I regarded Rafe with considerable skepticism. "And what have you done to instill such feelings in him?"

Rafe's gaze was knowing, if not arrogant. "I bought him when he was nearly dead, and then I brought him to you, Tisana," he said evenly. "I'd say he owes me his life."

Something in his expression gave me the impression that there was more meaning attached to those words than was immediately apparent-almost as if he'd known that Leo and I were lovers, and that he also considered that fact to be a part of the debt. I wondered if I should tell him about my child-after all, I might have some interest in the fate of my child's father-but decided that if Rafe knew that Leo had succeeded where he had *72 *18*.

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failed, it might make matters that much worse. I could see Rafe refusing to even consider the possibility of letting us remain together, out of sheer spite. I reminded myself that Leo didn't know about the baby yet, and if I didn't plan on telling him, I certainly couldn't tell Rafe! No, the more I considered the matter, the more convinced I became that he didn't need to know. I seriously doubted that he would ever grant Leo his freedom just because he was my child's father and I wanted him, but if, on the other hand, we were to locate his sons...

"I hope he sees it that way," I said, purposefully directing my statement toward Leo, hoping that he understood, because helping Rafe was probably the best way to help ourselves. Fortunately, he'd had sense enough not to do much moaning and groaning-possibly because he wanted to hear our conversation.

"Well, get him up and let's get going," Rafe said, his impatience to be gone resurfacing. "I can't believe he's slept through all of this anyway. Is he deaf?"

"No," I replied, barely suppressing a smile. "Just...

tired. You know how soundly cats sleep."

Rafe let that one pass without speculating as to what Leo might have been doing to wear himself into such a stupor.

When I went to rouse him, Leo made a convincing show of waking up, uncurling from his pallet and stretching with a loud purr before yawning hugely to display that impressive mouthful of razor-sharp teeth.

On the surface, he seemed to have no idea what had been taking place while he slept, but the significant flick of an upswept eyebrow left me with no doubt that he'd heard the entire discussion.

*73 *18*.

74.

Cheryl Brooks "We've got to help Rafe find his children," I said briskly. "Do you think you can ride?"

Leo nodded and sat up. Unfortunately, there was no hiding the fact that he was completely naked. Whether Rafe thought I had kept Leo from escaping by keeping him barefoot and nude I never knew, but left him to draw his own conclusions. As it happened, Leo's nakedness served to remind him of something else.

"I brought some clothes for him," Rafe said. "I'll get them."

"Well, I certainly hope it's something warm!" I remarked acerbically. "I had to burn the clothes he was wearing when you dumped him off here. Really, Rafe, you should have brought something with him then!"

His nonchalant shrug as he made his way to the door told the story. Before this, he hadn't cared one whit for Leo's comfort, and it was only now that he needed him that any regard was shown for him at all.

Leo stood up, leaving his blanket on the floor, his unbelievable cock standing up as stiffly as ever.

"Do you ever have trouble walking with that thing?"

Lips curling into a delightfully coy smile, he said informatively, "I do not use it to walk."

"Cute. Very cute," I remarked. "But please, at least try to keep your suggestive remarks to a minimum, or Rafe will figure out what's been going on and end up charging me for your use instead of paying me for healing you! And for goodness sake, put a blanket over that before he sees you!"

"He would be-" he paused, as though searching for the right word, "-jealous?"

I rolled my eyes. "I think anyone would be jealous of *74 *18*.

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that!" I assured him. "I've never seen one to compare, unless you want to count Sinjar's. You know, now that I think of it, there are some similarities-in shape, that is-and though he's got you beat when it comes to size, I don't think Sinjar has fluids that can do what yours do.

I'll have to ask him about that."

"Who is Sinjar?"

"Rafe's stallion," I replied. "You know, the one who should have warned me he was coming? Of course, there's a good reason for that, since Rafe didn't bring him this time. I wish he had, though. He's such a sweetie and so funny-a great guy to have along on a journey of any length. He'd certainly keep you laughing."

"I cannot understand horses," Leo reminded me.

"You would have to translate."

"And I couldn't very well do that with Rafe along, could I?" I said ruefully. "Oh, well. Would have been fun-at least in that respect. I-"

I had to stop there, since Rafe had returned with an armload of things for Leo, including boots and a heavy cloak, which Carnita had probably sent in order to keep her precious "trophy" slave from getting frostbitten. I wondered if talking to her rather than Rafe would be the best tactic. Getting her sons back would make her grateful enough to consider my request, as I hoped it would with Rafe. It seemed that finding those two kids was becoming more imperative by the second.

Deciding that distracting Rafe from Leo's remarkable physical attributes would be best, I took Rafe aside for further discussion, hoping to keep him occupied at least until Leo got his pants on.

*75 *18*.

76.

Cheryl Brooks "We'll have to go back to where they were taken for us to track them," I said. "I'll get Morgana ready to ride, if you'll keep an eye on Leo."

"Leo?" Rafe echoed, as though he didn't know who I might have been referring to. Then the light seemed to dawn. "Is that his name?"

"You mean you don't know?"

"I didn't ask, Tisana," he said haughtily. "After all, he's only a slave."

I started to say something nasty, but thought better of it. As a matter of record, I must admit that I hardly ever do tell Rafe exactly what I'm thinking. In the end, I only said: "His real name is a bit of a mouthful. Leo was simpler, and he didn't seem to mind."

Rafe merely nodded, his interest in Leo's nomenclature waning fast. "Do you need to see their room, or just get back to the town?"

Unless the boys had a pet of some kind that I could talk to, I doubted that seeing their room would be much help, but I decided that, for a seer, returning to the scene of the crime was probably standard operating procedure, and since I wanted to be as convincing as possible, I should probably start there. Plus, Leo might be able to pick up a scent of some kind, though I had no idea what methods he would use when it came to tracking them down. "I'll need to start from where they were taken," I replied. "I have no idea what Leo might require."

Rafe nodded as though I'd merely confirmed his own plans. "I thought as much," he said, "so I brought my fastest horses to get us back. I've already set servants to work on getting provisions ready for the journey, so *76 *18*.

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you won't need to bring much with you. Can your mare keep up?"

"If she can't, I'll follow as quickly as I can. Leo can go on ahead with you." I was glad Morgana hadn't been there to hear that particular exchange, since she tended to be touchy about being slower than the "guys." Sinjar had outrun her once, and while he was good-natured enough not to tease her about it, she still seemed to consider it a sore spot. I sometimes wondered if that wasn't why she was so down on males in general.

I packed up an assortment of herbs and ointments I thought might come in handy along the way, though the gods only knew what we would be up against. Frostbite was the most likely problem, but, of course, I had my own nonmedicinal ways of treating that. Still, there are always minor injuries on any adventure-and this one promised to be more dangerous than most-and it pays to be prepared.

Bundling myself up against the cold, I went out into the wind, noting that it was snowing again. I sent out a mental call to Morgana, following it up with a vocal one. Rafe's horses looked at me strangely, and I heard the voice of the big bay gelding nearest me, saying, "So, you're the one! Sinjar thinks very highly of you."

"It's mutual," I replied. "How come he's not with you?"

"Not fast enough," the chestnut said smugly. "He might be the master's favorite, but it isn't because of his speed!"

"Aw, now, be nice," I chided him. "Sinjar's a helluva guy."

*77 *18*.

78.

Cheryl Brooks "I suppose so," he grumbled. "My name is Calla, by the way, and the bay is Goran."

"Nice to meet you," I said politely. "Morgana will be here in a minute-and please don't tease her about being too slow!"

"We'll be perfect gentlemen," Goran promised.

"Which one of you is Leo going to ride?" I asked. "If he wants to run away, don't take him, please. I'd like to keep him."

"I thought he was our master's slave," Calla remarked.

"Yes, but I like him a lot," I said. "So please, don't let him run away. I'm going to try to figure out a way to get Rafe to give him to me."

Goran snorted. "Find his sons for him, and he just might."

"That's my plan," I said. "You two don't know anything about the kidnapping, do you?"

"No, but the kids have a dog," Goran replied. "He might know."

"Think he'll talk to me?"

"I don't see why not. He's a grouch sometimes, but he likes the boys. He'll want to help you find them."

"Maybe we should take him with us, " I suggested.

"Too old," Calla said decisively. "He'd never be able to keep up."

It was becoming fairly obvious that Calla was a bit arrogant. He and Rafe were two of a kind, apparently. Goran was confident, but without the chip on his shoulder, reminding me more of Leo.

Morgana trotted up then, and I introduced her to Goran and Calla, and, as I might have expected, she *78 *19*.

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ignored them completely. I followed her into the shed and brushed the snow off her back before heaving the saddle on. "What's going on?" she asked.

"Someone has kidnapped Rafe's children," I told her as I pulled the girth up snugly. "He wants me and Leo to find them."

"I'm sure you could do it on your own," Morgana said. "We don't need him."

"Oh, come on, Morgana! Give the guys a break for once! It's gonna be the two of us girls and four men! If I have to listen to you bitch about them the whole time, I'll-"