by Allison, J
I squeezed my eyes tight shut, trying to lock back the tears that were finally running down my cheeks, I couldn’t even recall when they had started.
I don’t know how long we had been ambling along, I wasn’t really paying attention to the track or the endless fields that slipped by in a blur of green, I was focused only on myself. I tried my hardest to think of nothing, to clear my mind until all feelings had disappeared and I was just a shell.
It took me a while to realize that the track had changed, it was the difference in light that drew me back to reality. We were heading slowly uphill, the forbidden hill. Trees closed in on either side of us forming a canopy high above where the branches overlapped each other blocking the sunlight so that the world beneath was dim. The ground was rocky and uneven, the track itself very rough, almost disappearing in some places, covered with fallen branches and boulders that had tumbled down during the winter storms. I considered turning around but when I looked back the track seemed to drop steeply behind us.
I’m not sure what happened next or what caused it, Beaut snorted, side stepping quickly and almost tossing me off one side, then he bolted headlong up the track, careening further up the hill over the uneven ground. I leant forward gripping his neck, my fingers twined through his long mane, I felt my foot fall from the stirrup, instantly I began to bounce harder on his back, shaking my other foot free. Closing my eyes I prayed for him to stop, and hoped it wouldn’t hurt too much when he did. I knew a fall was inevitable, I just hoped it would be quick.
Branches and leaves whipped past us, my face stung as a twig scratched across my cheek.
I kept my eyes closed, hoping the outcome would be painless, I had never dealt with pain well, I just prayed for Beaut to stop.
Stop he finally did, turning sharply to the left and halting in an instant, I however didn’t stop, and I felt myself hurtle over his head, weightless as I flew through space, before landing heavily on my side.
Impossible aye Pop, I thought wryly, before my vision went fuzzy and everything went dark.
6.
The leaves stirred around me in the breeze, blowing my hair into my face, tickling my nose and eyes. I wasn’t sure if I had been knocked out or not but I felt strangely groggy as I opened my eyes to the forest floor. Beaut was gone, I lay on my own, somewhere I was throbbing but I couldn’t quite think clearly enough to pinpoint its origin.
One side of me felt a little numb, I could feel a number of sharp rocks pressing up from the ground digging into my ribs. I didn’t move at first, instead I chose to stay still, until my head stopped spinning. Sunlight streamed through the canopy above sending dapples of light dancing across the forest floor, I looked a little further and realized that I was in fact almost out of the forest, ahead of me the trees disappeared and the landscape opened into a huge field, the plateau paddock Pop had mentioned.
Then I saw them.
I froze instantly, white hot pain shooting up my left side, but I ignored this instead squinting into the field and wondering if I had concussion, or if I had really just seen what I thought I had.
I lifted myself slowly, my head spinning as the blood drained back down to the rest of my body, something throbbed painfully just above my eye. My left arm and leg were cut and bleeding, I watched in a detached sort of way as the blood ran from a cut across my knee in a slow red trail before disappearing into the top of my boot.
I shook myself gently, pushing back the fuzz that seemed to surround the edges of my vision. Taking hold of a tree I pulled myself to my feet, ignoring the spinning feeling and squinting between the trees into the daylight that bathed the field beyond.
Although facing my direction Robert hadn’t seen me, he was completely still, a statue of Adonis, the sun so bright at his back that he was little more than a silhouette.
He held himself tense, his entire posture that of a cat ready to pounce. His expression was what made me freeze and my blood run cold, so full of hate, but also something else, fear perhaps, I didn’t know him well enough to be able to tell.
The even more unreal aspect of this vision was the man who stood in front of him.
He was the mirror image of Robert, the same build the same muscular set to his shoulders, the same stance, except he was darker somehow. If Robert was day this man was night, he had thick wavy brown hair tied in a ponytail at the base of his neck. His skin was of a more olive complexion than Roberts and his face, from my vantage point, was slightly more angular, although I couldn’t see him clearly behind the dark sunglasses that hid his eyes.
Both men were silent, a breeze blew quietly through the trees around me, even the birds made no noise, sensing the tension from the field just as clearly as I did.
I hesitated even to draw breath in case they heard me. I don’t know why I still hid amongst the shadows, why I didn’t just stroll out and make myself known?
Okay I did know, it was because of what I had seen, or thought I had seen just a moment before. The tension between them was clear, even from this distance it seemed to vibrate from them, an invisible shield of anger.
I felt a little nauseous but I pushed it aside, I couldn’t give in and rest just yet, I needed to make sure I hadn’t been seeing things. I was really starting to think that I might in fact be suffering from concussion – damned horse!
The dark haired man moved, slowly raising his hand, his entire body strung tight as a bow, until it rested on Roberts shoulder.
His hand began to glow.
At first I thought it was perhaps the suns reflection from his watch or a ring but then Roberts shoulder took on the same iridescent shimmer and before long both men were bathed in an impossible aura so bright I had to squint to see them clearly.
Robert stepped back quickly, striking the mans hand from his shoulder, the glow instantly extinguished.
My skin prickled as I registered the look of terror on Roberts face.
The dark haired man saw it too, his head cocking slightly to one side before he turned and ran, tailed instantly by Robert. They moved so fast and in such a way that their outlines began to blur making it hard to follow their movements, they were graceful and ghostly, and not… human.
I blinked twice, I was really beginning to question my sanity, and then in another blink the dark haired man turned in a flash, tossing Robert over his head as easily as a bear tosses salmon from the stream. I gasped, Robert wasn’t a small guy, yet this man had thrown him as though he weighed nothing at all.
Landing neatly, Robert rolled onto his feet, turning in an instant to face his enemy once more. The other man didn’t pause, instead racing at incredible speed towards the tree line just ahead of me, he moved so fast I couldn’t tell if his feet even touched the ground.
Backing up quickly, I felt myself come up against a tree. The man stopped only a few yards to my left, apparently still unaware of my hiding spot amongst the shadows. Robert stood in the centre of the field, his expression bleak.
“You shouldn’t fight me you know,” the dark haired man laughed, “Your fight isn’t with me it’s with them.”
“Well perhaps you can tell them what I think.” Roberts voice was surprisingly light.
“You have no choice Robert, I don’t need to remind you.”
“I won’t be going.” Roberts voice dropped to a growl, I felt my skin crawl at the sound of it, menacing and deep.
“Yeah you will, there’s no choice in the matter.” The dark haired man smirked.
“There’s always a choice,”
“Not for us, you knew this, you’ve always known this, we’ll be seeing you soon.” he tilted his head to the side, eyeing Robert while three separate emotions seemed to play out across his dark face, curiosity, anger and something else, sympathy perhaps?
“Interesting”, he snickered, his voice chilling, “Perhaps we’ll be seeing you sooner than you think.” he turned his back and sprinted through the trees, so close I could feel the breeze from his passing.
Almost instantly t
he birds started singing again in a deafening chorus, the leaves rustled in the breeze and the sounds of the world came back to me again, had they ever stopped?
It took me a moment to breathe.
What had I just witnessed? I wasn’t even sure I could trust my own eyes, it didn’t seem… possible.
How could they move like that? How could they glow? It wasn’t normal, it wasn’t human!
The world began to spin and I stumbled away from the tree, looking for somewhere to sit.
My feet collapsed under me and my head swam, the dark was closing in. I bent my knees and tried to put my head between them, the buzzing in my ears grew louder and my vision splintered in a disjointed array of greys.
“Oh crap.” I whispered, the cool leaves of the forest floor touching the back of my head as I collapsed in a dead faint.
I don’t know how long I was out, it could have been five seconds or five hours, when I came round I took a moment to gauge how I felt before opening my eyes. My head pounded, I felt like my entire body was one large bruise. I wondered briefly where Lucifer’s steed was, probably happily at home nibbling grass, his reins dangling off his neck and the saddle still on his back, it was going to be a hard walk home, at least it was all downhill.
I realized with a start that I was sitting up, I could feel bark pressing uncomfortably into my back.
My mind flashed back to the scene I had witnessed in the paddock and my eyes flew open, I gasped and had to stifle a scream. Robert sat only a few feet away on a fallen log, staring intently at me, a small sideways smile lit his face as my eyes flew open.
“Welcome to the land of the living,” he narrowed his eyes, his tone cool, “What on earth are you doing up here all bruised and bleeding? One of Fred’s prize cattle attack you?” his smirk was arrogant and self-assured.
I pictured again what I had seen in the field, a small line formed between his brows as he took in my reaction.
“I…You,” I couldn’t quite get across what I wanted to say, my tongue felt heavy in my mouth.
What the hell was that?
I was starting to question if I had seen it at all or if it had been an unconscious dream after I fainted.
Taking a deep breath I decided to play it as cool as I could.
“Who was that in the field with you?” I asked, pulling a twig from my hair, trying to look indifferent and not flinch from the pain.
The line on his forehead deepened again briefly but this was the only change in his expression and he hid it quickly.
“There was no-one in the field with me.”
His voice had an edge to it, daring me to question him.
“Oh,” I feigned belief, “what are you doing up here then?”
“ I came up to check the fences,” he sighed, trying to look as if this errand bored him, “You know, Fred wants to send cattle up here in the next few days so he asked me to check the field first.”
“Hmmm,” I mused, “but I thought the track was too rough, isn’t that what Pop said?”
His expression hardened.
I hadn’t imagined the two of them, actually I had no doubt about what I had seen. Robert stared at me for a long moment his deep brown eyes searching mine, before they darted to my forehead. Standing slowly he came towards me, kneeling only inches away he stared intently at a point just above my eyes, his breath warm on my face. I couldn’t deny it, Robert was stunning, I was finding it hard to keep my train of thought while he was this close.
“That looks like it really hurts,” he murmured, his voice softening as his eyes shifted down to meet mine. My breath caught and I shook my head trying to think straight. Moving my fingers gently across my forehead I could feel a large lump just above my left eye, I probed it gently, flinching as pain shot through it and my head began to throb.
“You may have concussion. I should get you home, you seem to be a little confused.” He smiled charmingly as he ran his fingers through his hair, the only outward sign of his frustration.
“What?” I frowned, pulling my face sharply back from his and abruptly hitting my head against the tree.
“Ouch, Dammit.” I rubbed the back of my head feeling a deep throbbing headache start somewhere between my eyes.
“Oh no you don’t, not that easy,” I growled, “don’t suddenly pretend you’re charming and polite, we all know you’re arrogant and self-centred, tell me what’s going on, what were you two doing? How is it you can both… glow.”
I hesitated for a moment while my mind caught up with my words and I considered that perhaps I should be a little more afraid of someone who could, well, glow!
“Who are you?” I asked my voice now little more than a whisper.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” he hissed, his beautiful eyes cold.
“Oh yes you do, you can’t lie your way out of this, I know what I saw and what I saw wasn’t, well… it wasn’t normal.”
He rocked back on his heels, looking torn, fear flashed briefly across his expression followed quickly by something else, anger, regret… relief?
He stood in a burst of movement so quick that I gasped, spinning towards me he looked as though he truly hated me.
“Damn it Ava!” he growled, flinging his hands in a furious gesture above his head.
“Why did you have to come and stay with Fred and Norma… Why did you have to be here today? You know…” His eyes were accusing, “You’re not even supposed to be up here, the track is too dangerous.”
I didn’t know what to do, what to say, I just stared back at him, completely dumb struck. His outburst surprised me, he was angry about more than just my seeing him, he seemed angry I had come to the farm at all.
“Damn it,” he mumbled again, pacing away from me. I began to wonder if he was going to leave, if I should call him back again. But before I could say anything he swung and kicked the base of a spruce, I flinched flinging my hands to my ears, the sound piercing as the tree split straight up its length like a clap of thunder, birds rose from the top branches screaming in indignation at the interruption to their perch.
He didn’t even seem to notice, not the tree or me gaping at him as I looked from him to the newly murdered spruce and back again. He was pacing backwards and forwards, the sun streaming through the canopy above, dappling shadows across his hard features, his shoulders set tight. He was clearly working through the situation, the concentration obvious upon his face as he bit his lower lip in thought.
My vision began to blur and my skin prickled in sudden heat.
“Oh crap,” I muttered for the second time, the world was starting to spin again, I couldn’t faint now. Dropping my head between my knees once more I waited for the sensation to stop.
Within half a second I felt Roberts arms come around me, lifting me easily, I mumbled something to him, telling him to put me down. He ignored me, walking swiftly, more swiftly then a man should be able to, out into the sunlight of the field, sitting me down on a log near the center.
“Is that better?” all traces of anger were gone, he actually looked worried now, “I thought maybe the sun on your face might help.”
I managed a small smile,
“Thanks.”
I waited on the fainting symptoms to truly disappear this time, silently counting back from a hundred, breathing slowly the entire time.
Ninety nine, ninety eight, ninety seven…
I was only starting to realize, since Robert had carried me, just how sore the ribs on my left side were, I would hate that horse even more if I had broken them, I guess Grandpop was right when he told me not to take the plateau track.
Seventy two, seventy one, seventy…
I pushed that aside and tried to think about the more immediate issues I faced, other than feeling like I had been run over by a freight train.
Robert.
He seemed genuinely worried about what I had seen and I wasn’t sure why. If one of us should be worried then I was guessing it should be me, after all, I didn�
��t have the crazy super powers he and his companion had shown should I need to fight him off. What if he decided I was easy enough to get rid of, problem solved, no one would know any better about him. His secret safe again.
Forty seven, forty six, forty five…
I snuck a quick look his way from behind my hair, he was gone.
Panicking I flung my head up the rest of the way, making it pound all over again. Finally I found him, a small speck on the other side of the field. This field was huge, at least a quarter mile wide, how had he gotten over there so fast? I dropped my head again to try and ease the pounding,
Nineteen, eighteen, seventeen…
What WAS he?
I didn’t know how I was going to get this information from him, but one thing I did know was that I would find out before I stepped off this field, I would know the secret he was hiding.
Seven, six, five…
I breathed again looking up just in time to see Robert approaching at super speed from across the paddock, he moved elegantly especially for someone so muscular. The speed was incredible and he covered the distance in the blink of an eye to stand before me again without seeming at all out of breath.
He stared down at me, his expression completely unreadable, his emotions carefully hidden behind his dark amber eyes.
“Tell me.” I said simply, He shook his head but I cut him off before he could speak.
‘Robert, clearly you aren’t…… normal, tell me. You can’t pretend this hasn’t happened.”
“I assure you I can.” His lips pulled up at one side as he gave me a cheeky grin.
“But,”
“Ava your horse is about half way down the track, it’s only an hour till we lose the light and I don’t think you should be sitting up here in your current state questioning me.” He grinned a heart stopping smile, “Actually you look like death, I’m going to take you home so you can get patched up.”