Wednesday Briefs: Broken Path, Starless Tail Chapter 22

 

“Friend,” the beast scoffed. “There is so much you don’t know.”

“And let me guess, you’re just dying to tell me.” Like he was just going to take a stranger’s word over what he’d experienced with Colby, or how Mr. and Mrs. R had treated him. Sure, he’d never expected their crazy cat to claw him up, grow ginormous, and create all this magic mumbo jumbo crap he was living through right now, but still….

Who in their right mind would just accept a stranger’s vague, supposed dire warnings? Beckett had suspended a lot of disbelief, but the one thing he would never do was believe that his best friend would ever do anything to hurt him. That wasn’t who Colby was, even if he had a crazy cat.

That’s where this whole thing started. Colby’s cat clawed him up, and the next thing Beckett knew he sent him through some crazy tunnel of light in search of some star so he could get his tail back. Not that that made any sense at all, right?

Becket was still pretty sure this was all just a fever dream or infection coma or something like that. But hell if anyone was going to badmouth his friends!

“You’re trapped in a web of lies, and you don’t even know it.”

“And you’re a complete stranger that came charging at us on the back of a monster that looks like it wants to eat me, spouting complete bullshit without saying how you know me or why I should given a shit about what you have to say. Do you think because you’re the only other human here I’ll instantly trust you?” He scoffed. “Yeah, right. I’m not that dumb. So excuse the fuck out of me if I say get the hell outta our way because I don’t care what you think.” By the time he stopped yelling, Beckett’s throat hurt and his fists ached from how hard he had them clenched.

Valrinda shifted slightly, but it was enough to press his forearm against Beckett’s side. His warmth infused Beckett, the heat radiating off him. Beckett knew he was there to help him, and damned if he was going to doubt that again. He also knew Valrinda was ready to scoop him up and take off if that creature attacked.

The other human’s face wasn’t quite clear through the screen covering most of the cage walls. “You just think you know. When you’re ready for answers, you’ll find me.” His beast’s heads snapped then it spun and took off across the desert.

“Where is it going?”

“No idea. There’s nothing out there that I know of.”

The beast’s legs rapped an uneven thump across the hard sand that faded faster than Beckett expected. “I thought only the road was safe?”

“It is the safest way to cross the desert, but not the only way. I wouldn’t want to cross it on land or the sky, but that isn’t to say no one can. The wisps sometimes manage it, and they hide their camps quite well when they want to.”

“So you’re saying they weren’t hiding on purpose when we tried to avoid them.” It wasn’t a question. Beckett looked around, but he couldn’t see any indication that they hadn’t been completely alone on the road. There wasn’t even a scrap of cloth or footprint in the sand. No wonder Valrinda had been so suspicious of them.

“Still want their help to find the star?” Valrinda asked.

“I think I need all the help I can get.” He felt so out of depth, with no idea how to solve this puzzle. Find his guide, follow the path, yadda yadda. Well the path was about to end in a big ass fantasy city and he had no clue where to go or what to do after that. “Do we call for them or something” He pictured calling for them like calling for a dog, or more likely a stubborn cat that was in hiding, and couldn’t smother the snort and chuckle at the thought of clicking his tongue and rattling some food bag or something.

“They’ll catch up. Let’s go.” Valrinda started walking toward the city.

“You’re not going to fly?” Surprise stuck Beckett’s feet right where he was on the path, and with his much longer body Valrinda got ahead of him quickly.

“I feel like I need to stay close to you.” He prowled over the black stones like a sleek oversized lizard, his wings folded and long tail whipping behind him in the air.

“Hey, watch it! Try not to get that close.” That tail had been too close moving that fast.

“Then catch up. We’ll never reach the city and an inn with a bathing tub and stable if you don’t hurry up.”

“A bath?” He’d pay for a bath. Eyeing the pouch on his belt, he shrugged. Hopefully he could pay. He hadn’t had a chance to really bathe since the pool at the treehouse, and he was ripe. Days old sweat didn’t smell good on anyway.

Darn dragon smelled like smoke, salt, stone and heat but that smelled good to Beckett. He felt bad for Valrinda, who was forced to sniff his stink.

“Think we’ll reach the city today?”

Valrinda looked down. “I do.”

 

He was right. He was also right about the wisps catching up, but they kept their distance now, like they knew Valrinda was upset with them and would do something if they got too close.

Fortunately, there were plenty of inns with huge stables on the outside of town. Had they been for the beast on the road? Beckett was too tired to ask. He paid for the stable, a huge tub of hot water to be taken to an empty stall by where Valrinda was plus a blanket for later.

He relished the water while it was fresh, then used the towel to dry off and as a buffer from the scratch hay. Sinking down, he sighed. “Well, what now?” 

Want more flash?

J Ray Lamb

Julie Lynn Hayes