Chapter 5
The silence was deafening but nobody looked shocked. They had to have been thinking along the same lines I had. One beat. Two. And finally, everybody started talking at once. After a few minutes, I whistled for quiet.
“Listen, this isn’t going to be a plan we can formulate tonight and rush out to finish tomorrow.” I glanced over at Tera, who sat there, listening, with tears in her eyes. “First, we’ve promised to see what we can do about Sara. Do you think she’ll be safe one more night?”
Tera shrugged. “The wedding is planned for the new moon, so we have time, yes. I don’t think he’ll touch her until then.”
“We don’t know that. Likely the brute won’t wait. She’s probably already his bride in the bedroom.” Shay’s voice was gruff. “If so, she might as well stay on as his wife.”
“How can you say that?” Tera turned on him. “The wolf-shifters are mountain people. They live by a different code. You know how women are treated there. They might as well be slaves. The children of the pack belong to the fathers and mothers have no rights. How can you suggest that my daughter stay there?”
Jason hastily interrupted. “You mentioned earlier that you trade with them. What exactly do they offer, and won’t the fact that they kidnapped Sara cut off your trade lines? Surely you wouldn’t do business with them after this?” He looked perplexed.
“We trade material, candles, and other assorted goods in exchange for berries, mushrooms, and some foods that only grow far out in the wilds. They’re expert foragers, as well as hunters, and it just seemed smart to create a trade agreement. As for right now? If they refuse to return her, yes, we’ll modify our trade agreements. The truth is, they can do without what we supply easier than we can do without what they offer us. Carn won’t back down. So we may have no choice other than to accept the loss of the girl.” Shay stared at his feet. “I know it seems cruel to you, but it’s our way.”
I debated on saying what I was thinking. I was a guest here. But then, I decided fuck it, I may be a guest but I couldn’t keep quiet. “You seem extremely quick to write her off. Callous, even. And the fact that you’re willing to deal with aggressive packs, but won’t act to protect yourselves? Your code of honor’s fucked up. You remind me of the bogeys back home.”
Tera bit her lip, but Shay was the one who answered. “You don’t understand. It’s not for you to question our ways. We have our reasons.”
I glanced over at Elan, who gave me a subtle shake of the head.
“Fine. We’re guests in your establishment, so I apologize. But we’ll be leaving as soon as we’re able.” It took every ounce of reserve I had to apologize, but this wasn’t my home, and it wasn’t my community.
“I hope you can help. Please accept my gratitude for the offer.” Tera’s hand fluttered to her chest. “I will give you everything you need. The Fir Mountain Wolf Pack lies seven miles to the east. We can provide you with horses to ride. Your own animals are pack-bred, and would not take to the saddle, I believe.”
Elan nodded. “Yes, they are the best we could do under the circumstances. But I will not head into the forest tonight. I will not put my friends through the rigors of a long, cold journey after the trek we just came through. Tomorrow morning we can discuss plans. Now, to bed.”
She motioned to the rest of us and we stood. Shay and Tera wished us a good sleep and we filed upstairs, heading for our rooms. I kissed Tam at the top of the stairs and he joined the other men. As I closed our door behind us, Elan yanked off her belt and tossed it on her bed.
“Damn it. I’m sorry. If I could have avoided bringing us here, I would have. But we needed a place to stay and this was the closest village. Verdanya is far to the south. By car it would take an hour or two. Walking through this snow? Days.” She sat down on her bed and pulled off her boots and socks, wiggling her toes. “Fury, I really am sorry.”
“Why? You weren’t the one acting like an asshole.”
I pulled off my clothes, wincing as the last of the bruises on my side gave a tired twinge. The wounds from the lycanthropes were also healing up, but still ached. I slipped into a nightgown, then pulled a blanket around my shoulders. The bed felt wonderful as I crawled under the covers, but I realized I was lonely. I missed sleeping with Tam beside me. And I missed Hecate and Queet.
“I should have explained to you what happened, and why they’re the way they are.” Elan frowned as she stripped out of her clothes and belted a light robe around her waist. “Maybe you’ll understand them better with a bit of their background. Or at least, you’ll understand Tera better.”
I settled in to listen, as did Shevron and Greta.
“Shay and Tera were out one day in the woods near Verdanya, foraging for mushrooms. This was years past. Tera’s husband was still alive back then, and Sara was a faint whisper in her mother’s heart. Anyway, they happened on a group of bogeys roughing up a woman. Tera wanted to help but Shay refused. He didn’t want to get involved. The woman saw them and she remembered them as Shay dragged Tera away. The woman happened to be a priestess of Artemis, out in the woods training.”
Oh hell. Artemis was a bitch on wheels when you crossed her. I liked the Elder Goddess, but I was very wary the few times I had met her during my sojourns to the temple.
“The thugs had murdered the priestess’s partner. They raped her and beat her within an inch of her life. She survived, somehow. And though she didn’t know who my cousins were, she remembered their faces. That was all Artemis needed to track them down. When she found them, she laid a curse on both for refusing to help. She hexed them with the inability to defend themselves. She wanted Shay and Tera to know what it felt like to be at the mercy of others.”
I blinked. That sounded like Artemis, all right. Although the fact that she hadn’t let her hounds tear Shay and Tera to pieces surprised me more than the curse she put on them.
“That’s quite a whammy, but the gods take their servants seriously.” Even as I said it, I could feel it into my bones. If something happened to me, Hecate wouldn’t let it go unpunished.
“I’m sorry to say but they deserve it,” Shevron said. “At least Shay. Tera sounds like she got caught in the crossfire. The Cast teaches us never to walk away when there is need. We’re there for each other, and for those outside the Cast as well. It’s a matter of honor.”
Whether she offended Elan, I couldn’t tell. Elan had pulled the blankets up to her neck, but she was still sitting up. As she took her hair down out of the tight braids, it softened her face and she suddenly looked very young.
“My people—well, my immediate family—would agree. If Laren or I had done such a thing and our family found out, they would have turned their backs on us. We were born to hunt, to fish, to rely on ourselves. We were taught to help where there is a call. But Shay, he’s never been one to put himself out for others. When I contacted them, I knew they wouldn’t be able to turn us away. The curse also forces them to offer help and hospitality regardless of the situation.”
“But the rest of the village—they won’t protect themselves either? Surely Artemis didn’t curse everyone.” Greta was brushing her hair. She was unselfconsciously naked and her nipples mesmerized me, they were so huge and ruddy.
“No, but here’s where it gets…questionable. Tera and Shay were too embarrassed to tell anyone outside the family why they dropped out of the guard. I’m pretty sure it was Shay’s idea, but they decided to parlay their pacifism as a lifestyle. Whatever the case, they gathered enough followers to hive off from our main village and moved everybody out here. They set up this village, and ask for tithes each month to help support the village leaders.”
Regardless of how cultish this was starting to sound, I felt for Tera. “It must have torn her apart when her daughter was kidnapped.”
“I’ll second that,” Shevron added. “I know how scared I was when you were young, Fury. Jason and I worried night and day about you. If something like this would have happened, we would have been there in a heartbeat.” She lowered her voice. “I know if something happened to Leonard, I’d be the first one out there searching for him.”
Greta yawned. “If we really are going to rescue the girl, we need to sleep. I’m tired.” She lay down and within seconds, had set up a soft snoring.
“I honestly don’t know if we can do much, but we’ll talk again in the morning. Sleep now.” Elan blew out the lantern.
I snuggled under the covers, turning on my side so that the pressure on my lungs was less. The ribs were healing, but it would take some time before they were back to normal. And being on my side gave me a chance to watch the door from my bunk. I thought it would take me some time to fall asleep because there was so much on my mind, but to my surprise, a few minutes after the light went out, I did, too.
Next morning, we were up before dawn. After we dressed and headed down to breakfast, I was surprised to see Hans emerge alone from his room.
“Where are Montran and Tymbur?”
He shrugged. “They were gone when I woke up. I have no clue. They wouldn’t say much when I went to bed last night but I figured that they were just tired. I don’t know where they went, but the fact that they slipped out without a note or a word worries me.”
I had known Tymbur for some time and it seemed odd to me too. “I’ll see if I can contact Hecate this morning. Maybe she’ll know something. Meanwhile, we should eat breakfast and then go take care of the wolf pack.”
Elan tapped me on the shoulder. “This isn’t your fight. You don’t have to do this if you don’t feel right about it. It may not be as easy as we hope.” She looked uneasy.
“I don’t know what to think. Shay’s attitude bothers me. There’s something wrong there.” I shook my head. “If they tell me to stay out of it, I will, but just leaving her at the mercy of the werewolves because her mother can’t go after her seems harsh. It’s not my way.”
“Mine either,” she said. “If it was Shay who was kidnapped, I’d walk away. He brought this on himself. But Tera, she wanted to help and Shay stopped her. Probably would have gotten herself killed, but that happens, you know? It’s the chance we take when helping others.”
We met at the long dining table and Tera and Shay motioned for the serving girls to bring out platters of eggs and bacon, soft white bread and amber honey.
“Did you see Tymbur and Montran leave?” I asked Tera.
She glanced at Shay, who frowned, but then she nodded. “Yes, they left this morning before daybreak. They said they had something to attend to and that they would be back later tonight.”
So they weren’t gone for good. Relieved, though curious, I returned to my thoughts about rescuing Sara.
“So, how do we approach this? I don’t know these woods. I’m city born and bred, and I’m not used to tromping through the undergrowth in two feet of snow.” I didn’t add that I wasn’t used to dealing with wolf-shifters, either.
“I still think it’s a waste of your time. The Alpha’s probably already bedded her.” Shay was just as acerbic as he had been the night before.
Greta slowly stood, crossing her arms. “You do realize that bedding someone doesn’t obligate them to marry you?”
“Out here it can, depending on the clan or village.” Shay met her gaze but then, as the Valkyrie didn’t budge, looked away, a nervous twitch in his eye.
I wanted to smack that smug look off his face but bit my tongue. Finally, I felt controlled enough to speak. “We need someone who’s been inside their village. Someone who knows the layout. Where do you think they would be keeping the girl?”
“How should we know? We trade with them but we aren’t buddy-buddies.” Once again, Shay was just on the edge of vicious.
I glanced over at Tera, who was staring at him with a bitter, resigned look on her face.
“Maybe we’re going about this wrong,” Hans spoke up. “What do the wolf-shifters value most? What would they give just about anything to have?”
Shay frowned. “We tried to negotiate—”
“I doubt that. I imagine you offered them something reasonable, something you might offer for the return of a lost cloak. I’m talking about ransom. Something you really don’t want to pay, perhaps? Now, what have they ever asked for that you refused to give them?” Hans was burly, and when he leaned across the table, Shay pulled back.
Shay remained silent, but as Tera spoke up, he flashed her a warning stare.
“Yes, there is something they want that we’ve consistently refused them. We have in our midst a magician who can make cull-fire. They want us to teach them.”
Jason let out a curse. “You what?”
“What’s cull-fire?” I hadn’t heard of it.
“Cull-fire’s one of the dark arts,” Jason said, a dark look in his eyes. “A magician who can make cull-fire can make weapons. You ‘cull’ lightning from the air by harvesting the energy into a sticky waxen oil, which makes a perfect weapon to spread on arrows or a knife, or even to lob at an oncoming opponent. The cull-fire sticks to the victim, and keeps burning until they can scrape it off. Only shadow magicians are willing to make cull-fire. This is not what I’d expect from one of the Woodland Fae.”
Tam looked uncomfortable. “Jason’s correct. This is not the magic our people work with. Why are you allowing this to even happen?”
Shay shot up, almost stumbling over the bench as he stumbled back.
“Our people? You are one of the Bonny Fae, Lord of UnderBarrow. There is no our people between us. We may be of the same ancestry, but along the way the Woodland Fae took a different path. And who are you to say that cull-fire isn’t acceptable? We guard its use carefully. We sell it wisely. And as long as the Fir Mountain Wolf Pack knows that we have cull-fire available, they keep on our good side. They don’t trust our pacifism. But if we were to sell them cull-fire or teach their magicians to make it? Not only would we lose our advantage, but we’d be handing over a bomb to a race who can’t control themselves.”
I shot up. “Who are you to say that shifters can’t control themselves? And it seems to me that you’re walking perilously close to canceling out that sanctimonious stance you profess.”
Shay whirled. “You harangue me as well? Would you have us hand over the secret to cull-fire?” His cheeks were growing red, and the veins in his neck began to bulge.
“No, but I’m not comfortable that you allow your own magician to produce it. You sell weapons of destruction while prattling on about your peaceful ways?”
Jason cleared his throat. “In most reputable guilds, cull-fire is banned.”
“Who is this mage? Why did you allow him into your village if he works with this type of magic?” I was just warming up but Tera broke in, tears falling down her cheeks.
“Please, stop. Shay asked one of our magicians to learn it. We needed something to keep the werewolves from attacking us. He did what he thought was right, given our circumstances.”
I was still breathing heavily, my anger very close to the surface. “I understand why you and Shay can’t defend yourselves. Elan told us last night. But what about the rest of the village? Why do they refuse? Why can’t they protect you?”
Tera hung her head. “Ask Shay.”
Laren let out a snort. “Because he promises them riches if they obey. Isn’t that right, Shay? You promise them that their lives will be blessed by the gods.”
Shay looked about ready to murder us all. He slowly turned toward Tera. “I won’t stand here and allow you to malign me. Get your daughter back by yourself, if you can. Or don’t. She won’t follow the rules anyway so we’re better off without her.” He turned and stomped off.
Tera stumbled back, breaking into tears. I gave Tam a confused look, unsure what to do. Elan sat next to Tera and wrapped her arm around her cousin’s shoulders. We milled around awkwardly for a moment. Finally, Tera wiped her eyes.
Tam found a handkerchief and offered it to her, and we settled back at the table.
“I’m sorry,” Jason said. “But…cull-fire?”
“I know.” Tera worried her lip. “I know it’s wrong, but Shay is so… I wanted to help that priestess but he wouldn’t let me. He held me back, then dragged me home through the woods.”
“The gods don’t always differentiate between villains and those who are just in the wrong place at the wrong time.” I knew that all too well.
Tera blew her nose, her eyes red from the tears.
“Shay likes his position here,” she said. “When he first realized that he couldn’t defend himself, he panicked. Then he decided the best way to deal with it was to create a hub around him. Followers, if you will. He convinced me to help him create this town. We have a lot of strong, healthy people here. But he couldn’t convince them to follow him if they thought he was a coward. If they knew his story, they would think that. So he set the village up as a spiritual retreat. Everyone takes an oath of pacifism, and he uses them to do the work. Well, everyone takes an oath except for the magician. Shay proclaimed him above the law because of his training and told everyone it was the will of the gods.”
“And the implication is that if the werewolves mess with your town, they chance bringing his vengeance into play?” I was beginning to understand the game. Shay was a con artist.
“Right. Shay told the magician—privately—that we might one day need a warrior to save us.”
That left me with another question, however. “But if the wolf pack knows you have cull-fire at your disposal, how did they dare to steal your daughter?”
“I don’t know. And Shay keeps saying that we can’t use our trump card unless it’s a life or death situation. Until you showed up, he refused to entertain any thoughts beyond a simple meeting with them to get her back, and that failed miserably.”
A thought was starting to hit me, one I really didn’t want to think. “Who was at the meeting?”
“Shay and Carn, the Alpha.”
Tam shot out of his seat and I knew he was coming to the same conclusion I was. “Tell me something. Did you receive any new shipments from them recently? Something they previously didn’t have or wouldn’t trade?”
Tera frowned, staring at the table. After a moment, she slowly nodded.
“Yes, actually. We’ve been short on rimrock root lately—it’s a medicinal plant. Carn kept saying that they only had enough for themselves. But two days before Sara was captured, a runner from the Pack showed up with enough rimrock root to last us for a year. It’s the only cure for Fenagol fever, and winter always brings an upsurge in cases.”
“So let me get this straight.” Tam was still standing. “You need rimrock root. Carn refuses. Then he suddenly changes his mind and sends you enough for the entire village for a year. Two days later, Sara is captured, and Shay goes to a meeting alone to try to parley for her and returns, saying it failed. Now, he doesn’t want to rescue her.”
Tera caught her breath. “Oh no. You can’t be thinking...”
“I am, and it makes perfect sense.”
I could see the wheels turning in Tera’s head. Then, her cheeks paled as the blood drained out of them. “No, no…no.”
“I’m sorry, but Tam’s right. It all makes sense. You saw the way he marched out of here.” I hated bursting bubbles, but it was obvious what Shay had been up to.
“But he’s my brother. He’s Sara’s uncle.” Within a single blink, her eyes changed from teary to murderous. “I’ll have him killed if he sold her to Carn.” Her hand fluttered to her chest and her breath came in shallow pants. “I have to get her back. I’ll give them the mage who knows cull-fire if they want. I’ll give them anything.”
“You’ll do no such thing.” Shay’s voice echoed from the door. He was standing cross-armed, shaking his head. “You’re pathetic, you know that? You never would have figured it out without these intruders to help you. But the deal’s been made. It’s unbreakable.”
Tera whirled, screaming something in Melwien. She started for him but halfway across the room, she doubled over, clasping her head, and fell to the floor.
Shay snorted. “Nice try. When the pain stops, you might as well dry your eyes. We lost twenty people last year to Fenagol fever, and the weather this year is harsher. We need rimrock root and they had it. I did what was necessary for our village.”
Elan knelt beside Tera and helped her roll to a sitting position. Tera’s nose was bleeding, and her pupils were dilated. She looked like hell. Elan wrapped her in her arms and rocked her gently as Tera wept.
Jason glanced at her, then strode toward Shay. Before the innkeeper realized what was happening, Jason landed a right hook on his chin, dropping Shay cleanly to the floor. The Woodland Fae groaned, but he put up no defense. Jason raised one foot to kick him, but then stopped and shook his head.
“Elan, Laren? What are your rules in a situation like this? You can’t leave him in control of the village, can you?”
Laren crossed to stand beside Jason. He motioned to Tam. “Rope. We’ll bind him and take him back to our family for punishment.” Tam nodded and hurried off.
I suppressed a groan. I didn’t want to travel with Shay in our midst. He was a slow-acting poison and I wouldn’t put it past him to try to manipulate us. “Do we have to take him with us?”
“No, but I’m not sure I trust any of his ‘followers’ to do as we ask. Tera, is there anybody you trust who can escort Shay to Verdanya?” Jason dragged Shay to his feet. Shay staggered, looking woozy. He had a nasty black eye.
Shay raised his hand to his nose, which was swollen and bleeding. “You broke my nose.”
“You’re lucky I didn’t bust your balls. You started this when you refused to help that priestess of Artemis. You let bogeys ravage her, then you doomed your sister to a lifetime curse. Now you’ve pimped out your niece in exchange for rimrock plants? You’re lucky I don’t drag you out into the woods and leave you for the lycanthropes to eat.” Jason was really going now. I had never seen him so furious.
Tera walked over to her brother and stared at him, her expression imperceptible.
Shay was starting to sweat. “You have to understand. It’s the only way I could ensure that we had enough rimrock for the winter. Sara is of marriageable age—Carn will make sure she’s taken care of.”
“If you ever show your face back here, I’ll hire someone to kill you. If I have to, I’ll petition Artemis myself in order to kill you. Even if it kills me in the process.” She turned to Jason. “Bryn. He’s in the stables. He’s never been comfortable here. I’ve heard him bitching about Shay more than once, so I don’t think he’s a big fan.”
Tam returned then, rope in hand. While Jason held Shay’s hands behind his back, Tam looped the rope around them, tying the knot firmly. Jason headed outside while Tam fixed a gag between Shay’s teeth, knotting it firmly.
Tera moved off to the side and Elan and I followed her.
She sank onto a bench, playing with the hem of her apron. Finally, she looked up at us. “I can’t breathe. Do you think there’s any chance Carn will take back the rimrock in exchange for letting Sara go?”
I looked at Elan. I didn’t know what the customs out here in the Wild Wood were and I didn’t want to get her hopes up. Elan pressed her lips together. Finally, she let out a long breath.
“I’ll be honest, Tera. I doubt it. Carn can claim a legitimate trade between the leader of Eleveanor and the Fir Mountain Wolf Pack. We can try, and I’ll be willing to go as the messenger myself, but you know what things out here are like. It’s a rough world, and a rough life.”
“What if I give him the cull-fire?” But even as the words escaped her lips, Tera let out another sob and buried her face in her hands. “I can’t do that, can I?”
“No,” Elan said. “I’ll tell Verdanya about this, and they will not go easy on Shay. If you join him by selling cull-fire, even in return for your daughter, they’ll come for you. And when Carn made the arrangements with Shay, he had to know Sara wasn’t willing. The Alpha knows full well that this wasn’t an aboveboard deal.”
“I’ve lost her, then?”
“If we set out to forcibly rescue her, the Alpha would have full rights to come after your people and attack your village.” Elan’s voice was steady, but her eyes were wet and her lips, set in a grim line.
“Then my world has collapsed. I can’t stay here. The only reason I came with Shay when he wanted to start this village is because I was ostracized thanks to his actions.” Tera leaned back, resting her head against the wall. “I have no place to go, and yet this is no longer home.”
“What will you do about the village?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Leave it in Bryn’s hands. He can lead the people out of the past. I’ll renounce Shay publicly and tell everyone what he did so they understand. Then I’ll decide what to do. I may just find a little place in the woods and go it alone.”
“You can’t do that. You have no ability to defend yourself.” Elan looked worried and I realized she was thinking the same thing I was. Tera was looking for a way to kill herself.
“Don’t stop me, please.” The tortured look on the woman’s face was breaking my heart.
Apparently, it was breaking Elan’s heart too. “Let me talk to Carn. I can try, if nothing else.”
“I’ll go with you.” Memories of when the Carver had kidnapped my mother and me flickered through my mind.
“No, this is our job. Shay created this mess, it’s up to us to fix it.” A booming voice echoed behind us. We turned to see Jason standing beside a large, burly man.
“Welcome to Eleveanor. I’m sorry you came under the current circumstances. My name is Bryn. Tera, I’ll go talk to the Alpha. Whatever it takes, we’ll make this right.” He was firm but not blustery, and as I watched him, I realized that he was head over heels for Tera.
“I’ll go today, and take several of my brothers with me. We’ll bring Sara home.” By the strength of his words, I believed he could do it.
Tera wiped her eyes and half-rose. “Are you sure—?” A spark of hope filled her voice.
Bryn took her hands in his. “Shay’s taken advantage of this village, and of you, for years. I never said a word because you trusted him. But it’s time for Eleveanor to rise from his shadow. A number of us have been discussing hiving off because of Shay. I think we’ll be able to bring the village around to our way of thought, especially when they learn of his betrayal. Sara is a bright light around here.”
Tera brightened. “Thank you.”
“Bryn wants to stay here, so we’ll hire someone to take Shay to Verdanya. I don’t think we want him coming with us.” Jason winked at me, and I winked back. Tera was in good hands with Bryn. He’d help her and, with a little luck, they’d be able to rescue Sara without disturbing the agreements. Carn had better get used to a new way of doing things, that was for sure.
“I guess we’re done here, then. I think our discussions about Seattle should wait for later.” Part of me wanted to stay and see how it all worked out, but we had pressing business.
“Right.” Elan, too, looked unsettled. “We should make for Verdanya soon.”
“Give me a little time to contact Hecate. There are plenty of crossroads in the village. Meanwhile, I suggest putting that—” I nodded to Shay “…under lock and key.”
Before anybody could say a word, I headed for the front door. I needed some time to myself, and I needed to contact Hecate. As I stepped outside into the darkness of early morning, I took a moment to stand still and just breathe. The storm braced me and the solitude was soothing. With snow sticking to my hair and clothing, I headed toward the nearest intersection, and the Crossroads.