Free The Warrior Returns - Anteros 04 by Allan Cole Page B

was long-flowing waves of silver. She still wore her yellow robes of office, which were made of silk and clung to a soft round figure that I suddenly wanted badly to caress.
    My mouth became dry. I was afraid to speak, for my thoughts were far from pure.
    Daciar looked at the curtained alcove, then back at me. The coals that were her eyes burned deeper. She rose and drifted over to me like a cloud, taking my hand and drawing me up. I could smell her perfume—hot and lemony like a mulled drink.
    "Come, Rali dear," she said.
    And she led me to her downy bed.
    it was a night of dreams, a night of quiet magic.
    Daciar coaxed all the tension from my body, massaging each toe, then working up slowly and carefully, paying close attention to every kink and twist. I became like warm wax under her hands, helpless in my blissful state to dp anything but moan and turn this way and that as she commanded.
    Then she made love to me, carrying us both off to shaded glades in sunny lands. Afterward we cuddled and caressed for a time, and when we'd recovered, we made love again. I think I called out Otara's name once, but Daciar only held me tighter and whispered gentle praises, so I knew she didn't mind. When we were exhausted, I fell asleep in her arms.
    Daciar had given me a gift worth all the gold in the coffers of the gods.
    I awoke just at dawn to the sweet sound of a lyre playing somewhere off in the distance. As I lay there letting the waves of music wash over me, I realized I'd been listening to it for a long time.
    It was a most familiar melody.
    Then I heard the blast of a great war trumpet. Then bells tolled the alarm. As I leaped up I heard shrieks. The city was being attacked.
    CHAPTER
    FOUR
    The Warrior Giants
    I leaped naked from the bed, scrabbled madly for my dagger—the only weapon I had—and ran to the window.
    We were several flights above the temple grounds, and the window commanded a good view of the harbor and the road that wound up the hilltop to the temple. A cold wind blew in and I shivered. But it wasn't from the sudden chill.
    In the harbor was a ship of such size that I became confused for a moment as I wondered how something so far away could seem so large. Fear iced my veins when I fully understood that only giants could sail such a thing.
    My mind reeled and then the sounds of fighting drew my eyes to the dockyards. Three immense warriors towered over what had to be a hundred Pisidian soldiers. The giants wore helms and heavy armor and wielded swords with blades as wide as a man and twice as long. The Pisidians were bravely trying to crowd in and overwhelm the giants.
    The three huge warriors suddenly charged the soldiers, and many men fell in that furious but disciplined onslaught. Despite their success, the giants didn't seem willing to take advantage of their attack and soon fell back to hold their original ground.
    Then I noted a longboat the size of a normal ship drawn up near the shore. It was manned and defended by four other giants. I quickly counted ten double oars and knew there were at least thirteen more enemy warriors on the loose.
    I felt Daciar's presence. She'd come up behind me to see what was happening. We watched the scene in silence for a few moments, gathering up our will and our wits. The wind blew colder. Daciar handed me a robe and I fumbled it on, tucking my hands into the deep sleeves. Then I saw the enemy ship's banner stiffen in the same wind.
    On it was the sign of the Ice Bear King.
    The cold and the sight of that flag seemed to sharpen my wits, and I quickly sorted through a jumbled mass of thoughts and questions.
    How had the giants broken through Daciar's magical shield? The lyre music was the answer to that. Which meant, as I'd feared, that there was more sorcery behind the pirate chief than the one little demon whom I'd so easily dispatched.
    Why hadn't we slept on, t hen, blissful slaves to the sor cerous tunes? The answer was simple. Daciar's spells diluted the power of the