WolfeBlade: de Wolfe Pack Generations by Kathryn Veque (top 20 books to read .TXT) 📗

embarrassed myself irreparably tonight in front of you, so I suppose one more embarrassment will not matter. I have not been in London long enough to know much about it. I followed my cousins here from the manse. All I know is that it is in the northeast section of town, near the priory of the Holy Trinity. If you will point me in that direction, I am sure I can find it.”

He scratched his head a moment, pondering what she’d said. “If you are not from London, where are you from?”

“North.”

“A small village?”

“Small enough.”

He sighed. “Then I will tell you that traveling in London, and especially at night, is a dangerous thing for a woman alone,” he said. “If you think the maze of Gomorrah frightened you, then you should be doubly afraid of traveling these streets. There are men lurking in the shadows now, watching us, just waiting to pounce on you. I will be frank when I say that it would not be for a kiss or a dance, my lady.”

Gavriella knew that. At least, she did in theory. Her cousins had stupidly come alone to Gomorrah and they’d been fortunate not to have suffered any trouble, but now she was without an escort for her return home.

Except for Wolf.

“I understand that the streets are dangerous, but I have little choice,” she said. “I cannot stand here all night and wait for my cousins to emerge so that we may walk home together.”

“Then I will offer my services as an escort, my lady, to see you home safely,” he said. “I’ve seen you through this far. You should allow me to finish my task.”

She looked at him doubtfully. “I told you that I am not in the habit of trusting my safety to strangers.”

“Either you trust me or you will have to fight off the rabble on your own,” he said. “Are you willing to risk your life?”

He had a point and, no, she wasn’t. Heavily, she sighed. “Nay,” she said after a moment. “Very well, Wolf. I accept. But do not try anything or I’ll scream loud enough to wake the dead.”

In the darkness, his lips twitched with a smile. “I believe it. Shall we go?”

He was indicating a northerly direction and she nodded. They began to walk, heading up the muddy road as fog swallowed them up with every step they took. It was soupy and cold, with an occasional torch from the night watch piercing the veil of darkness. It was terribly difficult to see.

Gavriella was looking around nervously, more relieved than she cared to admit that he was escorting her home. A man that size would surely be a deterrent to any unsavory activity. But something occurred to her as they walked and she turned to look at him, his handsome features shrouded in the mist.

“I’m curious about something, Wolf,” she said. “May I ask you a question?”

“My lady?”

“Why would you do this for a woman you do not know?”

“Do what?”

She looked around. “Risk yourself like this,” she said. “I do not understand why you would do it.”

He was looking around, too, but in his case, it was calculated. Years and years of being a trained knight, of being trained to always be aware of one’s surroundings, had him watching every shadow, every glimmer.

“Because I am a man of honor,” he said simply. “Whether or not you realize it, you became my responsibility the moment I helped you from that ghastly place. I could not simply leave you to fend for yourself once we were free of the confines.”

“But I am no one to you,” she said, genuinely baffled. “You just met me. You do not even know my name.”

“Kitty.”

“Kitten.”

“I like Kitty better. It suits you.”

She stared at him, having no idea what he meant by such a thing. Then, she broke into soft laughter.

“Suit yourself,” she said. “But you still have not answered my question.”

“I answered it plainly.”

“But you did not explain why you would do such a thing for a woman who means nothing to you,” she pointed out. “A man could jump out at us any moment with a dagger and you would defend me?”

“Of course.”

“With your life?”

“If necessary.”

She had to think on that. It made no sense to her but, then again, she had never really spent an inordinate amount of time around knights. Her father was a knight in the technical sense of the word, but somewhere over the years, he seemed to have lost the very thing that made knights who they were. Call it courage, call it dedication… whatever it was, her father’s seemed to have faded. He’d lost whatever was left of it when she had been attacked. She’d seen the light go out of his eyes then.

Nay… she didn’t understand much about men and their sense of duty because her father didn’t seem to harbor any hint of such a thing.

He’d given up completely.

But the man next to her had that sense of chivalry, of honor. She was coming to realize that. Of course, when they’d first met in the guild, she hadn’t trusted him. Her distrust was natural. But now that she’d had a few moments of conversation with him, she began to sense something settling and calm about the man.

Honorable.

True.

She didn’t know why she sensed such a thing, but she did.

It made her more curious than ever.

“You must have great experience as a knight, then,” she said after a moment. “In battle, I mean. You must be very skilled.”

“I have fought in my share of battles.”

She could tell that just by looking at him. “Is your father a knight?”

“He’s a very good one.”

“And your sons? Do they train also?”

“I have no sons.”

She didn’t say anything more after that. He didn’t seem to want to converse, so she stopped talking. He was watching their shrouded surroundings like a hawk, intensely focused. They were heading towards a main road, something Gavriella thought she recognized through the mist, but she wasn’t quite sure. Everything was