10. Nora
10
Nora
C lashing steel reverberated through my hands, the zing of it reinvigorating those parts of me that constantly felt hopeless. Only one palm gripped the hilt of my lonely dagger, a little less satisfaction from the activity than normal since one hand remained empty. Recalling the last time I'd seen my missing dagger, it was soaring through the air aimed right for that masked stranger. With the fighting that ensued, it’d slipped my mind to retrieve it.
I’d passed Mrs. Gallagher’s backyard on my way to Odion’s today and scoured the garden from the alley, but found no trace of it. Splintered frays protruded from the wood where it’d struck and had clearly since been ripped out.
If I asked Mrs. Gallagher about it, she’d question why my dagger assaulted her fence and possibly call the guardsmen. I didn’t need that kind of attention, especially if she had the weapon as proof and could identify me.
The entire walk here I’d mourned its loss. Odion’s training became all the more difficult, essentially forcing me to relearn every approach I had thus far, since I could only reach for one blade.
Our steel kissed each other in a standoff, but even with both of my wrists locking my small dagger against his sword, he had the advantage of his massive biceps to further drive it down.
My knees quaked while a bead of sweat dripped down the side of my face. My arms wobbled against this unrelenting strength, crying out to buckle under the force. But buckling in a real scenario would mean death, so I stretched my heel further behind me, planting it firmly against the ground.
Use his momentum against him.
In what I hoped would be a seamless transition that left me without a scratch, I allowed his blade to drop, but didn’t let mine separate. A controlled fall. I waited until he finished the swing toward the ground, then rotated my steel around his, taking control of his aim. I thrust the sword away, forcing him to twist and expose his side to me.
With a war cry, I swung my lonely weapon, pausing it on Odion’s ribs. He looked over his shoulder, down to the spot where I would have sliced into his right kidney. The twinkling sheen of his bald head made my smile widen.
“I win,” I said with a cocky smirk and ragged breath, the euphoria of victory coursing through my veins.
We parted, relaxing our stances. I used the underneath of my sleeve to wipe my brow and dab around the back of my neck. So much for being freshly bathed.
“Proud of you, Nora. Next time, I’ll teach you how to defend yourself if someone pulls that same maneuver on you.” He walked over to the basin of water and cupped his hands, splashing his face.
“Didn’t look like you had much time to defend yourself.” I couldn’t mask the snarky smirk on my lips. I savored every syllable that rubbed in my win. He didn’t let me have many of those.
He chuckled, shrugging off my verbal jab with ease. “Alright, alright. Give me three defensive stances.”
My shoulders dropped, and I tossed my head back, complaining to the sky. “Can’t you just let me have one win?” My limbs held the strength of limp pasta after that last spar.
Water splashed as he cleaned up in the barrel. “There was an incident by the docks…” His voice shifted from something light and entertained to weighed down.
Requiring way too much effort to raise my head back to level, I looked at him. “Oh?”
“A murder.” Odion dried his hands on a nearby rag.
“Oh my stars. Who?”
“Don’t know. Someone not from here.”
Realization dawned on me why he wanted me extra sharp.
“Apparently, there was a group of five or six, my source said. Up to something shady, no doubt. Why else would anyone be skulking around the docks at that hour? They were lugging something. Cargo of some kind is my guess, though I can’t recall any docked ships coming in yesterday."
“Who’s this source of yours?” I inquired.
“Well, less of a source, and more of Efemena’s brother drunkenly wandering the streets after celebrating his birthday.” He chuckled. “Just coincidence, really. He hasn’t been the same since what he saw, hasn’t left his bed in days. He carries a burden for the man who lay dead, though he didn’t have the means to help anyway. He heard an argument break out afterward, a disagreement about whatever they were doing. It was what he heard, clear as day, cutting right through the sound of waves crashing that haunts him the most. ‘ They’re no good to us if they’re dead’ . Human life should be more sacred than that."
A ghost wind skated over my skin, causing it to pebble, even against my overexerted body. “What do you think they meant by that? What did they want him for?”
Odion’s eyebrows shot upward. “Don’t know.”
Great, more criminal activity littering our streets, exactly what this town needed.
“Now, those three stances I requested.” Odion folded his arms over one another, resuming his role as hard-ass trainer, looking down at me across the outdoor ring.
“And why can’t I leave here on a victory high note again?” I quipped.
“While I don’t think you’re foolish enough to be out, maybe I also want a guarantee that you’ll be too tired to even try.” A roguish grin spread over his face.
“Odion! Come help me with these hellish children of yours.” Efemena, my saving angel.
Both our heads snapped to the gorgeous woman standing at the front door of their small cabin home, a hand on her hip holding a rag. Her big brown eyes sparkled at a distance, even under overcast. A scarf wrapped her voluminous hair, but perfect spiral curls still peeked all around.
“Hi, Nora dear,” she said. “You think you can be done with him for the day? There are quite a few dishes that need doing.”
“Gladly!” I said all too quickly, turning back to Odion with a victorious smile on my face. “Aw, what a shame for me.” My attempt at chewing my smile failed.
“Are you two conspiring against me?” He scrubbed his jaw but didn’t waste any time returning home.
“No conspiracies, just good old fashion luck.” I clapped his shoulder as his big, brooding frame sauntered past.
I stopped at the water barrel and wiped myself down as best I could before grabbing my cloak and satchel. Before he reached his door, he called over his shoulder, “And bring both your blades next time.”
I swallowed. Letting Odion know why I lost it wasn’t a conversation I planned on having. Ever.
I became one with the shadows, stalking the streets as if I was forged from the night itself. Fluid and precise, each step was carefully calculated and executed. The sea air filled my lungs and the tang of salt coated my tongue the closer I got to the docks.
I’d only passed a couple villagers on my way here, men either staggering from too much drink or lighting a smoke against a building. I was invisible to them, keeping tight to walls and ducking into the exposed shops like Odion’s. Random objects, such as barrels and work benches, helped keep my cover.
I reached the last shop on the stretch, only open and exposed to the bank descending to the shoreline ahead. As my eyes scanned the length of the docks, the only movement I detected was the continual ebb and flow of the midnight waves pressing a kiss to the sand before slinking away again. Moonlight reflected off the gentle water, barely a breeze in the air. The twinkling glisten painted a picture of serenity, and for a moment I got lost in the calm. These peaceful moments served as a reminder that there were still good things in this world, that my mother was right.
I couldn’t remember thinking of anything specific when a barely audible rustle occurred behind me. Before I could react, a foot hooked the front of my ankle, and hands pinned my arms in place.
“Lovely to see you again, Miss?”
I recognized that ashy voice purring in my ear.
“Come to have your ass handed to you twice, huh?” I ground out the words, trying to muster the strength to break his hold—but to no avail.
Only a touch of warmth grazed my hood-covered ear as he gave a raspy, low, rumbling laugh that permeated from his chest into my back. “If you want your hands on my ass, all you have to do is ask.”
The scoff I released rattled my throat, but it only made him laugh again. He kept his voice quiet, and I was glad not to tip off any other potential foes to us being here. Though, I wasn’t a fan of being pinned in the dark with a stranger who now graced the locations of two crimes. That reality steadily settled in my mind like concrete, allowing me to plant my feet on something sturdy while I devised a game plan.
“You plan on killing me like you did your friend?” Time. I needed time. My eyes wildly swept the immediate area, looking for anything I could use to my advantage. The stall had hidden away its supplies, fishing nets and gear taken from the walls and stands, put under lock and key for the night, leaving me few options.
I searched my memory for the layout behind me. He couldn’t have been more than two feet away from a now empty table. If I could force him back…
“You think I—”
I’d already decided. I arched my ass back, not that there was much to it with my slender frame, but I didn’t need much. His hooked foot pulled back on my ankle, trying to keep balance. My other foot dug into the ground and I pushed back, then we were both stumbling backward. I jostled in his arms as he rammed into the table behind him, and the moment he tried stabilizing, I freed my foot from him and let my body drop.
He didn’t let go, which forced him to hunch while he fell with me. I had one move to gain the upper hand, one chance to use his imbalance against him. I threw out my leg to the side, and with fierce speed and precision, swiped outward and back. I hit my target, making his steadiness falter. The moment pain splintered from impact against his ankle, I lunged forward.
With no choice but to relent, he let go, landing with his palms flat on the ground. In the time it took him to recover, I faced him with my single unsheathed dagger, and aimed my heel at his rising stature, striking his shoulder. He lost his footing, falling to his ass, narrowly missing his head colliding with the table.
Panic gripped me like a serpent strangling its meal. My muscles were already spent from an afternoon of training, and if he got to his feet, I wasn’t sure how long I could hold him off. And after kicking his ass—again—I doubted he’d hold back.
He can’t get to his feet.
Affording no further thought, I lunged, ducking under the table as I pinned him beneath me. My knees came up to pin his elbows, and my dagger rested against the hollow of his throat. We had limited space to maneuver with the table acting as a roof just above my back, and I knew it reduced the effectiveness of his legs behind me.
Still, he was competent and capable, and if I gave him time, he’d figure out a way. So I didn’t wait. “Why are you kidnapping people? Why are you killing your own men?” I snarled. He couldn’t see the teeth I bore at the ferocity of my question, but my pinched brow and lethal glare delivered my message all the same if he could see through the darkness.
“I think deep down you know it’s not me.” His throat bobbed against the edge of my blade, but I didn’t ease the pressure. A sliver of moonlight shone over us, illuminating his eyes in a way that had me thinking I saw the truth shining there.
“Why are you here?” A stern question, one that demanded a response.
“Looking for answers.”
I didn’t want to admit he was telling the truth. Didn’t want to give him an inch. If he was tricking me, this moment could cost me my life. One quick motion could ensure that didn’t happen, but my stomach tensed. In all my training, I’d never considered there’d be a moment where it would be a choice whether I shed blood or not. I would fight to get away, sure, whatever it took, but this? I held the power here.
I wasn’t made of steel like my dagger. The act of taking a human life came with an immensely heavy burden I hadn’t grasped until now, and the sour truth coated my soul; I didn’t have the strength to do it.
His eyes flitted about, brow tense. “Shh,” he ordered.
Me? I wasn’t even making a sound? This could be a clever ruse, a distraction of his own. Pressing the blade firmer against his windpipe, I was about to rake him over the coals for thinking he could pull a fast one on me, but then I heard it.
Mumbled voices, a group making their way down the slope from the market to the docks. We froze as they neared our stall. My gaze darted to the man poised beneath. If these were his companions, all it would take would be for him to call out, and I’d be outnumbered in a heartbeat.
But he wasn’t looking at me. In fact, he abandoned all sense of threat that I possessed, though my steel still kissed his skin. He kept his focus sharp on those passing by, but there was no glimmer of recognition. Opposite, actually. He didn’t want them to know we were here. Panic filled his eyes as he looked at me again. “My legs,” he whispered.
I felt him pulling his knees up, caging me under the table. That group was about to pass, and surely if they spotted legs on the ground, they’d investigate. The movement gently pushed me forward, his thighs now pressing into my ass. It shifted my center of gravity. In a decision I hoped I wouldn’t come to regret, I removed my dagger from his throat to catch myself on either side of his head. I glanced down briefly to find this man’s face an inch away from my chest.
We remained silent as the entourage passed. I still didn’t hold all the confidence in the world that he wouldn’t turn the tables on me—or table, literally. His arms were free now, no longer pinned since we'd switched positions.
“This was risky coming back tonight,” one of the voices hissed. His voice was strained, maybe like he was carrying something heavy, but I couldn’t see.
“We watched all day. The guardsmen cleared the body, and haven’t been back since. Boss says they have it under control. All we’re to do is retrieve, so quit complaining,” another sniped.
I wasn’t breathing, my focus locked on every word. The man beneath tilted his hips upward, lifting us both to retreat further under the table. With his free hands, he gripped my thighs to guide me with his movements. The feel of the intimate gesture snapped me out of focus as effectively as a cold bucket of water.
My legs perfectly straddled his hips, and parts of us pressed together in ways that only lovers would share. A flash of heat crept over my cheeks as I became acutely aware of how oddly thrilling I found it to be.
“This might be our only chance to see them,” he growled under his breath.
I didn’t know the right call to make. Those men weren’t far enough away that they still wouldn’t be on me in an instant if this man betrayed me. But each passing second meant losing the ability to learn something vital.
Someone hired these men, for what, I didn’t know yet, but clearly nothing delightful. I needed to see if they were carrying something, and what exactly it was. Maybe it would solve the murder of the man on the beach Odion’s brother-in-law witnessed. With the darkness of night, it’d already be difficult to spot identifying details. Maybe it was unwise to let them get far…
“Move,” he snapped, still whispering. I’d already wasted precious seconds, so I took the chance. I crawled off him, momentarily planting my knees beside his head until I scrambled out from under the table. I moved quickly, keeping distance between us as I peered around the work bench close to the front, watching a group of three, no four, men carry something toward the pier.
In the mangle of silhouettes, I couldn’t make out any details. Not even the shape of what they were carrying, not from this angle. To make sure my familiar run-in didn’t threaten me, I glanced over to track his movements. Only briefly did I catch his form slip into the shadows on the opposite side of the stall. I peered over the tables and workstations of this stall and the next to see him slinking down the sandy bank that led to the shore before he disappeared from view. The beachy landscape provided minimal coverage under the spotlight of the moon, but he kept low to the ground.
My gaze snapped to the other group who had no idea they were being followed. With their focus fully on their task, I moved through the shadows until I crested the the edge of the bank. My run-in kept up with an impressively fast pace as he scaled the sandy slope. From where I stood, I had nowhere else to go that wouldn’t put me out in the open. The shops ended here, leaving only the exposed path to the boardwalk and launch points.
With no other options that would potentially grant further insight on this mysterious band, I trailed the path the masked man had taken. The ground shifted beneath my feet as I sunk into the loose earth and rode the drifting sands downward. Confidence grew that the man in the mask indeed wasn’t with the group of shady men as he kept his distance, even when they set foot on the wooden planks of the boardwalk that connected to the docks.
I finally made it down to where he perched. He didn’t turn to greet me, though I knew he was aware of my presence.
“Did you see what they were carrying?” he asked, not taking his focus away from the huddled group staggering along the wooden platform. A slight gust of wind blew past us, rustling the dry, barren grasses that survived the repressive winter.
“No, it was too dark. What have you seen?” He’d been here maybe a minute longer than I had.
“Appears to be a trunk, but filled with I don’t know what. Whatever it is, it takes two of them. Where are they taking it?” A rhetorical question I also wondered. No ships were docked at port, but they continued to the third launch, turning to stroll up the length of it.
“I don’t—” If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it. In a split second, a sizable ship appeared, perfectly tied to the posts. I remained silent, almost questioning my sanity.
We watched as a pair split off to unwind the thick ropes securing the ship to the dock. They executed with precision, a rehearsed operation. The other two worked to haul their cargo up the ramp to board the ship.
“Unauthorized docking,” he muttered.
I grimaced. “That’s your takeaway? That they probably don’t hold proper permits?”
“Unauthorized means untrackable.”
“I think invisible ships do try to avoid that,” I snarked.
He gleaned a look at me over his shoulder before returning to the action. Once all men had boarded, they reeled in the plank. Then, just as quickly as it appeared, it vanished again. I went to stand, to see if I could find any evidence of a ship still actually there, or if magic had teleported it. He gripped my arm like the strike of an asp, preventing me from rising.
“It’s shielding magic. They’re still there. If they see that someone’s watching, they might have scouts monitor the perimeter next time. Don’t give us away, we have an advantage.”
While I didn’t appreciate the reprimand, having this stranger boss me around, he did have a point. “You’re not in charge of me,” I still decided to say.
His gaze connected with mine, barely visible under the shadow of his hood, but enough that a small reflection off the water brightened his eyes. They mimicked the sea before us, stern, something to be respected, but not unforgiving. They creased at the sides, and I knew he was smiling beneath his mask.
“Apologies, though by the looks of it, you agree with me.”
Tearing my gaze away in defiance, I cast my eyes toward the ocean ahead. “I decided for myself that I’d rather stay hidden. Not because you told me to.”
His warm chuckle contrasted the cool breeze. “Glad to know we’re on the same page. Does this make us allies now?”
I grimaced under my mask. “I don’t know anything about you.”
“Oh, on the contrary.”
I cast a questioning stare in his direction, scanning his person from head to toe then traveling back up again.
“You know a great deal about me, I think. You know that I’m well trained.”
A laugh shucked out of my throat. “Maybe not as well as you think.”
He pressed on, ignoring my jab. “You know that I’m as concerned as you are about what’s happening in this town. And you know your secret is safe with me.”
“ Do I know that? The only reason you haven’t turned me in could very well be because you, in fact, don’t know who I am. Who’s to say if I gave you the opportunity, you wouldn’t use it against me?”
“I could say the same.” A moment of contemplation hovered between us. A stalemate. “But, I think we’re alike. At least, in this matter, anyway. I think we should be allies.”
“And why do you think I’d need your help?” I couldn’t help the bite in my words. I was tired of being underestimated and used as a pawn in other people’s games.
“Judging from what we’ve seen tonight, four men were sent under the cover of nightfall to retrieve whatever it is they have, with an unknown number of companions on that ship to sail it. Seems to me you’re mighty capable, but you on your own wouldn’t be enough.”
Simmering heat settled over my skin, but before I could protest, he added, “And I wouldn’t be enough on my own, either. I don’t trust many people when it comes to this, but you…”
I studied his eyes, curious what the end of that sentence would be.
Instead, he changed the topic. “I have something for you. A peace offering.”
“Oh?”
He twisted, working something off his belt. When he turned back around, the sight made my chest bubble with relief. “My dagger!” I snatched it from him and held it tight against my chest, embracing it like a long-lost friend. That comforting weight in my hands mended a fissure in my heart, one that bled with loss and helplessness. This set meant more to me than I’d realized, and losing it felt like losing a piece of myself. Of who I was working to become.
“I trust you won’t stab me with it, or send it flying for my skull like last time.” The words hinted at jest, but I detected a hint of concern. Smart.
He was still a stranger. Some lurker in the night that I’d stumbled across in dicey circumstances. I didn’t know who he was, where he came from, or what brought him to this point. If I were being honest with myself, I would admit that even though I’d come out on top both times we’d tussled, I knew he was skilled. Skilled enough that had he truly wanted to put me down, he would have.
But since admitting that would tarnish my victories, I didn’t feel inclined to do so. Or to let him forget them, either. I assessed my blade and returned to his question. “Hm, not at this particular moment, but I make no promises.”
There it was again, that harmonious laugh that caressed like velvet. It worked against my defenses. He exuded a level of ease and comfort, and the influence bled right through my walls. Maybe I didn’t need to be on such high alert around him. Maybe behind his mask and anonymity, there actually was someone who would have my back, someone who could help me with the admittedly overwhelming task at hand.
I’d be a fool to trust him completely, but I couldn’t fight the nagging feeling that I’d be equally foolish to refuse the partnership. “Let’s make something very clear here. I don’t need you. And, even though I don’t fully endorse this next statement, you don’t need me either. I won’t be taking orders from you. I want to find out who is orchestrating the kidnappings, and stop them. I won’t wait for you to catch up or let you slow me down. So don’t take my acceptance of your presence as anything other than just that. Acceptance. Not reliance.”
A gentle breeze drifted past us, but somehow the air thickened. I waited to see how he would respond.
Maybe I’d come off too harshly. I still hadn’t quite decided if I wanted him around or not, which way would play best to my advantage. Men didn’t appreciate a woman being so bold. They wanted someone meek, submissive, who didn’t cause them any trouble.
I could have just ruined my chances of having backup by not playing nice. My heartbeat strained in my chest as each tense second ticked by. I stood by what I said, though. I wouldn’t tolerate being treated less than, not with this, not when it was the only opportunity in my life to be free of others restrictions and restraints.
He never once broke our connection, as if heavily considering my offer. The wind held its breath. Then his hand appeared from the shadows between us, extended toward me. “Deal.”
My turn to remain unmoving. Accepting his hand meant something. It would sever the bonds of doubt we’d entangled ourselves in so far, clean our slates. We’d have to learn each other, discover how to move forward in this new dynamic. Not as passing threats in the night, but as a unit.
Suddenly my chest weighed heavy, as if my lungs were filled with seawater. I could walk away right now, never having fully committed, continuing my mission as I’d planned from the start.
But something about the man in front of me made me want to say yes. Made me not want to take this on alone. I reached out my hand, clasping his.
On the border of a calm sea, two vigilantes in the night struck a bargain, determined to stop the evil forces that plagued their town.
“Don’t make me regret this,” I said, our hands still bobbing like a ship on the waves.
“I could say the same. Well, since we’re partners now…” He reclined in the freezing sand, resting his hands behind him as he stared toward the open expanse of water. “I guess I should introduce myself. You can call me Chol.”
Chol. A name to attach to this newfound ally. “Like char coal?”
He chuckled. “If that’s what it takes for you to remember it.” He broke his assessment of the ocean, ready and waiting to be introduced to his new masked confidante. “And what should I call you?”
Giving my actual name would be stupid. I supposed the one he gave me wasn’t actually his, either. We might have agreed to a ceasefire, but that didn’t mean unwavering trust.
“Ella. You can call me Ella.” I sank back, adjusting myself in the same position he had. We stared over the dark waters, perhaps both contemplating the decision we’d just made, and if it would lead to our success—or our downfall.