The Eden Series: The Complete Collection (58 page)

“Come on, little girl,” he said in a sneering voice. “Come down here and I promise we won’t hurt you.”

“Why don’t you come up and get me?” she called back, keeping her voice sweet. There was no way a man of his size could manage to lift himself up to where she sat. A small triumphant smile spread across her face.

“I guess I’ll just have to make you come down,” he said, backing away from the tree. Fat chance, she thought as she watched him walk away slowly. Then it dawned on her where he was going. All the colour drained from her face. He was walking towards Logan’s unconscious body. They had left him there, completely helpless and unguarded. What was wrong with her? Cursing loudly, Elisa jumped down from where she sat, landing on her feet like she really was a cat. He was already by Logan’s side, a knife held to his throat. From where she stood, she could tell Logan was still unconscious; his body limp in the other man’s arms.

“Let go of him!” she yelled firmly, walking towards him. The horse was still standing nervously beside Logan, it’s eyes darting. She instantly knew what she had to do, although there was a chance it might make things worse. Some chances had to be taken, and anything was better than having that man’s knife at her friend’s throat. Bringing two fingers to her mouth, she blew hard and loud. A high-pitched whistle bellowed out across the field. The horse lurched forward. Logan went with him, his foot caught in the stirrups. She watched her friend’s limp body be dragged away, and wondered how badly injured he was going to be when this was over. He was probably never going to let her live it down. She called out for the horse to stop when it was far enough, positioning her body between where the horse now stood and where the other man stood staring at her.

“At least I got you down here,” he smiled at her.

“I don’t think that’s as good of a thing as you think it is,” she replied. Part of fighting was psychological, and she knew she had to keep up the facade that he didn’t scare her. He did though. His arms were five times the size of hers, and even though she was quick, if he managed to get them around her, there would be little she could do. He crept closer, a blade outstretched in one hand.

He tilted his head at her. “Why is that, little miss?”

She tilted her head back mockingly. “Because my father taught me well, and I still have one weapon left,” she replied, pulling her own blade out of the strap at her waist.

“And who is your father?” He was still moving closer, but Elisa didn’t budge. She needed him closer as her blade was small. Normally she’d circle him, just to keep her feet moving, but she had to stay between him and Logan. The fact that he was inching closer and closer made her want to back up, but the last thing she wanted to do was to show fear. Twirling her knife loosely in her hand she waited a second longer to answer.

“Captain Turk, leader of the King’s army,” she smiled, watching as understanding cross the man’s features. He straightened up, looking at her through narrowed eyes. A moment of hesitation was what she had hoped for. Flipping the knife so the blade now nestled in the palm of her hand, she flung it forward, sending it twirling through the air. It landed hilt deep in the man’s thigh. He yelled out, yanking the small handle that stuck out of his leg. Wolf suddenly appeared beside her, his eyebrow cut open and bleeding, but otherwise unharmed. They stood closely together. Thankfully he still had a blade, since she had now used all of hers.

Looking over where he had been, Elisa saw the man with the injured shoulder lying on the ground. His chest moved up and down slowly, so she knew he wasn’t dead. She turned back to look at the largest one in front of her. He had pulled out the blade, his breathing coming in rough pants.

“You’re Turk’s daughter?” he asked, his voice sounding on the verge of laughter. “Does that make you Hawk’s son?” he looked at Wolf, who gave him one firm nod, not letting down his protective stance. The man actually started to chuckle. “Just my luck,” he said, shaking his head. His eyes took them both in slowly, finally resting on Wolf. “You can lower that blade boy, I think you’ve successfully won.”

“I’ll lower it when you and your men leave us,” Wolf answered through clenched teeth. There was tension in the air as they all stood silently, looking at each other with calculating eyes. Finally the man smiled and raised his hands in surrender.

“Fine. We’re leaving.” He took another look at Elisa, then turned to walk back where the others were, limping on his injured leg. Elisa and Wolf watched them as they spoke to one another. The large man then slung the unconscious one over his shoulder, and they all struggled back towards the forest. Neither Elisa nor Wolf moved until they were completely out of sight.

“We need to leave
now
,” Wolf finally said, rushing over to Logan. Elisa followed, glancing behind her where the men had gone, just to be sure. She prayed they didn’t have bows and arrows hidden somewhere in there. When they reached Logan he was still limp. Elisa knelt beside him, cradling his head in her lap as Wolf detached his foot from the horse. He was pale, but his breathing was normal. She wiped away the dirt and strands of hair that covered his face, then felt along the back of his skull for any sign of major damage. There was a bump on the side that was the size of an egg, and another on the base of his skull, but she didn’t feel any blood.

Wolf splashed some of their water in his face. Logan moaned, his eyes slowly fluttering open, glazed and unfocused. When he saw Elisa staring down at him, a small smile formed on his lips.

“I’ve always dreamed of waking up like this,” he said in a hoarse voice. Elisa couldn’t help but laugh.

“I think he’ll be fine,” Wolf said, smiling down at his friend.

“What happened?”

“You were knocked out with a rock,” Elisa said, keeping her legs still so she wouldn’t jostle him.

“By who?”

“Petty thieves, but don’t worry, we took care of them,” Wolf replied, crouching down beside them.

“You’re bleeding,” Logan pointed out. Elisa looked up at the gash on Wolf’s forehead.

“I’m fine,” he brushed them off.

“No you’re not,” Elisa sighed. Lifting Logan’s head up gently, she placed it on the ground, and walked over to the pack on the back of the horse. Inside she found the blanket Logan had used for them to sit on, and ripped a long strip off it. She walked back over to Wolf, reaching her hand out to his cheek to turn him towards her. “Hold still,” she instructed as she poured some water on it, and began wiping away the blood.

“I’m fine,” he complained, trying to tilt his face away from her.

“Just hold still!”

“Goddess, she’s bossy,” Logan moaned from the ground. Elisa ignored him, wrapping the cloth around Wolf’s head as tightly as she could, hoping the pressure would stop the wound from bleeding further.

“There,” she said, stepping back, satisfied with her work. “Now, let’s get going before they come back.” Looking around, she soon realized the other horse was missing. “Where is your horse?”

“It got spooked and took off!” Wolf spat.

“Ok, you two get on this one, I’ll walk beside it.” Both boys looked at her disbelievingly. “What? You’re both injured, I’m not. It will take us longer, but we don’t have any other choice.”

“We’re not going to let
you
walk,” Logan argued, sitting up slowly, one hand holding his head.

Elisa quickly retorted before Wolf could agree. “Stop treating me like I’m a helpless girl!”

“We’re not,” Wolf disputed. “You’re the only one out of the three of us who managed not to get hurt, so that’s a pretty good indication that you’re not helpless. However,” he continued, trying to make his case, “your legs are a lot smaller, and I’m sure the horse wouldn’t appreciate having two full grown men on his back. I’m not that injured, so I can walk.” She wanted to argue, but he just held up his hands in protest. “Elisa please, just get on the horse.” They stood defiantly facing another. If there was one thing that annoyed her the most, it was when Wolf told her what to do.

“Elisa, just do what he says,” Logan interrupted, trying to stand up. “I really don’t want him sitting behind me when I could have you there.” He smiled at her, trying to ease the tension. Taking a deep breath, she lifted herself up on the horse first. She just wanted to get home, and the longer they stood here arguing, the more danger they could be in. Wolf helped Logan up while Elisa steadied him there. They started a slow progress towards the city, the sun lowering in the sky.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

The Riders kept Aiden busy for the majority of each day. There was always something that needed to be done, and Hawk made sure to include him. Finally, one late afternoon, Aiden found himself alone. He searched out Moose.

“I need your help,” he said in greeting. Moose looked up from the horse he had been tending to.

“With what?” he asked, his hand frozen in mid brushstroke.

“I want to go over to the Shaman’s,” he answered, leaving out the incriminating part of why. He didn’t want anyone to overhear that he was essentially planning on snooping around the old man’s place. Moose understood immediately, and nodded his head.

“Right. Let’s go.”

They walked to the Shaman’s in silence. When they neared the house, they veered off the road and headed towards the back. The windows in the rear were all dark and vacant. The house seemed empty.

“Well this won’t do,” Moose murmured.

No it wouldn’t
, Aiden thought frustrated. They skirted the walls until they came up to the kitchen window. There were a few bushes there, but they’d have to duck down if they heard anyone approaching. Crouching low, Aiden turned towards Moose, lowering his voice to a whisper. “We need to see if he’s in there,” he said.

“Of course he’s in there,” Moose replied. “He never leaves.”

Another problem. “How are we going to look around then?” Moose shrugged his shoulders in answer. Great, thought Aiden. He hadn’t thought his plan out properly, and now they didn’t have one. From the window came the low murmur of the Shaman’s voice. They froze. Aiden could imagine the man’s head sticking out the window and screaming “Caught ya!” at them. Could a Shaman curse you for snooping?

After a minute he realized they weren’t found. He breathed a sigh of relief. Leaning closer, they strained to hear what the Shaman was saying.

“I am working on it.” There was a low reply from someone else, but Aiden couldn’t make out who it was, or what they were saying. “Of course. My only wish is to please you.” Aiden looked over at Moose questioningly.

“Who is he talking to?” Aiden whispered.

“I don’t know,” Moose answered. “I don’t recognize the voice.”

“What are you two doing?” Both boys jumped at the sound of Hawk’s voice behind them. They spun around to see the Chief standing before them, his hands on his hips.

“Honestly father! What are you, part forest person?” Moose exclaimed. “What grown man moves that quietly?” He pressed a hand to his heart.

Hawk rolled his eyes. “A whole army could have snuck up on you two. Why are you both listening at the Shaman’s window?” Aiden felt horribly guilty. Part of him was aware that the talking inside had suddenly ceased, while the other part was mortified by being caught by the Chief.

“Uh, we were just seeing if the Shaman was alright,” Moose explained lamely. “We thought we heard a distressed sound, so we came to investigate.”

Hawk didn’t look convinced. “And so you decided to listen out here, rather than just knocking?”

“Well, if it was some sort of foul play, we wanted to be able to sneak up on whoever it was. You know, protect the Shaman… and all that,” Moose replied.

He narrowed his eyes at the two of them. “And?”

“And what?” Moose asked.

“And we heard nothing, sir,” Aiden answered, not looking at Moose. “It must have just been an animal – or something.”

The Chief stood there for another moment before shaking his head. “You two are an odd pair. Come in and help your mother prepare dinner, Moose.” Then he turned and left.

“Phew,” Moose said, giving Aiden a small smile. “That was close.”

“You can say that again.”

“Phew that was clo – Ow!” Moose rubbed the spot on his arm that Aiden had just punched.

“Come on,” Aiden said, walking back towards the road. “We’re not going to figure anything out this way.” They crossed to Moose’s house. “I’m going to wait outside and see who comes out,” he informed him as they reached the gate.

Moose nodded. “Okay, let me know.”

Aiden waited for what felt like hours, but no one emerged. It was so strange. He was starting to feel overwhelmed by all the mysteries surrounding him. It didn’t help that Lily had shown up for the past two nights at his window, begging him to leave with her, but wouldn’t say why. She was a strange addition to the list of problems he seemed to have. The biggest being the questions Aiden still had. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the people around him, but he just knew that there was more going on than he was aware of. He needed to find out who had the answers and get them as soon as possible.

A possibility occurred to him. Looking back at the house, he figured he still had some time before supper, so he headed towards the outskirts of the city. The late afternoon sun warmed him as he approached the forest. Taking one last glance behind him, Aiden entered the dark woods.

The air was colder in the trees, the sun completely blocked by the leafy canopy above him. It didn’t take him long to find her, just as he knew he would. Standing behind a large tree, the trunk was four times the width of her. She wore a green dress that looked like it was made of leaves. Bright purple and blue flowers were strung through her white hair.

“Lily,” he greeted her, smiling despite himself. She made him nervous, but a part of him was always happy to see her. A playful, sly smile spread across her face. Her expression looked genuinely pleased to see him, which lifted a bit of the nervous weight off his chest.

“Aiden,” she greeted him in her smooth voice. They stood in silence, looking steadily at one another. “How did you know I was here?”

“Lucky guess,” he answered. “I was hoping to find you,” he explained further. Pleasure filled her eyes at his admission. “Lily, I need to know what’s going on. Do you know how the Shaman managed to bring me here?”