After the Fire (After the Fire: Book the First) Read Online Free PDF

off of her body and hands and
feet, she submerged her head and let the current of the river wash
her hair.
    It
had been her hair that had first worried the village folk. Her mother
told her. It was an omen after the fire to have a child with hair the
color of flame, even though her mother's had been nearly as bright.
At the time Cosmin's father, Farin, had been in charge. He had been a
level-headed man. The day after Farin died, Eleni had seen the
blacksmith working on a great iron box. Her box. In a month's time,
she had been sent to live there. She had seen her mother every day
after that until five winters ago. Eleni hadn't seen her since.
    Eleni
wrung out her hair as she emerged from the water. She wished she had
a comb. Her mother used to come and comb her hair. By the time she
reached her clothes, the water had evaporated from her body, becoming
steam and trailing away into the cold wind. She dressed and walked
along the snaking tree roots, smooth and cool under her feet, to find
the wolf. The animal joined her, licking blood from her muzzle.
    Eleni
looked past her to see a freshly-killed polecat. The wolf licked her
snout again. There was a flash of white and something landed on what
was left of the carcass. The white raven from the night before looked
at her and thrust its beak into the polecat's face. It tore at the
fur to get at the meat within.
    `“Strange-looking
creature, is it not?” said a deep voice behind her. Eleni
jumped, moving quickly away from the noise. The traveler was standing
there, smiling at her.
    “Where
did you come from?” said Eleni, moving further away from him.
    “I
came to see you,” he said. The wolf was looking steadily at the
man and Eleni expected the creature to run at him and sink teeth into
soft flesh. Instead, the wolf walked over to the man, sniffed him,
and kept walking. Eleni looked at the man, Fin, in shock.
    “No
one ever sneaks up on me,” said Eleni.
    “I'm
sorry,” he said. “I just wanted to speak with you.”
    “Why
does the wolf not tear you apart?”
    The
man shrugged. “I have a way with animals.”
    “You
are wearing clothes now,” he said. His eyes twinkled as he
looked at the jacket. His jacket.
    “They
are afraid of me,” she said.
    “Weren't
they always?” said Fin.
    “They
are afraid in a different way,” she said. “They know they
cannot control me. It scares them.”
    “They
stopped locking you up,” he said.
    “You
were watching me?” she said, narrowing her eyes. “How
long have you been here?”
    “Don't
worry,” he said smiling. “Nothing I haven't seen before.
Remember?”
    Eleni
looked away from him, listening to the forest. It had been so quiet
for the last few days. No monsters. She didn't know what it meant.
She looked back at Fin. “Where is your horse?”
    “Epona?
I left her with my friends,” he said.
    “Another
town?” said Eleni. “Where?”
    “Not
a town,” he said. “More of a camp. Would you like to sit
down somewhere? So we can talk?”
    “We
are talking now,” she said.
    “You
don't make things easy, do you? Are you going to tell me your name at
least?”
    She
eyed him suspiciously. “Eleni,” she said quietly. “Who
are you?”
    Fin
smiled again. It was a kind smile. “Someone that might
understand who you are. Someone that's just like you.” He
turned and started to walk into the wood. Eleni watched him go. He
looked back at her. “Are you coming?” he said. He
disappeared in the trees.
    Eleni
looked around for the wolf. It had gone when she was busy talking to
Fin. She shook her head at her own negligence. She needed to be more
alert. She was growing lax. Slowly she put one foot in front of the
other, almost surprised to find that she was following the way Fin
had gone. As if her body had made a decision before she could do
anything about it.
    Fin
was sitting on a rock smoothing his beard. He had his legs stretched
out in front of him and held something that looked like a boar tusk
in one