Gift- Book 1

Chapter 18

The door to Leiea's side opens and Sheyric sticks his head in. The way his face is set suggests that he's been on edge for a while. "We're stopping for the day," he says, "Come on." She walks out the door behind him, dreading what might happen next. The conversation to come.

The sun is nearing the horizon, casting bright light on the front of the caravan and Sheyric's back, who's now sitting on the dry grass a few feet away, holding a mug. She folds her arms and stands in place. "What happened there?" she asks, dropping her eyes to her feet. "You know what happened, and you don't tell me."

He lifts his eyes and lets his gaze fall over her. "I didn't want you to know. Not now, at least."

"I deserve to know what's happening here."

He stands up and puts the mug down aggressively. Walking up to her, he grasps the sides of her arms, being far more rough than she's used to. "That man with the bird? Unsafe. An omen of death. Bad things are to come."

The worst part is how passionate he is. It's hard to argue that he's lying. Still, she can't let her guard down now. "How do you know-"

He shakes her shoulders and yells, "I know! I've seen that man. He has come up to me before, in the same spot, proclaimed all that nonsense. But it's not nonsense. I thought nothing of it until I got back to the village. That was the year all those teachers died. All of them I was close to. They were murdered while I was gone. One of them was my grandmother. The second closest person to me after my father. "

She does remember that year. Two years ago, four or five teachers at her school were murdered, in early autumn. It was never concluded how they were killed, but there was a giant ceremony in their burial for their work in education. That was the reason teachers are so sparse. However, she didn't know one of them was his grandmother.

He continues. "He looked at you this time. Flashed that pendant I've never seen before. The emerald pendant, just like yours."

"What's so special about this emerald thing?" she snaps back, "You gave me it. You already admitted it's a present, a sign of hiring, and now a connection to... to what? This symbol of death? You're the one that did all of this."

He sets his jaw and lets his hands fall from her arms. "Yes, I gave it to you. Because it's pretty and expensive and..." he takes a deep breath in. "How would I know this would happen? It's not like I even knew you would want to go with me. Somehow, that man knew you had that. He has a,l this information somehow. And the fact he showed that thing, looking at you? All of that directed to you? You know what this means?"

Leiea feels her hands and face grow cold. "You don't think-"

"Yes, I do think that." He frowns and rubs his eyes. "Somethings happening. Or will happen. Maybe it already did."

She sinks to the ground and hides her face in her hands. This is the one thing that shouldn't happen. The one thing she was fretting about from the beginning of this voyage. Pure danger. Only, she's not the one at stake, and not Sheyric either. Mother and Fleya might be killed. They might already be. Or maybe it's starting with Ryn, and next year it will be them. Maybe it's Ryn and Sheyric's family now, since he already encountered that man.

Suddenly, she has a horrible thought. What if it's that bird killing these people? She's never seen such a strange bird. The might of a falcon, the colorful beauty of a peacock, and now the brutality of a vulture. She can imagine it tearing up the insides of those teachers, eating them. How horrific those wounds would be, to the point no one knows how it happened.

Still, how would they know? If that man was especially targeting fear in Leiea, he can do whatever he wants, most likely. The ability to kill common folk however he pleases- or, at least, ordering them to be killed.

How are the targets known, though? That unnatural bird? His aura of malice and dark power? Dark power, she thinks. That's the best way to describe it. Magic? Some force working for him? As a part of him?

She thinks back to the storytellers back home. Those classic tales of crazy, mythical beasts. The monstrous wintertime ones compared to the more cheerful, friendly folk of spring. Some of the things in that forest that fit in with the stories. The bird that attacked Fleya...

The bird that attacked Fleya!

Leiea's head shoots up from her hands. Sure, it's unlikely, but it makes sense. A huge bird leaving marks down her face and arms. The way it was so dark she couldn't identify any of it. Now, the fact that they figured the thing was an owl is almost comical. Maybe Fleya did see some of that creature that night, and was too scared to admit it. How much she would give to ask her that right now.

She tries to let her mind calm down for a moment and realizes that Sheyric's gone now, as well as the mug he put down in the grass. The sky's darker, too. She must have been sitting for close to an hour. The door's cracked so she walks in, hoping to go to bed. The day has been too exhausting.

He's sitting on the kitchen counter playing with a small bar of green soap. "I should have told you this might happen. I just thought that guy will stop appearing since he didn't last year. I'm sorry."

She nods and unlatches the chain from her neck, letting it fall in her hand. It's strange not having the weight of it on. She hasn't realized how used to it she has become.

"Here," she holds it out for him to take. It's not something she should have. All it will do know is remind her of everything from today. It brought danger. It's not like she'll keep something that did that.

He snorts and shakes his head. "You're really done here, huh?"

"What I am done with is bringing death," she thinks before adding, "No, it's not me bringing it. You brought this."

"Yes, and I acknowledged that earlier," he puts the soap on his lap and folds his arms. "Fine, since I'm making all the decisions here. What do you want? Go back home? Continue to Galerus, letting all that hate and fear marinate for a month? Oh, so you do? Then just continue after that? Think about it, girl."

"I have been thinking!" she snaps, then immediately knows tears are about to come on. The one thing she was set on avoiding. "My family's doomed. But so would your little business. It's not like I want to see it go to waste."

"Yes, because you're apart of it as well, and everything has to be about you."

Leiea stares into his amber eyes, glinting with what she could only say is hate. In a low tone to disguise her cracking voice, she retorts, "Everything has been about me today because my family's fate is done. It's set."

"Then why do you want to keep going to Galerus?"

"For you!" tears start spilling from her eyes, carving lines down her cheeks. All the emotion she's bundled up forever. "It's for you. I care for you just as much. I don't want any of my family or friends to suffer. I didn't learn all of that for nothing."

His features soften a bit. "Do you not want to face what's happening back home? What did happen?"

"Of course I don't! I just want my mind from it. Hope it's all fake."

He takes a deep breath. "Well, it's probably not. But we'll continue to Galerus. I won't bring this up again."

"Thank you."