Strange Attractors - Kim Falconer [33]
Shaea thought of getting rid of Rall so she could simply enjoy the boon. The woman was getting on her nerves. If the portal hadn’t insisted she bring her along…But Rall had a point. She needed to think further ahead. ‘What about a pilgrimage? We could be a great-grand and her youngest, heading to the temple to meditate and offer the rituals.’
‘Great-grand?’ The old woman snapped her fingers. ‘Are you so sure about that?’
Shaea stiffened at the change in Rall’s voice. It was buttery smooth, the gravel washed clean. She turned towards the sound, not sure what she’d find. Rall’s familiar raspy voice had softened, taking on a glossy texture, cool, educated and alluring. It matched perfectly the strange woman standing where the old witch had been. Shaea gasped. ‘What did you do to Rall?’
‘I told you I could spin a glamour that would set a warrior’s heart on fire.’
‘Rall? Is that you?’
The woman winked and Shea knew it was. The crooked limbs that had protruded from Rall’s body like sticks in a potato, the matted hair and sagging flesh that hung from her face, the toothless mouth and red eyes were gone. In their place was the most beautiful woman Shaea had ever seen. Her skin, a rich mahogany brown, glowed in the warm light. Her hair was a mass of tight black ringlets, her lips full, her body curved, her eyes dark as a moonless night. She moved with confidence, graceful and poised. Her smile flashed a full set of even white teeth. Shaea held up her glass and dipped her head before taking a sip. ‘That’s an extraordinary glamour. To you, Mistress Rall of Corsanon.’
The witch smoothed her dress. ‘What makes you think this is the glamour, child?’
Shaea swallowed. It couldn’t be true. No one would conjure such a decrepit shape as Rall had lived in, not for all those years. Shaea couldn’t make sense of it, so she shrugged her shoulders and turned back to the mirror. ‘Two witches then,’ she said. ‘Called out to the temple to initiate the new priests?’
‘That’s more to my liking.’ Rall smiled. ‘And more to yours as well, I’ll wager.’ She picked up her glass and drained it, startling Shaea as she then hurled it into the fire. A blue light flared briefly and was gone. ‘Now put it on,’ Rall said, pointing at the dress. ‘I want to be out of this place before curfew.’
Shane felt cold to the bone. His hands and feet were still blue, his skin was covered with goosebumps and his teeth chattered. Glancing at the sinking sun, he stepped into a small patch of slanting light. There was little warmth there and the wind whipped the plait about. ‘We’ve got to find shelter. The sun’s nearly set.’
‘Obviously.’ Selene rubbed her hands together. Somehow she didn’t look near as cold as he felt. Maybe her blistering temperament was keeping her warm. ‘I don’t know how we’ll last the night,’ Shane said, crossing his arms in front of him.
‘We won’t with that attitude.’ She looked at him sideways before pointing down the road. It was barely an overgrown wagon track and they hadn’t met anyone as they alternately walked and jogged along. If anything, the path was becoming narrower, more clogged with tussocks and weeds. ‘We can keep going that way in hopes of finding a settlement or…’ She nodded towards the woods.
Shane followed her line of sight. ‘In there?’
‘Why not? There’s bound to be a sheltered grove, deep leaf mould or a hollow tree. We can make a nest.’
‘A hollow tree? And what if there are creatures looking for nestlings?’
‘Shane MacVenton, you’re the most negative man I know.’
‘I’m only saying what’s apparent. These are practical considerations. Any sane person would voice them.’ He sniffed. ‘There could be predators.’
She waved away his response. ‘It’s negative, and you know it. Now, which way do we go? I’m liking the look of those woods.’
‘I’m not. We don’t know what kinds of beasts are in this time and place. We don’t even know where we are.’
‘That’s not completely true. We’re lost, is where we are.’
‘Thank you.’ He turned his back on her, staring down the track. ‘Let’s follow it until dark