Warlord by Tasha Temple Page B

chieftains choose their women, to see the lust in their eyes, feel their appreciation of his generosity, stoking their reverence, allegiance and devotion to him. That was good indeed.
    Arystan moved around the fire, walking slowly to the beginning of the line of bound women. The eyes of his warriors were upon him as he inspected them. Unlike his chieftains, he never groped or fondled a woman before he chose her. It simply didn’t matter to him. He was going to fuck the woman anyway – it really didn’t matter how she felt. He was known to be rather brutal sexually, another quality that inspired admiration from his chieftains. He always pretended to make a show of interest, but actually chose a woman at random, sending her to his tent to be fucked later while he waited, magnanimously, for the remainder of his chieftains to make their selections.
    The women all looked frightened, properly cowed, their black eyes wide with apprehension. His chieftains would be quite pleased. Rainura had done a good job. He would have to give her a thank-you fuck later. He knew Rainura kept the women drugged to make them easier to control. He didn’t care as long as they were clear-eyed at bonfire night. The chieftains fed on the scent of fear, the women’s distress, their vulnerability. Arystan did too. After all, part of the thrill of the hunt was the terror in the eyes of the hunted.
    Yes, they all looked terrified. All except one.
    He stopped in front of Sara, her pale skin obviously out of place, even as golden as it had turned under the sun. She was pretty, he admitted, although in an unusual way. Hmmm.
    It had been awhile since he had had a woman of another race. He had once fucked a woman with hair so pale it might have well been white, almost to her death, taking her so brutally, refusing to stop, even when she pleaded with him in that strange, lilting language. Perhaps she did die afterward – he had no idea – he never saw her again. And then there was the black woman who had actually been magnificent. One of the best fucks of his life if there were such things. Well, what the hell, why not something different tonight.
    He unsheathed his short sword and held it to Sara’s throat. She stared back at him, meeting his gaze, unflinching. Her blue eyes were cool. So, she wasn’t afraid of him.
    Well, that would change before the night was through. Another reason to choose her, to remove her from the line-up. His chieftains wouldn’t appreciate a woman who was not accommodating.
    He brought his blade down swiftly twice, severing the ropes that linked Sara to the women on either side, leaving her hands bound. He frowned as she didn’t flinch when he swung his sword. He jerked his chin at the attendants waiting in the shadows who materialized and pulled Sara from the line. Then he walked back to the fire and gestured for his first chieftain, Tebur, to rise and select. His black eyes glowed. This was the best part.
    Sara was pushed roughly down a line of yurts by the same man who had bound her hands in the enclosure. No one was to touch her now that Arystan had claimed her, but they didn’t have to treat her gently. The man stopped before the largest tent in the compound, opened the flap and stepped through, yanking Sara inside with him by her wrists. He dragged her to a pole in the center of the room and pulled her hands over her head, attaching them to one of several, linked metal rings which hung from a bronze pin.
     
    “Yeah, it’s just too bad I can’t have a turn with you,” the man breathed, licking his lips, as he watched the torchlight play over Sara’s naked breasts, his hand moving to his loins.
    He inhaled sharply. “But I prefer to keep my cock attached to my balls.” He exited the tent quickly and re-tied the flap.
    Sara felt her mind clearing. She was not used to drugs and had still felt under its influence at the bonfire, even though the effects had been waning. She had not reacted when Arystan had swung his