Read Online Ki Book One by Odette C. Bell - Free Book Online Page B

if she was fatigued and injured, it didn’t
matter if she was running from a force hell bent on kidnapping her.
All that mattered is what they’d done to his people.
    Her gaze flicked up. At first frightened,
her expression mollified as she concentrated on him. “I have no
defenses against you. I can hardly stand anymore. Yet I beg of you
not to force me to drink that. It’s forbidden.”
    Her glare did not waver. As the fire
crackled behind him, it lit up her face, its reflected light
dancing over her pale cheeks and forehead.
    He stepped back. It was not a conscious
decision; his body did it for him.
    A sudden pang of guilt spread up from his
gut with the speed of a bullet.
    He prided himself on his diligence and
manners. He was the kind of man who opened a door for a woman, who
would stand up for her if anyone berated her down the street. His
mother and sister would be horrified if they’d known what he was
about to do.
    Watching him warily as he stepped further
back, she brushed her hand over her face. The move was sluggish,
her fingers pushing into her dropping cheeks.
    She needed water. She needed rest. No doubt
she also needed to know she could trust him. She would not let her
guard down and rest if he threatened her every other second.
    Guilt now so powerful he almost felt sick,
he placed the wine carefully on the table. “I am...” he couldn’t
force the word sorry from his lips. Instead he grabbed at the oil
lamp still on the fireplace. “I will go out and see what I can draw
from the well. Stay here.”
    For a moment her eyes lolled back into her
head and it looked as if she would faint. At the mention of going
outside, her head snapped forward. The move was lethargic, but
still her gaze sparked .
“You can’t – the wolves—”
    He tried to assure her with a nod, heading
for the door . “I still
have my gun. It may not work against your soldiers, but it is more
than enough to scare the pack away.”
    Still on the edge of the bed, she watched
him carefully as he brought out his gun and made for the door.
    “ Be careful,” she begged through a hard
breath.
    It made him pause, one hand on the door as
the other hooked the lamp under his arm and held the gun.
    He pushed himself forward, the door creaking
ominously as he opened it with all the care and precision he could
muster.
    “ It’s fine, you don’t have to go out,” she
whispered nervously.
    Ignoring her, he moved forward, gun at the
ready, swinging the lamp in an obvious arc.
    He knew the packs of these ranges, and they
were scared by little. They were, at least, fastidiously nocturnal.
For whatever reason, whether it be biology or habitat, they only
ventured out of their dens to hunt at night.
    And hunt they would.
    Tomorrow they would be safe, tonight would
be another matter.
    He heard a growl from his left, up in the
dense scrub by the side of the cabin. The small hut was built into
a slope, the terrain rough and rocky, but pine trees and scraggly
undergrowth still clung to the cabin on the upper side.
    He tensed his legs, ensuring his body was
balanced and centered.
    If he could have afforded the ammo, he would
have shot at the wolves. He could not though; who knew when those
soldiers would return. Instead he swung the oil lamp forward again,
thankful the glass protected the flame from the buffeting gale.
    This high up wind rushed off the peaks
above, bringing down the frosty bite of snow and ice.
    Moving forward, he heard yet another growl
from his other side. If he had to use the gun, he would, he assured
himself.
    Locking his jaw in
anticipation , he headed
around the slope. It was high and steep, and thankfully a river ran
by it to the west, continually feeding the ground water. The well
never ran dry. Though usually you didn’t have to pull from it with
a pack of wolves watching your every move.
    Feeling his forehead slick with sweat, he
kept as close to the side of the hut as he could, using the wall to
protect his flank. It was