The Vixen Trials

An Unexpected Kiss

Updated due to an insightful comment from LuckyPlum

"You think I'm better than I am."

Keilah

Keilah watched until Jagur was swallowed up by the crowd, and then Dakkoul led the way back to their horses and past her mother's body. Several Enderaii warriors were covering it in stones as protection from the jackals that lived in the forest. A sob caught in her throat and she made Wicker stop.

"We must keep going," Dakkoul urged and she nudged Wicker forward even as her gaze lingered behind until all sight of her mother was gone.

A numbness threatened to overtake her. Her mother was dead. Dakkoul had a child. She fought it by concentrating on the road ahead fringed by giant ferns and wandering blackberry bushes. The rain had ceased but there was dripping sound that came from water running down the leaves and trees.

After several hours of riding they were down the other side of the mountain. By the side of the path a trickle of water ran down a rocky cluster of rocks.  Dakkoul halted. "Are you thirsty Keilah? There's a stream here you can drink from."

She slid off her horse. The inside of her mouth was as dry as a stick but before she drank she had to question him. "You said you have a daughter. When were you married? Who is she? Will I meet her soon?"

He let out an unpleasant sounding chuckle. "Wayvolkan slaves don't have wives."

Not a wife but a lover? Keilah felt shock gripping her heart. Jagur hadn't even kissed her, wanting to wait until they'd crossed the commitment stones, but Dakkoul had fathered a child! He was looking at her with an odd expression on his face. Something within her twisted and she fixed her gaze instead on the wooden bowl hanging on a twig above the stream. She used it to scoop up the clear mountain water and let it wash away the dryness of her mouth.

Refreshed, she risked a glance at Dakkoul who was kicking at an exposed tree root. He'd probably guessed at the turmoil racing through her. Was it fair for her to judge him, if marriage wasn't allowed? Perhaps slaves had their own form of marriage, not sanctioned by the Wayvolk but blessed by themselves. That was probably it and he was worried she would only see the lack of rim-stones. She wasn't as village as that.

She handed the bowl to Dakkoul who gulped the water down, wiping his face clear of drops when he finished. "Tallie's mother howls with the foxes, five years ago now. She died after giving birth."

"I'm sorry to hear that," she murmured, aware that the words were a lie. All she felt was relief.

Dakkoul rummaged in his saddle bag. "Your uncle ordered me to be with her. She wasn't my choice."

Keilah looked at him blankly as he pulled out
some round, ridged bread, passing a portion to her before squatting on the ground to eat his own. Why would her uncle order such a thing? Something in his face made her shrink back from asking. She ripped the bread into small pieces and placed them on her tongue before chewing.

Dakkoul snorted. "You still eat the same."

She welcomed the change in topic and pretended to be offended. "I remember you used to tease me for it. I still say it tastes better this way. You should try it."

"I did. It took too long."

"But it tasted better, right?" She insisted until he acquiesced. Then she sucked at her bread until it vanished then stood up. When he arose too, she threw her arms around him. "It is so good to see you again Dakkoul."