Organ Reapers

by West, Shay

  All of the furniture was there as though waiting for the family to return from an evening out. There wasn’t a lamp or doily out of place. The only thing missing was Keena’s family.

  Knowing the risk of being caught, Tani went to the front door and turned the knob slowly. His heart raced and his breath caught in his throat. The knob turned easily and the door opened silently. Tani hurried inside and closed the door behind him.

  He walked quickly through the house, skin prickling in the eerie silence. The house should have been full of the noises of people: idle chatter, clinking of a tea cup on a delicate saucer, perhaps the low voice of Keena’s father as he read to the family in front of the fire, the whispering of the servants, the clump of feet on the wooden floors.

  And yet the house was silent as a tomb.

  Tani walked up the stairs to check the bedrooms. These rooms were as pristine as the ones on the first floor. If the family had left in a hurry, he would expect to find clothing tossed on the bed or hanging out of half-closed dresser drawers. But the drawers of the master bedroom were all closed and the bed didn’t have so much as a wrinkle in the coverlet.

  He checked the smaller rooms, smiling at the bedroom that belonged to Keena’s three sisters. It looked almost exactly like his sisters’ bedroom, all full of pink frills and puffy pillows. The large vanity held an array of bottles and containers. The particulars of being a girl baffled Tani. His sisters would take hours primping and, as far as he could tell, they didn’t look different than they had before. But they moved and strutted around like they were the High Queen herself.

  The other two rooms were shared by Keena’s brothers. He found everything he expected: bits of sticks and rocks, a pair of hand-carved wooden bows and full quivers alongside, a chest of drawers scuffed and tattered from years of rough-house play that boys were fond of doing.

  What’s that?

  Tani noticed some scratch marks that seemed fresh. He bent down to have a closer look and his breath caught in his throat.

  Come to Nana’s

  A message! To Keena from her brothers in case she made it back to the family manor. He ran back down the stairs, eager to tell Keena that he knew where her family was.

  As he passed by the large picture window, he glanced outside and stopped in his tracks.

  The Enforcer was staring right at him.

  The man gave a shout and leapt from his horse. Tani turned and ran for the kitchen, knowing there would be a back exit. Panic set in as the man came bursting through the door, shouting for Tani to stop. Enforcers were known for being quick and deadly.

  Tani prayed to the gods that he would be quicker.

  He ran into the kitchen, shoving the large butcher’s block on wheels into the path of the Enforcer. Tani opened the back door and smiled when he heard the breath whoosh from the Enforcer’s lungs as he hit the butcher’s block at a dead run.

  Tani didn’t bother with opening the back gate; he used one hand to launch himself over. He darted down an alley, wishing he had taken the time to learn the layout of the neighborhood rather than just the manor. It would be far too easy to take a wrong turn and become trapped in a dead-end alley or by a wall he couldn’t jump or climb over.

  He could hear the Enforcer’s footfalls, but they sounded like they came from far behind. Tani risked turning around. He could barely make out the outline of the large man coming through the back gate.

  Tani forced his feet to move faster as he took turns that would eventually lead him back toward the manor and Keena. He hoped the Enforcer wouldn’t expect Tani to run toward danger. As the man’s footfalls grew more and more faint, Tani slowed a little, relying on stealth rather than speed to navigate the city streets. He stayed in the shadows and slowly made his way back to where Keena lay hidden in the woods.

  Tani peeked around the side of a house next door to the mansion and hissed when he spotted the Enforcer standing in the middle of the street. He must have doubled back. The man glanced to the left and right as though wondering which direction Tani had run.

  At that moment a dog barked, the sound echoing through the empty streets. The Enforcer ran toward the sound and away from the mansion. Tani collapsed against the wall in relief, thanking the gods for sending that helpful distraction.

  He made his way back to Keena’s family home. There was no one in sight. Tani stayed in the shadows and hurried to Keena’s hiding spot, hoping she had stayed put and hadn’t come after him.

  “Tani!”

  He nearly fell over as Keena threw herself into his arms. He patted her back awkwardly. This was the first time they had had any contact other than the accidental brushing of hands while they removed organs.

  “I thought for sure that Enforcer was going to catch you. What made you go into the house anyway? You said you were going to look in the windows and that was it.”

  “It was worth it. Your family is at your Nana’s house. One of your brothers carved a note on the side of his dresser.”

  “Mama’s not going to be happy about that.”

  “I don’t think she’ll ever get a chance to see it,” Tani said gently.

  “You’re right, of course.” She forced her voice to cheerfulness. “When can we leave?”

  “After that scare, I won’t be able to sleep. We can walk through the night if you’re up for it.”

  “I can do it if you can.”

  Keena handed Tani his pack and shouldered her own.

  “Where does your Nana live?”

  Keena smiled. “You won’t believe it.”

  CHAPTER 10

  TANI GAPED at Keena. “Surely you jest!”

  “Not at all. Nana moved back to Maris when Granddaddy died. Mama and Papa tried to get her to move into the mansion when they moved in, but she refused, saying she couldn’t leave the salty air.”

  “I can’t believe you have family in Maris and you never said anything!”

  “It never crossed my mind until you mentioned Nana.”

  “We’ll need supplies before we go. But we can’t stay here. We’ll have to stop in the next village and get food.”

  Tani led the way, heart still racing after his run through the streets of Celtoe. He stayed within the woods until they were far enough away from town that he felt safe walking closer to the road. According to Keena there was a village about three hours away. Tani figured they should make it just before dawn.

  At first he kept up a fast pace, but within an hour he was barely able to put one foot in front of the other. His jaws creaked from yawning and he could hear Keena’s echoing yawns behind him.

  “I can’t go on much further,” Keena said.

  Tani wanted to argue, but he knew he wouldn’t make it much longer himself. He walked off the road, depending on the light of the moon to mark the way through the thick underbrush. He came to a spot that was secluded and would offer plenty of protection from prying eyes. Keena sat down on a fallen log, digging in her pack for her warm cloak. Now that they weren’t expending the energy to walk, their bodies felt the chill night air.

  Tani took a chance and used Keena’s firestones to start a small fire. Keena moaned in pleasure as she rubbed her hands together near the cheerful blaze. When his stomach gave a loud rumble, Tani reached for Keena’s pack and grabbed a small piece of dried meat. He was glad they would be able to get some fresh food. He craved vegetables and fresh meat.

  I wish I would have thought to bring my bow.

  He wasn’t too hard on himself. After all, he hadn’t even had time to grab food or water before he and Keena had fled the monastery. He was just glad Keena had had time to pack provisions.

  Tani told Keena he would take the first watch. She didn’t offer a word of protest as she lay back against her knapsack, snuggled in her cloak next to the fire.

  He had every intention of staying awake, but his mind and body betrayed him. His eyes slipped closed and he slept until the sun came up.

  ***

  “I still can’t believe I fe
ll asleep,” Tani said when he and Keena awoke the next morning.

  “We were both exhausted.”

  “An Enforcer could have come across us in the night and captured us.”

  “We’re fine. Let’s just focus on what we need to accomplish this day.”

  Tani continued to silently chide himself as they approached the village. He had put them in danger. It can’t happen again. His anxiety rose as they walked down the street into the small village. There were few people out and about at this early hour and none were on horseback. That doesn’t mean there aren’t Enforcers here.

  Keena reached out and timidly touched his arm. “We should be able to get some food once the vendors open. In the meantime, maybe we could stop at a bathhouse? We could both use a bath and a clean change of clothes.”

  Tani couldn’t say no to the eagerness in her eyes. If there was one thing he had learned living with two sisters, it was that girls hated to be dirty. A quick glance down at his own travel-stained clothing revealed that Keena was indeed correct about the two of them needing to wash up.

  The bathhouse was situated on the outskirts of the village. The proprietor was sitting on a wooden bench, smoking a long pipe, blowing smoke rings that disappeared lazily into the air. The old man said nothing as Tani and Keena approached, merely stood and showed them where to enter: Tani to the left and Keena to the right.

  The bathhouse smelled of damp wood and rose petals. The sound of clunking metal and the hiss of steam preceded the sound of water rushing into the large claw-foot tub. Tani stripped off his dirty clothing and placed it on a chair right next to the door. He grabbed a cake of soap and a piece of wool and climbed into the tub, easing his body into the hot water.

  He immersed himself in the water up to his neck for a time before rubbing the soap on the wool and scrubbing himself from head to toe. He dunked under the water to rinse the suds off, then lounged against the back of the tub and closed his eyes, his muscles relaxing from the strain of the past couple of days.

  When he opened his eyes, his dirty clothes were gone from the chair. Tani sighed, wishing he could stay in the water forever and forget he was on the run and had sentenced his family to a life of near-poverty. That part hurt the worst. He didn’t know what he was going to say to them when he saw them again. Tani hated the idea of his father working long days on the ships again, risking his life to make a living.

  He got dressed in clean trousers and shirt from his pack and left the bathhouse, feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the new day. Keena was sitting on the bench next to the old man, running a comb through her wet hair. She jumped to her feet when she spotted Tani.

  “How much do we owe you?” Tani asked.

  “Ten coppers apiece. You can come get your clean clothes in about an hour,” the old man answered from around the stem of his pipe.

  Tani reached into his knapsack, pulled out his bag of coin, and counted out twenty coppers. “We’ll be back for our clothes. Much obliged.”

  The old man nodded his head in acknowledgement. Tani and Keena left to find food vendors that carried something other than bread and cheese. There were more people moving around the village. Tani watched everyone with a suspicious eye, wondering if one of them was an Enforcer, ready to grab him and Keena and take them back to the monastery in chains. No one gave the strangers anything other than a friendly glance and nod in greeting.

  Keena stopped by several vendors and haggled over the price of some radishes, potatoes, and carrots. She handed the food to Tani and he put it in his knapsack. The next stop was a vendor selling salted, dried meats. They picked out several large pieces of pork and beef. The vendor wrapped them in heavy paper before handing them to Keena.

  After getting some bread and cheese, they stopped by an inn for a hot breakfast before returning to the bathhouse to retrieve their clothing. Tani ate until he thought his stomach was going to burst. He leaned back against the wall, covering his mouth when a burp escaped.

  “That good, huh?” Keena laughed.

  “It’s been awhile since I’ve had a meal like that.”

  “Yeah, the food at the monastery is pretty bland. There are times I miss Mama’s cooking so bad...”

  “You’ll get to see her soon and I bet she’ll cook your favorite meal.”

  “If she even wants to speak to me ever again,” Keena said miserably.

  “You’re her daughter, of course she’ll want to speak to you. I bet she is worried sick.”

  Keena nodded. “I guess we’ll know soon enough.”

  The pair kept silent as they went back to the bath house to pick up their clothing. Tani thanked the man as he shoved his newly-clean trousers and shirt into his pack. He could barely close the flap since the knap sack was now full of food.

  Tani led the way out of town. Part of him wanted to stay for a few days, sleep in a warm bed, eat warm meals, read a good book. He had never been keen on traveling. Though he enjoyed hunting, he had never liked sleeping outdoors with the weather and the bugs. He preferred to take day trips to the woods and come back to a nice warm bed at the end of the day.

  Master Kelhar won’t look for us forever. Soon, we’ll be able to settle down and sleep in warm beds until we grow old.

  ***

  Tani approached Maris from the north, staying on the outskirts of town. Unlike Keena’s home, there was no way to approach his family manor unseen. Maris was larger than Celtoe, which made moving through the city easier; he and Keena were lost in the crowd.

  “Where does your Nana live?” Tani asked.

  “I haven’t been to her house since I was a little girl. Somewhere on the eastern edge of the city, close to the sea, if I remember correctly.”

  Tani let Keena lead the way. Her steps were hesitant at first, but grew more confident as she saw buildings she recognized. After two wrong turns and some backtracking, the pair was standing in the shadows of an inn just across the street from where Keena’s Nana lived.

  It was a small house, though cozy-looking, with smoke rising from the stone chimney, and flowers of every hue growing underneath the matching windows flanking the front door.

  “It’s just like I remember it,” she said.

  “Shall we go up and knock or—”

  Keena cried out and ran toward the house. Tani yelled at her to stop, but she was already hugging an old woman with hair as white as snow. The old woman patted Keena’s back and whispered soothing words that Tani couldn’t hear. He approached and stood in the dirt, shuffling his feet, waiting for the greeting to come to an end.

  “We’ve been so worried about you, little Keena. What happened?”

  Keena held her grandmother’s wrinkled hand to her cheek. “I’d rather tell the whole family at once. I’m not sure I have it in me to tell this tale twice.”

  “And who is this young man?”

  “This is—was—my Harvesting partner, Tani. Tani, this is my Nana.”

  Tani nodded and smiled shyly under the scrutiny of Keena’s Nana. He had never felt comfortable around adults he didn’t know. Even though leaving the monastery had been Keena’s idea, he felt responsible for what had befallen her family.

  “Everyone is inside. Come.”

  Tani followed Keena and her grandmother into the modest single-story house. It reminded him a lot of his family’s home before he had become a Harvester and they had all moved into the mansion. The only thing his mother had missed was the ocean view. Their old cottage was built on the edge of a bluff overlooking the sea. Tani hoped his family was there waiting for him to return.

  “Have you noticed any strangers hanging around?”

  Tani was nervous about approaching Nana’s house so openly. An Enforcer could be keeping watch in an alley nearby.

  Nana frowned. “There are always strangers passing through Maris. But I have not noticed anyone near my home, if that’s what you mean.”

  He reluctantly followed the two into the cottage, eyes darting to the right and left, ready to run if an
Enforcer came out of the shadows.

  In moments, the front room of the home was filled with squeals of delight and tears of joy as Keena greeted her family. Her brothers were out to sea, having found work on one of the large fishing boats. Keena’s father was also absent. He had been hired as an assistant to one of the apothecaries in Maris.

  Tani stood off to one side and let Keena bask in the glow of being with her family. He hoped they would be as supportive when they learned what he and Keena had done.

  It was decided that their tale could wait until Keena’s father returned from work. Keena helped in the kitchen while Tani brought in wood from the pile outside. Rather than feel like an intruder, he stayed outside, chopping wood, feeding the chickens, gathering the ripe vegetables from the small garden.

  Tani sat on a wooden bench alongside the house and listened to the laughter of the girls as it drifted through the open windows. He closed his eyes and enjoyed the smell of the salty air. He hadn’t realized how much he had missed it until now. Back at the monastery, the only thing one smelled through the open window was blooms of the cherry trees in the spring.

  Nothing compares to the smell of the sea.

  Keena’s voice called to him, interrupting his stroll down memory lane. He walked into the kitchen and sat down next to Keena at the large table. Her father strode into the kitchen, wiping his hands on a towel. He was an imposing figure of a man, standing well over six feet tall with a perfectly bald head that shone in the light of the lamps. But for all his impressive girth, the man was nothing but smiles—smiles never reached his eyes.

  “I suppose you want to know why we’re here,” Keena said.

  “I think we can wait until after the evening meal before discussing such matters,” her father said, looking pointedly at the younger girls.

  Keena nodded and smiled. The father reached out to take the hands of his wife and Keena, the rest of the family taking the hand of the person sitting next to them. Tani found himself holding hands with Keena and one of her sisters.

  “Gods most high, we thank you for this food that will provide nourishment to our bodies. And though you know my most humble requests before my lips can utter a word, I ask that you keep watch over my sons and bring them safely home to their mother and me. As always, we give you thanks for everything.”