Ghostwalker (Book 1) Read Free Page A

name?”
    She opened her eyes again. “I don’t remember anything. I can’t…” Her voice began to break, but she fought back her tears with determination. “I can’t remember anything,” she continued, her voice steady once again. “It’s like I just woke up by this fire for the first time.”
    Kendril leaned forward. “You don’t remember who attacked you? Where you were before this?”
    She shook her head.
    Kendril got to his feet, shaking the raindrops off his cloak. “Can you stand?”
    “Maybe,” she said. “Yes, I can try.”
    He stretched out a gloved hand.
    She took it, rising rather shakily to her feet.
    Kendril led her away from the fire, supporting her with one arm.
    They reached the body of the dead man lying in the grass. Kendril flipped it over with his foot, watching her face carefully. There was no sign of recognition in her eyes.
    She glanced away quickly. “You killed him?” There was new fear in her voice.
    “He tried to kill me ,” Kendril responded testily. “Ambushed me on the trail back there. I followed him back here and found you tied up. You don’t recognize him at all?”
    She shook her head again.
    Kendril scowled. Wonderful.
    By the time they reached the campfire, she was able to walk by herself. She lowered herself onto the log, clutching her knees with her hands.
    Kendril remained standing, leaning against one of the trees a few feet away. “Let me get this straight. You can’t remember anything? Nothing at all?”
    She nodded slowly, the color draining from her face. A tear streamed down her cheek. She bit her lip until it grew white.
    Kendril mumbled a curse, staring out across the clearing for a moment. If she was lying, she was a pretty convincing actor. His gut told him that she wasn’t. Unfortunately, that meant that the only other person who could answer his questions was lying dead a few yards away.
    “Well,” he said finally, “I suppose we should get moving, if you feel well enough to travel. I can take you as far as the Outpost, about a day or two from here. Maybe someone there will recognize you.”
    The woman looked at him. “The Outpost?”
    “Yeah. Just a trading post mostly, but the closest thing to civilization for a ways. If we’re lucky you’ll remember something by then. Do you think you can travel?”
    The woman drew the blanket around her, staring down into the campfire. She nodded slowly. “Yes. I can walk.”
    Kendril chuckled. “I’ve no doubt you can. I was thinking you could ride Simon, though, at least for the first part. He’s stronger than he looks.”
    She glanced over at the mule, who was scratching his flank against the tree trunk. “Your mule?” she asked.
    Kendril nodded. “Why don’t you grab something to eat, and then we can head out when you’re ready.”
    She brushed a strand of hair away from her face. “I’m not very hungry.”
    He nodded. “All right. There’s some coffee here, if you want it. You can warm it up again on the fire. I’m going to see if I can find more water. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” He turned to go.
    “Why are you helping me like this?” the woman asked suddenly.
    Kendril turned around. A smile crept across his face. “What was I supposed to do, leave you to the wolves?”
    “Thank you,” she said.
    Kendril nodded. “I’ll be back in a few minutes,” he said.
     
    The trail ahead didn’t get much better, but at least the rain looked like it had stopped for the day. The sun even managed to break out a few times, though only for brief moments.
    At first Simon was not happy at the prospect of carrying a passenger, but Kendril had a talk with the beast in private. After explaining the situation and bribing the animal with a carrot from the saddlebag, Simon seemed a lot happier. Kendril even carried one of the saddlebags and the rifle, so as not to tax the creature. The air still had a distinct chill to it, so the woman kept the blanket, wrapping it tightly around her as she sat