Read Online Gideon's Spear by Darby Karchut - Free Book Online Page A

argue, Mac Roth added. “And time and enough for ye to let go of yer grief and yer guilt.” He gave his friend a push toward the door. “The past is past. Yer future is waiting for ye at home.”
    * * *
    With a grunt, Finn jabbed the punching bag again. Sweat darkened his T-shirt. Each smack of fist against canvas sent a shockwave up his arms and into his shoulders. Ignoring the pain, he bounced lightly on his toes, then hit it again in a one-two combo. A white-hot bubble of frustration welled up inside of him. Lot of good it does me, being the Spear, when he doesn’t tell me anything. He just expects me to follow his orders like some trained monkey . The image of Gideon driving away without so much as a fare-thee-well looped through his head. Resentment turned to anger. He hit the bag harder. And harder. Wanting to hurt it. Or hurt someone. Fueling the fury inside him.
    Not a good idea.
    Without warning, the rage swelled up and broke loose with a silent roar. A reddish-black wave filled his vision as the warp spasm exploded inside his chest and flooded his entire body. He could feel the prickling along his scalp as his hair stood on end, sticking out from his head like miniature spears.
    Setting his feet in a boxer’s stance, he hammered the bag as hard as he could, sucking in air between the blows. Each strike against the rough canvas scraped the skin on his bare knuckles. The pain felt good. With a cry, he pulled back his right arm, determined to knock the bag clean off its rope.
    A hand caught his wrist.
    Trapped in the claws of the warp spasm, Finn spun around. With a scream, he swung his left fist. It smacked into Gideon’s open palm. The Knight closed his fingers around Finn’s fist.
    â€œEasy now, boyo.”
    His feet slipping on the grass, Finn tried to wrench free. He snarled through gritted teeth as he pulled against the master’s iron grip on his hand. The world turned crimson as the warp spasm squeezed him.
    Then it abruptly let go.
    It was like all his bones had melted. When Gideon released him, he folded to the ground and slumped forward, forehead to knees. All the events of the last few weeks crashed over him like an avalanche. Asher’s death. The Spear. Iona. To his mortification, his eyelids prickled. He bit down on his lip to punish himself for being a such a wimp.
    â€œNow, what’s all this about?” Gideon asked in a low voice, squatting next to him. “I come home and find you attacking this poor innocent bag that had clearly waved the white flag.”
    Finn choked on a laughing sob at his master’s words. “It tried to sneak up behind me, so I taught it a lesson.” He sniffed and wiped his face before sitting up.
    â€œBrave lad to have stood up to such a fearsome adversary.” Gideon cocked his head to one side. “A right dreadful warp spasm, eh?”
    He nodded wearily. “I hate them. I wish I could control them better.”
    â€œAye, I know what you mean.”
    â€œAre yours as bad as mine?”
    â€œThey are. I’ve fought that black beast all my life. As I told you before—we Celts are famous for our tempers. Some, like you and I, struggle more with it more than most. Why, I spent many a day as an apprentice fixing busted doors and smashed windows. And once, helping my master heal a broken nose.”
    â€œYou—you punched your master in the face?” Finn’s voice cracked in astonishment.
    â€œWhen I was seventeen. Not one of my more stellar moments.”
    â€œWhat did he do after you hit him?”
    â€œWhy, he struck me back so hard I flew out of my shoes and landed on my arse in the middle of the previous week.”
    They grinned at each other, the tension easing. Then Gideon rose, pulling Finn up with him. With a glance at the sky, he said, “Time for lunch. And then we’ll talk.”
    â€œAbout Iona?”
    â€œAbout a great many things.”

Ten
    G ideon looked up