"Elder is fine." He stalked across the room and took the lip gloss from her hand. "You're beautiful, Rachael, and you damned well don't have to look perfect for him."
For the first time in a while a ghost of a smile curved her mouth. "Talk about someone who has little moods! Actually, tree dweller, I was going to look perfect for you, not your brainless elder." She held out her hand for the lip gloss.
He put it in her palm. "I should at least get points for the beautiful compliment."
Her smile widened. "I censored because of the beautiful compliment. It would have been a lot worse than tree dweller."
"You terrify me." Rio bent and kissed her upturned mouth. How had he managed to live so long without her and think he was alive? Had he just been walking through life all those years? Loving her terrified him. It was so strong, a tidal wave welling up inside of him, consuming him, so at times he couldn't even look at her.
"Well that's a good thing as far as I'm concerned." Rachael applied the lip gloss and a bit of mascara. She was apprehensive and struggled to hide it. She glanced at Rio from under her long lashes. He was definitely on alert in spite of the banter back and forth between them. She reached across to the table, slipped a knife from the sheath and slid it beneath the cushion of her chair. Assassins came in all shapes and sizes and genders. Age never seemed to matter either.
17
PETER Delgrotto was tall and thin, a tough, sinewy man with lines etched deeply in his face. His eyes were a strange amber, glittering with some hidden fire, a focused, haunting stare that carried a great degree of menace. Rachael had expected a wizened, elderly man staggering under the weight of his years, but Delgrotto carried power and danger in his piercing eyes. He stood straight, fully clothed. The only sign of the long, arduous trip was the sheen of sweat on his skin and the breath moving in bursts in and out of his lungs that he couldn't quite hide.
"You honor us with your presence, Wise One," Rio said formally.
Rachael made a small strangling noise in her throat and then covered her displeasure by coughing when Rio tossed a quick warning glance her way.
Rio stepped back to allow the older man entrance. "If you wish to come in, please do so." He felt awkward, uncertain what to say or how to act. By all of their laws, the elder should not come near him, acknowledge him or speak to him, let alone enter his dwelling. Rio had no idea whether he was being discourteous in inviting the man inside.
Delgrotto bowed low. "I must ask you for a glass of water. I have not traveled so fast, or so far, in years. My lungs are not what they used to be. Forgive me bothering you, when I have not properly greeted you in many years." His gaze settled on Rachael.
There was a small silence. Rio stood very still. Rachael lifted her chin, her dark eyes alive with distaste.
"This is obviously your woman. You've found her. You must introduce me."
"I'm sorry, Elder, forgive my lack of manners. I'm so surprised by your visit I've forgotten basic courtesy." Rio handed the man a glass of water. "This is Rachael. Rachael, Peter Delgrotto, an elder in our village."
Rachael managed a smile but she didn't murmur pleasantries. She was pleased that Rio thought to protect her, that he hadn't given away her infamous last name. Sensing how nervous Rio was, she stood up and casually crossed the room to stand just behind him, wanting to be close in case he needed her.
Delgrotto inclined his head, returning her smile, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Very nice to meet you, Rachael." He turned to look at Rio and the smile faded.
Rio felt the impact of the elder's stare. It had been many years since any other than his unit members had looked at him or spoken to him. He felt behind him for the sink, something to grip out of sight of the elder. Rachael slipped her hand into his. A show of solidarity and support. "What is it, Elder? What is so important that you would break the law of our people?" There was little point in beating around the bush.
"I have no right to come to you, Rio. Not after the sentence handed down by the council." Delgrotto met his gaze steadily. "By me. I have removed myself as a council member and am prepared to pay the consequences of my actions. I told the Seat of Power what I intended and asked they withhold sentencing until it is done. They agreed."
Rachael could see the pride on the older man's face. Rio reached out and took his arm, led him to the most comfortable chair and seated him. "What is it?" Delgrotto suddenly looked every bit of his eighty years and then some.
"My grandson lies near death. No one can save him without your blood. None of us carry the rare blood you have. Without you he will die. I lost my firstborn son to poachers. He had no children. I lost my only other child and his mate to an accident. I have no other family left. I don't want to lose him. Not out of pride or stubbornness. Not for any antiquated law. I'm asking you to save him."
"Where is he?"
"He lies in the village at the small hospital there."
"I'll leave now, Elder. I can go faster alone. Will they allow my help?"
"Joshua said you would come." Delgrotto nodded his head. "They're waiting for you, keeping him alive with fluids. We used the blood you had stored for yourself." He looked down at his shaking hands, tears glittering in his eyes. "It was my decision to steal from you, no one else. Without it, he would have died. It isn't enough, only to prolong his life until you manage to arrive."
"It was not stealing, Elder, I would have given it all freely to save the life of a child." Rio caught Rachael by the shoulders. "You'll be here when I return." He made it a statement. A command.
"I'll be here." She kissed the side of his mouth, his jaw. Her lips moved gently against his ear as she whispered to him. "You're a good man, Rio."
"I'll follow as soon as I've rested," Delgrotto said.
"Sleep here, Elder. I'll return quickly," Rio said and went out to the verandah, pulling off his shirt as he did so. Rachael hobbled after him. "Do you want me to go with you?"
"No, I can travel much faster alone. I want you to stay off your leg for a couple of days and give it a rest. I'll be back as soon as possible." He tucked the shirt and then his jeans into a small pack that he secured around his neck.
"Clever." She realized they all had to travel with a small pack, the elder included. "Good fortune, Rio."
"Be safe, Rachael." He caught her head and dragged her to him, kissing her with fierce possession, with tenderness. She felt the fur rushing over his skin, felt his hands curl into huge paws and marveled at his ability to be so precise in his shifting.
She blinked and the black leopard melted into the forest. "Great. Leave me to entertain the guests." She took a deep breath and went back inside. To her relief, the old man had already sunk into a fitful sleep. She covered him with a thin blanket and went out to sit on the verandah with the small leopards.
The rhythm of the forest changed at various intervals during the day. Dawn activities were quite different from the lull in the afternoon. She read a book and listened to the continual chatter in the forest, trying hard to study which bird sang which song and what sounds emerged from the various species of monkeys.
She heard the old man stirring as the sun set, and she forced herself to go back inside to be as pleasant and accommodating as she was able. "I trust you slept well."
"Please forgive an old man's rudeness. Traveling the distance really took more strength than I realized."
"I ca
n imagine. Rio was very tired when he arrived home the other night after packing Joshua all those miles by himself. Without food or drink or medical attention."
The elder looked at her, his expression as calm as ever. "Touche, my dear."
She pulled open the vegetable bin, slapping vegetables on the counter. "I'm not your dear. Let's just get that straight right now. Are you hungry? I haven't had dinner yet, and Rio wouldn't want me to let you starve."
"By all means, I would enjoy sharing a meal with you. You shouldn't be on your leg. I make a decent soup; why don't you let me fix it?"
Rachael hesitated, unsure if she should let him have the run of Rio's home. The elder seemed unshakable even in the face of her distrust.
He took the decision out of her hands by going through the pantry. She retrieved the knife from the chair cushions while his back was turned and replaced it in the sheath. As casually as possible she put the weapons out of sight.
"You don't think much of me, do you?" he asked as he began chopping vegetables.
She picked up a second knife and helped. "Not much. I can't see much wisdom in your sentence of banishment. It smacks of hypocrisy if you ask me, which technically you didn't so I guess I shouldn't offer my opinion on the subject." She hacked a tomato into tiny little pieces. The sound of the blade hitting the chopping board beat out a fast tattoo of annoyance.
Delgrotto paused in the act of cutting up wild mushrooms. "You've used a knife before," he observed.
"You'd be surprised what I can do with this baby. Working in a kitchen can be damned boring, and we women just think up things to hurl the cutlery at. In South America, we pride ourselves on target practice." She gave him a chatty smirk. "Sometimes it was the chef if he was particularly obnoxious."
"I see." Delgrotto raised his eyebrow. "What might constitute being obnoxious, just so I don't make the same mistake."
"Oh, you may as well be as obnoxious as you like. You're already in my book of evil and obnoxious people. I think I even underlined your name a couple of times." She slashed an onion until it was nothing but sauce.