Free Into the Ether by Vanessa Barger Page A

got a closer look at my hand and hissed. “Gennie, why did you hit him , anyway ?”
    â€œBecause she lost her temper.” Colonel Worthington interjected from his bedroom. He emerged with strips of white cloth draped over one arm.
    Phillip’s eyes rolled skyward. “Really? I thought you were smarter than that.”
    â€œObviously not.”
    The silence made the skin between my shoulder blades twitch. The air felt oppressive and smelled. Phillip moved behind my chair. He leaned forward over me, but didn’t touch me. I looked up at him.
    â€œI think you’ll be fine, but I’m here just in case.”
    â€œShouldn’t you be holding me down before he starts?”
    Phillip smiled. “I’m faster than I look.”
    I didn’t say anything else. Colonel Worthington scooped a wad of the foul paste on two large fingers and grasped my wrist in the other. His touch was soft , but the grip was tight. He waited, watching me. I sucked in a mouthful of air and then jerked my head once.
    His fingers on my broken flesh were like someone clawing my skin. I wanted to scream, but I forced myself to stay silent. Phillip shifted behind me, but other than a stiffening of my spine, I didn’t move.
    The goo had some sort of numbing compound in it, because after a few seconds of painful tingling, the pain receded to a mere throb. Colonel Worthington ’s fingers worked fast and with gentleness I hadn’t expected.
    I released the breath I’d been holding and sucked in more air. He didn’t look up as he wrapped the white linen strips around my hand and then tied them off around my wrists. Despite the lessening of the pain, the jostling and movement of my hands streaked up and down my arm as he turned and wove the fabric around.
    He finished and released me and my entire body seemed to lose its starch. I slumped into the chair. Phillip’s large hands patted my shoulders. “Excellently done, Gennie. I’ve seen grown men faint at that kind of treatment.”
    Colonel Worthington corked the bottle with a smirk. “He would know. Last time he burned himself I had a devil of a time getting his limp body to stay in the chair.”
    A weak giggle escaped my lips. Colonel Worthington moved to the sink, washed his hands then put away the jar. I thought I saw him pull out some sort of scented lotion and rub it into his hands, but I couldn’t be sure.
    â€œDon’t listen to him. I didn’t faint. He’s just saying that to make you feel better .” Phillip tried to sound convincing, but his face had turned a lovely shade of pink.
    I suppressed another giggle. The mirth was short lived, as I looked down in my lap where the worn tweed cap sat, stained and silent. The hole in my chest tore a little larger.
    Colonel Worthington sat back down, propping his crutch against the side of the wing chair. “Now, Genevieve, what are you planning to do?”
    I blinked. “What do you mean?”
    His gaze was sympathetic. “I am assuming you are n’ t planning on returning to your band of thieves. If you want it, there ’ s a place for you here.”
    Butterflies fluttered to life in my stomach. I straightened my shoulders and looked Colonel Worthington in the eye. “I have something to tell you first.”

Chapter Twelve
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    Colonel Worthington steepled his hands and watched me. It unnerved me a little how calm he was. As if he already knew what I planned to tell him. Phillip took a chair next to the fireplace and straddled it. Even he looked like he expected something. My heart sank a little further. Phillip had known, and he’d been a friend. It didn’t say much for my character.
    â€œI owe you both an apology.” My head dipped in Phillip’s direction, “My goal when I came here was to scope the place out and steal something. I didn’t have a choice . Powerful peo ple made a deal with Justin .”
    I didn’t