by RS McCoy
“As Aero Syndicate, her first order of business will be to pledge her commitment to the latest realm decree.” Kaide’s ears perked at Hamilton’s words. Just when he thought the useless old lump had ignored Kaide’s warning about the Prentis, here he was making a public proclamation against them.
Or so he thought.
Instead, he heard the impossible words. “Syndicate Mercer will join the Syndicate Dormier, Syndicate Voltez, and Syndicate Mora in actively identifying, neutralizing, and extraditing Alder criminals to Terrana for sentencing.”
Kaide fought back a disgusted retch. Alder criminals? That was his concern? Kaide himself was one such criminal, harboring unsanctioned texts in his personal and secret collection of pre-war relics. The Alderai’s focus on Alder crimes was so misguided, it bordered on the irresponsible. He’d have his agents out searching for illegal books while rapists and kidnappers continued to run rampant in Pyrona.
It was enough to make him sick. “Is he insane?” Pruda whispered in his ear, her usually calm brow twisted in concern.
Kaide could only shrug in horror and watch the rest of the proceedings.
Behind Mercer stood her always smiling husband and the starkly pale figures of Crin Peppers and Yveline Dodd, the current Aero Vice Syndicates. As an Apprentice, Yveline Dodd rarely attended realm functions, but as this was an Aero event—an Aero Ascension Ceremony, no less—her presence was expected despite her age. Kaide hadn’t seen her in many months, and he noted she looked considerably more grown than she had when last he saw her. She stood with a confidence that spoke volumes about her career as a rising Aero Vice Syndicate. Apprentice Dodd would make a formidable enemy if she was ever given the chance. Kaide would have to be sure to squash the Aero branch before Yveline had a chance to ascend, though Mercer was hardly a desired alternative in the meantime.
“Any word on the new Vice Syndicate?” Pruda continued, speaking just under the volume of the congratulations and cheers around them.
Kaide shook his head. Of course, every ascending Syndicate kept their previous Vice Syndicates, a show of solidarity within the branch. As for the newly vacated Aero position, Kaide had a few ideas as to who would fill the position.
Gran Ellis, the Aero Commissioner of Interbranch Relations would be at the top of the list, though maybe a little old. Nowadays, thirty-five was a little late to start a political career. Eton Samina was an obvious choice, except for the fact that the previous Syndicate Waller had liked him, and therefore Mercer hated him. Farley Volstead would be Kaide’s choice, if only because he’d worked beside the Aero Commissioner of Security a dozen times and had never found him to be even remotely horrible, a rare trait in the white branch.
Pruda only shrugged when he failed to produce an answer. “Oh well. We’ll know soon enough.”
Huntress
IN THE LIGHT of the candle at Da’s table, Hale stared at the letter, rereading every word over and over again. It wasn’t so much a letter—they hadn’t received official correspondence from Terrana in years—but a note half-scribbled on a stolen bit of paper. The Amaris clan had risked sending them this message.
The Alderai was searching for them.
While the almighty servant of the Mother had no direct knowledge of the Bear Clan or their activities, he surely recognized the scars they left behind. The wide, severed stumps were evidence enough.
“I told you we’d been too prolific,” Hale said once he found the voice to respond.
“It was only a matter of time.” Unlike Hale, Da didn’t seem worried in the slightest. “We’re about finished with this cut. We’ll move on and find a new one.”
“Or we stop with the cuts for a while. We have enough to last us a few years. There’s no reason to put ourselves at risk…” While the Bear Clan lived in relative luxury, with plentiful food and wine and supplies, the majority of their earnings were sent to an account in Terrana. Hale didn’t know the precise sum, but he knew it was considerable. They could easily live off such wealth for years.
Sipping a goblet of amberwine, Da meandered about the tent at a leisurely pace. His grey-streaked hair shimmered in the wavering light of the candle. Hale hated when he got in moods like this—like nothing was wrong. Like nothing could ever be wrong.
“This is our purpose, son. If we are not selecting and processing the Mother’s gifts, then what are we to do with ourselves? The men will grow bored, and the women will tire of their company.”
“But not at the expense of our safety,” Hale insisted. Then, as he often did during their more heated discussions, Hale pulled the coin from his pocket and flipped it in the air. A half-second later, he caught it against his arm and stared in awe at the carved image of the alder leaf.
Trust the Mother.
Some days, it was easier to trust her than others. When the Sacred Mother told him to still his hand and let Blossom go, it had ripped his heart from his chest. When Raene pressed her side to his in those small quiet moments in the night, Hale swelled with his trust for the Mother.
Today, trusting the Mother to keep their clan safe from the Alderai’s agents was less easy. Raene had already been attacked by a coyote, and now, with news of the Alderai’s determination to eliminate operations such as theirs, Hale was more worried than ever. He shouldn’t have let Raene leave camp today.
The idea of her in danger set his nerves on edge, but the idea of her putting others in danger made his stomach flop uncomfortably. She was so undeniably lovely, so well-spoken and elegant, and yet lurking beneath that exterior was the aggression of a tiger. It filled him with undeniable dread to think that she was so close to causing so much damage, but he knew it was meant to be. Raene wouldn’t cause this incessant pounding in his chest if it wasn’t the Mother’s will.
Hale’s thoughts raced through their morning conversation, trying to remember where she was. She was at Gemini’s garden, he recalled at last. It was far outside the edge of camp, but the Connors would protect her. Then again, she might be one to protect them.
But he couldn’t think about that. Raene’s totem was far too volatile to risk. Hale would have to spend time working with her to get it under control. The day she arrived, he hadn’t missed the smell of fresh blood from her traveling companion, the still-bleeding leg wound he kept hidden, though he was less successful in hiding the limp. Hale suspected Raene had caused considerable damage, though he wouldn’t be the one to ask her outright. He was supposed to earn her trust, to be the man she felt comfortable with. Accusing her of crimes wouldn’t exactly accomplish the Mother’s plan.
For now, he would handle the problems available to him. Hale pocketed his coin and used his most decisive voice as he told Da, “We should tighten up the envoys. Keep them localized and in smaller groups. Only deal with established clans we know fairly well. At least keep out unnecessary risk.”
Da tossed his head lightly side to side in consideration. “A wise decision, my son.”
“We’ll need to send a token of our gratitude to the Amaris Clan. They might have news of coyote movement through the Alderwood.”
“Send a pair with a case of amberwine.”
Hale rolled his eyes. It was far too gracious a gift for such a tiny piece of paper, but Da was never one to do anything halfway. He had his ways, his idiosyncrasies none of them would ever fully grasp, but he’d served them well thus far, and Hale didn’t have it in him to voice his doubts. Instead, he answered, “I’ll see to it.”
“And let’s keep this between us for now.”
“Da?” Hale was sure he’d heard him wrong.
“There’s no need to raise tensions in camp. We’re almost finished processing the cut, and we haven’t yet decided if we’ll relocate in the next weeks. I don’t want anyone getting the idea we might be running from this.”
Hale sighed as the truth sank in. “We can’t afford a loss of confidence.” It made sense, he knew. But that only complicated things. How was he supposed to keep his clan safe from an enemy he couldn�
��t even warn them about?
“And these?” Raene pointed to the pear-green leaves emerging from the ground, the ones that curled at the ends.
“Carrots, and these ones are radishes.” Gemini nodded down the length of the row. In the sun-baked garden on the edge of camp, Raene sweltered in the summer heat, but her day with Gemini had been one of the best since arriving in the clan.
“So don’t pull these?” On her hands and knees, wearing gloves that were entirely too big for her, Raene pointed at the leaves, afraid to harvest the wrong thing.
Gemini stifled a laugh. “Yes, pull them. They’re ready.”
“How can you remember all these?” Raene asked in awe. There were dozens of crops in the Connor family garden, but Gemini knew them each by sight. She knew when they were planted, what kinds of soil they liked, how much sun they needed, and when to harvest them. She could use her plants to make more teas than Raene could name.
Raene greatly enjoyed learning about plants, but she wasn’t sure she’d ever know as much as Gemini.
Then again, she hadn’t been farming her whole life, either.
“You know, you really don’t have to do this,” Gemini fussed for the hundredth time.
“What else am I going to do?” Raene reminded her. “Sit in a tent and stare at the walls?” In her old life, Raene had envisioned lavish parties and fancy dresses. Here in the Alderwood, she was digging plants from the soil to stave off boredom.
Still, she was making a friend. And it kept her away from camp, out of Hale’s tent, and she didn’t have to think about that night with Parson.
Three days had gone by, and Raene still found her thoughts lingering on that night.
And she hoped keeping busy would help quiet her rising urge, but so far, she’d found no relief. Her stomach growled constantly, always desperate and hungry for more than fruit or nuts or bread. Raene tried not to think about it, to force her mind to focus on the plants in front of her.
“Oh, there’s plenty to do. Maybe not anything exciting…” Gemini admitted with a laugh. “That was Blossom’s problem. She wanted excitement. There’s none of that here.”
Startled, Gemini’s gaze jerked to the far edge of the garden.
“Speak for yourself.” Asla Brimmen emerged from the woods with a smile on his face. His infatuation was evident in the brightness in his eyes and the ease of his smile as he watched Gemini work. “I’m plenty exciting,” he teased.
Raene and Gemini broke into girlish laughs. Raene had only talked to Asla once before, but he hadn’t exactly given off the impression of being any sort of adventurer. His elk totem was far too quiet for that sort of thing.
Gemini clutched her stomach as she pulled to her feet, laughing all the while. She trotted to Asla—careful to avoid trampling her plants—and offered him a sweet kiss. “I thought you weren’t coming by until later.”
Asla shrugged and kissed her forehead. “Parson let us go early today. Said he had something to do. We’re ahead of schedule, anyway.”
Raene sobered at the mention of her future brother-in-law, but she quickly returned to plucking vegetables, wishing a carrot or a radish could silence her totem like a rabbit could. Then, she remembered Gemini’s rabbit totem, and doubled her focus on her task.
Oblivious to the darkness of her thoughts or the anxiety in her blood, Asla and Gemini continued their sweet kisses.
“Does that mean you’ll get paid early?” Gemini clutched both dirt-crusted hands together and smiled up at him.
Not even Asla could resist such a look. He kissed her temple and laughed. “Yes, and I’ll even get you a bottle of amberwine.”
Gemini squealed and threw her arms around his neck before Asla lifted her from the ground entirely, turning so that her feet spun wide around him. Gemini’s pleasant features twisted in fear. “No, no. Put me down!” she shrieked. Asla let out a groan at her protest, but he set her feet back to the ground, and soon enough, they were laughing again. Even Raene allowed herself a good laugh, hoping such moments could help her overcome the urge to hunt.
Raene would never have thought a small farm would bring so much fun to her life, but a full day of working with Gemini had lessened her anxiety. The fresh air away from camp helped her clear her head. Her nights of fitful sleep in Hale’s too-hot tent were taking their toll. Only Hale’s company, their wine-filled evenings, and his strokes on her back brought her any peace at all.
If only the itch to hunt would subside. If only thoughts of Parson would leave her be.
This time, it was Raene who heard the footsteps first.
As if summoned by her thoughts, Parson emerged from the woods behind Asla. They froze and gaped at him in unison, wondering why the second son of the clan leader would venture so far out of camp to see them.
Parson side-stepped Asla—still holding Gemini as they stared—and approached Raene, his eyes focused on her. She was suddenly self-conscious, too aware of the dirt on her knees and elbows, the sweat across her brow, the smear she’d left on her cheek an hour ago, the brown color left on the tip of her braid where she’d accidentally dipped it in the soil.
She didn’t want him to see her this way.
“I’m sorry to show up like this,” he began, standing tall next to where she knelt in the dirt. A second later, he sank to his haunches beside her and continued, “I was wondering if I could talk to you for a few minutes.” His hair hung over his face just so, hiding much of his features, but Raene could see he didn’t come here lightly. There was an intensity in his features she couldn’t resist.
So she nodded and climbed to her feet—her bare, dirt-covered feet. “Just give me a minute to get cleaned up.” She started toward her shoes piled beside a tree at the edge of the garden.
“No need. We won’t be long.” His shirt was dingy with sweat and sawdust, and his hair was clumped with grease. He couldn’t exactly hold her appearance against her.
But then she had no more reason to delay.
Raene swallowed hard and nodded. She handed her gloves to Gemini, promised to be back shortly, and then let Parson lead her into the woods.
In the horrible, suffocating silence that hung between them, Raene balled her hands into fists to hide how they shook, but even that didn’t work. The last time she’d seen him, he’d kissed her, and as much as it confused her, she wanted him to do it again.
In recent nights, Raene and Hale had taken to sharing sweet, shy kisses. Hale was always so kind, so careful of her boundaries and never pushing her. Raene enjoyed it immensely, but there was a part of her that wished Hale would show a little more passion. If nothing else, she knew Parson had it in spades.
It was all she could do to walk in a straight line beside him, pushing those thoughts to the back of her mind. He didn’t want her that way; he’d said as much already. And it would kill Hale to know she harbored such delusions.
Parson’s eternal silence only made it worse. They’d walked for ten minutes before he finally spoke. “I’m not sure how to start. I’m not very good at this.”
“At what? Apologizing?” Raene avoided his eyes as she waited, though he’d already offered her a sad sort of apology a moment after it happened. She didn’t need to reminisce in his regret.
When at last she dared a glance at him, a soft smile played with the corners of his lips. He seemed almost amused. “I guess that’s as good a place as any. I owe you quite a few.” Parson stopped short and turned to face her, his emerald eyes even with her blue ones. “I’m sorry I blamed you for Blossom’s marriage arrangement. I’m sorry I held your Pyro origins against you. And I’m sorry I said I didn’t want to marry you.”
Raene could only stare, could only listen to the pounding in her chest that was surely audible in the quiet of the woods. Her mouth fell open in shock, and she couldn’t force out a response. That hadn’t been what she expected at all.
“I don’t know how to fix it,” Parson continued. “But if I don’t at least get it out there, I’ll regret it fo
rever. I’d like it if you could give me a chance.” His voice fell away before he managed one last bit of strength. “I understand if you don’t want—if I’ve ruined things.”
Raene chewed on her lip to keep from hurling words in anger. It wasn’t fair, not one bit of it. Because of Parson, she’d been living in Hale’s tent, getting to know him, getting to like him, and now he wanted to take it all back?
“Why?” Raene lifted her eyes back to his and searched for the answer.
Parson winced as if the question pained him. He kicked the ground with his boot for several seconds before he managed to say, “You’re a tiger.”
At that, Raene turned around and left. She wasn’t going to be some commodity passed between brothers. She had only just started her march back to camp when Parson’s grip on her shoulder brought her to a halt.
“I’m no good at this. I’m not Hale. I don’t have the words I want to say when I want to say them. I’m twenty-five, and I still can’t get the damn words to come out. But please—”
Raene glowered at him as she crossed her arms tight over her chest, but that look in his eye made her soften. He was trying, he was putting himself out there for her. The least she could do was listen. “Fine.”
Parson relaxed for a moment before he realized he was actually going to have to explain it to her. He ran his hand through his wavy chestnut locks and thought for several long seconds before he finally worked out what he wanted to say. “I’ve been in the Alderwood my whole life,” he started, and once he had, the words tumbled out one after the other. “No one has what I have. After I underwent transformation, I killed so many innocents. I nearly caught Nyla Connors, but she was too fast. I was a mess. Da and Lathan thought I was doing it on purpose. That I just needed to grow up. I tried and tried to tell them. When Hale got his bear, he was like them. Always calm. It was clearly a problem with me. Something I was doing wrong. Only one person ever understood.”