Tapestries 03 - Woven Dreams (16 page)

home. From what Zaren and Bador said, the tapestry will keep the men unaware that the woman is leaving so that the choice is truly hers.” Strapping his sword belt around his waist, Jarmon’s hands stilled for the briefest of moments before he continued. “No. I don’t believe that Genny is a true tapestry bride.” He had to believe that. Otherwise it meant that she was really gone.

The two men worked quickly, rolling blankets and assembling their packs. Within minutes of waking, they were ready to leave. “We could have done more to convince her to stay.” Garrik’s thoughts mirrored his. “Just in case the tapestry did bring her to us.”

Ignoring his brother, Jarmon began to circle the clearing. If there was one thing he was confident about, it was his skills as a tracker of animals and man. If she was out there in the forest, there was nowhere she could go where he would not find her.

Crouching down, he placed his fingers on a deep indentation in the grass. “She must have placed her pack here last night.” Adrenaline surged through his veins. “Why would she do that if she wasn’t planning on running away?”

“Perhaps she thought it would make it easier for her to reach when the tapestry arrived to take her home.” Garrik paused behind him. “We cannot forget that even if the tapestry did not bring her, Genny ran from us.” Jarmon was trying hard to forget that fact. It cut deep into his heart and soul, a betrayal of their trust. “She felt she had to because of the lie.” At least he hoped that was why she’d done it. There was only one way to find out.

Standing, he adjusted his pack onto his back and took several steps forward, his eyes scanning the forest floor and the trees. There! Just off to the left, a plant was bent forward. At first, he moved carefully through the trees, in case she was trying to throw them off with a false trail. It soon became apparent that her only goal was speed.

Loping off after her, they followed her trail. He lost her twice, but refused to even entertain the idea that she might have vanished with the help of the magical tapestry.

Each time he found her track again. And each time he sent a prayer of thanks to the gods. It had been a long time since he’d prayed for anything.

Garrik kept pace with him, neither one of them needing to talk. They were united in their single goal of finding Genny and taking her home. A low noise reached his ears and Jarmon held up his hand as he slowed. There! He heard it again in the distance.

Creeping slowly forward, he drew his sword, ready to face whatever waited.

The noise became clearer. A soft, feminine sob filled with such anguish, he felt his own heart begin to ache. Genny! Keeping his sword at the ready just in case, he moved more quickly, cursing the limp that hampered him slightly. Garrik was at his back, keeping a watch behind them. It didn’t pay to get careless.

He drew up, coming to a sudden stop, his feet glued to the ground. Genny knelt on the dew-laden grass, her face wet with tears. But what made it almost impossible for Jarmon to breathe was the tapestry clutched tight in her arms.

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Genny had stumbled through the dark for what felt like hours, tripping over unseen branches and roots. Her feet hurt, her legs were sore and her hands and arms were scraped, but it was her heart that ached the most.

Had Jarmon and Garrik awoken yet? Did they now believe the tapestry had taken her away? She’d hated to sneak away like a thief in the night but hadn’t seen any other alternative. Had her actions hurt them? Would they try to find her? Should she go back and explain everything to them? Maybe they would understand. Maybe they wouldn’t.

So many questions, but no easy answers.

She’d managed to hold off the tears for a while, but with each step she took away from the Bakra brothers, the harder it became. One tear became two. She swiped at them with her hand and kept walking. But two became three and three became four.

Before she knew it, she was crying too hard to see. Falling to her knees, she’d tried to hold in the pain, but it overwhelmed her.

Needing comfort, she opened her pack of meager belongings and dug out the tapestry. The small piece of fabric meant so much to her. It had given her hope and courage. It was also all she had left of the two men she loved. Clutching it in her arms, she gave in to the tears, allowing them to flow unchecked.

A sound penetrated her haze of pain and she jerked her head up. She couldn’t forget that there were wild animals in these woods, not to mention that there might be other men, perhaps even her brothers. That thought brought her to her feet, holding the tapestry in front of her like a talisman against all evil.

Jarmon and Garrik stood like two stone statues about ten feet away from her. How had they found her so quickly? She swallowed hard, her throat swollen by her tears.

What should she say? She opened her mouth to speak, but closed it when Jarmon took a step toward her.

She took a step backward, stumbling slightly, but stopped. There was nowhere she could run. Lowering her gaze, she stared blindly at the ground. She would have to tell them the truth and hope that they wouldn’t hate her for her deception.

“Genny?” Two pairs of boots came into her line of vision, but she knew it was Jarmon who’d spoken. His rough voice sent shivers down her spine. She longed to throw herself into his arms and seek comfort.

Taking a deep breath, she gathered her courage, plastered a serene expression on her face and raised her head to face them. They both looked tired and hurt. She had done that to them. She swallowed again, blinking back tears. She’d cried enough and all it had gotten her was a sore throat, puffy eyes, a stuffy nose and a growing headache.

“Genny?” This time it was Garrik who spoke. His voice was softer, more cajoling.

He reached out and for a moment she thought he was going to touch her, but his fingers grazed the fabric that she still grasped tight in her arms. She’d forgotten she was holding it.

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Sighing, she slowly shook out the fabric, holding it so they both could see. Their eyes widened as they studied the two warriors on the tapestry. It was obvious who they were.

Jarmon reached out and traced the white threads in the hair of one of the warriors.

His fingers automatically went to the white locks framing the image’s face. “I don’t understand.”

“I made it.” She almost choked on those three simple words, but once she’d said them the rest tumbled out more easily. “It took me three years of hoarding threads and working in secret, but I made it stitch by stitch.”

“But how? Why?” Garrik couldn’t take his eyes from the scene that depicted himself and his brother, but Genny knew what he was asking her.

“It was unconscious on my part at first. I’d done the landscape and the castle first.

You can blame my brothers for it. I heard your names cursed so many times, heard of your exploits and your injuries.” Jarmon curled his ruined fingers inward, making Genny’s heart hurt. She wanted to reach out and comfort him, assure him that his injuries only made her love him more. She did neither of those things. She’d given up all rights to both men by lying to them.

“Your brothers?”

Genny ignored Garrik’s question. She had to finish her story before her courage left her. “The fact that you recovered from adversity. The fact that there seemed to be good men out in the world, men of courage and honor, gave me hope.” Unconsciously, her hand moved to her shoulder, echoes of past beatings rippling over her flesh like a phantom pain. She saw Jarmon’s eyes narrow and quickly dropped her hand when she realized what she was doing.

“So you see, the tapestry did bring me to you in a roundabout way. It isn’t the magical tapestry, but it did give me courage and strength enough to leave my own home. If I hadn’t left, you would never have stumbled across me in the woods.”

“Who are your brothers, Genny?” Jarmon’s voice was as hard as steel, his eyes a blaze of anger.

There was no thought of denial now. She owed them the truth no matter what happened. “My name is Genita Craddock.”

Garrik swore long and fluently. Jarmon took a step toward her and she flinched away. Steadying herself, she sucked in a deep breath. “You can understand why I didn’t tell you that I was the sister of your greatest enemy.”

“Why? Why didn’t you tell us once you’d been with us a while? You knew we would not hurt you.” Hurt and anger were both mixed in Garrik’s voice.

“That is why.” She held her hands out in front of her in mute appeal, the tapestry falling from her nerveless fingers. “You are the finest men I have ever met. You treated me in a way that I had never been treated in my life, with care and respect. You taught me that there are good men in the world, to whom honor is more than just a word, but a way of life. I learned that sexual relations don’t have to be something to be afraid of, but 85

can be something of profound beauty. You gave me so much.” She couldn’t keep the plea for understanding out of her voice. “How could I repay you by telling you something that would hurt you so?”

“And you think that your slinking off into the night doesn’t hurt us?” No more than a tight, angry whisper, she felt as if Jarmon’s words flayed her skin wide open, drawing blood. She had indeed hurt them and that was the last thing she’d wanted to do.

“I’m so sorry.” They were only words, but they were heartfelt and all she had to offer. “You have no idea how sorry.”

When Jarmon turned away, as if disgusted by the very sight of her, she felt her heart break. She hadn’t admitted to herself that she’d still had hope. Hope that they might still care for her regardless of her family connections. There was nothing left for her to say or do. They would do what they would and she would accept whatever punishment they meted out. A lack of feeling crept over her limbs, gradually engulfing her body, and she was glad for its comfort. In her mind, she drew away from the pain surrounding her, the pain that she and her family had created by their actions, and sought blessed numbness.

Jarmon’s hands were shaking he was so angry. Never had he felt the kind of rage that he felt at this moment. He could feel the same waves of fury flowing from his brother and knew that their thoughts were of a similar bent.

There was much the Craddock brothers had to answer for. His fingers itched to wrap around her older brother’s neck and choke the life’s breath from his body.

Turning away from Genny, he took several deep breaths to gain back his control. He had even more reason to hate them now. He’d seen Genny’s back and knew that Leon Craddock had inflicted many of those scars.

Like him, she knew what it was like to be scarred and maimed. At least his had come from an enemy and not a family member. The thought of either of his older brothers beating him bloody was obscene. Considering the kind of family she’d grown up with, it was no wonder she hadn’t trusted them with the truth. He was amazed that she’d given herself to him and to Garrik, taking them both into her body. She was so sensual and open, giving all that they’d asked for and more.

It still hurt that she hadn’t trusted him, but he swallowed back the hurt and disappointment. He would have to live with it. Right now, the important thing was Genny. There were questions that he needed answered.

“Why did you leave? How long have you been gone?” He turned back to her as he fired off his questions. “Genny?” Her pallor shocked him. She seemed to be swaying on her feet and her eyes looked unfocused. Worry replaced hurt and anger as he reached out and caught her in his arms, pulling her close. She was stiff and unyielding in his embrace and oh so cold.

He rubbed his arms over her back. Before he could ask, Garrik was there with a blanket, tucking it gently around her shoulders. “What’s wrong with her?” 86

“Shock, I think.” He lowered them both to the ground, cradling her against his chest. Her head lolled back against his arm. “Genny.” He stroked the side of her face with his hand.

Garrik settled himself next to them and added another blanket to Genny’s chilled form. He picked up her hand and began to stroke it, all the while talking softly to her. It took a while, but eventually she began to stir.

Jarmon heaved a sigh of relief when her eyes became focused once again. She stiffened in his arms, but he continued to rub her face and neck, soothing her with his touch rather than with words.

He wanted to spend the next few days doing nothing but loving her and reassuring her, but that would have to wait. If there was the possibility that her brothers were searching for her, then they had to head straight for Bakra Castle. Genny’s safety took precedence over everything else. He hated to have to question her. Knew the anguish it would cause her. But he didn’t really have a choice. “Genny, why did you leave home and how long have you been gone?”

She swallowed. Her soft brown eyes appeared huge with fear as they darted from him to Garrik and back again. He hated the fact that she now seemed afraid of them, and he barely bit back a growl of displeasure. That would do nothing to calm her.

“I’ve been gone over a week. This is the tenth day.” She lowered her eyes and plucked at the blankets with her free hand.

“Why did you leave?” Garrik leaned forward as he spoke and Genny shrank closer to Jarmon. He could see the same frustration in Garrik’s eyes as he sat back, giving her some space.

“For years, they’ve used me to form alliances, dangling the possibility of marriage in front of their friends and potential allies. That all changed after the fighting started with your family.” Genny shifted and sighed, still not meeting their gazes. “My brothers hate your family, not only for the deaths of our two brothers, but for the fact that you defeated them and emerged triumphant. Leon expected Jarmon to die or at least be an invalid, a broken man.” A tiny smile played at the corners of her mouth.

“Then word reached him that not only were you recovered, you were actually stronger than before in spite of your injuries.”

“That still doesn’t tell us why you left.” Garrik brought her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. She froze and then her entire body jerked as she watched him, an unreadable expression on her face.