I had to make an example of her, of the small thing that reminded me more of a thissie than a law breaker. As a horde king of Dakkar, I knew what I had to do, what was required of me. He wished to return to the horde encampment, for, in his eyes, small matters like punishing vekkiri were beneath him. My pujerak, my second-in-command, immediately locked his tongue behind his teeth. I cut him a dark look, tearing my gaze from the vekkiri female for the first time since I spied her through the dark trees. The evidence of it was right in front of me. As of late, they had pressed and challenged those laws. The word-the human word, which made me uncomfortable and doubtful-rang through my mind, but as Vorakkar, my mind was already steeled. To my left, my pujerak said quietly, “Vorakkar, we must take her now.” I thought her dark eyes looked sad and I studied the way her shoulders sagged. Then I heard it squelch into the rikcrun, emerging from its burrow for a night of gathering. I could not peel my gaze away from her as she released her arrow. As of yet, the vekkiri female had not committed a crime. When I sensed movement to my left, I held my hand out, stilling my pujerak from approaching. Thissie were rare, delicate, beautiful things. In the moonlight, I recognized the bright blue shimmer as she leveled her bow, the cord pressing into her cheek, keeping her weapon steady. The frayed feathers at the end of the shaft were thissie feathers, plucked directly from the wings.

Not the last either.Ī sense of dread pooled in my belly as I watched her load her bow with a worn arrow.

She was small, sad, focused, and completely unaware of the danger she was in.Ī foolish human. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Any resemblance to actual events, places, or persons are purely coincidental.Īll rights reserved. Names, characters, places, and events are the product of the author’s imagination.

Taken by the Horde King by Zoey Draven