Chapter 44

Ryker

The next day,I brought a canteen for our trip. I didn't miss Ellery's smile when she spotted it hanging over my shoulder or the twinkle in her eyes. I had to admit, I liked her smile.

While the only involvement I wanted with this woman was her help finding the Hooded Robber, I intended to see her smile more often. It brightened my day, and that rarely happened in my life.

After sunrise, we walked through the forest for over an hour before encountering our first poltergeist. Sitting in one of the trees, the creature lifted into the air when it spotted us.

It dove at Ellery, screaming as it waved its stunted arms and hands in her face. An ugly, see-through blob of a thing wailed as its red eyes burned.

Ellery dodged the rock it threw at her before it shifted course. The rock bounced off a tree.

"Fuck off, Farley, you almost hit me!" Ellery yelled.

The creature grabbed more rocks from a mound near the base of a tree. It must have gathered the weapons in anticipation of attacking someone.

Ellery picked up a large stick, and as the poltergeist dove at me, she swung it through the spirit's wispy body, cleaving it in half. I pulled my sword from its sheath; I may not be able to kill it, but I'd slice it to pieces.

Tendrils curved out from the spectral before the body knitted back together. When the creature spun on her, Ellery released the stick and planted her hands on her hips as she glowered at it.

"That's enough, Farley," she commanded.

The poltergeist's arms were close to its body, its hands tiny as it waved them one more time before lowering them to its side. "Oh, come on, Lery, I was only having fun with the new guy. Why do you have to spoil a good time?"

Ellery rolled her eyes. "Because you threw rocks at me, dumbass!"

"Sorry about that, but I'm a big scary poltergeist!"

The creature wailed again as it zipped into the air, made a few rolling tumbles, and returned to hover before Ellery.

Her annoyance faded as she smiled at the thing. "You're a lovable doofus."

Since Farley didn't have a neck, its head sank into its pudgy body a little. "Don't let the others hear you say that; they already make fun of me."

"None of them are frightening either."

"That's not true. Cryton literally made some guy shit himself last week. It was hilarious."

Ellery chuckled. "I'm sorry I missed it."

Farley floated down to bob before Ellery. I studied the pair, intrigued and amused; I still wouldn't mind slicing this thing into pieces, but I sheathed my sword.

Ellery really knew these woods and its creatures well. There were many amsirah who would have turned and fled from the poltergeist, but instead, she was its… friend?

That's something you don't see every day.

I'd only ever encountered a few poltergeists in my life. During that occasion, the often-hostile creatures attacked with branches while wailing.

They'd done little damage, though they petrified my horse. He'd taken off at a breakneck pace that didn't end until he emerged from the woods, covered in sweat and sides heaving.

"What are you doing out here today, Lery?" Farley inquired.

She thrust her thumb over her shoulder at me. "Showing Ryker around the forest. He's hunting someone."

Farley bobbed in the air as he turned toward me. "Who's he looking for?"

"The Hooded Robber. Have you heard of him?"

"No. Does he think that man is in the woods?"

"He might not live here, but he uses the woods often," I said. "Have you seen anyone dressed all in black and wearing a hood covering their entire face except the mouth and nose?"

He gave an odd little shrug of his hands. "I see many in the woods, especially lately. The forest has been far busier. I don't know why."

"The amsirah are being pushed out of their homes and having to supplement their food supply," Ellery said. "They're hunting more, and because of that, the animals have traveled deeper into the woods, or at least most of the bigger ones have, which means the amsirah are also traveling deeper."

"Oh," Farley said and rubbed at his nonexistent chin. "I doubt the guy you're looking for was the one who shit himself. He got scared too easily to be a robber. All Cryton did was this."

The poltergeist spun on me, dropped its mouth until it was a vast, gaping hole, and screamed so loud my hair blew back. My ears rang as a fetid stench wafted over me.

I closed my eyes against the blast of wind Farley created until he shut his mouth again. When I opened my eyes, it was to discover Farley zipping behind me before stopping in front of me again.

"You didn't shit yourself." Farley grinned at me before floating over to Ellery again. "At least this one's not a pussy. Good job, Lery."

Ellery rolled her eyes. "Just what I've always wanted, your approval, Farley."

"You know it made your heart sing."

A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Don't you have better things to do?"

He looked about as affronted as I guessed a poltergeist could. "Of course I do. I'll see you later."

"Looking forward to it."

The surprising thing was, I believed she meant it.