Blood Hunter: An Urban Fantasy Vampire Hunting Novel by Nicholas Woode-Smith

Author:Nicholas Woode-Smith [Woode-Smith, Nicholas]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Published: 2020-07-19T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13. Swim

Clear skies were covered once again, darkening the land. I prayed a storm wouldn’t come. Legend said that the inkanyamba could control the storms. But, so could impundulu. Now that I thought about it, a lot of the local mythological beasts were big on controlling storms. Perhaps, their competition for domination over the elements left the weather in equilibrium?

I stopped dragging the calf carcass as the river came into view. Two men from the village had helped me carry it this far but, as the clouds covered the sky once again, they fled. Graham was practically rolling on the floor laughing at that. We mortals really were amusing to him, apparently.

I took a deep breath and then tugged hard on the carcass again, pulling it a few more inches through the mud. Graham appeared atop the poor departed creature, his legs crossed.

“Those men flee this beast, but you charge towards it,” he said, grinning. “What does this mean?”

I snorted by way of response, pulling the corpse just a bit further. Had it become heavier? Graham didn’t weigh much when he was perched on my head or shoulders. But knowing him, he could probably adjust his own weight. Just to torment me.

“It means,” Graham continued, despite my displeasure. “That either you are a fool, or they are.”

“They are not fools,” I grunted, as I hefted the calf over a rock indented into the mud.

“Then that makes you the fool.”

“Perhaps.”

Graham frowned at that. A rare expression on the demon’s face.

The slope downwards made my labour much easier, but it was still hard going, as the body caught on branches and rocks, and its limbs got stuck in the mud.

“You respect them,” Graham finally said. “Even though they are simple folk. Peasants.”

“They know what life is meant to be. Peace. And they embrace it. I am the fool for seeking violence and death. But…”

“Without you…they would not have peace.”

His voice was low. Measured. Graham had never sounded so sincere or thoughtful before.

I pulled on the carcass, wrestling it from its restraints and agonisingly pulling it to the riverbank. Graham remained sitting on the calf, crossing his legs and looking into the distance.

Eventually, I reached the riverbank. Graham disappeared as I let the calf lie in the mud. A light drizzle had begun to fall. Hopefully, it would remain light.

I retrieved the poison bottle from my bag and placed it deeply within the pre-cut hole in the calf’s side, securing it firmly in its gut. I would have liked some explosives too, but one could only dream.

Bait as ready as it could ever be, I proceeded to a tree. It had a thick trunk, with old roots sinking deep into the earth. I retrieved a long rope, which I tied around the tree trunk. Silumko had drilled me in knot-tying. A lot. I was confident this knot could hold a dragon. I tied the other end of the rope to a metal ring on the butt of one of my assegais. The blade on this weapon had hooks on the side.

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