Page 96 of House of Dusk
She set off down the slope, toward the village.
• • •
It was the dog that led her to him. She heard the excited barking even before she reached the edge of the brushy woods. Then Nilos’s voice, warmer than she’d ever heard it.
“Hush, Turtle. You’re going to wake the village, silly girl. I know, I know, I’m glad to see you too. There you go. Good girl.”
Sephre halted behind a screening hedge of thornflower, watching as Nilos hunkered down in the dust, rubbing the belly of the wiry, brindled hound writhing ecstatically at his feet.
Well. Hardly the dire secret meeting she’d feared. She watched, bemused, as Nilos continued to lavish the dog with attention, murmuring indulgently.
Then abruptly the hound—Turtle, for reasons Sephre could not fathom—rolled back onto her feet, cocking her head toward the nearest cottage. She gave a small, hopeful yip.
Nilos stood, suddenly tense. He backed away a single step. Someone was moving inside. Sephre heard the murmur of voices. Nilos spun on his heel then, darting away with the same speed she remembered from their fight. By the time the cottage door opened he was gone, fled up the slope to Sephre’s left. No doubt heading back to their shelter.
She ought to go, too. But curiosity held her. Why had he come here? Clearly it was a familiar place, judging by the dog’s reaction. He’d said his brother no longer lived here, but perhaps he had other family still?
An old man stepped out into the dawn, blinking owlishly. “Turtle? What’s wrong, girl?”
The hound came to him, yipping, tail spiraling with feelings clearly too large to be contained by her small body. He rubbed her ears. “Was it a wild boar again? I hope you left it well alone. Eh? What’s this?”
“Grandfather?” Another voice, high and sweet. A girl appeared from inside. “What is it?”
The old man had stooped to pluck something from the ground. Sephre leaned forward, trying to see.
The girl gave a squeal of delight as her grandfather held up the object: a small wooden horse. “Is it for me? Where did it come from?”
The old man let the girl take it from him, his attention shifting to the hillside. Sephre shrank low as his gaze skimmed over her hiding place.
“I...” He coughed, clearing his throat. When he spoke again, his voice was firm. “From the forest nymphs, no doubt. They must be trying to lure you away to join their revels.”
“Ooh!” The girl looked delighted by this possibility.
“But a strong nymph needs a good breakfast,” said the old man. “Back inside now. Go show your gran.”
The girl giggled, disappearing back into the cottage. Her grandfather lingered another few heartbeats, still staring at the hillside. Then he, too, returned within. The door clattered shut. And Sephre crept away, her mind full of questions.
• • •
Nilos was tending the fire when she emerged from the woods near the shelter. He watched her over the pot of oats. “You followed me.”
Just as well he’d guessed. It spared her having to use the frankly ridiculous story she’d come up with about getting lost trying to find a spot to relieve herself. “Who are they?”
“My parents.” He dished porridge into a bowl for her.
She took it. “And the little girl?” The child looked nothing like Nilos, but perhaps she took after her mother. Though what had the old man said?Go show your gran.No mention of a mother.
A smile crept onto Nilos’s face, like a relentless sun, rising even on a day of mourning. “My niece. Cardis’s daughter. My parents took her in, after Cardis died.”
So the brother was dead. She cleared her throat. “Why didn’t you stay to see them?”
Nilos gave a small shake of his head. “It’s too late for that. I’ve changed too much. They wouldn’t know me.”
The words were a puzzle. Changed how? “Your dog knew you.”
“Turtle loves everyone.” His expression had closed, snapping tight. Maybeheshould be the one named turtle.
She stirred her oats. The steam brushed her cheeks. She waited until he hunkered down with his own bowl cupped in his hands. A tactical move. It might make him less likely to flee her next question.
