Half Wylde | Book 1

Five: Cleansing

I was in the cabin. Where had Bryn gone off to? Usually he took me with him on an errand. I shrugged and placed a pot for dinner by the hearth. I began dicing up carrots when the chill hit. The light in the cabin went dark, even the fire dimmed. A horrible shriek filled the air. The door slammed open and Bryn ran in with a panic in his eyes.

"Wren, get out of here!" He boomed. A motion from behind him froze him in place. Then, the wraith woman stuck her terrible clawed arm right through his chest. Blood poured down the front of him as I screamed and screamed...

"Wren!" Someone was shaking my shoulder as I fidgeted awake. "Wren, wake up it was only a dream."

I had tossed my warm blanket off. My vision was blurry and dark. Sweat soaked my neck and forehead. The caw of a bird snapped in my ears, and I looked around the forest.

Thane hovered over me, his brows knit together and a frown on his face. My heart was pounding from the nightmare, it had been so real... I shivered.

The smell of rabbit cooking in our fire hit me. I looked around to see the grey of pre-dawn peeking out from the trees on the horizon. I turned back to the dark fae still kneeling over me. At some point in the night he had cleaned off the blood from yesterday. His hair was still damp as it hung lose around his face. His silver eyes pierced through me and I realized he was waiting for some kind of response from me.

"I'm fine." I croaked. He let me sit up and handed me a water skin. He tried to steady me with a hand at my back but I flinched at the touch. Did he sense the seal?

"Who is Bryn?" He asked softly.

When I didn't answer right away he clarified. "You were calling his name."

"Oh," I said , a tear slipped down my face. "Bryn is gone. The raiders..."

"I'm sorry." Thain whispered. He left my side long enough to deal with the rabbit over the fire. He returned with a leg on a spit. "Try to eat something. And if you want to talk about anything, I'm here."

I took the meat silently. Despite the nightmare, despite the tears, I ate. Thain offered more but I didn't take it. I couldn't have a full belly when Bryn would never have one again.

The dark fae watched me as we packed up the camp. I don't know why he worried so much about a stranger. The concern of others was an unfamiliar film on my skin. Other than the woodcutter and a select few witches I was not used to the attention. The kind words, the food, the promise of a safe place to call home. It overwhelmed me, made me want to run. Suffocating me.

I choked thinking about the cabin I would never return to. Thain immediately turned to me with water but I shook my head. Would I ever have a home again? Could I really feel that safe in the Wyldes?

"Tonight you can sleep in a real bed." Thain drew me from my grim thoughts. "Nothing fancy, but not a blanket on the ground."

A blanket on the ground didn't bother me in the least right now, but I didn't say as much.

"How far are we?" I asked.

"We will be there well before dinner." He gathered my things and stood. "If you change your mind at any time, tell me."

For whatever reason, I knew it would pain him if I turned back. The simple act of the offer, the choice in the whole thing, made me cling to my decision. I stood with him and followed suit as he led us further up the mountain. After a few minutes we fell into a comfortable pace.

The mountains were smooth with age, and the slope was never terrible, but the further north we went the steeper the peaks became. My legs ached from days of hiking. My arms were a little better off since the weight of the axe was familiar in my hand, though I still had a large bruise on my left bicep. The air grew crisp and my breath left trails of steam to brush my face and fall behind us.