Ghostwalker (Book 1) (25 page)

He opened his eyes again, turning his neck painfully to the side. “Like someone dropped a boulder on my ribcage, so I guess that means I still have feeling below my neck.” He swallowed. “Last thing I remember was that bounty hunter standing over me. What happened?”

Jade glanced back at the fire. “A man came and rescued us. He’s the one who treated your wound.”

Kendril gave her a sharp look. “A man?”

“She means me.” Joseph appeared suddenly by the wagon, running his hand through his disheveled hair. “Name’s Joseph. I’d shake your hand, but I know you’re a little indisposed at the moment.”

The Ghostwalker laid his head back against the cart. “Kendril. Sounds like we owe you our thanks.”

The scout waved his hand. “It was nothing.”

“Joseph’s a scout,” said Jade eagerly. “He’s going to guide us to the nearest town.”

Kendril coughed, then gave a crooked smile. “Well, that’s better than either Maklavir or I were doing. Where is that pompous buffoon, anyway?”

“He’s here,” said Jade. She glanced over his shoulder. “Still asleep.”

“On the contrary,” said a familiar voice from the other side of the fire. “I’m
trying
to sleep.” Maklavir rolled over, and pushed the blanket away.

“Here’s some water,” said Joseph, handing down a full skin. “We have more, if you need.”

“Thanks. I think I can get it,” said Kendril. He took the water skin with his right hand, pushing himself up slowly into a sitting position. He took a long drink from the skin, then put it down. “How long was I out?”

Jade thought for a second. “A day or so.”

Kendril slowly nodded. “And the bounty hunter?”

Joseph smiled. “I put a knife through his arm. We haven’t seen him since.”

The Ghostwalker gave a satisfied grin. “I wish I could have seen that.”

Maklavir staggered over next to them, stretching his back. “I must have spent half the night on a bloody rock.” His face brightened when he saw Kendril. “Good to see you up and around, old chap. How’s the side?”

Kendril slowly stretched his left side. He gave a surprised look. “Bad, but not as bad as I would have thought.”

“I’ve been putting a healing salve on it. Glad to see it’s working.” Joseph moved back to the fire, and prodded the dying embers with a stick. “I’ll get some water going for coffee. We can have a quick breakfast and then hit the road again.”

Jade turned back to Kendril. “You’re feeling better, than?”

The Ghostwalker took another drink of water. “Believe me, I’ve been a whole lot worse.” He looked over at her. “You’re not hurt, are you?”

“Oh, no.” She shook her head. “The bounty hunter didn’t even lay a finger on me.”

“Well,” Maklavir said with a yawn, “in another couple days we should be out of this accursed forest. I for one can’t wait to be back in civilization again.” He turned back to the fire.

“I have your pistols.” Jade reached into a nearby saddlebag and drew out the Ghostwalker’s weapons. “They were pretty wet, but I think I dried them out well enough.” She handed one of them over to the wounded man. “I sharpened the flints while I was on watch. Loaded them all, too.”

Kendril weighed the weapon in his free hand, then shifted his gaze over to Jade. “Well, well. You’ve become quite the firearms expert, haven’t you?”

She gave a shy smile. “They’re all right, then?”

“Couldn’t have done better myself.” He put the pistol aside, and his voice softened. “Have you remembered anything else?”

Jade’s face faltered for a moment. “No, not really. Just an odd bit of knowledge here and there.”

Kendril frowned. “I’m sorry, Jade.”

She tried to smile, even though she didn’t feel it. “I’m sure it will come back, eventually. It’s only a matter of time.”

The Ghostwalker nodded silently.

“Well,” Jade said, “I’ll go help Joseph with breakfast. I’ll bring you back something, if you’re feeling hungry.” She turned to go.

“Jade?”

She turned back around.

“You should have left me behind.” His eyes were stern. “You could have been killed.”

Jade looked at the Ghostwalker for a moment, feeling a sudden wellspring of emotion inside her.

“You didn’t leave
me
, Kendril,” she whispered.

She turned back to the fire.

Chapter 17

The sun had hardly risen before the four travelers were once again on the road, heading east into the brooding forest. All through the morning the skies above were gray with the threat of rain. It finally came about an hour before noon in a slight but steady downfall.

At first Kendril had been reluctant to ride in the back of the wagon, determined to ride Simon instead. He had been all set to do so when Jade had pleaded with him not to, until he reluctantly returned to the back of the cart. Jade rode in the front once more, but decided to give Simon a break from pulling the wagon, and tied the spare horse on instead.

As usual Joseph continued to ride both ahead and behind them, scouting for any sign of trouble. He often disappeared for several minutes at a time, only to reappear and ride beside the wagon as if he had never left at all. Maklavir and Jade managed to strike up a lively conversation for most of the morning, but Kendril stayed mostly silent. Jade guessed that he was still in more pain than he was willing to admit.

They stopped around noon, once more in a campsite just off the main road that Joseph located. There was no time to start a fire, so they broke out what little food they had for lunch and ate it cold. The rain continued to fall, but the heavy stack of branches and leaves above their heads gave them some protection, although cold water occasionally dripped down onto the back of an exposed neck.

After lunch Joseph mounted his horse, and rode back down the road with the promise that he would be back in ten minutes. Maklavir promptly tipped his cap back over his eyes and found the driest piece of ground he could, stretching out with his hands folded behind his head.

Kendril walked a little way into the wood, pulling out one of the short swords that Maklavir had kindly returned to him. He tested it in his right hand, swinging it back and forth. Then, ever so carefully, he shifted the weapon to his left. He swept the sword out slowly, stifling a groan as pain shot up his side. Taking a breath, he started again, trying to swing it a little faster. His face grimaced from the effort.

“Trying to bust your stitches?”

The Ghostwalker turned his head to see Jade standing behind him. “I’m
trying
to get my reflexes back.”

The young woman found a stump and brushed some leaves off it, then sat down. “Your side will never heal if you don’t let it, you know.”

Kendril looked forward again and gave the sword another gentle swing. “It’s feeling a lot better. Whatever Joseph put on it really seems to have helped.”

Jade cupped her hands in front of her face. “You got shot in the side with a crossbow, Kendril. It’s a miracle you’re still alive.”

He sheathed the blade and turned towards her. “If that bounty hunter shows up again, I have to be ready.”

“We haven’t seen hide nor hair of him or his men.” Jade shuddered as a cold drop of water hit her hand. “I think they may have given up on us.”

Kendril grunted. “They don’t strike me as the kind of men to give up that easily.”

“No,” said Jade, “I guess not.” She looked down at her hands for a moment. “Kendril?”

 He drew the sword again and gave it a practice swipe. “Hmm?”

“Who’s Celeste?”

The Ghostwalker froze in mid-swing. He snapped his head in Jade’s direction.

Jade pressed her face into her hands, feeling her heart pound. “You called me that yesterday, when you were barely conscious. Who is she?”

Kendril looked away again, giving his sword another precise swing. “Nobody. Forget about it.”

The rain increased in tempo, and the pattering of the drops on the branches overhead grew louder. Jade knew she should let the matter drop, but curiosity drove her one step further.

“Someone you know?”

Kendril paused for a moment, his back to her and his sword poised in his left hand. Then he took a step forward.

His blade whirled around in a dizzying circle, switching from his left hand to his right, then back to his left. A split second later it slashed through two low-hanging branches, one after the other. Both fell to the ground, completely severed from the tree.

Kendril took a step back, breathing heavily and biting his lip in pain. He re-sheathed the sword as quickly as he had drawn it.

Jade leapt to her feet in alarm and was about to say something when the Ghostwalker turned around. The expression on his face startled her into silence.

“Someone I
knew
,” he said tersely. “A long time ago. Now let it drop.” He brushed by her, heading back to the campsite.

Overhead, a cold breeze blew through the branches, sending a sudden hail of cold drops to the ground beneath.

“This weather is absolutely miserable.” Maklavir gave his cape a shake from where he rode on Veritas. Water flew in all directions. “I wouldn’t be surprised if I catch pneumonia.”

“We can only hope, Maklavir.” Kendril leaned his hooded head back against the wet wood of the wagon. “Any sign of Joseph?”

Jade pulled her hat down lower over her eyes. Rain spattered on the brim. “No,” she said over her shoulder. “He’s up ahead somewhere. It’s getting hard to see.”

The Ghostwalker glanced up at the sky above the road. “We should stop for the night soon. The sun’s almost down.”

“Absolutely miserable,” Maklavir repeated. He sneezed. “Did you hear that? I’m coming down with something already.”

Kendril gritted his teeth as he pulled himself up to where he could see over the front of the cart. “Be sure to keep us all posted on the latest developments,” he said.

Maklavir sneezed again. “I can’t believe how heartless you are. It will be no laughing matter if we all come down sick.”

Kendril looked ahead into the gathering dusk. “How long has Joseph been gone?”

Jade glanced over at him in surprise. “I don’t know. A while. Why?”

The cart splashed through a large puddle on the road. “He hasn’t been away this long before.” Kendril looked back down the road behind them.

“Perhaps he’s found another campsite,” suggested Maklavir. “Or—”

A sharp
twang
filled the air, and an instant later an arrow thumped into the wooden seat right beside Jade.

Simon brayed loudly.

Kendril threw back his cloak and reached for his pistol.

Suddenly, as if appearing out of mid-air, several figures materialized from the surrounding woods. There were at least a half dozen of them, dressed in green and brown with dark handkerchiefs covering their faces and hoods over their heads. Each held a stout bow, aimed at the travelers before them.

Maklavir fumbled with his sword and shakily drew it from his sheath.

Kendril stood painfully in the back of the cart, his hand on the handle of his undrawn pistol.

One of the figures strode into the road in front of the cart, his bow aimed right at Jade. “I told you that trapper was lying. There
were
more of them.”

One of the other hooded men nodded, and motioned to one of the ambushers behind him.

A second later Joseph was pulled out of the bushes, then thrown down into the mud in front of the cart. His hands were tied behind his back, and his mouth was gagged.

Jade jumped off the wagon and ran over to him. She pulled off the gag, and the scout gave a gasp.

“I’m sorry…” he managed, trying to rise to his feet. “There were too many of them, I couldn’t--”

“Shut up,” snarled one of the men. He aimed his arrow straight at Jade’s chest. “Get back.”

In a flash the pistol was in Kendril’s hand, pointed at the man’s head. “Try it and you die.”

The men around the cart tensed, their bows shifting toward the Ghostwalker.

“You’re outnumbered. Put the gun away,” said a calm voice. It was one of the hooded figures standing off to the side, a red handkerchief and green hood covering his face. His muffled voice sounded young.

Without taking his eyes off the man he was targeting, Kendril suddenly whipped a second pistol out from under his cloak, and aimed it at the man with the red handkerchief.

“I’ve been outnumbered before,” the Ghostwalker growled.

For a suspenseful moment there was only the sound of the gently falling rain, skittering onto the leaves overhead.

Maklavir finally cleared his throat, then slowly put away his sword. “Yes, well, might I ask what your intentions are, gentlemen?”

The figure with the red handkerchief glanced over at the diplomat. “We mean to take any valuables you may have, and hold you for ransom. If you cooperate you will live.” He gave Kendril a pointed look. “Or we could just kill all of you now.”

“I see…” said Maklavir.

Joseph staggered to his feet with the help of Jade. “We have nothing you would want,” he said to the robbers.

“Really?” said the man near Jade. He glanced down at her, and then over at Maklavir. “Perhaps the girl and that one over there have some wealthy friends?”

“Please,” said Jade, turning to the bandit with the red handkerchief, “we’re being chased by a bounty hunter. If he—”

“A bounty hunter?” said the bandit. “Well, well. Then you
are
worth something.” He looked up at Kendril. “Put down your guns and I promise you won’t be harmed.”

The Ghostwalker didn’t move.

“Kendril,” said Maklavir, slowly raising his hands, “don’t be a fool. You’ll get us all killed.”

“Better than being held for ransom,” Kendril said.

“Kendril, please…” said Jade, looking up at the young man in the cart. “It isn’t worth it.”

“It’s money we want, not blood,” said the man in the red handkerchief again. “None of you will be harmed as long as you don’t resist. You have my word.”

Kendril snorted. “The word of a highwayman? That’s
very
reassuring.”

“If I had wanted to kill you,” the robber continued, “I would have done it already. Now I’ll tell you for the last time.
Put your guns down
.”