Hunted in the Valley (Old Sequoia Valley Book 1)

by C. R. Pugh

  The thought of those soldiers had me taking another step back. If I were to stay, I could put Laelynn and her people in danger.

  “Ravyn …”

  “It’s tempting,” I confessed. “But … I can’t.”

  “Have it your way. But you could at least come back and have some breakfast before you go. Our village is just down -”

  “Don’t say another word, Laelynn!”

  It wasn’t until I heard the deep voice that I realized we were surrounded by five strong men, all pointing crossbows at me.

  4

  Thorne

  I was the first one awake in the camp, which was typical. I could never sleep longer than a few hours at a time anyway, so even before dawn I was out of my tent and making my usual morning coffee. It was my one indulgence on trips like these. My tent barely blocked out the night’s wind, I had slept on the hard ground instead of a bed, and I had to bathe in the river. I was going to have my coffee.

  Sipping the warm drink by the fire, I watched the light peek through the thick trees. This was one benefit of not being able to sleep: watching the sun rise in the mornings. My Warriors were just now starting to stir in their own tents, making their way out to wash the sleep off their faces. I snorted in amusement because I knew they could not sleep well on the hard ground either. Had we gone soft? Surely not. What would they do if I suggested we all sleep on the hard ground all the time, even in Peton? I’d have a mutiny on my hands! The thought made me chuckle.

  “What is so funny this early in the morning?” Gunter staggered over to the fire, still wiping his bleary eyes. He sat down next to me and poured his own cup of coffee, muttering about an aching back.

  “I was just thinking that you all look like a bunch of old ladies after sleeping on the ground.”

  “That’s about right. You were probably up for hours getting the aches worked out of you while the rest of us got our beauty sleep.” Gunter choked down a sip of the coffee and then gave me a disgusted look. “How can you drink this sludge? It tastes like dirt.”

  I shrugged. Hardly anyone in Peton enjoyed coffee like I did.

  “We will leave Archer and Brock here with the horses and supplies today,” I said.

  “Do you have a good feeling about this hunt?”

  I shrugged again and downed the last of my coffee in one gulp. No need to worry him about the feeling I had yesterday. We would deal with whatever challenges we had to face as they came.

  “Let’s get moving, my friend.”

  And with that, it was all business. We strapped on our weapons and stuffed our small packs with adequate supplies. If luck was with us, we could find one or two captives before lunch.

  A few hours later, Gunter, Pierce, Max, and I were standing in the middle of a small clearing looking down at the bodies of two men. One of them was clearly dead, the other unconscious. Pierce and Gunter scanned the area for any signs of a struggle. No amateur fighter or barbarian could have done this.

  “What do you make of it, Thorne?” Gunter inquired.

  “The job was done neatly. The men were taken down by someone who knew what they were doing.”

  “I agree,” said Gunter. “There’s no sign of a struggle here and not much of one over by the dead guy.”

  I knelt down and examined the unconscious man’s hands. “Take a look. No dirt under his fingernails.”

  “That’s odd,” Gunter remarked, looking over my shoulder.

  “He hasn’t been out in the Valley long,” Pierce muttered.

  “No,” I agreed. “And his clothes. They are too clean. It is possible these two have only seen a few days in the wild.”

  Pierce snorted. “I’ll bet it’s less than that.”

  He glared at me briefly and then walked away again.

  Gunter rubbed his hand over his face, thinking things over. “You know, it doesn’t matter. Whoever did this left us with a new captive.”

  “Humph.” It did matter, though. This man was clearly not starving and had not known the dangers of the Valley. In the five years I had been coming on the hunt, it was always the exiles who had experienced true hardship that were most grateful to be rescued. They made better captives – better citizens. They appreciated being a part of a clan again and made more effort to acclimate themselves to our ways. This man, having only recently been banished, might only feel resentment toward us.

  Just as I was about to rise to my feet again, something on the back of the unconscious exile’s shirt caught my eye. I had to look closely to see it. Carefully grasping it between my fingers, I brought it to my face to inspect it.

  “What is that, Thorne?” Gunter knelt down beside me to take a look at what I was studying.

  It was a strand of hair. A long, black strand of hair.

  “I told you,” Max muttered, crouching next to me, looking a bit pale. “It’s the dark-haired demon.”

  5

  Ravyn

  The damp cell was almost completely dark. In fact, I was certain I’d been thrown into a hole in the ground. I couldn’t be sure because one of Laelynn’s burly brothers had knocked me out back in the clearing. I imagined they had carried me here. Wherever ‘here’ was.

  How stupid could I be, getting myself captured like this? I should have bolted as soon as I had her ropes cut. A part of me was even sorry I had saved her.

  Okay, so I wasn’t that cruel. I would never have left her to those thieves. Regardless of my circumstances now, she didn’t deserve what those brutes were probably planning for her after they’d robbed her.

  The only light I could see was shining down through tiny cracks in the roof; some sort of door they’d constructed out of logs. There were no rodents or insects in here with me. For that, I was thankful. But they had taken all of my weapons and my bag, so even if I found a way to climb fifteen feet up these dirt walls and somehow managed to lift what looked like the heaviest door in the Valley, I would still have to find my belongings. The only thing keeping me calm was the fact that I was well-hidden from the soldiers hunting me. There was no chance of them finding me in this hole.

  Why hadn’t my neck given me a tickle of warning this time? Was it because I hadn’t been paying attention? That couldn’t be it. It had signaled that danger was closing in more times than I could count.

  That was with the soldiers though, I thought. Maybe it only tingled when the soldiers were near. Or maybe I wasn’t in real danger. That was something to consider.

  I couldn’t tell what time of day it was. My body would literally be aching with hunger if I’d been down here longer than a few hours. Then I wondered how long they might keep me here. Was I their prisoner now? I never agreed to come to their village in the first place!

  My hands began to shake and my heart started racing again thinking about being trapped with no way out. I didn’t know Laelynn at all. This could have been some elaborate trap set up by the General or Two. Maybe they did know I was here and they were coming to take me back.

  “Stop panicking,” I whispered to myself. “This isn’t the compound. The General isn’t here.”

  I clenched my fingers into fists and gazed up at the trapdoor again, thankful there was light coming through. Taking a few deep breaths, I pulled my knees to my chest, just as I’d done in the General’s isolation chamber. It helped me remain calm and kept me from expending so much energy. I needed to think. There didn’t seem to be a way out, but if I was patient and clever, I would find a way. I hoped that my trust in Laelynn wasn’t misplaced and that she would argue for my release. After all, she had kept her brothers from shooting me.

  The sound of footsteps approaching had me on my feet in an instant. This was the moment of truth. Was it the soldiers or Laelynn and her brothers?

  I listened closely. Laelynn’s voice was loudest amidst an argument with several male voices. I couldn’t make out what they were saying, but Laelynn sounded furious.

  Suddenly, light flooded the hole and I was forced to shield my eyes with my hands. Once
I’d adjusted, I looked up to see Laelynn’s smiling face and, of course, her five irritable brothers.

  “Ravyn!” she said brightly. “How’s your head?”

  I let out the breath I’d been holding. “Fine. I’m just hungry, that’s all.”

  “Good news! My brothers have relented.” She looked at each of them in turn. “Well, mostly, but don’t worry. I’m throwing you a rope.”

  She disappeared from view for a moment and then a rope was tossed over the edge. My hands were still a bit shaky, so I shook them a few times and wiped my palms on my trousers.

  “I can do this,” I said, placing my hands on the rope. The truth was, I was weak from hunger. I’d never be able to make it to the top on my own.

  “Everything okay?” Laelynn called down to me.

  I squinted up at her again. “I might need a little help climbing.”

  Laelynn muttered something to her brothers and then peered down over the edge. “Just hold on to the rope. My brothers will do the rest.”

  I gave her a quick nod and tightened my grip on the line. The brothers began to pull me up. My mind was prepared for it, but my body wasn’t. My arms trembled and my feet were clumsy, trying to find footholds in the walls. It only took a few seconds to get to the top but it felt like an eternity. Once I reached the surface, I stretched out my arms and dug my fingers into the dirt to keep from slipping back. My upper body was about to give out. Laelynn and one of her siblings came to my rescue, grabbing hold of my arms and hauling me out the rest of the way.

  Resting back on my haunches, I quickly surveyed my surroundings. Sequoias still dominated the landscape, so we couldn’t have travelled very far from the clearing. Laelynn probably wasn’t so foolish as to walk more than a mile from her village to scavenge for food. It wouldn’t take much skill to retrace the brothers’ steps and find my way back to the clearing where I’d knocked out those two men. From there I could continue on east to the coast. All that would have to come later. It was obvious I needed nourishment and rest.

  Stumbling to my feet with Laelynn’s help, I looked up to see five crossbows honed in on me.

  I gave Laelynn a wary look. “I feel like I’m about to be executed.”

  “Nonsense,” she replied, scowling at them. “They would never shoot a guest. That would be rude.”

  Now that it was daylight, I could see the resemblance between the six siblings. Like Laelynn, they each had brown hair of various shades and lengths. A few of them were lean while some were broader in build, but they all looked to be strong and decent fighters. They’d have to be, living out here in the Valley. One thing they all had in common at that moment was accusing brown eyes and frowns, all directed at me.

  “This is not a good idea,” one of them said. “We do not know her. She could bring trouble down upon our village.”

  Laelynn crossed her arms over her chest and gave each of her brothers a glare that could set their hair on fire. “She. Saved. My. Life. You know how things are in the Valley. Every man for himself, right? That’s what you all agreed happened out here. And she risked her life for me. That tells me all I need to know about her.”

  Another brother spoke up. “I agree that saving Laelynn puts us in her debt, but I also agree with Hagan. I don’t think she should wander alone in the village.” He turned his eyes in my direction. “While she’s here, she will be guarded by one of us until she is proven to be a friend.” He signaled the other men to leave with a nod of his head. “I’ll take the first watch.”

  “I told you, it’s not necessary,” she barked at them.

  “It’s fine,” I reassured her. “In fact, I would do the same. I don’t want to cause trouble.” Little did they know, if I’d felt like hurting any of them, their crossbows would not stop me.

  I glanced back at my guard, who didn’t appear to be much older than Laelynn or me. Out of all the brothers, his hair was the darkest, almost like chocolate, and it fell to his shoulders in waves. He kept the top pulled back out of his eyes with a cord, much like mine.

  Laelynn relaxed and smiled at me again. “Come. Let’s get you into a bath and then we’ll have a bite to eat.”

  Following her through the forest, I wasn’t sure what to expect of their village. Crossbows were primitive weapons according to General Wolfe, who had all the latest in technology and firearms. That didn’t mean they were any less deadly. The brother who followed us a few paces behind had his crossbow slung over his shoulder, but it was obvious from his posture that he was capable of using it in a matter of seconds. He made me nervous, the way he watched me; it was not like a man who simply watched a prisoner. It was as if he saw inside me and knew my secrets. It was a foolish thought. Being amongst strangers was making me edgy.

  Laelynn gave me a warm smile. “Well, Ravyn, if I didn’t say it before, I’m very glad to meet you! My brothers are too, they’re just not good at showing it. They are glad you were there to save me. That one’s name is Kaelem,” she said, pointing her thumb back over her shoulder. “You’ll meet my other brothers, officially, at dinner tonight.”

  “I really shouldn’t stay that long,” I insisted. “I’ve caused you all enough trouble already.”

  “Nonsense!” Laelynn took my arm and pulled me along. “It’s no trouble to feed one more person. It’s the least we can do after throwing you in that awful pit. You look like you could use a good meal. The Valley isn’t kind to wanderers.”

  I wasn’t going to argue. It was true that I hadn’t had a decent meal in weeks. Since I’d been on the run, I’d been eating only enough to get by each day. I felt certain I’d lost weight.

  “All right, if you insist,” I said with a nervous giggle. She laughed along with me, and it was music to my heart. There was something about her that I felt I could trust. Somehow I knew that she would never betray me. I couldn’t even say that about my own family.

  “So, you and your brothers are the leaders of this new clan?”

  “My brothers were the ones that brought us here to build the life we wanted. I was younger when we left home, so they looked after me. And the people that have joined us look to them for leadership.”

  “That’s what families should do.”

  Laelynn placed a hand on my shoulder. The simple gesture staggered me. What could I possibly bring to a friendship besides danger? Was there any hope that I might have companions or a permanent clan to call my own in the future? I had longed to see the ocean all my life, but I couldn’t guarantee there would be others to share it with.

  Climbing up the next rise, I started to hear the sounds of chatter and, as we reached the peak, I saw their village. Children were laughing and playing between the trees that camouflaged the community.

  Laelynn stopped and we both admired the view.

  “This is our village. We call it Linwood.”

  6

  Thorne

  Standing in the center of the clearing, I twirled the black hair on my fingers and stared down at the ground. Something was odd about the indentations in the grass and dirt. The grass was clearly matted down where the unconscious man had lain. We had not bothered moving the dead exile, but there was more to the story here. The grass was bent and twisted, and the dirt kicked up in patterns that suggested more than one person had walked away alive from this place.

  “Are you coming, Thorne?” Gunter called out, interrupting my thoughts.

  Still fixated on the ground, I waved him off. “Go on without me.” I was not going to be satisfied until I figured out exactly what had happened in this clearing.

  “Why?” he asked. “What are you doing?”

  I glanced up at Gunter out of the corner of my eye. He stood at the edge of the clearing, ready to head back to our camp. Pierce was already marching through the sequoias with the still-unconscious man thrown over his shoulder. Max followed closely behind him.

  “Just being thorough,” I answered vaguely.

  “Do you need me to stay?”

  “I don’t need
a nursemaid,” I muttered, flicking the black hair to the ground. “You three take a short rest and then head out again after lunch. Take Brock with you.”

  Gunter shrugged his shoulders. “You got it.”

  I watched him join the other Warriors in the trek back to camp with the exile. Once my comrades were gone, I turned my attention back to the markings on the ground. Max was convinced that this was the work of the demon he had mentioned back in Peton, but there had to be a better explanation. I did not believe in killer demons. Someone had knocked down two large men without shedding a drop of blood, and that someone was highly skilled. They just happened to have black hair. I wanted to know who that person was.

  Even more mysterious was the second indentation in the grass. Another body, markedly smaller, had lain close by the two men. There were boot prints all along the edges of the clearing. I circled the area two or three times before deciding that at least four or five people had left this clearing alive. It was difficult to count since they had walked away in single file.

  I folded my arms across my chest and stared off into the forest. The trail led west, away from our camp. It would be foolish to follow it alone. Four or five exiles in the Valley could be a sign of some sort of tribe or a group of dangerous barbarians. A wise commander would go back to camp and be thankful we were able to rescue another exile.

  “Humph,” I grunted, peering over my shoulder where Gunter, Pierce, and Max had disappeared through the trees. They would all think I was crazy for this.

  I ran my fingers through my hair and set out after the group of exiles and the black-haired assassin.

  I had travelled just a mile when I finally found them. Crouched down within the brush, I watched men come and go every thirty minutes, trading places with each other. There were five males in total, all armed with crossbows, guarding something I could not see from this distance.