Wolves don’t forget…Except her

CHAPTER 1: Witch Hunters

Ilyra's POV

The first thing I heard was the voices. Muffled, grumbling, and way too close to my front door for comfort.

“I’m telling you, she’s in there.”

I froze with a half-woven basket in my lap as another voice full of annoyance answered.

“This is a waste of time, Joric. It’s a hole in the rock and it’s probably full of rats.. Just another dead end.”

I silently agreed with the annoyed man. Yes.. absolutely.. just a rat-infested hole.. definitely not worth your time.. please move along but the first voice, Joric was stubborn.

“No, I’m certain of it. The rumors in the last town pointed right here to this cave. There’s a witch in the Ashen Vale.”

I didn’t wait to hear more.. I dropped the basket and slunk backward, away from the moonlight at the mouth of the cave, pressing myself into the darkest shadows at the rear.

Too late.. the dancing light of a torch illuminated the darkness followed by two more. Three men ducked into my home and their eyes, adjusted to the outside gloom, took a moment to see me but mine were already used to the dark. I saw them clearly with their rough faces.

One of them spotted me first and he jabbed a finger in my direction.

“There! See? I told you!”

The annoyed one sighed like this was all a huge inconvenience.

“It’s a young one, Joric. A scrawny thing hiding in a cave. That doesn’t make her a witch. It makes her homeless.”

“Thank you,” I wanted to say to the annoyed one.. he was my new favorite person already.

Scar-face Joric wasn’t having it. He took a threatening step forward with the torch flame sputtering.

“Keep your mouth shut, witch.”

“I’m not” I started with my voice coming out as a squeak. I cleared my throat and tried again. “I mean no harm I promise. I just live here.”

“Live here?” Joric scoffed with his gaze sweeping over my meager belongings.. a crude bed, a small fire pit and my collection of herbs and remedies drying from the ceiling. His eyes lit up with nasty triumph. “Look at this! Witch supplies! All of it!”

The third man, who’d been quiet until now, nodded grimly.

“Alpha Kaelric Varyn is paying a hefty price for witches. A silver crown per head! That’s a good sum for us.. a very good sum.”

Panic seized me.

“No, please! These are just medicines! I help the village down the mountain. I’m a healer!”

“Healer, witch, it’s all the same filth to me,” Joric growled. He lunged forward, his hand closing around my arm. I cried out as he yanked me toward the cave entrance. “You’re coming with us. The Alpha will decide what you are.”

I struggled against his grip but it was useless.

“Please, you have to believe me! I’ve done nothing!”

The other two moved to help him. This was it… I was going to be dragged off to some Alpha to be… I didn’t even want to think about it.

Suddenly, new voices came from outside the cave.. familiar voices.

“Let her go!”

We all froze. Framed in the mouth of the cave were a half-dozen men from the village led by Baylor the chief’s son. He stood tall, his arms crossed and a fierce scowl on his young face.

Joric didn’t loosen his grip.

“This is none of your concern. We’re on the Alpha’s business.”

“Your business is harassing a woman who has done nothing but help us?” Baylor shot back angrily. “That’s our business.”

An older villager stepped up beside him.

“She’s no witch, you fools. She mended my boy’s broken leg last winter. Saved his life after the fever took hold.”

“She gave my wife a tea for her cough that actually worked,” another added.

Joric’s face twisted in a frown.

“Pretty words. Witches are clever. They trick simple folk.”

That was the wrong thing to say. Baylor’s scowl deepened.

“Are you calling my father’s people simple? Are you calling me a fool? Get out of our valley now or you’ll answer to us.”

There was a long silence.. the three hunters were outnumbered. Joric’s eyes darted from Baylor’s angry face to the determined villagers behind him. Finally, with a sound of pure disgust, he shoved me away and I stumbled back rubbing my sore arm.

“This isn’t over,” he snarled, pointing a dirty finger at me. “We’ve got our eyes on you, witch. We’ll be back.”

With that, they shouldered past the villagers and disappeared into the night.

The breath left my body and I leaned against the cool cave wall with my legs feeling like water.

“Ilyra? Are you alright?” Baylor was at my side in an instant.

“I’m… I’m okay. Thank you Baylor. All of you. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t come.”

Baylor puffed out his chest a little.

“We look out for our own.”

And that was the problem, wasn’t it? I wasn’t really one of their own. I was just the strange woman who lived in a cave and knew which mushrooms wouldn’t kill you.

The relief I felt was quickly replaced by a creeping dread. They said they’d be back so I needed to leave. This place was getting too hot for me.

After the villagers left, promising to keep watch, I fell onto my crude bed of furs.

I was up before the sun the next day. The fear of the night before had grown into a hard decision. I had to go but first, I needed supplies. There were early-bloom shrubs and twilight-cap mushrooms that only showed themselves at this hour and I wouldn’t get another chance to collect them.

I slipped out of the cave just as the sky was lighting.

I’d only taken a few steps when a figure emerged from the mist. It was Chief Anor himself. Was he here to tell me to move on? To avoid bringing more trouble?

“Ilyra,” he said in a low rumble. “Baylor told me about the hunters last night.”

“It was nothing, Chief,” I said, trying to sound braver than I felt. “Just a misunderstanding. They’re gone now.”

He gave me a long knowing look.

“My son… he thinks very highly of you.”

Ah. There it was.. I liked Baylor. He was a good kind strong young man but the way he looked at me sometimes with that hopefu puppy-dog admiration… it made me want to retreat further into my cave. I had no room for love.. for anyone.

“He’s a good person,” I said carefully. “The whole village is.”

Chief Anor smiled a little sadly as if he understood exactly what I wasn’t saying.

“We are in your debt for all you’ve done and we will keep a watch for those men. You are under our protection.”

I just nodded.

“Thank you, Chief.”

He clapped me on the shoulder gesture that was probably meant to be reassuring but nearly knocked me over and turned back toward the village.

Finally alone, I hurried into the deeper forest heading for my favorite clearing where the best twilight-caps grew. I’d collect these then maybe the river-reeds then pack what I could carry and be gone by nightfall.

I was so lost in my thoughts of escape that I almost didn’t hear the whispers.

“Ilyra! Ilyra!”

I turned to see two girls from the village with pale faces and their eyes wide with panic.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” I asked, my healer’s instincts pushing my own fears aside. “Is someone hurt?”

“You have to come! Quick!” one gasped, grabbing my hand. “We were checking the rabbit traps and we… we found a man!”

“A man?” Dread washed over me immediately. “Is he… armed?”

One of the girls shook her head.

“No! He’s… he’s on the ground. He’s not moving! Well, he was moving a little and there’s blood! Lots of blood!”

They pulled me through the undergrowth away from my planned path. We burst into a small secluded grove and there he was.

Just like they said.. a man was on the ground.

He was lying on his back with one arm flung out, the other curled against a nasty, bleeding gash on his side. His clothes were a fine make I’d never seen in our little corner of the world but that wasn’t what made my breath catch in my throat.

It was his face.

Even unconscious, pale from blood loss and smudged with dirt, he was… breathtaking with a sharp jawline, a strong nose and lips that somehow looked soft despite their grimace of pain.

His hair was dark and messy falling across his forehead. He was without a doubt the most stupidly ridiculously handsome man I had ever seen in my life!

Well, crap. This seriously complicated my escape plans…!