Shifters of Black Isle: The Collection

Chapter Five

Chapter FiveWhat was she thinking? Kelly couldn’t believe she had just told the story of little Timothy’s disappearance, all but accusing Broc and his clan of eating the boy alive.

It must have been the wine. Surely that, or whatever strange exhaustion that had overwhelmed her on the beach. Apparently it was all normal during her transition, whatever that meant.

Thankfully it seemed Broc had taken it well enough. His remark about wild boar had almost sounded like a joke, though she couldn’t be certain.

For the remainder of the feast, she tried to keep her head down, and her conversation to a minimum to avoid further awkwardness. Thankfully the crowd started to sing soon after, eliminating the chance for further chats.

She was surprised to find that these barbarians were seemingly less cannibalistic than the stories of the village elders had made them appear. They also had great taste in food and wine.

Especially the latter had a very agreeable flavor, not too much of a burn, certainly not as sharp as the stuff her father used to drink when he thought she had gone to bed already. After only a few sips, she stopped feeling the slight chill coming off the dark granite walls of the Great Hall, her body instead filled with a pleasing warmth and cheeriness that seemed completely inappropriate for someone in her situation.

From what she had gathered during Broc’s speech earlier, it seemed her role was not at all like that of a normal slave or prisoner. She was going to be a kept woman, responsible for providing healthy heirs for one of these wildlings. The fact that Broc had taken a personal interest in her and even made her sit by his side suggested she was going to be his bride.

This thought ought to fill her with dread, but somehow, their interactions had had a calming effect on her.

He had been respectful and decent, not aggressive and intimidating like some of the others. Imagine if it had been the other giant, Teaq… Kelly shuddered at the thought.

She couldn’t help but steal a glance at the huge man by her side. She had never met any nobleman, never mind a king, but she imagined in the human world a feast like this would be conducted very differently.

The giants seemed to treat each other mostly as equals. Everyone, even the men, served each other when another’s plate became empty. They treated each other as a family, with Broc firmly at the helm yet not exempt from jokes or even criticism.

It was a strange sight to behold, especially when it was a male offering a refilled glass or plate to a female. This type of thing would never happen in her village. There, especially the tavern was off limits for females, except for the beer wenches that worked there, whose position was certainly not enviable or respected.

Women were expected to take care of the home, while men went out and reaped the benefits of their farming or fishing efforts. That was the way things had always been as far as Kelly knew.

On this dark, cold island in the middle of the sea, everything she thought she knew about the world seemed obsolete. Her thoughts were interrupted by the occasional loud remark or question directed at Broc, which he responded to in the same controlled, quiet manner he adopted in all of his interactions.

He seemed like a good leader, well respected by almost everyone except perhaps Teaq, who Kelly had learned was his brother.

After a few rounds of drinks, even Teaq had cast off his earlier bad mood and properly joined in the celebrations. The dirty looks in Kelly’s direction had also subsided as the night grew darker.

Perhaps she had been too quick to judge the giants, based on the snide remark she’d overheard in her room earlier. And of course, the better part of two decades listening to stories the villagers of West Hythe had told over open fires.

All this could still be just a ruse to get her to feel comfortable. However, Kelly doubted anyone, especially these exuberant people, could act so well while imbibing this much liquor.

Just the one glass full had gone to her own head significantly.

After listening to the various conversations and introductions over the past two hours, she now knew a few of the faces surrounding her a little better. There was Teaq of course, the commander in charge of Broc’s army, Rhea, Broc’s cousin and the most fearsome female Kelly had ever seen. Rhea also seemed the most disapproving of Kelly’s presence, though Kelly still had no idea what caused her offense.

Broc had introduced her to some of the others at the first table as well, but she couldn’t recall their names anymore. They all looked and acted alike, the only notable differences between them their different lengths and shades of facial hair.

At one end of the hall sat a few white-haired men in pale grey robes. The giants’ elders. Kelly couldn’t help but wonder how old they were. Their skin was so wrinkled and fragile. Like flakes of ash, about to turn to dust. And their beards, white as snow.

None of the senior inhabitants of West Hythe looked nearly as old as these men.

“If you’re ready,” Broc asked beside her.

She looked over at his outstretched hand and paused.

“I can show you around your new home now. They won’t miss us.” Unlike everyone around them, Broc was still his calm, controlled self. Either he’d not fully given in to the celebrations like the others, or he must have had an incredible amount of self-discipline not to let it show.

Kelly nodded and slid off her chair, accepting Broc’s hand to keep her steady.

That wine really had been quite strong. She took a deep breath and focused on placing one foot ahead of the other, while keeping her head high as to not show weakness. Thankfully the floor did not feel quite as cold as it had before.

In fact she could not really feel her feet at all anymore. It was like she was floating.

Broc adjusted his long strides to match her pace better as they weaved past the banquet tables where the other giants were still eating, drinking and making merry.

A guard opened the large double doors at the side of the main hall and Broc and Kelly stepped into a dark corridor lined with the occasional torch on the wall. These giants really needed to address their lighting situation. The dim glow of the torches was not enough for her poor eyes.

Kelly was apprehensive about where they were headed, but then reconciled herself with the fact that if Broc had any ill will towards her, there was nothing she could do about it. She was at his mercy, so she might as well not worry about it.

After making it to the end of the corridor, around a couple of corners, Broc led her through a doorway, where all of a sudden a gust of wind chilled her to her core.

The vista stretched out ahead of her was breathtaking. Dramatic grey clouds lined with silver where the moonlight passed by them; the gurgling dark waters below seemed to hide all manner of evil. They stood quite high up on a plateau of stone surrounded by a fortified wall just low enough for her to peer over, yet high enough to keep her from being swept up by the wind.

Despite the cold, and the powerful gusts, Kelly stepped forward and placed her hands on the cold stone wall, allowing her to lean forward slightly. Perhaps a hundred feet below the platform, Kelly could make out the rocky mass of the island which the fortress had been built upon. The seas ahead of them were broken apart by the occasional sharp cluster of rocks, shiny yet black in the subdued moonlight.

“It seemed prudent to take you here first. On a calm day the mainland is visible from here, but not on a night like tonight.” Broc looked down at her.

Perhaps still due to the wine, she broke character and met his gaze directly. His eyes were still black, but there was nothing dark or ominous about them this time. She thought she could see a certain kindness in them, along with a fiery warmth that set her heart alight.

How was it possible that this giant, this warrior who should instill fear in her, seemed so welcoming and even friendly? How could she possibly continue to distrust someone with such honest eyes? And yet how could she possibly put her faith in someone who would abduct a girl such as herself once every eight years just because it was written into a treaty?

None of it made any sense.

Broc broke eye contact at last, and cleared his throat.

“You must be freezing. Let us continue on.” Broc placed his large hand on the back of Kelly’s shoulder, sending an even more intense shiver down her spine than the icy winds had already done. Although she found it hard to let go of the impressive view, she did allow herself to be guided back indoors.

The rest of their stroll around the imposing castle was mostly quiet, except for the occasional explanation from Broc. All of it, from the stairs leading down to the dungeons, the wing set into the mountain containing the chambers of everyone who lived here, right up to the drawbridge and gate that led to the harbor, merged into one in Kelly’s mind. There was no chance of her ever finding her way around this place. There were no markings to remember anything by. All corridors, rooms constructed out of granite blocks, or sometimes hewn straight into the mountain itself, looked too alike.

And all of it was barely lit up.

Kelly felt her eyes grow heavier and heavier as they walked through the maze of stone. Her supposed new home, until she could find a way off the island, that was.

At last they stopped in front of yet another ten foot tall wooden door with iron hinges that looked identical to all the other ten foot tall wooden doors with iron hinges Kelly had seen this evening.

“Your chambers,” Broc said, as he turned the handle with the click and creak she had become familiar with earlier in the evening. “I’d lead you back to the feast, but you look exhausted.”

Kelly stood confused for a moment, staring at the door first, then looking inside the room to convince herself that it was actually where she had woken up. No guards at the door? Not even a bolt on the outside? How was it possible that they’d kept her, a prisoner, here against her will, in a completely unsecured room on her own? What if she had tried to run immediately after getting up?

“Thank you,” Kelly stammered, but suddenly her legs refused to move and she froze as if her feet had grown roots.

“Where are your chambers?” she finally asked.

Broc responded with a knowing smile and nodded his head towards a door just down the hallway towards the right of her room. The last door on this end of the corridor. “Only a few steps away.”

Kelly bowed her head as she entered her bedroom, thanking Broc again for his hospitality, upon which he left, closing the door behind him.

The evening’s events had sent her thoughts into a confused frenzy. She was going to be his woman, whether she wanted to or not. So why not just get right to it and claim her? Why all the politeness? If they hadn’t shared that intense stare out on the lookout point earlier, she may have suspected that he had no interest in her. Clearly, he had.

Oh Mother, what is the purpose of it all?

Kelly closed her eyes and tried to make sense of everything that had happened to her so far. But this was not something she could unravel here on her own.