A Walk After Dark

by Kirra Pierce

  “I am Ammon’s mouth and arms. You will obey me as you do him, or he will deal with you. We seek to build a nation, not let them justify calling us insane. You may take what you have, but do not touch the children.” She sounded confident, regal even, but the hand she clamped down tightly on Cassandra’s was icy and trembling.

  My gods, can she control them? Cassandra let her eyes dart back and forth, searching for some weapon if Melisande’s control of the beasts slipped. In this one thing she could side with Melisande. Any children would be protected, even if she died doing so.

  “What if they’ve seen us, Lady? What if they can identify us? What would that do to our cause?” Farnes’s voice was an evil whisper of justification.

  “If they are awake, I will deal with them. Even if they could tell a clear tale of what’s happened, by the time someone hears it, it will be too late.” She marched to the cottage pulling Cassandra along with her.

  Cassandra’s heart was in her throat. That raver wanted to kill the children! She didn’t trust Melisande’s ability to protect them, to prevent the raver from returning to the cottage and murdering them after Melisande left. In addition, what if the children lived? Would they be alright until Ty and Cyn got there? She knew Ty and Cyn followed her by now. Would this madness be enough delay for them to catch up?

  Once the door closed firmly behind them, Melisande collapsed against it for a moment before straightening. “Never let them see weakness. You will do well to remember that when we reach my brother’s camp.”

  Both Melisande and Cassandra looked around the cottage. It was a single room: a square table, chairs, shelves with crockery, an empty adult bed, a small child’s bed, and a crib. “They aren’t here.” Melisande covered her mouth, a choked, hysterical laugh slipped by her fingers. “I almost got us killed fighting with them over children who aren’t even here.”

  “Thank the gods!” Cassandra muttered.

  She turned to Melisande, whispering with a desperate fury. “You see what you have aligned yourself with? They may have some self-control, but they are still the monsters of legend. They would gladly kill and eat any who get in their way, even children. How can you throw in with them? Help me find a way out of this now, and I will protect you. I will say you were kidnapped with me and helped me escape.”

  Melisande shook her head while Cassandra spoke. She looked sick at what had happened, but there was no hope in her words. “No. There are some paths once taken that can’t be stepped off again.” She appeared to resolve something within her and looked more confident. “What we ‑‑ Ammon and I ‑‑ will build from this will make the ugliness worthwhile.”

  The cottage door opened. Eric stepped in and cast a greedy look around the room. Surprisingly little blood spattered his clothes. “Children?”

  Melisande answered in a voice that gave no feeling away. “Farnes only smelled the recent traces of them. They were gone before we ever came.”

  “Hmpff. Well, it appears the greedy fools were smart in one thing. Let’s go.”

  * * * * *

  Three giant wolves ran tirelessly through the night. Packs were tied to their backs with Oryion rope that clung to their bodies, but stretched and gave with each movement. Her scent was in their noses. Even without it, the clear track of her kidnappers showed the path taken by three men. The deeper press of two sets of footprints showed which men carried the women.

  They passed the campsite where the kidnappers had stopped briefly. Again, their noses told them the women still lived. The only traces of blood were those of rabbits the ravers caught. Briefly, wolven eyes searched around the campsite. There were no signs of a struggle to indicate any violence against the women. Then the beasts were off again. Running.

  Finally, they reached a cottage. The strong scent of death clung to the air. A pained sound escaped the muzzle of one of the beasts. He shimmered and changed. Ty stood, gasping, naked in the moonlight. A second beast changed, and Cyn was beside his bond brother.

  He grabbed Ty by the shoulders. “It’s not her! The death, you know that scent is not Cassandra.”

  Ty bent an arm to cover one of Cyn’s hands and give it a reassuring squeeze. “I know. Just for a moment, though…I smelled the death and Cassandra’s scent still in the air…for a moment…” He shook his head. There was the sound of a soft step. Both men snapped their heads toward the sound.

  Darius walked back out of the trees. He had changed back to human form as well. “The remains of a man and woman are hidden just back there in the undergrowth. I added cover to the bodies with stones for now. There is no trace of Cassandra or Melisande near them.”

  All eyes turned toward the cottage. A few steps and Ty lurched inside. Table, chairs, empty beds. Not much in the room, but it all appeared undisturbed. Whatever caused the violence happened outside. He could smell Cassandra, Melisande, and one of the ravers. They all had been here, along with the couple who had died and…the smell of children? No, that scent was more faint, older. The children would not have been here this night. Thank the gods.

  Darius’s voice came through the window. “They left here on horses. The steeds must have been brethren-raised to allow the ravers near them. However, the kills were fresh. We have almost caught them! If we don’t stop, we will have them before dawn.”

  Cyn nodded. “I know this cottage. The ravers took a path that went through Hothgar’s lands, but now we are back on mine. The road they took leads to Quwe and then the border. We must catch them before they cross the border and reach the raver stronghold.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Friends give one person the strength of many.

  -- The Book of Common Wisdom

  The giant wolf that was Raphael glided through the woods, alert for any fresh evidence of ravers. He searched the site of the earlier attack, hoping the raver had panicked and left a clear trail for him to follow. No such luck. At first, the beast ran straight away, but then, he obviously regrouped and began crisscrossing his tracks, going back and forth. A maze of scent and tracks covered the whole hillside behind the berry patch. It was the same trick used by the raver that Cyn described. That makes it certain. This one is part of the new raver brethren.

  Keep unwinding his path step-by-step, or maybe… His beast wanted to keep on the trail. Follow the scent. Run the intruder down. The man within saw another way.

  Raphael abruptly turned and began running toward the back of the hill. If I can find the edges of his maze, I can go around until I find where he finally breaks away, and then I’ll get him.

  The raver left his maze at almost the same point as Raphael had. Yes! I’ll get you now.

  Swiftly, he followed the traces of the raver until he reached a small rise above the road to Quwe. Here. The scent of a second raver. His tracks came in from the north. Had he been scouting that area looking for women? Here. They changed. The footprints of men replaced those of beasts. They walked to the road? Why would they do that?

  The wind shifted. It brought Raphael new scents. New ravers, women, a very familiar scent. Cassandra! Ravers have Cassandra!

  Shocked, he stumbled slightly and almost changed back to his human form before gathering himself. He raced down the raver’s trail. They had met the new group of ravers on the road.

  Agitated, he raced back and forth across the meeting area, angry growls coming from his wolf throat as his nose and eyes told him the story. There were three new ravers. They traveled on horses. The new ravers dismounted and spoke with the other two. There were few prints from the women. The scent of Cassandra was strong now. Then he found it: a small, empty sachet bag like Cassandra always carried in case she found an interesting herb. There was no smell of blood on it. Raphael hoped it meant she deliberately dropped it to help those who would follow her.

  Damn! How could she have been snatched from a place as well guarded as the keep? Unless they were dead, Cyn and Ty would follow.

  Two sets of tracks became heavier. The new group of ravers sent their horses
into the woods on the opposite side of the road. Hmm, the two that were already around Quwe must have warned them the town would be looking for ravers, so they left their horses to go through the woods.

  The original two ravers returned to the woods and headed back down the way the new three had come. They could just be circling around to the west side of the village or they could be going back to stop any who followed the kidnappers.

  Fucking seven hells! He wanted to both stay and protect his chosen and to go save Cassandra. Although he teasingly called Cassandra sister, his beast had decided she was pack. Damn it, Miranda should be safe. She was in the heart of the protected village, and the first two ravers were probably after whoever might follow the kidnappers. Cyn and Ty can certainly take care of themselves. His beast gave a small whimper of fear in case he was wrong and followed the tracks of those holding Cassandra and the other woman.

  * * * * *

  A scant ten minutes before.

  Cassandra alternated between sleep and checking the woods for signs of Cyn and Ty. The horse startled. Jostled, she sat up straight.

  “Be still, woman.” The raver jerked her against him, then released her waist. “Hold here and don’t try to move.” He put her hands over the saddle pommel and slid to the ground, still holding the reins.

  Two naked forms melted out from the shadows. More of them! Gods save me and damn them to the seven hells. Hands tied, the raver in control of the reins, and Melisande watching her warily from the other horse, Cassandra concluded it was not the time to attempt an escape. She tried to look cowed and non-threatening while listening to every word they spoke.

  “What are you doing here?” Eric sounded angry. Very angry.

  “We were assigned to steal more women, but the Birne villagers are guarding theirs too carefully of late. We decided to take some from here instead and leave some pieces of a Birne uniform to make it look like they did this. It will help slow those here in Andera from joining the fight.” The raver attempted to look arrogant, but she saw nervousness in his face.

  “Idiot! They will never believe Birne would sanction a strike against their best ally. This will only give them an excuse to join in the fighting sooner.” Eric spat out the words in the gravelly voice that indicated change in form was coming. His hands fisted at his sides and muscles in his arms bunched. His two fellows slid down from their horses to join him, glaring at the newcomers. Cassandra’s breath caught in her throat, the air suddenly too thick to breath.

  The raver braggart attempted to snarl in defiance, but then dropped his head submissively along with his partner. At the gesture, Eric’s arms relaxed from their ready-to-attack position. “Lucky for you, Ammon’s sister has a better plan.” He inclined his head to gesture to Melisande. For the first time, the newcomers looked at the women with Eric, and their eyes widened. Eric snorted in disgust. “Your senses should have told you who was with me already. You do not pay attention to your surroundings as a true brethren should. You are pitiful. Perhaps I should kill you both for disobeying the master and general stupidity.” The newcomers hunched down in a wary posture and shuffled back a step.

  “No, we are sworn to Ammon. We want to prove ourselves worthy ‑‑ true brethren.”

  “Tell us what to do!”

  They practically stumbled over one another in their anxiety to appease the stronger beast.

  Eric sneered, obviously pleased with their pleading. Cassandra felt her chest loosen as the threat of an imminent attack faded. She drew a grateful breath into her lungs, trying to keep it as quiet as possible. She had no wish to bring attention to herself with these creatures.

  “Very well. Listen carefully. We have taken the chosen of Cynbarion’s right-hand man, the brethren Tyler. Melisande saw him nearly go mad when she was just missing. This will completely unhinge his reason. We hope Tyler will kill or severely injure the duke in his madness. In any case, Cynbarion will be too occupied with that to cause us trouble in the border war. However, he may have sent some of his men to find her. You two follow our tracks back and kill any who follow us. Hide the bodies well so no one can find them easily, then return to our camp. DO NOT attack any villagers or take any women. We don’t want to leave an easy trail for them. Can you do that ‑‑ just that ‑‑ exactly as I told you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Yes.” Both nodded their heads as they stepped further back from the dangerous trio of other ravers.

  “See that you do,” Eric snarled back at them.

  The two newcomers quickly faded away. Cassandra’s heart raced. They would find Cyn and Ty! Her men would be following her, not just sending a few troops to search. She knew Ty and Cyn were fierce fighters, but they wouldn’t expect a reverse attack. She mentally bargained with the gods. Please keep them safe! I will do anything. Nothing could happen to them. She couldn’t withstand the anguish if it did.

  Rough hands gripped her waist. Eric pulled her to the ground. Looking at Melisande, he spoke in a still angry voice. “Thanks to those fools, Quwe will be on alert. We can’t chance riding through or by there. We’ll leave the horses here and walk through the forest around the village.”

  She inclined her head in agreement. “Our eyes are not as yours, nor, of course, is our strength. You may carry Cassandra and me to make this as speedy as possible.”

  He tuned to Cassandra. “You’ll be easier to move if you’re awake, but if I hear a single sound ‑‑ even a squeak ‑‑ I’ll drug you, and when you awake, I’ll make you sorry. We need only keep you alive. So far, you are safe by Melisande’s orders. But if you interfere, you will be punished. Understand?”

  She gave a brief nod. While the ravers stripped their gear from the horses and chased them into the trees, Melisande sidled up close to her. “You have done well. Continue being wise and you will be unharmed. These three are very stable, but they enjoy giving pain. Don’t give them an excuse.”

  * * * * *

  Muscles stretched and strides lengthened. The scents and trail markings were becoming fresher. Then they stopped. First Cyn, quickly followed by Darius. Ty halted not far ahead to look back in wolven puzzlement at his brethren when he caught it too, a faint new odor in the air.

  Ravers. Not those that had taken Cassandra, but new ones. Two scents. A low growl of warning vibrated from deep within his throat.

  The giant wolf forms of Darius and Cyn moved to the side of the road. Ty followed. They continued on after the trail of the horses carrying Cassandra and Melisande at an only slightly slower pace, frequently looking to their sides at boulders and low tree branches, at any place that could hide an enemy.

  The scents of the new ravers and Cassandra became stronger with each stride. Ty wanted to run full out. To retrieve his mate. He panted not from the chase, but from the effort to control the beast body and mind. Success, not speed, was the key. He also forced himself to let Cyn take the lead. Since he had actually been born with the beast in him, he would be the most adept at spotting signs of the others, but he constantly had to pull himself back.

  A slight hitch in Cyn’s step alerted Ty. He, Darius, and Cyn all froze. The hair on their necks rose, and the lips of their muzzles lifted showing fangs ‑‑ but they did not growl or make any sound. They slipped free of their travel packs, sunk low to the ground by the trees and bushes, and waited, eyes on the road.

  Shortly, the two wolves loped into view. The ravers. Ty made minute adjustments to his muscles. His claws dug into the soft upper layer of earth. Come just a little closer. Just a little…

  They burst from the trees in smooth leaps. Cyn latched onto the back of one raver while Darius took the other. Ty sank his teeth into the hind leg of the one Cyn had. He relished the taste of hot blood flooding his mouth, wanting them to fight, to give him an excuse to tear into their bodies.

  The raver under his teeth yipped and struggled briefly. But with Cyn at his throat and Ty’s fangs in his leg, he dropped to the ground in surrender.

  While Cyn kept his hold, Ty rus
hed to help Darius with the other still-struggling raver. He, too, was quickly overwhelmed.

  Fighting through the red haze in his mind, Ty stepped back, changed to human form and dashed over to their travel packs. He pulled out Cyn’s Oryion rope and quickly tied the hind legs of both ravers. He threw the other end of the rope over a sturdy nearby tree branch.

  “Let them go!” he shouted.

  Cyn and Darius released the beasts they held and changed to their human forms as well.

  Ty pulled the rope to haul the ravers up into the air while Cyn bit down on his wrist, making a small wound. He spilled a few drops of his blood on the rope and gave it a twist to trigger it.

  The ravers rapidly changed as well: first to their half-beast, then human, beast, and finally back to human forms again.

  Darius stared at the angry, confused faces of the ravers as they hung upside down from the tree branch.

  “I am Darius, leader of the brethren.” He seemed to grow larger, his power spread out around him like the buzz of bees in the air.

  Ty blinked in surprise. He had never seen a shifter display power in this way. He was glad the powerful brethren was on their side.

  Darius’s voice interrupted his thoughts. “What are you doing in my territory?”

  The ravers paled, and the rope swung as they twisted fruitlessly trying to free themselves. Seeing they couldn’t escape, they began babbling.

  “We weren’t after you!”

  “No brethren or any villagers. We are acting as soldiers. We’re looking to kill, uh, fight ‑‑ I mean stop troops following our fellows ‑‑ not interfere with brethren business.”

  “Yes. You can let us go. We mean no harm to you and will leave Andera soon.”

  The ravers completely focused on Darius. They jerked in surprise when a fierce growl escaped Ty’s throat.

  Cyn remained hidden in the darkest shadows of the tree, but Ty heard a similar sound of anger from him.

  “Look at me!” The ravers flinched and looked back to Darius. “Who is it you are protecting?”