Fowler approached behind me, his right heel hitting the ground a little harder than his left in his trademark tread. “Come on, Luna.”
“This doesn’t even affect you. Does it?” My lips felt numb as I spoke. And yet my body didn’t feel numb. All of me ached as raw and exposed as an open wound. I felt too much. That’s what Fowler was probably thinking. He thought me soft and weak and fragile. He didn’t need to say the words for me to know.
“You get accustomed to it.”
“I suppose that’s true.” Out here, how could anything else be? He had seen more death than me. Except I didn’t want this to be my normal. I shook my head. “But I don’t want that. I don’t want to be like you.” I turned and lifted my face in his direction, my voice cracking in supplication, as though he could somehow stop this from happening to me.
His fingers closed around my arm, his touch solid and impersonal as he helped me to my feet. “I don’t want to be like me either.” There was a hard edge to his voice that made something inside me wither away with the realization that this world could bend and twist people into things even they didn’t want to be. That perhaps I was destined to change whether I wished it or not.
He led me from the hut. I inhaled the musky air as soon as we cleared the threshold, the coppery-sweet odor of death less strong. There was that at least.
“Thank you for letting me stay with him until the end,” I said, deciding some acknowledgment needed to be given. “I know you didn’t want to. Perhaps you’re not as hard as you think—”
“You better hope that’s not true. For both our sakes. I can’t afford to be soft. Stop asking it of me.” He strode away, his purposeful strides biting into the soft ground.
I sucked in a cold breath and followed after him. “He didn’t deserve to die alone.”
“We all die alone, Luna.”
It was a bleak thought that chased me as we continued on our way.
UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE
HarperCollins Publishers
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WE WALKED FOR hours, staying close to the edge of the copse until we had to break out across barren landscape again. Wind buffeted us, cutting like knives on our exposed skin. I dug in my pack and gave her a scarf to wrap around her neck and cover her chin.
Finally, in the far distance a grove of trees appeared. Twisted, ghostly shapes, they stood in perfect symmetry. A long-ago orchard, the branches cracked like old bones, stripped of leaves and whatever fruit used to grow there. I led us in that direction, eager to leave behind the overexposed grassland and give us some relief from the bitter wind.
Once we stepped inside the orchard’s maze, I could see it was vast with rows and rows of trees.
As we moved down one intersecting path, the trees arching overhead, she asked, “What is this place? The trees grow very precisely every few feet without fail.” She inched toward one of the blackened trunks, pressing her palm against the tough skin, testing its texture.
“They were planted that way. It’s an orchard.” I flicked my gaze over one gnarled-up tree that I passed. “Was an orchard.”
She hurried to catch up. “What kind of—”
“It’s impossible to identify anymore. They’re dead.”
She held silent after that. Now that our steps fell quieter, I moved at a faster pace, on direct course for Ortley.
There were places like Ortley that had managed to cling to life. I’d passed through a few of them since I left Relhok City. Those pockets of civilization were like that dead field of sugarcane behind us, rotting, withered echoes of the past, still fighting for their last breath even after all these years. Disease, famine, or dwellers still infiltrated, but the inhabitants managed to hang on, growing smaller and weaker after every invasion.
Not Allu though. Miles off the coastline, the island was free of dwellers and close enough to reach by boat. Its surrounding waters yielded plenty of fish to eat. I just had to cross a continent to reach it. And I had to do it with her.
I glanced back again to catch her wringing out the edge of her tunic. Scant water dripped free. When she released the fabric, it unfurled, wrinkled beyond repair.
I scanned the horizon and faced forward again, thinking of our destination. Ortley was one of the only cities east of Relhok still standing. I’d heard of it all my life.
The village was reportedly fortified. Much like Relhok City, there was a population there that had managed to survive the dwellers better than most. Merchants from Relhok had traveled there to trade on occasion after the eclipse. Of the countless men the king sent over the years, a few returned. A type of kelp grew in the lake outside the once prosperous city. It contained healing properties useful when brewed. It could also be cooked into a soup, which was always convenient when you were on the brink of starvation.
I walked steadily down one of the several paths that crisscrossed the orchard. That kelp, along with other supplies, would be useful to acquire for the rest of our journey.
Food mattered. Weapons. Labor and skills. Those were things to trade. I could offer my services and work for a few days. It wouldn’t be the first time. It was a long journey to Allu. A few days’ sweating for some supplies might be worthwhile.
I glanced back at Luna, uncertain whether she would agree with my plan. If I worked, I would have to find something to do with her during that time. I was sure suitable work could be found for her, too. She had her uses. Like saving my life. And her hearing was better than my own.
She stopped, her head tilting, chin lifting in that way of hers that signaled she heard something even now.
I moved to her side and stopped.
A nearby bird trilled in the distance, so I didn’t think any dwellers were close. They always fell silent when those creatures were wandering in the vicinity.
I touched her elbow. “What?” I released the word into her ear, a mere sigh. A gust of breath that I knew she could hear.
“It’s not dwellers,” she murmured, precisely what I already knew. Her smooth brow creased as though she was trying to make sense of the sound, a reminder that her experiences were limited.
She lowered her face, her expression scrunching up in frustration. She pressed fingertips to her forehead. “Something else is out there.” Her nostrils flared. “Rotten and sour. Like death.” The faintest tremor shook her voice as she said this.
I studied her pale face, the slim slope of her nose and rounded cheeks so smooth and unblemished, free from exposure to the elements.
I heard it.
Footsteps. I whirled in a swift circle, one hand going to her hip, keeping her behind me as I moved. I slipped my bow down from my shoulder and into position and grabbed an arrow from the sheath at my back with my other hand, nocking it into place.
My ears strained, picking out one . . . two people. And they were definitely people. Their tread was nothing like the shuffling drag of dwellers. They moved with quick purpose.
My shoulders tensed as I held myself rigid. Luna’s breath fell swiftly behind me, but I didn’t look at her again. My gaze skipped over our surroundings, aiming my arrow at empty air, waiting for them to show themselves.
Then all at once, the sound stopped. They stopped.
They were out there. I knew it with every fiber of my being. The blood rushed in my ears. I continued to rotate, half expecting them to jump out in front of me.
“They’re here,” she whispered hoarsely the moment before they emerged, materializing in the distant dark.
They stepped out from behind a row of trees onto the path, limned in moonlight, almost like her voice had summoned them.
Awash in the moon’s glow, they looked like a pair of corpses and not men at all. They moved with the eerie grace of animals, walking like they belonged to the night, comfortable in their skin and in the moon-soaked air.
They turned to face us, and we all froze for a moment of awareness, staring at one another across the dis
tance.
As though a spark had been lit, they moved again, advancing in our direction. I held still as they approached, bracing myself for the confrontation. There was no sense in running. Not with Luna in tow. I didn’t want them at our backs where I couldn’t see them either.
As they came closer, I was able to pick out details and features. They were tall and thin, rangy as wolves with clothes that might have fit them once but now hung loosely. Their ragged shirts hung off the knobs of their shoulders like loose curtains.
I trained my arrow on the one walking lead. His cheeks were sunken, the bones of his face like blades under the skin, and that only made his eyes appear bigger, so dark they looked whiteless.
“Hello, there.” His voice was a hoarse scratch. “Just the two of you?” Those soulless eyes flicked over my shoulder to Luna. He craned his neck, lifting up off his heels a bit to get a look at her.
I stepped a little to the side, attempting to block her from view.
He settled back down on his feet and leveled his gaze on me. “Haven’t seen another person for days.”
“Likewise,” I responded, my voice flat, arrow still aimed at him.
“That rainstorm was a bit of good fortune. Not that I enjoy getting soaked to the bone, but at least we didn’t have to worry ’bout those dwellers none. They never much prefer hunting in the rain.” He cocked his head at my prolonged silence. “Rain’s gone. Dwellers should start hunting again soon.”
“Say something I don’t know.”
He frowned. “Are you going to shoot me with that, boy?”
“I don’t know you.” I lifted one shoulder in half a shrug. “Good enough reason to shoot someone.”
The strangers exchanged glances. The leader laughed lightly. “A little standoffish. I understand that. Can’t be too careful.”
My adrenaline pumped. I’d been in dangerous situations before, but Luna being here changed things. My blood had never rushed through my veins so swiftly when it was just me alone.
He nodded to his friend. “We understand your hesitation.” His liquid-dark eyes flicked over my shoulder, trying to get to Luna. “Especially with that girl traveling with you.”
My stomach dipped. He didn’t even disguise his interest in her.
His raspy voice continued, “Gunner here knows these parts. Grew up as a boy nearby. Isn’t that right?” He flicked his gaze to his companion and back to me.
Gunner nodded and spit a dark string of saliva out the side of his mouth. “Don’t know if you’re familiar with this part of the country, but there’s an old monastery not far from here. It fell years ago. It’s abandoned now.” He pointed beyond us into the dark. “Just over those hills.”
I didn’t dare take my eyes off the two of them to follow the direction of his finger. Luna hardly even breathed behind me. If it wasn’t for the light pressure of her hand on the small of my back, I would have wondered if she was still even there.
“We were going to push on to the monastery, hole up there to dry out. I’m certain the girl would like to get warm and dry. What do you think? Want to join us? We’re better in numbers, I always say.”
I never subscribed to that bit of philosophy. Greater numbers drew attention.
He smiled, pulling his narrow, sharp-angled face tighter, revealing a mouthful of rotting, mangled teeth. It was more of a grimace than a smile. I had no doubt that he was insincere. The moment I presented my back he’d stick a blade in it.
Gunner followed suit and grinned, too, rubbing at a dark bit of spit staining his chin. “You should join us. The walls are thick and the ground is stone lined. No dwellers there.”
I resisted asking why this place wasn’t occupied if it was such a haven. There was no sense in engaging. We wouldn’t be joining them.
My attention returned to the leader. We held each other’s gaze for a long moment, silently measuring, before I answered. “We’re fine just the two of us.”
He looked beyond me again, narrowing in on Luna with such intent focus, I knew that we needed to get away from these two quickly. At least I hoped it was only two of them. I scanned the surrounding trees quickly before looking back at them again, already knowing what needed to be done.
“It’s only us,” the leader offered, clearly reading me and trying to offer reassurance.
Luna’s slight hand shifted against the small of my back and that simple touch sent a bolt of determination through me. I would get us out of this.
“Fowler,” Luna whispered.
I winced at the faint sound of her voice, angry that she was here and at such risk. I almost hated Sivo right then for placing her here with me even though I knew she wouldn’t have been safe with him either.
I pulled my arrow back tighter, stretching the string, letting them know I wouldn’t hesitate to let go. “We’re fine on our own. We like it that way.”
The leader’s dark eyes seemed to glow at my words. “I can see that you’re fine.” His gaze flicked back to me. “Perhaps we want to be fine, too, eh? Have a little bit of what you have.”
Luna’s breath caught behind me.
At last, he was revealing his true nature. “I’m not the sharing kind.”
Gunner laughed lightly, his hand moving to the satchel that bulged out from his hip. “We men need to stand together out here, friend. We’re not your enemy.”
“I’m not your friend,” I snarled.
Words didn’t need to pass for them to convey their intent. The dwellers weren’t the only monsters out there. There were two in front of me.
Finally the two men looked from me and exchanged a long glance. “Perhaps you’re not aware of what you have there.”
“Oh?” My lip curled up over my teeth. “What’s that?”
Gunner frowned and looked at his companion, giving him a swift shake of his head. “Anselm,” he said in a voice low with warning, his long, bone-thin fingers flexing over that bulging satchel as though it were his most prized possession.
Anselm held up a hand palm out toward his friend in an agitated gesture that was meant to silence him.
I smiled thinly. He thought he could handle me.
“You haven’t heard the decree,” Gunner added, baiting me. “You’re sitting on a gold mine and don’t even know it.”
I took the bait. “What are you talking about?”
Another meaningful glance passed between the men, and then Anselm sighed, as though relenting. “The king of Relhok has commanded the death of every girl between the ages of fifteen and twenty.” He tried to peer over my shoulder again. “I’d say she’s in that range.” He shrugged. “If there’s any doubt of age, it’s been advised to take no chances.”
I felt Luna shudder behind me.
My mind raced, trying to understand the motive behind a decree for the annihilation of a certain group. Young females, no less. It made no sense. The king was maniacal, but he didn’t want to end mankind. Enough of our population had been lost to dwellers, disease, and starvation. An occasional innocent slaughtered as a sacrifice was one thing, but this was something else entirely.
“Why?” The word was more of a thought that materialized than an actual question I was putting to Anselm or Gunner.
It’s not as though I expected these assassins in front of me to have any insight into the king of Relhok’s inner thoughts, but I was reeling. Understanding slowly sank in, like the teeth of an animal latching onto sinew and muscle. This was why Dagne was cut down. I understood now why they had killed her and left Sivo, Perla, and Madoc alive. They were acting on orders.
“He’s a mad king, listening to that crazed Oracle.” Anselm shrugged and took a step forward. “Does it really matter why?”
I matched him a step, pushing Luna back, too. “Why do it? What’s in it for you?” It was a lot of trouble killing girls.
“Every head gets you a month’s rations.” Anselm shrugged. “Sorry, friend. Who wouldn’t take an offer like that?”
Luna made a choking sound behind
me.
Gunner patted the fat satchel at his side then. “And we intend to eat well for quite some time.”
A surge of bile rose up in my throat. From the size of the bulging satchel, there had to be at least two heads in there. That must have been the odor Luna picked up. My nape prickled, panic scraping down my spine. If she could smell them, then the dwellers could, too. My gaze darted around, searching for a glimpse of them in the endless dark. They couldn’t be far.
“You’re not taking her head,” I growled.
Luna whimpered behind me, her fingers pressing deeper into my back.
“Now, boy. Don’t get in the way. I’m not a man that relishes killing, but Gunner here won’t hesitate to cut you down. We’ll do what we have to.”
I let my arrow fly just as Gunner went for his dagger, sliding it from his sheath and brandishing it in the air. He didn’t have time to launch it before the arrow stabbed him directly between the eyes with a thunk. He dropped like a stone.
Anselm launched himself at me before I was able to shoot again.
I fell with his weight atop me, all sharp angles and bones digging into me as he pulled back his arm and sent his knuckles crashing into my face.
Hot blood spurted from my nose and trickled into my mouth. Luna cried out and scrambled on the ground somewhere above my head.
I jabbed him in the eyes with my thumbs, grinding deep and pushing him off me. He fell back with a cry, groping for his knife at his side. I went for my knife, pulling it free.
I dodged the swipe of his knife and rolled. He came at me again. I hopped up, knees bent. Great breaths lifted our chests. We skimmed each other, our surroundings, realizing almost in the same moment that he stood closer to Luna.
She trembled, hands knotted into fists at her sides as she stared in our direction, her head cocking to the side, listening for our movements.
Anselm’s chest lifted, his breath hitching. He flipped his knife over in his grip, readjusting it to plunge overhead.
We dove for her simultaneously, but she sensed us coming and turned, sprinting into the orchard. I tackled him, slamming into his back. I lifted my blade and stabbed through his jacket to the flesh and muscle.