Cloaked in Blood

by T. F. Walsh

  She pulled me up and took off the knapsack, clasping it with her other hand. “Fine, but I’m not one bit happy.”

  Protesting words scraped against the front of my mind, but with no strength to argue, I let Selena assist me toward the breach in the wall.

  Sidestepping into the crevice, I shuffled alongside her, our hands linked. My chest and back scraped against the stone. I’d done this dozens of times, so why was my gut tight as concrete?

  Darkness closed in around us as the beam of the flashlight pooled on the ground.

  The air grew mustier, and loose rubble scraped beneath my feet with each agonizing sideward step. The crevice was tight. I gasped, trying to suck in more air. Don’t focus on that. Keep moving.

  “What made you ever decide to go through this tunnel in the first place?”

  “I hid here from my father after he beat me up for helping Enre run away.”

  Selena didn’t say a word. Her thumb caressed the back of mine. “That’s horrible. Sorry.”

  The reflection from her flashlight was enough to reveal the glistening in her eyes. But I didn’t need her pity. We’d both had fucked up lives, and that was what drew us together all those years ago. In all honestly, I wasn’t sure I’d forgo the opportunity to meet her or those heartfelt connections for anything.

  Her mouth opened, but instead of her words, a loud groan rippled overhead. The ground shook beneath my feet. Tiny rocks hit our heads from above.

  “Shit.” Selena’s voice climbed.

  A shudder ran through me. In all the years I’d trekked here, there had never been so much as a tremble. We were more than halfway through the passage. “Go, go.”

  Selena squeezed my hand and hurried her shuffle, me behind her. “Why did I listen to you?”

  My legs moved faster. No time for pain. When my head spun, I stumbled and my shoulders grated against stone.

  The cave shook around us, and the wall behind me shifted slightly. Then a great roar erupted.

  Rubble rained down on us, and a huge plume of dust rushed up behind me like a tsunami.

  Selena hurried. Each step was like wading through mud, my vision dancing.

  The fine dirt strangled my throat. My knees weakened, and I tumbled against her.

  She placed an arm around my shoulders and dragged me out. I pushed against the wall to help take some weight off her.

  Dust filled my nostrils, my ears, and my mouth. Surely, I was coughing up a lung.

  While we finally emerged from the fissure in the wall, I tripped out of Selena’s arms, landing on my knees, my throat raw as the hacking dissipated. Selena rasped but already pulled me to my feet, away from the hole and near a wall. I slumped against it. A haze blurred my mind, which pounded worse than before.

  When I glanced up, Selena stood there, staring at me, dread flooded her expression. Dust covered her face and clothes.

  If anything had happened to her, I would never have forgiven myself. The pulsing urgency to protect her rose and fell through me, but right now, I couldn’t even lift an arm, let alone save myself.

  Her gaze kept dancing between me and the dust pouring out of the breach. “We could have both died, but now we’re stuck in here.”

  Then she studied me as a doctor might do, scrutinizing every inch before making a final assessment.

  She grabbed the backpack she’d dropped and dug inside for the bottle of water and lifted it to my lips. “Drink.”

  The cold liquid was refreshing. She drank some too.

  “So is this the place?”

  I nodded as my heart pounded so hard in my chest I was convinced these were my last moments. But it only accentuated the banging in my head.

  She faced the rest of the cavern. “Whoa.”

  In front of us lay a room that easily rivaled the great hall back home in size. A bumpy and rough surface covered the cave, icicles suspended from the ceiling as if we’d entered a frozen fairy tale, but the real showpiece was the frozen waterfall against the back wall. The once cascading water was frozen midmovement, and now a rainbow of colors shimmied against the ice from the light streaming through the tiny holes in the ceiling.

  Selena wandered farther into the expanse, her gaze whipping across the room, from the side wall with round holes to the iced-over river beneath the waterfall, and then across to the patches of greenery clawing a meager existence in the light like stunted plants.

  “That’s the chickweed,” I said.

  She rushed to them.

  My muscles quivered with urgency for her to hurry. I was tapped out, gone.

  Selena ran back, a small bundle of white flowers and green leaves in her tiny fist. “Are you sure these are the chickweeds you were talking about?”

  I nodded, too exhausted to talk.

  She crouched alongside me and placed a hand to my brow. “You’re burning up.” With the plants set on a flat rock surface, she retrieved her blade.

  “Spices.” I pointed to the bag. My voice was barely a croak.

  She unzipped the bag and dug inside, plucking out a small plastic bag filled with a brown powder. The moment she opened it, I inhaled the ginger, cayenne, and kelp powder. She chopped the chickweed, and I watched the way she cut with precision. Within seconds, she had the plants chopped finer than any machine. Using the side of the blade, she combined the powders into the plant, mixing them together. Then she scooped them with the knife. She trickled the green paste into the water, screwed the lid back on, and shook it vigorously.

  “I’m really hoping this helps you.”

  She pressed it to my lips and lifted the base of the bottle.

  I drank it down in small sips, finishing it. The grittiness stuck to my teeth and coated my tongue; the taste was a combination of dirt with a hint of sourness.

  A wave of drowsiness washed through me, but I couldn’t work out if it was the plant or the blood poisoning.

  “How do you feel?” Her loud voice resonated around us.

  I stifled a yawn. A hazy blur coated my vision. I rubbed my throbbing temples.

  She reached an arm toward me. Her touch was an ice cube.

  Lethargy wiped through me, worse than before, to the point where my head weighed more than my entire body. I forced my eyelids open.

  Selena was in my face.

  Gray patches danced in my vision, and I shook my head, but my eyes hurt to keep them open. Selena’s mouth was moving, but I couldn’t hear a word.

  So fucking heavy. Maybe just a second to shut my eyes, a fleeting moment to rest a bit. Then darkness pounded through my mind, my vision blanked, and I fell into its abyss.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Selena

  Marcin slumped against the wall, his head drooped, long hair cascading over his face. For years, I’d prayed to the moon goddess for Marcin to come to Turkey, to admit the arrow in my shoulder was a misunderstanding, so we could run away as we’d originally intended. But I had been deluding myself and learned to accept that my future did not include Marcin. Yet this visit burst open those emotional floodgates I’d nailed shut.

  The thing was, now that he’d been dangled in front of me, I wasn’t so sure I could tuck him into the recesses of my mind again or have my heart shattered a second time.

  “Moon goddess, if you’re listening, please heal Marcin. Let the chickweed do its trick.”

  I wiped the blade clean across my pants and tucked the weapon back into my boot, then grabbed Marcin’s flashlight and swept the beam across the cave.

  Tiny streaks of light from overhead gave the room a faint glow. We were closed in here, no exit. The cave-in made sure of it. A tight ball looped in my chest. But I refused to believe we were stuck, and getting all freaked out wasn’t the answer. Father always said to keep a cool head in times of trouble. So, I’d follow his advice.

  I pulled out my phone. No reception, of course.

  Once Marcin woke up, he’d have limited energy and require plenty of rest and food. Lying in a freezing cold cave wasn’t conduciv
e to healing.

  In hindsight, I should have told someone we were coming out here, though in reality I had no idea where here was. Marcin intended to keep this place to himself, so I doubted he told anyone either. We were fucked ... to put it politely.

  I released a long breath and circled the perimeter of the cave, studying the jagged walls, the clusters of chickweed, and the hanging icicles. Beautiful, if they weren’t blades hanging above our heads. Goddess, I had to get out. I paced around the area, remembering Marcin’s words from when we’d landed inside. We’re still alive. Well, I hadn’t died yet, and look how long I’d been in this blasted death tomb.

  My attention returned to the rainbow across the waterfall. Then I glanced up at the streaks of light coming in from the ceiling. Two of them were right above the structure and shined on the ice. But the closer I got, the more it became clear there was no way two tiny beams could create that much light. I curved around the frozen pond and climbed up on a ledge alongside the waterfall.

  A faint glow came from behind the sheet of ice. What if ...?

  I grabbed a stone the size of my head and smashed it into the glasslike wall repeatedly. Fragments flung free, and a crack snaked upward.

  Excellent. I continued whacking the ice. A shard the size of my hand fell away, and a light breeze fluttered out, gingerly caressing my cheeks. I didn’t stop working until I’d created a large enough hole for me to slip through.

  Inside, I crouched low and squeezed through a tunnel studded with miniature icicles as if I were stuck in an iron maiden.

  Don’t focus on the low ceiling or the walls pressing in around you. Just ahead.

  I shuddered but kept inching onward. Around the next bend, a bright light appeared and warmth spread through me, excitement pushing my legs faster. I hurried through the curving burrow, emerging into the woods. The earlier dread clinging to my flesh washed away on the breeze.

  “Yes!” My voice echoed, and a breeze swished through my hair. I strolled toward the fringe of pines in the distance, contemplating the idea of catching a small snack. A rabbit or two would help Marcin when he woke up. Maybe luck was finally on our side.

  The sudden whipping of wind brought a new scent—wolf, raw and animalistic.

  I stood still.

  From behind a tree to my right, a gray wolf trotted out. My next inhale confirmed him to be a normal wolf, not a shifter. More of them emerged, branching out into a semicircle, about fifteen feet away. Nine sets of eyes on me.

  My muscles seized. On my own, I’d stand no chance against this pack of wolves. Maybe with Marcin, but not in his current state. I calmed my pulse, visualizing an aura field traveling up my body.

  No one made a move, and I lowered my head and gaze, to appear less of a threat. The alpha with a white ear inched closer. Even if I transformed, they’d be on me in no time. Hungry wolves ate anything, even loners of their own kind if desperate enough.

  I backed away in slow motion, never turning my back to them. They’d interpret that as a challenge, and once they got me, they’d sniff out Marcin and finish him.

  A snarl reverberated from the alpha’s chest as sunlight gleamed off his gray coat.

  Goddess, I didn’t need this now.

  I reached a shaky hand toward him.

  He slinked forward, sniffed the air, and released a low rumble.

  “I’m not going to hurt you.” My scent always calmed animals. Otherwise, I’d be a fool to ever offer my hand to a wild wolf. Perspiration trickled down my spine. I held tight and broke into a soft humming lullaby, hoping my voice would have the same effect.

  His black eyes rolled upward in a hypnotized state, only the whites showing. Exactly how I’d expected him to react. Docile and calm.

  A second wolf trotted closer and growled, and immediately the others followed.

  I cringed.

  The alpha snapped back to attention, his eyes on full alert, fur bristled down his back. This wasn’t going to work with such a large pack. His lips peeled back, ears flat against his head.

  I threw my hands into the air to look as big as possible. “Get out of here. I’m not your meal. Shoo.” Seizing a thick branch near my feet, I hurled the weapon at them. My intention wasn’t to scare them. That tactic would never work, except to give me time to escape. Quick sidesteps took me toward the cave, my gaze never leaving the encroaching danger.

  Calling to my wolf, I released a thunderous growl. I moved faster, but my foot hit a rock in the snow, and I fell to my knees.

  The wolves pounced, flanking me from all sides. Hot breaths streamed from their mouth, their ears flattened against to their heads.

  A meal. That’s what I was to them.

  I jumped up and bolted. The entry lay ten feet away. Too far.

  The crunch of snow closed in.

  Never run from a wolf, but here I was sprinting through ankle deep snow. Because that was how my day was going.

  The hairs on my neck shifted, alert, and my skin rippled.

  Teeth snagged on my upper arm. A guttural threat in my ear. Flesh and fabric tore. I shoved my elbow backward, connecting to soft tissue, throwing him off me.

  I lunged into the cave’s mouth, my shoulders scraping the walls.

  Claws snapped against rock right behind me, heavy exhalation a drum in my ear.

  I swerved through the passage and dove through the hole in the waterfall, then grabbed a rock and tossed it at the entrance. It barely missed the gray wolf. He whined and jumped backward. The tight entry allowed only one to push through at a time.

  And right now, the alpha had his head poking through the ice wall, teeth bared, nose creased.

  In no time, I ripped off my jacket, ready to transform, but the wolf hopped through the frozen waterfall hole, surveying the surroundings, his sight set on Marcin.

  “No fuckin’ way. He’s mine.”

  I grabbed more rocks and threw them at him, hitting the side, driving him back up the ledge and outside.

  A quick glance behind me confirmed Marcin still lay there without a clue in the world of what danger lay at his feet.

  Time to get this handled. I leapt up onto the ledge, and screamed in the predator’s direction, trying to intimidate him.

  He bit back just as fast, inches from my face, in fact, a few strands of my hair caught in his teeth.

  Enough of this crap, and definitely no time to transform. I reached down for more rocks.

  But he attacked again, his mouth latching onto my side by my arm, throwing me off my feet and onto my side. The bite was a blade slicing flesh. A silent whimper gurgled in my throat as he dragged me through the waterfall hole. Push past the pain.

  I punched his face, over and over.

  He lost his grip and stumbled backward. Before he attacked, I hurled more rocks near my feet, my shoulder screaming with pain. He whimpered and retreated a bit farther away. A second wolf shoved in behind him, but the limited space meant he couldn’t attack.

  No time to waste. I retreated and grabbed a large stone nearby, throwing it into the passage.

  The wolves scampered a few steps back, but their growls told me they weren’t giving up that easily. Neither was I.

  I rushed with one stone after another, until I’d blocked up the place enough to stop them from coming through. My pulse was in a frenzy. Now I prayed they moved on to find an easier meal.

  Through the gaps of the stone wall, the gray wolf stared at me, not making a sound. Then he retreated, the clack of claws on stone. Was he giving up or biding his time?

  I pulled back and stood there for a few moments, waiting for a reshow or something. The sting lanced down my arm from the bite. Looking around, I spotted Marcin’s backpack.

  Running across the room, I tripped over a tuft of chickweed, just catching my balance before I landed face first onto the stone surface. My chest was pumping with adrenaline. What I wouldn’t give to have a calm day for a change.

  The warm trickle of blood stung my arm, so I tipped all the bag cont
ents out. Another bottle of water, jerky, a blanket, and a shirt. That would do the trick. I grabbed the black top and folded the fabric as best as I could into a layered bandage, pressing it under my torn sleeves and placing it against my wound. I’d heal soon enough, but first I had to stop the bleeding.

  Back alongside Marcin, I draped the blanket over his body and grabbed one of the jerky sticks. I crossed my legs and sat next to him, figuring we weren’t going anywhere soon, so I might as well get comfortable and heal.

  • • •

  A feather-soft touch caressed my cheek, the kind that loosened my muscles. I curled my body and rolled away, but something kept poking into my side.

  When someone coughed, my eyes fluttered open.

  Marcin stared down at me with the softest bedroom eyes, the ones I’d imagined waking up next to for years. Except, we weren’t in a bed, and he wasn’t snuggling me. He sat beside me, knees bent, arms draped over them. We were in alone in a cave, a light dusting of snow filtering down from the cracks overhead, and instead of guarding Marcin, I’d dozed off.

  “How are you feeling?” he asked.

  I sat up and wiped my mouth. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”

  “My strength is back, even if my head still spins. I’m more rejuvenated now than I’ve been these past few days.” His attention shifted between me with my bulging shoulder and his shirt tucked under my jacket. His focus changed to the backpack on the floor with all the contents spilled out. He sniffed the air.

  “What happened? Did you get injured making that hole in the waterfall?”

  “Fought a pack of wild wolves, got bit in the process, and I used your shirt to stop the bleeding.” I reached in beneath my snow jacket and lifted up the makeshift bandage. The wound had closed up, despite the dried up blood caked around the bite mark. I pulled back the shirt stuck to my skin with dried blood and winced.

  “Here, let me clean that. It’s the least I can do.” He grabbed the corner of the blanket and soaked it in water from the bottle.

  Considering the worry swimming behind his eyes, I figured it’d be easier to accept his help than argue the point. I unzipped my jacket, slipped it off, and pushed the shirt over my shoulder.