Maggie of the Mist by Madeleine M. (best ebook reader for ubuntu txt) 📕

“Greetings, fellow travellers! To where does your adventure take you?” the deep voiced boy sounded generally happy. Vika shot Maggie a look that said, what is wrong with him? and Maggie couldn’t help but smile. The meager light from the makeshift torch revealed the boy had dark hair not much shorter than Angus’s. His face was that of a child, but he had dark blue eyes that had seen things a child never should. The rest of his body was hidden by the cloak around his shoulders.

“Our adventure takes us north,” Vika snapped. Blue eyes just smiled back. “Do you think this is a game?” The girl was getting fidgety after their long ride and was in no mood for a chat.

“No, of course not,” he waved his hands in front of him to show he meant no harm. He seemed amused by their conversation. “North just happens to be the way I am going as well.”

“Hah! You must be lost,” Vika sneered. Maggie could tell she was warming up to this stranger. Vika pointed in front of them. “North,” she said as if teaching a young child. “South.” She indicated the direction the dark haired stranger was going.

“I know my directions, lass. I’m just taking a detour. Might you be headed for Koal?”

Vika looked at Maggie, who nodded. They would need to pass through the city to get to Ajax’s Pass. The only safe way through the mountain boarder was through that pass. “We might be.” Vika replied as she glared through narrowed eyelids.

“I look forward to meeting you again,” the traveller lifted a startled Vika’s hand to his lips and kissed it lightly before she could snatch it back. “Perhaps we will have time for a longer talk.” He winked as Vika yanked her hand away.

“I highly doubt we will ever meet again,” She snapped with clenched fists. Maggie gently, but firmly, placed a hand on Vika’s arm. The angry girl took a deep breath. “Safe travels.” Vika spat the words in his face. She nodded to both Maggie and Angus then urged Dagger into a canter. She would meet up with them later.

“Maiden,” Blue eyes sighed. “Is she always like that?” the boy looked hurt but hopeful. He was gazing after her like a lost pup. Longing replaced the amusement in his eyes and clouded over his face as she disappeared around the corner.

“You got a better first impression than most, trust me,” Angus replied. He was trying to hide his smile but was failing miserably. “Veils, the last person that touched her hand like that wasn’t able to use his hand for a good few months after.” He lost his composure and broke down laughing, but rode off to catch Vika before Maggie could give him trouble. The darkness began to creep in as Angus fled with the torch. The air felt uncomfortable with no light to show dangers lurking in the shadows.

The dark haired, blue eyed boy stared at Maggie in the failing light.

Maggie returned the stare. His expression changed from wounded to calculated. She reached and tugged her hood down further. He squinted, trying to see her face in the dying sunlight. A light breeze came and pulled at her cloak, threatening to reveal her face. She knew she should leave but something held her back. The stone gave off a burning heat. It wasn’t as hot as when she was almost caught be the red head, but it was hot enough to hurt the already burnt skin it rested on. A stronger gust came down on the two strangers on the dim road. Maggie held fast to the ties that held her fluttering cape around her shoulders. Gregor and the other two horses shifted uneasily.

 The boy didn’t seemed bothered by the wind that tore at his cloak.  It whipped around his body. His blue eyes tried to burn through her hood, but he still couldn’t see her face. Maggie made sure of that. She couldn’t afford to let just anyone see her face. Camshron would be looking for her, once word was out that she was returning home. He must have spies. She needed to be more careful with choosing people she could trust.

Another gust came. Maggie clutched Gregor’s reins, wanting to bolt as much as the horse. Then something caught her eye. Under the boy’s cloak was a sword. The sight of it sent shivers through her body. The stone changed temperature. It was freezing. The sudden coolness of it against her collarbone jolted her into motion. I really need to find those bog women, Maggie thought as she left the odd boy in a cloud of dust. She could feel his blue eyes boring into her back.

Vika and Angus were waiting behind a rock face on the other side of a small knoll. Vika paced in the grass while Angus lounged on the rocks. Their light burned bright, casting eerie shadows on the rock wall. Before Maggie could catch her breath or even try to make sense of what the stone was warning her about, Vika swarmed her with a verbal wave.

“What was that about? I mean, he had the gull to touch me!” Vika was  obviously shocked. She waved her arms about in the air.  Her voice echoed off the jagged rocks around them. “Who under the Warrior’s sun did he think he was!”

Maggie thought it best to change the direction of this conversation, before Vika decided to beat the living daylights out of the next unsuspecting person they met on the road. “Did either of you find it odd that he had two horses?”

“Maybe he was going to meet some body.” Angus waved away the concern.

“Or,” Vika jumped towards him, wagging a finger in his face. “He stole it, after he killed the previous rider!” Angus swatted away Vika’s hand. She began to pace again, muttering wild accusations. Maggie guessed it was to deal with her new emotion. The girl was obviously taken by this stranger.

This is ridiculous. Maggie tried to redirect Vika’s train of thought again. “The stone had a fit again.” Vika stopped in her tracks,  Angus sat up straight and both had eyes to rival an owl’s.

“Really? Was it like tall, red and handsome?” Angus was the first to talk. His teasing was one way to ease the tension of their situation. Maggie had told them everything. Possibly a little too much. She told them of the letter, her family, the fact she might be the Tìrboghian princess and of the danger they were sure to face if they came with her. Her mental assessment of Laila’s stranger might have slipped out in the process. But they knew of the stone’s reactions that had started when she saw him.

“After the two of you left, he started staring at me like I had returned from beyond the Veils. The longer he looked, the more I noticed it was warming up,” Maggie lifted the pendant from beneath her shirt for both to see it still glowing. “I didn’t get as hot as the red head, but it was still hot. Before I left, the wind blew his cape and I saw a sword hanging from his side. That was when it burned ice cold. The weird thing is, it took longer for it to become active. He was watching me for only a few moments when I noticed the stone’s heat. But with the other, I don’t think he even saw me, he just glanced in my direction and it left a light burn mark.” Maggie rubbed the place the stone usually rested as the stone itself dimmed.

After a few moments of pondering, Vika spoke up. “Well,” she said glancing up at the starry sky. “Where to next?”

“Next, we need to find somewhere to sleep.” Maggie replied pushing questions from her mind. The three of them mounted their tired horses and continued down the road.

 Not long after leaving the rock face they stumbled into a tiny village, smaller than the one they grew up in. The mounts’ hooves echoed through the quiet streets. The little square houses still had lights, but no one was outside. Angus pointed out a humble looking pub with a sign hanging by the road. It bore the words ‘Bed, Board and Beer’, while the sign above the door read ‘The Old Dog’.

“This place should be fine,” Maggie declared tiredly as she scanned their surroundings. She felt a whisper of danger at the back of her mind, but decided to brush it off.

“You’ve got to be kidding,” Vika looked from Maggie, to the old pub, and back with judgemental eyes.

“There is no way that you’ll get me in there! Does it look safe to you?”

“Oh, hush. Yes, I think that this place will be fine. In there is a warm meal and a cozy bed, so unless you’d enjoy a night like this in the woods,” – Maggie argued throwing her hand towards the starry sky and the woods behind them – “I’d suggest that you shut your mouth. Watch your back though.  We could meet someone who might not like me.” She said the last a little quieter as the warning sensation became more noticeable. They could at least have a warm meal. And a soft bed would be nice.

“Uh-huh, safe.” Vika muttered.

“Wait, what do you mean?” Angus had been scanning his surroundings before, but now seemed concerned. “How would you know if there was someone in there that wouldn’t like you?”

Maggie shrugged. “Just a feeling.” A steady thrum came from the stone and she cradled it with one hand. Her longing for a soft bead seemed to overpower the stone’s constant warning. Leading Gregor, Dagger, and Scott towards a rail that looked like it was meant for tethering horses, they found a stable boy. Angus gave the lad a few coins to watch their rides while they went inside to find out about a room. As he spoke quietly to the boy, Maggie decided to take her fiddle in with her. It was one thing she couldn’t afford to lose. As soon as the trio walked through the door, they were engulfed with many different sounds, sights, and smells.

Most of the tables in the dimly lit room were crammed full. The air held a unique blend of some kind of stew, spilled ale, and sweaty men. Thirsty patrons hollered for more drinks over a group of musicians  that preformed on a platform against a far wall. Robust women pushed through customers to receive orders and deliver steaming plates. There were a few drunkards passed out under some tables. The hearth was large, with hunting trophies hung on the wall around it or placed on its shelf. A fire burned brightly inside, but its light didn’t make it far in the crowded room. A very shaggy dog was curled up on the floor, warming itself by the flames.

So not to draw too much unwanted attention, Maggie let her hood slip off her head. People would remember a hooded figure more often than one face of many. They got a few strange looks as they pushed their way towards the bar. Many were probably wondering what a bunch of kids were doing out this late at night, and without an adult. Then again for kids their age, it could have been considered normal.

Maggie got to the tap first. Her grip on her case tightened. Maybe it would have been safer with Gregor. The horse might have bitten anyone who came too close. Maggie wondered if leaving the boy out with them alone was safe. The bartender sauntered up to her, bringing her out of her thoughts. His was a full head taller than her, and his pot belly jiggle as he walked. He leaned one arm on the counter. “What can I get you, doll face?” His beady eyes appraised her from head to toe.