Snow Heart (13 page)

Nieves pulled her feet under her body and stood up, pressing her back against the tree. Sneeuwbal stepped in front of her like a shield with growls rolling from his chest.

The being released a hissing breath that sent a puff of dark gray smoke into the air. A long tail, thin and flexible as a whip, lashed through air. When the distance between it and the girl became less and less, it nearly managed to wrap itself around her neck.

Sneeuwbal leapt without hesitation, clamping his jaws onto the tail. His teeth slid right through it like knife through butter. The black lab crashed to the ground, got to his feet again and lashed out at the shadowy Demon.

“Sneeuwbal!” called out Nieves.

The Demon lifted an arm at the oncoming dog and threw it the ground with a large heavy thump. Its long snout opened to rows of sharp disarrayed teeth—thin needle teeth that pointed in every which way. Nieves screamed jumping forward to save the Labrador as something of silver light flickered in the distance.

The Demon’s mouth closed, teeth somehow fitting in with each other. A low rumbling purr rolled in its throat. “Get her,” a voice seemed to echo inside of its thoughts. “Hurry.” The Demon quickly lost its hunger, turning its long narrow head to Nieves.

She clamped her mouth closed, even as a scream press against her lips. Nieves backed away from it, her foot backed into something catching her off-balance. She went tumbling back until her body hit something hard and lumpy. As she looked up at the creature, it looked down at her.

Strings of saliva hung down from the Skeleton-Demon’s lips. Its eyes were running with electricity; glowing veins of white. Nieves looked about the forest to find an entire circle of the creatures surrounding her.

Their leader stepped forward with a snarl that almost sounded like a language.

Nieves flinched away, wishing with all her heart to escape. “What do you want with me?” She wished Alric was there.

Its attention turned to the silver light that grew closer by the second. The ferocious beast lowered itself to the ground and laid there, eyes staring into Nieves’s eyes. Its black body inched itself closer, loose flesh hardly holding onto its body.

The silver light came, brushing past the inner ring of trees, its light blue eyes taking in the environment. As soon as it set sight of Nieves those beautiful sapphires twisted into rubies. Its roar shook the trees and branches sending a storm of leaves down upon them.

The skeletal Demon lunged for Nieves, wrapping its tail around her neck. Nieves tried to claw her throat free, gagging and gasping for breath as she was lifted into the air and placed neatly upon the creature’s back.

The tail let her go and Nieves sucked down a gulp of air while clutching to the ragged mane on the skeleton’s elongated neck. Her lungs burned only for a moment—it was her throat that ached, keeping her screams to hoarsen screeches.

Sneeuwbal slowly got to his feet. He took in the sight of Nieves on the Demon’s back, and then took in the sight of the silver being. He knew what he had to do and finally knew now that the shadowy Demon’s were Alric’s creatures sent to protect her.

CHAPTER 17

Alric tightened his fists with agitation. “Get her,” he hissed. “Hurry! If she dies, then you will be agonized for eternity!”

The silver being was a threat to Nieves’s life. In that form Wilhelm would only see her as prey and nothing more. He would toss her in the air and snap her down like a gingerbread cookie. Then he wouldn’t recall a thing once returning to human form.

He watched as the Demon lifted Nieves onto its back, not truly concerned that it nearly snapped her neck. “Run,” he told the creature. “Run. Bring her to me.” Alric watched it dash off, feet pounding into the earth with full dedication. Alric breathed life into its lungs, giving it more strength.

Nieves screamed; her throat was still dry and raspy.

“Into the trees!” Alric screamed, feeling Wilhelm’s breath upon them.

The Demon gave one leap, reaching up past the domes of the trees and arching branches. The thin conifer trees bent in the winds of the Demon’s speed. It leapt from treetop to treetop never looking back.

Nieves clutched the rotting mane of the creature, glancing over her shoulder. Alric could feel her clamping down onto its body for safety.

A moan from below rocked the next tree the Demon landed upon. Nieves let out a scream and clutched tighter as the glowing silver spirit of a fox creature leapt up ready to snack on her leg.

The Demon veered left, away from the attack and down through a hole in the trees to meet the leaf covered ground.

Alric clenched his teeth—the energy to put life into the Demon was becoming too much for his already ill body. He nearly dropped to his knees but the Demon’s head turned giving him sight of Nieves’s tear covered face. Her tears were heavy like rain drops against the Demon’s flesh.

“Hurry,” Alric hissed, wrapping his arms around his chest.

Wilhelm let out a gargling roar as he leapt down from the trees. He nearly landed on top of Nieves but the Demon jolted forward with a burst of speed. The edge of the forest was close—the Demon could see that. The light of the moon bathed the grassy field just outside of the main house with silver.

Alric couldn’t hold on. His knees became water beneath him, dropping him into the sand of the rock garden. A firm hand wrapped around his upper arm, lifting Alric back onto his feet.

“Hang in there, kid,” Zeit said in his deep low voice. “They’re almost here.” Their eyes were directed to the forest’s edge.

The black shadowy figure raced forward in a fatal ballet, its rhyme perfectly in sync. Its breath was heavy—panting—loud enough for Alric to hear even at the distance they were.

The silvery fox spirit flew through the trees, brown and black leaves swirling just behind it.

Nieves looked over her shoulder at it. She was still confused at what kind of creature this was. Why would it want to kill her? What were any of these strange beasts?

Alric pulled away from Zeit and stumbled a step forward.

“Alric!” Nieves called out as the Demon leapt over the thorn bushes and tall grasses to land like a gazelle in the Zen garden. Sand spewed in every direction as it released a gruff breath, shaking its mane free of the twigs, dead leaves and other things that got trapped through the escape.

The Head Macter didn’t turn to look at her relieved face. He lifted his hand and threw it across the air. A whimper of agony howled from the silver spirit as it writhed in the air and dropped into the grassy fields. Its large body shook the earth. Its porcelain rib cage expanded with every gulp of air.

“Wilhelm is in his fox form,” Alric muttered. “Cursed-Ones, when they are like that, do not know the difference between friends and enemy. They kill all those who are not Macter.”

“Didn’t think he’d be so strong.” The Demon eyed Zeit who was turned away from them with laughter in his throat. “I would enjoy hunting him.”

Alric’s eyes widened. “Are… are you the one who killed Danzig?”

“Me?” Zeit looked over his shoulder at Alric. “Nah. That man was too old for my tastes in hunting. I prefer my targets stronger than some rotting corpse.” He turned away, his red hair caught in the wind. “Call me if you need anything.”

In a breath’s moment Zeit was glowing and shrinking into a small white object. Nieves leaned closer to look upon whatever Zeit’s new form was. As the glowing light dimmed a small white bird opened its wings and lifted into the darkness of the night sky.

Alric’s head ached and pounded. He could feel his nerves rattle over the slick bone beneath his flesh. He used up so much energy bringing the Demons to life and giving it new flesh that his own body was too weak for staying awake.

“Alric. You’re soaked with rain.” Nieves slid off of the Demon’s back. “You’ll be sick if…”

“Why did you run?” barked Alric with aggravation.

“I…” Nieves looked away, to stare into the Demon’s exposed chest cavity. She remembered hearing Alric scream out for her but did not hear a sound from her sister. It pained her to know such a thing. “I am sorry for upsetting you.”

The Demon turned, lunging forward into the tall grasses, and then leaping over Wilhelm’s shuttering fox form. It melted into the shadows of the forest; howls from the Demon’s pack greeted their leader’s return.

Nieves stepped into the warmth of the room. Her clothes were just as soaked as Alric’s but she hadn’t noticed until then. The adrenaline was still rushing through her veins and she was still trying to wrap her mind around the Demon and the transformations. All of it seemed too much like a fairytale.

She caught site of the dismantled door to the hallway but she didn’t say a word.

“You need to change clothes,” commanded Alric as he closed the garden door. He walked over to the couch, it’s back facing him. He rounded it to get to the chest of drawers then sat down onto the couch’s arm. “What happened to the kimono I gave you?”

“I left it at Boris’s house,” Nieves slowly replied with strange guilt.

She tried clamping her teeth together so they wouldn’t clatter during her shivers. Alric had his back to her as she wrapped her arms around herself. Her clothes were icy cold and it gave her chicken skin.

Alric huffed. He pulled off the heavy black coat with some trouble because it clung to his body for dear life. The rain made it stick to Alric’s skin. “You shouldn’t have run,” Alric barked while getting one arm out of the sleeve with difficulty. “The forest’s dangerous and it was raining.”

Nieves nodded her head forgetting he wouldn’t see it. She couldn’t think of any words to apologize with.

The black jacket was thrown to the floor. “You could have gotten sick.” Alric began to lift the white button-down shirt then paused. He looked over his shoulder at Nieves. He looked away from her and said, “Turn around.”

Nieves put her back to him and stared into the shoji doors. “I already know about them,” she said softly.

Alric was in the middle of getting his shirt off when he froze—the breath in his lungs was being knocked out of him. She knew, his mind exclaimed. She knew about the scars on his back.

“How?” Alric nearly yelled—roared—with fury. “How do you know?”

Her mouth opened, she went to speak but the words wouldn’t come to her lips. If Nieves told Alric who told her then he’d surely beat the person lifeless. Her mind twisted and spun like it was cast into a blender.

Alric threw the white shirt to the ground with anger. “Who told you Nieves?”

“No one,” she replied calmly. “No one told me. I found them when you passed out. It was an accident. My fingers ran across them and—”

Alric screamed, his hands grasping his cranium. She knew about the scars. The mere idea made him sick with disgust. Those lashings that had thundered his back were nothing but an ill reminder. He couldn’t stand the sight of them and now this girl, this girl who bewildered him, knew about those scars.

“Are you okay?” asked Nieves who was now at his side. Her cold hand touched the bareness of his lukewarm arm. “Alric is something wrong?”

His voice was hardly audible when he said, “No. Nothing’s wrong.” He slid down the couch. Alric sat there on the floor trying to arrange his thoughts with as much clarity as he could.

All those nights were nothing but mist to him. His parents were dead to him—he couldn’t recall their name or voice. Had he truly forgotten those years of ten and under?

“I’ll get you some clothes,” Nieves offered, turning to the drawer and pulling out a clean shirt. “What color do you want to wear? You only have black and white and…”

Alric’s eyes widened as he jumped to his feet. “No.” He took the shirt from her hand and placed it in the drawer. “You should stop worrying about other people and worry about yourself.”

Alric turned his head away to hide the large broad smile. He found her so humorous and naïve. “In the armoire,” he said, pointing to it sitting in the corner across the room. He turned back to the drawer and pulled out a black sweater from the bottom drawer. “I had put some in there earlier.”

Nieves began to leave but her eyes caught hold of the mass of scars that intertwined along Alric’s pale back and crawled onto his shoulder. One or two had made it along the back of his upper right arm.

She felt her stomach twist at understanding how much pain someone could feel from beatings—but she could never understand the amount of lashings Alric must have dealt with to get so many scars. All those years Alric had to endure made Nieves want to steal him away from the horrors.

She cleared her thoughts of sorrow and went to get a new kimono. “Afterwards, maybe tomorrow, I could stop by Boris’s house,” she began to say, pulling out a folded bundle of clothes that had lain upon a shelf. She turned around thinking she’d see Alric but he wasn’t anywhere in the room.