He hefted it in his hand. “You’re right. I’ll tie it to my belt. It’s too valuable to leave behind.” He finished pulling on the leather vest. When he was done, he was breathing heavily from the exertion. “We need to find water, and soon, before we look for a way back to Alta Novis.”
“I agree, but I’m completely turned around. Which way do we go?”
“West.”
“Why west?”
“A large number of Mutah fortresses are to the west. We’re more likely to come across one if we go in that direction. Plus, quite a few of them fly my father’s banner.”
“So they won’t mind you bringing along a Normal outsider?”
The smile he gave her was sincere. “I’ll vouch for you.”
“What about water?”
He tapped the side of his nose. “I’ll stay on the lookout.”
22
Fate
With patience and effort, Caralas managed to help Mattox to his feet, letting him lean heavily on her uninjured side. “This isn’t going to work,” he stated. “You won’t be able to withstand my weight for more than a few steps at a time.”
She knew better than to argue with him. He was right. She already felt somewhat faint from the heat and lack of water. “You’ll need a crutch.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem.”
Curious, she watched as he peeled away some of the tiles from the roof that sat propped against the shrub, exposing a couple of beams. Pulling his knife from his belt, he used the hilt to pound at one of the planed logs. Eventually, the beam came free, and he placed it back on the roof.
“Find me a rock, will you? Preferably a big, flat one I can hold in my hand.”
A short search produced one, and she held it out to him. Their fingers brushed as his hand closed over hers, and they remained that way for a few seconds longer than necessary before he pulled away first.
Using the rock like a hammer, he proceeded to pound the nails out of the beam. When he was done, he held the length of wood against his side. “It’s a bit short, but at least it’s sturdy enough where I can put my weight on it. Come on. Let’s get going. We’ve lost a lot of daylight already.”
She pointed to the shield. “Shouldn’t we take that with us? If it wasn’t for the sun reflecting off of it, I wouldn’t have found you.” She added a smile. “It’s brought us good luck so far.”
“Damn thing’s made of metal. It’ll burn you.”
“It has an arm guard.”
“Is it too heavy for you?”
Caralas stared at him, wondering if he’d just thrown her a slur about her ability to defend herself, but his expression was sincere. He was honestly concerned about her rapidly fading strength, as well as his own. In answer, she reached around to find the grip and tried to lift it. It was surprisingly lighter than she’d expected. “I can manage.”
“Good. Let’s go.”
They made good time, in spite of Mattox’s bad leg. But every so often when she checked, the lines of pain in his face silently told her how much pain he was in. Oddly enough, at those times when he looked to be in agony, his eyes took on a lighter hue. It was at those times when she begged they take a short break. If he suspected she was pleading weakness on his account, he didn’t mention it. She wondered if his pride would let him.
At one point they found a small tree that afforded them a small amount of shade from the hot sun. By silent mutual consent, they collapsed against the trunk to rest. They both were sweating profusely. Their clothing was soaked.
Looking over at him, she noticed his hair hanging heavy and wet around his face and neck, and she knew he had to be sweltering. Without saying anything, she tore a piece of fabric from the hem of his tunic, then crawled on her knees over to him. “Look away,” she ordered. He opened his mouth to ask why, when he felt her pulling his hair away from where it clung to his beard and skin.
“Whoa. You got a big gash on the back of your head. Did you know that?”
“No.” He tried to touch it, but she batted his hand away. “Is it bad?”
“You tell me. It doesn’t look deep. What blood I see is already clotted. Tell me if this hurts.” She lightly touched the line of dried blood. “Well?”
