Honored Vow

I, and my control was
    better, could be directed.
    “Uuchlaarai!” The stranger wobbled and went to his knees, the other
    two following fast.
    His head snapped back, and he met my eyes.
    “I am the mate of the semel-netjer,” I told him, my eyes narrowing.
    “Don’t mistake me for anything less.”
    “No, my reah,” he said quickly.
    And I was proud that unless I wanted it to be, my power was no
    longer sexual at all. Now it was pure, breathing out strength, discipline,
    and will. Crane being with me had changed everything.
    “Stand.”
    He rose, and I tipped my head back to meet his gaze as he stepped
    closer, offering his hand now in greeting. It was a pissing contest, and I
    had won. American, Mongolian, it didn’t matter, we were all cats, and it
    only mattered who was alpha. Normally it was Logan, but here it was me.
    “I’m the maahes of the tribe of Khertet, Chuluun.”
    “Borjigin, right?” I asked, taking his hand.
    He smiled suddenly. “That is the clan name of Genghis Khan,
    Borjigin; it’s not a real last name, just something to use. We don’t have
    surnames like you do, as they were illegal here for a very long time when
    the communists came to power.”
    “Quick history lesson there,” Crane muttered under his breath.
    “Stop,” I told him and then smiled at the man I had just met. “So just
    Chuluun, then?”
    “Yes.”

    Honored Vow

    139

    “Then just Jin.” I took a breath.
    I felt his hand clutch mine, and that fast, Yuri was beside me.
    “ Ataide ,” he snarled.
    The word that had come out of my sheseru was one I had never
    heard before, and since I doubted that he had been studying Mongolian
    along with Danny, I had no idea what I was hearing. But Chuluun must
    have, because he released his grip. He didn’t move away, though, and that
    was not making Yuri happy. I could feel his anger rising.
    “What was that?” I asked him.
    But he wasn’t looking at me, all his attention instead riveted on
    Chuluun.
    “Ne trogai,” my sheseru growled.
    “Oospakoisya,” Chuluun snapped back at him, but I watched the
    maahes take a step away from me, respecting Yuri’s wishes.
    I took a guess at the language. “Russian, right?”
    “Yes,” Mikhail told me, moving close before addressing Chuluun. “I
    understand that it’s a whole day’s ride, like, nine hours to Tsetserleg in
    Arkhangai aimag from here.”
    “That’s a close approximation.”
    “And how far from Tsetserleg is Vanchigdash, where your tribe
    lives?”
    “Not far. We will pass the nature preserve, and then we’ll be there.
    Our home is in the side of a mountain, and there is a small valley that
    sustains us during the winter.”
    “So you don’t live in the traditional ger? You—”
    “The home of Orso Bataar, semel of the tribe of Khertet, was carved
    out of stone. It has a hot spring that runs underneath it, but the home itself
    is without electricity or running water,” he said, and his voice, the way he
    was standing suddenly, all of it suggested irritation.
    Yuri said something else in Russian, and I wondered why until I saw
    the amazing transformation of his words on Chuluun. The man was visibly
    stunned.
    “That’s really smart,” Mikhail said under his breath.
    “What?”
    “Yuri gave him commands in Russian so he’d know they have a
    common language between them—his accent is Russian, after all.”

    140

    Mary Calmes

    “I thought that was a Mongolian accent.”
    “No.” Mikhail gave me a hint of a smile.
    “You did?” Chuluun speaking to Yuri in English brought my
    attention back to him.
    He nodded.
    “Good.” His dark black eyes locked on Yuri. “I’m glad you realized
    that to visit us would not be a resort vacation. We are a tribe that lives the
    same way we have for hundreds of years. Others have been less than
    appreciative of our home and culture and language.”
    “We, unlike some of the others, are honored to be your guests,” my
    sheseru assured him.
    I watched the tension, animosity, and defensiveness run out of not
    only Chuluun but the other two men with him. And I understood then.
    Everyone else they had picked up at the airport had not been thrilled with
    the accommodations. We didn’t care; we were just happy to have a roof,
    or a cave, as it were, over our heads. The maahes was pleased with us
    already.
    Yuri then asked for the names of the two men with Chuluun, and he
    apologized for his lack of manners, and the long introductions began.
    They