Warrior's Mind (Book 2 of The Warrior Chronicles)

Chapter 22

The warm water covered her calves, then reached her waist as Keteri and Ani held her hands. Ani's grasp was gentle, but the woman's gaze never once left Jara and her eyes were once again full of tears. According to Jara, they had only spent a few days in each other's company. How much did she love the Mahsap to be in so much pain? Keteri's hold on the other hand, was not as delicate as she pulled at Leyla forward while muttering about the heaviness of her soaked dress.

The four women walked beside her, the two lesser nobles bringing up the rear until they all reached the center of the pool and the music stopped. Several moments passed as the women gently splashed as they circled Leyla and sang : "Daughter of ours, you've been raised by the soil, by the sand, by the waters of Asch. Now under the watchful eye of the Ghost Kings, it is time to let go of the past. Let go and bring forth the future. The future children of Asch."

When the song was done, the women bowed to her before slowly moving out of the pool. Drops of water slid down Leyla's skin as she watched Jara bend down on his knees. She was going to have to move to the deeper end of the pool now. Damn it! Remembering the arrogant look on Raphael's face she forced herself to relax.

A single drum took up a beat once more when Leyla began wading further down the pool. The water rose around her body, reaching the bottom of her breasts by the time she came to stand in front of Jara. He leaned forward with a smile, his spicy scent enveloping her as he cupped water between his palms and let it trickle over her head.

"You are a Goddess, La-La," he whispered, repeating the action for the second time.

"You are not amusing, Mahsap." Leyla whispered back, annoyed that he was enjoying her predicament. He had purposefully failed to mention she'd be wearing practically nothing in this ceremony, she was sure of it.

"You take my breath away," he went on as if he hadn't heard her.

"But why, when I haven't even hit you yet?" Leyla hissed.

A sudden feeling of danger had her shifting her gaze in Raphael's direction. It was a mistake. His look was so intense, she almost took a step back. Pulling her gaze away she felt heat rushing into her cheeks.

"I didn't know you could blush," Jara chuckled as he finished sprinkling her with water for the third time. Then he bent his head forward and waited.

Leyla moved her hands over the Mahsap's head, letting water flow from her fingers. The flowers around her neck brushed against her breasts, sending a tingly feeling along her spine. Why? Why had she agreed to this nonsense!? There will have been dozens of other ways to test the women...

"We are now cleansed," Jara said. Then he rose from the ground and addressed the gathering. "The waters of Asch have washed away our previous selves and after the three moons rise, set and rise once more, we will be ready to unite our new selves in marriage." The Mahsap turned his smile on Leyla now, "We withdraw to let you rest, Mik-Has." The musicians and guest all followed him out of the chamber leaving her blissfully alone.

Finally!

Breathing a sigh of relief, Leyla glanced towards the door one last time before moving to the left corner of the pool. There, just as she expected, she found the dagger beside her foot and dipped her arm in to grab it before moving to the steps where she took a seat. Placing the blade behind her back, she took up a comfortable looking position and proceeded to wait.

Both Ani and Keteri knew she was here alone and defenceless. Yesterday, staff members purposefully talked about Leyla's inability to swim and the many accidents that had happened at the pools within earshot of both women. The guards too, knew to make themselves scarce so that any would be assassins could easily come back from the changing rooms without being seen.

With only a day to go before the wedding, this was a golden opportunity for murder.

The minutes ticked by and the water grew tepid. Leyla was starting to think they had wasted their time when she heard the sound of soft-slippered footsteps.

Here we go.

Closing her eyes, Leyla made herself look more vulnerable even as every single muscle in her body was ready for a fight.

"Mahsapa?" Keteri's voice echoed around the room, forcing Leyla to give up her pretence of sleep. She opened her eyes and saw the now fully dressed noblewoman giving her a pitying look. "I know I'm not meant to be here, but you had to be warned."

"I don't understand what you mean?" Leyla spoke gently, as if afraid. Was Keteri going to threaten her now?

"You look like a decent girl. But men are like Zareg dung; you won't notice the stench till you've stepped in it." Seeing the bemused look on Leyla's face, the woman sighed and pulled her hand through her hair in frustration. "What I'm trying to say is Jara Da Su will never be faithful to you, so don't give him your heart. Don't let yourself get hurt. You've been warned."

Having said her piece, Keteri left a speechless Leyla sitting in the water.