Master of Chains - Jess Lebow [61]
Nazeem only smiled, then stood up and placed one of the rocks in his sling. He spun it around once quickly, then let the stone fly. The projectile whizzed through the air and slammed into the stone wall behind Ryder with tremendous force. It shattered into countless tiny shards and rained down on Ryder's head.
"Be careful," reiterated Ryder. "If Giselle catches you with that thing, there is no telling what she'll do to you."
The Chultan lifted the leather to his forehead and tied the ends behind his head, turning the sling into a headband. He held his hands out, presenting his new fashion. "Surely it is of no threat to anyone."
Ryder lay back on the woven mat Nazeem had made for him. "I stand corrected."
It was quiet up in the Giant's Run Mountains, especially tonight. The air was calm, so the little whistle of the wind through the broken gates and over the ramparts was noticeably missing. All Ryder could hear was the crackling of the small cook fire on the other side of the courtyard and the tumbling of Nazeem's stones across the ground as he sorted them.
"I see the warriors of the Broken Spear are leaving on another raid," said Nazeem, changing the subject.
Ryder lifted his head. In the dimming light, through the bars of the cage, he could see a group of the robed warriors walking out the open doorway. "All of them?"
"No." Nazeem smiled as he looked down on his pile of rocks. He pointed to the top of the wall. "The lovely little one you watch so closely is staying here."
Ryder followed the Chultan's hand up to see Giselle standing atop a stone near the crenellations. "Nazeem, I am a married man," he protested.
"Yes, but married or not, you are still a man."
Ryder thought about it for a moment as he watched Giselle lean out on the wall, cupping a hand to her mouth to yell something down to the departing warriors.
She was certainly beautiful. And that beauty was only enhanced by her rugged surroundings and seemingly inexhaustible ability to cope with changing situations.
"It's hard to argue with your logic." Ryder rested his head back down on the mat. He closed his eyes and thought about Samira. She was strong too, though in a different way than Giselle. Samira had put up with a lot more from him than any person should have to. She held her ground, even when she didn't know the odds. She waited patiently, not having any idea when her waiting might come to an end. While he had gone out to fight, raising his sword to satisfy his own feelings of frustration and powerlessness, Samira was strong without having to take action. That, thought Ryder, might be the more powerful type of strength, and the more difficult to master as well.
With thoughts of his beautiful wife on his mind, Ryder drifted off to sleep.
A nearly full moon was high in the night sky when he was awakened by the sound of the cage door opening. It was Jase. He looked a little panicked.
"What? What is it?" said Ryder as he came out of his sleep.
"Shh," said Jase. "Be quiet and follow me."
Ryder got to his feet. Peering out through the bars, he could see Giselle and several other Broken Spear warriors up on the wall.
"Jase, if you're trying to help me-"
"There is something coming this way," interrupted the young night watchman. "Giselle asked me to wake you and your Chultan friend."
Ryder was puzzled. "She asked you to come get us?"
Jase nodded. "Please, it's urgent."
Ryder turned to shake Nazeem, but the tattooed man was already standing.
"All right," said Ryder to the young man, "lead on."
Jase tossed Ryder the ruined shackles that had bound him on his way out here.
"You'll need these," said Jase. Then he turned and headed across the courtyard, past a line of dead trees beside the wall, and over to the ladders that lead up.
Ryder and Nazeem followed.
When they got to the top, they found Giselle standing on a stone block, peering over the edge with a captain's glass, a length of rope slung over her shoulder. There were several Broke Spear guards beside her.
"Is it them again?" asked one of the sentries.