Page 113 of Discarded (Shifter's Vault 1)

A man unbolted the gate and I stepped onto solid ground.

18

Bain

"So you saw—what?"Kerina cocked her head at me.

I sighed and shifted on the hard seat. By the time we arrived at the top of the Cape, it was too late to secure horses, or get too far before dark. It chafed me, but after the weird experience on the lift, the chance to sit in another tavern, with a mug of beer and a plate of roasted meat and vegetables was welcome.

"I saw the lift destroyed in a storm." I kept my voice low. The taproom was packed and everyone seemed interested in their business. "I lived it. It seemed real."

"Could it have been a dream?" Kerina suggested. "Horses fall asleep standing up."

The side of my mouth twitched. "I am not a horse. I have never slept standing up." I sucked in a breath and spoke more evenly. "I have known guards to fall asleep at their post. This…" I searched for the words, "was vivid. Ifeltthe rain. Isawthose people fall." I couldn't contain a shudder. "I wasthere."

"Like the kid was there?" Kerina asked. For once, she sat with both boots on the ground, a sure sign of her agitation, even if outwardly she looked calm.

I chewed on the question for a moment. "I suppose so. She felt real, but I only saw her for a matter of seconds. With her… I felt as though I got a glimpse into her world. This time I wasinthat world." If Hades was trying to tell me something, I wished he'd stop. Or be more clear.

"It may be a warning," Kerina suggested. "A storm might really," she glanced to the side and back again, "do that."

"If it does, you weren't on it," I replied. "Neither was he." I nodded toward where Wesley strummed his lyaer and sang a cheerful song.

It sounded like ‘The Maid Goes A-Courting’, an old song, even by the standards of those who kept the old ways. In this version, the woman in the lyrics was no maid and it was much more than acourtingshe was after. The crowd in the taproom seemed to enjoy it, especially the more explicit verses.

I only half listened. I'd heard worse in the bars in the Vault and in the human world. At least the bard had a pleasant voice; the kind which could be tuned out if necessary.

"Well, that's good to know," Kerina said dryly. "All you need to do is stay off it for the rest of your days and everything will be fine."

I snorted into my beer. The feeling of impending trouble would be more difficult to shake. He had felt myself about to plunge to my death. The faces of those who fell in front of my eyes were starting to fade. I tried to picture them all, but couldn't. Like a dream, the details slipped away when I woke, but the chill sat heavy in my bones.

"Do you think," Kerina said after a few minutes of silence, " anyone else saw it?"

I blinked at her in surprise. I was so shaken by the…whatever it was, vision? Hallucination? Illusion? I hadn't thought about those who travelled on the lift with us.

"Why?" I asked slowly. "Did you see anyone who looked—"

"Scared? Horrified? Confused?" she suggested. She tapped her fingers on the tabletop. "Aside from the man who sat in the middle with his hands over his face. A few people looked as though they may leave their last meal behind."

"Nothing to suggest they'd witnessed their own death?"

"I was paying more attention to you than to them, but I—"

Kerina was interrupted by a shout of surprise. A woman leapt to her feet and all but threw herself backward, halfway across the room.

"Vermin. Vermin!" she said, lip curled in disgust. With a trembling hand, she pointed toward the table where she was sitting.

I shot to my feet and followed her gaze. Everyone cleared a space around the table, but the table itself was empty.

Empty.

Until I squinted. A rat the size of a large cat lay curled up, washing a paw with its tongue. It was there, but it wasn't. The creature was opaque, like a shadow. Through it, the rest of the room was clearly visible.

I stepped toward the rat.

I watched it, unblinking until I stood right in front of the table. I raised my hand slowly and reached out toward it. The rat sniffed at me, then went back to cleaning its paw. Right when my hand should touch fur, it went straight through.

"I see nothing," someone grumbled.

---