Part 37 (1/2)
”What!” Karlene had heaved herself halfway to her feet when Gyhard moved
into the firelight and she saw the look on his face. ”That's not funny!”
”It was for a moment.” He turned to Vree, and the grin disappeared. ”What's wrong?”
She shook her head and crossed to where her dagger lay almost hidden in the
shadows. When she picked it up, it felt as though it no longer belonged in her hand.
”Vree?”
”We missed.” The weapon lay cold and unforgiving across her palm. She looked from it to Gyhard; to a familiar face. ”We never miss.”
”Never miss...” Bannon echoed. Or perhaps he'd spoken aloud, and she'd been the one who'd merely thought it.
”Everyone misses once in a while,” Gyhard said softly. ”It doesn't make you less then you were.”
”No. More.” She tried to hide the fear in a bitter laugh. ”We react as one. We throw as two.” Dropping her gaze, she sheathed the blade. ”What happens if we're attacked?”
Attacked. Gyhard kept his expression carefully neutral. He hadn't told them what had happened back by the village; had ridden behind the two women until the rain had washed away all the visible signs and then the storm had made conversation difficult. And now? Although he remained a target for as long as he remained in Bannon's body, the a.s.sa.s.sin was dead. He suspected that the moment the army received the corpse the hunt would be up again, but for now he was safe and therefore had no need to set Vree specifically guarding her brother's body. No need to cause her more distress than she already endured.
”Who's going to attack us out here?” he asked, gesturing with his right arm-his left carefully immobilized by a thumb through a belt loop. The shoulder was only bruised, but moving it twisted barbed spikes of pain in the muscle. The storm had helped him hide it all afternoon. ”Bandits? They'd have to be pretty stupid ones considering how seldom this road is used.”
”And there're no wild animals this close to the center of the Empire,” Karlene offered.
”No bandits? No wild animals?” Vree's voice rose. ”What the slaughtering difference does that make? We missed a target we should've been able to hit in our sleep!” She stomped back to the fire and dropped down to sit cross-legged beside it.
Gyhard's hand hovered over her hair. When he saw Karlene watching him, he let it fall back to his side. ”I think...” He paused with exaggerated politeness while the bard sneezed. ”I think we should get out of these wet clothes and let them dry.”
Vree had no difficulty identifying the source of a sudden, intense rush of heat. Bannon's thoughts. Her thoughts. All at once, it became very easy to tell them apart.
”The four of us, naked by the fire, keeping warm on a cool, damp, summer night...”
”Slaughter it, Bannon, with everything else that's going on, how can you keeping thinking about f.u.c.king all the time?”
”Maybe because I can only think about it as long as I'm in your body!” He turned her head so she could see Gyhard stepping out of the wide folds of his trousers.
”I had no idea you were such a prude.”
As the firelight flickered over the hard curves of her brother's thighs and belly, she felt Bannon's desire. It was easy to hide her desire within it. ”And I never knew you were such a pervert,” she snapped, dragging dripping folds of silk over
her head. When she emerged, still staring at Gyhard, her eyes narrowed. ”What's wrong with your arm?”
”What do you mean?”
”You can't lift it over your head, you've barely managed to get your s.h.i.+rt off
and...” Vree leaped to her feet and stepped toward him. ”There's a huge
slaughtering bruise just below your shoulder!”
”I didn't realize you knew your brother's body so well,” Gyhard murmured. ”The fire is throwing so little light, I can hardly see you at all.”
Vree leaned closer, studying his arm. ”It's swollen too. What happened?”
”My horse kicked me.”
”When?”
”When you two-pardon me, Bannon; you three- rode off without me this
morning. I went off the horse, fortunately retained my grip on the reins, and while I was on the ground, he kicked me.””Vree!””Calm down, Bannon, let me find out how bad it is.” ”Is anything broken?”
”No.”
”How much use of it have you lost?”
”About half.”
”Are you in much pain.”
A dark brow lifted, the upper curve of the arc disappearing under a wet curl.
”Why do you care?”
”In case you've forgotten,” Vree snarled, ”you're in a borrowed body. If you're feeling pain, then you've damaged it.”