Frey Saga Book II: Pieces of Eight (13 page)

"You feel familiar with the
hawk?"

The question threw me, I
found myself stuttering out a nod. He smiled and I tried not to
think of the dreams I'd had, burning his tongue, the hawk tearing
it out.

"You will be with him
again." He inclined his head slightly as he clicked his heels and
joined the front of the pack.

I was weirded out the rest
of the day. It was still bothering me when I fell asleep, which was
probably what brought on the dream.

I was engulfed in blackness
again, my memories not clear enough for details like walls and
temperature. It was as if a light were emanating from the center of
my focus. Only that small space was comprehensible, the rest only
vague outlines and sensations. I could see the large dark man with
the scar and I could feel my hatred toward him. He was focused not
on me, but on something else, a strange shapeless lump just beyond
my clarity. I didn't know why, but the lump meant something to me.
I concentrated on the dark man's face, the way only a dream can
manipulate your attention, and grasped the detail that made the
difference: there was no scar, not yet. I knew it was coming
though, the source of the wound, when out of the periphery came a
blinding strike. The shot was partially deflected by the large man
but caught his brow and his previously smug face became enraged. I
felt my chest swell just as I heard the laughing response and,
though I woke before I could see his massive frame, I knew it came
from Anvil.

I woke short of breath, the
way I felt when I was violently roused from the battle dreams. I
immediately surveyed my surroundings, not surprised to find them
looking at me with concern. I attempted a weak smile and most of
them returned to their tasks.

I wasn't usually awake as
early as they were, so breakfast generally came just before I
jumped on my horse to catch up and sometimes even after we were
riding, but the dream had given me freshly cooked meat. We sat
scattered on the rocks surrounding the camp when Ruby inquired
about my start.

"A dream," I answered. I
watched Anvil, only a few feet away, as I recalled the dream and
almost without realizing it, I remembered the dark man's
name.

I was speaking before I was
entirely aware of what I was saying. "It was Anvil. And Rune." I
heard a peculiar noise and my eyes flicked to Chevelle, whose face
had drained of all color. My chest constricted, though I wasn't
sure exactly what I'd said wrong. No one spoke.

I could feel the flush in
my cheeks, I opened my mouth but nothing came out. There was
nothing to say, I didn't know why he was staring at me like... like
what?

Finally, Anvil broke the
silence. "Ah, my little Freya has been dreaming of me." It was
apparent he was going for humor but no one laughed. He cautiously
stood and after a moment Chevelle turned and left the group. My
eyes shifted to Anvil, questioning. He forced a smile but said
nothing as he walked past me to his horse. I followed as the others
mounted their own.

It was a quiet ride
throughout the day. Once, I heard something pass between Ruby and
Chevelle but, despite the fact that my hearing was better than
before, I couldn't understand the whisper. I was afraid to speak
again so I merely watched our surroundings, studied the passing
rocks, said goodbye to the greens and trees.

I missed my
birds.

We finally stopped for the
evening and it was much later than usual. I was paranoid it was
because of something I'd said and I had trouble stopping the images
of the dream from making a continuous circuit through my thoughts.
Steed brought an elk in though and I managed distraction for the
entire time it cooked and the few short minutes it took me to
devour my portion.

After dinner, Chevelle was
nowhere to be seen. I was surprised when the wolves showed up after
dark. I lay waiting for sleep when the flicker of the firelight
caught their silver fur as they sauntered into the camp. Their eyes
roamed over each of us before their massive frames settled onto the
ground and they relaxed into sleep. I found myself falling with
them, more secure in their presence.

Consequently, when the
dreams came they didn't have the mood of nightmares. I was assured,
the strong, certain Elfreda that I sometimes knew. She smiled as
the cloaks circled, beckoned them on. She faced the panther with
courage, defied her lord. And she laughed at Rune, fearless in the
face of his force. Until the dream focused again on the mass he
concentrated on, the vague figure that lay on the floor. She was
powerless to act, suddenly weak. She stared fixedly and the shape
took form. I could see him now, his face contorted in agony. In
answer to my wordless plea, there was a flash of light, a surge of
electricity, and the torture ceased momentarily. I could see his
rigid body ease a fraction and I was grateful. Grateful for Anvil
having intervened and grateful for the broken entity that lay so
near to me, he who signified so much...

I almost choked on the
breath I sucked in. My eyes darted around the camp, seeking him
out, but he was nowhere to be found. It was as if I needed to see
him, look upon his face here, not in the dream, to be positive it
was real. But I knew, even without seeing, I knew.

Someone approached and I
sat up, shaken, to find it was Anvil. He knelt beside me as he
inquired on my condition and I surprised us both by wrapping my
arms around his massive chest in a hug. "
Anvil
," I gushed, the appreciation
pouring through me even now. He patted my back and then I felt his
shoulders come up in a shrug. I looked behind me to see who he was
gesturing to and found Ruby and Chevelle were approaching the camp.
I awkwardly pulled my still trembling arms loose and wrapped them
around myself. I should have realized Ruby was gone when Anvil had
come to me.

I'd desperately wanted to
find him moments ago and now that he was only feet from me, I
couldn't bring myself to meet Chevelle's eyes. The rush of emotion
I had felt in the dream was swimming through me, the image of his
pained face, his besieged body, stealing my focus. I forced my mind
to accept them into the jumble of memories and thought and fix them
in place so I could function again. I felt a tear roll down my
cheek and Ruby was there, brushing it away. She didn't ask this
time, she just sat beside me and waited. I was overwhelmed for an
instant and found myself clinging to her as I had Anvil but
eventually the chaos settled.

It was dawn by that point
and I found myself sharing breakfast with them once more, though
not fully enjoying it as I had the previous morning because of the
ill feeling in the pit of my stomach.

We were back on the horses
in short order and I felt we must have been close to the castle
now. Dark gray rocks spotted the mountain and the haze was
beginning to thicken. And while I felt we were close, I really had
no idea, so it was strange to me when we rode through a familiar
pass. I slowed as I surveyed the land, trying to shake that eerie
feeling that I'd been there before, but it didn't shake. In fact,
it only worsened. I found that I knew what was coming, how the path
would curve just so past the tall jagged rock that slanted toward
us, how the shadows fell in the crevices where the rocks met, all
of it. But I had no memory here, I was not even sure where here
was.

I'd started to turn, almost
automatically, off our path when Chevelle called to me, requesting
that I please pay attention. I stared back at him blank-faced, not
wanting to argue that I had been paying attention, and he explained
that we were nearing the castle and I would need to ride amid the
group. That bit of information was enough to derail me from
wherever the impulse had been taking me, but upon seeing Ruby cut
off from the group, even the idea of the unknown route had been
forgotten.

Per Chevelle's instruction,
Anvil and Grey had fallen behind me, leaving Steed and Chevelle to
the front. Anvil was closest to me, near my side, so I turned to
him. "Where's Ruby going?"

"The castle, same as
we."

Confusion was plain on my
face, I didn't have to ask why she'd left us.

"She is taking an alternate
pass, as it is midday."

My expression didn't clear
with understanding but apparently he didn't feel the need to
clarify further. "Anvil,
why
is Ruby taking a different way because it's the
middle of the day?"

This time, he
uncharacteristically used a low tone as his lips twisted into a
mocking smile. "Truth be told, Elfreda, your previous self was not
so keen on fairies."

"What do you mean?" I
asked.

"It is unfair to place my
rendering of the events upon you, but suffice it to say, you dealt
with them quite sportingly." His laugh was almost
wicked.

And then the memory that
came to mind was not my own, but that of my mother's, her telling
in the diary of her father, Asher, killing the fairies for fun. I
felt the blood drain from my face. Surely, though, I'd not his
inclination. Surely.

He could see my concern and
offered comfort. "Do not fret, you have treated Ruby well. It was
merely the nefarious that you disciplined."

"How?" I asked.

He smiled again. "Rather
publically."

I didn't know whether that
was reassuring or not, but I didn't think public discipline implied
execution. "Does Ruby know?"

He laughed. "Everyone
knows."

Ugh
. She couldn't be seen with me, with the old
Elfreda.

And then Grey threw in from
behind us. "You know, Freya, Ruby is not the only of us affected by
your... aversion."

I spun in my saddle to see
him, positive I'd not want to hear what he was telling me but
unable to resist. He smirked at Anvil as he began to reply but
Chevelle cut him off. "Silence until we are inside the
walls."

And it was silent, until
late afternoon when we arrived at the castle. Dree escorted me to
my room, where I fell fast asleep.

Chapter Eight

Disclosure

When I woke, I was
famished. I strode from my room and down the corridors, directly
into the dining area. I had no idea how I'd found it.

I was surprised to see
Anvil, Grey, Rhys and Rider there. "Don't you ever sleep?" I asked.
That was amusing for some reason.

They beckoned to me to join
them, which I did as soon as I spotted the display of food. They
had already eaten and were enjoying drink, the roar of their
laughter increasing with each swig.

The food smelled delicious
and, as I selected a piece of meat from one of the trays, I asked,
"What are we having?"

"Mountain lion."

I froze mid-bite until Grey
chuckled and offered me a glass of wine. I joined them because I
was thirsty, but it wasn't long before I found myself matching
their pace.

Anvil and Grey began an
intense conversation to one end of the table and so I took the
opportunity to speak with Rhys and Rider. I didn't have much to
talk about but the wine had loosened me up. "Where are the
wolves?"

They smiled in unison and
for a brief moment I was afraid that was how they would reply. But
they did not. Only Rhys answered. "They are enjoying the mountains
tonight, searching."

I wanted to question them
more about the wolves, I had ever since I'd been unable to slip
into their minds, but I was certain I could not walk that line in
my condition, not without giving away too much of my own. I settled
for a general inquiry. "Tell me about them?"

Rider spoke up now. "Ahh,
they are incredible beasts. But beasts, we do not know. It is said
the wolves instead are ancients, some of the very
first."

"Ancients? I thought they
were all gone." I had read so many accounts of the ancients in the
village during my studies with Junnie but thankfully his words
stopped me from going down that path.

"So it is told. Yet you can
see their form is not of our own."

"They're elves?"

He smiled gently. "We
cannot know. Legend tells the ancients were more powerful than any
of record. It is said that upon their thousandth year, they, being
too powerful to pass, merely shifted into the minds of the wolves.
Others tell that they share the form with the creatures, each
together as one."

I felt a crushing pressure
on my chest and yet knew it was dulled by wine. "How?"

"It is said they were
twin." He had misunderstood my question of course, not known that I
spoke of the sharing, the animal mind. But the new information was
heady. No twins had been born in the elf nations for generations,
yet the power of such a thing was known by all.

"And you believe it, you
followed them."

"We do not know, Elfreda.
We only accept as truth what can be proven. We are loyal to the
wolves because they once did us a great deed. And we are loyal to
you because the wolves are so."

The conversation had taken
such a bizarre turn, I was self-conscious, embarrassed at their
declaration. "But why be loyal to me? You don't even know
me,
I
don't even
know me."