Tiger Saga - 01 - Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck

Author:Colleen Houck
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Fantasy
Publisher: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.
Published: 2011-01-11T06:00:00+00:00

The next four days continued in the same pattern. Kishan stayed nearby, left on patrol a couple of times a day, and then returned to sit by me during lunch. After lunch, he changed to a man and allowed me to pester him with questions about palace life and the culture of his people.

On the morning of the fifth day, the routine changed. Kishan changed to a man right after I emerged from the tent.

“Kelsey, I’m worried about Ren. He’s been gone a long time, and I haven’t caught his scent on patrol. I suspect that he’s had no luck on his hunt. He hasn’t hunted since he was captured, which was more than three hundred years ago.”

“Do you think he’s hurt?”

“It’s a possibility, but keep in mind that we heal quickly. There aren’t many beasts here that would try to injure a tiger, but there are poachers and traps. I think I should go look for him.”

“Do you think it’ll be easy to find him?”

“If he’s smart, he would have stuck to the river. Most of the herds congregate near the water. Speaking of food, I noticed you were getting low. Last night while you were sleeping, I met Mr. Kadam at his camp near the road and brought back more of those meal packages.” He indicated a bag left by the tent.

“You must have carried that in your mouth the entire way. Thank you.”

He grinned. “You are entirely welcome, my lovely.”

I laughed. “Better to carry a backpack in your teeth over several miles than to have Ren sink his into your hide for letting me starve, eh?”

Kishan frowned. “I did it for you, Kelsey. Not him.”

I put my hand on his arm. “Well, thank you.”

He pressed his hand on top of mine. “Aap ke liye. For your sake, anything.”

“Did you tell Mr. Kadam that we would be a bit longer?”

“Yes, I explained the situation to him. Don’t worry about him. He’s comfortably camped near the road and will wait as long as necessary. Now, I want you to pack up some water bottles and food. I’m taking you with me. I would leave you here, but Ren insists that you get into trouble if left alone.”

He touched my nose. “Is that true, bilauta? I can’t imagine an endearing young woman such as you getting into trouble.”

“I don’t get into trouble. Trouble finds me.”

He laughed. “That much is obvious.”

“Despite what you tigers think, I can take care of myself, you know,” I said in a slightly sulky tone.

Kishan squeezed my arm. “Perhaps we tigers enjoy taking care of you.”

Soon we set off on a trail that angled up toward the top of the falls. It was a slow but steady climb, and my legs started to protest as we neared the apex. He let me rest for a while at the top. I took in the view of the jungle and made out our little camp below in the small clearing.

We continued to follow the river until we arrived at a large tree trunk that had fallen across.

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