She was being followed.
Not once allowing herself to look back, she continued along the path. Her mind was now racing, trying to work out precisely what she should do. Should she apprehend her follower, who was almost certainly one of the brothers, and take them by surprise? Interrogate them? No, what if they are innocent? But why else would they go to the trouble of ensuring she was out of the way? I must get back to that barn, she decided. Quickening her pace, she followed the path through the woods until it meandered through a section thick with large tree trunks. She walked around a corner behind some more trunks and quickly vaulted onto one such tree that had low branches within reaching distance. Climbing swiftly to a vantage point where she could survey the path, she crouched behind the thick trunk, perched on a sturdy branch.
And there she waited.
She did not have to wait long, as only a matter of minutes passed before Tavlor Corr came scurrying down the path, oblivious to Cerana hiding in the tree directly above him. He stopped near her tree, and she held her breath, quietly retreating further behind the trunk. He looked left and right, but thankfully not up, cursing under his breath until he scampered off again, further up the path and out of sight.
Cerana waited in her tree, hoping that he would eventually give up and come back the way he had gone. As still as a statue she remained, squatting on her branch. No longer knowing where he was, she certainly did not want to give away her position now that she had given him the slip. The light of day was just beginning to fade, and the cover of the trees hindered visibility in the wood. Cerana was grateful for her choice of clothing as she seemed to blend in nicely to the surrounding woodland, but she did have to pull her cloak over her head to cover her dark blond hair. She silently thanked the gods that this was not noticed when Tavlor passed by.
It would seem that Tavlor was not the most patient of men, as she soon heard him returning towards her vantage point, cursing and grumbling. She hunkered down again as he passed beneath her, once more mercifully not thinking to look up. Cerana waited a few moments before quietly climbing down the branches of her tree and jumping to the floor.
As she landed, a branch snapped under her weight. In the silence of the wood, it sounded like an explosion. She cursed and squatted down, praying that Tavlor had gone far enough away as not to have heard. Her heart skipped a beat when she heard the crack of twigs snapping further along the path. As quietly as she could, she crawled behind the base of the trunk. Holding her breath again, she reached for the dagger that was strapped to her left thigh with her right hand, slowly pulling the blade from its holder. She grimaced at the scraping sound it was making as it was withdrawn from the scabbard.
Another twig snapped, closer this time. A scrabbling came from the bushes, directly behind where Cerana hid. She silently took a deep breath and raised the dagger to her chest, readying herself for the inevitable conflict. The scrabbling came closer still. Her hiding place was about to be discovered. Heart pounding, she raised the dagger further, ready to strike if necessary. Cerana gasped as a fox darted from the undergrowth. It stopped in front of her and regarded her suspiciously, then shot off into the cover of bushes. Cerana took a huge sigh of relief and slumped back against the tree trunk. “Thank you, gods,” she whispered, sheathing her dagger.
Satisfied that it was now safe to move on, she continued up the path toward the farmstead, ducking and covering behind trees along the way. As she reached the clearing to the estate, all seemed quiet and deserted once more. Now she had an important decision to make. The only way to get to the barn would involve negotiating the two hundred-or-so yards between the woods and the building, where there would be no cover at all. She would be out in the open, and they would be able to see her as soon as she left her position, should they be watching. Every conceivable way to the barn would involve being out in the open for a length of time that Cerana was not comfortable with. She could wait for the cover of darkness, but then her vision would be hampered in her search inside the barn. Plus, it would be at least another few hours yet before total darkness fell.
As she crouched behind her tree, desperately trying to come up with a solution, her decision was made for her. Pelan and Tavlor Corr suddenly emerged from behind the farmhouse and marched to the barn. Pelan easily lifted the wooden barrier that kept the barn doors shut and dropped it behind him before opening the doors and creeping inside. He let his brother in, closing the doors behind them but not before poking his head back out and looking around, presumably to see if anyone had seen them enter. Cerana’s suspicions increased further.
But his was her chance.
With the barn doors closed, she could make it to the side of the barn undetected - that is, assuming there is no-one else living at the estate - but El had said it was just the two brothers. There would be no better time to get to the barn; she had to move now.
Cerana sprinted across the open farmland towards the towering wooden structure, then darted to the side and leant with her back to the barn’s outer wall. From her position at the front edge of the building, she was able to peek around to get a view of the barn doors when she needed to.
But for now, she just waited there, her heart thundering in her chest.
CHAPTER 27 – A Glimmer of Hope
Inside the barn, Pelan and Tavlor entered Jana’s makeshift prison to find her laid on the floor, still tightly bound, as they expected.
Jana blinked at the sudden beam of light that shone down on her face when the hatch opened. She moaned and squirmed feebly, her strength almost fully depleted. Her wrists and ankles were red raw from the cruel ropes, and every muscle in her body ached from being tied and left on a hard floor for so long. She had given up resisting whenever they came down to her, for whatever reason that might be this time.
Pelan roughly grabbed her by the arms and yanked her up, dragging her to the wall. She squealed into her gag. “Might have to get you out of here quicker than expected,” he said. “Someone came looking for you, another pretty girl like you. Blondie, ‘bout your age.”
Cerana! Jana’s heart jumped, and for the first time since her capture, she felt hope. Her eyes widened, and her breath quickened.
“Don’t get your hopes up though,” Pelan growled. “She’s fucked off now. But I reckon she may be back, looked the stubborn sort. That’s why we need to get you out of here before more folks come sniffing around.”
His breath stank of alcohol and Jana feared this could be a dangerous situation with him as drunk as his breath appeared.
“Can’t have you here much longer, need to get you off to your new home,” he said menacingly, his already narrow eyes narrowing even further. Jana was shaking with fear and breathing hard. He was liable to do anything in this state - yet still, he spoke calmly and without so much as a slur.
“So here’s what we’re gonna do. Your little trip is not ‘til tomorrow night, so until then we are gonna have to keep a watch on you. Make sure no-one sees you here. That sounds like fun, doesn’t it?” Jana kept perfectly still. “Problem is, Tav will need to take a shift too. Now I’ll tell him to behave himself, but I think we both know that he can’t exactly be trusted, know what I mean?”
Jana whimpered and squirmed uselessly. Her wide eyes darted to Tavlor who stared at her, grinning a set of rotten teeth. Jana felt sick.
“But there won’t be much I can do to help you this time, so you’ll just have to put up with him for a bit, okay?” he asked it like she had a choice. She didn’t.
“I’ll be good, I promise,” Tavlor scoffed, still grinning. Jana wept.
A bang from outside alerted them all. Pelan span round, anger etched on his face. “Check it out, now!” he ordered his brother in a hushed but commanding voice.
Tavlor crept up the ladder. Pelan turned to Jana, pursed his lips and held an index finger up to them. “Shhhh,” he whispered. Like she had a choice, with her mouth stuffed with the horrid gag. “Not a sound, and don’t even think about banging on the floor.”
/>
Tavlor poked his head out of the top of the hatch just enough to see. The barn used to be an old stable and had twelve rows of individual cubicles on each side where horses were once kept. Each stall had a small gap at the bottom, and the hatch to Jana’s makeshift prison was in the corner of the very end cubicle. From his vantage point, Tavlor could see the entire floor to the front of the barn but remained hidden from the sight of any intruder. He could see the doors slightly ajar, and a pair of leather boots crept into the barn.
“Someone’s ‘ere,” he whispered, ducking his head down into the room below.
“Get in here, and shut the hatch, carefully,” Pelan hissed.
Tavlor did as he was ordered, silently and carefully replacing the hatch over the opening as he crept back down the ladder. The intruder would not have been able to see the movement from their position due to the cubicles. From the floor above, the stall that housed Jana underneath appeared just like all the others. Empty.
CHAPTER 28 – Hope is Lost
She was unable to cry out, scream or even talk – but Pelan Corr still found it necessary to hold a knife to Jana’s throat to make sure she made no noise whatsoever. “Make a sound, and I’ll slit your throat, you got that?” Pelan whispered in her ear. Jana nodded. They were clearly worried that even her muffles could well be heard from the floor above. Where my sister has come to find me, Jana thought. And there is nothing I can do about it.
The slow footsteps from above gradually grew closer. I am yards away from her, and she doesn’t even know I am here. Tears began to well in Jana’s bulging blue eyes. So close, yet so very far. As if sensing her thoughts, Pelan pressed the blade of the knife a little harder to her throat and she flinched. Prisoner and captors watched the ceiling in silence, listening for the footsteps and trying to work out exactly where they were.
Then they stopped altogether, right above where they sat. There was complete silence for what seemed like an age to Jana, and she willed the hatch to burst open and for Cerana to save her. But then, would Cerana be captured too, surrendering herself if Pelan threatened to slit my throat? Then we would both be tied up and left down here until they shipped us off. The thought suddenly made Jana wish that Cerana would not find the opening. Whichever way she thought, hope was fading.
Then the footsteps started again and soon faded as her potential saviour walked away from the hatch and back to the main entrance to the barn. “Good girl,” Pelan smirked in her ear. They heard the barn door close. “Fuck,” Pelan spat. “Hope she doesn’t brace the door. Go check it out, see she’s gone,” he ordered to his brother. Tavlor nodded and spat on the floor before lifting the ladder back up to the hatch and climbing.
Jana was dejected and could hold her tears no longer. “There, there,” Pelan scoffed. “Think yourself lucky I didn’t kill her.” His tone suddenly became far more severe.
Tavlor carefully crawled out of the hatch, peeking at the top to check the barn was empty. Satisfied it was, he sprang out and ducked between each cubicle until he reached the barn doors. He gently pushed the left door, peeping through the small slit it made as it opened. It was not braced, and he pushed further. He scanned the edge of the wood and saw a cloaked figure disappearing into the trees via the main pathway. She had gone. Tavlor grinned and closed the barn door again before returning to the hatch.
“Fucked off into the woods,” he spat, jumping down the ladder. Jana’s head dropped, and she attempted to scream in frustration and desperation, but all that came out were muffled whimpers. She weakly struggled against her bonds, again to no avail. Her useless struggles seemed to amuse Pelan, who began to mock her. “Go on, wiggle yourself free. Go on! Try a bit harder, you aren’t getting very far!”
The brothers laughed as Jana squirmed around on the floor, grunting and crying into her gag. Her futile efforts soon ceased in exhaustion, and she lay on her front, breathing hard. A muted squeal came out as Pelan yanked back her hair and pushed his stubbly face close to hers. “This place will seem like a fucking palace compared to where you’re going. Make the most of it. I guarantee your new owners will not treat you as good as I have.” He slammed her head down onto the floor, dazing her. She felt a trickle of blood immediately escaping her nostril and tasted blood in her mouth. She quickly came round, her whole body sagging into the floor, utterly dejected and defeated.
Cerana had gone, her sister had not managed to save her. Her only hope had disappeared back into the woods, almost certainly never to be seen again. Jana had no more tears left to cry. She rested her head on the floor and closed her eyes, silently praying for death to take her, somehow.
“Let’s go,” Pelan growled. “We don’t need to worry about anyone finding her anymore.”
CHAPTER 29 – The Fight for Survival
Cerana could have sworn the cloaked figure had seen her before they entered the barn.
It struck her as odd, this stranger who appeared out of the woods and walked across the farmland, seemingly unconcerned with being noticed. This made Cerana think that the current occupants of the barn - the Corr brothers - probably knew the visitor.
She had not noticed the striding figure until they were around a quarter of the way from the woods to the barn. At this point, Cerana was craning her neck around the front edge of the building, checking for signs of movement at the front doors. It was then that she noticed the figure out of the corner of her eye and quickly retreated out of sight. They must have seen her, surely. But instead of the confrontation she expected as she stood with her back to the barn – breath held – she heard the creak of the barn door opening and the sound of boots slowly treading on wooden floorboards. Daring to breathe again, she slowly peeked around the corner to see the doors once again closed.
She did not have to wait much longer before the doors opened again, and the cloaked figure strode back towards the woods and disappeared without such as a backward glance. It was yet another instance to add to her growing list of unexplained happenings. The cloaked figure did not spend long in the barn, so whatever business they had with the brothers did not last long. It made little sense.
So it was back to just the two of them in the barn, most likely. Still without any real plan, Cerana leant back against the building and waited, hoping for inspiration to hit her and a plan to emerge out of nowhere; something she had not yet thought of. But instead, the sound of voices drifted to her ears. Too low and blocked out by the huge barn to properly hear, but voices nonetheless. She strained her ears but try as she might, she could not make out the words. Then, footsteps amidst the voices, coming from inside the barn.
As the doors opened, she caught the end of the conversation. “ -until tomorrow night. It will have to be dark, and it’s quite a long way to the meeting point, but this needs to happen.”
She was not sure which one spoke, but could only assume by the tone and clarity that it was the bigger of the two brothers – Pelan - who she again assumed to be the leader. They spoke no more, and Cerana could only hope that they left in the direction of the house and not the other way, towards where she lurked. If they did, they would see her. Cerana slowly drew her dagger.
But they did not come her way. Cerana heard their boots stomp off in the opposite direction, towards the house. She breathed yet another sigh of relief and slowly sheathed her dagger before peeking around the edge of the barn. She saw the Corr brothers walk towards the house and enter through the front door, thereby leaving the barn unattended.
This is my chance, she thought.
Her heart pounded, and her jaw quivered in anticipation. She would have to briefly venture out into view to get to the barn doors, and if for any reason the Corrs were watching from the windows, they would see her. But she had to take the risk, she felt. It would only be for a matter of seconds, and she would be in the barn. But what if they did see her? She was annoyed at herself for not sneaking in when they headed away from the barn towards the house. But when she realised that it was indeed possible there could be othe
rs still in the barn, it did not seem like such a terrible idea after all. She also pondered once more whether to wait until the cover of total darkness, but that would be hours yet. No, it had to be now, she decided.
Cerana took once last peek around the edge of the barn, saw all was clear and bolted for the doors. Thankfully, the brothers had surprisingly neglected to replace the wooden slat bracing the door, so all she had to do was slightly open the door and nip inside, closing it behind her. She listened for a moment, half expecting to hear shouts and curses emerging from the house, but all was quiet both inside and out. She had made it - she was inside the barn.
The barn itself was not currently used for its original purpose. A solitary pile of straw in the corner nearest the entrance was the only thing she could see apart from the two long rows of individual cubicles down each side. There were no windows or other openings in the barn, so despite the decent amount of sunlight left in the day, the wooden structure appeared quite dark.
Her first task was to make sure there was no-one else lurking in the cubicles, so she began by kneeling on the dusty wooden floor and looking down each row of stalls, underneath the gap in the panels that separated them. Satisfied that there was no-one stood up in the cubicles, she was also disappointed that Jana was not immediately visible to her; although that was not entirely unexpected. She began to search each booth individually.
Cerana slowly walked down the length of the barn, keeping to the left-hand side rows just in case she suddenly had to duck for cover. But aside from the odd small pile of straw dotted around, every cubicle was empty. And, she thought, remarkably clean and tidy. It was as if the barn had never been used. Although, given the appearance from the outside, it certainly had not been built just recently. To the end of the barn she walked, each cubicle the same as the previous one. She stood at the very end and looked back to the entrance, hands on her hips in disbelief.
The Kiss From a Dragon Page 15
