The Blood Witch (The Blood Reign Chronicles Book 1)

by Nielsen, D. S.

  “Yes, I did,” Jak answered with a lump in his throat. It was hard to see his grandmother like this. He wished there was something he could do for her.

  “It’s alright Jak. Edard had a good long life. He was a good man,” she said proudly.

  “How have you been Jak? How are your parents? How are Martia and Karl? Good I hope. Did they come with you? I would dearly like to see them again.”

  Jak couldn’t bring himself to tell her that they were all dead. Besides, she probably wouldn’t remember it for long anyways. If she did, it would be like with the memory of her husband, having to relive it over and over each day, with the pain and sorrow of the loss returning anew each time. Jak would not do that to her. “They are fine. Everyone is fine,” he lied. “They didn’t come this time.”

  Jak hated himself for what he was about to do next, but there was no escaping it. “Do – Do you have any spare horses we can borrow?” The strange power he had gained somehow, did seem to work to some degree on people, as well as dogs, but he didn’t like using his grandmother like this. In any case, it was more of a suggestion than a command. He didn’t think commands would work as well on a person as they did with Frog.

  “Well certainly Jak. With Papa gone we don’t have much need for horses and such. Julii here takes care of me.” She said the name Julii awkwardly and gave the younger woman a strange puzzled look before she turned back to Jak.

  “The little mare is out in the stables, as well as Papa’s plow horse. The little mare isn’t much good for anything. But Papa just didn’t have the heart to give her up. You are welcome to them if you can use them. Just take good care of them,” she said with a smile. “You will take good care of them, won’t you Jak? Papa loved that little mare.”

  “Yes grandmother, I will take very good care of them.”

  A faint burgeoning feeling began to creep up on Jak, as if he was overlooking something that was right in front of his face. He knew what he was doing with his grandmother was taking effort, even though he did not understand fully what it was. But at the same time, he could feel a struggling within the old woman, almost like a hatchling struggling to break free of its shell. He bent close and whispered, at the same time exerting more force of will, “Are they taking good care of you grandmother?”

  “Who?” The old woman whispered intently, her eyes alert and focused.

  “Julii, your daughter, and Garmir? Are they taking good care of you?”

  “Julii? Garmir?” she spoke the names with bewilderment, wearing a confounded look.

  “Jak, your mother is my only daughter still living. Her name is Martia; you know that. My only other daughter Nani, died when she was only six years of age. We don’t speak of her much anymore. It was a sad thing; she was overcome with the fever. But that was long ago. I seem to recall that one of your mother’s childhood friends was named Julii, but….”

  The backhanded slap that buzzed past Jak’s ear and caught the old woman across the face was as much of a shock to Jak, as it was to his grandmother. The astonishment of it staggered Jak so much he took a step backwards. The old woman’s eyes glazed over again, and she began to cry. “I’m sorry, did I do something wrong?” she said, looking dejectedly up at the younger woman who had delivered the slap.

  “Don’t you be tellin’ your stories no more old woman. You know better than that. Besides, you know they ain’t true.”

  “I’m sorry. I won’t do it again,” the old woman slipped away into weeping again.

  The blood in Jak’s veins boiled with rage. How dare this woman treat his grandmother this way? How dare she strike her like that? This woman wasn’t even her daughter, just some freeloaders taking advantage of an old woman who couldn’t remember.

  Jak’s closed fist connecting with the woman’s nose, was even more surprising to both of them. It knocked Julii backwards, landing on her backside near the wall. The blow dazed her, and she sat there for a moment before realizing what had happened.

  She drew the back of her hand across her nose, which was now streaming blood. It smeared the fresh blood across her face in a bright read streak. When she noticed the blood on her hand, she became enraged.

  Before Jak could stop himself, he darted across the room and grasped the woman with one hand around her neck, lifting her up until she stood on her toes, then slammed her hard against the wall.

  The woman let out a shrill cry before the air was forced from her lungs from the impact with the wall. Outrage painted the woman’s face, and her eyes bulged with anger as she struggled to speak. “How dare you lay your hands on me?” she managed to choke out through Jak’s clasped hand on her neck.

  Her outraged expression quickly changed to one of wild-eyed horror when she glimpsed the look in Jak’s eyes. The thirst was upon him, mingled with his disgust and anger at the mistreatment of his grandmother. Jak desperately tried to fight it down, but it had gone too far, and it was too late to stop now.

  Leaning close to the woman, he could smell the fresh sweet blood running a bright red stream down her face and smeared across her cheek. Exultation poured over him as he bent close and slowly licked the fresh blood from the woman’s cheek, savoring the moment.

  The taste of it was wonderful. It filled him with ….. life. The woman rolled her eyes in sheer terror, and she squirmed desperately in his grip.

  Jak felt alive….. more alive than he ever felt before. The blood was invigorating, delicious, how could anything taste that incredibly good, and be so satisfying?

  Grasping the woman’s hair in one hand, Jak wrenched her head to one side roughly. He could feel her blood throbbing rapidly just below the surface of her skin, he could smell it, taste it on his tongue. He could feel the terrified woman shaking in his grasp, but he paid no mind to her futile struggle. He bent towards her neck to satiate his unbearable thirst……..

  The door to the bedroom flung open, crashing loudly against the wall. The man Garmir, had heard the commotion and was standing there with a look of perplexity and anger on his face.

  “What’s going on in here?” He said angrily, before he noticed that Jak was holding his wife while blood streaming from her nose.

  “What are you doing with my wife? Take your hands off of her!” He cried in a rage.

  Jak willed himself to release his grip on the woman and step back. The man rounded on Jak, grabbing him by the front of the shirt, and attempting to shove him backwards. To the man’s astonishment, Jak did not budge at all. Instead, Jak took hold of the bigger man, and easily flung him across the room to slam into the wall next to Julii. Jak stepped slowly towards the two, like a predator stalking his prey. Both the man and the woman could see the look in his eyes, and they were frozen in place unable to move. A small yellow puddle began to form at the feet of the man. It disgusted Jak, how could this man be so cowardly. These people disgusted him; they deserved to die.

  Jak stopped immediately in front of the two, but far enough so both could see him clearly. He wanted to kill them, to satisfy his thirst, and gorge himself on their sweet blood. It was a fierce, primitive struggle inside him to maintain control, and not loose himself to the thirst. The struggle raged inside him like a burning hot furnace, but he would not give in. He could not give into the passionate desire that beckoned to him so intensely.

  Leaning close, Jak eyed them both in turn, as he deliberately spoke, biting off each word. “You will take care of my grandmother properly, with respect and kindness, in whatever she needs. You pretend to be her children, so then you will act like grateful children that love their mother.”

  The taste of the blood was so temptingly sweet. Jak wanted more; he needed more.

  “If you fail in this, I swear, I will hunt you down and kill you both.” He wanted to kill them now, NOW!, Drink them dry, the blood, the sweet blood!!

  The terrified look in the eyes of the two imposters, and their synchronized vigorous nods of ascension were enough to convince Jak they would do what he said, at least for a time. In any
case, Jak didn’t think his grandmother had that much time left. He hoped his commands to the two disgusting freeloaders were enough. It was all he could do at the moment. He wanted to send these people away. He wanted to kill them, drink them, but he couldn’t leave his grandmother here alone with no one to take care of her.

  With a great effort, Jak tore himself away and spun around heading for the door, before he completely lost control. Stopping short of the front door, he paused to collect himself before Nicoldani could see him. Even then, when he exited the house, the big man could tell something was amiss.

  “My grandfather died last winter,” Jak said somberly, hoping Nicoldani would believe that, was the source of his distress.

  “I’m sorry to hear that Jak,” the big man said sincerely. “Death is always a hardship when it’s someone you care about.

  Jak was sure the big man had seen his share of death in his lifetime, and knew what he was talking about. However, the sympathy Nicoldani displayed was not feigned.

  After a moment, Nicoldani continued. “Will we be leaving the girl….”

  “No!” Jak cut him off sharply, “we are not leaving Gin here. Those people are.. are….terrible. I won’t leave her with them.”

  “I see,” Nicoldani said, studying Jak with a skeptical look. “Well then, I guess we will need a horse for her, she can’t just ride with me all the time.” His voice was rough, but there was amusement softening the corners of his eyes. That lightened Jak’s mood a bit.

  “I’ve taken care of that,” Jak said ostentatiously.

  “Follow me.”

  Nicoldani raised an eyebrow before dismounting and following him toward the barn at the back of the farmhouse.

  Jak’s grandmother had been right; the mare was little, only about the size of a pony. When Jak approached the horse, it nuzzled his hand affectionately with its nose. Jak scratched between its ears and stroked its mane, but every time he would stop, the mare would nuzzle his hand, begging for more attention. It reminded him more of a puppy than a horse. It would be perfect for Gin.

  The other horse was a larger than usual plow horse with shaggy feet and a long mane. Jak was about to leave it, thinking it would be of no use to them, when Nicoldani pointed out that it would serve as a good pack horse. They would need to take supplies with them, and this horse would be perfect for that.

  There was a small saddle, obviously made for the tiny mare, which Jak collected from the tack room. But it made him wonder, who had actually ridden the little mare. Perhaps his grandfather had the saddle made expecting that his wife might want to ride the small horse.

  Nicoldani slung another normal sized saddle over his shoulder. Jak wasn’t sure, but he thought it was intended for Gandur. Jak had realized on the long ride through the Jagmerain pass that a saddle might not be so bad after all, and was glad Nicoldani had taken it.

  After collecting what they could use, they saddled the mare and Jak’s horse, Gandur. Well, Nicoldani did most of the work, since Jak didn’t have much experience saddling a horse, besides, the struggle with the people posing as his aunt and uncle had left him weak and drained of strength. He hoped Nicoldani just thought it was from riding all night without sleep. Come to think of it, he was very tired, and just wanted to rest. The big man showed no ill effects from missing a night’s sleep, and Jak thought that Nicoldani possibly could go for several days and nights without sleep. Jak however was looking forward to going back to the inn and sleeping in a bed. Just the thought of a soft feather bed made him even more tired.

  Nicoldani and Jak took up the lead lines of the two extra horses, and headed back to the Inn. At least Gin would be happy about today’s events, since she was going with them instead of staying here.

  When the two arrived back at the inn, they found Gin setting at a table over to one side of the common room, happily gulping down a hot bowl of stew. Jak and Nicoldani took seats with her at the table, and revealed the news to her that she would be going with them. The little girl was more than elated at being able to stay with them instead of being left behind.

  Svenlag appeared almost immediately with more bowls of steaming stew, along with two mugs of ale. Jak glance at the mug in front of him, then at Nicoldani, but the big man never even looked in his direction.

  After a moment, he pensively reached for the mug and took a small drink. The dark liquid in the mug tasted awful! Through his spluttering and coughing, Jak noticed Nicoldani, and from the sly smile at the corner of his mouth, he was apparently amused by the whole thing. But the big man just continued eating his stew and said nothing.

  The innkeeper was occupied with preparing for the local patrons who would be filing in soon for the evening meal and ale, so he was not his usual talkative self, only saying a few words in passing when he would bring more food.

  After a time, Jak spotted a man walking down the stairs from where the rooms were kept. He was an old man, with only sparse tufts of white hair clinging to the sides of his temples, leaving the top of his head completely bald, shiny and sun darkened. He wore a plain brown robe with a silver cord tied around his ample waist. The old man walked purposefully across the floor of the common room to stand in front of Jak. “Greetings, my name is Benjim,” he said with a slight bow, “would you mind if I joined you?”

  Jak looked a question to Nicoldani. He didn’t really want company, but Nicoldani said it would be rude to refuse the man hospitality. The old man took a seat across the table from Jak without speaking another word. Jak was thankful for the silence, and it seemed no one else was in a talkative mood at the moment either.

  They finished with their stew, and as the innkeeper was clearing the table, Gin hopped down and said she was going to help Mistress Elanor in the kitchen. Once Gin was through the door to the kitchen, Benjim finally spoke, “To where are you traveling, if I might ask?” Strangely enough, he was looking straight at Jak when he spoke. Jak thought it more than a little odd that the old man kept addressing him, instead of Nicoldani.

  “What makes you think we are traveling anywhere?” Nicoldani asked, to Jak’s relief.

  Benjim smiled a warm smile that crinkled the corners of his dark eyes. “So you live here then, do you?” Benjim addressed the question to Nicoldani this time, but from his raised eyebrows and look of mock surprise, it was clear it wasn’t really a question. Nicoldani pursed his lips with a slight grimace. It was certain the old man knew Nicoldani wasn’t from this area.

  “The two youngsters have the look of locals, but you….You look like you could be an Odessian, possibly one of the Queen’s Guard…or….”

  “We are heading south,” Nicoldani cut the old man short, in hopes of forestalling any further commentary from him.

  That was news to Jak, since before now he hadn’t really thought about where they were going. But when he heard Nicoldani say south, he wondered if Nicoldani somehow knew Brigette had gone that way. Jak knew she had gone that way and could feel her somewhere to the south. Well, he could feel the witch somewhere to the south, and it was likely that Brigette had gone that way as well, especially if the witch was holding her captive. Jak was relieved to a certain degree to find out they were heading south, since he wanted desperately to see Brigette again. But he was surprised to realize that he wanted to find the woman who murdered his family…..and kill her. But if it turned out that it really was Brigette…..then what?

  “Good choice,” Benjim said, “I have come from the west, and it is a dangerous place these days. The East Road is hardly safe to travel any longer. I have never seen anything like it, at least not in a long time, that is.”

  “The East Road?” Jak spoke up, “I thought you came from the west?”

  Nicoldani shook his head in consternation, and the old man chuckled. “Indeed I did lad, but I traveled east to get here.”

  It took a moment for realization to sink in for Jak. When it finally did his face reddened and he decided he would just keep quiet after that.

  “Yes, a dangerous road ind
eed,” the old man repeated. “There are uprisings in some of the towns and cities, and there is news of raids down from the Saibani Mountains. No, I would not go that way if I were you.”

  “So where are you going?” Nicoldani asked with a look that said he didn’t really care.

  “Me? I am traveling south, like yourselves,” Benjim said with a smile. “There is not really much of a choice, since I do not want to go back the way I came. In fact, I was wondering, if it is not too much trouble, if I could ride along with you for a time?” The last question was directed at Jak once again.

  Jak’s head swung to Nicoldani in surprise, then back to the old man, not knowing what to say. Why was the old man asking him and not Nicoldani? Jak was unsure if the hospitality Nicoldani spoke of extended from sharing a table, to sharing the road. Nicoldani didn’t answer right away, instead he asked, “When are you planning on leaving?”

  Benjim swung his gaze back to Nicoldani. “Now, just as soon as I collect my things from my room.”

  “Now?” Nicoldani asked incredulously, “but it will be dark soon.”

  The old man chuckled again. “I am aware of that lad, but I have been here long enough, and it is time to go.”

  “We aren’t leaving until the morning,” Nicoldani said flatly, as if it settled the matter. “If we catch up to you on the road, then perhaps…..” he left the rest unsaid, unwilling to make a commitment.

  The old man looked at Nicoldani for a moment, and then studied Jak intently, before saying, “As you wish.”

  The knowing look in the Benjim’s eyes reminded Jak of his mother when she would catch him in a lie, when she knew the truth, but was waiting for him to come clean. It was unsettling enough coming from his mother, but was even worse coming from the strange old man.

  Jak was glad to see the old man’s back as he left the inn. Benjim left over the protests of Master Svenlag of course, but nothing the innkeeper said could dissuade the old man from his purpose. Once the old man collected his belonging from his room, he departed, just as he said he would.