by Leia Stone
My heart dropped.
Of course not. And my cellphone and backpack were MIA since my kidnapping.
Fuck.
“So… I’ll take that donkey and travel pack, then.” I gave her a weak smile as my heart grew more worried. Ride a donkey through the dark fey territories and get to Light Fey City to find a phone and call my parents?
Easy peasy. I totally got this.
Just kidding, this was clearly how I die.
She pointed to my cuffs. “Those will get you spotted quicker. I can’t take them off, but I can cover them.”
She pulled some thick leather from a box under the sofa next to the bed and started to wrap them around the cuffs, measuring. “Stay the night and you can leave at first light? You don’t want to cross these woods after dark. Walk in the day posing as a trader and sleep high in the treetops at night.”
I gulped, nodding. Walk in the day, sleep high in a tree at night. Got it. “Trading what? Won’t they smell my wolf?”
She nodded. “They’ll think you’re Ithaki or Paladin, not a city wolf and not banished. The Paladin wolves often trade furs and bone blades at our market.”
They did?
I didn’t know that. I wondered if my biological father, Run, had done that.
“Okay.” I questioned this plan but was grateful for her help.
“I’ll give you a few items to trade if you get caught, but you’ll have to travel all day to make good time.”
My eyes widened as I became more and more afraid of this plan.
“Got a motorcycle or something?” I gave a nervous laugh and she looked confused again. “It’s like a metal donkey that goes really fast,” I told her.
She clicked her teeth. “Demon technology.” She tapped my cuff. “See where that got you?”
Maybe she had a point, but I missed my iPhone right about now and the connection it gave me to the outside world. Okay, my boyfriend just broke out of an evil love spell, I was trapped in Troll Village, and I needed to travel through Dark Fey Territory to get to the Prime Minister of Light Fey City… an ally who’d sniffed me and moaned. This was fine.
Everything was fine.
She motioned to my jeans and t-shirt. “Traders don’t dress like that. I’ll give you clothes too.”
I sighed. “I don’t have anything to pay you with, but I can—”
She grabbed my hand and held it, her eyes swimming with emotion. “A year after my mom died … the vampires paid me monthly visits.” All vulnerability fled when her eyes creased to slits of absolute hatred. My stomach dropped at her words. “At first, I was just glad they left my little sister alone, but then my old neighbor, Timatu, dropped by and saw what was going on… he taught me how to fight back.”
I squeezed her hand to show support and she nodded, wiping at a stray tear.
“I killed my first blood sucker that summer, and then another, and another, until they learned to stop coming or they’d keep dying.” She flicked her eyes to the wall behind me and I turned to see a rack full of shotguns, silver stakes, a sickle, and other vampire-killing weapons.
Holy shit, homegirl was a killing machine, because she had to be. I understood what she was telling me. That even though I had nothing to give her, getting me away from the vampires was enough payment for her.
“I’m so sorry. Something similar happened to me,” I told her.
She nodded. “So I don’t want payment. I want to pay it forward and help you, like my neighbor helped me.”
My throat constricted with emotion. Gifts that were given with no expectation of return were the best kind. “Thank you. I won’t forget this kindness.”
She nodded and released my hand. “See if you can walk. You seem to have taken a beating and I want to make sure you are strong enough. Bathhouse is just off the porch if you want to wash up.”
And with that, Marmal and I became temporary roommates. I shuffled outside and took a shower in her bathhouse, putting on some handmade cotton clothing she left for me, careful to baby my injured shoulder. It was black and blue, like my eye. I looked pretty beat up, but Marmal had an arnica salve for my eye and a minty rub that I put on my shoulder that lessened the pain.
When I stepped into the kitchen, she called me right over to the stove and taught me how to make pag’al. It was like a sweet puffy bread that was delicious with butter. I also tried goat’s milk for the first time, and even some stewed rabbit. As long as I mentally told myself it was chicken, it tasted great.
Later that night, after helping her clean up, I wished her goodnight and then lay awake for a long time in bed. I wondered what Sawyer was doing right now. Was he still looking for me? Did he still love me? Did he still love Meredith? Raven once told me that love potions only worked if the person genuinely had feelings for another person. It could amp those feelings up but not create them out of nothing.
I didn’t know what to think about that, so I stared at the weapons wall of the house until sleep took me.
I was awoken by the crisp clear sound of Marmal singing. She had a lovely voice. Even though life had been hard on her, it hadn’t dampened her joy.
“Rise and shine.” She stepped over to me with a plate of steaming-hot boiled eggs that didn’t look like they came from a chicken, and some shredded meat over purple potatoes piled high upon the plate.
“Freshen up quickly and then join me for breakfast. I have some things to tell you,” she said, and then set the plate on the table.
I quickly went to the bathhouse and used some of this clay mint teeth brushing powder she’d given me with a handmade toothbrush. I reapplied the healing salves, taking care to try to get under my cuffs with the arnica. My forearms were the most beat up from the constant shocks. I was grateful to see I looked less banged-up today. My split lip was healing; a thick, almost black scab in a line ran down the bottom. By the time I was done, only about ten minutes had passed and I raced back to the house eager to get on my way before I chickened out or vampires showed up.
Marmal was waiting for me; two wicker baskets lay over the top of our food to keep the steam in.
“Thank you,” I told her as we pulled off our baskets and started to eat. “What do you have to tell me?”
A slow grin pulled across her face. “You seem to have caught the eye of the werewolf alpha’s son.”
My heart thundered in my chest. “What do you mean?”
She took a drink from her stainless-steel cup and then leveled her eyes at me. “Because we don’t use technology, we trolls don’t have much in the way of entertainment. So gossip is much loved in our culture.”
Get on with it, woman.
“What did you hear?”
She nodded. “I went over to Larada’s farm early this morning to trade a few things and she said that rumor is…” She leaned forward for affect. “…that the alpha’s son has gone mad searching for his mate who was taken by the vampires.”
Gone mad? I hoped that was a cultural barrier and I wasn’t interpreting that literally.
I sighed in relief. He was still looking for me, that was good. “What else did she say?”
Marmal pulled her long brown hair over one shoulder and away from her food. “That he was sending out delegates to each sector to negotiate your return, and there is a million-dollar reward if you are delivered home safely.”
I swooned a little at that, unable to fight the grin that swept across my face. Thank God Sage pulled that necklace off of him; he sounded like his old self again. But why couldn’t I hear him through our bond?
“But then the vampires said they would pay two million.” Her fork stilled at her mouth.
I swallowed hard, trying to read her face. A two-million-dollar bounty on my head by the vampires was not good.
“I lied,” Marmal said suddenly. “I do want payment for helping you.”
My stomach sank. Two million dollars for turning me into the vampires was a lot of money. She could—
“Pay me in gossip.” She grinned, p
opping a potato into her mouth. “Tell. Me. Everything about the alpha’s son and how he became so fond of you.” Her eyes lit up and a deep relief rushed through my body.
Gossip was all she wanted? That I could do.
“It all started one morning at Delphi University…” I said, and then proceeded to tell her my entire story with Sawyer. I left out parts like my being a split shifter and found other things to put in its place that would make sense. I didn’t realize, until recounting this story, how many times Sawyer protected me, fought for me, saved me.
By the time I was done, I was left feeling empty without him here, not knowing what was going on with Meredith or any of that. Did he blame her for the necklace or simply let her off the hook? Was he still marrying her because she was a safe bet for his family curse? I had so many questions and zero answers.
Marmal looked feral by the time I’d finished the story. “When you get back, you should hike Meredith right up Waterfall Mountain and push her over the other side!” Marmal declared, slamming her fork onto her empty plate.
I chuckled. Wouldn’t that be nice. “Her mom is some bigwig in werewolf society. He probably slapped her on the wrist.”
She shook her head and sighed, then looked at my empty plate. “Alright, let’s get you off. Remember you need to travel by day and sleep high in the trees at night.” She stood and took our plates to the sink.
I nodded, but suddenly felt scared. Why couldn’t she go with me? See me across to the Dark Fey Territory? She must have read my mind.
“I wish I could escort you, but it’s a two-day journey to the border and then another two days back for me. Four days is too long to leave the animals on my farm. And all of my neighbors have their own work to do.”
I nodded, completely understanding. “I’ll be fine.”
Travel across Troll Village on a donkey, what could go wrong? I sifted through my memories of Packard telling stories of his childhood growing up. Weren’t there dark forest creatures that hunted at night? Or was that in the Fey Lands?
I swallowed hard and followed Marmal outside into the morning light. We crossed the large front yard and then stepped over to the big barn.
“This is Ginny.” She smoothed a hand over the donkey’s grayish fur and the animal nuzzled into her. “She’s trained to come home on her own, so just let her loose when you get to the dark fey border.”
I nodded, wondering how an animal could travel back that far without guidance, but kept it to myself. Maybe it was magic. The trolls had a way with animals.
“This food pouch hangs from her neck, so she will self-feed. It’s got enough for the journey and some extra if you get into trouble.” She indicated a leather sack that hung around the animal’s neck. It was full of some kind of pellet or grain.
I nodded again, growing more and more nervous by the moment.
Heaving a large leather sack over one shoulder, Marmal began to tie it to the animal’s backside, showing me how to loosen and retighten the straps. “Shelf stable food for two weeks, water for three days. Running water is safe to drink, standing water is bad. Got it?”
Fuck.
“Sure.”
Maybe I could just go back to Vampire City and Sawyer could negotiate my return?
Yeah, right.
Flashes of them talking about “bottling” my essence flooded my mind and I shivered.
Next, Marmal stepped over to the exterior barn wall and pulled a shotgun from where it was leaning against the side. “You know how to shoot one of these?”
My eyes widened and I shook my head.
She nodded, breaking the barrel in half to expose two dark holes. “Pop two shells in here…” She snapped the gun shut. “Close it, aim, pull back hammers, and shoot.”
I gave her a dry smile. “Is that all?”
She grinned. “It’ll have some kick, so prop it on your shoulder. It’s your last resort weapon, because you can hear it a mile away.”
I nodded. Pop, close, aim, pull hammers, shoot. Last resort. “Got it.”
She handed me two leather cuffs that fit perfectly over my metal ones to disguise them, and I pulled her in for an unexpected hug. “Thank you,” I croaked.
This woman had quite literally saved my life when all I’d expected of her was to turn me in. It showed me that not all trolls were bad, just like not all Paladin were bad.
Her jasmine scent washed over me and she squeezed me back. If we didn’t live worlds apart, we would be good friends, I just knew it.
“Be safe. You’re a Paladin wolf trader, remember?” She pulled back as I slipped the leather cuffs over my metal ones. They were hard like they were wrapped over plastic or something to help it keep shape, perfectly fitting over mine and covering them completely. I looked like a badass archer and not a girl on the run from banishment.
“Be careful, Demi. When you make it back, if you send word to Marmal at Rosedale, rumor will reach me and I’ll know you are safe.”
Both of our eyes were glistening. We were two woman who had bonded over hard times, and it was tough to say goodbye. I couldn’t reach Sawyer, I was all alone, and if the vampires weren’t after me I would just stay here for a while with her and learn to cook and tend to the animals. It was peaceful here.
“Go on!” She waved me off and wiped her eyes. “I can’t be seen crying, I have a reputation to uphold,” she joked with a smile.
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak, and then hopped onto Ginny. Reaching back behind me, I slipped the shotgun between the straps of my pack for easy access. Then I pulled out the oil-stained map Marmal had given me and pointed Ginny in the direction of the Dark Fey Territory.
“Goodbye, Marmal. I’ll send word.” I waved to her.
She nodded, swallowing hard, and waved me off with glistening, teary eyes.
Part of me wanted to stay longer. Life was easy and joyous here on the farm with her, but I knew I needed to get back. I needed to see Sawyer. I needed to kick Meredith’s ass. And most importantly, I needed to find out more about what the vampires wanted with me, what this bottling of my essence was all about.
I passed a few farmers who waved or greeted me, asking what I had to trade. Marmal had given me a few less-than-desirable items so that I could just be on my way. And people did decline quickly. It seemed a Paladin trader was a regular fixture here in Troll Village. I wondered just how bad they could be if the only one I ever met had saved my life, and if my mother loved one. Maybe Sawyer was wrong about them.
Obviously he was.
The day went by painfully slow. No TV, no social media, and no one to even talk to. I found myself having made-up conversations in my head. A conversation with Sawyer, another with Meredith, with Sage, and even Eugene. I felt like I was going crazy by nightfall. I didn’t stop to eat, just shoved bits of dried berries or nuts in my mouth as Ginny walked, and only took a rest if she seemed like she needed it.
Now that darkness was creeping in the forest, I decided to climb a tree like Marmal said and attempt to sleep. It wasn’t until I looked up that I noticed there were actual little platforms every hundred or so feet. Sitting in the treetops was a wooden bed… it must be a normal fixture in troll society, like a free hotel or something.
Careening Ginny over to one of the platform bed trees, I tied her to the bottom and poured some of my water in a dish, giving it to her. “You did good today.” I patted her as she sucked water through her pursed lips and ate from her food pouch. Next, I shouldered my pack and my shotgun and started the task of climbing the tree.
This is so much easier when you’re five years old.
With my injured shoulder, climbing was near impossible. My foot slipped a few times and I almost dropped the shotgun twice. When I finally made it to the top, my right arm was quaking with fatigue; exhaustion bled from my limbs as I stretched onto the flat, hard wooden sky bed. My thighs and ass were sore from riding the donkey all day and flexing constantly to counterbalance myself. I couldn’t imagine how she must feel carryi
ng my weight all day.
Through the trees, I watched the sky slowly darken above me. How the hell had I gotten to this moment? My brain struggled to comprehend how I was lying in a treetop in Troll Village when two nights ago I’d been getting ready to meet Sawyer and have him announce I was the one he was picking. I sighed, pulling the thin suede blanket over me that Marmal had packed. Fatigue and pain burned in my limbs, and even though it was probably only like 7 p.m., I was ready for sleep.
There was one thing I wanted to do first though. I knew he was probably desperately worried about me and I wasn’t sure if I broke our bond or if we were too far away or what, and even though it would hurt, I had to try.
‘Sawyer…?’ I whispered, flinching as the hot wires shot electricity up my barely healing arms. I waited, stilling my thoughts and hoping for anything. A word, a feeling, a sign…
I must have lain there an hour waiting for Sawyer to respond. At some point when the darkness hit, I heard hoof beats and yips and growls. Like a pack of wild hyena’s was down there feeding on something. Now I understood why trolls slept in the trees… I tried to stay awake, incase whatever animals were down there could climb, or if Ginny needed me, but my limbs felt too heavy and finally sleep took me.
A snapping twig jolted me awake, heart hammering in my chest. The sky was pitch dark and the moon was high in the sky, but that sound… I reached for the shotgun, only to feel it wasn’t there.
Fuck.
When I heard it cock, my heart plunged into my stomach. I sprang up into a crouched position, but before I could turn around, the cold steel barrel pressed into the back of my neck.
“Who are you?” There was a slight accent to the man’s voice, and I swallowed hard, trying to rein in my fear.
“My name is Mara,” I said quickly, taking Marmal’s name and shortening it. If there was a two-million-dollar vampire bounty on my head, I sure as hell wasn’t saying I was Demi.
“Who are you, wolf?” His voice was scratchy and laced with anger.