32. Aizor

Chapter 32

"Have you seen Vanessa?" I asked Jessia. She sat with Trevar, Brulon, and their mother at a table in the dining area, eating lunch.

"No, I haven't." She looked around. "Is she in the kitchen? I think she said something about wanting to experiment with loosag-na earlier. Frankly, I was looking forward to trying it, but when I arrived to eat, she wasn't here. She may have decided to prepare the loosag-na a different day and slipped past us." Her indulgent smile took in the younglings. "These boys keep a person busy."

"They sure do," the younglings' mother said.

Vanessa wasn't in the kitchen, though Muzzire was.

"Have you seen my mate?"

He continued to eat a cookie, smacking his tusks with pleasure at the taste. "I have not." He held it out. "These . . . I've never had anything like them before. They're not bribard."

"They're not." Leaving him to finish his cookie, I went to our home. Everything appeared tidy, and for the first time ever, I didn't like how efficient the gods were about cleaning. If things were lying about, it might give me a clue as to where my mate had gone.

Outside, I scanned the area.

Krute came over to stand with me. "I found evidence that Nevarn's males came close to our homes again early this morning." He scowled toward the thick woods surrounding our small valley. "Not only that, but I found more big footprints. I tell you; others are intruding into our lands. We need to attack them all. I've been saying this for a long time. I understand why you hesitate." He laid a hand on my shoulder. "You have a new mate. She's lovely. But we must protect our people."

"You're right." I wasn't sure how to do it, however. I didn't want to endanger my mate or the clan. "I don't want to start a war. We're too few already. Neither clan can afford to lose anyone." As for the large footprints, I needed to study them myself before deciding about that.

"I understand this. I do." Krute shook his head. "But we must dosomething."

"I'd like to call a clan traedor gathering."

"Like you did to plead with the gods for a mate?"

"Perhaps, if we talk about this, we can come to a decision that will avoid war."

"You know what Nevarn wants," he said.

"More land to spread out in. More hunting grounds."

"We can't give in to him. If nothing, you'll appear weak."

"I won't give in," I grumbled. "I'm not weak." The last came out louder than I'd intended, loud enough that Jessia, walking with the younglings toward her home, paused and looked our way.

Stunned by my outburst, Krute backed away a few steps. Good. He needed to respect me as his traedor even when he didn't approve of my actions.

"I cannot act based on my feelings," I said in a more reasonable tone. "I must think of all of us. Would you like to see our younglings killed in battle?"

"Of course not."

Now, he sounded defensive, but he should.

"Yet here you are, urging me to lead an attack against another clan. Do you think they'll run, and we'll chase them all the way to the desert, and they'll remain there? Because I don't. Nevarn will stand, and he will fight. And we will lose males, as will his clan. If we lose too many, he'll give chase. He won't stop when he crosses into our territory. He'll come here. We could lose our homes and this village we've only recently settled. You know his clan doesn't live within the grace of the gods' exoskeletons like we do."

"I've heard they live in wooden homes. Can you imagine? They'll burn. Rot. Collapse on top of them while they sleep." He sighed. "However, I see what you mean. We don't want this. There must be a way to keep them from encroaching on our land."

"Which is why I'll consult with the other traedors. It's not weak to seek guidance. A strong leader listens before he acts."

"Alright. I'll give you time to speak with them."

I lifted my brow ridge. "Give?"

"I want to act. So do a few of the other males."

"You're talking of challenging me again."

"I don't want to." He spun on his heel and started walking away but turned back to face me. "But we can't allow this to continue as it is."

I was tempted to leap, to drag him down and show him once more that if nothing else, I possessed the strength needed to hold my position as traedor. But what purpose would that serve? He'd slink away once more, and next time, he might not come to me with his concerns; he'd do what he pleased behind my back.

After I located Vanessa, I may need to reconsider who should take the place as my second.

Because Krute may not be the best person for that job.