The Girl in the Woods

Chapter 8

The trees rustled as he moved silently through the branches. The sky was a dreamy haze of pinks and oranges, and the very air still felt sleepy and quiet. The only sounds were birdsong and the sonorous creaking of branches. The Klaae village was silent for once, curled up in the throes of dreams.

It was the perfect time to strike.

He knew that Apollo Ambrosia would take it upon himself to play the hero - he had anticipated it, and he was ready for him when he fell into his clutches - but he hadn't expected the vampire to throw a wrench in his plans by bringing the innocent looking human.

Lilah Winters. Such a pretty name.

Almost everyone at the council meeting had been charmed by the girl. She had the red hair and translated name of one of the Klaae people's most venerated goddesses; of course they were in awe of her. The elves took an affection to her, as they do with all humans who resemble them.  She'd looked upon the hard skinned mongools with curiosity, not disgust. The dwarves and goblins always stumbled at beauty, and Lilah Winters was quite the site for sore eyes. Of course vampires love any human - they cared little for her charm or looks, they only savoured the sound and smell of her pulse - and the solstae had always looked down upon humans happily. There were no magical group who could ignore her except for the faerie folk; they were so engorged on their rage and bloodlust they wouldn't have noticed her if she had skin made of gold.

Oh, but he knew better. He knew that the girl would worm her way into the hearts of everyone except the faeries, and that in doing so she would raise an army. The faerie folk were rash and oblivious to the point of foolishness, but he made no mistakes. She had to be out of the picture for his plan to work, and he would do anything to make that happen.

Killing the lovely girl would only be a bump in the road, he told himself absently, pushing passed another branch.

It had been easy finding them. He had eyes everywhere with his connections, and it wasn't long till the information lead him here. He'd watched Apollo, Lilah and the hard looking Klaae man talk long into the night, their voices like the murmuring of a stream and their faces glowing in the soft light of the fire. He'd watched and waited, his finger absently stroking the blade of his vicious looking sword. His faithful sword had never failed him; not when those piteous faeries gave it their lives, and not when trolls or bands of sistixx came for him.

Lilah Winters would not escape it's cold edge either.

He felt a familiar excitement rise in his chest as he approached the tree he had left them in. They looked like they would be talking all night, so in his boredom, he'd left to rejuvenate himself. Now, in his return, he would be able to do what he came to do in the early, unprotected hours of the morning.

He paused a few tree trunks away and peered into the tree house. The Klaae man had offered the couple his nest, and he had been sleeping on the floor by the fire, as made evident from Apollo's prone form among the moss and the old blanket the Klaae had laid by the dead embers. The Klaae was nowhere to be seen - probably finding some bird to roast - and Apollo's form hid the human.

He wandered forward still, moving in a circle to find a good view of the girl. It had to be quick. In, slice, out. The scent of her blood would wake Apollo up immediately, and he had to be very far before the vampire came after him. He'd planned this perfectly; nothing could go wrong.

Lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice at first what his eyes were taken in. He'd moved so that he could see Apollo's face now - it was relaxed and still, his eyelids fluttering in his dreaming - but the nest was empty except for him. Where was the girl?

Holding back a snarl of fury, he whipped through the branches so he was only a branch away. She was nowhere to be seen; Apollo was the only one left in the hut.