Dark Offering by Elizabeth James

Author:Elizabeth James [James, Elizabeth]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Thrall of Darkness
Published: 2019-11-14T18:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Despite Jarl’s protests that he could handle his path alone during the harvest, Doss insisted that the girl who had been training with him should accompany him. Normally only one person went because of the danger but they didn’t view the danger in the same way since people had begun surviving. The other paths would still have one person but Jarl’s would have two, and he knew some of that was because of the oldest woman, who still feared that something would happen to Jarl and he wouldn’t finish his harvest.

His heart sank as he and Keisha set out early in the first morning of the peace. He was a little tense as the entered the woods, since there was always the risk that the peace wouldn’t come each year and while he wasn’t in danger from the woods, she was. But nothing happened and they went quickly. They had to pause more often than he preferred, as she had never walked such a long distance over ground like this. It was quite a bit of an adjustment. The paths were clear and easy to follow, but they weren’t roads like in the colony. Of course, Doss arranged for them to practice with fallen trees and rough terrain, but there was a big difference between practice and walking like this for five days. Walking with a mask also made a difference, he knew. In in the colony it barely made a difference but out here, the mask cut off his peripheral vision and always put him on edge, and he knew Keisha felt the same.

As the sun began to sink, he explained how to walk in the dark, and when to put the goggles on. He usually went an hour after the sun fell before putting on the goggles because it was generally still light enough to get by and the goggles were bulky and made walking more difficult. As the sky darkened and he considered telling her to put them on, the path suddenly grew lighter and there was a familiar clopping sound. Surely Arlen wouldn’t come to him with someone else here. They rounded a bend and he stopped with a gasp.

A crack rang through the night and he saw that Keisha had fired immediately and was crouched in a defensive position. The creature in front of them stared at them, unharmed. It wasn’t Arlen, but it wasn’t like the female who had threatened Jarl last year. This one looked as approachable as Arlen had and lifted his arms the same way Arlen had, as if to indicate peace.

He was quite handsome, though not nearly as perfect as Arlen. Jarl glanced at Keisha, whose eyes were wide in surprise at the sight of the creature. Was this creature drawn from her dreams and desires? He had to be, and he felt almost embarrassed to have such an intimate look into what she wanted.

“I mean you no harm,” the creature said, and Keisha looked at Jarl fearfully.

“What do we do?” she hissed.

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