The Blight of Muirwood

His look was thunderstruck. “I never suspected you.”

“Why would you have? I have received all of my hunter training after returning to Muirwood. The Medium wanted justice for all the dead mastons, for the dead of my people. It was no mistake that you were dragged to the Aldermaston’s kitchen unconscious that night. All along Pareigis has been accusing the Aldermaston of plotting the king’s murder. He has done everything he can to shelter me since then, to keep the secret hidden from the world. That is my last secret. Now you know more about me than anyone else.”

She wanted to to confess her love, but found her feelings surged so intensely she could not find her voice. She shook her head, trying not to cry. She always cried in front of him. It took several deep breaths to calm herself.

Glancing back at him, she said, “You look tired. I will take the first watch.”

“Should we light a fire?”

She shook her head. “Not yet. If the cold gets unbearable, I will light it. This is a good shelter.”

“Very well. Then good night, Lia,” he whispered, looking at her with warmth.

She smiled in return and revoked the light from the Cruciger orb. The darkness was thick and intense. She could hear the sound of him shifting, the stretching out on a blanket on the hard charcoal ground. As the wind whispered outside, the groaning of the limbs, she waited thoughtfully, patiently, until she heard his breath come in an even, shallow measure. He was asleep. She knew the sound and it was comforting to her.

Reaching out to the orb, she thought about candlight – just a little. Just enough to see him. The orb glowed faintly, like the moon. He was facing her, his face relaxed – at peace. The hint of a smile was on his mouth.

Leaning over him, she bowed closer, listening to the sound of his breath. She touched his eyebrow with the scar, as light as a butterfly. “Good night, my Colvin,” she whispered.

CHAPTER THIRTY SEVEN:

Grey-Rank

Colvin’s hand squeezed Lia’s shoulder and she came awake. She blinked quickly, wondering why the ground was so black and then the events of the night returned. Rolling on her back, she looked up at him, watching him fumble through her rucksack until he withdrew two Muirwood apples. He looked at them both, chose one, and handed the more pock-marked one to her. The one that would be sweetest.

She accepted the apple as she sat up, brushing some of her wild hair from her eyes. “How long have you been watching me sleep?” she asked him pointedly, noticing it was light enough to see. He should have woken her earlier.

He did not answer, only gave her a smile that made her insides lurch.

She raised the apple to her nose and smelled it. She breathed in deeply, closing her eyes, grateful that their conversation was not just a dream. Everything in the world felt fresh and new and exciting. It was as if a thousand butterflies battled inside her. Opening her eyes, she bit into the fruit and it was as delicious as she anticipated. “I never grow weary of Muirwood apples,” she said. “I have eaten hundreds over my life. They must be from Idumea.”

Colvin raised his apple to his nose, his eyes scrutinizing hers as he smelled it. “I will never tire of watching you enjoy them.”

They ate in silence and then shook out their blankets and rolled them up tightly. They each pondered how much further they would have to walk before finding Ellowyn, and what dangers they would face. Even with so many questions, they were comfortable enough with silence, sneaking glances at each other as they stowed the blankets and slung the rucksacks over their shoulders.

As Lia reached for the orb, a roar sounded in the woods that stopped her cold. It was a keening sound, a sound that went straight down her spine and made her shiver. In all her wanderings in the Bearden Muir, she had never heard a beast make a sound like that.

Colvin stood bracingly, staring into the woods, his hand on his sword hilt. “What sort of creature was it?” he muttered.

Lia’s heart froze with fear. The sound was enormous. She had heard the growl of bears and wolves. She knew the piercing cries of elk that sounded so much like a screaming child as well as the shrill noise of falcons and eagles. This was something different – a keening wail broken up by a coughing chuckle, like dogs on a hunt. The throaty sound of some large animal.

“I do not know it,” Lia said. “Best if we leave.” She withdrew the orb and summoned its power, seeking a safe path off the mountains to find Ellowyn. Again she pictured the girl in her mind, focusing on where she would be.

The roar sounded again, closer. Her heart leapt with fear and the orb faltered for a moment. Then the spindles showed the way.