Elf Sight

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Irlan shook his head. He looked helplessly at his sister.

“You’re scaring me Irlan. What happened? Tell me.” Alarm raced through her at Irlan’s expression that she could barely make out in the tree filtered moonlight.

“He refused him.”

“What do you mean?” Shadow grabbed the front of her brother’s shirt. She held her breath and hoped the roaring sound that started to fill her ears would stop.

“Elrick came today while you were at the mill.”

“And? Come on Irlan, spit it out.” She shook her brother’s shirt, which she clutched tightly.

“He refused him,” Irlan said softly.

“What do you mean… refused him?” Shadow’s voice became higher pitched with each spoken word. The roar in her ears grew, making her wonder if she’d heard her brother right.

“He told Elrick if he even sets eyes on you again he’d beat him senseless. That he wasn’t good enough for you. That no man around here was. You know Elrick wouldn’t have stood a chance against the old man. Even with one arm he can still beat most of the men around here. They’re farmers. Not a single one of them have been trained in combat. Shadow, I wish I didn’t have to tell you.”

She let go of her brother’s shirt and stared at him. His words didn’t change. The roaring sound in her ears threatened to drown all other noises. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. She took in a deep shuddering breath and tried again. “I hate him.” The words burst from Shadow as she turned away from her brother. Words she’d fought against uttering for years. She might not have loved Elrick, but he was kind and she had cared about him. He’d been a way to escape the tavern and she had to leave. Desperately.

“I know.”

Shadow turned back to Irlan. “There’s got to be a way to get away from him. I thought Elrick was it. He said he loved me and wouldn’t let anything come between us. He didn’t even mind that I don’t love him as much as he loves me.” The roaring subsided to a dull noise. She felt light headed. The world seemed to be both right up close and far away. The anger burning through her was doused by disbelief. How could Elrick have failed her?

“He went white as a ghost and disappeared faster than one.”

“It’s not fair!” Shadow clenched her hands. She didn’t know whether to scream or cry. She turned away from her brother, lowering her voice. “I hate him so much. We’d have been better off if he hadn’t come back.”

“We’d have died of starvation.”

She spun towards him, yelling, “Don’t stick up for him.”

“I’m not.”

Shadow looked around frantically. “We’ve got to get out of here, away from the tavern.” No escape appeared before her. It seemed like the night closed in on her instead. Eerie shapes reached out to her as the moonlight made patterns through the gently swaying branches.

“If I had elf sight I’d have taken the job he was offered today. I’d have used the money to buy you a house in some town far from here and me a merchant ship. But I don’t. Why couldn’t I have elf sight? Why did that old bugger deserve it and I didn’t?” Irlan demanded.

Shadow stared up at her brother. Confusion, anger, frustration, disbelief, desperation. She didn’t know what she felt. Her head was a swirl of emotions and she could no longer think clearly. “I’ve got it.”

“Got what?”

“Elf sight.” She heard herself speak the words. The words she’d held in for what seemed like forever. The words she thought she’d never speak. It was still hard to believe she’d spoken them. Maybe she hadn’t.

“What! Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

Yes, she’d spoken them. She closed her eyes. How could she have told? “Because Pa threatened to beat either of us to death if we inherited it. He said it was a curse and he didn’t want it in our family. He already saw me as a blight on his life, I didn’t want to be a curse as well.” She opened her eyes. “And he was sober when he said it.”

“Shadow!” Irlan grabbed her by the waist and swung her around. “I’ve got the best of plans.”

“Put me down before you drop me, oaf.” Shadow laughed at her brother’s excitement, a touch of hysteria echoing in the sound.

“We can do this, Shadow.” Irlan lowered her to the ground.

“Do what?”

“Take the General’s job.”

“I can’t. No females allowed in the army, remember?”

“So? You’ll be my little brother. Come on Shadow, stop shaking your head like that. Didn’t you hear what they offered? Twice the fee of his last job. His last job bought the tavern!”

“I know, but…” Visions of all that could be bought with that sort of money raced through her mind. Then she thought of what might happen if they were discovered. “No. You aren’t going to convince me. You’re crazy. We’d never pull it off.”

“We can. Besides, they’re not going to question us. They sounded desperate for someone with elf sight. And who cares why, as long as they pay.”

“Some wizard made a mountain pass disappear and they need to find it so they can retrieve something that was stolen. They only wanted him to go as far as the hidden path. But we can’t trust the General.”

“Why not?”

“Because it was Farnell Serensten. He was a captain when the old man knew him.”

“The man he blames for leaving him for dead when he lost his arm?”

“Yes.”

“I thought it might have been.”

“You can see why we can’t go. We’d be mad to trust him. Nothing about the mission seemed right. Farnell said it was straightforward. But if that was true, why would a general come begging for help? A general doesn’t do the work of a lackey.”

“There’s probably a reasonable explanation for it. After all, the fellow knew Pa from years ago. Maybe he thought it was the polite thing to do.”

Shadow shook her head. “You’re not fooling me with that pathetic excuse. You’re mad to even think about going.”

“I’m not mad. I’m desperate. Please, Shadow. You heard what I said. He doesn’t believe any man’s good enough for you to marry. You’re seventeen! Do you want to spend the rest of your life at his beck and call? Gran lived past eighty. He’s likely to live another forty years at least.”

“Oh god no,” Shadow whispered. “Forty years.” A chill shivered along her spine as she pictured herself at fifty-seven still being yelled at by her Pa and serving in the tavern.

“Or more,” Irlan said quietly.

Shadow shook her head in horror. She stalked away from her brother and muttered under her breath. She reached out to touch a tree that stood near her, the bark rough against her hand. She couldn’t get the image from her mind. “Older!” She pictured her Pa at one hundred years and herself with a walking stick as he still ruled her life. She pushed away from the tree, wanting to run as fast and as far as possible. Her feet stumbled forward. The roaring in her ears started again and she felt a wave of panic rush through her. “Never.” She turned suddenly and Irlan, who’d followed, nearly stumbled over her.

“Hey, careful!”

Shadow stabbed him in the chest with her finger. “You’ve got to promise we stay away from any fighting. As soon as things get crazy we’re out of there. And you make them give us some money up front. They also provide horses and supplies.”

“You’re the best.” Irlan swung his sister around again.

“Put me down.” Shadow tried to push away from him.

Irlan grinned down at her. “Let’s get you ready little brother, before you change your mind.”

Shadow groaned. Irlan grabbed her hand and half dragged her home, talking excitedly all the way. The moment they came near the tavern, they both fell silent. A quick peek inside showed the coast was clear and they hurried up to the loft.

They grabbed clothes, including some old ones of Irlan’s for Shadow to wear. Using his Ma’s shears, Irlan hacked off his sister’s hair and left it with a note for their Ma to find the next day.

Shadow stared at the hair lying on her bed, still plaited. “This is crazy.”

“Get dressed. It’d be just like the old bugger to come out here and stop us.” Irlan left her alone in the loft.

She stared at the boy’s clothes she was to wear. Luckily she’d never gained those curves she’d always wanted. Reaching for the linen bandage, she bound her chest first, then dressed in Irlan’s old clothes, which were slightly big. With one last glance at the hair on her bed, she joined Irlan downstairs. He held a pillowcase with some food and spare clothes. Her stomach lurched.

“Are you ready?”

She shook her head. “No.” The motion felt strange and she reached up to touch her hair.

“You can’t change your mind. Come on, Shadow. We have to leave. Now.”

“This is crazy.” She looked past her brother at the door that led to the bar. Movement felt impossible.

“So is staying.”

Her gaze clashed with her brother’s. The rolling in her stomach stopped and she slowly nodded. “I suppose it is.”

Irlan grinned and reached out his hand to her. “Then let’s get out of here.”