Finding Monsters (19 page)

“There was an incident last night,” Atian began. “It a
p
pears Missy received a mysterious gift.” He looked at Missy and nodded to the package heavily wrapped in brown paper. The bulls averted their eyes while she opened the paper to reveal the red camisole. Vrag gr
owled as Elyen sucked in a
shudd
ered
breath.

“Where did this come from?” Vrag boomed. Missy quickly re-wrapped the garment and tucked it away again.

“It’s put away now,” she whispered but no one seemed to relax.

“We don’t know who sent it, but it is not from this world,” Sophie offered.

Elyen’s big doe eyes widened as she turned to Missy. “You didn’t wear that, did you?”

“I didn’t know!” Missy wailed. “I’d just tried it on when Charlie walked in and saw it.” She could not hold back the buildup of tears any longer.

“It’s a wonder you’re not dead,” Vrag lectured. He visibly cringed at the stern look Elyen gave him. She moved closer to Missy and examined the girl for injuries. When she saw the ugly dark purple bruises marring the girl’s upper arms, she pulled Missy closer and rocked her like a child.

Charlie sat in quiet, painful misery as he saw again the evidence of the injuries he’d inflicted on his new mate. Atian saw the hurt in Charlie’s eyes and rescued him from his misery.

“It is fortunate for us that Charlie had enough control to stop the frenzied attack before Missy was s
e
riously injured.” He squeezed his son’s shoulder in reassurance. “Our concern now is finding out who sent the package, and how they got it in the first place,” Atian said.

“I assume no one from the Bullclan would bring it? How would they react to the garment?” Elyen asked.

“In other worlds, the color doesn’t affect us, it is only when we are in this world that it is a danger. No one from the Bullclan would bring it back here,” S
o
phie explained.

“The only other candidates would be myself or the dra
g
ons,” Vrag said. “And I never travel unless a
b
solutely necessary. I believe the same is true for Drago and Drina.”

“That leaves the jackals,” Atian said. “We can only assume they’ve found a way to travel between worlds, just as Drago said.”

“But why would they try to kill Missy?” Elyen asked. “That’s the only reason for sending it to her, right?”

“She did reveal their treachery to the dragons,” Vrag su
g
gested. “She is becoming a nuisance to them.”

“I’ll double the guards around our borders. Anything su
s
picious will be reported immediately,” Atian said.

“What about my quest?” Missy asked.

Vrag took up pacing the floor. Missy watched as he mulled the decision over in his mind. After several minutes of silent consideration, he stopped. “I’m not sure it is wise to send you on another quest after this incident. We may want to wait a while,” he said.

“But if I can figure out how the jackals are moving b
e
tween worlds, we could stop them,” she insisted.

“No!
We will find something less dangerous for you.
It would be best to leave the jackals to Atian and myself,” Vrag said between clinched teeth.

“But  … ” Missy started.

“No, child!”
Vrag yelled as he turned to face her.
“You will not go, and you are not to leave Bullclan territory until the sit
u
ation has been taken care of. End of discussion!”

Missy recoiled at his vehement tone.
Elyen hugged the girl once more and kissed her cheek.

“Go to your quarters, children,” she told them.

Charlie pulled Missy from Elyen’s arms and led her through the door. They walked the hallway wrapped around each other.

“He’s worried about you,” Charlie began. “He also feels guilty for leaving you in hyena territory on your last quest.”

“He’s not to blame, Charlie! It was the only way the plan would have worked,” Missy argued.

“He saw how weak you were and still you wouldn’t quit. You proved yourself worthy in that moment to him. After that, he would have given you monster st
a
tus without hesitation.” They walked on then he ad
d
ed, “Elyen has loved you since she first saw you. She and Vrag have tried to have offspring without success. She’s always wanted children and you fulfill that need in her. I think Vrag now thinks of you as a daughter as well. He is not willing to put you in any more danger. I imagine your next quest will be easy.”

“I hadn’t thought past becoming a monster. What will I do now? I’ve trained and focused so much on that goal, I h
a
ven’t really looked past that,” Missy said.

Charlie laughed and kissed her hands. “You can do an
y
thing you want. Have fun. Enjoy yourself a li
t
tle,” he said.

T
he cooking fires were warm and inviting, the smells ta
n
talizing and the conversation lively. All of it was lost on Missy as she sat picking at warm bread and fruits in front of her. Charlie sat in with his father as the Bullclan discussed strategies to i
n
crease security of the territory. Missy, left to her own devices, spent her time visiting Egan at the stables and walking around the courtyard for hours. She picked small pieces off the bread not bothering to eat them.

“Hey, little human, what’s your problem?”

Missy looked up to see Dozer leaning over her table. His hair looked matted and he seemed eager to finish off her plate. She’d nicknamed him Bulldozer because he stood decidedly tal
l
er than any of the Bullclan.

“Hey, Dozer, too much free time and nothing to do,” she said as she pushed the plate toward him. Do
z
er plopped down and devoured the bread in two bites. A servant came over with more food. She slapped his hands away from Missy’s plate and put another in front of him. She refilled Missy’s plate with more bread and meat, and slid it back to her.

“Ump,” Dozer muttered as he started in on his plate. Dredge came over to check on his son.

“He’s not harassing you, is he?” Dredge asked.

“No, I needed the company. I’m bored out of my skull,” Missy complained.

“Well, to tell you the truth, I’m glad you’re not leaving the clan for a while. You really get into trouble out there. Maybe I can make you a special meal, se
a
food perhaps. Something to cheer you up,” he offered.

“You’re so sweet, Dredge, but I don’t want to put you through any trouble.”

“Do you like to fish? You could come with me; it will at least get you out of the complex,” Dredge said.

“Is it within the borders?” she asked.

“Well within the borders. The water source is less than half a day’s ride. We could go and be back in one day. I’ll clear it with Atian and Charlie first. Dozer here can come along as extra protection. I need a day away from here myself and a bit of civilized conversation, if you know what I mean,” Dredge said, pointing to Dozer, who was arms deep in his meal and not pa
y
ing a
t
tention.

“I’d really like that,” Missy said.

“Good. Eat up! We’ll leave early tomorrow morning. I’ll pack a picnic and the gear. We’ll meet at the stables,” he said, dropping a flower on Missy’s plate before turning to leave. She picked up the flower and laughed at the intricately carving of flat bread. Missy popped it into her mouth and savored the sweetness as it melted away.

“You gonna eat that?” Dozer asked pointing to a piece of roasted and glazed game. Missy smiled and traded the meat for his fruit. They finished their meal talking about fishing.

Missy rose with the sun the next day and arrived at the stables long before Egan wanted to be awake. He nipped at her once, showing his distaste for early morning wake-up calls.

“Come on, lazy boy, we can go for a ride today,” she told him. His ears perked up and he rolled over. Missy fed him a carrot as she got him ready for their trip. A half hour later, Dredge and Dozer appeared.

“The packs are ready. We just need to load up,” Dredge said as Dozer got their cabas from the stables. They put the lunch basket on Egan and then loaded the gear on their cabas. Dozer led the way toward the water source. Missy inhaled dee
p
ly feeling free. She kept Egan from going too fast even though she sensed he wanted to.

“Let him loose for a bit; he needs the workout,” Dredge said.

Missy smiled and a second later, Egan burst into a full gallop. Dozer tried to keep up, but the little cabayo galloped too fast for him. She let him go over two miles of open field before she reined him in. They turned and did a fast gallop back to the slower moving party. Missy pulled up beside Dozer as Egan pranced with delight.

“What happened to you?” she asked still smiling.

Dozer growled. “He has less weight to carry! That’s all.” Missy laughed and patted her friend’s arm. They trekked through a small dense forest an hour before coming into a clearing where the water could be seen for several miles away.

“It’s massive, like an ocean!” Missy said when she caught sight of it. Dredge laughed.

“It is very impressive. The other side is several miles i
n
side our boundaries,” Dredge told her. He continued the guided tour until they reached the rocky shoreline. A pier of sorts, made with downed trees, jutted out several hundred yards from the rocks. They let the cabayo wander to eat the sweet grass while Dredge and Dozer took the fishing supplies to the pier. Missy carried the basket of goodies and soon they were set up and ready to fish.

“What kind of fish are in these waters?” she asked.

“Nothing you would be familiar with but nothing that’s not edible,” Dredge said as he baited her hook and cast. Dozer had two lines in and began casting a third. With Missy’s line in the water, Dredge baited his own hook and cast the line. The fish couldn’t wait for breakfast. Missy’s line went taut after a few minutes, and she reeled in the catch with difficulty. Dozer s
e
cured his lines and helped her pull the mammoth fish to the pier.

“This is an insanely large fish,” Missy gasped. “What is it?”

“It is called a rook. It is small, though. We usually throw these back.”

“In my world this fish would feed an entire army of h
u
mans.”

“We’ll keep your first catch then,” Dredge said.

Dozer helped her cast again. Missy gazed down into the ultra-clear water. She crumbled small pieces of bread into the water and watched as fish of every color jostled for the small morsels floating around her line. Most measured over three feet in length, their mouths constantly open to capture the treats. A large violet fish that dwarfed the others muscled his way to the top, mouth open, waiting for a snack. Missy dropped a large chunk of bread into its waiting jaws. It swallowed the bread in one gulp before it sank back below the swarming mob.

They continued, and by midafternoon, Dozer had ma
n
aged to snag a staggering amount of fish the size of alligators. Missy even managed a respectable sized rook by Dozer’s stan
d
ard at the very end.

“Nice one, little human,” he teased. He and Dredge crea
t
ed a sleigh made of branches to carry the food back home and loaded the gear. Missy looked for Egan. He and the other cabayo rested across the field. Egan appeared to be napping. She had made it hal
f
way to them when Dozer threw her to the ground. He cupped his hand over her mouth and whispered in her ear.

“Shh, something’s not right. Stay down.” He released her slowly and stood looking for his father. Dredge had his staff in hand listening intently. The unmistakable sound of a shotgun split the quiet. Missy had only heard the sound on television, but now the sound chilled her bones. Dozer staggered then crumbled a few feet away from her. Missy scurried over, kee
p
ing low.

“Dozer, don’t move,” she whispered in a panic. She looked at the damage. The bullet had hit his shoulder, and the wound quickly coated his tunic in blood.

“On fire,” he whispered. She ripped a section from his t
u
nic and pressed it into the wound to stop the blood flow. Missy saw Dredge coming toward them faster than she thought poss
i
ble.

“Jackals!” he hissed. “Stay down, Missy. Son, are you ok, what was that?” Dredge asked.

“I’m ok. Where are they?” Dozer asked.

As if on cue, the jackals emerged from the nearby forest. Shocked at the size of the beasts, Missy stood motionless watc
h
ing in disbelief. They were giants compared to normal jackals. Their lips pulled back in trembling snarls, showing sharp and deadly canines. Even more shocking, one walked upright on two legs. She’d seen pictures of the Egyptian god Anubis but never thought she would see his likeness in the flesh. He wore brown leather pants tucked inside soft black leather boots. His all too human torso, only covered in a brown leather vest, revealed the sculpted muscles and scars of an efficient killer. As they came closer, another of the jackals stood upright and morphed into the half-human half-animal. The guns slung across their backs, Missy knew, did not belong in this world. Dredge readied hi
m
self for a fight while Dozer slowly got to his feet. Missy tried to hold them back.