Nameless (Nameless #1)(43)
Zo sat for a minute longer, watching him guardedly as he worked, until she finally reached for her plate and began picking at the food. A small part of him wanted to ease the sorrow on her face. To explain that the Wolf was alive. That he wasn’t the monster she believed he was. Maybe if she knew she wouldn’t hate him so. Maybe.
But then, why did he care?
They sat together with only the sound of Gryphon’s humming to keep them company. It was fully dark before Gryphon heard the clinking bottles of Zo’s kit.
“May I help you?” She gestured to his leg.
Zo opened her kit and began working on Gryphon’s thigh. She reopened and cleaned the wound with graceful strokes that felt much more painful than they looked. Gryphon clamped down his jaw and tried to relax as she worked.
When she seemed satisfied that the wound was clean, she mixed a potent concoction of oils to make an ointment. After stitching him up, she wrapped a clean bandage around his leg. Her fingers were smooth and steady but freezing cold.
When she closed her eyes Gryphon stared openly at the subtle movement of her full lips as she muttered words of healing under her breath. She finished and rolled onto her side, wincing from pain, and fell asleep.
Gryphon forgot his carving and watched the rise and fall of her thin frame by the light of a lone candle.
Joshua found him there an hour later. “Hey, Gryph, how is she?” He settled onto the ground next to him.
Gryphon struggled to find his feet without tugging on his new stitches. “I’m sorry about this morning, Joshua. I shouldn’t have yelled.”
“You’re stressed. I get it.”
Gryphon ruffled his hair. “Go get her an extra blanket. Her fingers are freezing.” He hobbled away imagining Joshua’s stunned expression following him.
Chapter 22
The following day, Gryphon walked with only a minor limp down the road to Sara’s family home for Eva’s engagement ceremony. Each step away from home had him questioning the wisdom of leaving the Wolf unguarded. He carried the only key to the barn door on a string around his neck. The feel of the metal knocking against his chest gave him a small sense of security.
Soon all of his troubles would be behind him. His brothers would forgive him the inconsistent decisions of the past few weeks. Gryphon’s triumphs on the battlefield would cloud the clan’s memory of his dishonorable father. And Zo …
He cringed at his natural use of the girl’s name.
The healer would melt into the background, living on his family land, away from harm and out of his notice forever. A tiny bit of hope buoyed up his mood. Everything would work out. It would.
The closer Gryphon came to Sara’s family home, the more people joined him on the road. Though with all of the recent engagements inside the Gate, many of the Ram weren’t headed for the same ceremony.
Gryphon spotted Ajax on the edge of his in-law’s property line. They fell into step together and Ajax threw his arm around Gryphon.
“Where is your gift, brother?” He looked behind Gryphon for some invisible goat on a leash. “Tell me you didn’t come without an offering for the bride!”
“It’s taken care of.” Gryphon, patted a pocket inside his fur vest.
Ajax didn’t seem convinced. “Just don’t make a fool of me. My father-in-law still wishes Sara hadn’t accepted my claim a year ago.”
“Funny. He likes me all right.”
Ajax scowled but his nose wrinkled in the process, killing the effect. “Don’t force me to end you, brother. Zander will be disappointed if I take out his famous Striker.”
“I’ll do my best.”
Four long wooden tables sat in a square around a blazing fire. Next to the fire, two carved stones created the legs for an altar. Most of the guests clustered around the periphery, chatting in reverent tones while the would-be groom and a few of his mess brothers stood inside the ring of tables laughing and drinking.
“Taurus is an idiot.” Ajax said, looking at Eva’s soon-to-be husband. “I don’t know why Eva accepted him.”
Movement beside the family shed caught Gryphon’s attention, though the smoke of the fire blurred his vision. He took a few steps away from the group to get a better look.
A burly man in Nameless rags stared at Taurus with unmasked hatred. Gryphon knew the expression well, had seen it countless times on the battlefield. The Nameless’ concentrated stare moved from Taurus to Gryphon then to the dirt at his feet.
There was something about the man’s look. His posture. His dark expression that didn’t seem completely right—especially coming from a Nameless. A loud woman with wild russet hair moved into Gryphon’s line of sight. He sidestepped the woman and went to confront the Nameless, but on second glance, the Nameless had disappeared.
“What’s up?” Ajax moved to Gryphon’s side and squinted into the forest.
Not wanting to cause a scene at Eva’s ceremony, Gryphon said, “It’s nothing.”
A soft horn sounded and everyone took their seats around the outside of the square tables. Sara led Ajax away to sit with her family, leaving Gryphon to sit alone near the end of one of the four tables.
All talk ceased and all eyes stared at the backdoor of the house, awaiting the bride’s entrance.
“May I sit with you?”