Blood Challenge Read Online Free PDF Page B

wouldn’t have been happy there. I know that.”
    Ellie touched her hand, moved by the pain in her voice. She ignored the twinge of her conscience that told her it was wrong to gain Davinia’s trust. “Would your people treat him as an outsider?”
    “No, not at all. Everywhere else, our two groups have become almost a hybrid. It’s only here that the Pack—” She broke off, wiping her eyes. “Never mind. It’s not that interesting. They’re a close-minded group of people, and nothing will change them. I have Viggo, and soon Ylenia.” She patted her stomach before standing up. “There’s washing to do, if you don’t mind helping me?”
    “Of course not.” Ellie followed her from the bedroom, wishing circumstances were different. When Davinia found out her purpose for being here, she would assume Ellie had used her for information. The other woman would never believe she had liked her, or that it was difficult to do her job and be her friend. She probably wouldn’t believe Ellie didn’t have any close friends and hadn’t since she graduated from college. They were transient, and the budding friendships always ended when her true purposes were revealed.
     
    * * * * *
    Later that afternoon, Ellie ventured outside. They had completed the chores, and Davinia was napping. Her friend hadn’t said anything about staying inside, and she had deliberately avoided asking. She knew what she would hear if she mentioned she planned to explore the village. Davinia would try to discourage her.
    At least her friend wouldn’t get in trouble for her walk, since she was asleep and couldn’t have stopped her. Ellie strolled along the square, mostly cleared of snow, admiring the homes along the way. Although they were all the same basic design, each had unique touches to set it apart. Almost every door was a carved masterpiece, and she wondered who had done them. It might have been each owner of the houses, but the doors looked as if the same artist did them.
    As she neared the well in the center of the square, she saw an old woman shuffling toward it, carrying a bucket. Swollen joints betrayed her arthritis, as did her slow pace, and the way her back curved, as if weighted by years of burdens.
    Ellie hurried forward to the old woman, reaching her at the same time she reached the water pump. “Ma’am, may I help you?”
    The woman turned her face in Ellie’s direction. Myriad wrinkles mapped her face, telling the story of her age in vivid detail. Her hair was whiter than the snow on the ground. Her nose twitched. “Who’s that? I don’t see too well these days.”
    “My name’s Ellie. My plane crashed in the mountains.”
    The woman nodded. “Ah, so you’re the one.” She didn’t sound unkind. “The outsider. I heard about you this morning from Lia.”
    “Who’s Lia?” She took the bucket from the woman when she didn’t reject her offer. Ellie put her weight into the pump, finally getting it to go after two or three tries. She maintained a steady pumping rhythm as water poured into the bucket.
    “A silly young thing. She’s convinced Rica will challenge for her at the next Mating Moon, now that she’s of age.”
    “Oh.” Her heart lurched at the thought of Rica taking a mate. She forced a smile, even though the woman probably couldn’t see it. “Would you like me to carry this back to your home, ma’am?”
    “Please.” She grasped her cane and began to shuffle back to her residence. “Call me Golatia.”
    Ellie grasped the bucket, straining to hold it steady. She followed Golatia, glad for the older woman’s slow pace so she wouldn’t spill the water. “Have you lived here all your life?”
    “Of course. Where else would I live?”
    She smiled at the answer. “I don’t know. Maybe Bulgainia. Davinia said it’s a beautiful little city.”
    “Bah, cities stink.” The woman drew in a deep breath, twitching her nose. “Smell the mountain air.”
    She breathed in obligingly. “I smell pine