Free The Cobra & the Concubine (Khamsin Warriors of the Wind) by Bonnie Vanak Page B

origins. Voices sounded as the back room door creaked open. Badra’s heart skipped another beat as Rashid stepped out.
    At the sound, Kenneth turned. Rashid halted. Badra’s heartbeat trebled.
    The two men regarded each other with a level look. Badra shuddered at the antipathy burning in Rashid’s brown eyes. Loyally, he considered Kenneth a traitor to his sheikh.
    Their eyes locked.
    "Hello, Khepri," Rashid said in Arabic, his jaw tensing beneath his heavy black beard. "I see you are still alive and well. A shame."
    Badra’s chest felt hollow with panic as Kenneth narrowed his eyes and replied in the same language, "I did not think I would ever see you again, Rashid." He paused and gave a chilling smile. "A shame."
    "I do believe I owe you something for how you insulted Jabari upon your departure, Khepri," Rashid snapped.
    Kenneth smiled grimly. "Then give it to me, if you are man enough, for I do not want to be in debt to you."
    Rashid’s hand shot to his side at the same time Kenneth’s did. Badra watched in amazement.
    Thankfully, neither had weapons. Hostility filled their stances as they circled like snarling dogs. Both fisted their hands and raised them to their chest. Both men were about the same height, with the same muscled builds. They could easily kill each other with their bare hands.
    Voices sounded as the back room door swung open again. The proprietor and Lord Smithfield stepped out. Immediately, the earl stepped forward and placed a hand on Rashid’s arm.
    "Let it go," the earl said quietly.
    The Khamsin warrior bristled with rage, then tossed off the nobleman’s arm. He backed away, giving a curt nod.
    "For the sake of honoring my host, I will not spill your blood here," he told Kenneth, watching him with wariness. "But be warned, traitor. There will come a time."
    "I welcome it," Kenneth answered in a dangerously soft voice. "Do not underestimate me simply because I wear English dress now. You know I can defeat you."
    She breathed easier as Kenneth seemed to rein in his temper. Rashid’s face was still flushed with angry color. Kenneth’s expression hardened as he glanced at her.
    "Your fighting skills are best saved for protecting Badra. She is your first obligation. Or did you forget what Jabari charged you with?"
    Her stomach gave a sickening lurch at the violence in Rashid’s dark eyes. "I have not. My first obligation is to protect her from you."
    Oh, Rashid , Badra said silently, pleading with her eyes. Please don’t hurt him any more than I already have ...
    But it was too late. Kenneth’s jaw tensed as if Rashid had delivered a deadly blow with his scimitar. "You truly think I would forsake everything I honored as a Khamsin warrior and deliberately harm the woman I had sworn a blood oath to protect?"
    "You are no longer Khamsin," Rashid said evenly. The words hung in the air, quivering with silent threat.
    Kenneth turned to her. "Do you think that I wish revenge?"
    Would you take it if the opportunity presented itself? Badra wondered. She thought of the necklace. She smiled to hide her anxiety.
    "I think we’re taking up too much of this good shopkeeper’s time and have provided him with enough drama for one afternoon. Perhaps it’s best we leave. Right now," she said.
     
    Kenneth fell back, as if she’d slapped him.
    Badra had avoided answering his direct question. Did that mean she thought he would actually hurt her? After all the years he’d spent guarding her life more carefully than his own?
    Realizing his mouth hung open, Kenneth assumed a blank expression. He compressed his lips, hiding his inner turmoil. Smithfield turned to him with an apologetic look. Kenneth twisted his lips in a crooked smile.
    "Nice surprise," he said.
    The earl sighed. "I thought you’d like seeing the artifacts they brought with them to sell to your cousin."
    Kenneth shot a look at the quiet but glowering Rashid. "Only if there is a very sharp dagger among them."
    Badra stared at Victor. He stood as