Chapter 14

Madison

A s useless as Avar's threats were at scaring anyone, for me at least, they proved comforting to hear. Judging by their hostile expression, the men accosting me in the dark woods promised trouble. And if so, I loved imagining them being fed to the sirens' pet sharks.

The one with the sword poked its sharp end against my throat.

"Start speaking. Now. Are you a spy?" he asked in a language I had never heard before but now understood perfectly. "Or I'll err on the safe side and kill you right here and now."

Avar roared another explosion of threats peppered with filthy curses, but his words were laced with desperation that stemmed from helplessness. He couldn't stop these two from doing whatever they wanted to me. My life was fully in my hands now.

"I..." I cleared my throat, willing my voice not to shake. " I'm not a spy." Incredibly, the words came out in the same language that the men spoke. It cost me no effort to switch, coming more naturally than speaking my mother tongue in this world.

Neither of the men looked convinced by my answer. The one with the sword at my neck squinted at me suspiciously. His medium blond hair looked like it glowed blue in the spots where the moonlight hit it through the tree branches above.

"Where are you going?" he demanded, then brushed his hand down his shirt that was now damp from my clothes since he'd grabbed me. "Why are you wet?"

My mind reeling, I scrambled for an answer that wouldn't make the situation even worse for me. Panic seemed to paralyze my brain, however, and I couldn't come up with anything.

"I'm...I..."

Would it make sense to tell the truth? Would they believe me?

"Tell them you're from a fishing boat that capsized out in the ocean," Avar's voice reached me like a lifeline stretched across the sea of panic. "You made it ashore but got separated from the others."

"I'm from a fishing boat..." I repeated mechanically.

What if they asked for more details?

I knew dozens of ways to cook all possible kinds of fish, but very little about how to catch any.

"What fishing boat?" The blond man demanded.

"It capsized out there, in the ocean." I waved back toward the beach. "I don't know where the others are. We got separated in the water."

The second man walked closer from behind me.

"She's lying, Ider," he spat through his teeth. "There are more rebel spies in the High Lord's lands than fleas on a mutt."

"I'm not a spy," I insisted.

What rebels were they talking about, anyway? What High Lord?

"Who were the others on the boat with you?" Ider kept interrogating me.

"Who?" I echoed, my mind going blank again. "Um..."

"Your father and two brothers," Avar helpfully supplied. "You come from Lenora fishing village, on the southern end of the border with Olathana."

"Why did you sail all this way here?" Ider's voice came clipped from impatience.

"I'm from Lenora fishing village. It's south... I mean, on the southern end of the border with Olathana. I was fishing with my dad and brothers."

"It's a long way from Lenora to here," the other man drawled, his stare scanning my face and clothes carefully.

"It has to be a village far away from here," Avar explained. "Otherwise, they would expect to have seen you before."

"Right," I agreed, then explained to the men, "It was a long trip, but the fishing was good, so we kept going. We had just decided to go back when the boat turned over in the dark. I saw the light out there," I pointed in the direction of the monastery, "and thought I could get help to look for my family. I hope they're all right," I added with a sob, trying to act like a woman in distress who might've just lost her family to the treacherous waters. "They aren't the best swimmers."

"Why would they be?" Ider frowned.

His partner shuddered in a gesture similar to a dog shaking water out of his fur.

"Werewolves hate water," Avar said. "They don't swim. But they also don't drown. Water won't kill them."

"Oh." I bit my lip.

It was best not to make up stuff anymore or I risked digging the hole I'd fallen in even deeper .

I pressed both hands to my chest in a plea.

"Please, let me go. I promise I'm not a spy or anything like that. I'll spend the night in the monastery, then look for my family first thing tomorrow morning. I promise we'll never come here again. We'll find some other place to fish."

"How do you know that's a monastery over there?" Suspicion thickened in Ider's voice.

Shit.

As someone from a remote village, I shouldn't have known that, should I?

"I...I've passed by here before. By boat. While fishing." I wished I was better at lying. It was so not my thing.

Ider kept his stare on me. "Let's take her to the High Lord, Zep."

Zep smirked.

"The High Lord likes them much younger than this." He took my chin in his hand. I jerked my head, trying to get away, but Ider pressed his sword into my throat harder. "You're way past your thirties, aren't you?" Zep turned my face up to the moonlight. "No real signs of aging yet. But some of those wrinkles may mean you're getting close. You're like what? Three? Four hundred years old?"

"Hey!" I freed my chin from him, ignoring the sword. "I'm only thirty-two."

"Careful, Maddy," Avar sounded worried as the tip of the sword brushed by my throat. "Werewolves live to be five hundred years old at least. They stop aging at around your age, then resume it in the last decade of their lives."

"Way too old for the High Lord," Zep concluded, his smirk spreading like a greasy stain. "Personally, I take them any age, though."

He moved closer and slid his palms up my arms, undeterred by my wet clothes. Dread chilled me .

Avar lost it again.

"Keep your filthy paws off her, you pathetic mutt!" he roared.

"You're not going to fuck a traitor, are you?" Ider snapped with disgust.

"She isn't a traitor. Are you, sweet thing?" Zep murmured, sniffing at my neck.

I recoiled from him as far as his grip on my arms allowed. Thoughts rushed through my brain at a feverish speed.

Do I pretend to be a traitor to thwart off his advances and risk being killed? Or do I keep denying it and risk being raped?

The choice was crushing.

A long, blood-curdling howl came from a distance, and all three of us stilled.

"There is that thing again," Zep muttered uncertainly, loosening his grip on me.

"Maddy," Avar said with a strain in his voice. "You need to get back to the portal."

At this point, I was beginning to think that was a good idea too.

"What's howling out there?" I squeezed through my throat that suddenly felt tight.

"I'm not sure." Zep let go of me completely, nervously peering into the darkness around us.

"We have to return to the camp." Ider took a slow turn around. No longer pointing his sword at me, he held it out in front of him. The unknown danger obviously was far greater than anything I could do to them.

Zep drew his sword too.

"You're coming with us." He grabbed my arm, tugging me along.

"Fucking bastard," Avar cursed, running out of breath.

I understood his frustration. However, that terrifying howl seemed to come from the general area to my right or from the same direction where the beach was. What if I ran into whatever made that noise on my way to the portal?

"I don't think I should go back to the beach," I explained to Avar.

Zep gave me a side eye. "No one wants you to go to the beach. We're going back to the camp, then to the High Lord's castle. Just stay close to me or the monster will get you."

"What is that monster? A werewolf?"

Ider snorted a laugh. "Are we monsters now? Since when?"

In the land of werewolves, I should've known better than to call them monsters. Especially since they believed I was one of them.

"No one knows what that thing is, all right?" Zep scratched his arm nervously. "It's been howling and roaring all night out there, louder than a normal werewolf would, even on the night of a full moon. I'd say we get back to the camp, grab Krim, and head out to the castle right away."

"Didn't we decide to camp in the woods until morning?" Ider walked a step ahead of us, watching the path carefully, his sword ready.

"Fuck these woods." Zep spat on the ground. "I don't want to stay here another hour if I don't have to."

The forest gave me an eerie feeling, too, now. All its colors and glow turned from pretty and whimsical to creepy.

The howling came again. This time it was interspersed with rumbling roars, as if the beast was tearing apart something or someone .

Our small group went as still as statues.

"Maddy," Avar spoke first. "I need to see what the hell that is."

"Don't leave me!" I begged, realizing how much support his voice was giving me. What if he couldn't find me once he'd left? "Let's just stay together, okay?"

Ider squinted at me. "Who are you talking to?"

"No one," I said quickly, then thought of something else to try. "Actually, I'm talking to my pet snake." I reached into a pouch on my belt. "Here, want to see?" I uncoiled the Horned Harpy Viper, thrusting it toward him.

Zep flinched, as did Ider. Their expressions, however, were more cautious than terrified.

Zep sniffed the air. "It's dead."

Ider curled his lips in disgust. "Why are you carrying a dead viper with you?"

My shoulders slumped in disappointment. Neither of the werewolves ran for the hills in horror like Avar had said they would.

"That just proves it, doesn't it? One can't trust everything one reads." I coiled the snake back together again, wondering if I could somehow benefit from them thinking I was crazy. "Come here, baby," I cooed, tucking the snake back into the pouch. "You don't have to hang out with these guys. They don't appreciate you, anyway."

Zep arched an eyebrow, staring at me. Ider just shook his head, turning his attention back to the forest ahead of us and the danger that might be lurking in there.

"It's a dead snake, woman," Zep insisted, looking dumbfounded.

"Shh." I brought a finger to my lips. "She's sleeping. Let her rest. She's had a horrible day with the boat capsizing and stuff."

"Maddy, are you all right?" Avar asked carefully, worry lacing his voice.

"I'm fine, sweetie." I patted the pouch gently. "No need to worry. We'll find a way to safety. I promise."

Zep scoffed, turning to Ider. "Either the salt water messed up her brain today or she's always been a bit..." he moved his finger over his temple in a circular motion, "... off, up here."

Ider shrugged. "Maybe one good reason to keep her around is so that we can throw her at the beast if it ever comes too close. Let him eat her while we run away."

The familiar rumble sounded just above my ear.

"I'll feed them to wild beasts myself," Avar growled. "I'll find a way. I swear."

"Just ignore them, sweetie." I petted the pouch with the dead snake soothingly. "They're not worth your time."

Both Zep and Ider paid little attention to my talking now, which allowed me some communication with Avar even in their presence.

The further we walked, the more distance we put between us and the beach. With the mysterious creature prowling in these woods, running back to the portal no longer felt much safer than sticking with Zep and Ider for now. At least, they were too scared for their own hides to even think about hurting me at the moment.

We circled the monastery, putting it between us and the beach. Some distance after that, the dancing light of a campfire came into view from between the tree trunks, and my guards visibly relaxed.

As we came closer, a dark-haired man stepped from behind the trees to greet us. He held a knife in one hand and a sword in the other.

"Hi Krim." Sheathing his sword, Ider went straight for the blankets spread by the fire and started packing them up. "Change of plans. We're heading out of the woods tonight. There is no need to wait for the morning."

"Did you hear all that noise?" Krim's eyes roamed over the trees behind us. "What the fuck was that? "

"The howling, you mean?" Zep plucked a sole piece of charred meat from a skewer by the fire and took a bite.

"Yes, the howling. It came so close at one point, I thought the creature might get me. I thought it might've gotten both of you already." His wild gaze finally landed on me. "Who's she?"

With his knee on a blanket roll while he tightened a leather belt around it, Ider glanced my way. "We're not sure who she is. Might be a fisherman's daughter, or a rebel spy, or both. We're taking her to the castle for the High Lord to decide what to do with her."

Krim slid a quick glance up and down my figure. "You know what he'll do with her."

Zep shook his head. "No, he won't like her. She's too old, over thirty already."

"I meant he'd do what he always does with the rebels. He'd keep her in a cage until the next full moon, then tie her to a tree in the forest overnight."

Dread trickled down my spine with cold sweat. Being tied up during a full moon when every werewolf in the area would be roaming the woods, looking for blood, meant certain death. A gruesome, painful death.

I shivered in horror.

"We won't let it get that far," Avar assured me. "You're not going to the castle with them."

I wished to believe him with all my heart but was at a loss about how that could be accomplished.

"Well..." Ider gathered some pots and cups from around the fireplace, emptied them, then tied them to his blanket roll. "That's the least those filthy rebels deserve for opposing the High Lord and refusing to worship the Moon Goddess Ghata."

"Ghata," I repeated the name softly.

"These must be the scouts of High Lord Fromir," Avar said. "After the werewolves rebelled against Ghata's brutalities, the High Lord supported her. That is, of course, if what I've read is to be believed," he added, in reply to my earlier comment after the dead snake had failed to send the scouts running for the hills.

"Who will win in the end? The High Lord or the rebels?"

I turned to my pouch with the snake, but the men were too busy packing up the camp to listen closely to my talking, especially now that they thought I was "not all up there."

"The rebels will win. Eventually," Avar replied.

"Good." I played no part in this conflict, but it made me feel better to know that the cruel and possibly perverted High Lord would be defeated sooner or later.

Zep had finally helped Ider pack, and they were almost done now.

"Tell them you need to use a bathroom," Avar said unexpectedly.

"But I don't need to go."

"Tell them you do," he insisted.

"Almost done, fisher girl." Zep strolled my way. "We'll be in the High Lord's castle by morning. No monsters can get behind those stone walls. You'll be safe."

I highly doubted that. Judging by what they'd said so far, there were plenty of monsters in the High Lord's castle, including the High Lord himself.

"I need to use a bathroom," I said.

Zep laughed. "There're no bathrooms in the forest, silly girl."

"You know what I mean. I need to pee. Or do you want me to pee in my pants?" I shrugged. "Makes no difference to me. My clothes are wet already."

Wrinkling his nose in disgust, he asked hesitantly, "What if a beast gets you?"

"I'll come with you," Avar said .

"You're not watching me pee," I snapped.

"That's not what I said." Zep looked confused, but only for a moment. "But if you're offering..."

"God, no." I cringed. "I'd rather take my chances with the monster."

I headed away from the clearing and behind the trees, with Zep thankfully staying behind.

"Now what?" I asked Avar, after putting some distance between me and the camp.

"Don't go too far!" Zep yelled.

"Zep, we're leaving," Ider said with a nervous note in his voice.

"Now, you run, Maddy," Avar urged. "Run all the way to the beach, then to the portal, sweetheart. Don't let them take you to the castle and put you in a cage."

I peered into the dark forest surrounding me. It was a long way back to the portal, with unknown danger lurking out there somewhere. On the other hand, if they locked me in that cage, it'd be only a matter of time until a whole pack of monsters would eat me.

I knew my best chance was to run, but I wondered if I should do it later, after we're out of the woods or maybe closer to the sunrise, when the mysterious beast would hopefully climb back into its lair to sleep. Even the most terrifying monsters had to sleep sometimes, didn't they?

"Hey!" Zep yelled. "Whatever your name is, we're leaving—"

An air-splitting scream cut his words short.

I spun around, towards the scream, and so did Zep.

Backlit by the crackling glow from the dying campfire, a giant creature pounced on top of Ider. A mix of man and beast, with no neck, and hunched shoulders, it tore into Ider with its long sharp teeth .

Patches of black fur stuck out of the monster's pale skin that appeared to glow in the moonlight. Spiky ears lay flat against its head as it raised its head, blood dripping from its snout.

"Run, Maddy!" Avar shouted. The horror in his voice pushed my body into action even as my mind was still frozen in terror.

I sprinted away, as if the monster was already chasing me.

Zep cursed behind me. A sword swished through the air. The beast howled. It was so close, the hair on the back of my neck moved as if the creature was breathing on it already.

I ran, blinded by panic, sliding on dead leaves that covered the ground and tripping over the tree roots. There was nothing ahead of me but darkness. Until I saw the warm, yellow light. I ran toward it without thinking. I had no choice.

"Monastery," Avar's voice came like a beacon in the storm. "Go for it, Maddy."

He sounded out of breath as if he was running too. Most likely, he was catching up with me after trying to fight the monster. I didn't need to ask to know that it didn't work. He'd already tried to fight Zep and Ider. Punches were useless when one had no fists. But even just his voice was better than nothing. I wasn't alone.

"Monastery," I punted, holding the course toward the light.

A building had walls.

"No monsters can get behind those stone walls." Zep's words echoed in my head.

Reaching the monastery before the beast was my only hope.

I climbed up the hill toward the wooden gate in the solid rock wall.

"Please be open," I begged silently, pushing against the gate.

It screeched, opening at an odd angle. I ran into the small, round courtyard. The building of the monastery was shaped like a semi-circle, or a moon crescent, with a tall bell tower in the middle. A large lantern on the very top of the tower shone with the warm yellow light that had guided me here.

Other than the lantern, there was no other light. Every window in the building was dark.

I headed to the front door.

"Let me check first," Avar stopped me.

I paused hesitantly, looking over my shoulder. My heart pounded hard. Fear prickled my skin with goosebumps. I strained my eyes, peering into the darkness behind the broken gate and listened for every sound, expecting the beast to jump out at any second.

"Get in, Maddy," Avar said just a moment later. "The door is unlocked and there's no one in the front hall."

I didn't wait for him to tell me twice. Slipping inside, I closed the heavy wooden door behind me and leaned against it, finally catching my breath.

With no windows in the hall, I could see nothing but darkness. I felt the uneven wood of the door behind me but found no lock. Moving along the wall, I found a piece of furniture, a cabinet or a dresser, I wasn't sure, but it seemed heavy. I shoved it over to block the door.

Would it be enough to keep that creature away?

I shuddered, remembering its blood-soaked snout and glowing red eyes.

"Maddy." Avar's voice softened. I must look as terrified as I felt. "We left him behind. He was too busy to chase you. I checked."

Too busy eating Ider and probably Zep right after.

"Okay. Thanks." I could only manage the briefest of sentences between my ragged breaths .

"Stay here," Avar instructed. "I'll see what's in the other rooms. If it's safe, you'll stay here for the rest of the night."

I nodded, sliding down to the floor.

My breathing scratched my dry throat. I unhooked the water bag from my belt and took a few gulps. My hands shook so much, the water splashed on my chest.

"Fuck," I cursed softly, corking the water bag and putting it away.

This whole trip turned out to be much scarier than I could've imagined. But I was still alive. That was something.

From one of the pockets on my belt, I got the sandwich that Avar had packed for me back in his nice, safe, and quiet house in Purgatory.

I wasn't hungry. At the mere thought of the monster lurking out there in the woods, my stomach roiled with fear and repulsion. But if I had to run again any time soon, I needed some food for energy.

The smell of cheese and roast beef was far more pleasant than the stench of fear clinging to every pore of my body. I took a bite and chewed, wondering what was taking Avar so long. How many rooms did this place have?

A scurrying noise came from the top of the dresser above me. Then, something furry dropped into my lap.

I jumped, a mouthful of sandwich choking my scream.

Sharp claws grabbed onto my skirt with a loud, displeased "Meow!"

"A cat?" I pressed my hand to my chest, trying to calm my heart that had almost leaped out through my throat. "A fucking cat."

A gray tabby cat quickly found the sandwich I'd dropped on the floor in panic, then pulled a slice of roast beef out of it.

"Great." I considered fighting the rascal for the rest of the sandwich, then decided to let him have it. "Do the nuns not feed you here?"

The cat paid me no attention, calmly devouring my roast beef.

A narrow ray of moonlight fell on the floor next to the cat, bringing my attention up to the small window above the door. The shutter had been moved open by the animal as he must've climbed through it to get inside.

"Nice. You have your own entrance up there," I said.

Pet doors usually were cut in the bottom, close to the floor. But maybe the cat liked climbing roofs more than walking on the ground. Or nuns simply didn't want to let snakes and rodents into their monastery, since the cat clearly didn't know how to close the shutter behind him.

The dim light illuminated a large female figurine on the dresser that I hadn't noticed in the darkness before. It was carved from a milky-blue stone that shimmered when the moonlight hit it.

In front of the figurine, five phases of the moon were laid out in smaller stones of the same glowing rock. I lifted one of the stones, admiring the pretty sparkles inside it.

The cat jumped onto the dresser, startling me again. I shoved the stone in my pocket, catching my breath once again.

"You've got to stop doing that," I hissed at him. "My nerves are already rattled without you adding to it. What do you want?"

My sandwich lay open on the floor, without even a shred of meat left in it.

"That was fast," I said as the cat rubbed its head on my arm. "If you came for more, I don't have any. Eat the cheese now, you spoiled little brat."

I spotted a thick metal collar around the cat's neck with a round tag on the front .

"What's your name?" I lifted the tag.

Keeper was written inside the ring of aged bronze.

"Keeper?" I stared at the cat's collar.

Lined with leather, it was made with a row of thin, overlaying metal gears. Smaller gears and dials were inlaid between and over them. I could read the numbers and letters engraved on the dials, only I had no idea what any of them meant when put together like that. Plates of the same glowing rock sparkled inside the gears.

"What is this thing you're wearing, Keeper? "

"Evior says he left the horologe in care of a trusted keeper in a women's monastery," Avar's words echoed through my mind.

Did the horologe just literally fall into my lap?

Did I find what I'd come here for, after all?

And it only cost me a sandwich.

A long, deafening roar tore from inside the building, reverberating between the walls and making the blood in my veins freeze with horror.

"Run, Maddy!" Avar shouted. "Run! Now."