Please. I need to change. So I thought of Kenrick—his kiss, the way he’d held me during the dance at the festival.
Then I felt the cracking of my bones, heard my body turning in on itself, changing into something terrible, something deadly—
The man behind me shrieked, stumbling to get away from me. But I spun to face him.
Hunger pangs drove me mad. My teeth ached to tear into flesh. I stared at the pulsing circle of fire surrounding me. And the man running, like prey always does. A low growl vibrated in my throat.
Sweat glistened from his brow, and I imagined what his blood would taste like. My claws elongated and I felt my fangs graze my parched lips.
He turned his head to face me as he raced further into the woodland. I wanted nothing more than to rip into his skin, to tear his limbs from his body and savor the taste.
My body needed sustenance. I was starved for human meat. He crashed through the overgrowth, until I lost sight of him. I stopped and sniffed the air.
Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thump. The quick heartbeat drew my attention and I scanned the woods until I saw the outline of the bandit as he tried to hide next to the river. He tripped and raised his head—fear emanating from his every pore. But I was upon him before he could flee.
My fangs sank into his back. He squealed and his legs kicked beneath him, as if he could outrun me. His life’s blood trickled into my throat, quenching a thirst and hunger that seemed unfathomable. The man’s struggles became less and I knew he’d soon die. I buried my teeth deeper, until I crunched down on the spine. The man went limp in my arms. I dropped him to the ground, picking up the sound of someone else nearby.
My eyes raised. There. Standing across from me was another man. His golden hair seemed to spark. His scent drove me mad. The constant thump-thump of his heart attracted me.
“Brielle,” he said my name, his eyes focused on me.
He was my friend. But the cravings nearly brought me to my knees.
Stop. I won’t hurt him.
I had to get away from him.
But instead, I moved closer. Ravenous pangs of hunger needed to be quenched. I needed his blood to survive. If I didn’t feed again. I’d die.
No. This is Rhyne. Stop. You can’t do this.
My arms swiped forward, claws gashing at his chest. The scent of his blood drove me to madness. I lunged, my teeth tearing into his flesh.
Stop. Please. Stop.
“Bri,” he cried out.
Fight back. Please fight back. I latched on tighter, drawing him to me as I crunched down on his shoulder.
With a scream, I fought to gain control.
The ghostly lady, drifted from behind the trees. She stopped, staring directly at me. “He will kill youuuu … ”
It was then that I knew she spoke of Kenrick. She’d been trying to tell me all along. That I was the Beast. And Kenrick was coming.
Pain erupted through my body. My bones cracked once more, nearly bringing me to my knees. My gums throbbed as my long teeth shrunk back into place.
“No,” I cried out, dropping Rhyne to the ground and stepping back. What had I done? Oh God. Please not Rhyne.
The sharp tang of blood lingered in my mouth. I gagged as I scooted away from the body and vomited on the bank of the river. Slivers of bone scraped the back of my throat, while chunks of meat caught in my teeth.
A sob raked through me as my tacky, bloodied gown clung to me. I didn’t want to be like this. To kill unmercifully. To hurt my best friend.
“No. Please don’t die.” My vision blurred as tears streaked down my cheeks. I crawled to Rhyne’s side, clutching his hand in mine. This couldn’t happen. Not to him. Why?
“Brielle?” he whispered.
“Why didn’t you fight back? I’m so sorry, I never meant for this to happen. Please, I beg you, don’t leave me. Please.”
Blood seeped through his shredded tunic, his ivy eyes welling with tears. “I-I forgive you.” His fingers clutched mine.
“Don’t forgive me. I don’t deserve it.” I turned my head to the sky. “No. Don’t take him from me. Please. I’ll do anything. Rhyne, don’t die. You’re all I have.” I laid my head against his injured shoulder. The warmth of his blood slipped down my cheek like the creek whispering over rocks.
“Go, Bri. Leave me.” Rhyne coughed, took a few more haggard breaths, and then his hand went limp in mine.
He’d stopped breathing. No. Damn it. He wasn’t supposed to die. I shook him.
“Wake up. Don’t you dare leave me. Rhyne!” My throat thickened and I couldn’t breathe. Not without his light in my life. I never meant to hurt him.
I was a monster. I’d killed my best friend. He’d only been trying to protect me. Why had he agreed to come with me? Why hadn’t he just used his power on me?
We’d had so many happy memories together.
Dead. He was dead because of me. Another victim. Why couldn’t he have just let things be?
It was my fault he was dead. No longer would he smile upon me. Nor would he give me his flirtatious winks. There’d be no more walks in the woods or swimming in the pond. Rhyne would never get to marry Gertie and have a small cabin in the woods. My childhood friend and dreams melted away like snow beneath the springtime sun. He’s gone because of me. I tried to forget the look of understanding he’d given me when he realized he was going to die. As if to say it was all right. Because it wasn’t all right. The monster inside me had stolen away the best person that I knew.
What happened tonight would forever haunt my memory. I knew if it weren’t for Rhyne and Raul we’d have died at the hands of those bandits. But perhaps, I was meant to be slain and by dodging this attack, it only secured my fate more profoundly. I was an abomination. A murderer. Cursed. And my curse would be my undoing. From now on, I needed to stay away from everyone. No one was safe from me. I had to break this affliction or I’d have more lives—more sins to answer for.
At last, I released Rhyne’s hand and placed it over his chest. More than anything I wanted to bury him. But more than that, I wanted someone to find him, to let his family know of his passing. They needed to know what I’d done. It was like penance for me.
Stifling my cries, I wiped my mouth off, staining my sleeve with bits of flesh and crimson fluid.
The moonlight filtered through the trees, illuminating Rhyne’s form. My eyes welled once more at his carcass torn to shreds.
I turned to see Raul in the clearing. A dark shadow passed over his face as he secured his weapon back at his side. He rushed to me and knelt down, examining first Rhyne, then me. “I’m sorry I didn’t get here sooner.” He touched my face, wiping away tears.
“How can you be nice to me? I just killed your kin … Oh God, Raul, he’s dead because of me. Just get away from me, I might hurt you too!” I attempted to move from him.
“Shh … it’s all right. I know you didn’t mean to do this, Brielle.”
“I hate being like this,” I whispered, covering my face with my hands. Deep down, I knew I needed to get cleaned up and get moving again. I’d chosen to change into the beast tonight, but that didn’t mean Kenrick wasn’t far behind. What would I do if he caught up to me? Would I confess to him what I was? Or would I keep traveling, hoping to outrun my destiny—my curse?
“I know, love. Believe me, I know.”
I sobbed as he hefted me up into his arms. “We need to get you cleaned up. Let’s get you into the river. I’ll leave you to bathe and go retrieve some clean clothes for you.”
When Raul disappeared, I slipped the blood-soaked clothing from my body and tossed them in the grass. Shivering, I stepped into the cold depths of the river and scrubbed my skin. I dug my nails against my flesh trying to remove any remnants of my latest kill. Remnants of my now dead friend.
Mud squished between my toes while the current slapped against my already tired body. I bent down and scooped up a handful of water, which I swished aro
und in my mouth and spat out. If only I could get rid of the taste. I squeezed my eyes shut. I could end it. Just let myself sink into the depths. It’d be so easy to let go. But then you’ll just come back again. You have to break the curse.
A few moments later, Raul reappeared. “I’ve got some dry clothing and a blanket for you to dry off with.”
I accepted the items from him. When I was once again dressed, I clung to Raul as we trudged back to camp, where another scene of horror washed over me: the burnt corpses of our pursuers. If they hadn’t shown up tonight, none of this would’ve happened. I kicked at a blackened skull, sending it skittering into the side of a nearby tree. With shaking hands, I collapsed on Rhyne’s bedroll, clutching his blanket tight to my chest. His familiar scent overwhelmed me and I bawled. Rhyne was gone. He was never coming back.
I only wondered what might become of me in the days to come. Would I be strong enough to stave off this curse? To find a cure and be free from it at last? I doubted I’d ever really be free, because the memories of all my victims would haunt me until the day I died.
“Come, Brielle, we need to leave this place far behind.”
If only it was that easy.
Raul leaned his forehead against mine. “Now you see what kind of monster I really am. The things I’m capable of.”
Wetness hung from my lashes as I touched his face. “You, you’re not a monster, Raul. Here, I killed your cousin, my best friend and you call yourself horrible. If saving us makes you horrible, then what does that make me?”
He drew back and looked down at me. “You are cursed. But me, I did this on purpose. I only hope that you will not be afraid of me.”
Without hesitation, I threw my arms around him, and he embraced me back, holding me tightly against him.
“I’ll never let anyone else hurt you,” he said.
I sobbed. “I was so scared they’d kill us, but a part of me almost wished they would have.”
“Don’t ever say that, my little Brielle.” He rocked me back and forth until my crying settled. “Why don’t you sit in the carriage while I gather our things, we’ll make a new camp a couple miles north of here.”
Dirt caked the undersides of my fingernails as I dug the hole deeper. Another grave. When it was deep enough, Raul helped me drag what was left of the dead stag’s body over. Nausea clawed at my stomach. I had ripped the animal’s whole spine from its body. The innards were gone. I’d eaten them only to vomit the bloody mess back up when I shifted into human form. We could’ve just left the body in the woods, but I didn’t dare leave any sort of trail. Even if it could be blamed on a wild animal killing.
In one swift movement, Raul pushed the carcass into the hole.
Fresh moisture slipped from my eyes. I couldn’t keep doing this. If only finding a cure was as simple as taking one of Gram’s elixirs. She could heal people in the village all the time. Perhaps Gram’s gift to save people was to counter my curse to kill.
Once we finished burying the stag and swept pine needles and twigs to hide the fresh grave, we headed back to the carriage.
I rocked back and forth, staring at the trees. It’d been days since I’d lost Rhyne. Since I’d killed him. But the pain wouldn’t go away. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw his face. The blood. The way I’d ended his life. God, I couldn’t breathe without him.
A sob escaped my lips and I covered my mouth to hide it.
Raul rummaged through my pack and grabbed me a fresh dress as the moonlight shone through the timbers. He came back to my side and hugged me tight to him. “We’ll get through this, Brielle.” He pulled back and caught sight of my torn dress. “May I?”
I gave a small nod, and he lowered the shoulder of my gown, revealing the scar above my heart. He traced it, sending tingles through my body. Without another word, he moved away from me and turned his back so I could change and get cleaned up. There was already a basin of water in camp, we’d become smarter, knowing that my condition would come on whenever it pleased, so we prepared ourselves every night. Although, I was almost scared to go to sleep for fear that I might do to Raul, what I’d done to his cousin. To my friend.
Once I finished washing, Raul laid me on my bedroll then curled up behind me. He pressed his chest to my back, his arms encircling my waist.
“I won’t let him slay you this time,” he whispered against my hair.
I rolled over to face him. “How can you be so good to me? I’m a monster. What I did to Rhyne—”
“Rhyne forgave you in his last moments, and I forgive you. He’d want me to. You didn’t do it on purpose. Besides, I’m not exactly innocent, Bri. You’ve seen what I can do. Like I’ve said before, at least you can blame yours on a curse. Me, I’m the epitome of evil.”
My fingers touched his face. “That’s not true.”
He chuckled and his gaze lightened. He pulled me against him, our bodies molded together.
“Then it’s decided—we’re both good people.” He swiped the strands of hair from my face then placed a kiss on my forehead.
My pulse soared as my veins seemed to ignite with liquid fire. I couldn’t deny the effect Raul had on me. He knew what I was and still he did not shrink away.
I only wondered what might become of us in the days to come.
These violent scenes were becoming too frequent. I shifted into the Beast every couple of nights, the onset of my condition worsening. And I knew it was because Kenrick trailed me. I doubted he was very far off now. But whether or not he would put two and two together, I didn’t know. A part of me kind of craved death, and every night I would beg God or Raul to let it end. To let me die. But in the same breath, I found myself determined to live long enough to stop my curse. It sickened me to see the death I caused. So much blood and bones. I knew I couldn’t take much more. Not after what I’d done to Rhyne.
I shivered. A light drizzle blanketed the woodland, clinging to my cloak as we turned the carriage into the Fire Ridge marketplace. Wooden stalls lined either side of the narrow dirt road, their canvases billowing in the wind, while the vendors cowered beneath to stay dry. Aged stone buildings stood beyond the market, ominous beneath the steady cascade of rain. Raul reined the horses in and tied them off on a nearby log fence then reached up and helped me down.
“We need to buy a few supplies before we get to the cabin. I’d like to make as few trips as possible into town,” Raul said.
He didn’t have to tell me twice. The less people noticed us, the safer we’d stay. Already, curious stares followed us and he entwined his fingers through mine. We maneuvered through the small crowds to a stand selling grain and vegetables.
“Good day,” a man wearing a ragged tunic said. “You must be new to Fire Ridge.”
Raul nodded, his grip on my hand tightening. “Yes. My wife and I hail from Dark Pines.”
“That’s quite a jaunt from here. What brings you this way?”
“My grandmother gave us a cottage and piece of land as a wedding gift.” I forced a smile and moved closer to Raul.
“Whereabouts?”
“Just north of here,” Raul said, stroking my hair.
The man chuckled. “Ah, young love. Well, I wish you the best. But I must warn you, I’ve heard tell of recent attacks in the woods. I suggest you don’t wander about after dark.”
“Do they know what it is?” Raul asked.
“Some say wolves, others claim it’s a Beast. But who knows, anyhow, I just wanted you to be on the lookout.”
“Thank you, we’ll be mindful. Although, I don’t think we’ll be spending much time outside for a while, us just being married and all.” Raul winked at the man as he squeezed my shoulder.
Embarrassed, I turned my wide eyes in his direction. He grinned down at me, the familiar playfulness in his gaze. For a moment all I pictured was the “naughty” book he had tucked away in the carriage.
The man let out a boisterous laugh. “I remember those days.”
> Raul chatted with him a few more minutes then got down to business, bartering for our goods. Once we paid for the supplies, they were loaded into the carriage.
In the distance, the mountain peaks pierced the sky like giant needles. The monastery sat squat amongst the rocky outcroppings, bathed in midday shadows, its barred windows more prison-like than godly. I tugged my cloak tighter. Uneasiness settled between my shoulder blades but I shook it off, not wanting my imagination to get the best of me.
Raul tucked the last barrel into the carriage then came around to lift me onto the front bench. Once he slid in beside me, I turned to him.
“So, we’re wed?” I teased as we drove out of the market.
“You know you’ve always wanted me to steal you away and make you my wife.” He laughed as he watched the blush creep up my face. “But we’ll be less memorable if we’re just a couple passing through. Though it was quick thinking on your end about the cabin.”
“Yes, well I wasn’t about to tell them we’d run off together.”
Low hanging clouds drifted across the gray sky, cloaking the Fire Ridge Mountains. The weather here was colder than it had been in Dark Pines. We followed the fork in the road west to a nearly overgrown trail.
The tall, dead grass swept against the sides of our carriage like reedy hands trying to stop us. How long had it been since someone came this way? I wondered if this cabin was one that Gram and I had lived in before.
My gaze flickered over gnarled oaks, which seemed almost creature-like in their appearance. The knotted holes in the trunks reminded me of eyes, the twisted branches of bony fingers. A raven coasted in the sky above, the wind carrying it this way and that. I listened to the constant creak of the wagon wheels as I scoured the dreary landscape. The woods, the grass, even the creeping vines. Everything looked dead; the kind of dead that came right before winter.
The whole town seemed draped in eeriness and I wondered if we’d made the right choice in coming here. We looped up the steep incline, the air suddenly colder.
After a while, Raul turned the carriage once again to follow an even more overgrown road. Soon I caught sight of the cottage nearly hidden amongst the trees. The thatched roof looked as if it might need some repair; the shutters were nailed down tight giving me the idea that someone had either tried to keep something in or something out. The weathered wood had seen better days, likely a century earlier.
Legend of Me Page 19
