Wolf's-own: Weregild (6 page)

"
His
choice,” Malick replied, voice tight.

"Pfft,” Fen put in, stumbling again, and growling when it drove him too snugly into Malick.

"And it no doubt suited your purposes,” Umeia bit back. She shook her head when Malick narrowed his eyes at her over Fen's head. “Save it, I don't want to hear it. Just get him upstairs before that brother of his has an apoplectic fit."

Speaking of whom....

"I thought I told you not to come downstairs,” Umeia hissed.

Joori stood up from the bottom step of the attic stairs as they approached, eyes glittering in the low lamplight from the sconces, narrowed at Malick, mostly, suspicious and distrustful, but softening a little when they landed on Fen. “You all right?” he asked softly.

"Fine,” Fen told him, though Umeia didn't miss how he stared at the toes of his boots instead of his brother.

"He's always ‘fine',” Malick put in, sardonic, “except for the trail of blood behind us, anyway,” then he moved to push past Joori and up the stairs.

Joori merely angled himself into a firmer obstacle. “I'll take him,” he told Malick, eyes narrow little slits now, jaw clenched in very clear malice as he shoved his arm between Malick and Fen.

"I've got him,” Malick growled back, slanting his stance to block Joori's attempted coup and bully past him, jostling Fen into Umeia and nearly knocking her sideways, while Fen hissed in apparent pain. Like Fen was a bloody wishbone, and they were going to snap him in two to see who got the bigger piece.

Umeia's teeth tightened. “How about
I
take him while you two whip ‘em out and start measuring?"

They stared at her, both of them, like they had no idea why she'd be pissed off, which pissed her off more. Fen just topped it off with, “Let go. I can do it myself."

Umeia almost did, just to spite them all.

"
You
,” she snapped at Joori, “go up and tell Yori I need my bag then take the sheets off his bed so we don't foul them.” She turned to Malick. “
You
—get a better hold and take more of his weight before he takes us all down.” And then to Fen. “
You
—shut up and start hobbling. You're heavier than you look, and if I go tumbling and break a leg, I'll beat you with my crutch."

They all shut their mouths and did as she'd said, which was good, because Fen really was heavier than he looked; Umeia's shoulder was going numb and her balance was chancy, with him pointedly hanging mostly on her rather than Malick. Fen might look lean and rangy, but he was apparently all dense, compact muscle under the angles and sharp lines.

Yori trotted down as they reached the third step, sparing no more than a sympathetic shrug of her shoulders to Umeia then a smirk at Malick as she bounded past them without a word. “Tell Samin to hurry it up while you're down there,” Umeia said over her shoulder. She'd sent him down to bring up tea and something to eat for the new arrivals as soon as he'd dried off and changed, and he was certainly taking his bloody time about it.

Umeia smiled at Yori's quiet, “Yes, Umeia,” from the bottom of the stairs. At least one of them did as they were told.

"How did you get him through the Gates?” she asked Malick when they were halfway up. She'd fretted for nearly half an hour after Yori and Samin had gotten back with the children, wondering if Malick and Shig and Fen were going to have to spend the night outside the city, and what Umeia was supposed to do with Fen's frantic brother if they did. Malick had gotten them all in then sent them ahead while he went back for Fen and Shig, Samin had told Umeia, with which Samin had plainly disagreed—Joori, as well, from what Samin said; quite vocally too—but of which Samin, at least, had obviously recognized the necessity. Joori, not so much, since he'd apparently been seething ever since. And after Joori had told her exactly why he was seething, Umeia had only fretted more.

"I was going to go with old-fashioned bribery,” Malick told her, brooding. “Even got them to open up one of the accessory doors, but then they saw the braid.” He shrugged when Umeia shot him a frown. “It was either have Shig take care of them, or let them arrest me for interfering with an Untouchable. Or killing them all, but...."

Umeia shook her head. No wonder Shig had merely stomped past her and gone right to bed. Her head must be near to exploding. Umeia would stop in after she finished with Fen.

Joori was waiting at the door to Fen's room when they finally crested the top of the stairs, his jaw still set tight and arms wrapped stiffly about his torso. Vibrating. He didn't advance to try to take his brother back again, but Umeia could tell it was all Joori could do to keep himself still and wait. The younger ones—Caidi and Morin—were standing in the hallway between their new room and the one Yori shared with Shig, wrapped in blankets, watching as Malick and Umeia got their brother up the stairs. Again, Fen didn't look up, just hung his head, hiding behind his hair again, gaze on the floor as he shuffled. He stayed silent as Umeia and Malick maneuvered him down the hall and through the door to his room.

"All right, let's see what we've got here,” Umeia sighed, gratefully lowering Fen to sit on the bed and shaking out her arm as she stepped back.

With an irritated scowl, Fen shook off Malick's grip, but he paused in mid-growl, eyes abruptly sprung wide and anxious, and a sharp little gasp leaked from his throat when Malick moved away. Blindly, Fen reached out, grabbed hold of Malick again, catching only a loose shirttail at first, groping desperately, until Malick reached back and took his hand. The reaction was immediate: instant calm and instant frustrated shame for needing it.

Umeia watched it all with... too many emotions that pissed her off. She sighed. “Help him with the shirt and trousers, M—” She cut herself off, rolled her eyes when Joori's mouth went tight, and shook her head. “Never mind. C'mon, lad, let's get ‘em off."

She tapped at Fen's nearest elbow, satisfied when he only sighed and reached up to unlace his tunic, though she noted—and noted Joori noting—that Malick's hand went to rest on Fen's knee, and Fen didn't try to kill him for it, tightening his mouth only when the tunic gave him trouble. The tie was leather and soaked through, and squeaked when he tried to unknot it. Mouth set, Fen reached down to the sheath on his hip—stopped. He lifted a glare up at Malick.

"Who took my knives?"

"Samin's got them,” Malick said, fingers gently tightening on Fen's knee.

Fen chewed on his lip for a second. “Did... was I...?"

"Yeah, you were,” Malick said; Fen seemed to understand what Malick meant, because his shoulders slumped a little and he reached up to rub at his brow. “Fen, it's all right,” Malick assured him smoothly, “everyone understands, no one cares."

A lovely, tender moment—or at least as tender as these two got, Umeia supposed—but none of it was getting the job done. She shook her head. “Cut it for him, Mal, and let's get this done. Joori, help me get his boots and get the—
Shit
!” Mei snapped a look up at Malick. “What chewed through his boot like that? And....” Oh, for pity's sake. She'd been supporting Fen on the left, and it had been dark when they'd finally staggered through the alley doors. Umeia hadn't gotten a good look at him until now. There was a small puddle of blood pooling on the floor around the sole of his boot, and now that she looked, there really was a trail of it. And she'd thought Malick had just been doing his smartass thing. “What got at you, lad?"

"Wolves,” Joori volunteered with another glare at Malick, which Malick ignored.

The wolf-things Yori had told her about, no doubt, and about which that little Caidi was likely to have nightmares for weeks. These were no blade wounds, and the way the boot and trouser leg were torn to hell....

"Asai bought himself a coven,” Malick said, disgusted and quietly livid. “Came at us all wolfen. Cocky bastards. Leu and a mishmash from Owl and Snake.” A low snort, not the least bit amused. “Tried to pull on a dragon glamour when she recognized me, like she thought it would make some kind of difference."

"
Leu
?” Umeia would have thought Leu smart enough to stay out of something like this altogether. “She wouldn't do
this
, surely."

"She didn't, but her thugs did.” Malick grimaced, and very obviously choked back a growl. “She said they'd be punished for touching him.” A roll of his eyes relayed exactly how appeased he was with that.

Umeia looked down at Fen's leg, ran her fingertips gently over shredded fabric, and poked very lightly at the bloody, mangled flesh exposed through the tears. She stopped immediately when Fen hissed and flinched. It must really be excruciating if
Fen
was reacting like that to such a light touch, and with the infection she knew was already twisting beneath the torn stitches she could see.... “Damn it.” She nodded at Joori. “Boots,” she said then stepped back and out of his way.

"No,” Fen said. He shot Umeia a quick glance then leveled his gaze with his brother's. “Go, Joori. Take care of Caidi and Morin. Malick will help me."

If Umeia hadn't already been getting a pretty good idea of what the budding dynamic was between these three, the clenching of Joori's jaw and the flaring of his glower at Malick at the command would have told her in no uncertain terms.

"I'm not leaving you alone with him,” Joori said, low and even, then he snatched up Fen's left leg.

Before Joori could yank the boot free, Fen snapped his leg out, nearly knocking Joori sideways to the floor, jarring himself in the process, and going a frightening shade of gray as he swayed to the side. “I don't....” Fen paused, sucking in short, shaky breaths, and most telling, allowing Malick to hold him up to prevent him from listing sideways. “I don't want you here, Joori. Get out.” Hard and cold, like he was trying to take the concern in his brother's eyes and turn it into contempt.

To his credit—and Umeia's astonishment—Malick stayed silent, just watched as Joori's eyes widened then narrowed, homing in on Malick's hand again, set firm on Fen's shoulder this time. Joori peered at Fen steadily, shook his head. “No,” he said, quiet but fierce, then he surged in, angling himself between Malick and Fen and trying to shove Malick away at the same time. A solid right hook hit Malick's temple and sent him backward on the bed with Joori on top of him.

Fen went over to the side, rasping out a harsh yip when the raw meat of his leg hit the corner of the mattress. He would have fallen off the bed altogether if Umeia hadn't lunged in to catch hold of him and drag him away from the sudden brawl. “No, no, no,” Fen was muttering, shaking his head and bringing his hands up to crush his palms into his temples. “Stopstopstop, I can't...
can't
....” His eyes were squeezed tight and his muscles were rigid beneath Umeia's grasp.

Malick got the better of Joori quickly, flipping him over to his back on the mattress, knee pressing into his stomach and one arm pinned, grabbing for the other one. “What the
fuck
is wrong with you?” he grated, snapping his head to the side to avoid a clumsy swipe of Joori's curled fist.

"He's paid
enough
!” Joori shouted back at him. “He's not some kind of—"

"Oh, for
fuck's
sake!” Samin thundered from the door. “Are you
bloody
kidding me?” Yori stood beside him, shaking her head in consternation, steaming basin and Umeia's satchel in hand. Caidi and Morin stared, wide-eyed, behind them.

Fen's gaze shot up at Samin's outburst, plummeting right down into desolate when he saw his brother and sister. “Get them out of here,” he wheezed. “Get them out, get them out,
get them out
!"

"Yori, take the children down for a bath,” Umeia snapped, relieved when, yet again, Yori did exactly as she was told, settling the bag and the basin to the clothespress beside the door then hustling the children away.

The surprise and pause in action was just long enough for Malick to get hold of Joori's other arm and slam it down to the mattress, pinning him completely but for his legs, which kept kicking wildly as he tried to buck Malick off him. “He's not your whore!” Joori seethed.

Fen was stiff and shaking against Umeia. Now he took hold of her sleeve with clawlike fingers. “Not now, not
now
, I can't... the noise, I...."

"Oh,” was Umeia's inane reply. The noise—too much of it, and too much pain. He was losing whatever control he usually managed right in front of her. Of course. She spun a helpless look around the room then settled it on Malick. “You're going to have to do something,” she told him.

Samin had deposited the tray he was carrying on the clothespress by Umeia's bag. His glance snapped over at Umeia's quiet command, then locked with Malick's. A quick look sparked between them, then Samin nodded and stalked across the room, square jaw set. Bracing himself to the side of the bed, he gave Malick a short nod, and when Malick broke quickly to his right, Samin swooped in, took hold of Joori—still cursing and spitting—and hauled him to his feet.

"You son of a
bitch
!” Joori snarled, but Malick seemed to hear only Fen's raspy little, “
Pleasepleaseplease
,” and he left Samin to deal with Joori while he rushed over and wedged himself under Fen's arm again. Murmuring things Umeia couldn't hear beneath all the other noise, Malick took Fen's weight from Umeia just as Fen went boneless, gasping, allowing Malick to draw him in and push his face into the hollow between Malick's chin and chest.

Umeia used the opportunity to hustle over and retrieve the tea and her bag. Quickly, she threw a sleeping powder in—xsinzaua, because it worked damned fast, and getting Fen to pass out seemed like a very good idea right now. In fact, she wouldn't mind if every damned one of them lost consciousness. She added some painkiller, not even bothering with spices to soothe the bitter taste, and carried it over.

"
Fuck
,” Fen wheezed, muffled by Malick's still-wet tunic. “I can't... can't
listen
now, I can't... they can't ask it of me, not... it's not
fair
."

"Shh,” Malick soothed. He shot a sharp scowl over at Joori and began carefully leading Fen back over to the bed. “It's not, and you don't have to, not now. I'll keep it quiet for you, all right?"