Altered Destiny (13 page)

He closed his eyes, the familiar ache for his people growing to desperation for change. For a chance. “Some of us looked to the future and knew our choices were limited. Die in the Dead lands, die of starvation or die trying to take our land back.” Bitterness coated his tongue. “Which would you choose?”

Selia didn’t answer.

“Many chose the Dead lands and, as far as we know, not one party made it to the other side, if another side exists. After a time, the messages always stopped. We lost contact with each expedition. I’d like to believe they made it. I’d like to hope there’s a group of Svistra far away and thriving. Hope there is a future for my people. But I am not so naïve as I once was.”

Selia reached for his hand and squeezed. The spice of her arousal spiked. “Jaden.”

He stroked down her hair to the skin of her arm, the flesh like silk beneath his fingers. She struggled to turn, but he held her still.

“No,” he rasped. “If you do that, I will not be able to control myself.”

“And if I don’t want you to?” Her voice was a mere whisper.

Need tore through his body. Jaden stroked up her arm to her jaw and traced her lips.

“We’ve gone through so much. We deserve—”

“No.”

Confusion tainted the desire. “You don’t want me?”

He barked out a laugh and then adjusted her against him, pressing the length of his erection against her hip.

“Then why?”

“It’s not right.”

“Who the fuck cares what’s right?” Her voice rose.

“You will. In the morning.”

Selia tensed but didn’t speak.

Jaden wondered if he was afraid if she’d have regrets, or he would.

The wind still held a touch of moisture, but white clouds tinged with grey sailed in a pale blue sky. Keldar stepped out into the cool morning air and waited. He didn’t need to speak. His presence was enough to still all other conversation.

His warriors had assembled with the dawn, as he’d instructed the day before. A few had sent nervous glances to the sky but even if the storm had lasted until morning, they would still have obeyed him.

“This morning, we go south. We will find a solitary unit of humans not far away.” He waited for the low rumble of anticipation and approval to die down. He’d opened his mouth to continue when a horse running into camp caught his attention.

Warriors shifted position but all remained silent. Soon, a bedraggled horse thundered into camp, its sides mud-splashed and heaving. An equally disheveled Svistra dismounted and staggered toward him.

Keldar bit back a surge of irritation. This had better be good news.

The horse stood with its head down and flaring pink-tinged nostrils. The Svistra didn’t look much better. “Commander. Word,” he gasped.

He waved the Svistra forward and adjusted his gauntlet. When he was done, he glanced to where the messenger waited a few feet away, his head bowed and legs trembling. “Yes.”

“We caught Jaden’s scent south of the White lands.”

Inwardly Keldar smiled. Good news, the man had just saved his own life. “And?”

“It was mingled with that of a human.”

“A human, interesting, but not rare. He was hungry.” Keldar clenched his jaw. Jaden was up to his old tricks. Not many knew of his half-brother’s weakness for the company of humans and of those with that information one was dead, the other cloistered in the north.

“That’s what we thought too, Commander. Especially after the human’s scent vanished.”

“Did you find blood, a carcass?”

“No, but it was near a stream.”

He folded his arms. “Start at the beginning.”

The Svistra took a deep breath. “We found his scent and were tracking it when the trail of a small group of humans intersected then merged with Jaden’s. When the humans’ dogs started barking, my warriors and I moved in. Just past the river, Jaden laid a false trail and the humans fell for it. He had been there with a female human. The female’s scent disappeared and Jaden’s headed north.”

“Did you follow?”

“After we took care of the humans. The others continued after Jaden. I left to report to you.”

“I see. How long ago?”

“A few days.”

No wonder the man and horse were so winded. Riding that far in only a few days was a feat. “That will be all. See to the horse.”

The messenger backed away. Keldar turned to inspect his warriors. The gods favored him. Just south of camp, a group of human soldiers unknowingly waited for death and he didn’t have to go after Jaden; his brother was coming to him.

Jaden pulled the packs off the tree. The morning air smelled clean, of moist earth and damp foliage. A few birds twittered in the new day. Behind him, Selia dressed. He hadn’t slept much but didn’t begrudge the hours he sat awake. It had been a long time since he held a woman while she slept and even then, he couldn’t remember feeling the contentment he’d experienced holding Selia. Contentment? No. The delicious ache to feel her skin against his had tortured him into the night. A torment he willingly accepted.

He closed his eyes, remembering the scent of her hair and the soft sound of her breathing as she slept.
You’re a fool
. He was, every inch of him. But he didn’t open his eyes or chase away the memory. He’d never forget the silky feel of her hand reaching for his in the Dead lands.

He rubbed his palms against his leggings. It wouldn’t do to get too attached, to delude himself. The scent of her arousal had almost stolen his reason. She’d wanted him, but the emotion had been a byproduct of fear and the companionship they’d experienced. He couldn’t have borne the regret in her eyes after.
But you wanted her too. Too much.
If he tasted Selia’s skin, her lips, he’d become addicted. If he wasn’t already.

Jaden snorted.

“What’s so funny?”

He turned. The object of his thoughts stood with her hands on her hips, one brow raised.

“Just thinking.”

“About what?”

There wasn’t any scent of self-consciousness or hint of awkwardness about last night in her manner. Had he made the right decision? “How to get us through the next stretch of land.”

“That’s not very funny.”

“No. It’s not.”

Eagle Rock lay four days away. But from this point on there was virtually no chance of avoiding Svistra or human patrols.

“So how are we going to get through?” She shrugged on her pack.

“By not getting caught.”

“I don’t think much of your sense of humor, you know?”

Jaden continued to stare north. He hadn’t told Selia but his goal had changed. Now he only wanted to get her to Eagle Rock, where she would be reunited with Oren and safe. Taking both humans back to the tavern would be suicide.

“Why are your clothes always drier than mine?” Selia’s voice broke through his reverie.

He reached for his pack. “Feel.”

She touched the rich leather. “What is it?”

“A kind of…refined wax. It keeps the moisture out.”

“Where can I find some?”

Jaden smiled. “When this is over, I’ll make you some.”

“Deal.” She slid her pack across her shoulders.

He only hoped they lived long enough for him to keep that promise.

Selia cleared her throat. “Um, Jaden. This whole time you’ve…well, I know you eat regular, well, people food.” She paused at loss for the words.

“I haven’t hunted.”

“Yeah, how long can you go without?”

That was a question he’d been asking himself. “Not much longer.”

To his surprise, she didn’t flinch. “What happens if you don’t get blood?”

Jaden avoided Selia’s gaze. “Let’s go.”

She didn’t move. “Answer.”

“I’ll die. Let’s go.”

Nathan slammed his fist onto the desk’s wooden surface so hard the documents jumped. He leaned his elbows on the mess, cradled his forehead in his hands and took a deep breath, raking his fingers through unruly hair. Frustration pounded through his head as images of tearing Svistra limb to limb with his bare hands flashed through his mind. The demons had attacked three more villages and a dozen homesteaders with the same brutality they’d displayed in the last village. At this rate, there wouldn’t be anyone left for him to defend.

They were everywhere and nowhere, getting past his patrols like wind through the branches. His men were becoming increasingly ineffectual, and he hated it. Nathan sighed. It was his fault. He’d underestimated the Svistra.

When the king suggested Eagle Rock and the other two northern fortresses as the natural place to launch an offensive against the Svistra, Nathan had agreed. On the map, the boundaries were clear. Eagle Rock, the northernmost fortress, lay at least seven days south of Svistra territory. Nathan had planned to spread out and drive them north.

But either the Svistra couldn’t read a damn map or didn’t care for boundaries. They’d slipped by him, and now they were between his forces and the castle at Newhaven. A tactical nightmare. Worse: he couldn’t find them. Not a camp, not a trail, nothing. They’d finished another sweep of the forests between the forts, only to come up empty.

The king had troops at Newhaven, but not many. He could try to catch them in a pincer move between his men and Newhaven’s, but without knowing exactly where they were, it would be difficult.

Nathan ran a hand over his chin, only half noticing the rasping sound of stubble as the void in his stomach deepened. If he tried that strategy, and the Svistra got by him, the castle would be undefended.

Would the southern king offer more support? If so, the men stationed at Newhaven could stay to guard the castle.

Nathan slammed his fist against the desk again. The Svistra were like ghosts. Ghosts with sharp knives. How many of them were out there? From the reports he’d received, the bands of Svistra were small, the number varying between five and twelve. There hadn’t been many survivors and those who had were not quite coherent. A dozen of the animals—not a match for a battalion of his soldiers, but certainly enough to slaughter innocent farmers. Of course, so far the large number of soldiers had been ineffectual at protecting the people from the bands of Svistra.

Many of the captains believed only a few Svistra caused the problem. Once the northern villages were destroyed—and they had their fill of blood—the demons would slink back to their mountains. No one knew how much blood a Svistra had to consume. Even the thought of it turned Nathan’s stomach. Maybe the captains were right.

But Nathan trusted his instincts. He knew there were many more Svistra in forests, and they were not planning to leave. Besides destroying lives, what did they want? Would they attack the castle? He didn’t think so. Not yet, anyway. The Svistra were outnumbered and so far they had avoided a real battle.

The southern king’s reinforcements should reach Eagle Rock in the next few days. As soon as they arrived, he’d take out larger patrols and sweep the forests again, leaving no rock unturned. If there were Svistra out there, and he was certain there were, he and the soldiers at the other fortresses would flush them out. Force them into the open. Make them fight like men instead of savages.

He pulled out a quill and a fresh piece of parchment. He’d let King Leisle know of his failure to stop the Svistra and warn him to prepare for the worst.

“Shhh.” Jaden grabbed Selia’s hand and pulled her down into a crouch.

She glanced around the quiet forest. Though Selia couldn’t hear or see anything out of the ordinary, she trusted Jaden’s senses. She met his gaze.

He mouthed the word, “Patrol.”

She closed her eyes and nodded. They’d gone almost two days without any sign of either human or Svistra. She should have known their luck couldn’t last.

A cool breeze ruffled her hair. He tensed. What was it? Were they upwind from the patrol? The strain of not knowing built to a crescendo when she heard voices.
Svistra, or human?
She didn’t know which she preferred.

She grimaced. Did it matter if it’s the wolf that eats you or the bear that mauls you?

Jaden forced her gaze to his, his eyes stern and jaw clenched. He really didn’t need to tell her to be quiet; she was cognizant of the danger. Then she realized what the look meant. A Svistra patrol.

Selia struggled to take shallow breaths and hold still as the voices grew louder. At first she could only hear mumbles but by Jaden’s expression and his paled skin, he realized what they were saying.

Jaden moved silently in front of her, one hand stretched behind him almost touching her, and the other fisted against the ground as through ready to jump forward. The voices became distinct.

“The stench of this place is almost too much to bear.” The voice was deep, almost pleasant.

“You know the orders, patrol the perimeter.”

Even if Jaden hadn’t given it away earlier, somehow she would have known they were Svistra. She wasn’t sure if it was the timbre of the voices or the gleam in Jaden’s pale eyes when he glanced her way.

The first voice grumbled something.

“Hey, did you catch that?”

“No, what?”

“Fresh human blood. One of them is alive.”

Selia’s stomach turned to stone.

The first voice laughed. “Are you still hungry? I’ll head on back so you can rummage though the corpses to see which one’s heart still beats.”

A guttural reply followed.

“Good choice,” the first voice said. “If I reported back alone, they’d pull us both in for questioning. Better we stick together.”

“I don’t know why we’re out here anyway. What does he hope to find?”

“Are you going to question him?”

The second voice replied in the negative and then the voices faded.

She held her breath. Bile rose in her throat.

Jaden stepped away and rose in one fluid motion. He raised a cautionary hand and mouthed, “right back” before she could move a muscle.

How had she ever thought she could just go north and rescue Oren? She’d been stupid and naïve, in this case a fatal combination. From the time she was small, she’d taken pride in the fact that she was self-sufficient, not needing anyone. She took great gulps of air, trying to push down the fresh waves of panic threatening to immobilize her, and jumped when Jaden returned through the underbrush.

“They’re gone,” he whispered.

Selia’s body collapsed against the tree as though it lacked bones to hold it up. She met Jaden’s gaze. “What did they mean, fresh human blood?”

“It’s a supreme insult to accuse another of consuming the blood of a corpse. No sane Svistra would do such a thing. It’s an abomination.”

She blinked. It was nice to know the Svistra had standards, but that’s not what she had meant. “I was the fresh blood. Who else were they referring to?”

He hesitated. “There was a battle ahead.” He pointed north. “I smelled the carnage when the wind shifted. It’s bad and what saved us from detection.”

“Oren?” Panic sped her heart.

“I didn’t see him. The soldiers…don’t wear Newhaven’s crest.”

“Then let’s go. I’d rather not chance the next set of guards.”

Jaden nodded once. “We’ll detour around the field as far as we can.”

“Alacrity, remember? What’s the fastest way to Eagle Rock?”

He pointed toward the north.

“Then let’s hurry. I can take it.”

Without a word Jaden started cautiously forward.

Before long birds cawed in the distance, squawking at one another in such numbers they sounded like a single monstrous creature.
Birds of the dead.
Her stomach lurched. A great black cloud of them drifted up between the trees, then settled back like a midnight-colored blanket blown by the wind. The scent hit her all at once. One moment, it wasn’t there and then a sickly-sweet smell rendered the air unbreatheable. It clung to her nostrils, weighed her step and filled her with dread. Selia reached for a cloth and placed it over her mouth and nose, then looked up. Jaden watched her with something like pity in his pale eyes.

She didn’t recognize the first body. It seemed the wrong shape, twisted at an inhuman angle and without arms. Her stomach rose into her throat but she swallowed it down. It had been human.

The trees cleared to reveal a crimson-soaked field. Bodies lay seemingly thrown, many missing body parts. Like a deranged monument of some kind, a pile of horse carcasses stood at the far end of the field. Black birds rose, fighting over the bodies. Two ravens tugged at something, each with the end of it in their beaks. She stopped to catch her breath when she realized it was a human eye.

The weight of Jaden’s gaze brushed across her skin. She couldn’t read his expression, but nodded and continued, averting her gaze from the gruesome meadow.

He moved with inhuman stillness as he scanned the forest. The skin over his jaw was tight and pale. He appeared more than ever like a hunting cat.

“Are…are any of them alive?” Selia whispered, knowing Jaden would hear her.

“No.”

Her eyes darted toward the field of their own accord. A corpse lay near the edge of the forest perhaps attempting to escape the slaughter. He was pale, even for the dead. His throat had been ripped open but the flesh was white. She couldn’t help but stop and stare, realizing why there was so little blood on the wound. The man’s eyes were still open, staring at a sky he could no longer see.

Who was he? Did he have a wife? Children? Would they ever know what happened to him?

Oren.
It was more important than ever that she take him home, away from all of this. Jaden had stopped several steps ahead. Selia cursed herself and hurried to catch up.

She felt a brush of air before something hit her from behind and darkness consumed her.