Page 200 of Huntress

Elsie patted her tummy and shrugged.

“I won’t forgive him, or forget what he’s done, but a man died protecting that idiot’s life. I have to honor that. He should stay where he is, where he can be monitored by his betters and kept in line.”

“That’s so grown-up, it isn’t like you at all.”

“Rude.”

“All of this has changed you. You’re not the Elsie I knew.”

“It hasn’t. I’m the same old me, I just remember who that is now.”

“How will the hunters cope without you to save everyone’s asses?”

“That’s a problem for Mordane to figure out. Change is coming for the hunters, whether they like it or not. Too many irreplaceable lives have been lost. They’ll have to come up with a new system to bolster the numbers if they’re going to continue protecting the humans,” Elsie said.

“Sometimes I wonder if that’s even their main goal anymore.” Morgan quietly glanced around to make sure he hadn’t been overheard by anyone sneaking up on them.

“Careful, Morgan. Thoughts like that will get a man in trouble, your entire squad could turn on you,” Elsie snorted. They walked a little more until the bell rang for lunch service.

“I’m sorry, Elsie. I was wrong.”

“And now you get to live with the consequences of your actions,” Elsie muttered. “All of you do.”

“Marley's done what she can to make it up to you. She worked hard to convince Mordane that you wouldn’t have killed Clairemont if it weren’t for the medicine.”

“That’s ridiculous. I killed him because I wanted to. I should have done it sooner.”

“It may be ridiculous, but people will believe what they want to believe. Nobody wants to watch someone they admire fall from grace,” he replied.

They parted ways, and Morgan did not return.

She spent the next few days outside, soaking up the sun and throwing daggers at a target for hours, only returning for meals. Not once did another member of her former squad contact her.

She considered it a good thing. Now that her body was healed, her temper ran hotter with each passing day. She’d lose it if Marley or Trenton were to make any attempts at communication. Elsie wasn’t sure if she’d manage to keep her temper in check or end up a wanted criminal for starting a corpse collection, so she did nothing.

Nothing but grieve and seethe in impotent rage.

Two weeks to the day after she’d run Saint off, a cranky and flustered Marko came to find her swinging in the hammock she’d strung up between two buildings and made into her bed. She peeked over at the supply sergeant curiously.

“Mordane is demanding your immediate presence. There’s a strange woman in his office. She’s some kind of demon, but he hasn’t ordered an attack. Her magic makes the centipede look like a child, Chantraine, she’s the most powerful being I’ve ever seen, and she wants you.”

Elsie froze. She knew of only one person who fit the description, but instead of leaping with joy or succumbing to rage, she went numb. The one thing she’d hoped and prayed for was finally happening, and she wasn’t sure she wanted it anymore.

“My mother came,” she said woodenly, climbing out of the hammock. She took a step forward, then stopped and looked down at herself. Her clothes were dirty and worn out, and her hair was in a terrible, tangled mess. “I can’t face her like this.”

“There’s no time,” Marko stressed.

Elsie smirked. Mordane must have made his demand urgent.

“Too bad.” Elsie embraced the cold calm settling over her. “She’s made me wait for sixteen years. She can wait an hour while I clean myself up. Inform Mordane that I will be available at the old oak in one hour.”

Marko’s face soured, but he agreed. Turning on his heel, he ran back toward Mordane’s offices.

Elsie walked back to her room and took a shaky breath before opening the door. She didn’t have time to fall apart. Going straight to her closet, she pulled out a pair of shorts, knee-high boots, and one of her current favorite tops. She threw them in a pile on her bed along with supplies for the shower and a miniature armory of weapons.

Her daggers, throwing knives, and two swords that someone had taken the time to return to her room. One was hers, the other belonged to Saint. She wouldn’t leave it behind. Elsie took one last item, then ran to the showers to clean up and fix her unruly hair.

While in the shower, reality slowly set in, leaving her shaking with anxious energy. Her mother had come. Elsie was finally leaving safely and wouldn’t have to worry about the ravens anymore.