Broken Aro (The Broken Ones) Read Online Free PDF

her.
    Her mouth opened in surprise and he sat back suddenly,
looking like someone had punched him in the gut. He chuckled unexpectedly. The
noise sounded so out of place, tears threatened again.
    Yet, his laughter, she knew it. She'd heard it before
at home. She struggled to remember who he was. One of her brother's friends
obviously. When they had been home the house overflowed with them. She'd loved
it, the laughter and the jesting and the cussing. They'd treated her like a
little sister while she'd danced around serving them drinks and food. For once
she was glad everyone had always called her Aro and not her given name, Arowyn.
Aro was more of a boy's name than a girl's. He hadn't just given her away.
    His name came to her suddenly. "Kendric?"
    He began shaking his head in disbelief. She stared at
him for a moment. "You shaved off your beard." She nodded to herself.
That's why she hadn't recognized him right away. "You looked like a bear
last time I saw you." Relief washed over her and she almost smiled. The
panic of being totally alone subsided a little. Kendric wasn't one of her
brothers, but at least he was someone she knew!
    He chuckled again, running a hand over his eyes before
dragging it down his face. His look became solemn while he regarded her
thoughtfully for a moment. He turned toward the other men. "He's safe."
    She rested her chin on her knees. What did that
mean? Had they thought her to be a spy or something? Suddenly, she
understood his words and sighed. He obviously didn't trust all of them if he
wanted to play along with the whole boy thing.
    She gathered her courage, fighting the lump in her
stomach. "Are my brothers here?"
    Kendric looked down at his hands and shook his head,
dashing her faint hopes. Really, she'd known they weren't though. They had
always been so protective of her, if they'd been on the ship she'd have heard
them. They would have asked everyone if she was here.
    "Aro?" She turned to look at one of the
other men. His darkly tanned skin and rough looking face stood out. He
certainly wasn't pretty. The long scar running down one side of his face didn't
help either, but he had a happy, friendly look to him that made him not look
scary at all. "How old are you?" His voice was gentle, as if talking
to a young child.
    Everyone started staring at her again. "Fifteen,"
she said quietly. Maybe she should have lied. Worry knotted her stomach. She had
no idea what she should do.
    "Can you fight?" The blond cocked his head
to the side, waiting for an answer.
    She blushed and looked at Kendric for guidance.
    "Tell the truth," he said quietly, his voice
very kind. A faint smile played at his lips though, because he knew the answer.
    His smile returned some of her confidence. She nodded
at them all. "But…" she grimaced slightly and wished they weren't all
staring at her. "I've been having trouble with the sword lately." Everyone
raised eyebrows at that. Her words came out in a rush. "Because I just
keep growing and growing and I can't seem to do anything right."
    Everyone one of them either smiled or chuckled at her
admission, and of course they would. They remembered the same thing happening
to them. She sucked in a breath and continued. "I'm good with a bow. I've
not been having much trouble with it." What else to tell them? Were they
disappointed in her lack of sword fighting skills? Obviously they were planning
some sort of escape. Would they leave her behind because she couldn't fight? "I'm
best with knives."
    Kendric's mouth twisted slightly, as if he fought to
hold in a grin. "You know, I do recall that."
    She grinned but ducked her head again to hide it. Yes,
her brothers had often showed her off. She could play with her knives and bow
all year. Her brothers made her wait for them to be home before they let her
get her sword out, but she was pretty good with a knife.
    "Get some rest," Kendric said, leaning over
to ruffle her hair.
    She smiled a little in response to his gesture and
watched