by S. N. Hunt
“Don’t pull away! What you see is not real. It is a defense mechanism to keep those who don’t belong out. Those who do, keep moving. If you stop now, you will be stuck forever in the in-between. I warned you to shut your eyes.”
Her hand trembled, but she kept it on the saddle. As Micheal led them through the gate, the saddle flowed in reverse. She watched as everything seemed to flow back into being. The entire scene turned her stomach upside down. She forced the bile back down her throat. When Micheal stopped walking forward, she looked around and realized they had gone nowhere.
“Um, sorry to burst your bubble, bubba. But isn’t this where we started? It looks like we didn’t go anywhere.”
Micheal grabbed her by the waist and lifted her into the saddle. He mounted quickly up behind her. He nudged Lucifer forward into a swift gallop. The jostling around didn’t help with her stomach. She gagged for a moment and swallowed hard to keep her lunch down.
“All gates are the mirror image of what’s on each side. Another defense mechanism. It makes it easier to redirect those that make it through the gate. Those who don’t belong.”
“Is it such a big deal? Who would even come through that doesn’t belong?”
“Humans. Dull non-magic humans. Most that get through the gate are insane. That is how they get through.”
“Okay... well news flash, I am a dull non-magic human.”
He chuckled, “You are not a non-magic human, Sarah. And you are far from dull.”
∞∞∞
Darian paced outside the gate. He arrived just as Sarah and Micheal traveled through it. He winced as the wound on his side pulled. The blood had stopped flowing a short time ago. His fur was matted with blood and gore. The skin had knitted back together and was starting to itch.
He hadn’t needed to track them from the cottage. He knew where Micheal would take her. A sneer crossed his face as he thought of Micheal and his betrayal. The master would not be pleased with this turn of events.
The master will be so angry! I lost her!
When he had overheard her cry out, back at the cottage, he knew he couldn’t just let the man rape her. While he didn’t know what exactly the master had planned, the master wanted her whole. The master would not want a broken thing. He growled low in his throat.
What to do, what to do? Should I follow them?
He continued to pace as he thought through his options. While his wound healed, he couln’t attack them. He could follow them, but if Micheal sensed him, he would attack. If Darian was not healed, then Micheal might win. His thoughts ran in a circle. He whimpered and gripped his ears, squeezing his eyes shut. Then it hit him.
No, I will report to the master. He will know what to do!
Darian ran through the gate. The moment he stepped into the Veil, he set off quickly for the master’s castle. It would take a few days to travel, but the master would guide him. The master would know what to do.
Chapter Four
Sarah tried to ask Micheal more questions over the next few hours of riding. The only answer she got was, “When you are safe, you will have your answers.” She finally just gave up and let the movement of the horse lull her to sleep. Her bottom and legs were numb from the ride. She kept shifting in the seat to relieve some of the numbness.
“There is a cottage ahead. We will stop for the night. Stop squirming.” He said gruffly.
She watched as the trees parted and before her stood her cottage. She gaped at it. It looked almost exactly like her home. But here there was no driveway. The forest was closer to it and seemed to lean toward it.
“The gatekeeper lives here. We will ask for shelter for the night. We have many days of riding ahead of us.”
Micheal dismounted and helped her out of the saddle. She groaned as she stretched her legs. The muscles were sore and protested the movement. She hopped in place for a moment as the blood flowed again.
“Welcome weary travelers to my door. I do not see many come through the gate anymore. What brings you to old Gretchen’s humble abode?”
Sarah looked toward the source of the voice. An old woman stood on the front porch of the cottage. Her hair was pure white and stood out all around her head. As if the hair wanted to escape her or she had been hit with electricity. Her face was creased with wrinkles. Her icy blue eyes were glazed and cloudy with old age. She wore what looked like a dress from the middle ages. The dress was green with a dark-colored apron tied around her waist. She spoke with a German accent.
“Hello there, Gretchen. Did you forget me already?” Micheal asked.
The old woman smiled a toothless grin at him. “Hello, Michael. Didn’t expect you back so soon from the other side. What did you bring back with you? Humans are not allowed to come through anymore. You know the rules.”
“She is the one I have been tasked with. We ask for a place to rest and recuperate. Tomorrow we start the journey to the Blood City of Windern.”
“Come in, come in. No point standing around in the cold night. Never could turn away a handsome gentleman.” She sighed loudly, “If I was only a century younger, dear Micheal. You never would have left to fetch her. You would have laid in my bed begging for your release.”
She crackled at her joke and walked into the cottage. Micheal nodded at Sarah and motioned toward the door. He led Lucifer over to a patch of grass and started removing his saddle. Sarah cautiously approached the front door of the cottage. It looked so much like hers it gave her the chills. She grabbed the doorknob and pushed.
Inside, the cottage was nothing like her home. The walls were made of stone with dried herbs and chicken bones hung from hooks all over the place. Books were stacked in the corner of the room. Cobwebs hung from the rafters overhead. Candles lit up the space and wax dripped to the floor. A thick coat of dust covered everything. The room looked like a witch’s hovel straight out of a novel. The image was complete with a cauldron boiling in the hearth.
“Hello, dearie. No use standing out in the cold. Got some stew in the pot. Should be done soon. You and your Micheal will eat fine tonight. No one will ever say that old Gretchen turned away weary travelers. Oh no, we can’t have that. No dearie. Have to keep up appearances and all that. Would you like some biscuits with your supper? Come now, sit down, love.”
“He isn’t my Micheal.”
Gretchen scoffed and pulled a chair from under a table by the hearth. She gestured for Sarah to sit in it. As if in a daze, Sarah took the seat offered to her. The old woman went to stir the stew. Sarah jumped as the front door opened and Micheal appeared. He walked up to Gretchen and wrapped her in his arms. He hugged her close to him and lifted her off the ground. The old woman squealed and slapped at him with her hands.
“Put me down, you big oaf. You shouldn’t be showing affection to another woman in front of another. I know I am hard to resist, but you have to draw a line somewhere. I am no home wrecker, my boy.”
As he set her back on her feet, she slapped his arm with a spoon. She turned back to the pot and continued to stir. She snapped her fingers together and biscuits appeared on the table. Micheal laughed and sat down in the chair opposite Sarah. The chair creaked under his weight but held.
“How is it possible that this place looks so much like my home?” Sarah asked him.
Gretchen answered for him, “The Veil has always made an abode on both sides. On one side is the home of a human. On the magic side, the gatekeeper. It makes it easier to blend in when someone comes through that does not belong. I watch for those travelers and make sure they make it back through the gate.”
Gretchen poured stew into a bowl and set it in front of her. She poured another bowl and sat down at the table with it. There were no utensils on the table. Sarah watched as Gretchen lifted the bowl to her mouth and drank deeply.
Well, when in Rome.
She lifted the bowl to her lips. The stew was delicious. Flavor burst over her tongue. Chunks of vegetables floated in it, and the broth had just the right spice to it. Sara
h licked her lips as she finished it. She looked up and saw both Micheal and Gretchen staring at her.
“Would you like some more dearie? There is plenty left in the pot.” Gretchen said with a toothless grin.
Sarah blushed and shook her head no. As the warmth of the stew flowed through her, she realized just how tired she was. Her eyelids drooped sleepily, and she had a hard time keeping her head up.
“Let’s get you off to bed, love. A good night’s sleep always makes a day better.” Gretchen took her arm and led her down a hallway.
Her feet were like lead, and she leaned against the old woman. The old woman looked frail, but her grip was strong. Gretchen laid her down on a bed and covered her gently with a blanket.
The moment her head hit the pillow, she fell into the darkness of dreams.
∞∞∞
Sarah awoke to the sound of laughter. She sat up in the unfamiliar bed and looked around. The room looked much like the other room. Stone walls with plants and bones hanging around. The only difference was here there was a bed instead of a table and hearth. She smiled as she realized for the first time in a month; she hadn’t dreamed.
Toto, I don’t think we are Kansas anymore.
She missed her home already. She wondered if Mr. Havery had called the cops yet. Had they found Jason’s body? They probably thought she had killed him. If that was the case, she could never go home.
She climbed out of the bed and took a deep breath. Her bladder felt full to the brim. She wasn’t sure where the bathroom was. Walking awkwardly down the hall, she prepared herself to ask.
Micheal sat at the table with a dark-haired woman. The woman was beautiful with long flowing black hair. The woman turned at her approach. Icy blue eyes met her green ones. Sarah stopped for a moment, gazing at the woman in wonder. If she didn’t know any better, it looked like a very young Gretchen.
“Hello, Sarah. Name is Greta. My grandmother has gone out to fetch some more herbs. She asked me to keep you both company.”
Sarah smiled shyly, “I have to use the bathroom, but I am unsure where it is.”
Greta quickly stood and took her hand. She led her back into the bedroom and pulled a chamber pot out from under the bed. Sarah accepted it and waited for Greta to leave the room. Even though she said she was Gretchen’s granddaughter, Sarah suspected something was going on.
If she was so close by, where was she last night? Gretchen has tons of herbs around this home. Why would she need more?
Sarah’s thoughts swirled in her mind. She quickly finished up and walked back down the hall. Greta was folding clothes on the table. She looked up as Sarah came in.
“Grandmother asked me to bring you some of my clothing. She said you have a long journey ahead and didn’t think your attire would be sufficient.”
Greta held out the bundle of clothes from the table toward her. Sarah took them and smiled at her. The fabric felt like wool, and she was sure that they would be heavy and warm.
“Do you need help with them? They are not like what you have on. It is more like what I am wearing.”
Greta gestured down at the dress she wore. The dress was lavender with a dark purple bodice that tied up the front. Sarah had never worn a dress like it.
“I am not sure. I have never worn anything but pants and blouses. Dresses aren’t really my thing.”
Greta quickly helped put the clothing on Sarah. She helped Sarah step into the petticoats and tied them around her waist. She then followed with the underdress as she called it. It was the color of a clear blue sky. She tied the laces at the neckline and around the wrists. She then held the navy blue bodice up like a jacket for Sarah to slip into. Greta came around to the front and tightened the laces up.
“I didn’t make it tight since you are not used to wearing it. But once you are more used to it. You can make it as tight as you want.”
Greta sat her in a chair and brushed out Sarah’s hair. She pulled it up into a bun. Greta fussed for a moment with the dress, then led her outside. Sarah had expected to see the sun, but the stars twinkled brightly overhead.
“How long was I asleep?” she asked Greta.
“The sunset about an hour ago. You must have been exhausted.”
Sarah hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in a month, so she guessed she had needed it. Micheal stood by the porch with Lucifer saddled and waiting. He looked up at her as she came out. Sarah didn’t know why, but she felt shy in front of him in the dress. A blush crept up her cheeks.
I can’t even see his face. If he even has one. He could be completely hideous with warts and a crooked nose. No teeth and mountains of wrinkles.
She stepped off the porch and came up beside him. Greta handed him two bags. He turned and tied them to his saddle.
“The bag will be refilled with provisions as you need them. The magic will last about a week. Then it will just be another bag. The other bag has more clothes for your lady. There is also a cloak for her. It will conceal her when you need it. Be safe and happy journeys to you both.”
Greta hugged Micheal, then turned to her. Greta smiled sadly as she wrapped her arms around her. She hugged Sarah tightly and whispered in her ear.
“Not everything is as it seems, dearie.”
Sarah started as Gretchen’s voice flowed out of Greta. Pulling back, she looked into Greta’s face. Greta winked and smiled at her. Greta let her go and walked up onto the porch, humming to herself. She opened the front door and shut it behind her. Micheal picked her up off the ground and set her on Lucifer. He mounted up behind her.
“Who was she? Greta or Gretchen?” Sarah asked Micheal.
“I think a little bit of both.”
Chapter Five
Micheal looked down at the woman in front of him. He’d been avoiding her questions all morning. He didn’t have the energy today. Gretchen asked for a heavy price in return for her help. He knew the stew would make Sarah sleep, though he seriously thought she needed it. Gretchen never did like to be watched.
It wasn’t the first time she’d taken payment from him for lodging and food. Before, it had always been just him. Last night he’d had to pay for two. Though his flesh was cold and dead, Gretchen used magic to bring it to life. She played with him for most of the day. Her youth slowly returned to her. His immortal life force fed her little by little. He didn’t mind the exchange. He couldn’t get hard normally, Gretchen’s magic made it possible for him to enjoy the touch of a woman again.
There’d been a time when she took from humans. The ones that managed to get through the gate. Fewer and fewer came through as the years passed. Humans didn’t roam the countryside as they used to. They stayed in their cities and played with their technology. Gretchen had resorted to offering shelter and provisions in return for substance.
Though he was immortal, he was weary. He usually slept during the day, but Gretchen had made that impossible. Sarah’s scent of lilacs drifted on a breeze toward him. He swallowed hard as his body reacted. Gretchen’s magic sometimes took some time to wear off. He felt her soft curves against him. The bouncing of her bottom against him, invoking images of her lying naked before him.
They had been traveling for quite some time. Micheal felt Sarah squirm in front of him. He had to remind himself that she was not used to riding a horse. He had seen her wince and stretch yesterday when they had dismounted. The journey to the city would take longer, but she had to arrive in good health. A stop would also allow Gretchen’s magic to wear off. He pulled back on the reins and dismounted.
“Why are we stopping? I thought you said we were going to a city?”
Micheal helped her off Lucifer and untied the provisions bag. He shoved it into her arms. He opened the other bag and pulled her cloak from it.
“The city is far from the gate. You are not used to riding and will no doubt become sore. We will take breaks and camp overnight in the forest. The city is just outside of the forest’s edge. Go through that bag and see what you can find to eat. I will gather fire
wood.”
He laid her cloak on the ground. He wandered away from the campsite, searching the ground for kindling and firewood. Carrying back a large bundle of dry wood, he started to build them a fire. He stood and walked to Lucifer, removing his saddle. He set the saddle down by the fire and used it as a pillow. Closing his eyes, he started to drift into sleep.
“Are you going to eat?”
He sighed, he had almost been asleep, “No, I do not eat human food.”
“Then what do you eat? Everyone eats something. Maybe if you reach into this bag, it will produce what you need,”
“The bag will not produce what I need. All I need is sleep at the moment. Eat your food and go to sleep!”
He knew that his exhaustion and sexual frustration added an edge to his voice. He didn’t want her to fear him. She flinched at his words. He growled low in his throat.
“I am sorry, princess. I am just so very tired. There is only one bed at Gretchen’s and you were in it. She kept me up all night with her prattle.”
Micheal watched Sarah swallow and nod her head. He sighed and rolled onto his side. He closed his eyes and surrendered to sleep.
∞∞∞
Sarah nibbled on her food. The bag gave her cheese, fruit, and bread. It even had a plate in the bottom. Now the bag was empty. She didn’t understand how it would refill. But as long as it did, she didn’t need to know how. She tied the bag to her waist.
Micheal was cross with her. His irritation was clear in his voice when he spoke to her. Sarah berated herself for being selfish and was upset with herself. She hadn’t even thought about where he’d slept or if he ate. She remembered that he did not touch any of the stew last night.
Her muscles were much sorer than they’d been the night before. Sarah had tried stretching them out until one stretch turned into a full-blown charlie horse. She’d bitten her hand to not wake Micheal with her cries. She stood and walked around, trying to loosen the muscle.