Fearless (Nameless #3)(17)
“Stop!” someone’s muted call joined the chorus of shouting. But the fists didn’t stop flying and the animal inside Gryphon clawed at his resolve not to fight back.
But a man could only take so much.
“Enough!” Gryphon bellowed. He kneed the man closest to him in the head, and bent an arm behind another man’s back until a satisfying pop sounded along with the man’s cries. Somehow, Gryphon gained his feet and cried out, enraged as he attacked every bit of flesh within reach with savage brutality.
Someone brandished a knife, and Gryphon turned and swept his legs out from under him, stomping on the man’s wrist until he dropped the blade.
Large arms clamped down around Gryphon’s torso, pinning his own to his sides before he could reach for the knife. He elbowed the man holding him in the stomach and turned to break his nose when he recognized the familiar face of Stone, the leader of the Nameless rebellion.
Other soldiers were there as well, pulling the Wolves away and helping the few wounded to their feet.
Gryphon had been so enraged with battle fever he hadn’t noticed the fighting stop around him. His chest pumped in double-time as he surveyed the damage. Already one of his eyes was swelling shut and his bloodied hand braced an aching rib at his side.
One of Laden’s lieutenants shouted orders that sounded muffled to Gryphon’s ears.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Stone said, clapping him irreverently on a tender shoulder. “The last thing these men need is another reason to hate you.”
“Good to see you, too,” said Gryphon. “How’s Eva?” Losing his balance, he dropped to one knee as the adrenalin drained from his body.
He heard the wind of a sword arcing through the air before the back of his head exploded with fresh pain. A numbing cold rushed from the point of impact as he fell to the ground, and darkness invaded his vision.
Chapter Seven
Zo sat with Ikatou and Commander Laden in the meeting tent. She winced as the Kodiak shouted his frustration.
“We cannot wait any longer. My children are behind that wall. My wife! My little girls!” He snatched Zo’s hand up from the table and waved it in Commander Laden’s face. The pressure of his grip made Zo wince, but she hung her head and allowed him to play puppet master. “I’ve been promised help. If you will not help me, I will take the blood owed me by oath!”
Laden shot to his feet, his chair flying behind him. He pounded his fist on the table, the power of his strike sending an echoing boom to every corner of the tent. He’d once told Zo the only way to reason with a Kodiak was through shouting and dramatics. He slipped into the role like a natural. “Your terms with the girl do not demand immediate action. I will not lead my men to be slaughtered because of your Kodiak impatience!”
The Kodiak’s face and neck turned crimson as he glared at Commander Laden. “Will you, or will you not help me, Commander?” he said each word with determined precision.
Zo looked between the men, knowing whatever Commander Laden said next would determine her fate.
Laden sat back into his chair and rested his forehead against steepled fingers. “I will help you, but first you must help yourself.”
“What do you mean?” Ikatou’s brow sprouted rows of lined skepticism.
“I need to you lead a team to the Caves and convince Chief Murtog to join us.”
Ikatou scoffed. “We left because he wouldn’t move against the Ram in the first place. When his wife was killed in the raid that took my family, he stopped fighting. Stopped caring about anything. Those who stay only do so because of their promise to support and defend their chief.”
“Are you and the others who left the Cave considered traitors and oath breakers?” asked Laden.
Ikatou stared at him for a long moment, apparently shocked by the question. Laden made it his business to understand the customs of all of the clans. It was one of the reasons he’d managed to form the Allied Army.
“We should be called oath breakers,” Ikatou finally said. “The chief is too overcome with grief to issue the order, but my people see us as such, just the same.” He cleared his throat. “The shame is … heavy.”
Laden walked over to the Ikatou and said, “Convince your chief to join us at the Allied Camp. If you can get him to come here, I will formulate a plan to free the Nameless.”
Ikatou shook his head. “It will not be easy.”
“It is the last hope of your clan, my friend. Murtog has a soft spot for feminine charm. I suggest you take Zo and Raca with you on your journey.”
“Me?” said Zo. “I just got here. Tess and Joshua need me.”
“Exactly,” said Laden. “And this is how you can help them the most right now.”
As ashamed as she was to admit it, Tess and Joshua weren’t the first people to come to mind. The idea of leaving Gryphon, after they’d finally been reunited, made her physically ill. The trek to the Kodiak Caves was only a few days’ journey, but it didn’t lessen her anxiety over the separation.
She opened her mouth to protest further but was interrupted by one of Laden’s guards entering the tent. “Sir, a fight on the training fields. The Ram.”
Laden cursed and stepped toward the tent flaps. He turned back to Ikatou saying, “You will leave in two days’ time.”