**AUTHORS NOTE**
Thank you again for reading! peachy_femme writes Valdis's POV, and I helped with revisions and editing. I wanted to make sure y'all give them the credit they deserve!! <3
**TRIGGER WARNINGS** For this chapter, please read with caution. There are descriptions of blood, vomit, death, gore, g*n mention, fire, dead bodies, m*rder, animal death, and mentions of alcohol/alcohol abuse.
(Let us know if we missed any!) You have been warned, please enjoy!!
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*CHAPTER V*
The last thing Valdis wanted was sheer panic. They stammered a string of words as Loren helped them to a chair and poured a shot of warm whiskey.
He managed to tell the townsfolk Otto had some sort of nervous breakdown and insisted she spend a night in a cell at the guard tower. Luckily for them both, the villagers were all too fine with assuming the woman had a case of the vapors and simply surprised Valdis while they were...busy.
"What in the world happened there, Val? Don't bullshit me with some story about Otto losing her mind. You and I both know she's far too stubborn to let it go." Valdis hit back the shot, his body jittering as he felt his neck.
"I wish I could tell you, Loren. There's something wrong with Otto, no doubt about that. But it might be beyond our control. That's really all I could tell you."
He'd be a fool to think Loren never suspected him of doing things other than simple village tasks. He'd come to the inn in the middle of the night with blood and tears in his shirt, a pulled shoulder, bruises, etc. It was easy to pass it off as having a gambling problem, starting fights with the local rowdy bunches around town, but this was something he couldn't sweep under the rug.
"Loren, I'm going to be brief and I expect you to keep it to yourself." Loren stared for a moment, then put his cloth and glass down and leaned closer to Valdis, his broad arms folded on the bar.
"I feel that something...not mortal resides outside of this village. I don't want to scare the townsfolk or drive business away, so I'm going to tell you this once. Keep holy water near you, grab the priest when the sun rises and ask him to go around town and bless everyone. I don't fucking care how you do it, I don't care if the carpenter has to fashion a thousand cross necklaces. No one is safe. Do you understand me?"
It was silent among the soft glow of the lanterns. Valdis was sure Loren was close to kicking him out, or threatening them to never set foot inside the town or his inn again.
With a heavy sigh, Loren turned and went down into the cellar, and a few minutes later brought up thick wooden sticks in a bundle. "I'm not really sure if white oak matters, but I can whittle this for my tenants, at least. I'll call for Charles and Father Elijah tomorrow."
Valdis stared in amazement and shock. "I've seen things that can't be explained, boy. It only figures we should be prepared in case the unexplained show up at our gates."
They nodded at one another and shook hands. "May God find you in the morning, Valdis. I-"
A young man fell through the inn doors in that instant, sobbing and shaking. Both ran to the boy's aid, helping him up.
"Henry! What is it? What's wrong?" The man was hyperventilating. With frustration, Valdis shook him. "Goddamn it boy, tell us! What happened?" Loren gripped Valdis's arm to calm them.
YOU ARE READING
Rogue Madness
General FictionThis is a story of love, murder, betrayal, trauma, and friendship. A king surrounded by darkness, a prince who wants freedom, a hunter who questions everything they know, and a kind-hearted witch who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. A twis...
