Bronto's Revenge (Barbarian Lust, #2)(26)

She froze, unable to speak or move.

“Ivy, breathe.”

She couldn’t.

Not while that oversized snake hung over her head like a tree branch. How could her sister befriend something so…so icky and frightening?

Finally the pressure eased from her back and a slight current circled her legs as the serpent swam off. Very slowly Ivy expelled the air from her lungs. “Please take me home.”





Chapter Seven


Before they’d even reached the back side of the supply hut Bronto heard shouts and thumps and the sound of fists meeting flesh. He tightened his hold on Ivy’s hand and rushed into the yard. Fifteen or so people stood back while Rocko wiped the ground with Grunt.

“Couldn’t be happening to a nicer guy,” Bronto said. “Wonder what he did this time?”

Grunt flew through the air and landed at his feet. Bronto avoided the urge to kick the man while he was already down and stepped around him instead. In a matter of seconds Rocko was on top of Grunt, pounding his fists into the lug’s face.

“Gosh, isn’t someone going to stop him?” Ivy yelped.

Bronto smirked. “Let’s hope not.” He guided her to the fire pit where Vulcan stood with an arm draped across Wisteria’s shoulders. She was holding Birmon and petting the top of the critter’s head.

“Why aren’t you intervening, Vulcan?” Ivy asked. “You stopped Bronto.”

Vulcan nudged his head. Bronto followed the direction to Jade, who was crying and chewing on her thumb. The first and only time she’d cried in the past two years was when she’d felt guilty for letting Wisteria and Ivy run away. “What happened?”

“Grunt raped her in the supply hut,” Vulcan replied.

That explained the condition Bronto and Ivy found it in. A knot formed in his guts and for a fleeting second he wanted to rip Grunt’s head off. Not that Rocko wasn’t doing a good job but Bronto still had a hankering to kill him himself.

“What does that mean?” Ivy asked.

Bronto tore his eyes from Jade and glanced at Ivy. “He took her against her will.”

“But that happens all the time. If a man wants a woman he takes her. It isn’t a crime.”

“It might not be but when a man takes a woman someone else has feelings for it becomes vengeance. By the beating Grunt is taking, I assume Rocko has a thing for Jade.” Bronto thought it was the other way around. He hadn’t suspected their feelings were mutual. In that case Rocko had perfect cause to handle things his way.

Another loud thump grabbed his attention. He peered over his shoulder just as Rocko back-slammed Grunt on solid ground. He lay near the fire pit not uttering a sound but when Rocko plopped down on his stomach and wrapped his hands around Grunt’s neck, Grunt choked.

“Chieftain, are you going to let Rocko kill him?”

Vulcan crossed his arms at his chest and took a lingering gaze at Jade. “Put yourself in his shoes.”

Bronto wanted to kill him for a hell of a lot less than rape. “Good point.” Rape might be okay on this planet but it wasn’t tolerable on his and he’d never accept it as a way of the primitive lifestyle. Rocko had the right idea—beat the offender to a bloody mess. Knowing Vulcan shared the same feelings, Bronto guaranteed it was exactly why he wouldn’t stop the show. Well, whatever happened, he knew Ivy was uncomfortable watching and he didn’t want to expose her to any more bloodshed. From Rocko’s relentless stamina it appeared there’d be much more to come. “Let’s walk to my hut, Ivy.”

“Wisty, would you like to come with us?” Ivy asked.

That proved Bronto was right regarding her level of discomfort. As much as he wanted to protect her from the fight, she wanted to protect her sister. Fight wasn’t a proper term since it appeared to be a one-sided ass whooping.

“Thanks but Vulcan and I are going to the lake to bathe. He’s sweaty from working in the sun all morning.”

Bronto glanced at the pen the same time Ivy had. It was completely finished, roof included. A few baby dinosaurs were visible by their necks or tails sticking through the wall slats. “How many are in there?”

Vulcan looked between him and the pen. “Nine.”

“We found a couple of them hiding under ferns in the forest,” Ivy said.

Wisteria cringed when a solid fist connected to Grunt’s jaw. “We’ll look for them on our way back. Vulcan, can we please go now?”

“Sure, sweetheart,” Vulcan replied, grabbing the Barrett from the stone table. “We won’t be gone too long.” He took hold of Wisteria’s arm and guided her toward the forest.

Ivy turned to watch them as they approached the trees. “Wisty, I met your snake up close,” she shouted.

Wisteria halted and turned around. “You did? I told you it wouldn’t hurt you. Were you scared?”

“A little.” She smiled and squeezed Bronto’s hand.

Bronto raised a brow. “A little?”

“Okay, to death,” she corrected.

That was more accurate since she’d refused to breathe at the time. Too, he possibly still had fingernail marks engraved in his back. The woman had very expressive claws. He could point to a few others she’d left as evidence last night. Love scars. Hell, he wouldn’t mind if she carved a tattoo into his back with those nails.