The Shadow

Chapter 8

By the time they had passed the rolling green slopes at last, Kai could barely keep his eyes open. He and Harper stopped in a grassy clearing a couple of miles past the hills, trees towering on every side. Although they had cut around the woods that the wraith inhabited, they had found themselves in another, smaller forest that grew just outside the hills. Kai could only hope that there was only one wraith—and that it hadn't somehow followed them here. The chances were low, but at this point he didn't know what to expect. Everything he had ever learned about the world outside of Northshore could have been a lie. After mere days of leaving his old home, he had already encountered creatures that he had never heard of, nor wished to believe existed.

Night began to settle over the clearing, casting the sky into shades of orange and yellow.

"Are the sunsets here always this beautiful?" Kai looked to Harper, who was lying a few feet away from him on her cloak, staring up at the sky. Dusty and Lunar were tied to a tree at the edge of the clearing, content to rest after a long day of trotting and galloping through the hills.

"No. It seems that we've been lucky this week." Her eyes darkened for a moment before returning to their usual hazel coloring. "With the sunsets, that is."

"I never watched the sky," Kai said, eyes remaining above him, where the sky was shifting from orange to a wonderful red. "In my old home, I mean. I always felt grateful that I had a roof over my head, but being here...I wish I had experienced this every night."

Harper nodded her agreement as she sat up to rifle through her pack. "In Aria, I like to go outside each night before I sleep to watch the sunsets." She cleared her throat, gaze shifting to the pack she held. "We'll start hunting tomorrow—we should keep some dried meat and bread in case things go badly.

Kai nodded. He had never actually gone hunting before—not for animals, at least—but he supposed that it wouldn't be too different from killing other types of prey.

Looking again to Harper, he truly studied her face for the first time since he'd met her. Her black hair fell nearly to her waist, hazel eyes contrasting with her tan skin. She was beautiful, although it was hard to notice with the dirt and weariness that seemed to cloak her like a second skin. She noticed his stare, hair falling past her shoulder as she looked up from her pack, cocking her head. "What is it?" she asked.

Kai looked at the ground. "Nothing."

He cleared his throat, eager to change the subject. "Is it nice? Aria?"

She lay back down, expression concentrated in thought. "It's a nice city, yes. I haven't liked living there since my mom left, but it's a nice city." She turned her head toward him. "Are you coming to live there?"

He shook his head. "I've had enough of city life, I think. I planned on going to a town near here—Walden or Eelry, perhaps." He had seen them both on his map and knew nothing of either, but they seemed small and comfortable, if he could find himself a job in one of the towns.

"I see." Was that disappointment in her voice? He couldn't tell.

"I'll be going to Aria first," he blurted. "To make sure you make it there in one piece. I might consider staying... there'll be more job opportunities than in a smaller town."

Harper nodded, head turning back to the sky. "Thank you. For helping me, I mean."

He swallowed. "It's no problem... I'd like to see the city anyway."

She nodded again, closing her eyes. "I can't wait to give you a tour," she said, yawning.

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To Kai's relief, no hounds appeared in the middle of the night; it remained quiet and peaceful during his watch, and Harper reported the same activity—or lack thereof—during hers.

They decided to get an early start, eating a small breakfast before setting out through the grove around them. They would hunt on the way.
Although Kai's lack of hunting skills still worried him, nature seemed to be going easy on him—and hard on his prey. Rabbits, deer and fowls were plentiful in the woods they passed through, much to Harper's delight. Within the first half hour of hunting she had shot a large black pheasant.

Despite the quick end that she mercifully gave the bird, Kai couldn't help feeling sad for it.

Years ago, in Northshore, Kai had faced predators more terrible and merciless than a bow and arrow-wielding hunter. He had been helpless before them at first, begging to survive, wandering from street to street, thinking only of his next meal.

As he grew older, he'd found a consistent supply of money. He was no longer forced to plead for his next meal. No, instead he killed for it, taking any job he could find. After a dozen assassinations and years of training, Kai had fought in the pits. Despite his close encounters with death, that time had been the best of his life. He had been given the choice to kill fellow murderers, rather than innocents.

The pits had passed before long, giving way to more death, more suffering at his own hand. The pheasant reminded him of his victims. Reminded him of faces, of lives, cut short too soon. They had pushed throughout their life, just as the bird before him had, fighting for survival even when it seemed impossible to keep going. And then their life was gone, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

He shook his head, clearing away his thoughts, his guilt, as he slowed Lunar to a stop behind Dusty.

What's wrong with me? Why am I comparing the people I've murdered to my lunch?

They halted atop a shallow slope overlooking a forest to their right and fields stretching away to the left. Straight ahead, a mixture of tree-covered hills sprawled further than he could see, brown branches and green leaves melding with the grassy slopes.

Kai quickly made a fire, watching in awe as Harper efficiently plucked the bird's feathers before seasoning it with powders from a few small containers stashed in her pack.

"Where did you learn to do that?" He couldn't help asking; it seemed unusual for a merchant's daughter to be so skilled at such things.

"Well, along with teaching me how to use a bow and arrow, my mother showed me how to hunt, clean and cook game." As if proving her point, Harper cut off the feet and head of the bird. She then removed the pheasant's innards and pierced a stick through the entirety of its body. She set the stick, pheasant and all, atop a large branch beside the fire, leaning the creature over the flames. Rubbing her hands together, she smiled. "Perfect."

Kai realized that he was gaping at her, then the bird, then her again, and quickly looked away. He had never learned how to cook—not well, at least. Although he had always made his own meals in Northshore, it was usually the same old ground meat, porridge and bread. He had never had the chance to experiment with food; had never been able to afford wasting it.

They sat beside the flames, watching their lunch slowly cook through. Dusty and Lunar were secured at the bottom of the slope next to a crystal clear stream from which they drank.

They waited for their lunch to finish cooking in a pleasant silence, interrupted only by the crackling of flames and pop of burning fat. The pheasant wasn't as large as a chicken, so the cooking took a little over an hour, during which Kai lay on the hill, gazing at the sky yet again. Although no oranges or reds filled the heavens, it was still a beautiful sight: puffy clouds rolling past a sea of blue that stretched on forever.

By the time the pheasant was finished cooking, Kai and Harper were both ravenous, and picked the bird to the bone in just a few minutes. Despite being cooked over a small fire in the middle of nowhere, it was some of the best food he'd ever had.

They cleaned their hands in the stream, mounting Lunar and Dusty "We're nearing Eelry," Harper shouted over the wind, pushing her stallion into a trot.

Kai nodded, nudging Lunar forward as they made their way down the slope.