Soul Snatcher (18 page)

“I…do…not
know,” he stumbled. He was surprised at himself that he didn’t have
an answer. She decided to let that discussion drop, who was she to
come along and question everything he knew?

“So why does
it have to be a bone that crosses
over a tracker’s heart?” She wondered, saving him from his
doubts. He seemed more than grateful for it.

“Essentially,
we were formed from them to create an opposing force. So where
their heart is weak and the point of their demise, a tracker’s
hearts is their strength,” he enlightened. “The only rib that
suffices is the one that crosses directly over the centre of our
heart.” It all sounded kind of romantic to Annie, in a morbid sort
of way.

“So what
happens when a snatcher dies?” She started fiddling with the dagger
she had placed down before
.

“If the
person had died instead of being preserved by the bane then their
body would have started decomposing. Since the bane hindered the
natural process they do not. Once the dagger is removed from their
heart they return to where they should have been in the natural
progression of death. So if they had been changed decades or
centuries ago, they would turn to a pile of bones or even dust as
that is what their corpse would have done. If they are not so old
they turn into a rotting corpse.” Eli pulled a face as he
remembered the horrible smells he had encountered. Annie held back
the smile that was trying to escape her from his
reaction.

“So if the
dagger remained in them they would just be a lifeless relic?” She
clarified. He nodded, impressed that she was doing so
w
ell with all of the
information. “And which dagger was made from you?” She asked
curiously.

For the first
time since meeting him she saw his eyes turn vulnerable and it
surprised her. After his initial hesitation he lifted the dagger in
his hand a little higher, indicating that was the one. She paused
for a moment, looking at the dagger he held. She stretched out her
hand slowly, wordlessly asking to inspect the invaluable dagger. He
handed it to her and she took it with great care. Knowing that it
was made from him made it feel special and she felt closer to him
by having the privilege of holding it.

“Is there a
reason for the chromium?” She wondered. She looked up to find him
with a
sly grin on his
face.

“We all just
liked it the most,” he answered, referring to himself and some of
the other trackers.

She
found it amusing because compared to
the other information she had been told it was so superficial.
Everything else had so much meaning but this didn’t have any
whatsoever. She looked back to the dagger in her hand, holding back
a laugh. She thought he was being rather cute with it all. She did
wonder why he was one of the ones who had gotten to choose the
material for the handle.

“Are you part
of some committee that gets to make decisions for all trackers?”
She missed the nervous look that came across his face because she
was so focused on the dagger.
He had told her a lot in regards to trackers but there were
some things he wasn’t allowed to tell such as, how many trackers
there actually were in existence and his role amongst
them.

“Something
like that,” he said casually. He was lucky that she was rather
interested in his dagger or she would have
questioned him further. He was relieved when she
didn’t go more into the matter.

“This is all
so implausible,” she whispered as she gazed at the crafted bone.
She handed it back to him carefully and he placed it back in its
notch. After she took her daggers he packed everything away and
closed the lid of the day bed.

“Wait…” She
said as they both stood from kneeling on the ground. “If their skin
is penetrable then why not cut them to pieces?” She thought it
would be gruesome but possibly effective. He smiled because she was
so full of questions.

“They also
heal very quickly,” he reminded. “Their flesh is the fastest to
heal and once it is cut, no sooner has it closed back over. No
matter how deep or quickly you cut them it will close over almost
instantly, even if they are wounded within. They take longer to
heal internally but their skin is designed to protect them.” He
paused for a moment to recall some of his own experiences. “It is
strange because you can stab them through the heart but if you try
to drag the dagger to open them up the skin will not allow it. But
it will allow small gashes, as if it knows which will cause the
most damage.”

“And
I am assuming you know all of this
because of the first tracker?” She tried to hide her reservations
but she didn’t quite manage it. He simply nodded to answer her.
“What was his name?”

“Timothy
Obrad,” he answered. She waited for some more information but Eli
looked at her blankly. “That is all we know,” he explained his lack
of an answer. When it didn’t look like she was going to ask
anything else he decided that question time was over.
“
So let us
return to our lesson!” Eli announced. She put her daggers down on
the day bed cushions and moved over to the cleared area with him.
“This lesson is more to inform you of what you should expect and
what you need to know in regards to an attack. The others will be
more to train you and build your strength.” He crouched in his
defensive stance to brace himself for an attack.

“
May I ask something else before we recommence?” She
wondered. He nodded but kept his pose. “You began to tell me that
there was something else that snatchers were designed to do but you
never got around to explaining it...” He looked at her
confused.

“
Have you not read, ‘Methods of The Soul Snatcher’?” He
queried.

“
I seem to have misplaced the book. I am sorry, Eli.”
She was annoyed at having to admit to something she didn’t do. She
always made sure she took care of things, especially things that
didn’t belong to her.

“
Oh.” He straightened up from his position to explain.
He didn’t seem bothered by the mislaid book. “You see…”

Before he
could go any further, Garrick burst through the door with a
frazzled look on his face.

“
Mr. Brighton, Miss Belle. I am sorry to disturb your
lesson but there is an urgent matter,” Garrick said. “This just
arrived for you, Mr. Brighton.” Garrick held out a letter to him.
Eli just stared at it with a quizzical look on his face.
“
It is from
your brother,” Garrick added. Eli’s face dropped instantly as he
took the letter from him.

“
You have a brother?” Annie asked, completely befuddled
by the information.

“
I…I…” Eli started to explain but he got lost in his
words as he stared at the envelope. “I must cut this lesson short.
I do apologise, Annie.” Eli left without looking at her and Garrick
followed him out the door.

Annie stood
astounded for a moment in the now quiet room until she realised she
was being ridiculous just standing there. She headed to her room to
get changed, all the while wondering why Eli never mentioned he had
a brother.

CHAPTER
15

That
evening
Eli came up to her
room and knocked on the door. Annie moved to answer it and let him
in but he remained standing at the door.

“
I am sorry to disturb you Annie but I have to inform
you that I will be attending to an urgent matter. It may require me
to be gone for a week or more.” He sounded guarded and a little
brash.

“
I see. Would you like me to come with you?” She
wondered if this had something to do with the letter he received
from his brother but she thought it rude to ask.

“
No, that would not be advisable. It hopefully will not
take long.” He purposely avoided having to say too much.

“
When do you leave?” She asked.

“
Immediately,” is all he said.

“
This very moment?” She repeated the detail, shocked at
how abrupt it was.

“
Yes, Garrick will be here to assist you with whatever
you need and I should return shortly. He is permitted to accompany
you into town if you should so desire. With Miss Danes gone and no
other dangers in the area, there should be no threats that Garrick
cannot manage.” He was acting business like and unemotional. He was
distancing himself from her and she didn’t know why.

“
Well…then I wish all the best for the trip and that
you can sort the matter as you see fit,” she said, unsure of what
else to say. He looked to her and paused for a moment.

“
Thank you, Annie.” It looked as if he wanted to say
more but instead he just left. She had no idea what was going on
and she didn’t think she was going to find out. What’s more, it
didn’t feel as if it was something good.

A week passed
and no Eli
and no Baden, for
that matter. She felt conflicted about not seeing Baden because
part of her wanted him desperately and the other part was warning
her to be wary of him. As for Eli, Garrick assured Annie that Eli
was fine and to distract her, offered to go in town for the day.
She knew he was avoiding her questions but she saw no use trying to
find anything out and decided to accept the offer for the trip. It
would be good to get out of the manor.

After the
ride, Garrick helped her out of the carriage. She wore a light blue
dress with her hair pulled back in a loose chignon.

“
Thank you,” she said gratefully to Garrick, stepping
down onto the path.

“
My pleasure, Miss Belle. If you so wish, Mr. Brighton
has arranged an appointment with Antoinette,” he
informed.

“
Well then, we best not keep her waiting.” She was
happy to be seeing the enjoyable seamstress again. Garrick escorted
her to the door but went no further.

“
I will be here once the appointment has ended but I
think it best for me to complete some tasks during your visit to
Antoinette.” He smiled and she rewarded him with one in return.
With that he was off and she walked into the store. She stopped
suddenly when she saw Baden sitting in one of the waiting room
chairs. He looked over to her with a playful grin.

“
Annie, what a coincidence,” he said sarcastically. It
was obvious this was not a happenstance. Before she could respond
Antoinette came rushing out from behind the curtain.

“
Annabelle, so beautiful,” she said as she approached
Annie. Her accent made it sound more complimentary than usual. “I
must make you…suit?” Antoinette asked with a puzzled look on her
face referring to a message Eli must have communicated to
her.

“
Not exactly,” Annie said trying to avoid looking at
Baden. “Just a pair of tights and a fitted shirt.”

“
Whatever for?” Antoinette seemed confused. Annie
glanced over to Baden who had a wide grin on his face. He raised
his shoulders as if to say, ‘yes Annie, whatever for’? She looked
back to Antoinette to answer.

“
Eli and I have taken up a more active past time that
will require less restricting clothing,” she explained avoiding
having to say what they had started doing.

“
We begin,” Antoinette declared. She seemed to
understand the English language better than she could speak it. She
dragged Annie into the dressing room in a whirl. Annie barely had
time to glance back at Baden who sat there smiling.

Soon she was
fitted with loose pants and a shirt that was hitched up with pins
all around her.

“
Just moment,” Antoinette said, forgetting to speak
properly in her rush to attend to a customer that she heard come
into the store. Annie was looking at her outfit when she heard
someone walk into the dressing room.

“
I think these pants…” She paused when she looked up
and saw Baden standing there. Hands in pockets, he sauntered over
to her and inspected her outfit. She was standing on a small wooden
stool which made her closer to his height.

“
I must say, I have never seen a woman look quite so
good in pants,” he expressed his appreciation openly. “Why is dear
Eli missing this delightful sight?” He asked randomly, watching her
to see her reaction.

“
He…” She stopped herself from telling him he was out
of town. On the ride into town she had finally decided to try and
keep herself guarded when it came to Baden but with him so close
she was failing miserably. Damn him for looking so appealing with
his casual clothes and suave attitude. “He did not accompany me in
town today!” She blurted out.

Baden
couldn’t help the look of surprise
that came across his face when he sensed that she lied to him. He
could tell she was trying to protect herself from him and it made
him panic.

“
Or is it that he is away?” He moved closer to her as
if this would make her admit the truth.