanship, even from someone like me who knew nothing about it, could not be denied. In my world, the thing would be worth tens of thousands of dollars. Maybe hundreds of thousands.

Holy crap!

I looked at him and started, “I can’t –” but he (and thus Diandra) talked over me.

“The silver and jewels were pulled from deep within Korwahk, but the artisan who created this is from your land. It is Valearian and it signifies our queen, once of the Vale, now Korwahk, forever bound together to create beauty.”

That was so beautiful (albeit untrue) that tears sprang to my eyes and I whispered, “It was just the Heimlich maneuver. Seriously. A lot of people from my, uh… land know how to do it.”

“It is not just anything, my true golden queen,” he retorted.

Lahn spoke softly on a squeeze of my back and Diandra translated, “Quiet your protests, my doe, and take the dagger. You do Bohtan a dishonor by hesitating.”

Quickly, my hands came up, Bohtan placed the box in them and I blinked the tears away as I looked up at him.

“I… I don’t know what to say,” I whispered, Diandra translated my words and his reply.

“Say nothing, my queen, except that you will grace our cham in future, make my wife laugh and do it casually as you did even just hours after you saved our son’s life.”

“I, uh… okay,” I replied, his serious face melted and he smiled at me.

I smiled back.

Then he looked at Lahn and jerked up his chin with a, “Kah Dax,” turned and strode away. I watched him reach Nahka who was stopped some feet away and swing his son up into his muscular arms, attach him to his hip, throw his other arm around Nahka and guide her away. She looked back and waved as did her son. I waved in return.