"That's odd," Lainey remarked. She started to walk around, inspecting the wall of bushes. "Hey, there's a gap here." Renick watched Lainey disappear through the thick under–brush. She gasped. "Come on, you have to see this!"
Renick looked to Thane, who crossed his arms and shook his head. With a shrug at Thane, Renick moved through the gap. He looked around, his mouth falling open. An area large enough for a dragon flyer to land in had been cleared of undergrowth. There were a few tables and chairs, as well as the toppled remains of a few sleeping tents. At the far end there was also a small building that appeared to be a storage shed. The entire area was surrounded by thick, thorny bushes and vines—a barrier against the dangers of the forest.
"What is it?" Renick asked.
"It looks like an abandoned way station," Thane commented. "They used them before, when the passenger baskets were more cramped." He kicked at the fallen tents and sent a flurry of bugs scampering away.
Lainey wrinkled her nose. "Eww."
Renick handed Plyth to Lainey and went to investigate the storage shed. The door was hanging crooked on its hinges and when Renick pulled it open, it fell off completely. Renick scrunched his face and shoulders in anticipation of the sound. When the door crashed to the ground, he turned to Thane and Lainey with an apology on his face. They all stood quiet for a moment, waiting. Renick strained his ears for any movement through the woods around them. After several tense moments, he exhaled. "That was close," he said.
"Just be more careful," Thane said. "We don't want anything out there," he pointed to the woods, "to know that we're in here."
Lainey looked at Renick and rolled her eyes before turning away.
Renick entered the dark shed. A sliver of light from a crack in the ceiling allowed him to make out the shapes of sacks and barrels. Starting at one end and working his way around the shed, Renick inspected every sack, basket, and barrel. He found spoiled bread, wheat, and fruit. Mice had gotten to some of it. He even came across an old bird's nest. He found a few useful things: a small pot for cooking that fit in his rucksack, some dried meat to add to their stores, a long hunting knife, and a coil of rope.
Carrying his treasures, Renick ducked out of the shed and looked around for the others. Lainey was seated at the table, humming softly. Plyth sat on the table near her, his head tilting back and forth in time to her song. Thane was nearby, picking through the fallen tents and other debris.
"Look what I found," Renick pronounced, placing his finds on the table next to Plyth.
Lainey squealed and clapped her hands. "Oh, I can make us stew." She scooped up some of the dried meat and the pot and carried them to a nearby fire pit.
Thane came over to investigate. He picked up the hunting knife and examined it. "It's a good knife," he said, holding out the handle to Renick. "You should keep it."
Renick took the knife and tucked it in his belt. "Thanks. I—"
A sound much like a branch breaking in the forest made Renick stop and Thane place his hand on his sword. Plyth ducked his head and laid his ears back.
Danger.
Lainey had frozen with the small pot still in her hand, poised over the budding fire. Renick jerked his head toward Thane and Plyth, and Lainey moved stealthily to stand with them.
Thane motioned them to lean close. "I think the hunters are out there," he said, his voice barely audible.
"Hunters," Plyth hissed, mimicking Thane's tone and body language.
As if to confirm Thane's suspicions, a voice sounded from the woods. "Pick it up, men. I want to camp in the way station tonight."
Renick exchanged looks with Thane and Lainey.
"We need to get out of here," Thane whispered.
Lainey reached out and gripped Renick's arm. Her bottom lip quivered slightly. Renick extracted her fingers from his arm and gave them a reassuring squeeze. "The fire," he whispered. A light went on in Lainey's eyes, and she nodded and hurried over to the fire she had been starting.
Renick scooped up the rest of his finds and met the others at the gap in the thorny bushes. They paused while Thane poked his head out to make sure it was safe. Without looking back, Thane motioned for Renick and Lainey to follow. They moved through the forest, Thane leading them to a dense portion of trees.
They slipped behind the trees just as they heard a voice saying, "Ah, here we are."
Crouching down, Renick peered through a space between two tree trunks. The band of hunters, all eight of them, stood outside the tall, thorny bushes. Seven of them disappeared into the way station. The eighth stood watch at the gap.
Thane leaned down to Renick's ear and whispered, "He's too close. I don't think we can move away without him seeing or hearing us."
Renick nodded in agreement. "Do you think if we sleep here, we'll be safe?"
Thane's eyes narrowed for a moment. "Yes, but we should keep watch. I'll take the first shift."
Turning, Renick relayed their plan to Lainey.
For a long time, the hunters were busy around the camp, making lots of noise and yelling, often using very foul language. At one point, Thane tapped on Renick's shoulder. Thane pointed to Lainey and then placed his hands over his ears. When Renick did not respond, Thane repeated the motion. Finally understanding, Renick turned to Lainey to tell her not to listen. She was lying on her stomach, her elbows in the dirt and her hands already clamped tightly over her ears. Just then the swearing in the camp got louder. Lainey cringed and pressed her hands tighter against her head. She gave Renick a little half smile.
After the men had made camp, they shared a meal of what smelled like hot stew. The aroma made Renick's stomach churn with jealousy. He begrudgingly passed out a few of the strips of dried meat he had found. He chewed on his half–heartedly and tried to imagine he was eating a large bowl of meaty stew like his mother made back home.
His stomach still growling, Renick sat with his back to a tree and closed his eyes. He was half asleep when Lainey nudged him. He looked over at her; Lainey pointed to the way station.
"I tell ya, there was a hatchlin' with that cow," one deep voice said.
"Well, there wasn't one by 'er carcass, and it wouldn't've wandered away from its mum," another said.
"It might've run off with its tail between its legs," the first voice said. The hunters laughed at this.
"It'd be too young fer the Awakenin'. It'd be mute. No need to track it down," another man replied.
Something the hunters said sparked a memory, a line in a story his father told him a long time ago. It was not like the other old stories, the ones his father told over and over. Renick had only heard it once. But it spoke of a baby dragon awakening to a new day, its mind alert and open to the world around it. He wished he could remember the exact words.
There was a thunk and one of the men yelped in pain. "After you shot down that flyer, you want to botch another job by leaving it unfinished?" a gruff voice asked.
Lainey gasped and clapped her hand over her mouth to silence the sound. She looked over at Thane and Renick. Renick's chest felt tight and his heart was beating fast. These dragon hunters had shot down the flyer and killed Plyth's mother. He turned to Thane, whose eyes were angry slits. "Later," Thane mouthed. Renick understood. It would be too hard to discuss this new piece of information now.
"We stick to the mission. But keep your eyes peeled for any leftovers," said the gruff voice. There were some grumbles, but no one challenged the order.
Renick settled back into his sleeping position, his head resting against the tree. He struggled to quiet the swirling questions in his mind. It was not until the hunters had found their own beds and were snoring softly in the night that Renick finally drifted off to sleep.
What felt like only a few moments passed before Thane shook Renick awake. He opened his weary eyes. "My watch?" Renick asked in a low whisper.
Thane shook his head. "They're all asleep, even the watchman." He added something under his breath. Renick did not catch it all, but it sounded li
ke something about being lazy and putting the others at risk. "Lucky for us, though."
Renick climbed to his feet. Lainey was already standing, Plyth cradled in her arms. They moved quietly away from the way station. Thane took the lead, taking them north and toward the foothills of the mountain.
There was the sound of someone moving around in the half light, a thunk, a crash, and another thunk. Renick froze. The others did too. A man grumbled in his sleep, turned over, and continued snoring. After all had been quiet for several moments, Renick let out a sigh of relief. He followed the others as they started moving again. Thane pointed ahead to a stand of trees with thick bushes at their base, indicating that was where they were headed.
Renick lagged behind a little—he kept looking over his shoulder. He had the uneasy feeling that they were being watched. With his head turned to observe the way station, he took a step forward. His foot came down on a small branch and it snapped in two. He looked up and locked eyes with Lainey and Thane, their faces mirroring the fear he felt.
The sound of a body shifting indicated that someone behind the way station barrier was awake. Renick could hear his confused expressions. It sounded like he was getting up. It took less than a heartbeat for Renick to recover. He started running for the safety of the bushes they were heading toward. Lainey and Thane followed. Once he was safely crouching behind a thick bush, Renick looked back at the way station. One of the hunters emerged from the gap in the wall of thorns.
Thane and Lainey hit the ground next to Renick as they dove for cover. Plyth let out a little yelp. Thane clamped a hand over the baby dragon's snout and shushed him.
"Hurt!" Plyth tried to say around Thane's hand, but the word was muffled.
"Huh? What's that?" the hunter said. After scanning the woods around him, the hunter was just about to return when Lainey shifted her weight. Plyth cried out, the high pitched sound making it through his closed mouth.
Pain.
Renick's shoulder ached for a moment as Plyth projected his discomfort.
The hunter stopped and turned to face the bush they were hiding behind. He yelled something and started running toward them. Renick looked around frantically. There was no way for them to leave their hiding spot without being noticed. He looked down at Plyth and knew what he had to do.
Renick stood and ran back the way they had come. He was passing the trees where they had spent the night when the hunter spotted him.
"Stop!" a deep, booming voice called to him.
Renick kept running. He hoped that the others would take advantage of the distraction. He did not dare to look back. Instead, he put his head down and kept running. A set of heavy footsteps pursued him. Soon those footsteps were joined by others. Renick ran harder. Ignoring the sounds behind him, he focused on moving forward.
His foot caught on something. Renick tumbled, rolling as he went down and coming back up almost on his feet. Using his arms, he pushed himself fully upright. For a moment, he thought all would be fine. A heavy hand descended on his shoulder. Renick fell to the ground again.
The hunters surrounded him.
Renick lay still, trying to catch his breath. One of the hunters leaned over him. The man had three deep scars running parallel from his missing eye down his neck. The red lines disappeared under his shirt. "What do we have here?" the hunter asked in a gravelly voice. He pushed Renick with the toe of his heavy boot. "Speak, runt."
"I'm lost." Renick wheezed.
"Name," the hunter barked.
Renick clamped his teeth together.
"Name!" This time the command was followed up with a swift kick to his gut.
"Rub," Renick said, using the nickname his older brothers used to call him.
"Oy, he doesn't look like a dragon to me," one of the other hunters cried out.
"I tell ya, I heard it. Twice." The man Renick had seen earlier waved three fingers in the other hunter's face.
"Can you cry like a baby dragon, boy? Wah, wah," one of the hunters said as he poked Renick with the tip of a short sword. The hunters all burst into laughter.
"Silence!" the hunter with the scar said, slicing his hand through the air. Everyone fell silent. "Gunther, tie him up. We'll take him back to camp."
The hunter who had heard Plyth—Renick assumed his name was Gunther—pulled him to his feet. Gunther turned Renick around roughly, grabbed his arms, and pulled them behind his back. The rope Gunther used was rough and scratched Renick's hands, and the hunter wrapped the rope a little tighter than was necessary around Renick's wrists.
The lead hunter, the one with the scars, pulled a knife from his belt and held it up to Renick. "I'll get your secret out one way or the other," he threatened.
Chapter 12: In the Hunters' Camp
The way station was transformed. It did not look abandoned anymore. Instead, it looked like a proper camp. The sleeping tents had been righted and the whole area was clean and orderly. The fire pit glowed with coals still hot from the night's fire. Renick could smell breakfast. Bacon, eggs, biscuits. His stomach groaned at the savory smells. Without his permission, Renick's tongue ran across his lips.
"Ah, is the runt hungry?" one of the hunters jeered. He picked up a half–eaten piece of bacon, wiggled it in front of Renick's nose, and crammed the whole thing in his mouth.
"Sit him here," the lead hunter said. The man stood over an uneven log near the fire pit, still holding his knife.
Renick felt cold sweat trickle down his neck.
"Yes, sir, Horrin." Gunther pushed him roughly down onto the log.
"Now, Rub, was it?" the lead hunter said, leaning close to Renick's face. The man's breath smelled terrible and his teeth were yellow. "Where is the baby dragon?"
"Dragon?" Renick asked.
"Yes, the baby dragon. Lost its mother a few days back. Gunther here heard it squawking just before we caught you."
"I don't know what you're talking about," Renick answered.
The leader held his knife to Renick's throat. "Is that so? Have you seen a baby dragon recently?"
"How recently?" Renick asked.
Gunther struck Renick across the face with the back of his hand. The force of the blow startled Renick and made his cheek sting.
"Enough with the smart talk! Answer my question," the lead hunter ordered, his voice dropping to a threatening tone.
"Yes. I grew up on a dragon ranch, so I see baby dragons all the time," Renick answered. To him it felt like it came out sounding funny. He rubbed the inside of his cheek with his tongue, hoping it would bring the feeling back. Gunther kicked his left shin and sharp lances of pain shot through it. He tried to hold a straight face, but a small moan of pain betrayed Renick.
"Have you seen one in the woods?" Horrin clarified.
"One what?" Renick was rewarded with another slap to the face.
"I don't have time to play with you, boy." Horrin spat in his face. "You know where that dragon is—I am sure of it. And I know you heard it talk. So, if you want to make it out of this forest alive, you'll tell me where it is!"
"Never," Renick said through clenched teeth.
Horrin smiled at him. "We shall see." Turning to Gunther, he said, "Put him over there."
"But …" Gunther started to protest.
Horrin met the other hunter's eye—a look of silent communication passed between them. "Put him there."
"Ah," Gunther said. He nodded his head and tapped his temple. "I sees. I'll put 'im over there, shall I?"
Renick was dragged to the far side of the way station to a bare spot next to the thickest part of the thorny bush wall. Gunther threw him down on his side. "Stay put." Gunther kicked him once, then turned and walked away.
Wriggling on the ground like a worm, Renick managed to get himself onto his back. A giant crossbow caught his attention. Renick swallowed as the sun glinted off the point of one of the enormous bolts. He took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and tried not to think about the weapon.
He turned his head to
inspect the thorny bushes. At the base of one bush, there was a small gap less than two hands high. It was not much, but it was all he had. Renick lifted his head and tried to sit up. He managed to make it halfway before he fell back to the ground. Next, he tried kicking his legs to get more momentum. After a few minutes of failure, Renick changed tactics.
Using his proven method of worm wriggling, Renick got himself onto his stomach and began to crawl. He lifted his legs until his knees rested on the dirt. He pushed and slid his face against the ground. Small rocks and twigs left stinging scratches on his face, and his mouth filled with dirt. Renick continued on. Once he reached the bushes, he thrashed around a bit until he could see back into the camp. He was surprised to see that no one was watching him. He hesitated, unsure if he should continue.
Renick turned his attention back to the bush in front of him. Moving through the thorn–laden branches would be worse than inching along the dirt. For a moment, he considered abandoning the escape attempt. Thane, Lainey, and Plyth were probably far away and safe by now. He would not be able to find them, and traveling in the forest alone was dangerous.
But he had to try.
He took a deep, dust–filled breath, shifted his knees back and forth, and drove his head into the bush. Several sharp thorns bit into the back of his head and neck. His forehead, though, received most of the torment. Renick gasped, blowing a cloud of dirt around his head. The dust coated his lungs and he coughed a few times. After taking a moment to recover, Renick readied himself to move again. He pushed forward, but instead of driving further into the bush, he was pulled backwards by a pair of strong hands gripping his ankles. Panicked, Renick kicked hard, but the pressure on his ankles increased.
"Settle down, boy!" Gunther said. The hunter flipped Renick over on his back. "Thought ya might try somethin' like that. Caught ya, stupid." Gunther slapped Renick in the head and chuckled to himself. Taking Renick by one leg, Gunther pulled him to the center of the camp. He called to one of the other hunters, "Ho, Marrkit, drive me a pole righ' here." Marrkit, who sat near a freshly gathered pile of firewood, picked up a long branch about as wide as his fist.
Trusted: Dragons' Trust Book 1 Page 6