by KM Fortune
Restless with the inaction, she turned back over. She was not satisfied to simply hide in the dirt any longer and got up on her knees to look at the warehouse again. Suddenly the clouds above shifted, and the moon peaked out. The moonlight illuminated the figure waiting at the loading dock, and Raven saw it glint off of Blaze’s red-hair. Her heart leaped with relief. He’s okay, she thought as she jumped to her feet to go join him. Before she took more than a few steps, she paused, realizing things were not okay after all. Willow was clearly not with him.
BLAZE SAT ON THE EDGE of the loading dock. He saw a flicker of movement, and for a second he was alarmed, but then he could see the figure more closely. He watched as Raven stepped out of the darkness. The moonlight reflected off the smooth, fair skin of her face. So much different than the rest of us, he thought a moment before he remembered his anger. Blaze was furious at the woman. Because of her, his clan’s leader, his friend, was gone. Taken by the Patrols and he had not been able to stop it. Watching her walk forward and ignoring the concerned look on her face, he jumped to his feet. “Where is Kit?” he hissed. The woman slowed her step but did not stop moving toward him. Before she could form an answer, Blaze felt someone behind him, and he whirled around to see Kit. She rushed at him, and he had to brace himself as she grabbed his waist. Such a powerful hug for such a tiny person, he thought and returned the embrace. He did not know what he would have done if he lost both Willow and Kit at the same time. As if reading his thoughts, Kit pulled back and glanced around. She raised an eyebrow at him in question. Blaze’s throat went dry. How do I tell her about Willow? The girl’s eyes widened, and she started to shake her head. Blaze tried to keep hold of her, but she struggled free and continued to scan left and right. She turned in a circle and Blaze was certain she was ready to bolt into the wilderness in her grief. Suddenly Raven was there. She reached a hand out to Kit and waited. It seemed like a crazy gesture considering Kit’s skittish nature, but somehow it stopped the girl from completely unwinding. Blaze watched as Kit looked at Raven’s outstretched hand and then, ever so slowly, took it. Raven nodded to Kit and then turned to Blaze.
“You're hurt,” she said. “Tell us what happened.”
Blaze reached for his forehead and felt the spot where the bullet had grazed him. His fingers came away bloody. His head ached from the impact, and he still felt nauseous. But I’m lucky to be alive, he thought. Especially since there was a soldier sent to finish me. The memory of the man was fuzzy. Blaze could not remember exactly what happened, but knew for some reason, the man shot wide and let him live. A fleeting memory of him speaking to him lingered in the back of Blaze’s mind. He thought it had something to do with Raven. Squinting his eyes, he tried to recall the moment, but the action only made his head ache more. Feeling dizzy, he closed his eyes and slumped back against the loading dock. He felt Raven and Kit both rush to him and help him slide gently to the ground. Cool fingers tenderly pushed his long hair back from his face and away from the wound. “Kit, I need a fistful of the cleanest snow you can find. It will help the swelling while we make a bandage,” Blaze heard Raven murmur. Blaze sighed. Even though he was grieving the loss of Willow, Raven’s gentle attention comforted him. He opened his eyes, and her face was very close to his. He saw the smooth contour of her jawline. The softness of her cheek. He started to raise his hand to touch her face when she looked at him. The moonlight glinted off of her green eyes, and they held his for a moment. A strong desire to kiss her overtook him, and he started to lean into her when suddenly Kit was back. Blaze realized she was not alone. Raven turned to follow his gaze. Beside Kit was Twig, the teenage boy in the clan. No one else was with him and even in the shadows Blaze saw his face was streaked with blood and tears. Blaze pushed himself to his feet.
“Where are your parents?” he asked but already knew. Twig’s voice cracked as he choked out the answer.
“My pa is dead,” he said. “He tried to fight the Patrols when they found us. He made me run. I didn’t want to but he pushed me away.” Blaze lowered his head and felt more pain in his heart. Stump, a good man, was gone. Then he realized Twig’s mother was not with him. Looking up, he asked the question he already knew the answer to but had to voice it. “Where is your mother?” he said.
Twig sobbed and fell to his knees putting his head in his hands. “They took her,” he cried. “They took her.”
WILLOW KNELT ON HER knees at the back of the large, dark green Army tent. She was no longer dressed in her normal clothing but was now in a thin cloth shift. It did nothing to stop the cold, and she shivered. Beside her was Dawn, Twig’s mother. The two of them wore single shackles around their ankle which were attached to a chain linked to a stake in the dirt. The two of them had pulled and twisted at it with no luck. The wood was driven deep into the ground. The metal cuffs were tight, and Willow’s had already cut into the skin above her foot. There would be no slipping it off. Escape seemed impossible.
Waiting to see what would happen next, Willow had her arm around the younger woman, holding her close to try and keep her warm. She could feel the girl crying against her shoulder, and it was all Willow could do to stay strong. It was not herself she was grieving for though. It was for the others. She knew Blaze was dead, having seen him fall when she raced into battle with the Patrols. Dawn had explained to Willow that Stump, and probably Twig, was dead too. Willow could only hope the others of her people were safe. Or as safe as they could be during these horrible times, she thought. She had overheard through the canvas walls the Patrols talking about how they would go out in the morning and hunt again.
There was a sudden commotion outside the tent and Willow tensed. Someone was coming, more than one person from the sound of it. She had no weapons, but if they moved close enough to try and unlock her shackle, she had every intention of attacking with her teeth. There was no way she would go willingly back to the Great Cave with them. It would be better to provoke them into killing me, she thought. But then what will happen to Dawn? She gritted her teeth at the realization she could not leave Dawn alone in this. Not if she could help it. Willow settled back and decided to take things one at a time. Watching the entry flap of the tent, she saw a soldier push his way in and step aside holding the flap for the next man. Willow felt a chill of fear mixed with loathing run up her back when she realized the second man was the officer who wore the gold cross. She felt cold hatred at the sight of him, full of memories of the terror he always brought. He turned and she saw him smirk as he looked back toward the flap. Willow followed his eyes and the sight made nausea rise in her throat. Blue, the man from her own clan, someone she had considered a friend, stepped into the tent.
Unable to stop herself, Willow lunged for him, her hands outstretched and reaching for his throat. A howl of rage escaped her. Only the swift swing of the soldier’s rifle butt saved Blue from her attack. The force caught Willow in the chest and knocked her back into the dirt. It hurt, but at least she had the satisfaction of seeing fear on Blue’s face.
“Enough,” snapped the officer as he glared at Willow. “I will let them beat you if you try that again. Is that clear?” Willow said nothing. The officer shook his head. “Too stupid to understand.” He looked at Blue. “Are either of these creatures the witch?”
Willow watched Blue hesitate. She realized he must have made a deal of some kind with the Patrols, but now Raven had not been found. “No,” Blue admitted. The Patrol Officer frowned.
“Then maybe you've been telling us lies,” he said. “Maybe you are no use to us after all.” He waved to the soldier with them. The man grabbed Blue roughly by the back of his jacket and steered him toward the door.
“Wait!” Blue said. Slowly the traitor’s eyes turned to Dawn. Willow realized what he was about to confess and she shook her head no. The man ignored her. “But I have something almost as good to offer you.”
The platoon officer raised an eyebrow. “Oh?” he said and followed where Blue was looking. Blue nodded.
“The younger one,” he said but then paused as if reconsidering.
“Spit it out,” ordered the platoon officer. Blue took a deep breath.
“She's with child. Just a few months so it doesn't show much. But she's going to have a baby.” Willow watched as first surprise, and then satisfaction crossed the officer’s face. He smiled.
“You've done well,” he said to Blue. Willow heard Dawn start to sob beside her and in her heart Willow knew all hope was lost.
CHAPTER 9
KIT SAT IN THE CORNER of the loading bay. She held her cloak wrapped tightly around her and hid her face under the hood. No one approached her even though she could hear quiet discussion in the room around her. Only half of the original clan had returned. The little girl Mouse and the young woman who watched over her survived the day by hiding in the trunk of an abandoned rusted-out shell of a car. Even in her grief, Kit was proud of Mouse for being able to stay still and quiet for so many hours. The child is learning, Kit thought. Perhaps somehow she will persevere through all of this. Kit, however, did not feel she would. The loss of Willow tore at her heart. She was sad for Dawn and her unborn child as well, but the grief was not as deep. Willow had taken Kit under her care from the time she was a child even though Kit was so tiny and weak. They would have left me to die if she had not intervened. And now she is gone. Taken by the Patrols. Kit wiped away hot, angry tears and felt her hate for the evil men from the Great Cave with renewed vengeance. She wanted to hurt them, to kill them. Even though she was only one small person and they were many with weapons and vehicles, she resolved to go after them. I can slit the throats of some at least, she thought. Standing up, she moved closer to where Raven and Blaze were huddled together talking. They looked up at her.
“I’m so sorry, Kit,” Raven said softly. Kit only stared at the woman. A part of her wanted to hate the stranger. After all, if she had not come, the clan would probably be safe and have been able to live in the shelter for months or even years without detection. Yet her anger faded as quickly as it came on. She still believed Raven’s appearance would somehow be important to the people of the desert prairies. Although Kit was not especially spiritual, she felt a reverence toward the woman. No one could have walked down from the mountain alone unless they were extraordinary. Finally, she answered Raven’s words with a small nod and then she looked at Blaze. His cut was bandaged, and his face was less pale. Kit knew there was no way to be sure the wound would not become infected later, but for now, she was relieved to see he was better. He met her eyes and shook his head, already guessing why she had come over to them.
“No, Kit,” he said. “It would be suicide, and it is not the clan’s way.” Kit sucked in a deep breath, knowing what he said was true. “I was explaining it all to Raven,” he continued. “How the Patrols have always had superior numbers and guns. How they have hunted us for generations. How they killed my brother without mercy on his wedding day. We do not fight them because we cannot win. Our way is to slip into the night and survive.”
But we are not surviving, Kit thought, wanting to find a way to yell the words at him, but keeping her constant silence. Speech had never come to her, and even though she managed without it, it frustrated her now as it had so many times. Instead, she took a knife from the sheath at her waist, pointed in the direction she believed the Patrols were camped and then mimed slitting it across her throat.
Blaze shook his head, a hint of frustration on his face. “No Kit,” he insisted. “We need you with us. Now more than ever. You must accept Willow and Dawn are gone.”
RAVEN WATCHED AS KIT and Blaze stared each other down. She understood both sides of the argument. The loss of the two women tore at her heart. Even before Blaze explained what would happen to Willow and Dawn, Raven knew. She had been in the underground mountain laboratory. The scientist who found her and saved her had been very clear in his description of how women were treated in Eden. If we don’t rescue them tonight, they will die a horrible, frightening death, she thought. But how can we help them when we are so few? Raven looked around the room at the others there. A five-year-old and the young girl who watched her. A traumatized teenage boy. Kit, Blaze, and herself. They were nothing compared to the platoon of soldiers. Helpless. The Patrols would laugh if we attacked them. She started to tell Kit as much when suddenly an idea began to form in her mind. But what if we didn’t attack them?
Kit was turning to leave when Raven raised her hand to stop her. “Wait,” she said. “I think there is a different option.” Kit paused and Blaze, who had started to reach out to grab Kit’s cloak to hold her back, dropped his hand to listen. “You both have told me you think the Patrols are still out on the plains and will come back for the rest of us at first light. That means the Patrols are camped around here. You both know this land. Where would such a large group with trucks and gear set up?”
Blaze answered immediately. “They will be at the old airfield. It is a place they have used before,” he said. Kit nodded agreement. Raven felt a little hope forming as her idea grew.
“How hard would it be to get to it? Can we walk there before daylight?” she asked. Kit and Blaze looked at each other, curiosity evident on their faces.
“Yes,” Blaze said. “But why would we want to go there? Even if we made it to the camp and could find Willow and Dawn, we would never get away before the sunrise. We would be left exposed on the plains and be easy targets.”
Raven smiled a little. “No we won’t. Because we will steal their truck and I will drive us away before they even realize what is happening. It is the last thing they will expect.” Blaze was quiet, and she could see on his face he was torn. She knew it was a difficult decision for him. His first instinct had to be to keep his people safe. Yet, the possibility they could save Willow and Dawn made it hard to say no to Raven’s proposal. Even Kit was motionless, waiting to see what Blaze would say. Finally, he nodded and gave Raven a grim smile.
“I think it is time we stopped hiding,” he said.
HECTOR WATCHED THE nomads in the loading bay. He was hidden close by in the darkness. Able to see well in the dark, he had crept up on the unsuspecting humans and liked what he saw. The tiny girl who kept giving him a hard time was there. Growling deep in his throat, he thought of what it would finally feel like to bite her. I should have taken care of her when I had the chance, he thought but let it go for the moment. He was more interested in the taller woman. He was sure she was the one who had taken his jeep. She has to be the witch, he thought as he examined her differences from the others. Even though her strange mismatched clothes were similar to the nomads, he could tell from a distance, she was unlike the others. Where they appeared rough and battered by the hard life around them, the woman was somehow exotic. She seems fresh, he thought. It was a strange way to describe someone, and yet it fit. Except that nothing was fresh on the wasteland of the desert plains. Everything was old, decayed, and worn down to almost nothing. He could understand now why the Patrols wanted her. It was obvious she came from somewhere else. Some place which is better than here. I have to find a way to get her for myself.
Counting the number of people he could see, he contemplated the option of bull rushing the group where they were huddled. Even though he had the combat rifle he stripped from the soldier who attacked him earlier, he feared making a lot of noise. Instead, he figured he could bite and slash his way through them before they even knew what hit them. Unless one of them has a gun, he thought. He had no interest in getting shot. Finally, he decided to just wait. The nomad group was starting to move around now, and it looked like they were gathering some things. He figured they were planning to head for the hills to the west and he knew he could stalk them easily in the night. Fleeing was what he would do considering the Patrols were still just down the road and certainly going to come hunting for them at dawn. Normally he would have been long gone too, but the intrigue around the stranger kept him close. He was glad he stayed. The witch undoubtedly had special powers or knowledge
which he could use to his benefit. The idea of marching back home with her at his side made him grin. No more exile for me, he thought. They will bow down to me yet.
CHAPTER 10
UNABLE TO KEEP HIS eyes shut, Matthew stared at the ceiling of the large army tent above him. The snores of five other men sleeping on camping cots around him did not help. There is no way I’m going to be able to sleep, he thought. Aside from the noise, he could not keep his mind from racing. He had heard two women had been captured but no more information. He guessed neither of them was Raven or there would be a lot more celebrating going on among the soldiers. Instead, there was a lot of grumbling. Apparently, hunting had been slim pickings, and only two men were confirmed dead, which included the one Matthew was dispatched to kill. I wonder where the guy is now, he thought. Did he relay my message to Raven? Matthew could only hope he did. Assuming the young man was not lying when he nodded agreement to knowing Raven. But why would he lie? Matthew could think of no reason, which meant the woman from the ice was still out there and possibly nearby. The idea of sneaking away into the night suddenly crossed his mind. He could search for her. Find her. He was amazed by how much his heart yearned to see her again. It was crazy, yet ever since he helped her escape, she was in his thoughts. A part of him believed what the brothers said, that he was under the woman’s spell, but he did not care. Another part of him knew it was not true and instead what he felt was real and normal, a chemistry between a man and woman. He had to find her.
