“You never told me she was there,” Liana said. “Keegan, we have to tell Papa.”
Her brother shook his head. “We can’t involve him, Li.”
“But, Keegan-”
Caim was ready to knock their heads together until he got a straight answer. “What’s a darghul?”
Liana glared at Keegan as she answered. “An evil spirit.”
“What? Like a demon?”
Keegan pulled his cloak up around his shoulders. “She looked like the queen of the damned in the flesh. And her eyes. When she looks at you, it’s like seeing your own death.”
Caim wasn’t sure he believed any of this, but he asked, “And the giant? This Beast.”
“He and the Northmen came with the witch. None can stand before them.”
“Caim did,” Liana said.
Keegan scowled at her over the flames. Then he pulled his hood up over his head.
“I’m tired.”
With a shake of her head, Liana held out a hand to Caim.
“Give me your coat.”
“Hmm?” He realized she wore only the smock under her cloak. “Oh, here.”
He pulled off the leather jacket, careful not to jar the bandages around his arm, and made to settle the garment around her shoulders. Instead, she retrieved a small sewing kit from a pocket and set to mending the tears in his sleeve.
Caim scratched his thigh. “One of the men at the clearing said something odd before the Northmen arrived. What is the Hunt?”
“It’s an old legend. Pa told it to us often when we were little. It gave Keegan nightmares.”
There was a grunt from the other side of the fire, but Liana continued.
“Every winter, during the longest nights, a pack of wolves comes down from the mountains to hunt, led by their master. A man with skin like coal. Anyone caught out of doors must run until daybreak or be torn to pieces.”
Caim thought of the barbarians with their wolf-pelt headdresses and the giant in black armor. “The Master of the Hunt.”
Gentle snores echoed from the back of the cave as Liana moved closer to the fire. Caim retrieved a whetstone from his satchel and set to work on his blades. The scrape of the steel over stone was like a draught of cool wine, releasing the tension in his shoulders and neck. Its rhythm lulled him into a peaceful trance where nothing existed except him and the blades and the play of the shadows across the ceiling. Sleep would be a long time coming, but he had gone without its succor on jobs before. He had everything he needed right here.
Stone and steel and shadow.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
C aim winced as frigid needles penetrated the pores of his face. Holding his breath, he rubbed the snow over his forehead, across his cheeks, and-gently-around his sore ear. His hands came away with flakes of scabbing, but no fresh blood. Satisfied, he rubbed his hands in the snow and picked up the meal cake that was his breakfast.
He had forgotten how peaceful the forest could be. Rising between the snowy hilltops, the sun lit up the valley below in shades of gold and orange. Fingers of white mist wended through the carpet of trees. Birds twittered, and small creatures scampered through the underbrush. They’d hiked farther last night than he realized, at least four or five miles, much of it over rough terrain. To the north, the chain of peaks extended as far as he could see. Beyond them lay the Great Forest, running all the way to the Drakstag Mountains. When Caim was a boy, Kas had told him stories about how he and Caim’s father had journeyed over those mountains and into the forbidding wastelands beyond. A fool’s crusade, he’d called it. Among the memories of Caim’s childhood, that one sparkled like a polished jewel.
He looked down at the open pages of Vassili’s journal in his hand, but put it away after reading the same paragraph three times. He couldn’t concentrate. His thoughts kept running to last night and the fight at the clearing, the warrior in black armor. Keegan called him the Beast. What did that mean?
He didn’t know, and he had no clue what to do next. At least Keegan hadn’t tried to stick a knife in him while he slept. That had to count for something. But he and his sister would probably be better off without him. Right up until they run into another band of wildmen .
Leather soles scraped across the ground behind him as Keegan emerged from the cave. Tugging on the cuffs of his coat sleeves, the youth looked scruffier than last night. Caim ran a hand across his whiskered chin and thought the same could probably be said about him. He put away the journal.
“I need to get to Morrowglen. I’ll pay whatever you think is fair.”
Keegan came up beside him and kicked a stone down the loose talus. “I think Ramon still has your money.”
Caim didn’t mention the stash of coins tucked in a false pocket the woodsmen hadn’t found.
“Anyway,” the youth said. “We can take you as far as Liovard. After that, you’re on your own.”
It was as good a deal as Caim expected to get. “Fair enough.”
“I figure the duke’s men have given up by now, but we’ll head north for a few miles anyway before we angle east. Just to be sure.”
Keegan turned back to the cave. “Come on, Li! We’re freezing our asses off!”
She came out and gave Caim a quick look before following her brother down the narrow shelf. Caim picked up his bundles and went after them. Liana walked with an easy stride. Her face looked freshly scrubbed, and her hair was tied up in a handkerchief.
Caim patted the stitched sleeve of his jacket. His arm was still a little sore, but not as bad as last night. “Thank you. Good as new.”
“You get into a lot of fights.”
It wasn’t a question, so he didn’t answer. She looked back, and her gaze went to his cheek.
“What did that? It doesn’t look like another bear bite.”
Caim touched his cheek and remembered the scar, and the black knife that had caused it. “A fight. Long time ago.”
“I hope you won.”
“I’m still breathing.”
“So, you have trouble with women.” She smiled at him. “And a lot of scars. Are they related?”
“Some of them.”
“What did you do back in the south? Let me guess. You weren’t a shoemaker.”
“No,” he answered. “I… cleaned up messes.”
She laughed out loud. “What? You were a housemaid?”
Keegan looked back over his shoulder. “He’s a hired sword, Liana. He kills people for money.”
She looked at Caim, all humor gone from her face. Caim waited. This had happened so many times before it was almost second nature to him. He met someone who seemed to enjoy his company. Then they found out what he did for a living, and their attitude changed. Josey had been one of the few to accept him for what he was, warts and all, and it hadn’t been easy with her, either.
Liana hurried to catch up to her brother. Caim filled his lungs with cool forest air and let it out. It didn’t matter what they thought of him. Soon he would be done with them, and they could go back to their lives.
Keegan led them down into a saddle between the hills. Though steep in places, the descent wasn’t difficult. Keegan and Liana exchanged occasional whispers, but Caim didn’t pay much attention until their tones began to rise. Before long, their conversation erupted into a hushed quarrel. He couldn’t make out what they were saying except for his name, Liovard, and something about a castle. After a time, the siblings let off their arguing and focused on the hike. The forest thinned as they traveled north, and they made good time down through the narrow valley. They reached its lowest point just after midday and stopped in the shade between two tall pine trees to eat. Lunch consisted of whatever they could pool from their collective stashes, which wasn’t much. Caim provided a pair
