House of Blood and Bone

by Kimberley J. Ward

  Hunter sighed. “If you’re hungry, then eat. It’s okay. Don’t feel bad. The others won’t mind. Orm can whip us up something if need be. It would give him something useful to do.”

  “I’m not hungry,” Nessa said softly, setting the jerky down on the plate. “Not anymore.”

  She spoke the truth, kind of. She was full. The pangs of hunger were gone, but they had been replaced by another form of discomfort. She was convinced that the food had turned into a hard ball in her stomach, heavy and unpleasant.

  “You sure?”

  Nessa forced herself to smile. “I’m sure.”

  Hunter looked unconvinced, his eyes uncertain.

  “Who are the others?” she asked quietly, changing the subject. “Orm and…?”

  Hunter shifted position, sitting cross-legged. “Orm and Chaos. They’re my friends, our friends. Well, Orm’s a friend. Chaos is more of a companion. One who can barely stand the sight of me or Orm.”

  “If this Chaos person can’t stand the sight of either of you, then why is he travelling with you?”

  “Because he wanted to help us find you, of course. He pretty much hates Orm and me, but he seems to care about you.”

  Nessa blinked, surprised. “Really?”

  Hunter nodded. “The three of us have been looking for you since you were taken. We’ve searched half the world trying to find you.”

  “Since I was taken?” Nessa whispered, latching onto that sinister word. “Why was I taken? Who took me?”

  “Well, um…” Hunter floundered. “It’s…err…a bit of a long story.”

  “A long story?”

  Hunter nodded uneasily, unable to look her in the eye.

  Nessa began to worry. Her heartbeat sped up. Had she upset him? Asked too many questions?

  “Come on,” he said gently, clearing his throat. “Let’s get you settled into bed. I promised you a pile of blankets, so a pile of blankets you shall get. It’s probably best that the others are here when you’re told what happened.”

  “Is it so bad that you can’t tell me now?”

  “No.” Hunter tried to be reassuring. “But it’s something that should be discussed when both of us are well rested. I haven’t had any proper sleep in days and I could really do with a nap before I explain.”

  Nessa’s shoulders sagged as disappointment crept up on her. She didn’t want to wait for answers. Nor did she want to argue. Not right then, not when she was so tired, and not so soon after being found. The idea of a pile of blankets to sleep under was a small consolation. One she might be glad to take. Nessa eyed the bell tents, thinking that they did look rather cosy.

  Hunter helped Nessa to her feet and shepherded her over to a tent, the one nearest to the area of flattened ground. She watched as he tied the door flap open, ducked inside, and began moving things around.

  “This is my tent,” Hunter said over his shoulder, pulling some clothing from a bag and stuffing other things in. “But you can have it now. I’ll bunk with Orm for a while. It will be rather snug, seeing as they’re only little tents, but I’ll make do.” He grinned mischievously. “After a couple of nights, Orm will get fed up and go sleep outside like the dog he is.”

  “Umm…?”

  Hunter smoothed out the sleeping bag and plumped up the thin pillow, then grabbed his bag and exited the tent. “Well,” he said, “I’m afraid you’ll have to borrow some of my clothes for the time being. I swear they’re clean, though. Warm, too. Just let me grab you some more blankets for that pile I promised, then I’ll leave you to get changed and rest.”

  Nessa nodded, her poor, tired mind unable to form any words, as she clutched the blankets that were wrapped around her like a cloak. She watched silently as Hunter crossed over to the nearest tent and flung his bag inside. He was swift to return, handing her a couple of thick blankets that he had just swiped. “I’d imagine that Orm and Chaos will return soon. We’d split up to search for you when we heard—” His mouth snapped shut, trapping the rest of the sentence behind his teeth before it had a chance to escape. “Well, in any event, they should be back soon. Don’t worry if you hear a ruckus later. It’ll just be them.”

  “Okay.”

  “Okay,” Hunter murmured, running out of things to say. “Sleep tight then, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Thank you, Hunter,” Nessa whispered. “Thank you for everything.”

  Hunter’s smile was small—small and weary—but sincere. “If you need anything else, I’ll be just over there.” He nodded to the tent that was just a stone’s throw away. “Give a shout and I’ll be here before you can blink.”

  “Good night,” Nessa said, ducking into the tent as he hesitantly turned away. She sat down on the sleeping bag and deposited the blankets beside her as she untied the front flap. It slid closed, sealing her in. Her last sight was of Hunter doing the same, an odd expression on his face, one that was a peculiar mixture of elation and fear.

  The firelight made the canvas’ sides glow, and it was just bright enough for her to discern the vague details of her surroundings, both inside and outside the tent.

  Too tired to make the effort of changing her tatty attire, Nessa moved her loaned clothes out of the way and slipped into the sleeping bag. It was heavy and warm, the inside lined with soft fur. She quickly arranged the blankets around her and snuggled deep into her little nest, curling up in a ball on her side. She could hear Hunter moving around in his tent, arranging things and muttering under his breath. Orm’s name was mentioned a few times.

  With the weight of the blankets making her feel safe, and the sound of Hunter reminding her that she wasn’t alone, Nessa smiled and closed her aching eyes.

  ∞∞∞

  Nessa’s head was filled with a pleasant sort of haze when she heard the others return. She was half-asleep, her eyes closed and her body relaxed. She was warm and comfortable, her mind at ease. She heard murmured conversations, the sound of people moving around the campsite, Hunter being called a “pillow-stealing bitch” by, she presumed, Orm.

  Everything eventually fell silent as everyone drifted off into an exhausted sleep, all except for Nessa, who was slowly drawn into a sinister world of dark previsions. Her nest of safety was unable to keep them away for long.

  She was running through the forest again, lost and alone. Something was after her, hunting her. She could feel its breath on the back of her neck, could feel the air stirring behind her as it drew ever closer.

  She could not run fast enough to escape it.

  She could not hide.

  The ground turned to quicksand between one step and the next, and she was trapped, stuck in its unforgiving grip. The trees shifted, looming over her, their branches reaching towards her like twisted talons, and from the darkness, a shape emerged, eyes ablaze with green light.

  Somewhere in the forest, a raven cried a warning.

  ∞∞∞

  With sunlight dancing on the tent’s canvas, Nessa stirred, drowsy and confused, still caught in the clutches of dreams she couldn’t quite remember. She was warm and comfortable under the pile of blankets, her cheek cradled on a soft pillow. Through sleep-clouded eyes, she watched the play of light around her for a moment.

  Forced by her grumbling stomach, Nessa slowly, reluctantly, sat up. She wrapped a blanket around her shoulders, keeping the cool air at bay, and rubbed the tiredness from her face, forcing herself to feel marginally more alert. Nessa went to stand when something made her pause.

  Frowning, Nessa held up her hand, turning it this way and that. Beneath all the grime covering her skin, sitting amongst the multitude of cuts, scrapes and bruises she had accumulated during her mad dash through the forest, was a peculiar mark.

  It held a faint, purplish sheen, an iridescence that made it shimmer gently with the slightest of movement. It curled around her forearm, a thin line at first, which then widened at her wrist, with two lines branching out to run beside it. The mark continued over the back of her hand and ended on her palm
. Nessa thought it looked remarkably like a silhouette of a dragon diving in mid-flight.

  The sound of voices reached her ears, drawing her attention. Nessa clutched the blanket tightly and stood, the tent’s low ceiling forcing her to stoop, and pushed the door flap aside. She shuffled outside, her muscles stiff, protesting after the abuse of last night. The voices quietened and Nessa looked around, spying Hunter and another man sitting by the campfire, using a couple of stumpy logs as stools.

  A few hours of sleep had done Hunter some good, and he appeared considerably less weary and dishevelled. His hair, an earthy-brown colour that fell nearly to his shoulders in careless waves, had been brushed, and he had found the time to shave, his stubble gone. Dressed simply in a dark linen tunic and trous, boots reaching to his calves, loosely laced, he looked at ease with the day, suited to a life in the woods.

  Nessa’s eyes drifted away from Hunter and settled on his companion, who was staring at her with surprised whiskey-coloured eyes. He was tall, taller than Hunter by at least a head, and muscular, his biceps on display since his tunic’s sleeves had been removed, the deep red of his top complimenting his golden skin nicely. The chilled autumn air didn’t seem to bother him. His head was shaved smooth and his face was characterised by a nose that would be called hawkish when he’s older.

  Painfully aware of their gazes on her, Nessa hesitantly approached, pulling the blanket tighter around her as if it could protect her from their scrutiny.

  “Well, look at you,” Hunter said in welcome, grinning up at Nessa as she joined them by the campfire, which was burning happily away, small flames licking at the frying pan nestled amongst them. “You’re finally up and about.”

  “Good morning,” she murmured shyly, moving to sit beside Hunter on the ground, her eyes darting between him and his companion.

  “Morning?” Hunter laughed. “More like afternoon. You’ve slept most of the day away.”

  “Well, you did promise me a pile of blankets and two days’ worth of sleep.”

  Hunter blinked, his grin growing. “So I did. And yet here you are, up and about when there’s still another full day of sleep to be had.”

  Nessa chuckled, the long disused sound bubbling up, dislodging from where it had been hidden. “Tempting as that is, my stomach is growling too much for me to fall back asleep.”

  “Well, your timing is fortuitous,” Hunter said, nodding to the frying pan. “Orm was just whipping up some of his infamous scrambled egg.”

  Nessa sneaked a glance at Orm, who rolled his eyes and jabbed the anaemic looking scrambled egg with a spatula. “I think you’re getting famous and infamous mixed up.”

  Hunter winked at Nessa. “No, I’m pretty sure I’m not.”

  “I can’t tell you how glad I am that we’ve got you back, Nessa,” Orm said. “This one,” he pointed his spatula at Hunter, “has been driving me mad.”

  Hunter pretended to be outraged. “I have not.”

  “You have and you know it.”

  “Rubbish.”

  Orm shook his head. “As I was saying. I’m glad you’re back, safe and relatively sound.”

  “I’m glad to be back, too,” Nessa murmured uncertainly. She found their familiarity with each other and her to be a little overwhelming. She didn’t know where to look: at them or the ground. Her eyes darted between both options.

  “Now that he has someone else to annoy,” Orm said, “he might leave me alone for a bit.”

  “He lies, Nessa,” Hunter told her in earnest. “He is spinning malicious lies about me. Tell him off and make him see the error of his ways.”

  Orm reached over and cuffed Hunter around the head. “See what I’ve had to put up with? He’s near impossible to bear when he gets like this.”

  “Like what?” Hunter scowled. “Happy? Am I not allowed to be happy?”

  “You can be happy. Just be happy in silence.”

  “Happy in silence?” Hunter pondered. “That’s like telling someone to have fun in silence.”

  Nessa watched them banter with one another, her head swivelling from side to side like their exchange was a tennis match. She was at a complete loss for words and was grateful when Orm dished up the scrambled egg, handing her a plate piled high with it. Hunter too, was handed a plate, although he looked down at his meal with distaste.

  “You know,” he said contemplatively as Orm rose, standing over him, “for someone who makes so much scrambled egg, I’d have thought you’d be able to make it at least half-decently by now.”

  “I’m going to be kind and forget that comment, Hunter, my dear boy.” Orm turned, heading over to his tent. “But only because I don’t want to upset Nessa by having her witness you being beaten into a bloody pulp.”

  Hunter laughed and stabbed his scrambled egg with his spoon, then set the plate down and picked up a cloth-wrapped block from the supply bag beside him. “If we cover the eggs with cheese, it might disguise the taste long enough to swallow.”

  Nessa scooped up a spoonful. “It can’t be that bad,” she said, peering at it. Admittedly, it didn’t look particularly appetising: burnt yet somehow unusually jiggly.

  “If you don’t believe me,” he said, pulling out a knife and whittling thin slivers of cheese onto his unappealing meal, “then take a bite. Go on, I dare you.”

  Nessa could see the mischief shining bright in his amber eyes, and deciding against his dare, she held out her plate. Hunter topped it in a healthy covering of cheese, smirking as he did so. Only when the eggs were completely hidden was the cheese stowed back in the supply bag.

  Picking up his plate, Hunter shovelled a heap of cheesy egg into his mouth, grimacing. “If you pinch your nose while you chew,” he advised. “It won’t be quite so bad. Possibly.”

  “I heard that, you swine,” Orm called from the other side of the campsite. A rucksack was slung over his shoulder as he stood by Nessa’s tent, holding the clothing that Hunter had loaned her last night. Seeing them, Nessa wished she had gone to the effort of changing. Though the blanket partially cloaked her, it didn’t cover her completely, and some of her clothing was visible. The half-dress, dirtied and ripped, at odds with the plush overcoat she still wore, peered out through the gaps in the material. Nessa felt a touch embarrassed at her bedraggled appearance. Orm strode off into the trees, leaving the camp, cursing Hunter under his breath as he went.

  “Where’s he going?” Nessa asked, also wondering why he’d taken her change of clothes.

  “Oh, he’s just adding a few finishing touches to a little surprise we’ve whipped up for you,” Hunter said. “He’ll be back soon to collect you, so you’d best eat up.”

  Nessa ate her meal as fast as possible, largely in part so that she didn’t actually have to taste it. Contrary to her prior belief, the scrambled egg was as bad as Hunter made it out to be. Not even the pile of cheese helped.

  “So, what’s the surprise?” Nessa enquired, stacking her almost empty plate on top of Hunter’s.

  He smiled. “It wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you about it, now, would it?”

  “Can I have a hint?”

  Hunter shook his head.

  “Not even a teeny-tiny one?”

  “Not even a hint of a hint shall be given.”

  “Hmm.” Nessa looked over her shoulder, trying to spy Orm, but he was out of sight, the trees hiding him away.

  “So,” Hunter shifted on his makeshift stool, leaning his elbows on his knees, “did you sleep okay?”

  Nessa blinked up at him. “I think so.”

  “No bad dreams? No being able to remember what happened?”

  “I had a dream.” Nessa frowned. “I think. I can’t recall what it was about, though.”

  “Oh? Well, maybe that’s for the best.”

  “Yes,” Nessa agreed, “maybe.”

  Her attention slid over to the mysterious third tent, the one furthest away. She could see movement within it, someone bumping against the canvas as they shuffled around the cramped
space. Nessa thought for a moment that they were about to come out. However, no one appeared. Instead, they seemed to settle back down, probably going back to sleep.

  “That’s Chaos,” Hunter said, following her gaze. “He’s been acting oddly the past couple of days. Well, odder. Keeping to himself even more than usual. Thank the Creator. Having him around makes me uneasy.”

  Nessa looked up at him, surprised. “Uneasy?”

  “Yeah, uneasy. And that’s the polite way of putting it. You’ll understand when he decides to show himself. Although I hope that’s later rather than sooner. He’s a freakish sight to look upon. He also threatens to kill me on a regular basis. That hasn’t particularly helped endear him to me.”

  “He threatens to kill you?”

  Hunter nodded cheerfully. “He also threatens maiming as well. He often reminds me that maiming is always on the table.”

  Nessa was horrified. “Why are you even travelling with him?”

  Hunter shrugged. “He’s unpleasant company, but he has his uses. He did help us find you, after all.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yeah. It was him who urged us to come westward. Orm and I wanted to go either east or southeast. Chaos, though, said to come this way, said that he could “feel it in the wind”. Whatever that means. So here we are. We searched around the Clēa Mountains first, and when we found no sign of you there, we headed deeper into the forest. We set up camp here whilst we searched around the nearby area. Been here about five days before, as if by magic, you turned up. Just in time too, because we were about to pack up camp and head further north.”

  “How fortuitous,” Nessa murmured, her eyes locked onto the tent. There was an air of otherness around it, both alarming and comforting.

  Quiet footsteps sounded behind Nessa, and she turned, finding that it was Orm returning from wherever he’d been. For such a large man, he moved with an impressive amount of stealth.

  Orm grinned and extended a hand to Nessa. “Your surprise awaits.”

  With a mixture of excitement and nervousness, Nessa took Orm’s bear paw of a hand, and he helped her up, swiftly ushering her from the campsite. She glanced over her shoulder at Hunter to see if he was following, but he hadn’t budged.