As they’d carried me, I kept my mouth closed and my limbs still, listening to their chatter. I’d had the hard luck of being found by a clearly crooked group of hunters, brought to the area by the large number of diafol sightings. They were paid handsomely by the crown for every skin they produced. As I stared up at the brute who’d carried me back, I made out the telltale crossed swords slicing into a boar’s face on his dusty tunic, marking them as members of the secretive Guild of Diafol Hunters.
A fire sat in the centre, a pot bubbling away, and my stomach groaned as the scent of burnt porridge wafted across to me. I grunted as a waterskin slammed into my stomach.
‘She’s shit at playing catch,’ one of them called out, and I unstoppered the skin, drinking heavily to avoid saying something that would earn me another slap, or worse.
I gulped too greedily. Water flooded my throat and the valuable liquid splattered onto my thighs.
‘Who’s that?’
I shielded my eyes against the white sun as a woman approached. She hadn’t been part of the original trio. The first stirrings of real fear prickled on my neck as she knelt down. Her thick, freckled arms were crisscrossed with the history of her battles with the diafol, and I wondered who’d be the victor if she were to take on Ifan. A long braid of untamed red hair fell over one bulging shoulder. She wore a bandolier covered with daggers, and what might have been vials. Twisting her head to the side, she set her pale watery eyes on me, a sneer on her face.
‘Why you out here?’ she asked, shoving closer to my face, my empty stomach churning at the stench of her hot breath.
I took another, more gentle, swig, relishing the coolness sliding through me. A smirk curved the corner of her cracked lips. Keeping my eyes locked on hers, I bought myself some time as I rearranged my thoughts.
‘I was in the woods with my husband. We were attacked by a diafol. It split us up and I fell over the ledge about a day ago.’
She narrowed her eyes, her stubby fingers rubbing her chin.
‘Not exactly the perfect spot for a romantic stroll, is it?’ She extended her hand in order to make her point. She leaned in so close we could almost kiss. ‘So sweetheart, if you’d like my healer to patch you up, tell the truth.’
I held her harsh stare, refusing to look away. ‘It is the truth. My husband’s out there.’ I jutted my chin in what I thought wasthe direction of the woods. ‘We’ve been mapping out areas of interest for the king?—’
‘Why would the king be interested in this place? There’s fuck all here!’
My nails dug into the scabs on my already broken palms. How much should I tell this bitch?
‘But there isn’t fuck all here.’ I took another quick swig of blessed water. ‘You’re here.’
The woman slapped her thigh as she barked a laugh. The other hunters joined her. She laughed once more, then grabbed the waterskin, pouring the warm liquid over my head.
I blinked away the water, my breaths rasping. There was no way I could make out her features and a spike of anger pierced my lungs at the thought of how vulnerable I was.
‘Nice try, witch.’
My heart stuttered at the old insult for Anomalies, from the days when it wasn’t only the diafols the hunters sought out to slaughter when mortals feared our gifts. She stretched out her hand, and I clenched my jaw as she wiped roughly under my nose. My heart sank as she inspected her fingers, rubbing the blood together.
‘Now, witch. I want the truth before I run you through, and spare us all from watching you tear yourself apart.’
I swiped at my nose as colour rose up my chest. If Evella was on my side, she’d use the blight to help me rip these twats apart.
Her eyes lit up as I told her I was an Anomaly who’d left my training too late. I omitted the name of my husband or title. These fuckers had no loyalty to anyone but their Guild and wouldn’t hesitate to ransom an all-valuable Anomaly to the highest bidder.
She watched me with glittering eyes, her other hunters gathering around as I made up a tale of my husband fearing retribution and bringing me as far away as he could.
‘What’s the gift then?’
Our gazes locked, neither one of us prepared to give the other any ground, despite how the odds were stacked in her favour. I inhaled sharply against the slashing in my temple, the flaring burn of the itch.
‘I can summon animals, control their will.’
The smile slid from her face, her eyebrows raised.
‘You control animals?’
I nodded.
‘Get Pumpkin,’ she said to one of her lackeys.
