A Warlord's Heart Read Online Free PDF Page B

affection but in other matters their soft hearts were a
hindrance.
    “Who have you placed in charge of their
training?” Vaan certainly had no intentions of ever leading one of
those sessions.
    Ramar mouth curved upward as he clasped his
hands behind his back. “Tolan.”
    Vaan chuckled. Tolan was the only one of his
warriors to have had a bride in his past until her death. The
Warlord was often looked toward for answers to the female mind.
“And has Tolan accepted his assignment lightly?”
    Ramar’s brown eyes fairly danced. “It has
been two days only since he started, Sire.”
    Two days was long enough for any warrior.
“And?”
    Ramar’s grin flashed. “He begs off every
hour.”
    Vaan could only shake his head. “I believe I
will observe today.”
    He could use the laughter with Mikayla’s
absence wearing at him like a sore tooth.
    “I shall join you.”
    They walked together speaking of other
matters. Vaan’s eyes automatically scanned for his youngling but
Balal must have taken them to their rooms on the upper level. The
clink of dishes and gentle laughter came from the kitchen. While
Vaan had grown used to the familial relationship Mikayla created
with her servants, he still floundered on how to interact with
them. When they brightened at his presence and waved, he nodded his
head, unsure how he was supposed to respond. Hugging them as his
mate was fond of doing wasn’t an option.
    When he and Ramar reached the outside
courtyard, Vaan immediately noticed the group of ten females
dressed in pants and tunics in varying shades, quivers slung over
their backs. Each wore their black hair pulled back from their face
as they concentrated on his Warlord’s instructions. Tolan paced in
front of the single line, speaking occasionally when asked a
question. Vaan wasn’t close enough to hear but decided to watch
before making his presence known.
    Ramar stepped closer beside him and murmured.
“We have made good time. He is just beginning. You will be most
amused, Overlord.”
    Vaan already was. None of them would have
managed the strength needed to lift a sword. They worked with the
bow and arrow per his orders. The women held the bows in arms that
shook with the strain as they notched their arrows. Tolan spoke a
command and arrows flew then dropped mid-air a few feet away. Ramar
snickered and Vaan found himself holding back a grin as well. Tolan
shoved his hands through loose, black hair that hung about his
shoulders.
    He gave another command and the women
scrambled to pull forth another arrow. Sera, a close friend of
Mikayla’s, dropped her entire quiver, spilling arrows on the
ground. Two women beside her lowered their bows and began helping
her to gather them. The others became distracted, watching until
Tolan snapped something out. Half of the females gave him their
attention but their arrows still fell short and nowhere near the
target Tolan had set up.
    Sera, who managed to get her arrows together,
let loose with her arrow late and narrowly missed Tolan’s head. His
Warlord crossed to her and yelled. Vaan frowned but Sera ducked her
head and toed at the dirt on the ground. Tolan blew out a breath
and yanked at his hair. He said something else to her in a calmer
voice and Sera’s shoulders shook.
    “The tears shall begin now, Overlord.”
    Once Sera started several of the females
began to cry as Ramar predicted. One of the females separated
herself from the line and approached Tolan from behind. He turned
and pointed back to her place. It was Vesa. Vaan’s gaze cut to
Ramar who no longer smiled. Vesa poked Tolan in the chest and said
something his Warlord disagreed with and the two now yelled at one
another.
    Vaan grunted, losing interest. He turned from
the scene and strode toward the entrance of his home, unable to
deal with the emotional aspect of training the females. The Raasa
males at least saved Vaan their sad faces when he worked them
overlong in training. Vaan was almost to the door when