You couldn’t say my singing voice was a lot better than the boy’s but it didn’t have to be. Even if you couldn’t understand the words, the song couldn’t be anything but beautiful. I kept my eyes glued to her as she stared at the ground and I hoped somewhere in her head the words to two sweet, hopeful songs meshed together in one beautiful one penetrated and colored that dark world she was living in with all the vibrant shades of a rainbow.

Then, slowly, her head lifted, her eyes found mine and I did what I thought any good queen would do and that was all she could do to provide what she could for her people – even if it wasn’t much and it was just one of those people.

And I knew right when the song got in there. Her eyes drifted slowly closed, her face grew soft and I hoped to all that was holy that in that moment she was over the rainbow in a wonderful world.

When I stopped playing, her eyes opened and I smiled at her. Dortak yanked her chain which wrenched her neck and the soft look disappeared instantly from her face as a flash of pain replaced it.

The moment he did this, I heard a deep, male voice call out tersely and that voice was really pissed off.

And it was not Lahn’s voice.

I looked to my left and saw it was Bohtan. I also saw I had drawn a crowd. And I also saw Lahn’s dark eyes riveted to me in a way he’d never looked at me before but one that made my belly dip and my heart feel light.

“You disrespect your queen,” Diandra whispered and I started then looked at her to see her eyes on the action in front of us and I realized she was translating.

I followed her gaze and saw that Bohtan was striding swiftly toward Dortak and words were being exchanged.

Diandra interpreted.

“I care nothing of women singing.” That was Dortak.

“You care nothing of women.” That was Bohtan with a jerk of his head to Dortak’s wife.

“Caution, Bohtan,” some other warrior said.

“Yes, caution, Bohtan. My wife is not your concern,” Dortak warned.

“You’re right. Your wife wouldn’t be my concern. But I’m not talking about your wife. I’m talking about your dog. You’ve made your wife your pet. Do you like to thrust your c**k into animals, Dortak?” Bohtan returned and I pressed my lips together because those were fighting words in my world so I was guessing amongst The Horde they were serious fighting words.

Bohtan went on. “Do not answer that, I know you do. This could not be missed considering you rarely miss an opportunity to show us what a warrior you are by thrusting your c**k into in any hole your animal provides.”

“My bride is none of your concern!” Dortak shouted, yanking on her chain again.

“But she isn’t your bride!” Bohtan shot back, having made it to Dortak, he leaned in dangerously. “She’s nothing but an animal you’ve brought to heel. You sully The Horde with your actions, thrusting into her face at the games, challenging our Dax while armed, disrespecting our queen in front of our king.”

Diandra gasped at Dortak’s reply and I knew not only by her gasp but the fact the air went still that something very, very bad had happened.

A glance showed she’d gone pale and I whispered urgently, “What?”

She didn’t tear her eyes off what was happening when she whispered back. “Dortak said, ‘I care not for our queen or a king whose new wife rides so soon after the claiming. The yellow one has had his c**k two weeks and she’s leading him around by it. Our king is the one who has come to heel.’” Her eyes slid to Lahn and she finished, “That is a challenge.”

Oh shit.

My eyes moved to Lahn too. He was surveying the scene with his arms crossed on his chest and an expression on his face that stated clearly he found it mildly interesting. But only mildly.

“You challenge the Dax?” Diandra interpreted what a warrior standing with Lahn called to Dortak.

“What Dax?” Dortak spit the words then he spit into the ground in Lahn’s direction. “I see no Dax.”

Finally, Lahn spoke and he did this mildly too.

“I advise you stop taking your fists and your c**k to your bride, Dortak, so you can heal. I want you fit before I bring you to your knees and take your head.”

“I claim the Dax,” Dortak shot back, “the first thing I do is thrust my c**k into the yellow one, spilling my seed until it leaks out of every orifice in her body.”

I sucked in breath but Lahn grinned and I stared at his reaction in shock.

Then Diandra gasped again but quickly translated Lahn’s words, “You take my head, the Gods would weep because the world is falling from the sky. You get near my tigress, she’ll sink her claws in you and you’ll be looking at your innards spilling out before your last breath escapes your body.” Diandra looked at me. “This is a grave insult to any warrior, my dear, to infer a woman could best him.”

It would be a grave insult to anyone. Still, it was a pretty awesome comeback.

Diandra started translating again as Dortak spat, “The yellow one owns your cock!”

To this, Lahn returned, “You speak truth and I’m glad of it, she knows what to do with it and she likes what she knows how to do. While I was driving it inside her last night, my queen gasped that she loved my c**k right before I planted my seed in her womb, seed that might make a warrior, seed that’s already more warrior than you.”

“Holy crap,” I whispered. That was a good comeback too, perhaps a little on the personal side, but a good one.

“I don’t even know what that means and I’ll say you can say that again,” Narinda whispered.

Diandra translated Dortak shouting, “I take your head tomorrow!”

To which Lahn replied, “No, I want you fit before we toss your headless carcass on the pyre. You’ve got two weeks, Dortak. Then our steel clashes.”

Dortak glared at Lahn a second before he swung his angry gaze to Bohtan who was still close.

Diandra interpreted. “Before I claim the Dax, you,” and he jerked a finger at Bohtan, “watch yourself and keep your mind off my bride.”

“You,” Bohtan returned, “treat her like a bride and I will. You keep treating her like a dog I’ll be forced to put her down like one to put her out of her misery.”

I pulled in breath at Bohtan’s words (words I hoped he didn’t mean) as Dortak’s face got so red I thought his head would explode then Lahn entered the conversation.

“Bohtan, enough, your point is made.”