Frey Saga Book II: Pieces of Eight (5 page)

After a few minutes, Ruby
collected herself enough to keep me occupied as usual. She offered
me some powder for my headache, which I refused, having been
subjected to her concoctions in the past, and fluttered around
doing things. I didn’t watch her too closely, partially because
sometimes the flow of her clothes and swing of her bright red curls
made my head ache more, but mostly because I was forcing myself not
to hope (and at the same time, fear) that my memory was
returning.

The group made like there
was a good reason we’d stopped for so long in the middle of the
day, busying themselves as well. When we’d finally gotten back on
the horses, they took it easy until early evening when we’d stopped
again to make camp. I was impressed that they had managed to make
creating a fire and situating themselves around it a seven-man
task.

No one even mentioned
training.

The next morning, I woke
groggy to find that they’d let me sleep in. The idleness seemed to
bother Grey and Anvil; they looked a little itchy to get back on
the trail, so I hurried to mount my horse, taking my cold breakfast
with me. I couldn’t believe I’d actually slept through the smell of
cooking meat. I remembered how I used to love elk, but it was
everyone else’s favorite as well, which made it hard to come by on
the mountain.

And then I
froze.

I had a new memory. I
examined it, trying to decide if I should, if I could, explain it
to the group. It was nothing but a “like.”

I decided to save it; maybe
I’d tell them if I remembered more. Chevelle was looking at me now
so I kicked my horse up, pretending I had only been
daydreaming.

We rode at a more normal
pace and the ground was leveling off a bit as the mountain valleyed
into a smaller ridge. I looked back for the castle but between the
distance and fog it couldn't been seen. I wondered how the cats
were doing. When they’d arrived there had been more than one fight;
they were extremely territorial and I couldn’t seem to convince
them otherwise by impression. Complicated animals. It made me
curious as to how other animals would react. I’d had a pretty
limited experience so far. Birds proved very useful. I recalled my
plan from yesterday and looked up, trying to find a vessel to scan
the mountain again.

I found a large red-tail.
It was a nice one, good eyes. I thought of having it come with us,
in case I wasn’t able to find one when the urge struck, but there
seemed to be plenty available.

We continued riding
casually for days, turning as we entered the valley to follow the
more passable ground on our way down. Twice I’d spotted the wolves.
It made me feel more secure but I still did a quick sweep from
above at least three times a day, as I became more paranoid the
further from the castle we were. And the closer to our destination,
wherever that was.

It was then Ruby decided to
start telling her fairy stories, which, now that I knew they were
probably all true, I didn’t like to hear. I was trying to ignore
her by flying over the valley, gliding and enjoying the
view.

It wasn’t as rocky here and
the vegetation was coming back. The trees were a deep green and
appearing more and more frequently. I realized I was subconsciously
counting them in their patches, dark green, dark green, dark
green.

“
Does that not tire
you?”

I almost jumped but
surprise didn’t have the expected reactions in this body. Instead,
it pulled me back to myself. I opened my eyes to find Anvil riding
beside me, watching.

I smiled at him but he
appeared to be waiting on something. I remembered he had asked me a
question. “Oh, uh… I guess no, not really.”

This pleased him but when
he smiled back I had to hold myself from reacting to the thought of
his burning tongue. So strange that he would bring out such a
pleasant feeling and the simple dreams of his tongue called up such
a severe one. I forced it back.

I thought of his special
talent, how it exhausted him of strength. “The lightning does,
huh?” Sometimes, I thought I sounded like a dork. Mostly, it was
when I wanted to impress someone.

He didn’t seem to notice.
“Yes. But it’s worth it, I think.”

“
How did you think to
try?”

He laughed lightly. I
apparently didn’t get the joke.

I found myself wondering if
I could do it. I concentrated on my hands as we rode, willing
electricity through them.

Nothing happened, not that
I really expected it to. I saw Anvil’s cheeks tighten in a smile
and I grimaced at forgetting he was beside me. Yep, usually just
people I wanted to like me.

But he did like me. He was
part of my guard…

I lowered my voice.
“Anvil?”

He turned toward me
more.

Ugh, how to ask? “What do
you know about me?”

He was silent as he stared
at me. I was waiting for his answer when I was thrown forward in
the saddle as my horse stopped instantly. Chevelle’s was suddenly
standing in front of mine, blocking us. “Frey, we’ve been
neglecting your training. You should work with Anvil as you
ride.”

I tried to hide my reaction
but it was too late.

Anvil laughed. “Don’t think
she relishes the shock.”

Chevelle was undeterred.
“Well, Grey, then.”

Anvil smiled as he
continued on and Grey fell in beside me, our horses joining the
group’s pace automatically as he began his version of training.
“You know what I find helpful?”

“
Being able to practically
disappear and reappear?” Irritation brought out sarcasm. But he
laughed and I softened.

His eyes glinted as he
grinned conspiratorially. “Distraction.”

Our lesson continued
through the day and he was good at it, the teaching and
distraction. I’d forgotten most of what had been worrying me and
was concentrating on retaining what I was learning.

I kept silent the next
morning, hoping no one volunteered to teach me about a new weapon
or something equally painful. But Ruby had taken to telling stories
again and no one mentioned my practice. I smiled, returning to the
sky to hide from the terrible fairy tales and the constant looming
threat of practice.

It was warmer today, the
haze was clearer. I examined our new surroundings; the sun warmed
the colors of a patch of dormant weeds to almost golden. The new
color was a change to the scenery and I kept looking, trying to
pick out more, when something caught my eye.

I felt pressure on my arm
and realized I had gasped. Someone was talking to me so I pulled
back and opened my own eyes to find Ruby.

She was grasping my arm
tight, her face worried. “What is it Frey?”

“
I don’t know.” I tried to
sort my thoughts, place what I saw. And then I knew what was wrong
with the picture. “Blonde hair.”

Their faces reflected mine,
I was sure. It wasn't a dark elf.

“
Was it a council member?”
Ruby asked.

“
I don’t think so, she,
well, she didn’t look like it. And he had a dark cloak with a
hood.”

Chevelle spoke from my
other side, his voice urgent. “Where?”

I hadn’t noticed how close
he was and it took a moment to find the answer. “About two miles.”
I pointed out the direction and he was gone. I kicked up my horse,
racing behind him, trying to keep up, but the others were
faster.

They were surrounding the
strangers before I got a chance to see anything. I threw myself off
the side of my horse, leaving him where a couple of the other
horses stood, and stumbled blindly toward the group. I pushed
through where they had gathered, determined to not be kept out of
another… well, whatever this was. Chevelle’s hand flew up to block
me, keep me back. I pressed but his open palm was strong on my
chest, restraining me. Rhys and Rider were already there. The plain
black cloak was a pile on the ground and I realized a moment later
that the man I had seen was crumpled beneath it, motionless. I
looked to the girl and suddenly knew she was next.

“
Stop!”

And they did, if only to
look at me.

My outburst probably only
bought me a second but I couldn’t capitalize on it. I couldn’t
because, standing before me, behind Chevelle’s hand holding me
back, behind the outstretched arms of the tall, slender,
silver-haired Rhys and Rider, was a sight my brain could not
process.

The girl… no, I couldn’t
even think it. But there it was, right in front of my wide eyes.
The blonde hair that I had seen from above framed a round face,
flushed cheeks, full lips, and round eyes, heavy blue and filled
with shock and fear.
It can’t be.
And then the breeze caught her shoulder-length
locks and flipped them back just enough to reveal rounded
ears.
Impossible.

I almost fainted. All that
saved me was that in the split second before blackness hit, I saw a
nod. I knew what that nod meant. Chevelle, standing inches in front
of me, was instructing the pair of elves before this… this human…
to end her life.

“
No.”

It came out with more
desperation than I’d intended but it caused them to hesitate.
Chevelle looked at my face, examining it. I stared into his eyes, a
wordless plea. I couldn’t look back to her.

The seconds dragged on,
agonizing. His face was hard as he finally turned from me, calling
it off. I wasn’t sure why. But I couldn’t help but imagine it was
because…
because she was like
me
. I felt my cheeks flush and I looked
down, away from their sight. And then I slipped off the
edge.

When finally I came to, I
was sure it had all been a dream. I almost laughed at the absurdity
as I tried to sit up, holding my throbbing head. I felt Ruby’s hand
steady me and she purred something soothing as she handed me a
drink of water. It helped. I opened my eyes and she was right
there, trying to hide the concern in her face. And something else.
What was wrong with her? I realized Chevelle was beside me as well,
and though he was angled oddly away from me, he turned to look at
me when he’d noticed I was awake. It irritated me that this
fainting thing was becoming somewhat commonplace but I was still
confused about their postures. And Ruby was unusually quiet; she
looked like she might have been biting her tongue. I hoped I wasn’t
about to get dusted for some reason that I couldn’t see.

I started to scan my
surroundings for said reason but Chevelle was blocking my view of
the others, who seemed to be gathered several yards away around
something. I leaned, straining to see past him and he put a hand on
my arm to steady me.

“
Easy, Frey. You should
rest more, don’t get too excited.”

What?

“
Just lie here for a
while.”

And then it struck me. He
wasn’t trying to steady me, he was trying to
restrain
me.

My glare hit him and he
reluctantly released my arm and straightened up, still prepared to
block me but allowing me to see.

At first, I was just numb.
And then, though I had no idea how much time had passed, I realized
my jaw was hanging open. Once I was able to regain control of the
muscles to close it, they went into overdrive, clenching so tight I
wondered in the back of my mind if my teeth might shatter. I felt
the blood in my cheeks and I wasn’t getting enough air from the
harsh breaths I was forcing through my nose. But I knew not to
release my jaw. I knew because, from much experience, I would
regret what I was about to say. So, instead, I just kept
staring.

I watched the others as
they talked with her, slowly noticing I was awake and turning to
see my reaction. I was surprised by the fact that she was speaking
with them, and they with her. Like she was, well, I didn’t know,
maybe like she was one of
us
. They seemed genuinely interested
in her. Especially Steed.

And then I felt the flush
of my cheeks brighten. Yes, he was
particularly
interested in her. He
sat close, leaning in as he often had in our private
conversations.

Ruby’s face was
unexpectedly in front of mine, her eyes wide, and I realized I was
growling. An errant thought told me I should be attempting some
kind of control but I couldn’t care less. An actual human was
sitting there. It was just too much. Somehow, I still must have
believed they didn’t exist, though I’d read from my own mother’s
diary that I was… half. Part of me must have known she had lost her
grip on reality. The things she’d said, surely she wasn’t
completely sane. But here I was staring directly at what was,
though I’d never actually seen one, undoubtedly a human.

And she was talking to my
friends, my family. A vicious fire lit in my palms and Ruby clasped
her hands around my wrists, trying for control. I knew she couldn’t
be burned because she was half fire fairy, a hard lesson I had
learned during training, but I’m not sure it would have mattered. I
had been, for months now, teetering on a ledge. I couldn’t even say
where that ledge
was
now.