Defying Destiny Read Online Free PDF Page A

her train of thought. He
    broke eye contact and, after a moment, she
    remembered what she had wanted to say.
    “I don’t want to go back to the
    village,” she said. “I’m trying to find the
    Wolf I heard.”
    “You won’t find what you’re looking
    for here.” He took her elbow and led her
    forward.
    She found it difficult to concentrate on
    his words. He kept saying things that
    hinted he knew something about the
    Wolves that he wasn’t telling her. Did he
    know where they lived? In all her years of
    hunting, she’d never come across a Wolf
    in its natural habitat. She only encountered
    them when they arrived at a human
    settlement on the night of a full moon.
    Maralee was very conscious of Nash’s
    strong hand, which rested lightly on her
    elbow, and only mildly aware that they
    were moving away from Sarbough, not
    towards it.
    “That Wolf must be nearby. I heard it
    howling all the way from the village.”
    “Probably not the smartest thing that
    Wolf has ever done.”
    He talked about the Wolves as if he
    knew them personally. “You are the most
    confusing man I have ever met.”
    “Understandable,” he said. “The
    Wolf’s long gone. Maybe I could help you
    find him later.” As they walked side by
    side to wherever he’d decided to go, he
    took a long strand of her hair and held it
    up to his nose to inhale its scent. “Did you
    wash your hair?” he asked.
    She gaped at him. “What kind of a
    question is that?”
    He glanced down at her. “You smell
    different today.”
    S h e smelled different? Would this
    man’s list of oddities ever cease to
    lengthen? Before she could say another
    word, a cabin appeared between the trees.
    She stared at it as they passed, wondering
    if Nash was a woodsman, but when she
    turned her head, she noticed more cabins
    scattered throughout the forest. From
    between the cabins, in the shadows of the
    crowding trees, dozens of pairs of amber-
    colored eyes stared out at her. They
    belonged to the most beautiful children
    Maralee had ever seen. The children
    seemed too afraid to approach, but one
    small girl, with hair an unusual dark gray
    color, separated from the shadows. Her
    small rabbit-fur boots crunched through
    the snow as she came closer.
    “Who is this, Uncle Nash?” she asked,
    staring up at Maralee curiously. Her
    golden eyes were sad and rimmed with
    red as if she’d been crying.
    Nash released Maralee’s elbow and
    bent to scoop up the girl. He stood,
    holding her up to adult level. The child sat
    in the crook of his arm as he introduced
    her. “This is Maralee. She’s here for a
    short visit.”
    “What is your name?” Maralee asked.
    The girl cuddled closer to her uncle,
    clinging to his sweater. “She smells
    funny.”
    Nash smiled and took a strand of
    Maralee’s long hair between his fingers.
    “It’s a fragrance in her hair.” The girl
    gave a hesitant sniff before turning her
    face against Nash’s shoulder. Nash
    stroked her narrow back and looked at
    Maralee. “Her name is Carsha,” Nash
    said, and then set the girl to her feet.
    “That’s a pretty name,” Maralee said,
    but the girl was only interested in her
    uncle.
    Carsha clung to Nash’s leg with what
    Maralee took as fear. “Will you play with
    me, Uncle Nash?” she asked, looking up at
    him with watery eyes. “Please.”
    Nash stared down at her, his guilt
    tangible. “Later, Carsha. I promise.”
    “Carsha! Get in the house,” a harsh
    feminine voice called from a nearby
    cabin.
    Carsha cringed. She looked up at her
    uncle with a pleading look, before
    releasing his leg, and dragging her feet on
    her way towards a house. Maralee
    watched her apprehensively. Carsha
    climbed a set of porch steps and stood
    outside the door with her hand on the
    doorknob. The door swung open.
    “Hurry up!” the same harsh voice
    demanded. A hand shot out of the house,
    grabbed the girl by one arm, and hauled
    her inside.
    A queasy feeling settled in the pit of
    Maralee’s