1800 words =)
Chapter Ten
“You shouldn’t have come you know?”
A short sigh escaped as I turned from the trembling fire to Morav’s face. The warmth on my skin added to the lulling comfort of his arms. After the scribe had told me to go home, I had but soon became restless. I left a little before dusk and headed to Morav’s house.
He had actually been at the hospital shortly before I woke up, but the gathering of the town drew him away. We’d missed each other by moments as I went to the hall and he left on some errand for his father—Otello Bisped being away at the siege of D’s cabin. Later, he returned to the village but was now part of patrols ordered by the earthscribe. The men—including Morav—would not tell me what was going on, but I knew from the women that most of the able bodied were working with the scribe in some elaborate plan.
“I know,” I wrapped my arms tighter about his bicep and pressed my cheek against his shoulder. “But my father is away too, so of anywhere I’m probably safest here with you and your mother.”
Morav nodded with a proud gleam—he liked to be my hero—then it faded, replaced by a grim thought. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there…the other night…to protect you from D.”
I bit my tongue, the memory that came to my mind fastest wasn’t the demon’s, but Mattek’s menacing face. I rubbed my upper arm where his steel grip had left a bruise. Yesterday seemed forever ago. I hadn’t told Morav all that happened, and he hadn’t seen through my niceties. “That’s alright. I should have been safe from the tavern to the festival. There was no reason to think I was in danger…” Remembering why he had left in the first place, I added “What did you go to get?”
“Get?” His dark eyes searched mine trying to discern my meaning. “Ahh!” His face brightened and he stepped across the hearth to a bag hanging from a wall hook. Reaching in, he pulled out something that burned in the firelight. Stepping back he dropped onto the couch and opened his hand. In his palm a golden pendant rested with a silver chain attached by a ringlet. Its shape was of two crossing feathers with an emerald at the intersection.
“Where did you get that?” I exhaled, transfixed by the light that jumped from its curves.
“I found it.”
“Found it?” Apparently he’d hoped his simple answer was enough because now he looked away. “Where did you find it?” I asked again, still lightly though his reluctance was only stirring my interest.
“The other day…” his words came out slow and stretched as though he might say them faster than he could choose them. “…when we were up at—“
I shot to my feet away from the glimmering trinket. “You stole that from D!”
“I didn’t
steal it,” he scoffed turning red with the accusation. “He’s a demon, he doesn’t own anything. The village has burned his place down three times now—“
“
Three times!” This was the first I’d heard of the new burning. I wasn’t so much concerned with D’s rights, but I was old enough to remember the last time someone messed with him.
Morav reached up and pulled me down by the wrist. “Darling! You worry too much. Don’t! After tonight we won’t have to think at all about that wretch; we have a scribe fighting for us now!” He drew the pendant up by its chain. “So…since he won’t be looking for this after tonight…” He let go of my arm and unlocked the chain. My mouth was open with protest, but I said nothing as he reached around my neck and beneath my hair to lock it in place. His eyes glowed as they rested on me. He looked as though he wanted to say something else, but was suddenly speechless.
I smiled as goose bumps sprouted down my arms. “What is it?”
He opened his mouth, but his face simply turned scarlet. “Why don’t you see how it looks in the mirror?”
Smiling nervously, I stood up and taking a candle with me walked around the corner to the bathroom. As I stood before the mirror over the basin, I couldn’t help but be pleased with the sight, it was a very pretty piece. I’d never had anything like it, few in Kinema had. Giddy shivers ran through me, but they stopped when I heard a crash.
“Mother are you still up?” I heard a Morav call in the other room. I thought it was odd, the breaking came from the pantry I thought, but his parent’s bedroom was on the opposite side.
I looked at the pendant again and what the scribe had said came back.
What did you do to set him off?
“Mother?” A new chill bit me. “Get out of here!” Something hard slammed into the wall. Leaving the lamp behind, I snuck from the bathroom and crept to the corner that looked into the living room.
Peeking around the edge, I saw Morav pressed against a set of shelves with his head cocked back over the top one by an invisible limb. Any further and I was sure it would have broken. In a low, menacing hiss I heard D speak. “Where is it?”
“Go hang yourself!”
His head moved back further. Without thinking I leapt out into plain view. “Let him go you monster!” Morav turned to see me, fear and astonishment on his face. I looked down at the jewelry beneath my neck.
He’s looking too.
“Give it here!” The voice directed at me now. I backed away clutching at the metal. “Give it here, woman!” He must have been looking at me because he didn’t notice as Morav reached for a knife from beneath the clutter of a nearby desk.
“What’s going on in here!” Aunmaree, Morav’s mother, had just walked in.
Morav swung and the sound of slicing meat scratched my ears; wetness struck my face and the unseen man recoiled with a groan. Freed, Morav stepped forward and slashed again, but found nothing. Everyone went silent hoping to catch the subtlest tale of the intruder. I reached up to brush away the warm liquid from my face, pulling my fingers away I found blood on them, visible blood. Looking down at the floor, I could see more there and on the dagger.
Against the hearth an iron stoker rose into the air. Morav guarded for the fight while his mother and I backed against our walls. “My house. Your house.” The stoker plunged between two logs then working it like a lever D forced them out onto the floor. With an extra shove he rolled them against the couch where the flames began to spread.
“Dear Malcra!” The mother grabbed a nearby blanked and rushed to smother the flames. Before she reached them she was struck across the face and knocked out.
“Bastard!” Morav flew across the room slashing and stabbing at the air. An unlit kerosene lantern flung off a shelf near the pantry door, smashed against the ground the fuel and ignited a wave of fire. Morav tucked the knife into his belt, crouched down and pulled his mother away from the spreading tongues.
No sooner had he taken her two feet back, when his face was knocked to the side. Morav stumbled and fell on his back, blinking from the unseen blow. A muffled thud rolled him to his side. Reflexively, he pulled his knees over his stomach and shielded his ribs with his arms.
Wincing with each blow Morav took, finally I couldn’t take it anymore. Picking up a heavy paper weight from the desk, I ran around the flames and swung for where I imagined D was standing. My falling blow was stopped at the wrist; a warm, sweat-slick hand was wrapped around it. “Don’t!” The voice ordered with unbridled malice. I felt a hand brush over my breast as it scooped under the pendant. “This is mine!” With a tug the decorative chain snapped loose, both ends hanging from where the object floated in the air.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Morav recover and spring to his feet. I tried not to give him away, but D knew anyways. Twisting and pulling on my hand, D flung me to the ground then turned to fend off his attacker.
“Get mother out!” Morav’s face was flushed with effort; his hands locked with D’s. The fire was spreading rapidly now, the heat singed the hem of my skirt without it even touching the fire. I crawled to Aunmaree and pulled her towards the front door.
The air hit cold and hard as we passed through the threshold and into the street. I laid the older woman down, and screamed “Fire!” Lights were being kindled in adjacent houses. “Fire!” I called again. I looked back through the door, but saw no sign of Morav. I could hear crashing from inside, pottery falling from their places, windows shattering from heat. The building began to groan as smoke exhaled from beneath the eaves. Still Morav did not emerge.
I could hear screams from behind me as most of the neighborhood women gathered to fight the flames while others went for more help. I could hear the walls creak with pending betrayal…still no Morav. I shouted his name, but he didn’t come. I called again. Unanswered, I ran towards the door, but was stopped.
My hands rested against an invisible chest. I could feel the slow rise and fall of breath, the steady pulse of life; the man beneath the shroud of the visible. My mouth went dry, my heart quickened, but in a moment it passed. This thing, this Evil D was between me and the man I loved. With all my might I cocked my arm back and drove my fist down.
I had barely struck him when I found his grip around my throat, another hand holding me where I’d struck. I could see the glimmering gold, alive with new firelight, dangling from his hand. Crimson slowly appeared from around the metal, tracing a streak down from my hand.
My wind came in wheezes as his hold tightened; my face growing warm with trapped blood. “Go ahead! Better kill me now,” tears pressed from my eyes. “If you don’t, I’ll kill you! You took Morav from me.” The light began to fade, but then…
release.
I collapsed to the ground. The smoke coming out of the door parted like water forded by rock. I could not comprehend what this meant.
I must be dreaming, I told myself. Seconds later, I thought I saw Morav crawling from the inferno. But he wasn’t crawling, his arms weren’t moving. He wasn’t even conscious. At the threshold he dropped. I could hear the women behind me shouting things like “he made it out” and “how did he survive?” Then the smoke whirled around as something dashed away.
The others didn’t see that part. They were distracted by the flames. Distracted by their fear. They had not seen, that Evil D saved a life.
