A Girl From Nowhere (The Firewall Trilogy #1) - James Maxwell Page 0,75
gave a low whistle.
Griff came bounding forward. Taimin threw himself onto the wherry’s back. Knowing he was taking a great risk, but that above all he couldn’t lose sight of Selena, he decided to head for a low crest, halfway between himself and the bax. It wouldn’t provide much cover, but he would risk being seen in order to get close.
He dug in his heels. Griff raced along, his claws digging into the ground. The crest grew closer and closer. As he reached the top, Taimin brought Griff to a halt. He slid off the wherry’s back to lie on his stomach on the waist-high boulder’s slope. Griff sank to his haunches. Taimin scanned the area and strained his ears, anxious to know if he had been spotted.
At that moment Dex burst into the sky. The golden sun cast a brilliant glare over the plain. Taimin’s heart sank. The bax with Selena must have taken cover. He couldn’t see them anywhere.
He cursed and wondered what he should do. He couldn’t just ride around in circles. Still on his stomach, he decided he would need to stay where he was and never take his eyes off the plain. It wasn’t a good place to hide from the city guard, but he didn’t have a choice.
A steady breeze came up, blowing hot air against his face as it sent dead bushes rolling along in its wake. Taimin gnawed at his lip, knowing he was in a bad position. He couldn’t leave, but he knew he shouldn’t stay.
Then he heard Griff growl, emitting a long, low rumble followed by a whine.
A shiver of fear crept up and down Taimin’s spine. He recognized the sound. He frantically searched the landscape to find somewhere else to hide.
He was too late.
Griff looked up and give another fearful whine. A cold hand of dread squeezed Taimin’s chest when he followed the wherry’s eyes.
Dark winged shapes wheeled in the sky.
The wyverns were already circling toward the ridge. With Dex lighting up the plain, and the men of the city guard looking down from above, Taimin knew he had already been seen. There were more of the wyverns this time, at least twice as many. The winged creatures began to give piercing cries. Each shriek made Griff cringe.
Taimin climbed to his feet. He drew the sword he had taken from Galen’s brother and moved away from the crest to stand in a cleared patch of ground.
He turned to Griff. “Go,” he said. “They’ll kill you.”
Griff growled and then whimpered. His expression was distressed. His long lashes framed his gentle eyes as he moved closer to Taimin and nudged him with his head.
As Dex rose ever higher, chasing the smaller sun, the reddened plain shifted to gold. Taimin tilted his head back and held the sword high in the sky. He watched the sweeping wings of the wyverns as the creatures lost height. They were close enough for him to see Galen, the rider at the head of the group. His short white hair framed an angular face marred by hatred.
The wyverns circled one last time before commencing a swift descent.
“Go!” Taimin shouted at Griff. “Don’t you realize they’ll kill you?”
Griff took some steps away, but then whined and looked back.
Taimin crouched down and picked up a stone. Hating himself, he threw it at the wherry, and the stone bounced off Griff’s sand-colored hide. He followed it with another. “Go! Get out of here!”
Griff shied. Taimin threw yet another stone. He kept his face cold, even as the wherry watched him in despair.
At last Griff scampered off, sprinting at speed and vanishing into the distance as the wyverns made their final approach. Taimin sighed and turned away. It didn’t matter if Griff never forgave him; at least the wherry would survive. Taimin clenched his jaw as he waited in the open, sword in hand. His own life was almost certainly about to be cut short.
One rider landed, then another, until they were all on the ground in a circle with Taimin in the center. Taimin turned his gaze from one soldier to the next. He stood with legs apart. He waited, but the soldiers didn’t dismount.
Taimin focused on Galen. The tall, white-haired commander’s features were stiff, but his fierce eyes and the lines in his forehead revealed his loathing. Suddenly, however, he smiled; he was enjoying his moment. He had Taimin exactly where he wanted him.