Things That Should Stay Buried - Casey L. Bond Page 0,20
glittering crown. She stood next to a guy with saggy pants who wore a beanie clamped down over thick dreads.
Moments later a new, smaller group appeared between us and Aries’ people. Although they looked human enough, they weren’t.
I counted each one to be sure. There were eleven.
The Guardians ranged in age from young adult to elderly, male and female. They looked like they could seamlessly fit in amongst the throng of people, but their ultimate duty was to Aries alone.
Aries quickly introduced himself to the assembled multitude, his voice booming over the land like peals of thunder. Loud and terrible, but clear. He explained that they were residents of his kingdom now, and then, as easily as he’d constructed his temple and the castle within it, he built humble homes for them all, simply by whispering for them to raise up. Wide-eyed people moved out of the way of the rising stones and watched the walls rise and roofs thatch themselves. Aries’s castle postured over it all, nestled into the mountain’s side like a kitten curled up to its owner.
Without looking back to see that his people were settled, Aries walked toward his home and disappeared within the shadows of the columns. The stunned people began to claim homes, desperate to escape the elements. It was chaotic to say the least. Some elected to live alone, whereas others chose the company of complete strangers, claiming safety in numbers. Some argued over which house was theirs. Emotions spiraled when panic and the instinct to survive kicked in.
Guardians walked among them, stepping in to settle every feud, quickly diffusing any escalating tensions.
I couldn’t move. My feet were frozen to the soil, not with ice, but with disbelief.
This frigid bleakness couldn’t be our lives now. This couldn’t be our new existence.
ARIES
The girl wore my blood, but even the metallic smell couldn’t drown out the scent of her. Whether she was inches or feet away, the effect was the same. I would know her if she was half a world away.
My friend, the one I trusted most, whom she’d called Kes, valued her life above all others. How had she garnered such devout adoration?
The girl hadn’t moved from the spot I left her. I shouldn’t have abandoned her in the cold on the snow-patched, scrubby plain, but I couldn’t stand the look in her eyes. She thought I was wicked.
Fiendish. Vile. Cruel.
Didn’t I give each and every one of them shelter? What else must I provide to make them comfortable? To make the hatred in her eyes fade, even fractionally?
Her hair was not pale, nor was it dark. It was like gold mingled with wheat and wet sands, and many shades in between, all of them lovely. Her eyes were blue, the color of the thick glaciers hanging in the crevices of the mountains in the distance, and just as clear and cutting. Her cheeks and nose had turned pink and she fought the urge to shiver, losing the battle and hugging herself loosely, absently. She was lost in thought; I fought the urge to lose myself with her.
For hours I stood and regarded her strength, her sheer will as the sun slid west and began to descend, and the air turned cold enough to become deadly to those caught in it. Winter had ended, but the cold air lingered tonight.
As I watched from the shadows, her eyes latched onto me through the shade.
I held her stare as the light in her eyes dimmed.
As it began to flicker, as if the North wind could blow it out.
My feet carried me to her.
6
I stood and watched the sun set, a last blast of fire lashing out against the deepening sky. The wind howled, frigid and relentless. My lips were chapped and cracked, and I’d long ago lost the feeling in my fingers and toes. But Kes would be here soon. He’d come back as soon as he saw that Mom and Dad were okay. Maybe the Zodia’s rules could be bent, or maybe he could break them and bring them here. We could claim one of the houses, if any were left empty. Or maybe Aries would raise one for us. It would all be okay as long as we had each other.
Bright stars appeared in the clear, cobalt sky, a sight that used to comfort me in the dead of night. I watched them twinkle, hugged myself, and waited.
And waited.
And waited.
Until Aries appeared in the shadows between the columns.