Page 73 of The Harbinger
Woof. Woof.
I whirled around, the hostile glint gone from the window. I stared for another moment as the curtains settled, my skin peppered with gooseflesh.
If it was him, why wouldn’t he come out to stop me? And why did I want him to? I should embrace the peace without his control.
I hung my head and headed for the trail, the dogs barking and snarling. But they weren’t in their cage; they stood beneath a tall and wide tree, their snouts pointing up, baring their sharp teeth with every bark.
Perched on a branch, a white ball of fur desperately clung to the rough bark. Its wide, terrified eyes stared out at me, and its pitiful meow whimpered through the air, piercing my soul with its sorrowful cries. The poor creature shook from fear, its claws digging deeper into the tree because its life depended on it.
Those wretched dogs terrorized an innocent kitten they were bound and determined to eat for dinner.
The dogs circled the poor kitten, hungry for dinner. I snatched up a hefty stick and thrust it in front of me, the pointed end aimed at them. “Get away from it!”
They continued barking, their prize more tempting than a girl with a stick... until I swung.
My strike hit the middle dog’s flank, and he whirled on me faster than I could blink, his full attention now trained on me.
“Okay, so maybe I didn’t think that through.” I sliced the stick between us, warding off his approach. “Nice doggy.”
The dog’s lips peeled back, revealing his fierce fangs as he loped toward me. I stumbled backward, every muscle shaking as my grip on the stick tightened. The canine to his right turned and snarled, then began closing the distance between us. My heart thudded against my ribs, adrenaline flooding my veins.
Oh great.
What do I do now?
Don’t run. Don’t run. Don’t run.
The third dog turned around and joined in.
Oh shit.
My eyes widened, and my heart raced as I took two steps back, my tense body nearly toppling onto the leaf-strewn ground. I held the stick in front of me, trembling, and waved it back and forth to keep them at bay.
“Stay back!” I shouted, my voice shaking, but they advanced.
With my free hand, I swung the stick towards the closest dog, striking it near its shoulder. It yelped in pain, causing a pang of guilt to reverberate through me.
If Sacha ever heard about this…
The three dogs advanced toward me in unison until my back pressed against two trees that grew together from their trunk.
“Annika, Boris, Oksana.” A man called out. “Ko mne!”
The dogs ceased barking and turned towards the man who called them.
Yergi.
He was the man I’d watched feeding the horses apples one day. The same person who manhandled me and then Sacha strangled in my defense.
Oh, God.
I could turn and run. He had the dogs under his control, but what about the kitten?
My back scraped against the tree bark as I pressed into it, hoping he wouldn’t see me, but no such luck.
He closed the door of the kennel and narrowed his eyes at me.
“Spasibo.“ Thank you. The Russian word rolled off my tongue when it had frozen with Catherine.