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“I’m fine, just worried about Josh. I need to go talk with Alejandro, stay here, okay?” and with those simple spoken words, she stood and left me alone in the kitchen.
CHAPTER 14
I knew that look she gave me all too well. She didn’t believe I was strong enough to support anyone’s emotional pain so she didn’t share. I was still seen as too fragile and unprepared and that sent me standing and rushing outside to the waves.
I sat on the beach until night dawned on me and Kenna pulled me back inside. Pup slept next to the couch where Josh was unconscious and completely still. Kenna bid me a goodnight and went to sleep. Not sure where to go, I surrendered and went upstairs to find an empty room and there I fell to sleep quite immediately.
Weeks passed and became two months and within that time Garion’s position was still unknown and the beach was unbearably cold. By then, I was positive that there were people searching for me but I had to help Kenna find Garion. Those two months were uneventful and I spent a majority of my time researching and questioning Kenna. It was a monotonous eight weeks.
“Are you hungry?” Kenna questioned in a yawn and I hugged myself and my breath was visible when I let out a heavy gasp.
“Very much so,” I shivered and closed the windows and Kenna fed the fire some more wood then left to find something we could throw together. We running short on food and there wasn’t any heat in this house besides the fireplace and thick blankets.
I had Pup held close to me and wrapped us in feathered blankets while soaking in the heat from the flames. I let out another long breath and the air frosted before my eyes, creating a misty affect.
“We have canned corn!” I heard Kenna call and I designated that as acceptable and she returned quickly and I opened the blanket for her and squealed as the cold rush of wind welcomed Pup and I. Kenna quickly slid to my side and we situated again and had a tough time opening the can so we could roast it over the fire.
We hadn’t seen any shadows since that time at the first cabin and Asmodeus had remained unheard of, and so had Josh and Alejandro. It was just Kenna, Pup, and me.
Kenna called for the moon and her body began to radiate heat and I hugged her, “K-Kenna, I love you!”
“You had better,” she smiled nimbly and I thought about all the books I had read and pulled myself tighter together and Pup gave a small whine, “Sorry, Pup…”
I watched the fire grow and the corn heated up just enough for us to devour and we quickly finished the can and ran upstairs in need of more warmth.
“Throw me that blanket!” Kenna demanded and I did and hugged myself after we finished stuffing every exposed crack with blankets and towels. We started a fire in every fire place, whether it was safety hazard or not, and dressed in layers of clothing.
This became the usual night routine and as I had done all the other nights, I went to the front room (the warmest room in the cabin) and laid out books before me and I took notes and studied. While I did this, Kenna readied to go see Josh to keep updated.
I read about elves and how they were of peaceful people and only fought when it became totally necessary. I learned that mermaids were cousins of sirens and they used their singing voice to captivate you and lure you into the depths of the water. Doing this, you would drown and the mermaids would devour you. Quite the story tale, yes?
I discovered that were different kinds of spirits and some of them could take form of ones you loved that had passed on. With this, they would torment you.
There were also a collection of extinct species such as dragons, unicorns, and basilisks. I also learned about Brownies, Centaurs, Chimaera, Manticores, Banshees, Afrit, and Hesperides. A majority of these creatures were rare and unheard of for the most part and I was terrified of the Manticore which had an undistinguishable appetite for humans. It sent shivers flying up my spine and I sent a reproachable look to Kenna whom sat in concentration.
“What are you doing?” I asked her in diligence and she jerked then blinked at me in confusion.
“Oh…oh! I was just thinking,” she offered with a small smile and leaned back, “Have you found anything?”
“Manticores,” I squeaked and she laughed at my response.
“They are nasty creatures, aren’t they?” she smiled, “And they feed on human flesh, don’t they? I bet you anything there are some out here…”
“MaKenna!” I cried out and she fell over in laughter.
“Of course, I’m only teasing you! Besides, they wouldn’t stand a chance against me, dear Erin! No one is touching my best friend,” she laughed and I still felt uneasy.
“See if I get any sleep tonight,” I mumbled and closed the books whilst rubbing my temples.
“I’m going to go see how things are with Josh. You’ll be fine here?” Kenna asked as she came to a stand and I nodded quickly. She always left around this time to go talk with the other wolves and I think she did it out of respect of me, so they didn’t have to come here.
Apparently, I didn’t hide my fear as well as I would have liked to.
She departed and I was left in the cold house with only Pup and frightening tales to keep me company.
“Now, Pup what do you think of Manticores?” I asked the growing puppy in my lap and she tipped her head in confusion, starring me down with her ice blue eyes. “I thought so. Me too,” I sighed and moved myself to the couch.
I reposed my head on the arm of the couch and closed my eyes, hoping that sleep could steel me away from the dreadfully icy cabin and haunting solitude.
Behind my closed eyes, I imagined creatures with the tail of a scorpion, body of a lion, with horns and wings, and the face of a man. This creature harbored blood red eyes and three rows of teeth, much like the king of the ocean: a shark. This beast devoured its entire victim, clothes and all, left no trace behind. It had a flute like voice and spoke the human language native to its land. It was capable of great speeds and had the incredible ability of jumping long distances. This creature was the Manticore and with it came the thought of lycanthropes and home.
Yes, I still feared wolves and the thought that there were a group of wolves that always wandered nearby sent me into a frenzy of panic attacks. One would suppose that I would have grown accustom to their presence, but it only ever made me more uneasy.
And I was terribly home sick.
It had never occurred to me that finding Garion would takes months, perhaps years, and now that I sat here, two months into this “mission,” I was finally having second thoughts. I missed the smile of Gram, the jokes from Al, Drake’s patronizing glower, Clay’s shy approach, and even the small cabin that posed as my home.
I missed Gram’s flowery scent and her garden out back; I missed her love for nature and her respect for life. I missed Al in all of his glory, I wanted to see his one brown eye and his other blue eye, and hear his ridiculous teasing. I wished to hear Drake lecture me and tell me I was too young to know anything, even though that infuriated me.
A sigh fell from my lips and I let sleep crawl into my thoughts and I drifted into my dreams.
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