Bronto's Revenge (Barbarian Lust, #2)(5)

Ivy returned her head to Bronto’s chest. “I’m not going to ask,” she mumbled under her breath.

Tyran gazed at her and smiled. “Herbivores survive off of vegetation. They are the plant eaters. The tyrannosaur we encountered earlier this evening was a theropod, primarily carnivorous.”

“A meat eater,” Ivy said. She shivered and snuggled closer to Bronto. “Like a cave lion.”

“Exactly,” Tyran confirmed.

“Why haven’t we ever seen them before?”

“I can theorize it’s because of the alien species stealing their offspring. While some dinosaurs abandon their eggs, others are very protective. I presume they’re searching for their young.”

She gulped loud enough for Bronto to hear. “What happens when they reach us?” she asked, her voice quavering.

Tyran refocused on the mountains. “I’m not sure how the sauropods will react to people. They may be curious, or frightened, or anxious. We have no documentation proving human contact within their evolution, so anything I say is pure speculation.”

“Guesses, right?”

“Yes,” Bronto confirmed, giving her an endearing squeeze. “Guesses. Tyran’s guesses.”

Tyran cleared his throat. “The theropods, on the other hand, won’t hesitate to feast on us.”

Ivy stepped even closer, her entire body shivering.

“Tyran, knock it off,” Bronto said, his voice a pitch below a shout. “You’re scaring her.”

“I’m sorry. I’m just trying to be up front and honest.”

“It’s okay, Tyran,” she assured him. “I’m not afraid. It’s not like I haven’t already seen the tyrannosaur kill a man.”

Unfortunately she’d watched the monster in action. That thing wanted blood and it’d gotten a taste when it’d plucked a guard from the trees and nearly chomped him in half. Hopefully the tyrannosaur relatives wouldn’t come searching for it anytime soon. It was chopped, burnt and turned to soot.





Chapter Two


“Come on, baby doll, wake up.”

Ivy pulled the fur over her head to make Jade disappear. “Not yet,” she grumbled.

“I didn’t expect to see you back so soon.”

“Bronto and Vulcan found us.”

“Ah, now it makes sense. I should’ve realized Vulcan wouldn’t let his woman stay away too long. Come on.” She yanked the hide off Ivy and tossed it aside. “Up you go.”

Shivering, Ivy pulled her knees to her chest. “I just went to bed.”

“You only have yourself to blame.” She grabbed Ivy’s wrists and tugged her onto her butt. “I don’t know what it is about you and your sister but you’re like infants. Up all night and sleep all day. We need to readjust your hours.”

“It’s Bronto’s fault.”

Jade giggled. “Of course it is. He’s totally incapable of guarding our hut by himself.”

“He talks a lot,” Ivy declared, rubbing her eyes with her palms.

“That he does but I sense he’s not the only one.”

“I need my own hut,” Ivy grouched while tilting sideways to lie back down but Jade caught her by the arm and righted her.

“Until your sister and Vulcan approve, you’re stuck with me. Uppity-up.”

“Grrr,” Ivy growled, flipping onto her knees before she climbed to her feet. “There. Are you happy?”

“Ecstatic. Now let’s go.”

Ivy patted a yawn while Jade grabbed her opposite hand and pulled her from the hut. For such a petite woman Jade had a strong grip. With her long, black, waist-length tresses and delicate features she portrayed a vision of beauty. A white rabbit foot was somehow attached in her hair near the top of her head and it dangled behind her ear.

Vulcan, Wisteria, two ladies close to Jade’s age, and Grunt, Rocko and another man sat around the fire, eating their morning meal. Birmon, the little monster with a rhino head, talons, pointy wings and blue spikes along his back, lay on Wisteria’s lap, sniffing berries in the palm of her hand.

Jade tugged Ivy toward the circle so swiftly Ivy stumbled over a large rock that was sticking up from the ground and stubbed her toe. “Ouch. Slow down,” she yelped, garnering everyone’s attention. Everyone’s but Bronto’s, who she wished was present. She should’ve just snuck into his hut this morning. At least she would’ve gotten some sleep. Jade wasn’t rude enough to have barged in there to wake her up. Or maybe she was.

A short distance away between the forest and the yard stood a tall, charred tree surrounded by ashes and tiny stones. Leather straps were tied around the trunk from the base to the top. Evidently it’d been used as a stake, and the ashes… She didn’t want to think about those. “Bronto is apparently still asleep,” she whispered.

“He worked hard all night,” Jade emphasized, pulling Ivy toward a pot burning over a smaller fire. “And if you’re going to stay, you need to earn your keep. Lucky you, you get to clean up the breakfast mess.”

“My sister isn’t earning her keep,” Ivy said, eyeing Wisteria.

“The beauty queen earns her keep by keeping our chieftain happy.”

“Why do you call her that…that queen thing?”