I'm startled when something grips my wrist, and I glance down to see Tormad's fingers wrapped around my wrist. "You should eat before we journey back home," he tells me and pulls me out of my home. It was dark out, but the village was lit by the blaze of burning buildings. My stomach sank wishing to unsee what I have; the bodies of my people. They hadn't even buried them. My eyes glance down at Marcus. Seeing his lifeless body, I instantly scanned the area for my father.
Where did they take him? Is he still alive? My wayward thoughts were getting away from me. I didn't see someone step out in front, and crashed right into his solid chest.
Something hard hit my face, and cause me to crumble to the ground with a thud.
"Catherine!" I hear my name getting called out through the ringing in my ears. "Run!"
Before I can register the voice belonging to my father, I am pulled to my feet when someone grips my hair. The burning sensation in my scalp causes me to cry out.
"What do we have here?" A rough voice speaks out. "Where were you hiding?"
I was afraid of Tormad, but nowhere near afraid of him as I am of this man. I felt the tear of my gown when he tugged on the thin material. The cool air hits my naked flesh. "No! Please."
I try to escape his grasp. The man tugs harder and I bring my hands up to wrap around his, trying to loosen the grip. Through the throbbing of my pain, I can hear people shouting. It wasn't until the man is shoved off me, taking a chunk of my hair with him, that I saw Tormad standing between us.
"This woman is to not be touched," he commands. His shoulder rises and falls rapidly as he towers over the man, who instantly bows his head in respect. Tormad glances around, his body still in fight mode.
"If anyone touches her without my permission, you will meet your fate!" He turns and faces me, my eyes wander up his long legs and end at his outstretched arm, holding his hand out for me to take. I blink; weighing up my risks.
Tormad has yet to harm me. Even when his fingers wrap around my wrists, they were never tight or caused me harm.
I glance down at my exposed self and try to bring the two pieces of thin material together. Heat forms on my face, knowing that everyone can see me. Warmth wraps around my shoulders, and Tormad fastens the front with a buckle. He doesn't stray from the fur, which I am grateful for.
Now back on my feet, Tormad guides me to a makeshift cabin where men sat at tables, eating what looked like gruel. Some glanced from their bowls, but many didn't pay us any mind. He sat down and pulled out the empty stool beside him.
"Sit!" He commands. The moment I do, a bowl is placed before me. It's common to eat a mixture of barley and wheat cooked in milk. This will keep us full for most of the day. There is no time to stop once we start work until sundown.
I notice Tormad not eating. He keeps his eyes fixed on me, watching my every move. It's unnerving, and I caused my appetite to dissipate. A man approaches Tormad and leans in to whisper something. The voices were low, that I couldn't make out a single word. Tormad nodded and stood.
"Come," he commands. "We need to make a start on our journey."
I follow Tormad out of the cabin and toward the front of the line. "Do I get to change before we leave?"
Tormad glances over his shoulders, "No!"
"Catherine!" I halt my steps and glance around. There he stood; his arms bound like a prisoner.
"Father!" I cry out and sprint over to him, wrapping my arms around his frail frame. "You're alive."
"You have to run, Catherine," he begs me. He is right. I needed to escape, but I can't.
"Not without you," I tell him. My fingers try to untie the knots on the ropes, but they were bound tight.
"I will only slow you down, sweetheart."
I glance up from his bound hands and stare into his eyes. "What are you saying?" I can't leave not without him. He is my blood.
"You need to run at the first chance you get." He lifts his bounded hands up and gently brushes tucks the hair behind my face. "I want you to run, and keep running, no matter what you hear."
My chest quickens. I can tell what he is going to say next, but I wish to not hear it.
"I will create a distrac..."
I shake my head. "No," I whimper. "I won't leave you."
"Father pushes me back. Putting space between us. "You have to Kari."
Kari! "Run!"
My father took off and men chased him into the forest. I stood still, stunned by what I was witnessing. Once my mind catches up, I do as my father requests and sprint off in the other direction.
I don't know where I'm running to. I have never left my village, but my father told me there was a town not far from us. I should have ran in that direction. There would have been someone willing to help me; offer me shelter and food, but I couldn't bring the destruction to them.
I ignored the pain of the sharp twigs stabbing me in my feet.
I ignored the pain of the sharp twigs stabbing me in my feet and ran north-west. Following the water current.
I kept running, even when my chest ached, my legs wobbled, and my eyes blurred. The more I ran the bigger the space between us. And that was all that mattered.
This was what my father wanted me to do.
I turned my head slightly, to check if I was followed. I couldn't see anyone, so I allowed myself to slow down. The forest is dense. Tree for miles. I'm sure to die. I have no hunting skills. I had no skills for survival, whatsoever.
Without the sun shining in, the forest is cold and damp. It's lucky that I have furs, to cover my lack of clothing; because if it was just in my nightgown, I would freeze to death.
I stop running and scan my surroundings. In the distance I hear the howls of wolves, hoping they aren't close by. The ground creaks with the small animals scurrying away from me. I spotted a wild rabbit dashing into a nearby shrub. Even if I could catch it, I have no means to skin or cook the damn thing.
I should have stayed. At least I'd have a warm belly filled with food. The run has made me thirty, and my stomach growls for food. I'm now overwhelmed with uncertainty, that I just crumble to the forest ground and cry into my hands.
My father is surely dead after this. I'm sure to die. Become a feast for the creatures that lie within the forest. Even in my village, we were never safe from wolves. A few would come in land and tear our lambs to shreds, made of with a few chickens.
I snap my neck to the side right after hearing a twig break. This is it.
The thud in my chest from running was starting to slow, but now it's amped. It pounds against the sternum. The furs on my shoulders are too hot to wear, and sweat pools at the nape of my neck.
"Kari!"
This is it. I have failed my father's dying wish to save myself. Tormad calls my name again, but I don't respond. I didn't need to, after the second calling, Tormad made himself known. My eyes scan the surroundings. On watch for his men to jump out and take me by surprise.
"It is just me, Kari," Tormad asures me. I find myself relaxing slightly but still kept on guard, unsure of what Tormad wanted to do with me. "I'm not going to hurt you!"
I don't know if I should trust the man; after all, he and his men stormed my village in the night and slaughtered many of my people. I blink away the images of Marcus as he fell face down. A dagger lodged in his back. Igor's eyes as he turned to face me, and then suddenly in my home. If it wasn't for Tormad, my father and I would have been next.
I was too into my thoughts to notice Tormad was now just arm's length away. His hand brushed my sides. "Easy," he hums, as though I'm some petrified horse, unwilling to let him mount. The sun is high, and through the tops of the trees, a little glistening of light shines through and hits Tormad. Under this ray, he looks heavenly. I had thought his eyes were a dull gray, but with the light, they appear to have a blue hue to them. He looks Angelic, but I knew better than to believe the tickeries before me. Though Lucifer was once an Angel - or still is, just misguided.
"Please let me go," I plead. A lone tear makes its way down my cheek.
Tormad shakes his head. "I can't do that Kari."
"Kari," my mother hums as she braids my hair. "Do you remember the story I spoke two moons ago?"
I bite my lower lip and think through the many stories my mother would speak of. "The one I was never to retell?"
My mother presses her soft lips to my cheek.
The warmth of her lips feels real and I place my hand to the spot. Every time he calls me that name, memories of my mother come rushing forward. Ones I thought I lost.
"My name is Catherine," I snap at him. Only my mother calls me Kari.
There is a slight lift to his lips as he steps a little closer. I flinch to the side when his hand reaches out. A moment passes before I glance up and find him staring at me. His eyes narrow, but not in a form of anger, but rather confused.
"I told you I won't harm you." He tucks my hair behind my ear and the brief touch of his callous fingers against my skin produce tiny bumps over my body. I shiver from the contact, and close proximity. Having never been this close to another man, it just feels so intimate. I swallow to help curb the dryness in my throat.
"Then let me go."
He steps back, providing a much needed gap between us. "We should reach the others by sunset if we leave now."
But I don't want to. So I stayed put. It did help to be couragous when my feet have been teared to shreds from the sharp sticks. If I moved one step, the ache was noticable. Tormad had only taken a few steps before turning back to see I hadn't moved. I watch as his shoulders sag and in two long strides was right there. This time, closer. He crouches down, resting on his knees. Before I could step back, he had his fingers wrapped around my ankle and lifting my foot up to inspect it. I wobble slightly, but thankfully didn't fall. I didn't need to add more injuries.
"They don't look deep. I will have someone tend to your wound." In a blink of an eye, Tormad had scooped my up. "You will only slow us down," was all he says, and starts walking.