Lovers in the Woods (25 page)

“
I don’t want to walk into a self-made
trap. Look, we might get down, but if we can’t see a way up, it’s
worthless. I don’t want to walk for days down there. If there’s
another rainfall or a large predator, we don’t have a chance to
escape. I remember the Tusk-turner well enough, thank
you.”

He hung his head. “Boy, how I hate it when
you’re right.”

“Thank you very much.”

“Still…” He looked beyond the B-horses
grazing on the sprigs the canyon wall provided. “Take your small
axe out of your saddlebag.”

“You want to cut down a tree?”

He nodded.

“Are you nuts or just out of your mind?”

“Do it.”

Sajitar stared at the Horlyns
while Rayenne did as commanded.
He's lost it. He’s so eager to get out
he’s not thinking clearly anymore.
The axe was buried deep in the saddlebags
and it took her a moment to pull it free. When she turned, the
Horlyns were getting closer, tweeting and chirping loudly enough to
make other animals leave cover and jump and run. Rayenne had not
thought about how thick the population around them had been.
Mesmerized, she watched small brown birds fly up and Dikis hop over
low bushes to leave the area. The Horlyns approached noisily,
disregarding the lower branches and young trees they trampled along
the way.

“
You’d better think about it,” Ray stated
flat-voiced.

“Give me the axe.”

“Do you—”

“Give it to me!” When it was safe in his
hand, he took it to the closest tree. “We force our way across the
canyon,” he told the Horlyns. “We are human and our mind is strong.
Yes, you can keep us here. Yes, you can kill us if you want to, but
you cannot change our minds!”

Rayenne and the B-horses jumped backwards and
almost tumbled down the canyon wall when the female Horlyn thrust
forward to keep the axe from hitting the tree. Its protest was
deafening.

Sajitar hit the trunk with all the strength
he could muster. The Horlyn pushed forward, knocking the axe out of
his hand. Sajitar stumbled and fell on his butt. His hand bled.

“No!” Rayenne cried out running to him.
“Leave him alone!”

The female Horlyn had all legs and antennae
pointed in Sajitar’s direction. He held ground, gritting his
teeth.

“What are you doing?” Rayenne yelled. “They
will kill you!”

“It’s the only way!”

Rayenne stood in front of him, knowing well
it was a pointless gesture if the Horlyns wanted to kill Sajitar.
The axe lay five feet away from them and the second Horlyn
approached to gently touch the broken bark, uttering a piteous
whine.

“
Help us or let us help ourselves!” Sajitar
screamed and put both hands to his temples, groaning when the pain
must have hit him. “Stop that!”

Rayenne turned. She wanted to
help Sajitar, but had no means to stop the mental attack. He
writhed on the ground, eyes closed, fighting the assault until it
abated. In the meantime Rayenne heard the male Horlyn break the axe
in three pieces. Only the metal head lay shimmering amid a bed of
leaves. She viewed the destruction and a shiver ran down her
spine.
How
could he dare oppose these beasts?

“Saji, come, talk to me.” She knelt beside
him, held him in her arms and waited for him to open his eyes.
“You’re very brave, but stupid. It cost us an axe and a headache
and we aren’t closer to the other side than before. What did you
do?”

“I showed them what will happen if they don’t
help.”

“Clever. How are you feeling?”

He sat up slowly, squinting.

“I’m fine.”

“Your nose and ear are bleeding. Not to
mention your hand. You’re not fine.”

“
I see, your sharp police senses cannot be
fooled.” He smiled weakly and wiped his nose, grimacing at the
blood. “We’re still alive. That’s the best part, I guess. I could
use something to drink now. Would you mind?”

She got up to fetch the wine for him. When
she unscrewed the flagon she took a swig herself.

“I should be careful. You might come to like
this stuff.” He drank and exhaled, watching the Horlyns just a few
steps away. By their stance they were still willing to defend every
tree the humans might dare touch. He smiled. “Maybe they don’t want
us to die. What do you think?”

She used a dry piece of cloth to wipe his
hand and nose.

“
I think it was a close call, you stupid
son of a bitch.” She took the flagon from him, thought about
another mouthful and let it be. Carefully, she bandaged his hand
and he nodded, acknowledging her nursing qualities. “What did you
show them?”

“Our smashed bodies at the bottom of the
canyon. That we would use a fallen tree to get to the other side if
they don’t aid us. I also showed them that we wouldn't go back or
give up.”

“They don’t understand human nature.”

“Well, there are many who cannot imagine
living outside the woods, right?” He gazed at her, but she refused
to take the bait. “I hope they won’t let us hang here forever.”

“We can still try and find another place to
climb down.”

“Yes, and get closer to the crossing with
every day. No, that was not on my mind.”

She helped him up.

“It’s close to sunset. Let’s pitch camp and
ride on tomorrow.”

“Sounds like a good idea to me.”

Above the canyon, a Flying Cordell made a low
approach and they hastened to take cover.

* * * *

“Do you think the Cordell got a picture of
us?”

“
Maybe.” Sajitar was too tired to think
about it. Even after an undisturbed night, he felt the strain of
having communicated with the alien beasts. His hearing had been
impaired and still he heard as if he were under water. “But we were
quick.”

“They cannot scan the area all in one sweep,”
Rayenne agreed as she packed their belongings. The B-horses already
stood saddled between two large trees. The Horlyns waited in the
background, dark shadows with changing outlines. “Are you
ready?”

“As ready as I can get.” He was about to
mount Tessla when the female Horlyn stepped forward. One of its
antennae poked his chest to keep him from the saddle. Sajitar blew
out air and lifted his hands in defense. “Hey, what’s this about?
We didn’t cut the tree, we're just try to find another crossing
point.”

“What does it want?”

“Do I look like an interpreter? We won’t
ride, that’s it.”

“We could—” She stopped in mid-sentence.

Sajitar followed her gaze. Two young Horlyns
flew through the canyon, wings flittering. Their colors changed and
glimmered like crystals. Slowly they ascended from the canyon floor
to hover at its rim. Their wings made a low humming sound that went
through the bones. Their dark orange bodies and heads looked like
smaller versions of the grown-up beasts and their eyes were
directed at the humans, who waited flabbergasted and unable to
move. The older Horlyns got closer, tweeting.

Sajitar shook his head.

“I can’t believe it.”

“Say, is it good or bad?”

“
They don’t tell me what’s on their minds.
I get nothing.” He raised his brows. “If you want my guess, they’ll
either usher us back or—”

“Take us over,” Ray completed, unable to
believe her words.

At that
moment the female Horlyn stepped
aside to let the younger ones fly closer, and Sajitar received the
single image of a flying Horlyn taking him to the other
side.

“All right, they’ll help.” He took a deep
breath and sent back the image of Tessla, equally transported
across the canyon. He could not add a question mark, but the Horlyn
seemed to understand. The young one stepped toward Tessla. The
B-horse reared and would have bolted without Sajitar at its
reins.

“Ho, slow, my dear, calm down. It’s just a
flight to the other side.” He followed her steps and put a hand on
her head, softly stroking her nostrils. “Nothing will happen to
you. We’ll meet there, all right?”

If the B-horse got the meaning, he could
not tell, and she still pranced uneasily when the Horlyn made its
approach. Then, in the blink of an eye, the B-horse was airborne
and he followed suit.

Heart sinking to his knees, he looked down
at the bottom of the canyon. If the beast dropped him, he would be
lucky to survive, but he would at least break his legs and ribs. He
held his breath until the rim came into view. The humming of the
Horlyn’s wings appeared to go right through flesh and bones and he
shook like a leaf when the Horlyn put him down. Even his teeth
clattered. Sajitar lay on the ground, eyes closed, thanking the
gods he knew while Tessla walked away from the rim as if saying
that she would not repeat that adventure.

When he could move again, he
watched Rayenne and Bunty being carried over the gap. Her
expression matched what he had felt. The Horlyns could so easily
smash the humans it was amazing that they did not do it.
Why do they keep men
in that village? What’s the greater purpose?

Rayenne shrieked when the Horlyn
dropped her hard on the ground. For a few heartbeats, he just heard
her breathing.
We will joke about that adventure tomorrow, but surely not
today
. He
crawled toward her and stroked her hair.

“Are we safe?” she asked and spat out sand
and leaves.

“As safe as we can get today,” he replied and
kissed the tip of her nose.

Bunty was flown in and whinnied pitifully.
Rayenne made an effort to get up and take care of him. All four
members of their small expedition group had no intention of riding
on. Instead, they prepared a meal, fed the B-horses and sat at the
canyon rim with a cup of tea in their hands. Sajitar put an arm
around her shoulder and pulled her close.

“We are still alive,” Rayenne stated the
obvious. “And not because we were so damn brave.”

Chapter
Twelve

Sajitar blinked into
the
sun. While taking a
deep breath he recalled how long it had been since he had seen the
sun shining over Belthraine. He felt like a man clambering out of a
deep cave only to find that the planet had turned without him and
that everything was still at the same place. He smiled about his
stupidity. Of course, nothing had changed. Maybe a few more houses
had been built and some more people had moved to Belson Park, but
the skyline still looked the same. He turned in the saddle. Emerald
Green looked like a mighty wood even from the outside. The tallest
trees competed with the height of the buildings, waving their
mighty tops in orange and purple toward the settlers daring to get
closer from year to year. He could hardly imagine the forest would
diminish. It was huge and impressive and held many dangers. He had
seen his share and still wondered if he would get back in later in
his life.

Beyond the dusty road a coach had stopped
and men with axes jumped off to head for the outer edge. Sajitar
flinched. The Horlyns would watch them with critical eyes and
decide if they were allowed to return or not.

Hands on the saddle horn, he watched more
coaches pass by, heading for the city. The B-horses’ monotonous
clacking on the street was music to his ears. For so long he had
listened to the woods sounds to filter dangers. Now he was out to
lean back and enjoy the modern life in Belson Park for a
while.

He looked at Rayenne and his smile
evaporated. He had to make his entrance at court. The judge could
hold it against him that he had fled the city when it had been the
proper decision to accuse Sananda Wang. He could accuse him of
being an accomplice to more crimes Sananda had committed. Even
though it had not been his intention, he knew of Wang’s enterprises
and had the faint idea that not all of them were legal. He might
end up in jail. But then there was Rayenne and her decision to
speak up for him. The weeks in the wilderness had been hard and she
claimed that without Sajitar she would not have made it out alive.
It was up to the judge to be impressed or discount Ray’s
statement.

A large coach passed by and stopped. The
B-horses were both a beautiful, shining brown with carefully
trimmed manes, and the coach gleamed like jewels in the setting
sun. The polished wood looked very expensive. He shaded his eyes to
see clearly.

“Wow, that’s a lot of credits on the street,”
he muttered.

Rayenne turned to him, smiling.

“
Finally back in the civilized world, and
the only thing you think of is credits.”

“Reminds me that I have none.”

“You will have money once the trial is
through.”

He turned to her.

“How do you know?”

“I’ll help you get back your job.”

“And how—” He stopped.

Four men had left the coach and crossed the
street, air pressure guns at the ready, directed at him. They wore
long, black coats and sunglasses and looked determined enough to
shake Sajitar’s self-confidence. His heart raced suddenly.

“Ray, do something.”

“I can’t.”

Her calmness frustrated him, but
still he did not move.
What if they hurt Rayenne?
She was a police officer, hated by
those who had just crossed the street.

“Ray, please, we have to get away!”

“They’ll shoot our backs if we try. It’s too
late.”

A petite lady in dark red pants and a
close-fitted jacket followed on high heels that would make any
other women stumble. She walked as if she wore them all day and
night. Her hips swung elegantly with every step.