Read Online A Cast of Shadows: An Araneae Nation Story by Hailey Edwards - Free Book Online
Authors: Hailey Edwards
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bit into the hollow of my throat.
I angled my chin up, daring him to press his case.
“It’s one pup.” The hunter tilted his head. “The dam can birth another.”
“You killed her dam.” Pressure from the blade made my voice quaver. I refused to believe it was fear. “Don’t pretend ignorance. I was there, at the river, when you disposed of her remains.”
“You were,” he said softly.
Stiffening my spine, I met his gaze. “I was.”
His shoulders tensed. “I wish you hadn’t said that.”
I regretted the slip too, but anger had loosened my tongue.
“Why do you want her?” I asked to stall for time to think of a way out of this.
“The charm trade is bustling.” The hunter stared at the pup. “Alive, she’s worth more gold to me than the other canis combined. Magic is most potent when the organs are fresh. The paws and teeth are used to ward against the plague. Clans are growing desperate for a cure as the yellow death blights the southlands. They will pay any price for hope. It is a precious commodity these days.”
“How cruel you are to sell it.” When there were those who believed in their false magic.
“How foolish they are to buy it,” he corrected me.
“You know the paladin will have you hanged for killing the canis.” Brynmor had said so.
The hunter bared his teeth. “I will not be hanged.”
I kept my mouth shut, but he was mistaken if he thought he would walk away from this unscathed.
“Your friend died for this scheme of yours,” I said. “Will you do the same?”
“He knew the risks.” The hunter’s voice hardened. “As do I.”
“Then you accept the consequences.”
“Give me the pup,” he said at last. “Let me finish what he and I started. If you leave these woods and do not return, then I will not harm you. There would be no need. Let his death serve a purpose. I will bring his body before the paladin and tell him I caught Gwallter hunting the canis. I will admit I confronted him, that there was a struggle, and that I killed him.”
“Playing the part of the hero.” I all but rolled my eyes. “How courteous of you.”
Shame flickered across his face, or perhaps I imagined it.
“You weren’t trapped inside the city walls when the plague ravaged Cathis. You did not hold your wife as she died while praying your daughter wasn’t next. You did not see males you’ve known the whole of your life vanish without a trace. I knew males who disappeared. They were not cowards and would not have left their families.” The hunter sneered. “You and your wide, innocent eyes have never beheld desperation, let alone experienced it. You have not eaten the flesh of your clansmen in the hopes you survive long enough for aid to arrive.” He laughed bitterly. “You have no right to judge me.”
“You’re right. I don’t.” The horrors he spoke of were beyond my comprehension.
“Then you will understand why I must do this.” He held my gaze, compelling me to agree.
I’m sure I would have lied to him and said yes in order to get close enough to disarm him. I still hoped, perhaps foolishly, that Brynmor would stride from the forest with a sword or a spear. Yet our previous encounters had taught me not to expect help where there was likely to be none.
It was then, while I was distracted, that a blur caught the edge of my vision.
Errol leapt onto the hunter’s back, his growls wet and gurgled.
The hunter fisted Errol’s scruff and tugged, but the canis held on, sank his teeth into the side of the male’s neck and tore. The hunter grunted and reached for a knife on his belt. He’d dropped the sword when the canis latched on to him. His knife arced, split Errol’s ear and made him howl.
Blade in hand, I advanced. There was no time to wait for an opening. I had to make my own.
Incensed by pain, Errol lashed out at the hunter, whose blood-slicked hands caused him to drop the knife. His palms slid over Errol’s jaw, almost cradling it, as Errol’s teeth
I angled my chin up, daring him to press his case.
“It’s one pup.” The hunter tilted his head. “The dam can birth another.”
“You killed her dam.” Pressure from the blade made my voice quaver. I refused to believe it was fear. “Don’t pretend ignorance. I was there, at the river, when you disposed of her remains.”
“You were,” he said softly.
Stiffening my spine, I met his gaze. “I was.”
His shoulders tensed. “I wish you hadn’t said that.”
I regretted the slip too, but anger had loosened my tongue.
“Why do you want her?” I asked to stall for time to think of a way out of this.
“The charm trade is bustling.” The hunter stared at the pup. “Alive, she’s worth more gold to me than the other canis combined. Magic is most potent when the organs are fresh. The paws and teeth are used to ward against the plague. Clans are growing desperate for a cure as the yellow death blights the southlands. They will pay any price for hope. It is a precious commodity these days.”
“How cruel you are to sell it.” When there were those who believed in their false magic.
“How foolish they are to buy it,” he corrected me.
“You know the paladin will have you hanged for killing the canis.” Brynmor had said so.
The hunter bared his teeth. “I will not be hanged.”
I kept my mouth shut, but he was mistaken if he thought he would walk away from this unscathed.
“Your friend died for this scheme of yours,” I said. “Will you do the same?”
“He knew the risks.” The hunter’s voice hardened. “As do I.”
“Then you accept the consequences.”
“Give me the pup,” he said at last. “Let me finish what he and I started. If you leave these woods and do not return, then I will not harm you. There would be no need. Let his death serve a purpose. I will bring his body before the paladin and tell him I caught Gwallter hunting the canis. I will admit I confronted him, that there was a struggle, and that I killed him.”
“Playing the part of the hero.” I all but rolled my eyes. “How courteous of you.”
Shame flickered across his face, or perhaps I imagined it.
“You weren’t trapped inside the city walls when the plague ravaged Cathis. You did not hold your wife as she died while praying your daughter wasn’t next. You did not see males you’ve known the whole of your life vanish without a trace. I knew males who disappeared. They were not cowards and would not have left their families.” The hunter sneered. “You and your wide, innocent eyes have never beheld desperation, let alone experienced it. You have not eaten the flesh of your clansmen in the hopes you survive long enough for aid to arrive.” He laughed bitterly. “You have no right to judge me.”
“You’re right. I don’t.” The horrors he spoke of were beyond my comprehension.
“Then you will understand why I must do this.” He held my gaze, compelling me to agree.
I’m sure I would have lied to him and said yes in order to get close enough to disarm him. I still hoped, perhaps foolishly, that Brynmor would stride from the forest with a sword or a spear. Yet our previous encounters had taught me not to expect help where there was likely to be none.
It was then, while I was distracted, that a blur caught the edge of my vision.
Errol leapt onto the hunter’s back, his growls wet and gurgled.
The hunter fisted Errol’s scruff and tugged, but the canis held on, sank his teeth into the side of the male’s neck and tore. The hunter grunted and reached for a knife on his belt. He’d dropped the sword when the canis latched on to him. His knife arced, split Errol’s ear and made him howl.
Blade in hand, I advanced. There was no time to wait for an opening. I had to make my own.
Incensed by pain, Errol lashed out at the hunter, whose blood-slicked hands caused him to drop the knife. His palms slid over Errol’s jaw, almost cradling it, as Errol’s teeth
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