For the Love of a Goblin Warrior (Shadowlands) (15 page)

How far had he fallen? How far did he have to climb before he would once again be the man he once was? If he were a new man, instead of holding on to past glories, what would he do? He would take the help offered and climb faster, instead of stubbornly insisting he navigate the cliff face by himself.

He
was
climbing, his fingers scrabbling for a hold on the cold, gray stone. He adjusted his weight and reached for the next handhold, his fingers curled with the strain. He risked a glance down. The goblin that had been following him, hunting him, had begun climbing.

He
had
to
reach
the
top
first.

Without
giving
himself
time
to
rest
or
consider
what
would
happen
if
his
hands
slipped, he pressed on. The muscles in his arms and back burned. Sweat trickled down his spine like cold droplets of rain.

When
he
didn’t think he could go any further, his hand closed over the ledge. With a grunt and the last of his energy, he hauled himself up onto the top of the wall. It was two paces wide at the top. He took his bow off his back and pulled out an arrow. He carefully sighted on the goblin still climbing after him. He grimaced and paused. It didn’t feel right to pick off an unarmed target. And yet if he waited, he knew the goblin would win.

He
looked
over
his
shoulder
at
the
castle. He wouldn’t be able to climb down and reach the safety of hall before the goblin caught him. He used his sleeve to wipe a trickle of sweat out of his eyes and re-aimed. The goblin was closer; he could see the scar slashing down its cheek, drawing its eye down and twisting the side of its mouth. He knew this goblin. He’d caused that injury. The creature’s lips drew back in a snarl. Meryn drew the bow and looked down the shaft to the side of the goblin’s neck. One shot was all it would take.

Shapes
emerged
out
of
the
dust. He blinked, but it wasn’t an illusion. More goblins were coming, drawn to the castle. He loosed the arrow. It flew true and the goblin fell off the wall, but ten were coming to take his place. He didn’t have enough arrows for them all.

Why
were
they
coming?

For
him?

He
slung
his
bow
over
his
shoulder
and
began
a
rapid
descent, half climbing, half slipping and sliding, cutting open his hands and leaving crimson stains on the wall. His feet hit the dust, the impact reverberating through his body, but he didn’t pause. He sprinted across the space between the wall and the castle. A broken fountain without water and a bench sat in the dust. This must have been a garden once. He could almost see it, the grounds neatly laid out. The sound of his footsteps changed and he glanced down. The dust had been replaced with a paved path, but he didn’t have time to examine how that was possible. He glanced behind him to see the goblins coming over the wall.

His
heart
lurched; there were too many of them. He looked back at the castle. On every windowsill was a gold coin, as if the occupant was intentionally attracting goblins. Who would do such a crazy thing?

And
he
was
caught
between
the
castle
and
incoming
goblins. He had no choice but to reach the castle and pray the walls would offer safety.

At
first
he
saw
no
door, but as the path formed beneath his feet a large timber door formed in the wall. He didn’t waste time knocking, just pulled on the handle, let himself in, then slammed it closed, and dropped the bar. For a moment he leaned against the door and caught his breath.

Outside
the
yelling
grew
louder
as
the
goblins
drew
closer.

If
they
found
him, they’d eat him. He had to get rid of the gold.

He
looked
up
at
the
sound
of
soft
footsteps. Halfway down the stairs was a woman in a pale green dress that swept the floor with every step. His heart stopped.

Nadine.

“You came.” She ran toward him and threw her arms around his neck.

The
weapons
he’d been carrying clattered to the floor as he returned her embrace.

“The gold. The goblins.” The castle began to shake with the footsteps of a goblin army.

She
silenced
him
with
a
kiss, her lips pressing hard against his. Before he could enjoy the taste of her mouth, glass shattered.

Meryn’s eyes opened with a snap. He lay still, his heart pounding hard and lust coursing through his blood. Something had woken him—something more than a dream kiss. Soft rain pattered on the leaves, but that wasn’t it; something else filled the night. His heart refused to settle even though wariness replaced desire. Slowly, he slid his hand to his knife.

Around him the forest was quiet. As quiet as nature could be. Across the other side of the barely glowing coals, a pair of yellow eyes appeared. Meryn watched. A shuffle and a grunt and the eyes drew closer. The outline became clearer. Meryn blinked, not believing what he saw. It couldn’t be a goblin. Not here. Not now. It was the wrong time of year.

The goblin grinned. Its mouth twisted as if it could hear Meryn’s thoughts and taste his fear. His stomach tightened. His dream had crossed the boundary and reformed in the Fixed Realm, again. The goblin drew his knife and crept closer. The scar down the side of his face was pale and white.

Meryn adjusted his grip, ready to fight back. He’d killed this goblin in the Shadowlands, and again in his dream. He could destroy him again—but in his dream there’d been more than one; there’d been an army. What of the others that would follow? Around him the bushes rustled as if a hundreds of goblins were materializing. For the first time since being in the Fixed Realm, he longed for the safety of four walls, but he knew they wouldn’t stop the goblins—not when it was him dreaming them into existence.

If he dreamed them here, he could will them away.

With his gaze on the goblin and his ears listening for others, he eased up slowly. How could he banish a nightmare?

The goblin stepped over the coals.

Meryn forced himself to remain still, ready and waiting.

A point in his pocket dug into him. Nadine’s cross. Gold. Was the goblin coming for the gold? There was no way he was letting this creature take it; it was Nadine’s. The goblin faltered. Meryn let his thoughts fill with Nadine again. If his fears fed the nightmares, maybe his hope could banish them.

At first nothing happened. The goblin remained still, watching him.

He was used to putting his faith in weapons and plans, not wishes. But he knew the power of nightmares and also of dreams. Nadine was in the dreams he wanted for his future. Her kiss lingered in his mind even if he couldn’t taste her on his tongue.

He wanted to find love again and be seen as a man, not a goblin.

He wanted to be free of the Shadowlands once and for all.

A breeze swept through the clearing with a hiss, making the trees shudder. The goblin screamed as if in agony, then raised his knife, intending to stab Meryn in his bed. Meryn twisted and deflected the blow. He kicked the goblin in the chest; it felt real enough beneath his boots. The other nightmares had crumbled when he touched them. This one was different. The goblin fell back into the coals. He howled in pain, his fingers curling as he scrambled to get up.

Meryn placed his knife to the goblin’s throat. “I defeated you once, and I will defeat you every time. I do not fear you. Be gone and trouble me no more.”

He drew the blade across the gray skin. Black blood stained the knife. He expected the body to turn to dust the way the others had, ready to reform another night. It didn’t. Meryn stood up and looked at the body of the goblin. He wiped the blade clean on his trousers.

How was he ever going to explain his nightmares coming to life to anyone?

What would Nadine say?

The body remained there instead of disintegrating. Very odd. He frowned. If he was free of the Shadowlands, maybe the dust had lost its power and the goblin was trapped here. He’d killed his nightmare. He gave the body a nudge with his boot. It didn’t move. He couldn’t leave it. He used a branch and shifted the body off the coals enough that he could get the fire going properly. Everything was damp, so it took a while to find dry twigs and bark to feed the coals, but once they took hold, they couldn’t be stopped. In seconds, the goblin’s body was consumed, leaving only harmless ash.

He didn’t want to risk another nightmare, so he sat up the rest of the night, thinking of Nadine and the kiss.

Chapter 9

Meryn was tired and his bones ached. It had continued to rain—not heavy enough to seep into his shelter, but enough to make everything damp. After the goblin had attacked he’d been unable to go back to sleep, partly because he was waiting for another nightmare to spring to life and partly because his body knew there was a bed waiting for him. While he sat there awake and listening to the soft patter of rain, he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about what Dai had said. Did Dai really think he was looking for a reason to quit? After surviving as a goblin and then as a human in the Shadowlands, any life he had in the Fixed Realm was easier. But then Dai had never had to adjust to being human again and all that entailed.

He touched the key in his pocket and looked up at the white building. Like most of the buildings, it was lots of houses stacked on top of each other. How many other people lived in there? Even as he looked at the building, he smiled. Dai had found a house that was near the park; he was making it as easy as possible for Meryn to walk in to his new life while still being somewhere familiar. The park was on his doorstep.

The bench where he waited for Nadine wasn’t far away. He glanced up at the sky; it was mostly blue, but even the patches of gray clouds had more depth than the Shadowlands ever had. She’d be here soon, and after yesterday he didn’t want to be late or, worse, miss her. Today, he could pay for breakfast. And when the money in the wallet ran out, how was he going to get more? Dai had said that he had more. Was it in the house? Meryn frowned and pushed aside the thought.

He walked down the road to the bench and saw Nadine already there. She stood when she saw him, a smile on her lips. His mouth remembered the kiss, but last night had been a reflection of his desire, that was all, no matter how real it had felt at the time. He’d rather dream of Nadine than goblins any night. He’d rather be kissing her in daylight than just in his dreams. She was unlike any woman he’d ever known, but like many he had known, she had spirit—a gleam in her eye that suggested she’d have made a fine Decangli woman.

A pretty smile on a bold woman and he’d do whatever was asked of him. He wasn’t that different than the man who’d fallen for Idella so many years ago.

She watched him walk over. “Do you live nearby?”

“In the white building.” He was grateful to be able to answer without lying or admitting he was living in the park.