Page 15 of The Scattered Bones

“If it’s too painful for you, you don’t have to tell me.” I offered. “I only meant I didn’t want you to hide from me.”

“I want to tell you.” His expression swallowed me whole. “I want you to know everything about me. I want you in every part of my being. You’re the only person I have.” He blushed at the sad truth. “You’re the only friend I have. The only person since my mother that cares whether I live or die, and I want you to know me.”

I pressed my palm to the roof, dangerously close to his. “I would hug your pain away if I could,” I whispered.

“I would like that.” He flattened his hand so that our fingers were centimeters apart. “The vendor pinned me to the ground, and I begged for my life. I was still a boy, a starving boy, and he was too heavy. I screamed for forgiveness. Plead my case with tears. I was hungry, so hungry, but he drew a knife from his belt saying, ‘Then I shall relieve you of your mouth’.”

Kaid’s fingers lifted and trailed over the long scar. “He sliced through my lips. I think he meant to carve them off completely, but a stranger pulled him off me. He beat the man into the dirt, then left without a word. I followed my savior, bleeding and crying, to the House of Varas. It was the last time I saw The Great Thief until he officially welcomed me into his guild. I didn’t realize it, but it was the god himself who saved me from that vendor, and he told me if I was going to steal, I should do it properly.”

Tears escaped my eyes, and I wiped them away before placing my hand back on the roof. The wetness stained the stone, and careful not to touch me, Kaid brushed his fingers over the teardrops.

“That’s why I strove to be the best. I longed to be worthy of Varas. I didn’t know he’d been the one to save me until I offered him your dress, and he was there. He saved me, and I wanted to be like him. A thief and a warrior. Someone no one could hurt.” He looked at me pointedly. “I have scars from those who tried, but as the cycles passed, less and less could wound me, but your tears? They hurt worst of all. Out of everyone in my life, you have the power to hurt me the most.”

“Why?” His words alarmed me.

“Because I finally found a soul that sings to mine, a friend unlike anyone I’ve ever met, and I made you cry. I can’t take you away from here. I cannot touch you, and in a cycle, I’ll lose you.”

His words reminded me of my mother. Was this why she held me at arm’s length? Kaid had thrown himself headlong into our connection, and he would emerge burned. I wouldn’t emerge at all, not for decades at least. My mother was smart. She saved herself from the pain.

“The sun is coming.” Kaid stood abruptly, signally our time was over.

“Will you come back?” I asked, suddenly afraid he would protect himself like my mother did, distancing himself from the misery of seeing my body without my soul inside it.

“Of course.” He smiled. Sad, but true. “I’ll even return when you’re old and grey and Hreinasta abandons you for another. It may take a while, but I’ll always come for you.”

Five

Out of everyone in my life, you have the power to hurt me the most.And I did hurt him. I killed him, and now his bones lie across a long stretch of floor guarded by beasts born and bred of evil. Blood coats their white fur. Hunger lingers in their eyes. I’ll be dead before I step ten feet into Lovec’s abandoned temple.

The tigers stare at me as I hover in the doorway. They do not move. They do not roar. They simply study the foolishly brave girl hovering on the threshold. The desperate girl fueled by love and anger and hate. I should turn back. I should flee to the safety of Lovec’s sword, but he cannot help me. Not with this. But I need his help. Especially with this, for there sits his arm. Shoulder to wrist, it rests atop the altar like an offering, but his beautifully powerful limb is no gift. Valka didn’t leave it here to honor the Hunter. No, War left it here as sacrilege. A taunt. A sacrifice of flesh on a shrine Lovec no longer lays eyes on.

I’ll always come for you.The promise he cannot keep. The oath he broke because of me. I uphold it for him now. I claimed his words as my own. I’ll always come for him, and the marks from Lovec’s fingers burn my face. The Hunter reminds me of The Thief. Blood and soot, they offer blessings and protection. They do not take; they do not hollow out and consume. The blood burns white hot on my skin, and I can no longer stand still. The pain is too great, and I stride forward.

The tigers tense, readying their attack, but they don’t move. Instead, they study me with wary eyes and predatory snarls. The blood burns hotter, like my flesh is being flayed from my skull, and I force myself to walk. With every step, the pain on my face lessens, and I understand. Lovec marked me, blessed me, claimed me. Like Varas marked his thieves with the soot of his holy ashes, the Hunter baptized me in blood. I am his now. A hunter, a warrior, a priestess. The gods turned their backs on me, but out here in the wilds, Lovec understands. He’s felt the loss of love. He had a spouse ripped from his side. We are the same. Perhaps, here in the frozen lands, I am not cursed for loving someone unconditionally. I am anointed. I am favored. I am marked.

I race through the horde toward the altar. Fangs gnash at my ankles as my feet pound the frosted stone. Throats snarl bloodthirsty cries, but I do not stop.

Run faster. It’s not The Stranger’s voice, but rather his thoughts that push into my mind. I want to obey. I try to run faster, but my legs are exhausted. The frigid air stings my lungs. The blood on my face burns.

I scream the moment my fists close around his frozen wrist. The arm that used to love and teach me is now hardened flesh, the black magic keeping decay from consuming him. My hands burn where his dead skin touches mine, but I hold it to my chest despite the agony. Another piece. Another scattered bone. I’m one step closer to ending this nightmare, but then I notice the tigers’ movements. They allowed me to reach the altar, but it wasn’t a blessing. It was a trap, and they’ve cut me off from the exits. I search wildly for an escape, but there’s nothing in this vast temple save drifting snow.

A monstrous tiger prowls forward, readying for the kill, and I close my eyes, letting the dark magic on his skin sting my throat.

“I love you, Kaid,” I say his name so I don’t forget. “Lovec? Help me.” It’s the first time I’ve prayed since his death. It feels wrong on my tongue, but right within my soul. The swooshing air of the tiger’s attack is the only answer I get, and I brace for impact.

The animal lands with a harsh thud, but not atop my body. I feel no pain, no claws or rancid breath, and my eyes snap open. The creature lies at my feet, a spear protruding from its chest. I reel back in surprise, but I hear them before I see them. The villagers surge into the temple, weapons thirsty for bloodshed, and the tigers forget about me as they race for fresh meat. It’s a cacophony of blades and fangs, a hunt within the Hunter’s temple, and the air surges with power. With every drop of blood, Lovec’s bond to this altar grows, and as man and beast fight and die, Lovec steps over the threshold for the first time in a century. His almost white eyes meet mine. The scar on his throat ripples as he welcomes the sacrifices, and his presence expands, consuming the sanctuary, the city, the mountain.

“Go, child,” The Stranger’s voice echoes through my mind, and I obey without hesitation. I weave through the carnage, his arm plastered against my breast. Death dances around me, yet no harm comes to me as I skid to a stop before Lovec.

“Thank you for helping me,” I whisper over the bloodshed.

“I did not help you, little hunter.” The hulking god stares at me as if he sees the deepest parts of my soul, every moment of both my past and my future, and my heart swells. He claimed me as his. I hate the gods. I don’t want to serve them, but this brokenhearted husband? I will worship him. We are the same.

“You’re the one who helped me,” Lovec continues, hoisting his bloody blade, readying for the kill. “You returned my city to me.” He steps forward, violence flashing in his eyes. “Go, little hunter. Go before I decide to keep you for myself.”

And then he’s gone, sword swinging with power, and I obey his command. I flee out into the blood-soaked snow, and my lips repeat his name against his arm.One time. Two Times. Five.

“Valka made a mistake hiding him here,” The Stranger says as I make the frigid journey down the mountain. “You must do this alone. You cannot accept aid, yet the moment the villagers heard you meant to slay the evil, they followed your lead. When they saw Lovec had returned to his city, they rallied in your footsteps. Only they didn’t protect you. They didn’t help you. Your quest was to find him, and you did that alone. They fought to end their exile, and you helped them break their curse, leading them to victory. Yes, Valka made a mistake hiding him here.”

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