Tiger’s Destiny by Colleen Houck Read Free Book Online

not being able to save you.”
    “Thank you for rescuing me.”
    He sighed. “No matter where you are, I will always come for you, iadala . There is no need to thank me.”
    “Still, thank you.”
    Ren kissed my forehead. “Have I told you lately that you’re a very stubborn woman?”
    “Not recently,” I replied playfully, enjoying our familiar banter and feeling a warm tingle flow throughout my body. “Let’s go home. I can’t wait to see Mr. Kadam. I have so many things to tell him.”
    Ren reached out for my hand and pulled me closer, suddenly serious. “Kells, we . . . haven’t been able to find him. When Lokesh’s pirates ambushed us, he stepped in front of a harpoon meant for Nilima, and they both disappeared. We can’t locate them on the GPS. Both of their signals went missing. We saw yours, but not theirs.”
    “What? That can’t be. Let’s go then. We need to find them.” My mind filled with new worry for Mr. Kadam and Nilima. Nothing would be right until we were all back together.
    Ren held out his hand. “Will you ride with me?”
    His question hung in the air. I looked over at Kishan, who had just finished filling the tires with air and gave me a merry wave.
    Kishan is my boyfriend. I should ride with him , I thought.
    “Please,” Ren added quietly. “I need to feel you near me.”
    I lowered my eyes and took his hand. My resolve crumbled. “Alright,” I said, climbed on behind him, and wrapped my arms around his waist.
    Ren wound his way over to Kishan and announced, “We’re riding together on this leg.”
    I quickly added, “If that’s alright with you, Kishan.”
    Kishan shrugged good naturedly and warned, “Ren rides like a grandpa, but it’s fine with me.”
    To thank him, I kissed him lightly.
    Kishan grinned and said, “I might be better off. This way if I ride behind Grandpa, I can admire the view.”
    Ren grunted and said something brusque in Hindi, but Kishan just laughed and ignored him.
    That night Kishan scouted out a place to set up camp and returned excited. I followed him up a rocky hill to a circle of stones around a hollowed out area of packed clay.
    “Fill it with water,” Kishan suggested. “Voilà! Your very own Jacuzzi.”
    I laughed and brushed my hand across the Necklace at my throat. The basin quickly filled with a bubbling mineral bath, and Kishan blasted it with fire power. The cold air billowed with steam.
    “Enjoy your bath, Kells. Oh, and if you need the water warmed again, I’d be more than happy to oblige.”
    After my soak it was Ren’s and Kishan’s turn. Kishan ripped his shirt off. “First one there rides all day with Kells.” Ren took off like a shot with Kishan whooping after him.
    With only one more day of travel to go, we were all starting to fall back into our normal routines, at least as normal as they could be under the circumstances. Both brothers were careful with me, treating me as delicately as a precious China cup.
    Later that moonlit night, when Kishan smiled and leaned over to kiss me, it was warm and brief. Something flashed in his eyes when he pulled away.
    I took his hand. “What is it?” I encouraged gently.
    “If I do something that reminds you of Lokesh or hurts you in any way, will you tell me?”
    “The fact that you’re even worried about it is a sign you could never be like him. Don’t be afraid to touch me. I won’t break.”
    Kishan nodded, pressed a kiss to my fingers, and lifted the amulet from his chest. “You were smart to send Fanindra to me with this, but you should wear it now.”
    He fumbled with the chain and fastened the amulet around my neck. I rubbed the smooth stone with my fingers.
    “That’s how you created those balls of light? With the amulet?”
    “Yes. This piece of the amulet is quite a weapon.”
    “I was wondering how you did that. That never happened to me.”
    “You probably could do it if you tried. The amulet seems capable of creating any type of flame.”
    I considered how