Vampire's Prey

Chapter 33: Forest Flowers

The leather tunic encases my torso, its weight on my shoulders feels like a shield surrounding me. A morning breeze catches my long hair, bringing the familiar smell of cabbage and chard from the farmhouse garden. Frances's porch is elevated on a hill, providing Rahlan and I with a view over the grassy fields all the way up to the forest's edge.

Frances points to the dense woodland. "Last I saw Colin, he went that way, sir- I mean lord- sir- lord."

I suppose I was also that nervous when I first met Rahlan. With his sickle sword and black cape, he doesn't present himself as a particularly friendly individual.

Rahlan picks a couple thatch stalks out of the roof. Without a word, he begins down the hill, and I follow at his side.

"Thank you, lord and lady," Frances calls after us.

Rahlan doesn't need my assistance to track down a farmer – I can personally attest to that. I would've preferred to stay in the castle and used his absence as an opportunity to probe for weak spots and plan my route out.

"Why did I have to come with?" I ask. "Wouldn't Julke have been more useful?"

"Traveling through the wilderness without my cute whiny human just wouldn't be the same," he says.

"I don't whine." I fold my arms. "And don't call me cute."

He spins the thatch stalks between his fingers as he walks. "Threading an orchid through your hair is a bizarre choice for someone who wishes to appear coarse."

I fidget with the white flower just above my ear. It was on our path here, and it was too beautiful to ignore.

The grass thins out. Rahlan crouches to inspect the soil. I peer over him. There's a shoeprint.

He snaps the stalks into pieces and plants one at the edge of the print. Taking thoughtful steps onto the soil, he marks the next print with another stalk. I watch from the grass, concerned I may accidentally contaminate the tracks with my own. Soon there's a short piece of thatch at the heel of each of the seven shoeprints.

I scan the soil for anything he may have missed. The man who fled doesn't know about the ravagers. The sooner we find him, the better.

"There's another one here," I say.

Rahlan takes careful steps around the tracks and kneels by the mark I found.

"'Tis not him," he says.

I crouch beside him. "How do you know?"

He points to the edge of the print. "Cracks. 'Tis days old."

He returns to the tracks he marked and places a long piece of thatch between the planted stalks. Snapping the thatch to match the length of Colin's gait, he threads it in his belt for safe keeping.

We stop again at the edge of the forest, and he scans the tree line. His expression sharpens as something grabs his attention.

"What did you find?" I ask.

He steps closer to the bush without taking his eyes off it. "An overlay." Reaching out, he nudges a stalk. It shoots upright – back to its original position. Someone went through here.

He enters the forest, and I follow. We weave our way through the thick brush as he traces the little disturbances in the vegetation. I stay a few steps behind him as to not accidentally disturb the trail.

A pink tack tack flower catches my eye. They get their name from their tendency to stick to both clothes and sheep, making them extra cute.

My eyes jump back to the caped vampire ahead of me. I know who could do with appearing a little less threatening.