*No,* Kaelas replied. He felt a ripple of anger run through the other males. *The meat tastes bad.*

*We have come for the hunt but will have no meat to bring back to the home dens?* another male asked irritably.

*We promised the Lady we wouldn’t hunt human meat,* a younger male said tentatively.

*These males killed a male who belonged to the Lady,* Kaelas said firmly. *They killed the pale humans who belonged to Lady Karla.*

Another ripple of anger, this time directed at the bad winged males. Arcerians didn’t have much use for humans, but they liked Lady Karla and adored the Lady. For them, they would hunt and return to the dens without meat.

The wind shifted slightly, brought a different scent.

*We will take the animals that belonged to the pale humans,* Kaelas said. *The humans do not need them now. It will be payment for work.* He was pleased that he remembered that peculiar human idea. If the Lady snarled at him for taking animals from a human village, he could use those words.

*Payment for work?* a couple of males echoed. Then one of them asked, *This is a human thing?*

*Yes. We kill these bad males, then we can take good meat back to the dens.*

Satisfied, the Arcerians settled down to study their prey.

Kaelas watched the winged males for a minute. *We must hunt fast…and silent.*

*Fast kills,* the others agreed.

Kaelas watched the Green-Jeweled Warlord Prince walk to a den near the Sanctuary. But not for that one.

11 / Kaeleer

Jaenelle was waiting for him by the time Daemon reached Khary and Morghann’s house.

“She’s bleeding too much for this just to be moon’s blood,” he said abruptly as he rushed into the guest room, followed by Morghann, Khary, and Maeve, the village Healer. “And there’s not much time left.”

Jaenelle placed a hand on Karla’s chest, her eyes focusing on something only she could see. “There’s enough,” she said too calmly.

Morghann laid a padding of towels on the bed.

Daemon gave her a cold stare as he laid Karla on the bed. Was the woman more worried about her precious linens than about a friend who had been poisoned?

“It’ll disturb her less to change a towel than to change the linens,” Morghann said quietly, her eyes clearly telling him she knew what he’d been thinking—and had been hurt by it.

There was no time for an apology. Morghann and Maeve stripped off the bloody nightgown and robe, and quickly wiped the blood off Karla’s skin. Jaenelle paid no attention to the physical ministrations, remaining focused on the healing.