by Krista Rose
I made a face at it. “Are you sure someone lives here?”
Elias shrugged, dismounting in front of the house and tying his mount to a broken fence. “Herrill’s a good farmer, but a lousy carpenter. Come on.”
Tanner and I exchanged glances, but dismounted, tying our horses beside Elias’. We drew our swords as we approached the house, nerves jittering beneath our caution. The gravel path crunched beneath our feet with the sound of brittle bones, and the hair on the back of my neck stood on end.
The front door was ajar, gaping into darkness. We stared into it, frozen in fear, until the cry of a distant bird made us jump.
“Alright, I’ll go first,” Tanner said, swallowing hard. “If I need you, I’ll give the signal.”
Elias frowned. “What signal?”
Tanner glanced at him with a ghost of his familiar grin, his eyes looking more alive than they had in weeks. “I’ll mimic the scream of a terrified little girl.”
Elias smirked. “Are you sure it’s just for a signal?”
“Of course it is. I’ll have you know that in normal situations, I have a perfectly manly wail.”
I rolled my eyes at him. “Maybe I should just go inside.”
“No, I’ve got it.” He took a deep breath, and raised his sword. “Here goes.” He pushed inside, and the darkness swallowed him.
I could hear him fumbling through the rooms, his footsteps echoing as he searched for windows, ripping down their curtains. Brilliant bolts of light shot through the shadows, illuminating odd corners and faded furniture.
“Bedrooms are clear,” Tanner called from somewhere in the house. “So’s the great room. Checking the kitche- oh, my Gods!”
Elias and I rushed in, pushing through the choking dust and cobwebs until we reached the kitchen, where Tanner stood frozen in the doorway.
“What is it?” Elias demanded. “What’s wrong?”
Tanner pointed, his face pale. I looked, and my stomach sank.
The back door had been ripped from its hinges. Blood smeared the walls, flies buzzing over the blackish-brown stains. They would have looked like handprints, except that the fingers ended in claws.
“Wh- what do you think, Elias?” Tanner gulped. “Think anyone can lose this much blood and survive?”
“No.” Elias touched a smear. “It’s dry. This happened days ago.” He swore. “Bastards.”
“So… what? Where’s the body?”
“I don’t know.”
“This doesn’t make any sense. Why would they kill Baedon and leave him, then kill Herrill and take him?” And where is Felice? His unspoken question filled the silence, smothering us.
I stared at the blood, frowning as I saw a pattern. “It looks almost as if-” I stuck my head out the back door, saw a neat stack of split firewood, and a heavy indentation in the grass.
“What is it, Brannyn?” Elias had stepped up beside me.
I pointed, following the path of crushed grass with my finger into the woods. “They dragged him in there.”
He glanced over his shoulder at Tanner. “Brannyn found a trail. Let’s go.”
We set off into the woods. The trees were sickly-white, and the black rings on their trunks looked like eyes staring at me. I shuddered. “What kind of trees are these?”
“Aspen,” Elias answered, his eyes on the ground. “They like the cold. Grow like weeds around here.”
“Ah.”
The woods grew dark and silent as we continued forward. Dread tied my stomach in knots, and I cursed myself for finding this trail, certain something awful was waiting for me at the other end.
“Elias,” Tanner whispered, his eyes wide and frightened, “what exactly are we hoping to find?”
Elias jerked to a stop between two trees, his face turning grey as he pointed into a shallow hole. “That.”
I looked, and immediately wished I had not.
The old man had a look of terror frozen on his face, his eyes glassy and dead as he stared at the heavens. His chest had been torn to shreds, his spine exposed through the hole in his stomach. Bite marks covered his neck and arms.
I swallowed. “They’ve been feeding off of him.”
Tanner retched beside me.
Elias’ face was pale, but he didn’t look away. “This wasn’t human.”
Tanner wiped his mouth. “You think an animal could do this?”
“No.” He shook his head. “I’m thinking monster.”
“What kind?” I asked, my stomach clenching as I remembered glowing white eyes.
“I don’t know. I haven’t heard of anything like this.”
A twig snapped, off to our left, and we spun, swords raised.
“What was that?” Tanner whispered.
We froze, listening, our ears straining against the silence.
“I think we should get out of here,” I breathed, my heart hammering in my throat.
Elias nodded, starting to back away from Herrill’s grave.
A woman’s voice slid through the quiet, haunting and lovely as it sang, freezing us in our tracks. “Little glass girl will dance and play, sparkling in the light of day. She is perfect in every way, little glass girl put on display.”
Tanner and Elias exchanged glances, their eyes going bright and hopeful. “Felice!” they exclaimed in unison, and darted into the trees at a run. I followed them more slowly, my nerves humming with unease.
“Little glass girl, eyes full of stars; instead of a heart, you have scars. So much beauty, so much pain. No one even knows your name.”
“Felice!” Tanner shouted. “Felice, where are you?”
“Little glass girl, without a friend, lonely always till the end. Poor little glass girl, always on display. All her tears shatter at the end of day.”
“Felice!” Elias’ voice was frantic, somewhere ahead of me, lost among the aspens. “Felice!”
“Little glass girl, finally found a way, how to get even with those who put her on display.”
The air turned cold, the sunlight dimming through the trees. I could no longer hear Tanner or Elias, the woods silent save for the chilling song. My nose filled with the scent of rotting flesh, and my stomach churned.
“Little glass girl, laughing in the dark, now has come the time and place to shatter all your hearts.”
The voice fell silent at last. I swallowed, peering around through the empty woods, afraid to call out for Tanner or Elias. I cautiously followed their tracks, careful to make little sound as the smell of decay intensified.
I found them. They stood, frozen like statues at the base of a tree, their eyes wide and vacant. I poked them, then shook them, but they remained unmoving and unblinking.
“You won’t wake them.”
I spun, found Felice behind me. She looked nearly the same as she had the day I had met her in the Manor, save for the ragged appearance of her dress. Her blonde hair was brushed and neatly pinned, her skin flawless and lovely. Her eyes were the same, clear blue, filled with amusement.
And she reeked of death.
“What’s happened to them?” I managed, taking shallow breaths. “What have you done?”
“Done? Why, I’ve done nothing.” She smiled, revealing far too many teeth. “Yet.”
I swallowed. “Where have you been? The whole family has been worried about you.”
“Ah, yes. The family. Don’t worry, little cousin. They won’t miss me long.” She glanced behind me. “Isn’t that right, Elias?”
He groaned, but made no other sound.
I shook my head. “What’s going on, Felice? Why are you doing this?”
She shrugged. “Because they needed to be taught a lesson.”
“Who?”
“Everyone.” She waved a hand, gesturing. “They knew. Knew for years. They laughed about it, thought it was funny. Thought what he did to me was funny. They put me in pretty dresses and took us to the same parties, and they laughed.” Her smile turned sharp at the edges. “But they won’t laugh anymore
.”
“‘He’?” I repeated, trying to keep her talking, trying to understand what was going on. “Who is ‘he’?”
“Farius,” she snapped, looking annoyed. “Aren’t you paying attention? They left me to him, and he- he-” Her voice hitched, and she shook her head. “It doesn’t matter anymore. I learned a way to stop him. Found it myself. Built them a shrine in his own cellar. They told me what to do. Now I’m stronger than he ever was.” Her eyes glimmered strangely as she laughed. “You should have seen his face when I carved out his heart to eat it.”
Every instinct was telling me to run, to flee from her madness and the smell of death- but Tanner and Elias were still frozen behind me, and I couldn’t leave them with her- not if she was going to eat them. “The Elder Gods. You were the one worshipping them, not Farius.”
“Worked that all out by yourself, did you?” She clapped, mocking me. “Well done, little cousin. And here the family said you weren’t clever.”
“So… Herrill?”
She shrugged. “He and Farius used to trade me sometimes. Seemed fitting for my second meal.”
I shook the image from my head. “Why Tanner, though? I thought you loved him.”
“He was sweet, but he was just using me. Once he’d gotten what he wanted from me, he would have left me like all the rest.”
“You’re wrong. He does love you. He wants to marry you.”
Her lip trembled, and she bowed her head. “No,” she whispered. “You’re wrong. No one can love me.”
“Felice-”
“NO!” Her head jerked up, her eyes white and glowing.
I stumbled back in horror, flames bursting from my fingertips.
She laughed. “Ah, the famous Rose fire magic. Am I supposed to be afraid? It’s all but dead in our blood. I bet you scarcely have enough magic to light a candle, much less-”
I didn’t let her finish, summoning my fire and sending it out of me in a great wave. It exploded into the trees, hurling her screaming back into the woods. The underbrush caught fire instantly; within moments the trees around us were all aflame.
Tanner and Elias shook themselves, coming out of their stupor. Tanner grabbed my arm, his face pale and broken. “What is she?”
I was staring at the growing inferno. “Don’t know, don’t care.”
“Do- do you think-”
“I think we need to run.”
He swallowed, glancing at the blaze, and took off, Elias and I closely on his heels.
The fire chased us, smoke snaking out to choke the breath from the others. Tanner coughed, stumbling, and stepped in a hole with a cry. Elias grabbed him, swinging his arm around his shoulder, and they hobbled forward. I could feel the flames pressing in on us, and I turned, lifting a hand to push it back.
“Run!” I shouted, fighting the inferno that wanted to consume us. Sweat popped out on my forehead that had nothing to do with the heat. The wildfire was too strong; I grudgingly lost ground, my body trembling as I held it back with sheer will. The world greyed around me.
“Brannyn!” Tanner’s voice was tinny with distance and the roaring in my head. “Brannyn, we’re free! Get out of there!”
I sighed, and released the flames.
My knees buckled beneath the sheer shock of it. It was ravening, out of control, burning too hot. Trees exploded when the flames reached them, and a shard of wood scored my face, slicing through my eyebrow. I cried out, turning, swiping at the blood that poured into my eye as I fled the fire that I had created.
I burst at last into the open by the farmhouse, collapsing into the thick grass. My clothes were smoking, and my ears rang. I shook my head, trying to see past the blinding spots in my eyes left by the flames.
Tanner offered me a hand. “You alright?”
“Um.” I took his hand, standing on shaking legs. “I think so.”
“Good.” He turned, grabbing Elias by his tunic, and slammed him into the side of the farmhouse. “Did you know?”
“Tanner!” I took a step forward. “What do you think you’re doing?”
He ignored me. “Did you know?” he demanded again. “About Farius? About Felice?”
“No, of course not.” Elias stared at him, wide-eyed with shock. “I had no idea. No one did. If we’d known we’d have killed him ourselves.” Then he gave Tanner a disgusted look. “You thought I actually knew? What do you take me for?”
“I had to be sure.” He let go of Elias. “Sorry.”
“It’s alright. I get it. I just- I never thought-” My cousin took a deep breath, looking at the flames, and shuddered. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
LANYA
“Would you like one lump of sugar, or two?”
I glanced up at my grandfather, and smiled. “Two, please.”
“Pardon me for saying so, my girl, but you seem a little distracted today. Is everything alright? I’m not keeping you from anything, am I?”
“No, of course not,” I reassured him, pushing my worries about Brannyn from my mind. “Everything’s fine.”
“Is it?” He raised a brow as he handed me a cup. The others had already returned to our apartment, so we were alone in his kitchen. He carried his own cup to the table and sat across from me. “I’ve heard rumors there might be a killer in Fallor. People have been going missing.”
“I wouldn’t know.” Nervous, I sipped my tea too quickly and scalded my tongue. “I don’t listen to rumors.”
“You’re a terrible liar.” He smiled, but it didn’t quite erase the worry in his eyes. “Just be careful, alright? All of you. I don’t have so much family left I can afford to lose more.”
“We’ll be careful,” I promised.
“Right. Well.” He leaned back, pushing a pile of papers toward me.
“What’s this?”
“I went through some of my old things this week. Found these.” He sipped his tea. “Thought you might like them.”
“They’re letters,” I murmured, frowning at the delicate feminine scrawl. I lifted one, looking for a signature. My eyes widened. “From my mother.”
“You said you wanted to know more about Adelie, and- well.” He shrugged. “I can’t read them anymore. It hurts too much.”
“I- I don’t know what to say.” My eyes brimmed with tears as I looked up at him. “Thank you.”
He looked away. “I- Let me get you some more tea.” He took our full cups back to the counter, needing time to compose himself.
I glanced back down at the letter. It was dated 16 Alune 559A.F.- three months before Kryssa had been born.
Dear Papa,
I wish you would write back. Mama says she’s worried about you. You’re not eating. You should eat. It’ll help you grow big and strong.
Malachi and I have settled into our new home- a little village north of the lumber yards. We’re staying with a woman named Janis. She’s a lovely woman, reminds me of Mama.
I wish you would give Malachi a chance, Papa. He loves me, so much. If you could only understand how happy I am-
I love you. Give Mama my love.
Adelie
I looked up.
“I didn’t write back,” Grandfather murmured, leaning on the counter away from me. “Not once. Maybe, if I’d written to her, she would have come home.”
“No.” I couldn’t take all his pain, but this I could heal. “She wouldn’t leave. Even Father couldn’t make her.”
He turned to stare at me. “Truly?”
“She thought it was her Destiny. She had a vision. Father wanted to return to Fallor, but she refused. If the Gods themselves had shown up and told her to go home, she would have fought to stay.”
“Malachi wanted to come back to Fallor?”
I thought of the number of times I had heard him scream it, trapped in that house. “Yes.”
“I thought- For years I thought-” He coughed, wiping at his eyes. “I thought she didn’t come back because of me. Because I was angry.”
My heart
ached. “Grandfather-”
Someone pounded on the door.
Grandfather went to open it. “Can I help- Brannyn?” He stepped back, and I stood as he gestured inside. “What happened to you all?”
Tanner hobbled through the door on one foot, his arm draped around Elias’ shoulders for support, and my brother trailed behind them. All three were smeared in soot; Brannyn clothes were so charred I wondered how they were being held together.
Most disturbing was the anguish and the fear that rolled off of them in waves.
“Brannyn?” I whispered, my heart trapped in my throat. “What happened?”
He looked at me, his eyes haunted. His eyebrow was bloody; something had sliced through it, leaving a nasty cut. We found Felice. An image of my pretty blonde cousin appeared in my mind, her eyes white and glowing and inhuman.
I choked. That’s- that’s- WHY?!
Long story. I’ll tell you later.
Grandfather directed Elias to sit Tanner down in a chair at the table, and began to peel his boot from around his swollen ankle. Tanner winced, biting his lip, and looked up at me with a watery grin. “And how are you doing today, Mistress Lanya?”
I attempted to match his smile, though the horror still churned inside of me. “I’ve told you to stop calling me that, Tanner. It’s just Lanya.”
“Can’t help it.” He hissed through his teeth as his boot finally slid off. His ankle was already turning black, swollen three times its normal size.
I grimaced in sympathy, automatically reaching out to drain his pain.
His face relaxed. “Ah, Goodman Moon, you’re a miracle worker.”
Grandfather frowned. “I haven’t done anything yet.”
Tanner simply smiled.
Grandfather’s eyes narrowed in suspicion, and he looked over at me. “Come here, girl.”
I swallowed, and walked to him on my throbbing ankle, forcing myself not to limp. He scowled at me, and pointed. “Give it back.”
I gaped at him. “But-”
“No buts. Give him back the pain.”
I swore viciously, and Elias and Tanner blinked at me in surprise. “He’s in so much of it, though. Why can’t I help?”
“Because unless I know where the pain is, I can’t treat him. If I don’t treat him and he can’t feel it, he could make it worse. It’s why healers don’t give patients painkillers until after they know what’s wrong. Otherwise they’re treating the symptoms and not the source.”
