Page 83 of Sun Warrior

“At this moment… no. Have I been hired to use my blades and my wits to solve problems in the past? Yes. Next question.”

“Is that why you were staying with the Tribe of the Trees? Because they’d hired you to be a killer?”

“Great Stormshaker, no! Gods, I didn’t even consider that anyone would think that.” He ran a hand through the thick chestnut-colored hair that fell to his shoulders. “Bast and I came to the Tribe of the Trees in search of a mate.”

“A mate? There are more Lynxes in the area?” Sora asked.

“No, not a mate for her. A mate for me.”

Sora sat up straighter. This wasreallygetting interesting! “Your mate? But don’t you have females to choose from in your…” She hesitated, trying to find the correct word. “Pack? Clan? Tribe?”

“Chain. Lynxes are solitary, but when we Gather we call ourselves a Chain. And no. According tomyLynx, none of the females in our Chain were good enough to be my mate, so I did what all Lynx Companions do when their feline isn’t satisfied with the available mates. I began to travel. The Tribe of the Trees was hosting me in my search for a mate.”

“Wait, wait, wait!” Sora was fully involved in the conversation now. “Are you telling me your cat chooses your mate for you?”

Bast growled low in her throat and sent Sora a yellow-eyed glare.

“Sorry,” Sora amended. “I meant your Lynx.Shechooses your mate?”

“She does,” Antreas said on a sigh.

Sora hid her smile. “And that’s a bad thing?”

“No!” Antreas said at the same time Bast grumbled and hissed softly. “Or maybe yes. Initially. It’s complicated.”

“Hey, I’m muddling an enormous amount of poppy tea to drug a bunch of people—partially to alleviate their pain and partially to shut them up so they’ll sleep. I have time. Explain.”

“Well, okay. A Lynx is never wrong about her Companion.”

“Seriously?”

“Seriously. Oh, she can be wrong about other things.” Bast coughed twice, and Antreas added, “She wants me to tell you that she’s rarely wrong about other things, either.”

“She’s definitely opinionated.”

“To say the least. But Bast and I have an additional issue to deal with. A female Lynx almost never chooses a male human as her Companion. As in it’s so rare that my Chain has never had it happen. Well, before Bast chose me, that is.”

“That’s weird. Why’d she choose you?”

“I have no idea. The only answer I’ve ever been able to get from her is that I belong to her.” He shrugged. “And that’s good enough for me. But because she did, that has made the choosing of my mate unusual.”

“How so?”

“Well, sometimes I think she and I are looking for different aspects in a mate. For instance, the night of the forest fire I was content in my bed entertaining a delightful young Tribeswoman when Bast interrupted.Shedecided the girl wasn’t for me. Thenshedecided we were going for a run. As annoyed as I was with her, I followed her—and because I did, I was saved from being killed in the blaze.”

“She knew?”

“She always knows. I won’t lie. Lynx Companions never lie; it’s part of the oath we swear to our felines when we’re chosen. And I won’t pretend I was being a hero by staying and then returning to help the wounded. I wanted to leave—to return to the snug safety of our den in the eastern mountains.”

“Who wouldn’t? That’s what I would have wanted to do,” Sora said.

“Yep, as did I. But Bast refused, like she refused to let me wallow in bed and be burned to death the night of the fire. Even though I don’t always understand why she wants me to do something—ornotto do something—there is always a reason. And that reason isalwayswhat’s best for me, even if I don’t see it as best at the time.”

“Huh. So, she’s here because she’s still looking for your mate?”

“That’s what she’s told me.”

“But shouldn’t she be looking for someone who can be a Companion to a male Lynx?”