Girl in the Red Hood (27 page)

"Because you were such a better choice for
your wife, old man," Kurt sneered.

"I actually
tried
to change for my
wife. I didn't just dance around breaking the spell when I felt
like it," her grandfather hissed. Seconds later, Bernd's nose was
bloody, and Kurt was on the ground. Her grandfather had swept out
his feet with the staff, and without hesitation, brought the stick
down hard on Kurt's chest, knocking him back down as he tried to
stand up. The pain was evident on Kurt's face as he rolled over and
tried to get up again. Again, the staff came crashing down. Rage
and angst filled Liesel as she watched. Without thinking, she
grabbed the nearest rock she could find and threw it at them. It
missed, but succeeded in getting their attention. And when it did,
Liesel heard herself utter words she had never spoken to anyone
before.

"I hate you both!" With that, she turned and
took off for the mountain as fast as her feet would carry her. Her
grandmother must have stopped them from following, as Liesel
remained alone for the length of her run, but she plunged on ahead
anyway as though evil spirits were at her heels. It wasn't until
she'd gone about ten minutes up the mountain path that she stopped.
Unsatisfied with the proximity to the path and all familiar
landmarks, however, Liesel deliberately left the path and headed
into the sparsely scattered trees until she found a large, flat
sunny rock to flop down on.

Part of her wondered if she was too far from
Kurt and Johan. They still didn’t know how far she could go before
they changed forms, but the other part of her didn’t care. She was
angrier than she had ever been. Images of what could have happened
kept flashing through her mind. Kurt could have lost control. Bernd
might have broken one of Kurt's bones or worse. Despite the time
that had passed, Liesel could remember exactly what death had
looked like on her own parents' faces. She might go mad if she lost
another loved one so senselessly.

Since they had come, Liesel had been aware
that her grandfather didn't approve of Kurt. But she hadn't thought
he would go so far as to forbid her from returning to the pack. Of
all people, he should have understood her need to help them. To
fix, she thought darkly, what her grandparents should have. She had
made a promise. Somehow, she was going to keep it.

Liesel let her mind slip into the sounds
around her, closing her eyes and simply soaking up the sun. She had
learned to do so when her mother was ill and she was afraid. Bernd
had actually been the one to teach her.

"When life gets hard, Leese," he had
crouched down and pointed at a swift clinging to the side of a tree
truck. "Just come up here, close your eyes, and remember that the
good Maker
does
care. He wouldn't have made all this if He
didn't." Liesel did her best to concentrate now the way he had
taught her to all those years ago. When she did, she found that a
brook trickled somewhere behind her. Birds on their journey south
sang goodbye songs as the summer showed signs of aging. Air
whistled through the thin branches, and a toad croaked somewhere
nearby. Liesel had nearly dozed off when a rustle in the leaves
behind her made her glance back. After a moment of looking,
however, she saw nothing, so she turned back and closed her eyes
once more. Just a moment later, whatever it was moved again.

Her second glance found her staring into the
bright eyes of a lynx. Its pointed ears twitched, but nothing else
moved as it crouched, staring her down. Liesel felt her body go
cold as fear paralyzed her where she sat. She had climbed the
mountain nearly every day of her early life, and never once had she
seen one of the big cats. The neighbors had spoken of them stealing
chickens, and parents warned their children that the big cats could
sneak in and eat naughty children who didn't go to bed on time.
But, Liesel had always thought, those were stories for people who
didn't understand the mountain and its animals.

And now one was going to kill her. Sure
enough, it began to crouch even deeper, when an arrow whizzed right
past Liesel and straight into its heart. A second arrow followed,
ensuring the great cat stayed down. Liesel was still staring at the
dead animal in shock and catching her breath when she heard heavy
footsteps running up the path. She turned to see a young man racing
towards her, nocking a third arrow as he went.

"Are you hurt, Miss?" It took Liesel a
moment, but then she recognized the man who stood over her with
concern in his eyes. Grown up or not, the red-bearded face was
impossible to mistake.

"Manny!" Liesel scrambled to stand, but her
knees still shook. Her old friend stretched a large arm down to
help her to her feet.

"Liesel?" His mouth fell open. "What? When
did you get back?" In spite of her still-injured feelings, Liesel
couldn't help smiling a little.

"A few weeks ago."

"I haven't seen you in town. You must have
snuck in and out if your presence has been kept a secret for all
this time." He ran his hand through his fiery hair and laughed.
"Old Mrs. Klatsch would have told all of Weit by now if she had
seen you."

"She's still alive?" Liesel laughed with
him. The old woman had been the town gossip and as old as dirt for
as long as Liesel could remember. She had a nasty habit of creating
rumors that were more than just a little false.

"Of course! Who else would guess at all the
neighbors' goings-on?" Shaking his head, he looked at her in awe.
"I have to say, Liesel, you've really grown up." Liesel blushed.
Though a wisp of unease floated in her stomach at the way he was
still staring, she couldn't ignore the subtle thrill of being
noticed, either.

"You've changed, too, you know," she waved
at him, suddenly feeling ridiculously shy. The ornery little boy
she had once run the streets with was far from little now.
Everything about Manny was massive. His arms, his legs, even his
chest and neck looked as if someone had stuffed them full of rock
and packed it firm. He towered over Liesel, and would probably
stand even a bit taller than Keegan.

"Are you hunting for your father's shop?"
Liesel pointed at the weapon he held.

"What? Oh, this. I had some time away from
the shop, so I thought I might look for some small game. Things are
slow this morning. And no, my father died three years ago."

"I am sorry," Liesel said. And for his loss,
she was sorry, but not excessively so. Manny's father had been a
drunk, but unlike her father, he had made it a habit of beating his
children when he came home in the wee hours of the night, and his
inflictions were visible for weeks after, never disappearing
completely before a new set was given.

"What about you?" The young man shifted
uncomfortably. "Is your family back to stay?"

"No," she said quietly, remembering suddenly
why she had climbed the mountain in the first place. "No, I'm just
visiting my grandparents before my wedding." It felt so strange to
say, and when she did say it, his face fell just slightly.

"Ah...I see. So is your betrothed here,
too?" Liesel nodded, not missing the resentment in her old friend's
voice. Finally, he cleared his throat. "What are you doing up here
alone anyway?"

"I miss the mountain," she said slowly,
careful not to give too much away. He snorted.

"You of all people should know better than
to run off by yourself. You're nowhere near the trail."

"Did that stop us when we were young?"
Liesel teased, hoping to deflect further questions. Manny
grinned.

"No, I guess not. Can...Could I at least
escort you down? You didn't seem too keen on handling him earlier."
He pointed with his bow at the large cat lying still on the ground.
Liesel smiled as he picked up his prize.

"Thank you. That sounds good."

Thankfully, he queried nothing more about
Liesel's personal situation as they walked down. Only after he had
brought her to her grandparents' porch did he ask,

"Will you be at the Adler wedding?"

"My grandmother says we are." Suddenly
content, Manny smiled and nodded before turning and heading back
down the hill towards town. Liesel watched him go, feeling
satisfied with the reunion until she recalled her initial reasons
for running.

"Who was that?" Kurt's voice was low and
dangerous as he appeared out of the evening shadows. At the same
time, her grandparents emerged from the house. Liesel was about to
reply, when Bernd sent Kurt a scathing look and Kurt returned it.
The hatred in their expressions rekindled the anger for both men
that she had felt that afternoon, and instead of replying to Kurt,
Liesel snapped her head over to her grandmother instead, and
speaking only to her.

"Manny Rinder walked me home." As she said
it, Liesel didn't miss the dark anger that flashed across Kurt's
face.

"Well, I suppose that was kind of him," her
grandmother said a bit hesitantly. "What did he need to do that
for?"

"A lynx found me, and he happened to be out
hunting."

"My goodness! Are you alright?" Ilsa began
looking for blood, but Liesel shrugged.

"He killed it before it could touch me. Now,
if you don't mind, I am tired, and I want to go to bed." She began
to walk into the house, but stopped. "Grandmother?"

"Yes, dear?"

"If they don't already know, please tell my
grandfather and Kurt that if they try anything like that ever
again, I will not be speaking to either of them for as long as I
live." Her family was silent as Liesel made her way back to her
room and shut the door. And soon as she was alone, she felt large
tears begin to fall as sobs shook her body.

As much as she tried to push them out, the
images of what could have been bombarded her once again. Her
grandfather, still and white, covered in blood just as her father
had been. Kurt, lying on the ground, unconscious from a swift blow
to the head with her grandfather's hateful staff.

And it wasn't just the fight that hurt
Liesel. It was the betrayal.

Warin's fondness for strong drinks meant he
had often spent much of his time in the tavern, even when Amala had
been alive. It wasn't lost on Liesel, even from a young age, that
her father wasn't at home much of the time. Even on Holy Days, he
could often be found sleeping off a night of fun instead of going
to the church with his family. Though he wasn't gone to the extent
that he was later on in Ward, Liesel had grown to hate his ways
from a young age. Even worse than his drinking, however, were his
dreams for Liesel.

It had all culminated the day she had
arrived home from visiting her grandparents to announce she was
going to follow suit and see the world.

"Your fancies are pretty, as are you my
dear," her father had slurred the day she had announced such
dreams. "But it's best if you keep those hopes to yourself, Leese."
When Liesel had demanded to know why, he had simply shrugged and
patted her head. "Women don't need to see the world. You're pretty
enough to land a smut with enough money to keep you and your little
pack of mongrels fed and warm." He'd let out a raucous laugh. "Just
like your mum."

Liesel had been so upset she'd turned right
around and run all the way back to the vineyard in tears. As much
as she loved her mother, Liesel had no desire or intention of
ending up like Amala. She had been so angry and ashamed of her
tears, however, that she'd hidden out in the middle of a field,
crying her tears alone and slamming her fists on the ground in
protest for hours.

It had been Bernd who had found her, finally
quieted, staring silently out at the other fields below as her
grandfather's men readied to leave for the day. Without saying a
word, he'd simply seated himself on the ground beside her and
waited until she was ready to speak. Liesel had never forgotten how
comforting it had been, just sitting beside her grandfather in the
dirt, knowing that unlike her father, he was listening.

"Father says I can't see the mermaids,"
Liesel had finally mumbled in a sulky voice.

"Oh?" Bernd had asked. "And what does he
want you to do instead?" Liesel's young eyes had burned with tears
once more.

"He says I have to stay here and marry
someone like him." Before she knew it, Liesel had been drawn up
into her grandfather's strong arms. While she sobbed like a baby,
he'd cradled her fiercely, his arms holding her protectively.

"No, you won't, Leese," he had whispered
with fire in his voice. "You are going to see those mermaids...and
the rest of the world as well."

"But what about Father-" But he was already
shaking his head, his beard tickling her forehead.

"I won't let them hold you here. The choice
will be yours when the time comes. I promise." And Liesel had
believed him. They'd sat like that for a long time until Ilsa had
come looking for them. That had been the day Liesel had begun to
truly see her father for what he really was, and little he did
afterwards had ever convinced her otherwise. Liesel had wondered as
time passed if the promise had been an attempt from her grandfather
to have revenge upon Warin for marrying his own daughter. And if
she was honest with herself, she couldn't blame him. From that day
forward, Bernd, and not Warin, had become her protector and her
confidante. Ilsa liked to tease that when other girls were learning
to enjoy sewing and cooking, Liesel could always be found trailing
along behind Bernd in the fields.

And now, after promising for all those years
to allow her to choose her life, her grandfather's hatred for the
one she had chosen to love cut deeper than any knife ever could.
Kurt's own hatred just made it worse.

"Liesel?" Kurt whispered from the other side
of the door. Before he could say anything else though, Bernd spoke
from down the hall. Liesel couldn't make out what he said, but
Kurt's retort was acidic. "If by some miracle we pull this off and
break the spell, old man, don't expect me to ever bring her back
here again."