Chapter Four
Owen escorted meback to the Pork Pit truck. He had to give another demonstration, but we made plans to meet up later to check out the rest of the faire.
I kissed him on the cheek and watched to make sure that he got back to the blacksmith forge okay. Then I knocked on the door, and Sophia let me into the truck.
Sophia and I hit another busy patch, and I spent the next hour dishingup barbecue, sweet tea, and oatmeal-cherry crumbles before the crowd finally died down again.
“Are you okay here by yourself for a little while?” I asked. “Owen should be done with his demonstration by now, and he wanted to explore the faire.”
Sophia grunted, which was her way of sayingyes, and put another pot of baked beans on one of the burners to simmer. I pulled off my apron and hung iton a hook on the wall before opening the back door of the truck and stepping outside.
I had started to head over to the blacksmith forge when a sharp jerk of movement caught my eye. I looked to my right.
The blond giant I’d seen earlier was sitting at a nearby picnic table, along with two other men. Ostensibly, the three giants were taking a break from their security duties and eating lunch,given the drinks, containers, and crumpled napkins clustered around them. But all three men were trying very hard not to stare at me, and they all had their hands on their swords, even though the blades were lying out flat on the table.
I stayed where I was and pulled my phone out of the back pocket of my leather pants, pretending to check my messages, even though I’d turned the device off earlier.All the while, though, I discreetly watched the three giants.
They got up from the table and slid their swords back into their scabbards. Then they took their drinks, containers, and napkins over to a trash can and dumped their food into the garbage, even though they’d barely touched their cheeseburgers and fries.
That vague, uneasy dread I’d been feeling all day solidified into cold certainty.The giants hadn’t been interested in their food. Not at all. It had just been an excuse so they could sit by the Pork Pit truck and keep an eye on me.
Why? What did they want? Had Hugh Tucker sent them? Maybe Uncle Mason had finally realized that I was on to him and had dispatched some goons to eliminate me. Or maybe they were working for another one of my many enemies, like Jonah McAllister.It could be any one of those things or another possibility that I hadn’t even considered yet.
I glanced around, wondering if my friends had clocked the giants. Sophia was busy helping some customers, while Owen was still over at the forge, showing a little girl the four-leaf clover he’d made. I didn’t see Bria or Finn anywhere, but they were probably still at their princess and jester stationsdeeper in the park.
I didn’t want to bother my friends, so I decided to go it alone. There were only three giants. That was hardly a workout after Alanna Eaton, Bruce Porter, and some of the other vicious folks I’d battled recently.
Besides, I was the only one who should have to get blood on her costume today.
So I slid my phone back into my pocket, then strolled away from the Pork Pit truck.Instead of going into the crowded park, I veered in the opposite direction, heading toward one of the dirt hiking trails that led into the woods. I smiled and nodded at the people I passed, but I quickly left the noise, crowd, and commotion of the faire behind and stepped into the trees.
Time to see if the giants would follow the Spider into her own Winter’s Web.
I ambled alongthe trail as though I didn’t have a care in the world. No clouds marred the clear blue canvas of the sky, although the weak winter sun did little to drive away the perpetual chill in the air. Trees rose all around me, their bare brown branches making them look like skeleton sentinels silently studying me. A few hardy evergreen bushes also dotted the landscape, along with smallpatches of ice and snow that were tucked back in the dappled shadows. The rich, dark scents of the earth and dried leaves filled the air, and I drew in a breath, letting the aromas wash away the fried-food stench of the faire.
It would have been a lovely, quiet walk—if I wasn’t being followed.
I didn’t hear footsteps behind me, but that didn’t really mean anything, so I waited until I reacheda bend in the trail, then discreetly glanced back over my shoulder.
Through the trees, I spotted the three giants on the trail a couple hundred feet behind me. They were definitely following me.
Worst mistake they’d ever made.
I kept going at my slow, steady pace, looking for a good spot to confront my enemies. Once I found it, I could slip off the trail, come up behind the men, and make themtell me who had sent them. And if it was Hugh Tucker or dear Uncle Mason, then I would use the giants—and their bodies—to send a bloody message right back to the Circle.
So I headed deeper into the woods, as though I didn’t even notice the three giants creeping along behind me. A couple of minutes later, the trail turned again and led to a stone bridge that arched over a small, gurgling creekthat trickled off from the nearby Aneirin River. I quickly scanned the area, then grinned. Perfect.
I held up my hand and waved. “Owen!” I called out in a loud voice. “Hey, Owen! Wait for me!”
And then I picked up my pace, jogging away from the giants. I discreetly glanced back over my shoulder again.
The giants hadn’t been expecting my outburst or my sudden surge of speed, and they stopped,not sure if they should keep pretending they weren’t following me or give up the ghost and chase after me. I increased my speed, rounding another bend in the trail and leaving them completely behind. The moment the giants were out of sight, I sprinted toward the bridge. I only had a few seconds to get into place.
I ran all the way across the bridge and darted around one side of the railing. Iquickly jogged down the cold, frozen creek bank, then plastered myself up against one of the gray stone supports so that I was standing underneath the far right corner of the bridge.
I glanced up through the railing. I didn’t have the best angle, but the view was good enough to let me see the giants racing toward the bridge. Their shouts drifted down to me.
“Where did she go?”
