House of Blood and Bone

by Kimberley J. Ward

  One dark eyebrow quirked up at her confession, and his gaze swept down, running over her layered, woollen dress before settling on her right forearm. Although her Rider’s Mark was hidden beneath her arm warmer, concealed from his pointed gaze, it didn’t seem to matter. He knew what she was hiding from all others. He had one of his own, after all. Nessa tried to catch a glimpse of his, but he quickly spied her furtive glance and shoved his sleeve down. Nessa didn’t get the chance to catch a glimpse of it in the dancing lantern light.

  “You really don’t, do you?” Shadow mused. “You don’t fear me.”

  Hearing him say it was merely a confirmation of sorts, and Nessa found herself having to look deep within herself to see if it was really true. Yes, she felt fear, she’d be a fool not to, but there was more to it. The fear she felt wasn’t necessarily a fear of him. It was too complicated, too chaotic. If it were simple, if she simply feared him, hated him, then she wouldn't be experiencing the ever-shifting tide of emotions that raged inside her like storm waves breaking against a rocky shore. Whatever Nessa felt towards him was wild and messy and impossible to decipher.

  “You should,” Shadow said, his eyes dark and dangerous, almost black in the subdued light. “If you had any appreciation for self-preservation, you would.”

  “Why?” Nessa found herself asking. “You won’t hurt me.”

  Shadow took a step forwards. “Will I not?”

  “No.” Nessa held herself still as he crowded her, the toes of his boots coming to brush against hers. She refused to be intimidated. There were a great many things shining in his beautiful dark eyes when she gazed into them, but the promise of pain was not one of them. Of that, Nessa was sure.

  “And how could you possibly know that?” Shadow asked, voice soft, alluring. “A vision? A dream? Have you peeked inside my head, read my mind and seen my intentions?”

  “A vision?” Laughter threatened to bubble up, catching in Nessa’s throat. “No such thing, I’m afraid. And as for reading your mind, I wouldn’t do that even if I could.”

  “Oh?”

  “Too scared of what I might find in there.”

  Shadow’s lips twitched, a corner quirking up just a little as he tried to suppress a grin. “A wise decision.”

  “Visions, though,” Nessa mused, intrigued by the notion. “If I had that particular gift, it would save me a lot of trouble in the long run.”

  “Or cause a lot more problems for you in the short term,” Shadow said bluntly.

  His words, his tone, made Nessa pause. She tilted her head to the side and frowned at him. “You make it sound like me having visions is an actual possibility.”

  Shadow said nothing. He gave nothing away.

  “Is it?” Nessa pressed, a desperate sense of urgency coming over her. “Is it possible?”

  Shadow took a step back, slow, almost hesitant. Reluctant. A part of Nessa sensed that he wanted to leave, to flee. Something stopped him, though.

  “It is.” Nessa’s eyes widened in shock. “I can have visions.”

  He gave an imperceptible nod.

  “I can have visions,” Nessa repeated, dumbstruck. “I can see the future?”

  He twitched his head in an almost indiscernible shake.

  “I—What?” Nessa’s mind was racing. She didn’t know whether to be jubilant or afraid. “I can’t see the future?”

  Shadow looked away from her, taking another slow step back, forcing himself to retreat before more secrets were revealed. Nessa followed him, matching him step for step. When no answer was forthcoming, she reached out and grabbed his hand. Shadow stilled, going rigid like he had been shocked. Nessa gazed at their joined hands, wondering why her skin tingled so pleasantly where it made contact with his.

  “Careful, little wildcat,” Shadow all but growled as he peeled his hand from hers. “You might end up losing one of your nine lives if you’re not more cautious of where you put your paws.”

  Nessa heeded his warning, and her arm fell limp to her side as the growing sense of familiarity between them fled. Maybe she had imagined it all? “Can I, or can I not, see the future?”

  Shadow’s eyes ran over Nessa’s face, dark and knowing, filled with secrets and truths. They took in her earnest gaze, lingering on her parted lips and flushed cheeks, absorbing the sight of the flyaway hair that drifted around her face. He seemed to wrestle with himself, weighing up his options, gauging her determination for finding the answer.

  “The future.” Shadow shrugged. “The past. The present. Soon time will mean almost nothing to you.”

  Nessa stumbled back a step.

  How can that be?

  How is that possible?

  She shifted through every memory, every peculiar thought or feeling that she’d had since waking up in the woods all those weeks ago.

  There was one particular moment that stood out.

  She’d been walking with the others, journeying to Arncraft, and she had rested a hand upon a crumbling wall. Everything around her had changed, and yet it was strangely the same. The wall had reverted to what it had once been, and the trees were fewer and further between, smaller and younger. At the time, Nessa feared that she had momentarily lost her mind, but now, now she saw it for what it really was.

  “You’re telling the truth,” Nessa whispered with realisation, with wonder. “I’ve already seen the past once.”

  “The past?” Shadow gazed down at her with uncertainty. For a split second, Nessa thought she sensed a tingle coming through her Rider’s Mark, an emotion that didn’t belong to her. Something akin to dismay, possibly even alarm, invaded her being.

  Aoife?

  Scared that she had accidentally let her mental shield drop, Nessa hurriedly checked it. Instantly, she discovered that it was in perfect order. There wasn’t a single hole or gap to be found, which meant that Aoife couldn’t know who Nessa was with, or what she was doing. If Aoife wasn’t behind the mysterious emotion, where did it originate from?

  Nessa had no time to figure it out.

  Shadow began pacing, his arms folded behind his back in consternation. “That should be impossible. I made it impossible.”

  “But you just said…” It slowly dawned on her, the pieces finally slotting together. “The mental block,” Nessa gasped. “It doesn't just keep my memories locked away, but my powers too.” She didn’t need him to confirm it. She knew it was true. She could feel the echoes of rightness inside her, things clicking into place. “How could you? How could you do that to me?”

  “You know why,” Shadow said, voice devoid of guilt or apology. “You’ve figured it out all by yourself.”

  “If my powers are suppressed,” Nessa muttered angrily, “then the king won’t be able to sense me. He won’t be able to find me.”

  Shadow dipped his head, a regal nod.

  “But what about my memories?” Nessa demanded. “Why did you take them from me? What reason was there for that?”

  “Trust me. There were—are—many reasons.”

  “Trust you?” Nessa scowled. “I don’t trust you. Not one bit.”

  “If you had some common sense, you would.”

  Nessa was outraged. “How dare you! First, you steal my memories and lock away my powers. Then you insult me. You have some bloody nerve, don’t you?”

  “And no shame,” he agreed, darkly amused.

  Nessa shook her head, trying to shake away the feeling that she was simply going in circles rather than getting any closer to the issue, treading around it rather than solving it. She was too tired, too torn, to make sense of anything. “It’s late, and I can’t deal with you, with this. So, unless you’re going to kidnap me again, I’m done with this. I’m done with you. And, in all honesty, with today.” Nessa turned to leave, taking a few steps towards the stairs.

  Shadow had other plans, it seemed. He slid in front of her, as stealthily as a prowling cat, as unyielding as the oldest of mountains, barricading the way, blocking her retreat.

  “Y
ou might be done with me,” Shadow purred dangerously. “But I’m not done with you. Not yet. Not by far.”

  Nessa swallowed nervously, wishing that she hadn’t mentioned kidnapping. It might have given him ideas. “What?” she grumbled, growing timid. Any prior confidence—fire—she’d had swiftly fled. “What do you want?”

  Shadow tilted his head to the side, his raven hair shifting and brushing his shoulder. “What makes you think I want anything?”

  “You wouldn’t be here to start with if not. And you certainly wouldn’t be stopping me from leaving if not for ulterior motives.”

  He smirked. “I’m stopping you from leaving? I’m the only reason why you’re not running up those stairs for the safety of your lodgings?

  Nessa folded her arms and eyed the stairs mulishly. The eerie mist rolled down them, ghostly and alive in the dancing lantern light. It only had a couple of steps left before it reached the ground. Already, seeking tendrils drifted out from the main body of the mist, curling and searching.

  Shadow followed her stare, his shoulders tensing. “Actually,” he said. “I think it would be pertinent for us to go our separate ways.”

  “What?” Nessa’s eyebrows shot up. She couldn’t have heard him right. “That’s it? You’re going. Just like that?” she didn’t believe it. She couldn’t believe it. Surely, she had heard him wrong?

  “Just like that,” Shadow confirmed. “The hour grows late, and the mist brings ominous tidings.”

  “Ominous tidings?”

  His bearing, faintly amused only a moment ago, turned serious. “I found you this evening for a number of reasons. The foremost was to bring you a warning.”

  A spike of alarm shot down Nessa’s spine. “A warning?”

  “Easy now, little wildcat,” Shadow murmured. “You’re getting ‘warning’ confused with ‘threat’.”

  “Am I?”

  Shadow shrugged.

  “Well, go on then,” Nessa bit out, bracing herself for what he could possibly say. It couldn’t be anything good, threat or not. After all, he was an enemy Dragon Rider, a disciple of the dark king, a kidnapper and a user of powerful, mind-altering magic. “I’m listening.”

  Shadow leaned down, encroaching into her personal space. Nessa tensed, ready to back away. She found it too hard to think when he was close, too hard to concentrate. He conjured up too many feelings, all of them mixed and conflicting, confusing and unnerving, as his sapphire-blue eyes locked with hers.

  His fingers twitched, and his hand began to rise; Nessa thought he was going to touch her again. With a disturbing level of disappointment, she saw him quickly shove his hands into the pockets of his black overcoat like he was trying to prevent himself from reaching out.

  Nessa blinked and then scowled at herself, wondering why she feared his touch and longed for it in equal measure. It was near impossible to push aside her traitorous wants. Her gaze flicked upwards and was instantly ensnared by his. His eyes were tidal pools filled with heat and fervour.

  “The night is a dangerous time,” Shadow purred, “in a city such as this, especially for young girls. Things are stirring in the dark corners of this world. Creatures of old are awakening, nameless monsters that time has almost forgotten. The mist isn’t what it seems. It hides and lies, little wildcat. And you, above all others, should be wary of it.”

  A chill crept over Nessa, running through her veins, turning her blood to ice. Goosebumps rose on her forearms, and she was forced to hug herself in an attempt to hide her trembling. The things he said… The grim truths behind them… Shadow’s words, filled with forewarnings and sinister heralding, resonated through her core.

  “Why me above all others?” she asked, her voice a hesitant squeak.

  “Ah, now, if I wanted you to know the truth of that, I wouldn’t have taken your memories away.”

  Nessa drew in a shocked breath, her spine snapping straight. How does he have the nerve to be so brazen about such a thing, so matter-of-fact about it? “Give them back,” she demanded. “Give me back my memories.”

  Shadow shook his head, unapologetic. “No.”

  “Take down the mental block.”

  “It’s there for your own good.”

  “I don’t believe you. This is just another part of your and Margan’s plan. A ploy to make me biddable and compliant with whatever the two of you are doing.”

  Anger flashed in his eyes, raw and powerful. The space between them, already minimal, vanished as he grabbed her by the upper arms and yanked her against him.

  “Don’t,” Shadow growled down at her, breaths short and hurried, “think for one second that I am anything like Margan, or that I have any shared interests with him. He has his uses. That’s as far as our partnership extends”

  “Then why?” Nessa whispered. “Why do all of this? Why do any of it?”

  Shadow’s grip loosened, and his eyes lost a bit of their fire, although they were no less intense. “You’ll see. One day, you’ll understand everything I’ve done. It might not be tomorrow or any time soon. But I promise you, you will understand. You will see.” He leaned down, his breath softly caressing Nessa’s cheek as he shifted just a little, bringing his lips close to her ear. “Not everything is black and white, little wildcat. There are two sides to every story, if not more. Don’t go jumping to conclusions before the end; otherwise, you might miss something very, very important.”

  Chapter 27

  Shadow’s parting words still whispered through Nessa’s head, haunting and perturbing, as she pushed open the front door of Jerome’s guest house. The familiar noise and heat of the establishment rushed past her as she stepped over the threshold, escaping outside in a way that was almost like a greeting of homely spirits.

  As the door settled into its frame once more, it nudged Nessa gently in the back, urging her forwards. A desk was positioned in the middle of the vestibule, and a young boy sat behind it, looking more than a little bored. The youngster was one of those employed by Jerome to keep an eye on the comings and goings of his boarders. There was a strict no-guests-without-bookings-allowed-upstairs rule. Only paying tenants were permitted, and their names were neatly logged in a ledger. If any guests had guests of their own, they’d have to entertain them downstairs in the common areas under penalty of a hefty fine and an urgent search for another place to lodge. Jerome wasn’t a fan of freeloaders.

  Nessa gave the boy a nod of greeting and looked around the vestibule, feeling like she was in a daydream, only half-awake. Shadow…the revelations… She felt an uneasy fluttering in her stomach… She’d been expecting an irate duo of babysitters to be in wait, ready to pounce as soon as she stepped through the door. The vestibule, though, was just as it usually was: the scent of tobacco smoke and murmured gossip from adjoining rooms lingered in the air, the small sconces filled the space with cosy light, and the old desk in the centre of the long room, half-blocking the way to the stairs behind it, minimising the chance of anyone sneaking past. There were two doors, one on either side, leading to the common rooms. The one to Nessa’s left was for the public house, where food was served and drinks were procured. The one to the right was where the lounge was to be found, with its large inglenook fireplace and circles of soft armchairs and sofas.

  Rather than trekking all the way upstairs to Hunter’s and Orm’s rooms, Nessa planned on checking the public house first. After all, it seemed like the most likely place to find them. They liked alcohol and food, especially at that time of evening. It’s where they usually were. It’s where she usually was, watching them play card games with a couple of other regulars, trying to figure out the games’ rules with little success. The door to the lounge was shut, anyway, indicating that a private meeting was in operation. Whilst unusual, it wasn’t entirely uncommon. Sometimes Jerome needed to conduct business talks with his suppliers. Since finding out about his double life, Nessa couldn’t help but wonder if some of those meetings were about something other than the running of his guest house.

>   The public house was noisy and full. Large groups of people drank and laughed in the packed room, socialising and having hearty meals. Nessa scanned the closer tables, keeping an eye out for Orm’s noticeable size and shaven head, listening for any hint of Hunter’s cursing caused by his friend winding him up by doing or saying something annoying. Which happened quite often, in all honesty.

  Neither of them was nearby. Nessa went to explore further into the room, intending to do a circuit before heading upstairs. The sound of a door opening made her pause. She looked over her shoulder, hoping to find Hunter and Orm coming through the front door. It stood to reason that they hadn’t pounced on her because they hadn’t been there in the first place.

  Are they out looking for me?

  “There you are, lass,” Jerome said, standing half-hidden by the lounge’s door. “The lads are in here, if ye be searching for them.”

  “They are?” Nessa went over to him, curious as to why they were involved with one of his private meetings.

  “Yeah,” Jerome said, his tone not quite as jolly as it usually was. His singular eye was grave as he gazed at her. “There was a bit of trouble down at the docks this eve—”

  “Are they okay?” Nessa all but shrieked, alarm clogging her throat. “Were they hurt?”

  “They’re fine,” Jerome quickly declared. “They’re perfectly fine. Safe and sound. No harm done. Not so much as a bruise on their handsome bodies.”

  “You had me worried there for a second,” Nessa sighed, her shoulders sagging in relief. She rested a hand on her chest. Beneath her palm, she felt the heavy thump of her racing heart. It was like it was about to burst through her ribcage.

  “Back at you, lass,” Jerome chortled, his paw of a hand patting her on the shoulder. “Your eyes went so wide I thought they were about to pop right out of your noggin.”

  “That would have been gross.”

  “And very impractical.” Jerome opened the door wider by a crack and ushered Nessa through. He swiftly followed her and closed it behind them. “I’ll let the boys fill you in with all the happenings.” Jerome nodded over to the back of the room, his sparse topknot bobbling with the movement. “They’ve been eager to see you since they got back.” He paused as his attention was caught by someone near a window. “You go on ahead. I need to have some words with a certain scoundrel who’s trying to hide behind that man over there, hoping I’m blind enough not to spot his worthless hide.”