New Moon Read Online Free Page A

ALONE, Logan returned the old man's malicious stare.
    Gathering every drop of his remaining strength, Logan waited until the attacker was almost, on top of him, then he rolled to the side, slashing out his arm as he moved.
    He hit his assailant in the side of the head, and the man growled something that sounded like Carfolian Hell as he fell back a couple of steps. Logan tried to scramble back toward the door where Rinna had dragged him inside. But the man caught up with him, the knife raised to strike.
    The best Logan could do was kick out with his good leg. But his feeble efforts only deflected the blade, which came down on his naked shoulder, slicing into his flesh like hot fire and drawing blood.
    As the man swooped in for another thrust, Logan rolled across the stone floor with his attacker in full pursuit. He came slamming up against a wall, panting hard.
    The knife was inches from his throat when a shout from the doorway stopped the action.
    Rinna leaped into the room. "Haig, no!"
    The old man stared at her. "How did he get in here? What in the name of the gods is he doing in this cave?"
    "I brought him through the portal. Then in here. He was caught in a trap that Falcone set for me," she answered.
    "You should have left him there!"
    An expression of horror contorted her delicate features. "How can you say that? You're the one who taught me that the strong have to help the weak."
    "He's not weak! He's well-fed and well-muscled. I'll wager he never went without a meal a day in his life."
    "He's sick—from the trap." She gave Logan a good look and gasped. "You cut him!"
    He made a grunting sound. "He fought me."
    She advanced on the old man. "Put down the knife."
    He glared at her, then dropped the weapon to the stone floor with a clatter.
    She gave him one more warning look, then ran to the back of the cave. A minute later, she came pelting toward them, still barefoot. But she had pulled a tunic over her head. She also held a tray with a basin of water and a white cloth.
    Kneeling beside Logan, she began to wash the shoulder wound. He winced.
    "Sorry. I need to see how deep it is," she told him.
    The old man was speaking again. "It could be a trick," he insisted. "Falcone could have sacrificed one of his men."
    "He's a shape-shifter. That's why he's naked. I had to help him change to get him out of the trap."
    "You helped him ?" the old man breathed.
    "Yes."
    "That's an unacceptable risk."
    "I'll be the judge of that." She spared him an angry glance.
    "You shouldn't have left him in here. How was I to know he was okay?"
    "Because I had to open the door to let him in. Now stop arguing, Haig." She turned back to Logan. "Come on."
    When she dragged him up, the place: where the teeth of the trap had dug into his leg bloomed with white hot pain, and every muscle in his body quivered with the effort to walk.
    To his relief, she led him only a few yards farther into the cave, where she eased him down onto a narrow pallet.
    He lay there breathing hard, watching Rinna while she leaned over him, examining the wounds; then she began to work on him, gently washing his leg and examining where the jaws of the trap had gouged into his flesh. The touch of her hands could have been sensual, until she uncapped a bottle of what smelled like alcohol.
    "I'm sorry. This is going to hurt," she murmured.
    When she drenched another rag with the pungent spirits and wiped his shoulder, he gritted his teeth to keep from gasping.
    "It's all right to cry out," she whispered.
    He kept the scream clamped inside himself as she did the same for the leg.
    She pressed her fingers to his forehead. "You don't have a fever. That's good. Sleep will help you mend."
    The injuries continued to throb, and he thought that sleep would be impossible. Reaching out, he clasped her hand. "Wait, who are you? You were in my mind, when I made the change, weren't you?"
    She gave a small nod.
    "You have to explain about that trap. And Falcone…"
    At the mention of the