Fearless (Nameless #3)(40)
Huge arms wrapped around her waist. “Don’t let go,” the Kodiak whispered near her ear. Zo nodded, unable to speak, though she knew he couldn’t see her. The Kodiak lifted both her and Raca into the air, supporting Zo as she clung to Raca.
The girl wiggled and kicked to find the ledge.
When Zo was high enough for her feet to find purchase on the ledge, she helped pull Raca until she collapsed on the ground at Zo’s feet.
Both Talon and Raca whispered reassurances to one another between heavy breaths. Zo reached out and rested a hand on Raca’s back as the girl stood.
“Forward,” Ikatou’s whisper filled the cavern, jumping off walls to reach them. In all of the commotion of the last few minutes, how much noise had they made? Would the sound travel far enough to wake the sleeping bears within the mountain?
Zo wiped the sweat from her forehead with the hand not bound to the rope and shuffled forward. Water droplets ricocheted off the floor of the steamy cavern. The vast room hung in eerie silence.
The path sloped downward. The trail widened and the air changed from moist warmth to cool again. In the almost total darkness, Zo found it difficult to tell how long they traveled. Minutes might have been hours. Her nerves were frayed, every step tedious.
Down, down, down they walked. Deep into the belly of the mountain. Zo shivered—extra cold thanks to the moisture that hung on her clothes and chilled her skin from the steam caves.
The rope rubbed the skin around her wrist raw. The tips of her fingers burned from fumbling against the sides of the cave, and she tried desperately not to think about the thousands of pounds of stone above them. When the trail finally leveled off, she thought she might cry with relief.
Faint blue-gray light filtered through what must have been a massive skylight high above the ground, set in the middle of a cavernous dome at least 300 yards in diameter. The blue light reflected off a steaming pond below, as though the Kodiak lived in the gutted cavity of a sleeping volcano.
Caught up in the wonder of her surroundings, Zo didn’t notice the black line of shadows standing ten yards in front of them until a torch was lit.
Zo shielded her face from the light as her eyes adjusted.
Five bare-chested men stood apart from one another, their beefy arms hanging relaxed but ready at their sides. Black hair fell past their shoulders, tied back with twine. Their feet were bare but they wore swaths of brown fur on their calves and wrists.
The torchbearer came out to meet Ikatou. The two men stood practically nose-to-nose, evaluating without words.
Finally the torchbearer reached out an arm and cupped the back of Ikatou’s neck. Their foreheads pressed together, noses nearly kissing. “You were wise to come through the cabin entrance, brother.” The corner of his lip hitched up into a friendly, handsome smile.
Zo felt her body relax.
“Who are your guests?” The man’s whisper filled the cavern. No wonder the Kodiak didn’t approve of secrets; no conversation within these caves could be truly private with these acoustics.
The man approached Zo, Talon, and Raca with a frown. Zo knew their size alone was enough to label them anything but Kodiak.
“Wolf and Raven messengers for Murtog.”
The man shook his head. “The chief will not be pleased.”
“He needs to hear what we have to say.”
The heavily hooded brows of the Kodiak furrowed. “He will hear nothing from you, Ikatou. You know this.”
Ikatou nodded. “Please. Help us speak to him.” He looked around the empty cavern. “Before the others awaken.”
The man stood firm, unrelenting.
Ikatou marched over to Zo and raised the backs of her hands to the firelight. “This is important, Poi. For the sake of our people, I beg your help.”
The torchbearer approached Zo and met her eye before taking her hand to examine the new scars. He looked up again at Zo, his gaze deepening into a question he must not have felt qualified to ask.
With a few quick hand gestures, his men fanned out to surround their small company. “I’ll take you. But I cannot promise that he will see you.”
Chapter Fifteen
Laden cleared his throat and added. “I’ve told you my story, boy. Now you tell me yours.”
“Sir?”
“I want to know what you’ve been keeping from me to preserve your loyalty to the Ram.”
Gryphon’s mouth hung open. “How … ”
“How do I know?” Laden shrugged. “I’ve become quite good at reading people. Honorable men are especially easy to decipher. You have the decency to look ashamed every time I mention the future, which tells me you don’t really plan to stay with us.”
Gryphon cast his eyes to the ground. He’d considered telling Laden everything last night before the fire. It was the only way to protect Zo. But telling Laden now, after he’d already called his bluff, felt more like getting caught in a lie than coming forward with the truth. That small distinction mattered to him.
“What I can’t understand is why you’d come all this way for Zo only to leave her.” Laden paused, regarding him with his penetrating glare. “Were you even planning to tell her you were leaving?”
Gryphon’s carefully guarded expression slipped. “You have no idea what you’re talking about, old man.” He turned to leave, more flustered than he cared to admit, when a heavy hand clamped down on his shoulder. “Don’t be a fool, boy.” Commander Laden seemed to choose each word with careful precision. “Don’t break the poor girl’s heart. She’s already been to hell and back.”