by Janet Durbin
Must be arranging for something else since I wasn't interested, he thought to himself. He finished his drink and stood.
The weariness of his sleepless night and all day trek was catching up to him, fast. The nuts and fruit he'd eaten while drinking the pint had taken the edge off his hunger. After he slept, a large meal would be the next thing on the agenda. He was more tired than hungry right now.
The eatery and bar were on one side of the building; the rooms for sleeping were on the other side. Drayco picked up his pack and went through the connecting doorway. A lad sat behind a counter. He walked up to him.
"How much for a room?"
"Three gold coins a night, includes breakfast."
"I only need one night. If I need to stay longer, will it cause any problems?"
"We're not crowded. If you have the money, we have a room for you."
Drayco yawned as he paid for the room.
"Room Four. Up the stairs and down the hall.” The lad sounded bored.
The dark twin swung his pack over a shoulder and trudged up the stairs. He found the room at the end of the hall. Once inside, he turned and shut the door, locked it, and tossed his pack on the floor. After the recently taxing experiences, all he wanted was a good night's sleep. He crossed the room and flopped down on the bed.
"Ah, Shyanne,” he sighed. “I always knew you were a tough cookie and could hold your own in a fight."
His eyes felt so heavy. With a groan, he sat up and peeled off his boots. He did not have the energy to undress further, so he didn't. Unbuckling the strap to his sword, Drayco curled over on his side and placed the weapon next to the pillow, within easy reach.
Snoring soon echoed throughout the room.
* * * *
Click.
The exhausted traveler was in a deep sleep and never heard the noise. The door slowly opened. The burly man from the bar peered into the room. The shifty-eyed man stood behind him.
"He's asleep. Let's do this now."
They entered the room quietly and shut the door, locking it again. Shifty set a pack on the floor next to the one already there. Both men moved to either side of the bed. With a signal from the burly man, they attacked. The sleeper woke up, though not quick enough. Burly punched him in the face and wracked him across the back of his neck before he could counterattack. He went down, face first; knocked out.
"Tie him up,” Burly said as he plucked the sword off the bed and leaned it against the wall.
The shifty-eyed man pulled out some twine from his bag and went to work. He rolled the unconscious man over onto his back, tying his wrists together with the palms facing outward. The feet followed.
"Hey Brom, he sure does look like that girl we want, doesn't he?” Shifty said once he finished.
"Go through his bag, Moss. Maybe there's something in there that'll tell us who he is."
Moss rummaged through the prisoner's bag. “Nothin’ here but clothes, some metal things, and foodstuff. I guess we'll just have to wait till he wakes up to get more information."
Brom wasn't in a waiting mood. “Throw some water in his face. I want him awake for questioning.” He moved a chair closer to the bed and sat down. Grabbing the sword, he took a better look at it. “Nice piece of work. I'll just have to make this mine after we kill the guy."
Moss splashed water onto the slack face. He came around, sputtering. With a glance, he took in the situation, and asked, “What do you want? Why have you tied me up?"
"I want information on the girl you were asking about downstairs. I owe her.” Brom rubbed his bandaged arm while he spoke. “And we don't want you leaving until we have it."
"And I owe her cat,” Moss threw in as he rubbed his backside.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
In the blink of an eye, Brom was out of the chair. The sword clattered to the floor as he dropped it and grabbed the prisoner by the front of his shirt, lifting him into a sitting position.
"Oh, I think you do, my friend. And if you don't talk to us now, we'll make sure you regret it."
These must be the men Shyanne shuffled with, Drayco thought as he glared silently at them. I won't tell them anything.
The burly man became enraged. He hit Drayco repeatedly. By the time he finished, the dark twin had a busted lip, a bloody nose and a swollen eye, but he had kept his mouth shut.
"That's enough! You can't get any information out of a dead man!” Moss emphasized through clenched teeth.
"We'll have to take him with us then. If we stay here, we'll get caught ... and I want that information.” He glared at the beaten man with deadly intent.
Brom stuffed a wad of cloth into Drayco's mouth. He secured it with some twine to prevent him from spitting it out. Fresh blood ran down the side of Drayco's face where it bit into the split lip. The bonds around his feet were cut; his wrists remained tied. He winced with pain as he was yanked into a standing position.
"Don't try any funny stuff or I'll kill ya where you stand.” Brom pulled out a small knife and held it at the dark man's throat.
Moss shoved Drayco's boots into a pack. Both packs were in his arms before he opened the door. The hall was clear. He waved them on. The burly man held the knife against Drayco's throat as they made their way through the halls to the back door of the inn.
Two horses waited, saddled and ready. A third was bare. The two men had obviously planned their escape before coming for him. Drayco was thrown across the back of the horse without a saddle. A rope secured to his wrists went under the belly of the beast, ending at his feet.
"Can't have you falling off, now can we? You might get hurt.” Brom grabbed a handful of hair and forced the captive to look up. He slapped the dark man hard across the face before letting go.
Both men chuckled as they got into their saddles. They rode out of town in a westerly direction. Drayco's body bounced with the rhythm of his horse. He mercifully passed out when his bruised and battered body could take no more.
* * * *
The ground beneath him was firm and steady when Drayco returned to consciousness. The continuous bounding of hooves as they hit the road was missing. Stars shone above. He was lying on his side, obviously left were he had fallen from the back of the horse. His wrists and feet remained bound, but the gag had been mercifully removed. The cut in the corner of his lip was sore from where the twine had dug deep into it, keeping it from healing. It was difficult to look out his left eye because of the swelling from the beating.
He turned his head. His captors were eating by a fire. Once they noticed he was awake, Brom came over to him with a cup in his hand.
"Have you reconsidered talking to us?"
Drayco shook his head in a negative manner. Even if he had wanted to, the strength needed to talk was beyond him. His throat was parched and his belly growled. He had not eaten at the inn. Now he wished he had.
"I bet you could use some of this food and drink.” Brom put the cup close to Drayco's mouth, but pulled it back when he tried to put his lips on the rim. “Not until you talk to us about the girl."
Drayco laid his head back on the ground and turned away.
"Suit yourself.” Brom downed the contents of the cup in one swallow.
Moss sat by the fire, shoveling spoonfuls of stew in his mouth. He looked at Drayco and swallowed. “You can have some of this too if you tell us about the girl."
The dark twin ignored both men. Brom rejoined the shifty-eyed man by the fire. They ate their meal slowly, taking great pleasure in taunting their captive with loud sips and smacking lips. Drayco wished unconsciousness would end his suffering at having to listen to these men. His strength of mind remained intact; his strength of body was giving out.
No food and water was taking its toll on him. The lack of blood was even worse. What he had drunk from the Wanderers would only hold him for so much longer, especially under this stressful situation. Drayco knew from past experiences what happened next.
The twine cut into his
wrists. He gave no indication, refusing to give these men more pleasure at his expense. His feet and hands were like ice. The boots he had taken off back at the inn were in his bag. The captors hadn't felt the need to put them back on. He tried to shift his position to a more comfortable one, but he was tied too tight and couldn't.
They had taken everything with them to make it look like he had left of his own instead of being abducted against his wishes. Since he was a stranger, no one would be the wiser. The two men sitting by the fire were talking about his sister; he lay still, listening to their conversation.
"When we find her, I'm going to cut her arm—and whatever else I want—like she did mine,” Brom stated sourly.
"I plan on cutting that cat open,” Moss added.
"I can't kill her, though, the Boss wouldn't like that. He needs her alive."
"Yeah.” Moss remembered the terrible things he had seen done to others in the past and shuttered. “He'll see to it she suffers real good."
"Yeah. He can be a mean one. I've seen what he's done to guys who try to cross him. It ain't pretty."
They both let out with a nervous chuckle and went back to drinking their ale.
Drayco looked at the dark sky above and wondered who the Boss was and what he needed with his sister. These men seemed afraid of the mysterious leader, which led him to believe that the Boss must be a very powerful and cruel person to cause such a reaction.
"We'd best turn in. We have a long ride ahead of us.” Brom came over to Drayco and checked the twine holding his extremities together. He smacked him across the face before going back to the fire.
Moss threw some wood into the flames. The brightness would keep smaller creatures of the night away. Both men tossed a blanket over themselves and were asleep in no time. They didn't bother posting a watch over their captive. They knew he wasn't going anywhere.
They left Drayco uncovered on the cold ground. He was too far from the fire to benefit from any warmth emanating from it, and began to shiver within minutes. His belly growled constantly. His throat was so dry it was hard to swallow. He knew it was going to be an even longer and harder day tomorrow, especially since the energy in his body was almost used up.
When I get the chance, I will make those two pay the ultimate price. I only hope I get the chance.
He lay contemplating what he would do when a sharp pain reminded him of the agonizing death he would suffer if he didn't get some life sustaining blood soon. It was long into the night before he finally fell asleep.
The next morning the captors ate their breakfast, leaving Drayco to do without. Suddenly, Moss came over and helped the dark man sit up. Every muscle in his body hurt because of being in one position far too long. He kept silent, gritting his teeth, not wanting to give the man any pleasure by crying out.
The shifty-eyed man brought a half full cup of water to Drayco's lips and poured it into his mouth. Drayco coughed as the liquid tried to go down the wrong way. He recovered and drank greedily. It wasn't much, but it helped.
"We can't have you dying on us before we get that information, now can we?” He winked at Drayco.
"Don't waste the water on him! If he won't talk, let ‘em suffer!"
Moss scowled, but didn't say anything. He must have known better than to cross his partner, having probably received too many of the same blows given to the prisoner. He stood up and went back to the fire.
When they were finished with their meal, they packed everything and readied the horses. They came for the captive and yanked him off the ground in a not so gentle manner.
His body was stiff and weak from lack of food, water ... and blood. Drayco tried to stand on his own. Instead, he crumpled to his knees.
"Great!"
"Maybe we should give him something to eat, Brom."
"Naw. Let ‘em starve. He'll be dead soon enough."
Drayco knew that to be true. He needed to drink blood today or he would not see another sunrise. He felt lightheaded. The muscles in his legs and arms were going in and out of agonizing spasms. His stomach continued to make its presence known. All of these were signs he had experienced before when he had gone too long without drinking blood. The lack of food wasn't helping either.
They dragged him painfully by the arms to the horse. Brom picked Drayco up and threw him over its back. The force of the landing took his breath away. If food had been in his belly, it would have come up. He lay there gasping while the men tied him to the beast. They laughed as his stomach rebelled, causing him to gag while they worked.
"I can't wait to get this job over and done with,” Brom said. “I want to get back to that Sheila girl. She's a fine number. When I had my hands on her last night, I almost didn't want to do this job. Not right away, at least."
He lifted his eyebrows a couple of times and flashed his filthy yellow teeth in a wicked grin. The fingers on both of his hands flexed as if they were squeezing something soft. Moss smiled, flexing his own fingers. They got up on their horses, still chuckling, and rode off, tugging Drayco's animal along behind them.
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Chapter Seven
Shyanne felt better than she had in almost a week. The defense system in her body that helped her to survive the virus also helped her heal faster than post-virus people. Drizzle lay next to her, keeping her warm. The bite of the coming fall was in the morning air.
She got up and restarted the fire. Because of her forced stay, she needed to gather more wood. The pile in the corner was all but gone. The waterskins also needed to be filled. She was pretty sure these jobs could be accomplished without too much difficulty.
After breakfast, Shyanne thought it would be a good idea to test her strength, and build up her endurance. Spotting a piece of rotten wood hanging down from the roof, an idea came to her. She grabbed her sword and walked over to the beam, rotating the bad shoulder around in a circle to test its strength. The shoulder was still sore, but the wounds were now closed. She jabbed and thrust, and with a swing of her sword, hit the board several times, then leapt back. A piece of old, tattered rope kept it tied to what was left of the roof.
Drizzle lounged by the fire and watched her with his half-opened eyes. He yawned as if completely bored with the whole process, and said, “You know ... If you had claws you wouldn't have to do that."
Rising, he stretched himself out in typical cat fashion and straightened. He glided to the board, and with a single swipe of his hand, took off two inches from the bottom. The board swung about crazily, but did not fall.
"Show off."
He shrugged his shoulders and sauntered back to the fire.
Shyanne continued with her sparring for a short while longer. When she finished, she leaned her sword against the wall and flopped down on her back, panting, her body covered with sweat.
"Boy, did I need that. I was getting soft from lack of exercise."
She sat up and rotated her wounded shoulder again after recovering her breath. It was still sore, but it moved better. The wounded leg gave her no problems at all.
Looking at Drizzle, she said, “I need to wash that blanket when we fill the waterskins. The clothes are too torn up from the fight to be saved.” Standing, she grabbed the tattered rags and tossed them onto the fire. Sparks and bits of ash flew into the air, flittering about like butterflies in a field of flowers. “Besides, it's about time we got a move on. I'm strong enough now to stay on Jack without falling off."
She put the carrying straps for the waterskins over her uninjured shoulder. Gathering up the blanket and a pack with some clean clothes in it, the pair walked to the stream.
Drizzle sprawled under the wide overhang of a tree that was a short distance from the edge of the water. He remembered the last time they'd been there and did not feel it was time for another bath.
Shyanne undressed and entered the water, washing everything she brought with her, including herself. Afterwards, she dressed in the clean clothes from the pack and hung the wet items over some
tree branches to dry. A warm, gentle breeze caused the material to wave with its passing.
"This would be the perfect time to scout around and find some foodstuff to add to our supplies.” She remembered seeing some bushes with a glint of red growing on them not far off from the path that led to the stream. “Maybe those were berries. Let's go check them out."
Drizzle cringed when he saw the bushes.
"Thornberrys!” Shyanne exclaimed.
"Oh great ... those bushes,” he grumbled under his breath with a look of disgust.
"Why do you say that?"
"Never mind.” The cat hoped no evidence was lying around to show his earlier disgrace with the rabbit.
She picked the berries, making sure to avoid the wicked thorns protecting the bounty. Several handfuls made their way into her mouth during the process. This time of year, close to fall, they were ripe and sweet. When she had her fill, Shyanne picked more and placed them in a small pouch she had brought. Drizzle stayed as far away from the bushes as possible. Tubers and herbs were located and added to the bag. She scouted around the rest of the area; nothing more was found.
The blanket and clothes were not quite dry when they returned. She flipped them over and sat down with her back against a tree trunk. A long piece of grass tickled her hand so she plucked it and popped into her mouth. It stuck out between her lips. Drizzle lay down next to her, his tail swishing gently. They both watched the leaves as they swayed in the breeze.
"I keep getting this feeling that something is wrong with Drayco.” Her voice was soft. “It gets stronger with each passing day."
Drizzle watched her frown. “What do you suppose it means?"
She grabbed the stalk and threw it away. “I don't know. I feel that he's hurt and suffering.” Looking at the cat, she asked, “Do you suppose he's close and that's why the feeling is getting stronger?"
