Page 31 of Tiger's Trek
Danik, however, appeared to already trust the woman completely. “If you have room, might my wife and I perhaps stay over for the night and share a meal? In exchange, I can offer a strong arm to chop wood or my skills as a hunter, or perhaps a bit of music to pass the long, dark hours. I’m a traveling musician by trade.”
“Are you, then?” the woman said, never releasing Veru’s hands or turning her rheumy gaze upon Danik. “My, my. You’ve made quite a catch, haven’t you, my dear? A youth pretty of face who hunts, hauls, and sings to you by night. Hmm... yes. That would be quite lovely, young man. It’s been a long time since I’ve enjoyed a song. Please, come inside and warm yourselves by my small fire.”
When Veru hesitated at the threshold, Danik took her hand and said, “Are you coming in, my—my dear?”
Veru thought she saw the woman’s eyes gleam in the darkness of the cottage. Her instinct told her something was wrong, but she couldn’t figure out what it could be that was throwing her alarms. She’d always trusted her gut in the past, but everything in this dreamworld felt... upside down. For the first time in forever, she felt out of control. It was as if she hung on the side of a cliff, and there was no way for her to save herself.
Then she remembered the advice Kadam had given her before he disappeared. He’d said her strongest weapons would be her mind and her friends. Never in her life had she put her complete trust in a man before. Not even Nik. To do so now, when Danik could barely even recall his own name, seemed like the height of foolishness, but... she also knew that this dreamworld was a test. Perhaps this was a part of it.
Squeezing Danik’s hand, she whispered, “Do you feel that this is safe?”
He stepped closer to her and cupped her shoulder. “You are wise to ask,” he murmured softly.
Before she could stop him, Danik called out loudly, “Babushka? My dear wife is worried over our safety. You and your cat aren’t planning anything nefarious regarding our persons while we are in residence, are you?”
The cackle that ensued lifted the fine hairs on the back of Veru’s neck, arms, and legs. It was throaty, full of phlegm, and somehow contained a combination of delight and wickedness. All Veru wanted to do was turn her back to the place and never return. In fact, she shivered, took hold of Danik’s hand, and tugged, intending to back out of the cottage slowly. But when she glanced behind her, the river was gone. In fact, the landscape was moving.
Veru wondered how she hadn’t been aware of the movement. She was still standing on the porch, or at least halfway on the porch and halfway inside the cottage. But either the cottage was spinning, or the world was turning. Whichever one it was, it was a bad sign, a very bad sign. Just at that moment, the little house shifted, lurching suddenly to the right, and Veru stumbled into Danik. He caught her easily enough and braced himself against a table so they wouldn’t fall.
There was a plaintive meow from Maxsim, the cat who’d been hiding beneath it, then the house tilted once again, this time to the left, and Veru and Danik found themselves jostling to the other side of the room.
The old woman called out to them, “The house will keep doing that until you make up your minds. Are you staying or going?”
Veru knew she definitely, surely, absolutely didn’t want to stay, but before she could announce that decision to anyone, Danik proclaimed loudly, “Yuga, we’re staying.”
At that, the door behind them slammed with a definitive bang, while the house seemed to drop suddenly, as if it had fallen several lengths to the ground. Both Danik and Veru lost their footing and tumbled into a heap together as Maxsim the cat bound quickly over their fallen forms to settle himself in his seated mistress’s lap.
“There,” Yuga said, stroking her green-eyed feline. “Now that that’s been decided, how about that song?”
Chapter9
THE ONE WHO CROSSES WISELY WILL MASTER THE BRIDGE
From deep within the bushes, a tiny voice pipped, “Please don’t hurt me.”
“Come out,” Stacia cried, “and we won’t do you any harm as long as you do no harm to us.”
“Very well,” said the voice. There was a great rustle, and then a beautiful little girl emerged from a perfect hiding spot.
Other than a smudge of dirt on her cheek and dress, Stacia thought she’d never seen such a pretty, well-kept child in her life. Crouching down in front of her, she asked, “What’s your name, young one?”
“Zima.”
“That’s a pretty name. Where do you live, Zima?” Stacia couldn’t help it. She fixed Zima’s crown of blond hair, tucking in the loose strands of hair, and retied the blue bow of her embroidered pinafore, noticing it matched her eye color exactly. When she blinked, Zima’s wide blue eyes reminded her of the forget-me-not flowers her mother had grown in her summer garden.
“I live in the town on the other side of the river across the bridge with my aunties.” Zima lifted a plump white hand, plugged her thumb directly into her mouth, and began sucking.
“How did you get over here?” Stacia asked, mouthing to Zakhar to bring her some water.
“I got lost.”
Stacia got her to drink a little bit of water, and then the little girl asked, “Can I pet your kitty? He’s awfully big.”
“You certainly can. He’s very soft, and he adores children, especially those who tickle his ears. Maybe he’ll even take you for a ride, if you’re very good.”
“Really?”
Her thumb came out, and she smiled widely, showing a rosebud mouth to match her little apple-pink cheeks.
