Page 61 of Spirit Rites
I stare at the huge pile of red meat in front of me. “I’m going to be honest. I’m not really a big meat person.”
Taren, who’s sitting across from me, leans forward. “Not a meat person?” He looks over at Kaldar and then at me. “I don’t know if this is going to work.” He’s so serious, and I don’t really know him well enough to know if he’s teasing or not.
“It’s not that I don’t like meat; it’s just—”
Kaldar puts a hand on my leg. “Ignore him; he’s just messing with you.”
When I look across the table, Taren is grinning. I pull my plate closer to me. “See if I share any of this with you now?”
Taren’s eyes dance. “You haven’t even decided if you like it yet.”
I look down at the plate. “You don’t have to eat it,” Kaldar says softly.
I cut into one of the thinner pieces of meat and find a piece that’s a little less bloody. I take a bite and chew. It’s really tender and goes down easily. “Well?” Taren asks. I feel everybody at the table is waiting for my answer. Even Jorren has stopped working his way through the pile of meat on the plate in front of him.
“It’s actually pretty good,” I offer with a smile.
“See.” Taren says as he crosses his arms over his chest.
“I still don’t need a plate of it, though.”
“I’ll take it off your hands,” Taren says, sliding my plate forward. Kaldar puts his knife on the plate, stilling it and keeping from moving forward.
“Are you finished with it?” Kaldar asks me.
“Yes. Thank you. It's really good. The meat was tender, and I really enjoyed it. I just—”
Kaldar squeezes my leg gently with the hand that’s still resting there. “You don’t have to eat it. If you never ate meat, that would be fine.”
I let his words soak in as I watch Taren slide the plate forward and start eating. After a moment, I turn to Kaldar. He turns to meet my gaze. “Thank you,” I say softly.
I focus on the lamb and veggies in broth instead and use bread to soak up some of the broth. It’s really good. I slide it towards Harper, who takes a few bites as well. I can’t help but smile as I watch the guys pack it away. Jorren eats with an intensity I don’t think I’ve ever seen, but I’m pretty sure that’s just his personality. He seems pretty intense overall. I’ve just about finished my bowl of meat and veggies when there’s a loud clanging sound that startles me. Instantly, chairs start pushing away from the table. Kaldar, Jorren, Taren, and Reika are on their feet instantly.
Chapter 29
“What is it?” I ask in alarm as I too stand up.
“Guivre,” Kaldar says, already pulling his sword from its sheath on his back. “Stay here.” Reika starts to follow, but Kaldar stops her. “You’re with Kinsley.” Then he and his men and most of the other men in the room run towards the exit. After the mass exodus, I look around the Grove. It’s mostly women and children left. Reika strides towards the double doors, and I wonder if she’s going to disobey Kaldar’s orders. But she takes up a stance right next to the door where she’s able to look through the glass pane and see out. Her sword is in her hand, and she looks downright scary. It takes me a second to realize the entire place has gone completely silent. It's eerie. Even the children know to be quiet. I glance at Harper, but she doesn’t meet my gaze as she stands to her feet and walks slowly over to one of the windows. My heart beats so loudly in my chest, I feel like everyone in the entire Grove can hear it. Suddenly, a shriek sounds; and my entire body jolts in response. It doesn’t sound too close, but I’m not sure if that’s just because we’re inside. Another shriek sounds, and the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. A child whimpers, and I watch as a mother grabs the little one and pushes him to her chest. I slide my knife out of its sheath silently and start towards the double doors. Another child cries out, and my panic rises. I turn in time to see Harper picking up the second crying child while the mother tries to hush the first one. Harper puts a hand over the little one’s mouth and whispers something in their ear.
Reika turns her head just the slightest bit towards me. She makes a motion with her hand that I think means for me to getaway from the doors, but I’m not leaving her to face whatever is coming by herself. I ignore her and step closer to the doors. The glass plate on the door is small, but if I look just right, I can see out. I scan the tops of the trees but don’t see anything. Another child makes a crying sound, and I turn around. But the child is silenced pretty quickly. When I turn back around, there’s a thud that shakes the ground. My heart stalls in my chest as I watch a guivre land just a few feet from the Grove. My hand tightens on my knife, even as my heartbeat kicks into overdrive. The guivre is facing away from us. I look over to Reika quickly. She’s got her sword in one hand and a knife in the other. Her knees are bent, and she’s ready if that guivre should come in here. I glance behind me once again at all the women and children, and my heart drops to my toes. There’s no way we’ll be able to keep everyone in here from harm if that guivre comes this direction. I stare out the small window and will the guivre to walk away. I don’t see any sign of Kaldar and his men and wonder what happened to them. I push those thoughts away and refuse to let the fear building in my chest paralyze me. The guivre takes one step then another away from the Grove. I wonder absently if the Grove has any kind of protective wards over it; if so, this will be a good time to use them to keep the guivre out. It takes another step away, and I can feel the relief building in my chest.
Suddenly, a cry pierces the silence. My head whips around to find the source, but I can tell by the sound that it’s a baby, maybe even a newborn. I jerk my gaze back out the window, hoping against hope that the guivre didn’t hear it. As if in slow motion, I watch it lift its head and then turn slowly around, that serpent's tail dragging behind it. I can hear the rattle of it from here. My blood goes cold as it fully turns to face us, and I resist the urge to run. Even though it can’t see us, it’s eyes seem to lock on us. It begins to advance, and I think my heart’s going to explode. Reika motions me aggressively away from the door, but I don’t move.My heart is pounding so hard, I'm having a hard time breathing. I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I know if that thing gets in here, it could destroy the entire building and take away the only protection all these people have right now, not to mention the gruesome deaths that would take place.
Not on my watch.I don’t know what overcomes me. Fear, I guess; or maybe stupidity. There would be time to ponder that later; not right now. Before I have a chance to succumb to my fear, I open the door as silently as possible and step out. Or at least I try. A hand on my shirt tugs me back. Reika stares at me with wide eyes and a fierce scowl, but I can’t take the time to explain what I’m doing. I pull away from her before she’s ready and rush outside. The doors swing shut silently behind me, and I’m left staring up close at a guivre that’s nearly three times my height. It takes another step towards the Grove, and I’m out of time. I have to act now, or I’ll never be able to live with myself. Being careful to watch the ground for anything that could make sound, I move as quickly as I dare away from the building, in the opposite direction.I really hope this works.Without allowing myself to think about it, I yell. My voice seems to echo through the trees for minutes on end, and my heart races as the guivre hears the sound and turns around. I’ve already moved from the spot, so when fire devours the area I was standing in moments before, I feel the heat of it but not the burn. My arm aches as the memory of the burn returns, but I shake it off. I can’t afford to be afraid in this moment.
I’m coming.
The thought of Veyra facing the guivre terrifies me.No, you can’t be here for this. You’re pregnant.
I hear another cry from inside, and panic rushes through me. The terrible creature turns back and lets out a horrific shriek. It stumbles back, and I move to get out of the way of its tail. It shrieks again, and I see it has an arrow embedded in its eye. Itopens its mouth, and I yell even as I move. If it lets go of its fire, it will burn right through the double doors. I slash at its massive tail, trying to get it to turn away from the doors. The tail rears up and slams onto the ground, and I jump to get out of its way. But then the tail swipes my feet from under me, and I crash to the ground. In the blink of an eye, the guivre turns towards me and opens its mouth. Terror seizes my muscles, and I can’t move. Somebody grabs me by the arms and yanks me from my spot on the ground just as fire explodes from its mouth. The area catches on fire, and the heat of it feels like a blast to my face. I feel Veyra before I see her. The guivre turns towards us, and Veyra races towards it. Her jaw locks around it’s back leg, and it stumbles back. Reika shoves at me to run, but I can’t leave Veyra. It shakes her lose and throws her into the nearby tree, and I barely hold back a cry.
I hear a new sound, and suddenly a blur races past me. There’s an animalistic snarl, and then the guivre shrieks again so loudly, the ground shakes. I turn back around, but Reika shoves me forward before I can see what’s going on. “Go,” she whispers harshly. I glance over my shoulder and see Jespar on the guivre’s back with its jaws locked. The guivre lifts its head and makes another awful sound.
“No,” I whisper and run towards Veyra.
Something hard slams into me and I hit the ground hard. The ground a few feet in front of me erupts into flames, but I can’t move. There’s a heavy weight on my back prohibiting me from moving. And then there’s a voice in my ear that I’d recognize anywhere. “Do not move.”
The weight is suddenly gone, and I look over my shoulder to see Kaldar racing towards the guivre. Jorren and Taren are already engaging it. Jorren throws his long spear into its side, and Taren runs up its back. When the guivre bellows and rearsup, Kaldar races underneath it and carves its heart from its body. There’s one last shriek, and then an eery silence settles around us. I scramble to my feet, looking for Reika. She’s on the ground holding her arm. I hurry over to her and drop down on my knees next to her. “Are you hurt?”
