Red Spell

Chapter Ten

Hey guys!  Sorry it's late, but here's Chapter Ten!  Hope you're enjoying Red Spell so far!  Thanks for reading!

I watched the boy's back as we hiked through the forest. He seemed confident enough of where he was going, but he had hemmed and hawed about where exactly he thought Iresia's cottage was. It had not inspired much confidence in me and I kept one eye on the sun as it rose signifying the passing of time. It was already midmorning and I wondered what might be happening in Thorn. As far as they knew, the wolf had been inside the shepherd's own house. I couldn't imagine what the villagers might be thinking. I wondered if Da had even noticed that I was gone.

"How much longer?" I asked. I saw the boy's shoulders tense.

"Asking every ten minutes won't help," he said. I guessed he was probably annoyed at me for blackmailing him with his boots. I made a mental note to steal those boots as soon as I got the chance so I could hold them for ransom and have a little more power in my nearly powerless situation.

"And you're sure this is going to work?" he asked.

"I have no idea if this is going to work, but it's the best idea so far."

"It's the only idea. That's the only reason it's the best," he said. I stuck out my tongue at his back.

"Don't be such a child."

I made another mental note that he had excellent peripheral vision.

"Well you haven't come up with anything better," I retorted. He gave me a backward glance and a frown.

"I only agreed to babysit you. You still have to think for yourself."

"You're not babysitting me!"

"Whatever you say."

I felt the urge to slap him again, but I dug my hands viciously into my pockets instead. I'd slap the fuzz off his face as soon as this was over.

"You don't have to shuffle like that," he said.

"Like what?" I demanded.

"You sound like a drunken reindeer."

"I do not!"

"Shhh, there it is." He stopped abruptly and popped a hand back to my forehead to stop me. I swatted him away with a scowl. Then I glanced ahead. There was Iresia's cottage sitting pristinely in the new snow. The pigs were rooting around in their pen, but other than that there was no sound. I felt my heart flutter as the boy stepped back to let me to pass. I was evidently going to be doing this by myself. I glared at him as I marched by.

"What a gentleman," I muttered. Then I slowed and edged forward moving from tree to tree. I was suddenly skittish and jumpy as I forgot about the boy and focused completely on the cottage. It seemed deserted, but it had seemed deserted last night too. Knowing what I did about Iresia made this worse than the last visit. Perhaps she was helpless or perhaps she had other dangerous spells. I had no idea and the unknown made it all the more nerve-wracking.

"Are you going or not?" the boy asked, startling me as he walked past. I wanted to be angry, but I was grateful too. I followed him silently as we slipped up to the wall of the cottage. There was no light or sound as far as I could see or hear. I crawled along under the shuttered windows to the door and tried the latch. It was locked.

"Step aside," the boy said. I reluctantly obeyed and watched in hidden admiration as he slipped a long hunting knife into the crack and lifted the bolt inside. I was also mildly disturbed by how easily he did it. He flashed me a proud grin as the door swung open. I ignored him as we crouched on either side to see if anyone would come out. Nothing happened and he finally poked his head around the doorframe.