Stranger in the Smoke
807 Words
The forest was different at night. During the day, light filtered through the branches in shifting patches of gold. Now the darkness pressed in from every side, broken only by the pale gleam of moonlight on the path ahead. The trees creaked softly in the wind, their bare branches scratching against each other like old bones.
Caelen kept to the narrow track, moving quickly but quietly. Werrin’s pack bounced against his back with every step.
He’d been walking for over an hour, putting as much distance as possible between himself and Hallowford. Still, every sound made him glance over his shoulder, a c***k of twigs, the low hoot of an owl, the rustle of leaves in the undergrowth.
The voices from earlier still echoed in his head. Bring him out.
He pulled his cloak tighter, trying to block the chill. The medallion rested warm against his chest, steady now, but somehow aware.
The path narrowed as it wound downhill toward the river. The moonlight caught on moving water somewhere below, just visible through the trees.
That’s when he heard it, the faint rhythm of footsteps that weren’t his own.
He froze, listening.
They were light, quick, coming from behind. Too deliberate to be an animal.
Caelen slipped off the path, crouching low in the shadow of a thick oak. His hand went to the knife at his belt.
The footsteps drew closer. A figure emerged into the moonlight, a girl, maybe a year or two older than him, with short, dark hair and a worn leather coat. She walked like someone who knew how to be quiet but wasn’t trying very hard.
She stopped in the middle of the path, head tilted as if she’d heard him breathing.
“You can come out,” she said, her voice carrying easily in the still air.
Caelen stayed where he was.
“I’m not going to rob you,” she added. “Too much trouble carrying other people’s junk.”
Slowly, he stepped out from behind the tree, keeping one hand on the knife.
Her eyes flicked to it, then back to his face. “You’re jumpy.”
“You were following me.”
“I was walking the same road. Hard to avoid when there’s only one.”
They stood there for a moment, sizing each other up.
Finally, she said, “Name’s Brynn.”
“Caelen.”
“You from the village back there?”
He hesitated. “…Yes.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Thought so. Saw the smoke.”
Caelen’s grip on the knife tightened. “What do you want?”
“Nothing. Just making conversation. But if you’re running from whatever happened, you’re heading the wrong way.”
“There’s a river ahead. I’m crossing at Stoneford.”
Her smile was quick and not entirely friendly. “Then you’re definitely heading the wrong way.”
Before he could reply, a distant howl cut through the night. Not the cry of a wolf, lower, harsher, like stone grinding against stone.
Brynn’s expression changed. “How far behind you is it?”
Caelen frowned. “What?”
“The Ember wolf. Or whatever’s tracking you. Don’t pretend you don’t know, you’ve got the look of someone marked.”
He took a step back. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Oh, I know. I just don’t care. But if you want to see another sunrise, you should start moving.”
Another howl, closer this time.
Caelen didn’t need convincing. He turned and started down the path. Brynn fell into step beside him without asking, her stride unhurried.
“Why are you helping me?” he asked.
“Helping is a strong word. I just don’t like watching people get eaten unless I’m the one who put them there.”
They moved quickly, the sound of the river growing louder. Brynn glanced over her shoulder once, twice, then muttered something under her breath Caelen didn’t catch.
The trees thinned, and the path spilled out onto a narrow strip of rocky shore. The river here was wide, the current swift. Moonlight glinted on the black water.
Stoneford was nothing more than a cluster of large, flat rocks forming a rough crossing. In summer it was shallow enough to wade, but now the water ran high, cold with melted snow from the mountains.
Brynn crouched by the edge, testing the current with a stick. “Fast, but not impossible. If you slip, you’ll be halfway to the sea before you can shout for help.”
Caelen eyed the water. “And if I don’t cross?”
“Then you’ll meet whatever’s behind us.”
The third howl came from the trees directly across the river.
They both froze.
Brynn stood slowly, scanning the dark shore. “Well,” she said lightly, “that complicates things.”
- Writer
