Where Gods Fear to Go by Angus Watson

Author:Angus Watson [Watson, Angus]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780356507613
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 5

Canyon Invaders

“Ottar’s over there,” said Freydis the Annoying, walking back from the target cactus with an armful of arrows and nodding westwards.

Sitsi looked across the canyon and over rocky scrubland. With her enhanced sight she could see Paloma watching Keef trying to sneak up on a jackrabbit with Arse Splitter. But no small boys.

“A long way over there,” said Freydis.

“That’s west,” said Sitsi Kestrel.

“Yes.”

“But he should be coming from the south-east.”

“He’s coming from the west.”

“You’re sure?”

“I am.”

“How far?”

Freydis frowned and peered westwards. “Don’t know.”

She could be right. It had been long enough that they could have circled around.

“Is Bodil Gooseface with him?” Sitsi blurted.

“Why Bodil Gooseface?”

“I mean all of them. Are they all okay? I just said Bodil because I think she’s the most likely to come to harm.” Sitsi twirled an arrow and tried to look nonchalant.

Freydis gave her a strange look. “I don’t know. I just know Ottar’s over there and he’s coming here. He might get here today, he might get here in ten days. Please can we shoot some more arrows?”

“Go for it. I’ll watch.”

It was nine days since she and Keef had rescued Paloma from the squatch. Sitsi had been going just a little insane spending all her time with Keef, so she suggested that Paloma and the Wootah man hunt while she taught Freydis how to make bows and arrows and how to use them. It wasn’t because she didn’t like Keef. Quite the opposite.

She tried to tell herself she loved him like a brother. He was so funny looking with his little head, one eye, one ear and pale skin, how could it be otherwise? But she knew she was lying to herself.

She was sure he felt the same. She was aching to tell him that Bodil’s baby wasn’t his. But it would be the wrong thing to do, plus she wanted the beginning of their love to be romantic.

How did you two get together? she sometimes fantasised that people in years to come would ask. Well, it’s a funny story, she’d answer in her fantasies. He shagged someone else who was already pregnant with another man’s baby. I told him that it wasn’t his baby, and he ran into my arms. What about the mother? Oh, we ruined her life and the baby died.

That would not do.

She wished she could have talked to someone about it, but there was only Keef himself, Freydis and Paloma. Paloma would tease her and be coarse.

She looked at Freydis, standing and holding the bow and pulling the string exactly as she’d shown her. She couldn’t bring herself to discuss her love live with a six-year-old, even such a precocious one.

Her policy was to keep trying to convince herself that Keef was just a great friend. When the others got here and they carried on west, he’d be hanging out with Bodil more than with her, because they were lovers who were going to share a child. But Sitsi could still enjoy friendly moments with him. That was all she needed, wasn’t it?

She sighed and looked around again.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.