Limping, Torio helped Dirdra round up the horses. It took the strength of Torio and all three women to heave Zanos across his saddle. Astra and Melissa were fighting sleep, and the use of Adept powers had reduced their Reading ability to that of children. Torio was their only lookout, and he could feel the stinging of his wounds now, Read the infection from the filthy implements with which he had been cut.
Blinking, Melissa swayed as she faced him. “Torio… I have to heal you-no choice.” She touched his shoulder, and the heat of Adept healing cleansed the wound. Then his thigh-a deep wound, and painful.
He winced as the heat increased the pain, but knew she dared not put him to sleep. He would have to stand it somehow, until they got to where it was safe for him to let go consciousness.
And where was that? Melissa leaned on him. “Can’t sleep,” she murmured, although he could feel how hard she had to fight it.
“Get on your horse,” he said. “I’ll lead you.”
Astra was half asleep, leaning against Zanos as she sent her husband from unconsciousness into the healing sleep. Dirdra guided her to her horse and helped her into the saddle, then mounted her own horse, holding Astra’s reins.
Torio led both Zanos and Melissa. It was slow going, but already hungry predators were converging on the scene of battle. At least if they were busy gorging themselves there, they would not be available to attack the helpless travelers.
The path was as rough as ever, and as the sun slanted westward the horses stumbled. When Torio Read a rocky outcropping ahead that formed almost a shallow cave, he decided it was time to stop. He could Read no trace of Maldek, but of course if the Master Sorcerer were simply watching them out of body, not trying to Read their thoughts, he could not be Read unless he wanted to be-or unless he slipped up and projected his presence unintentionally.
Besides, Maldek had said he wanted them to come to him. And he had not used his Adept powers to strike them down now that they were virtually helpless. Sharp waves of pain went through Torio’s thigh with every step of his horse, and the healing heat only increased it. Still, he knew that if he lay down, he would fall asleep despite the pain. It would leave them without a lookout, for Astra was in no better shape than Melissa. But they had to stop somewhere.
Dared he assume that Maldek would find no pleasure in slaughtering them in their sleep?
“I’ll stand watch, Torio,” said Dirdra when they came to a halt at the obvious campsite.
“You’re not a Reader.”
“And how much of a Reader are you when you’re injured and exhausted? Just help me get the others settled, and then you sleep. I’ll build a fire to keep the animals away. I doubt there’ll be any people stirring in this wood by night. And,” she echoed his thought, “if Maldek meant to take us while we cannot fight back, he would surely have done so by now.”
Torio was simply too tired to protest. He sagged into his bedroll and was asleep without another thought.
Torio woke to some sound that had stopped by the time he dragged himself fully conscious. The moment he Read where he was, he remembered- and without moving assessed his situation.
It was just before dawn-but in these northern climes the sun rose early in the summer. Summer? There was frost on the ground-even on the blankets covering the travelers!
No one else was awake. Zanos was in healing sleep, Melissa and Astra equally deep in the dreamless sleep of recovery from the use of Adept powers. Dirdra sat with her back against the stone outcropping, spear at her side, but she was in that same deep sleep bordering on coma. NonReader, nonAdept, she had not entered that state by herself.
The sound that had wakened Torio came again- a growl. A very deep, threatening growl.
He Read its source sniffing around the outskirts of their camp, attracted by the stench of blood and gore from the battle they had waged against the orbu. Torio felt half sick from the putrid stink of his own splattered clothing.
The animal attracted by the stench was a wolf. No-a dog. A dog bigger than a wolf, easily outweighing Torio, but lean, built like a racing hound and covered in shaggy gray hair. It was all muscle, sinew, and teeth-and it was hungry.
The beast sniffed again, smelling the death smell of the splattered gore and the life smell of the five travelers. Its stomach rumbled, and it moved toward Dirdra, prepared to kill and eat.
“No!” ordered Torio, sitting up. “Get back!”
The animal turned, hackles rising, and bared its teeth at him with a threatening growl.
How he longed for Wulfston’s gift of controlling animals!
But if it was a form of Reading, then-
He Read the animal-the stench increasing in his nostrils with the dog’s sensitive nose, but becoming attractive, increasing the hunger, the hunting instinct.
But there was another instinct in the animal. It was dog, not wolf-it had once been accustomed to obeying man, until its master had died and it had gone wild to survive.
Hunger drove it now-and hatred of men who had driven it off with pitchforks and clubs when it had gone after sheep or chickens. It sought vengeance for the many blows it had received, food stolen right out of its mouth.
The dog growled again, slavering, lips pulled back completely, the hair on its back standing straight up as it faced Torio, stiff-legged, assessing him as prey. Helpless prey in the dark-to his astonishment, Torio Read that the animal sensed he was blind.
Where was his sword? In its scabbard, under the blankets-he’d been so exhausted he’d fallen asleep wearing it. He’d never get it out and untangled from his bedroll before the animal tore his throat out.
He Read the dog catch a whiff of his startlement and crouch to spring.
“No!” he projected instinctively, as if to a child who had just begun to Read. “No-you don’t want to hurt me. You want someone to care for you-to feed you.”
The animal stopped in confusion, growling again but not attacking.
There was food in the packs somewhere-supplies they had bought in town. Torio projected an image: the dog sitting before him, Torio stroking him and giving-giving him; the animal was male-a piece of cheese. He projected intense pleasure, security, love.
The dog sat down, sniffing the air in confusion.
Again Torio projected the image. The dog whined.
Holding his breath, Torio pulled his legs up and slid out of his bedroll, moving very slowly as he found his supplies where Dirdra had placed his saddlebags under his head as a pillow. He pulled out his food packet and unwrapped a chunk of cheese, broke off a piece, and held it out toward the dog.
Again projecting the image of petting and feeding the dog, Torio offered the tidbit, saying, “Here, boy.
Come on. No one’s going to hurt you.”
He held his breath as the animal sniffed his outstretched hand-and then took the cheese. The dog sat back, waiting, and Torio broke off another piece and fed it again. There was nowhere near enough to satisfy the animal’s appetite-but his need for human companionship was almost as strong. When the cheese was gone, he accepted bread until the desperate ache in his gut was appeased.
And then he butted his huge head against Torio’s hand, as if demanding the petting he had promised!
He stroked the dog’s head uncertainly-there had been no dogs at the Academy, just a cat that spent most of its time lounging before the fire in the kitchen. Wulfston had dogs, but Torio had never paid much attention to them.
But he quickly Read where the beast felt the most pleasure, scratching behind his ears, the sides of his face.
After a time, the beast got up and turned in a circle-then flopped down next to Torio, pressed his great body against Torio’s, and fell asleep.
Dawn was breaking, but although they had fallen asleep before sunset, Zanos, Astra, and Melissa were still deeply asleep. Now that his charge of adrenaline from being awakened by the dog was gone, Torio was sleepy again. The warmth of the animal was comforting.