Jeanne placed the final stone on the four cairns. She stopped trying to hold back the tears well into burying the victims, though she was not the only one to do so. She looked over to Silvius, weeping heavily as Hypatia tried to comfort him, barely keeping herself from giving into her own heartache. Maeryn stood by the edge of the forest, singing a mourning song while Gabriel recited a prayer as she stood watch near the pathway. Benkin sat near the campfire, looking into the pit with an emotionless stare.

Jeanne then turned to find Kveldulf standing by the forest’s edge. He was silent, his head hanging down and avoiding eye contact with anyone. She had seen him like this before at the end of a battle, when the slaughter had reached a terrible pitch and they had lost many in their ranks. Even when the other sung songs of mirth and revelry, he would stare off into the distance, unable to speak or move for hours on end. Jeanne wondered what thoughts lingered in his mind as he tried to process what they went through, the horrors they survived. But thought best to leave those questions unanswered.

She turned back to the grave of little Denin. The pain of looking at it reminded her of when she first saw the headstone of Sabine’s put up for the first time. Before she could tell herself she was dreaming, this wasn’t real, she could escape the nightmare and everything would be fine. But here was the marker, here was the final piece to undo all those hopes and longings for everything to be all right. To go back to where they were and never think of the new sadness this loss would bring.

Jeanne gently placed her hand on Denin’s cairn and walked away. Choking up as she fought to keep herself standing upright. She took several breaths to steady herself, wiping the tears from her eyes. As she looked at the others she turned back to the cairns and single want came to her; revenge.

***

The moon softly lit the town with a hue of azure as the stars slowly moved across the night sky. The houses throughout the village held little to no light from the windows as thin streams of smoke rose from homes and into the sky. There was one home in the center of town, larger than the others. Two stories, made of dark wood and a sturdy roof. All but one room was dark, and from the alley where they watched in the shadows, Jeanne could see a lone figure move about in the room.

She turned to Cid, resting against a wall as he looked out to the building. “You think she’s in there?”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“I’d bet very good money on it, Jeanne,” he said.

“Are we sure this is a good idea?” Silvius asked. “We’ve got enough pressure on our heads already, and this going to make it worse.”

“Guthrum had to have had someone tell him where Cyneswith and the others were going,” Cid replied. “And that could mean she knows where we can finally get him.”

“But this doesn’t feel right,” Silvius said.

“Neither was what happened to those four at the camp,” said Kveldulf. “And I’m tired of playing this blasted game of cat and mouse.”

“Silvius does have a point about what this might do,” said Gabriel.

“We can handle that on when we need to,” said Cid, “for now, let’s just try not to get caught. You all know the plan?”

The Wolves nodded, slowly readying their weapons.

“Good, Maer, you and Silvius go and get the door opened. Jeanne, once they have that taken care of, head up to the room, and secure our guest.”

“And we’ll make sure we have a fast way out when we get out,” said Kveldulf.

“Excellent,” Cid said. “Now, let’s get this done, I don’t want to risk someone walking in on us before we’re done.”

Silvius, Maeryn and Jeanne moved to the house, calmly moving down the roadway towards the door which was covered by a slight jutting overhang from the second floor. Maeryn knelt down and worked on unlocking the door as Silvius and Jeanne kept watch. With a few swift movements, Maeryn locked the entryway to the home. There was a soft click of the lock coming loose and the door hinges creaked lightly as Maeryn pushed the slab inside.

Jeanne signaled for the others to follow. The rest met them at the door, Kveldulf’s boots clomping as he neared. Light stepper, Jeanne gestured to him.

Oh ha ha, he gestured back, before shaking his head.

Jeanne looked around the first room, covered in darkness, with hardly any light revealing any sign to move about the inside of the building. Hypatia gave two quick clicks of her tongue and pointed to a set of stairs. Cid nodded, gesturing, Let’s move, Ben take point.

Benkin nodded, moving up the stairs, each step made with great care before moving up to the next one. As he reached the top landing, he moved down to a room with a sliver of light coming from the bottom threshold. He stopped short of the door and waved the others up to him. Once in position, Cid turned to Jeanne and gave her a single nod. Jeanne took a deep breath and standing at the center of the door, kicking it down with a single strike.

As the slab hit the ground, a woman inside the room turned around, gasping and standing up from a chair she was sitting in by a small desk. Jeanne marched into the room, striking the woman in the face and slamming her head against the desk repeatedly as the others entered the chamber. Cid walked to Jeanne and the woman, “Greetings, Judith, I hope we’re not intruding?”