“Nor you me.”
Sahar glanced at Munir, still on his handsand knees, barely able to lift his head.“One of us should staywith Munir.”
“I agree,” Aleksandr said.“That one of usshould be you.”
“Why?”She rose and stood nose to chin withhim.“Because I’m a woman?”
“Because, you impossible woman, I don’t wantanything else to happen to you.”
A flash of pleasure rushed through her veinsuntil she remembered her father was paying Aleksandr to protecther.“Worried about collecting your one hundred gold pieces?”Shepicked up the rope and coiled it around her shoulder.
“Princess,” Aleksandr warned.“I told you Iwould go.”
“Then go, or stay,” she said as she hung therope over her saddle horn.“Or go to your cursed forefathers in theunderworld, it makes no difference to me.”
“Go, both of you,” Munir insisted as heslowly pushed himself back onto his heels, his cheeks pinking upand his lips no longer blue.“Go find Kedar.I’ll be fine.”
Sahar didn’t speak a word to Aleksi as theysearched for Kedar, which was fine.He was in no mood for smalltalk.His chest still constricted every time he thought of whatcould have befallen her crossing that cursed river.The fact thatonly Munir, and likely Kedar, had been seriously injured was astroke of blind, stupid luck, and Aleksi was as angry at himselffor provoking her into it as he was for taking the bait andjumping.
“Asinine, imprudent, ill-considered…”
“Are you grumbling about yourself?”sheasked, her voice as stiff as her spine.“Or me?”
“Take a guess.”
They glared at each other a long momentbefore she laughed, short and harsh.“Then you should probably addheadstrong, rash, and impetuous,” she said, not sounding or lookingthe least bit contrite.
What Aleksi should’ve done was yank her offher horse, bend her over his knee, and beat her comely backsideuntil she came to her senses.What he wanted to do was slide heroff Lasair down the length of him, sit her on his lap, and kiss hersenseless, which was what he was quickly becoming.
“There,” she cried, pointing ahead to a bendin the river where a large brown mass lay along the shoreline,which sent Lasair into a heedless trot.
“Sahar, wait,” Aleksi yelled.Though the rainhad dwindled to a mist, the ground was still slick and fetlock deepin mud.
She didn’t slow down.
Gritting his jaw, Aleksi went after them,trusting Zolotoy’s strength and sure-footedness as the mud suckedat his hooves, pulling them in deeper than the lighter mare and hermistress.After slipping and almost going down twice, they finallymade it to where Sahar stood staring down at Kedar’s lifeless body,his head twisted at an unnatural angle.A deep gash went from theside of the gelding’s throat to his ear.
“He died quickly,” Aleksi said, dismountingand standing beside Sahar, offering what small comfort he could.“That head wound was a death blow.He didn’t feel a thing.”
She nodded wordlessly and swiped at the tearsfalling from her cheeks, and then she dropped to her knees andkissed the gelding’s forehead.“I’m so sorry, Kedar,” she sobbed.“Forgive me, please.I never meant for any of this…”
Aleksi knelt beside her and laid a hand onher shaking shoulder and put the other on Kedar’s.“We honor you,Kedar,” he said.“A mighty steed who gave your life in service toyour master.May thebog loshadiwelcome and revereyou.”
“Bog loshadi?”
“The horse gods of my land.”
Sahar sniffed.“May you be a king among thebog loshadi, brave Kedar.”
She looked to Aleksi, her eyes glisteningpools of grief, and he coughed, stood, and offered her his hand.Heclosed his fingers over hers and lifted their clasped hands as sherose with the ease and grace of the tigress she was.
“Aleksi,” she said.“I…”
“I know,” he said quickly.It was the firsttime she had called him Aleksi, and it warmed his sodden heart.Hesqueezed her hand before letting it go.“I know.”He blew out hisbreath and jutted his jaw at a bramble of branches washed up onshore.“Bring what you can to cover him,” he said.“I’ll collecthis saddle and gear.We need to get back to Munir.”
“And to the race.”
“You intend to continue the race then.”Itwas more statement than question.Aleksi knew her well enough toknow she wouldn’t quit.
