Debra L. Rollins - Revenge For the Huntsman
Wolf was starving. The exertion of the last few days without his usual life-sustaining, lip-smacking, nose twitching, ever-delicious bacon was wearing him down. He needed sustenance and nothing said sustenance like bacon, did it? Virginia gave in. The all night carryout down the street didn’t have bacon, but sold some fantastic barbecue ribs. They were all famished after a full day of walking the streets of New York City, making the ribs, dripping with sauce, taste like heaven.
“I wonder if your grandmother made it home yet?” Tony wondered between bits.
“Oh, my God!” Virginia gulped down a bite, nearly choking. “I forgot all about her! She was supposed to go look for Wolf with some of her friends. I hope she’s not too worried. It’s almost eleven-thirty. Let’s finish up and get back home.”
“So soon?” asked Wolf, looking forlornly at the pile of rib bones towering precariously on his plate. “We’re not even going to stay for seconds?”
“Seconds!” Tony gasped at Wolf in disbelieve. “You’ve had enough ribs for four people. Where do you put it all?”
“I don’t know really,” Wolf appeared to contemplate the question seriously, scratching his temple and twitching in his seat. “I must have a high metabolism or something like that I suppose.”
“Well, you better watch out,” warned Tony sternly. “When Christine was carrying Virginia, I was the one who gained the weight. Put on twenty pounds I’d guess.”
“Wow!” Wolf looked at Tony’s stomach. “And in all these years you’ve never lost it again?”
Tony rolled his eyes, as Virginia giggled. Wolf could be quite naďve sometimes, but he sucked in his gut and rebuckled his belt anyway. So much for fatherly advice.
The walk back was short as they trudged contentedly towards the apartment building. As they closed the gap to the lobby entrance a couple exited from the building. They were involved in some sort of dispute for they bickered loudly, paying little attention to their surroundings. The woman ran across the road dodging cars lithely, heading towards Central Park, the man not far behind. He, on the other hand came close to getting hit twice as, amazingly, his luck held and he followed the woman onto the well lit sidewalk leading toward the park.
“Do you think that woman will be okay, Dad?” asked Virginia, a bit worried for her safety. The tall man had seemed agitated, even from this distance. “Perhaps we should call the police.”
“Police! Are you crazy?” Tony looked at his daughter like she was nuts. “I’m still a wanted man here. Remember? The bank robbery, the money, the great escape-who do you think they’ll go after…me or some jerk fighting with his girlfriend?”
“Yeah, Virginia,” agreed Wolf. “I think Tony has seen enough of prisons for awhile, don’t you?”
“Well, I suppose,” she admitted. Perhaps it was for the best. More than likely the couple would not appreciate that a stranger had butted into their business anyway. This was New York City after all. Of course, her Dad did have a point; he was still wanted by the police. They would have to work on clearing his name as quickly as possible.
As they entered the building, Tony stopped at the doorway and looked back at the couple disappearing into the shadows down the street.
He frowned. Something was strangely familiar about the two he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He stared a moment longer, then shrugged away the lingering feeling as Wolf called to him.
“Come on, Tony! It’s time to sleep and I haven’t had a bedtime snack yet.”
“Wolf! You just had a whole rack of ribs,” Virginia chastised.
“Well, yeah…but, huff-puff! I’m still hungry a little.” He motioned how little with his fingers.
“Okay,” she relented as she walked across the lobby to the elevator doors, wondering where the doorman was at this time of night. Usually he was right at his post, but tonight he was nowhere in sight. “But nothing extravagant, I’m pooped.”
Upstairs, they filed into the apartment, turning on lights as they went. The phone rang a moment later and Virginia answered it. The conversation was short as Marjorie was given the information that Wolf had been found and was safe now at home.
“Grandmother is going to stay with Matilda Lefler since it’s so late. She’s tired, but relieved that Wolf’s back.” Virginia kicked her shoes off her aching feet and flopped back into the sofa. What a day! Nothing sounded better to her right now than a soft, comfortable bed. Except perhaps, cuddling with Wolf in a soft, comfortable bed. But first, a nice hot bath. Thirty minutes later she was fragrantly clean and in her cozy, blue robe, chatting with Tony as Wolf could be heard in the kitchen whipping up his bedtime snack.
“You’ve never talked to me about the baby,” he stated. “Why?”
Virginia looked down at her fingernails, not meeting his eyes.
“I don’t know, Dad. I suppose I don’t have a real good reason why I didn’t talk to you about my pregnancy. Everything happened so fast that I haven’t had time to really fathom how my life is going to change in the next few months. I suppose I’m a little scared. Getting married and having a baby with someone I met only about a month ago is more than a bit frightening. Whirlwind romances were never my forte.”
“Mine either…until I met you mother,” he stated, staring off into another time and place. “Just tell me one thing.”
“What’s that?”
“Are you happy?”
Virginia squealed as Wolf bounded into the livingroom, scooped her up in his arms playfully and kissed her firmly on the lips.
She looked over at Tony again, answering after she caught her breath.
“Very happy.”
“Then that’s all that matters.”
Not half wolves or quarter wolves nor even enchanted wolves such as herself, but full-fledged, walks-on-four-paws wolves. Cierce grew excited. She would find these cousins of hers and shelter with them for the night. That is, she frowned worriedly, if they accepted her in this human form. If she didn’t even smell like her old self, then how would they know what she really was?
Her stomach growled loudly. She needed substance soon or she would be too weak to deal with Wolf. She decided to try.
The scent led her to another wrought iron fence within the compound. Through the bars there lay a hilly mound built up high enough to support a cave entrance, surrounded by thick grasses, trees and rocks partially hiding the opening. Light yips and growls emitted from the dark mouth of the cave telling her this was the place she sought. Now to make contact and hopefully, acceptance, she thought.
She yipped and whimpered softly, but strong enough for the leader, in this pack…another female, to emerge from the den in curiosity. The males must have died or been separated from the pack, otherwise a male would have stood on guard instead of this old female. The old one growled menacingly, unsure of what she smelt beyond her small domain. Cierce realized that she might have had a better chance at acceptance if the pack leader would have been male, but showed herself to the old one anyway. She bent down on her knees and bowed low to prove she meant no harm and would be duly submissive while in her domain.
The wolf drew closer to the iron bars and a concrete barrier that separated them and sniffed the air. She took her time making a decision, this old one, deciding to Cierce’s relief that the human before her was not of any harm to the pack and would accept her into the den.
Cierce cleared the fence smoothly, dropping to the other side without any problems. She knelt before the leader and allowed herself to be scrutinized up close. The wolf sniffed her over for one last time before licking her face in acceptance, then turned and headed back to the den with Cierce following.
The inside of the den proved warm and comforting with memories of her mother and siblings before the disaster that was the Huntsman struck them all down. Here, one of the lesser females shuffled her body over to allow Cierce room to lay while another nudged a pan filled with a few chunks of meat leftover from the evening feeding for her to eat.
Tears filled her eyes, choking her as she ate hungrily. This is what she missed most, having family to count on for food, shelter and companionship. Madam had given her all three also, but they were forced upon her and the price had been too great. The murder of her family would never be worth a life of comfort, but revenge was not on her agenda, for the Huntsman was already dead. Freedom was what she sought. Freedom and peace.
Burly tracked Cierce to the park zoo entrance, but was not in time to catch up with her before she slipped over the fence and disappeared into the darkness beyond.
“Suck an Elf!” he cursed loudly as he followed her path over the gate. Poking himself on the tips of the wrought iron he fell in a bruised heap on the other side. His epitaphs were met with hoots and calls from animal cages around him making him wonder if he were in some form of animal prison.
He walked past each prisoner, checking into their cell for his quarry, finally stopping at the wolf den an hour later, not in the best of moods either from getting nipped, pecked or butted from nearly twenty other animals as he inspected their domain. He read the name of the occupants for the next cell. The American timber wolf. This had to be the place! He could feel her near, which if he thought about it, was unusual, but in his ire, slipped away.
“Cierce!” he called loudly.
No answer.
“Cierce, you vixen!” he called even louder. “I know you’re in there. Come out or I’ll come in and pull you out!”
A moment later Cierce appeared at the entrance of the den.
“You wouldn’t dare, Troll! And keep your voice down…others are trying to sleep, you…you oaf!”
“We are supposed to be finding the wolf and the witch together or have you forgotten?” asked Burly.
“I forget nothing,” Cierce snapped. “I can do the job better without you hindering my every move. Trolls are too slow and dull-witted to keep up with wolves.”
“I found you now didn’t I?” he snapped back, his anger growing at her calling his people dull-witted. “You didn’t fare too well back at the wolf and witch’s living quarters either did you? You were easily subdued.”
Cierce’s eyes flashed brightly with anger, allowing Burly to realize his point had been well taken. His breath quickened against his will as he remembered the events in the apartment. He shook his head. Keep focused, he thought.
“None the less, I intend to go on without you, Burly the Troll. You hit me and I cannot forgive you easily. I intend to stay the night with my cousins and you can find shelter where you will.”
That did it. Though she could not see it, Burly turned beet red in the face with anger at having being dismissed by her twice in the same evening. Not only that, she would not share her shelter with him. Wasn’t he royalty? Wasn’t he a Troll? Wasn’t he the higher intelligent male? He would show her…he would go in and drag her out. Strangely, the thought excited him.
Burly hopped this fence easier than that of the main gate. It was shorter, though not by much. Once over he vaulted a strange, smooth, stone barrier, finding himself at the entrance of the den. He ducked to stick his head in the opening, flinching but a moment as a pair of brilliant, blue eyes reflected back at him from it’s depths.
“Ah-ha!” He cried triumphantly, grabbing hold of two appendages. He pulled hard, dragging out his prisoner into the warm, starlit night. A low growl emitted from her throat.
It wasn’t Cierce.
The old female was not amused. She attacked with lightning speed for one so aged.
“Ow!” Yelled Burly painfully as she nipped the hand holding her foreleg. He immediately released her with even more disastrous results. She now had full facilities and made good use of them.
“Ow! Ouch! Stop!” he cried, edging his way to the barrier a little at a time during the onslaught until he was close enough to plunge over it and gain freedom from his torturer.
It took the last of his strength to scoot over the fence, then limp away into the night.
Cierce watched the scene from inside the den, at first with humor. The old one had returned with her head held high, rejoicing at her victory. The others raced around her, showing her their respect, as did Cierce. To do less would be most unconscionable. She watched as Burly ran off, licking his wounds until she could see him no more. She waited for relief to flow through her, surprised when all she felt was something akin to…sadness? Disappointment? She brushed away the feeling as she reached into her small reticule and pulled out the small mirror. She had not contacted Madam Tatler since leaving the Fourth Kingdom, not even sure if it would work from this odd world.
“Mistress Tatler, can you hear me?”
The small mirror distorted and glowed eerily in the dark. Though badly broken up, Madam Tatler’s old, wizened face came gradually into view.
“Cierce! It’s about time. You have news of Wolf?”
“Yes,” she answered. “I have found his lair and am planning how best to deal with his capture at this time.”
“Excellent. Excellent,” she crowed. “And Prince Burly? Where is he?”
“Off licking his wounds I suppose. He is nothing but a nuisance. I plan to go on without him and his witch.”
“No!”
Cierce jumped at the fierceness of the old witch’s voice.
“You will find him and work with him and like it, Cierce. The Troll prince may come in handy. I have no wish to lose a pawn so easily. Prince Burly wants the girl too badly not to return with her to the Troll Kingdom. We will be assured of victory in both their captures if you two work together. Follow my instructions, Cierce, or you shall not be set free! Do you understand?”
“I understand, Mistress.” Cierce put away the mirror, lay down amongst her cousins, and wept.
