Fearless (Nameless #3)(18)
Zo ran out of the tent after Laden and into the blinding sun. She gathered her cumbersome skirt into a fist and sprinted toward the training fields. What was Laden thinking, having Gryphon spend his first day out among the Allies without protection? A string of insults tailored for Laden built on the tip of her tongue as she ran through camp, dodging tents and fire rings, to get to the training fields.
She literally ran into Eva as she raced onto the trampled practice field.
“He’s not here,” said Eva. The Ram woman’s hand traveled to her stomach as if to soothe her and Stone’s unborn child.
“Where is he?” Zo panted.
“Stone took Gryphon to the Healer’s Tent,” said Eva. Her hair was cropped short around her head, accentuating her pronounced Ram nose. “I was just coming to find you.” Zo hadn’t seen Eva since leaving the Nameless in the wilderness. They’d escaped the Gate together. Survived the wilderness together. And though Zo didn’t particularly like the Ram woman, they shared the complication of falling in love with the enemy.
Laden arrived at the field, greeted by two of his lieutenants. His handsome face distorted with fury. She took off in the direction of the Healer’s Tent, leaving the sound of Commander Laden’s clipped orders in her wake. The Commander ruled the Allies with absolute authority. Whoever broke his order would be punished without question.
The Healer’s Tent stood larger than most to accommodate three rows of beds. Zo rushed into the patched buckskin and wool structure to find Gryphon lying in the farthest bed from the flaps, in the back corner. He wasn’t alone. Three other men lay in beds on the opposite side of the tent, near the flaps.
Stone stood as a sentinel at Gryphon’s feet with thick arms folded across his chest. The large Nameless leader answered Zo’s questions before she even asked.
“He was attacked. Did his best not to fight back, but eventually lashed out.” He nodded in the direction of the other men in the tent. One sat on a bed hugging his elbow to his chest, sweat beading on his brow. Millie was bandaging another’s chest while a third lay unconscious.
“I’m fine,” said Gryphon from behind Stone. “You’re making it sound worse than it was.”
Stone stepped aside and Gryphon offered Zo a painful smile. His left eye was swollen shut and bruises were already peeking out from the sleeves of his shirt.
“They beat him soundly,” said Stone. “Don’t let him tell you otherwise. He passed out for a solid five minutes after a coward took a wooden broadsword to the back of his head.”
Zo didn’t waste a moment. She lunged for her kit and removed the knife she kept hidden in a sheath on her thigh. “I can take things from here, Stone. Thank you.”
Stone nodded and ducked his head as he stepped out of the tent.
Gryphon eyed the knife in Zo’s hand. “You planning to finish the job your clansmen started?” He smiled weakly.
“Not funny,” said Zo. She took hold of the bottom of his shirt and cut a vertical strip in the front. After setting the knife down, she took hold of the fabric on both sides of the cut and tore the shirt open, leaving Gryphon’s chest bare.
He blinked with his one good eye. “Most women would wait until we were alone, but I can see you want to waste no time.” His attempt at a wink was as pathetic as it was endearing.
Zo wasn’t in the mood to hear his efforts at lightening the situation. “Lie down,” she ordered, pushing him back onto the waist-high bed so she could better examine his injuries.
“Just a few hard hits. Nothing I can’t survive.”
Zo shook her head and walked her fingers around his muscled chest and ribcage. At any other time, the sight of Gryphon without his shirt would have burned her cheeks, but he was hurt, and in a way, it was her fault.
Every few inches her fingers touched a spot on his skin that made Gryphon release a sharp exhale and ball his fists. Upon further examination of each rib, he actually cried out in pain.
“Those bloody cowards,” said Zo. She reached for her kit and found Tess at her side. Tess handed Zo her favorite concoction of oils and herbs without a word. Zo nodded her thanks and applied the medicine before placing her hand over each broken rib and offering a blessing.
Her hands warmed as the familiar words—words handed down from her own mother—passed her lips. The pull of the energy stirred in her stomach and swelled up through her chest, down her arms, and out through her hands. She took his pain and willed the body to heal, pushing her own energy into him to speed the healing process. The healing energy never used to travel through her with such speed and power.
When she and Gryphon were attacked by Gryphon’s old mess captain, and Zo was faced with the likelihood of losing Gryphon forever, she’d somehow managed to tap into a new pool of energy, something that she’d never known existed within her. When she drew from the pool, it felt different from the healing her mother had taught her, powerful in its depth and frightening in its ability to drain her own energy.
“You’re shaking.” Gryphon reached out and placed a hand on her cheek.
Zo caught her breath, savoring Gryphon’s gentle touch, before she placed her fingers over the swollen tissue around his eye. Heat flowed through her hand as she channeled her love for him. She pressed her free hand onto the bed for balance and let the remainder of her energy flow into him.