The Bride of the Immortal

by Auriane Bell

  Meanwhile they had left the small path and cut across country travelling over patches of high grass. The stallion wasn’t moving as fast as Mairin wanted it to, yet she was glad that the alleged priest paid attention to its wellbeing. If he was good to the mount there was a slight chance he would do the same for her.

  Mairin felt silly being reminded of having imagined this kind of situation at least a hundred times – sharing a horse with her saviour, being held tenderly in his arms and gently brought to safety. Of course reality had its flaws: Adrijan was a priest or at least a servant and no Prince Charming. Furthermore he wasn’t very gentle and – to her relief – instead of trying to stay close to her, giving her as much space as possible whilst supporting her back with his arm to prevent her from simply falling off the stallion. In her dreams she hadn’t been wounded either and escaping the villain had not left her shaking but had only been a small yet essential detail to her fantasies. If there was no danger, one couldn’t be rescued after all.

  Secretly she had also hoped that the immortal would turn out to be her knight in shining armour…

  To sum it up, the horse was probably the only thing her dream had in common with reality. Mairin quietly sighed. After today she wasn’t so sure she wanted to get close to a man anyway. Maybe the stories she had read hadn’t been more than just that – stories. Maybe all men were like that. Maybe that was what was waiting for her beyond the borders of Traumstadt. A shiver ran down her spine. Maybe it was best to run away while she was still able to.

  A raindrop hit her nose, interrupted her chain of thoughts and kept her from being overcome with hysteria. It had started to drizzle. The sudden movement of Adrijan’s left hand reaching for the reins made Mairin flinch, even before she was gently pushed in the back. She automatically bent forward and felt his right hand suddenly grab the blanket behind her neck. The unforeseen attack gave her the impulse to struggle and scream but before she could do either, Adrijan had pulled the blanket higher and over her head. Unable to decide whether she should protest or be grateful she tightened her grip and drew the blanket closer again. When she had calmed down, Mairin realised that she felt more comfortable, well hidden, with the bedspread covering her head. It was only then that she noticed that she had been leaning against Adrijan’s wounded arm and hastily changed her position. This time, the soft pressure of his arm in her back even gave her a small feeling of comfort and safety, and more than ever she felt bad for having thought ill about him.

  Her reaction had surprised him and put a sheepish smile on his face. Instead of complaining the girl had calmed down a little and soon after she had dozed off. With her body relaxed and her guard down, her covered head had slowly sunk against his chest. Adrijan couldn’t imagine a less suitable situation for falling asleep but he didn’t begrudge her being able to rest. It was cold and raining and constantly being shaken by the horse trotting over the meadows the position she was in was everything else than comfortable. The same thing could be said about his condition. When he had temporarily changed the reins from the right into his left hand to be able to adjust the girl’s blanket, his coat had slipped off his shoulder and the cold had started to creep in. He could literally feel the chillness work its way deeper and deeper into his body. The only thing keeping him somewhat warm was the vulnerable bundle in front of him. Knowing what he knew, the urge to protect her wasn’t welcome to Adrijan. There had been plenty of good reasons for saving her from the attempted rape – and maybe even murder – besides the obvious one but he was aware that any further involvement would not turn out well. He readily blamed his profession and the discrepancy in age for his feelings and dismissed the troublesome thoughts. Clearly he had no intention of permanently becoming the girl’s babysitter.

  Adrijan was glad that unlike earlier today the rain wasn’t pouring. As few drops as there were, they were already sufficient to make the situation less comfortable and from time to time they managed to sneak past his tied-back hair and the part of his coat that was at least still covering his body. The cold water on his neck reminded him once again how much he wanted the night to end and he swore that he would take another warm shower as soon as possible. For now though he had to focus as he was in danger of getting lost in the dark. More than once he used his mobile phone as an aid and feeling a sharp pain in his arm whenever he had to fish it out of his pocket, he cursed having to rely on the navigation system to lead him back to the cottage. The route he had carefully chosen kept them away from the few roads leading outside the centre of Traumstadt and therefore raised their chance of escaping tremendously. The next time Adrijan checked the map, his phone started to vibrate in his hand. Eagerly he answered the call.

  “Adrijan? Alles in Ordnung?” It was Walther. He agitatedly told him about the proceedings at Sunflower Garden, the chaotic search of the place which he had supported by telling everyone that he had seen the fugitive run back inside and about the partly hysteric partly excited girls who unintentionally slowed down the hunt. In the end the first search parties had only just left the boarding school a couple of minutes ago after having turned the buildings upside down. Unable to stall them any further, Walther suggested meeting up with the two of them. Since he was alone with a well rested horse and didn’t have to pay as much attention as to which path he chose, he wouldn’t have any troubles catching up with them as long as they revealed their position to him. Adrijan unwillingly agreed to the plan, even though he was afraid they would run into a trap by doing so. The whole story sounded too good to be true. Before he ended the call to send Walther their coordinates over the navigation system he advised him to be careful. If Walther really was an ally, he didn’t want him to lead their pursuers right to them.

  Adrijan wished he were able to get the girl out of Traumstadt on his own but he had to face the truth. They were close to the forest but only half way to the cottage, worn out and every bone and muscle in his body was hurting. On top of that the wretched weather had gotten worse. After putting away the phone he gently tried to wake the girl, whose sleep had not been disturbed at all by the conversation.

  “Let me sleep... just a little while longer,” she grumbled oblivious to her surroundings. Again someone was gently shaking her.

  “There’s no time for complaining. You can continue resting over there under the cover of the trees.”

  Hearing Adrijan’s voice finally woke her and made her realise that she had dozed off and nestled up to him in her sleep. Mairin moved away abruptly and lost her balance so that her companion was forced to grab her with his arm.

  “Careful, girl!” he hissed quietly.

  Embarrassed she shifted her weight and clung to the horse’s neck for support. Nebel snorted as if he were trying to make fun of her. Much to her regret she had to admit that it served her right. Even though her rescuer had his flaws, so far he had been kind to her and she had thanked him for it by distrusting him. Besides, this wasn’t the time to bear a grudge for something that had happened in the past and probably hadn’t even been his fault.

  When the priest dismounted the stallion and offered her help, she was still shy but accepted it willingly. After a few more steps they managed to enter the mixed forest – just in time to escape the starting downpour. Against her expectations they didn’t halt and continued walking further into the woods. Nebel seemed to dislike being surrounded by trees at least as much as she did but like her the horse kept following Adrijan in silence. Mairin was glad that her guide was using his small device to lighten their way through the darkness. The bedspread was still serving her well even though it had become damp from the drizzle and dirty where it had touched the ground. Mairin treasured the cover and warmth it provided for her and was glad that she could avoid being grazed by twigs and bushes the same way. Near a rivulet Adrijan finally stopped and let go of Nebel’s reins to allow the stallion to drink.

  “We can take a break here until Walther – the man we ran into back at Sunflower Garden – joins us. If you have any questions I�
��ll try to answer them now, but please ask them quietly.” Having that said he turned away and took a small towel out of Nebel’s saddle-bag, as if he hadn’t just invited her to talk to him. Mairin was startled but decided not to take it personally. She kept watching him while trying to decide which question to ask first.

  “Are we still in danger Father Adrijan?”

  “Adrijan,” he corrected her, “and yes, most likely. Would you please hold this for a second?” Mairin freed one of her hands from the bedspread to accept the strange, light emitting item. She expected it to be hot but it was hardly even warm. Relieved but still feeling a little uneasy about it, she kept holding it between her fingertips like a nasty toad. Adrijan perked up his eyebrows without comment. After removing the ribbon that held his wet hair together at the nape he rubbed down the dark red strands. The result of his work strongly reminded Mairin of a stray cat that stepped out of a rain puddle. Slightly annoyed about her irrelevant thoughts she tried to focus.

  “But why are they after us? I belong to the immortal, shouldn’t they support us instead?”

  Her question was met with a snort.

  “They ought to but obviously they’ve decided not to. And since the both of us belong to him we are the closest targets they could find.”

  It still didn’t make sense to her to oppose the immortal but she knew that Father Adrijan wouldn’t lose another word on the topic. Father Adrijan... There was yet one question she wanted to ask him, even though it took her a lot of effort to summon the courage to finally bring it up.

  “Are you really… a priest?”

  Her companion didn’t answer right away and when he finally opened his mouth the device in her hand started to vibrate. The sudden unexpected movement of the item made her jump and the gadget was sent flying towards Adrijan, who stylishly caught it with his healthy arm. “Thank you,” he whispered with a big grin on his face.

  He had expected Walther to call him again but it was the immortal speaking when he answered the phone call.

  “Sorry it took so long, I was... occupied.”

  Adrijan could tell by the sound of his voice what he meant by saying that but he was in no mood to discuss it. Luckily the immortal didn’t wait for a reply.

  “How’s your wound?”

  “Thanks, I’ll live. Are your agents on their way? I’m at the border with the girl.”

  “Oh, right... the girl.” He sounded absent-minded. “My people are at your cottage now, old Miss Such-and-such is alright, feeding cookies to everyone and telling them not to ruin the floor but I’m afraid your servant is dead. He was discovered strangled in his chamber. Tsk tsk... I’m quite surprised you didn’t notice.”

  Adrijan swallowed hard. That explained why he hadn’t found him when he had saddled Nebel in the stables.

  “Listen, Walther will join us here soon and-“

  “Walther? Walther Stil? I hope you’re joking.”

  “He’s the one. What’s wrong?”

  “He seems to be one of their leaders. I thought you knew.”

  The information made him raise his hand to his forehead in sheer disbelief. Of course he regretted the rash gesture as soon as he felt the sharp pain in his arm. If what the immortal was saying was true, then they were in more danger than he had expected.

  Why would Walther play with them? Hadn’t he helped them to escape? They had to get away fast.

  “From your sudden loss for words I suppose you didn’t know after all. Did you give him your exact location?”

  “I sent him our coordinates over the navigation system before we entered the forest. We continued walking north-east for about ten to fifteen minutes after that. Hold on, I’ll transfer our position to your navi right away.” Adrijan’s fingers quickly slid over the display. “Did you receive the data?” After a short silence the immortal finally answered again.

  “Aye. You’re lucky. If I might suggest that you hurry here-“ Adrijan’s phone played the signal for an incoming location. “- and enter the place you find there. It’s a small... hideout of mine. There isn’t much. Just a big bed, a Jacuzzi, some food and-“

  “Would you please get to the point?” Adrijan was getting impatient.

  “Oh, but I was. When you interrupted me I was about to tell you that a motorcycle is there as well and a narrow road leading to my humble home. Do you have your key-card on you?” Adrijan answered in the affirmative.

  “I’ll update the security data so you can enter the place. But remember, it’s not a safe house so I strongly recommend that you act fast. Oh, and don’t worry about your noble mount. I’ll send someone to pick up Nebel.”

  “Thanks. I’ll act like you suggested,” Adrijan muttered. “See you soon.”

  The immortal never ceased to amaze him. How could he have kept a place like that hidden from him?

  “I’m glad I could be to your assistance. Your heartfelt gratitude made my day. Anyway, I’ll get some rest now. See you for breakfast around noon.”

  The immortal faked a yawn before he ended the call. Adrijan sighed. The girl was standing in front of him, with her eyes wide open and obviously a dozen more questions on the tip of her tongue.

  “Never mind what I said about asking questions. We have to go.”

  Was he insane or had he really been talking to someone? Either way, she had to follow him if she didn’t want to be left behind in the dark forest. Adrijan was quickly leading Nebel through the narrow gaps between the trees yet the stallion didn’t baulk. Mairin took it for a good sign. Didn’t people always claim that animals were the first to sense if a person was evil or not? Then again, evil people were also riding horses. Maybe horses were no good at it. “We’re going to be alright,” he said as if he had been listening in on the debate in her head. “And no, I’m not entirely crazy. You don’t have to trust me but please try to stay open-minded. There are things about this world you don’t know yet. Call it magic if that helps, I’m certain that’s what it will look like to you.”

  He was talking in riddles again. At the same time Mairin nodded to show that she had listened to his words, she realised that walking in front of her he couldn’t possibly have seen her.

  “I’ll try,” she assured him.

  The further they walked the more Mairin’s body started to protest. Her legs and feet were hurting and she got closer and closer to giving in to the temptation to fall asleep on the spot. On top of it she had started to feel dizzy and realised that she wouldn’t be able to ignore the headache that came along with it much longer. Mairin shivered. When had it become that cold? She was just about to ask if they had to travel much further when Adrijan finally stopped walking. Exhausted Mairin lifted her head and looked around to find out the cause. Then her legs gave way.

  He wasn’t prepared for the thud. Expecting the worst he rushed to her side, looking out for any possible attacks. There was nobody around. When he knelt down next to her he noticed the source of her weakness.

  “What happened?” she mumbled. At least she was conscious.

  “You’re burning up. Hold still.”

  Luckily she seemed to have had a soft landing. He gently put his arms under her body and lifted her up ignoring the pain as well as the spiritless protest it caused. By a hair’s breadth he would’ve dropped her when he clumsily stepped on her blanket. Adrijan cursed.

  “It doesn’t befit a priest to talk like that,” the girl babbled, influenced by the fever.

  He frowned. They were just a few steps away from the entrance of the bungalow, which he had managed to unlock the moment he had heard the noise.

  “Good boy,” he whispered passing Nebel. “I’ll be right back. Don’t you dare collapse on me as well.”

  The stallion neighed and softly nudged Adrijan with its head. The way the animal seemed to have understood what he had said, he was wondering where the immortal had found such a horse.

  Carefully Adrijan stepped through the entrance, trying hard to avoid hurting the girl. Due to a mechanism the light
was switched on when he entered the room.

  “Put me down. I can walk,” Mairin complained weakly. Having reached the enormous bed he was more than happy to oblige. With a quick move he covered her with one of the two down quilts he had found on the bed and carefully pulled away the damp bedspread that was still underneath it.

  “I’ll try to find some medicine and take care of Nebel. Please rest until I’m back. And don’t worry, I will come back.”

  He tossed the used blanket to the ground and stepped outside. Every moment he was expecting a call from Walther, asking him about their whereabouts. Quickly Adrijan locked the door behind him and led the stallion around the bungalow to the garage. Upon using the key card the gate silently slid open and the lights went on. He was surprised that there was enough room for the motorcycle and a car and he sincerely regretted not discovering both. Like this it would be difficult to transport the frail girl from the artificial past. The floor in the far back of the garage seemed to be different from the rest and was almost completely covered with wood shavings. After Nebel had followed him inside, Adrijan closed and locked the gate and led the stallion to its dedicated place that was separated from the main part of the room by a wall that reached up to his chest. There were even two trays, one partly filled with hay and partly with a mixture of nuts and the other empty but with a tap attached. Everything looked fresh and clean and he was certain that someone had to attend to the place at least once every two to three days. While letting the second tray fill up with water, Adrijan removed Nebel’s saddle and bridle. Freed from the restraints it started nibbling at the food without further ado. His next task would be to find some medicine for Mairin. Impatiently he rummaged around in the first aid kit until he came across some paracetamol tablets. Satisfied he let the small packet slip into his pocket and put away the red box, hoping he would have no further need for it. Since the water tray still wasn’t sufficiently full Adrijan decided to take another look at the garage. There was a door which – if one believed the small metal plate on it – belonged to the generator room. A second door led back inside the bungalow.