(ZOOM FOR DETAILS!) Lord Jobil was furious and forced Aranée and her retinue to leave the castle within two hours of the bombing. She had never seen him so angry and had no doubt whatsoever that he would find the culprit. It would be a bad day for that someone when it happened. They returned to the hunting lodge and soon men were busily erecting a temporary camp within a stone's throw of the modest structure. In the ensuing days, the forest clearing became a storage place for the horses and supplies being gathered for the expedition. As usual, Mubela took charge of everyday operations and the sleepy cottage and grounds began to resemble a small garrison. Aranée was quickly becoming bored: Everyone had become so overprotective of the new mother-to-be that she felt stifled. She had but to make a motion to draw water, bring in firewood or any other ordinary mundane task and several volunteers would appear and complete it for her. She was touched by their concern but she wanted to scream. She tried to slip away from the enclosure and made a startling discovery: Her quick-move appear-disappear talent no longer seemed to work. Perhaps it was nature's way of preventing her from harming her baby - but it added yet another new dimension to her frustration. At last she lit on something to occupy her that nobody else could complete for her: She would go hunting. Even so, she was frustrated with this too: She had wanted to take only Kuila but the Elf warriors would have no part of this - they were going with her and that was that. And Mubela insisted she take a gaggle of Jobil soldiers with her as well. She shook her head. How could she stalk any animal that wasn't deaf with so many men and their clanking weapons and armor? Well, no matter, it was still worth going rather than staying and slowly going out of her mind. She put on a cheery face, picked up her bow and called to Kuila. With nary a word to anyone, the party rode single-file down a woodland path she knew would take them to abundant game. _________________________ Galen was having difficulty reading the document before him when he realized the light was waning and it was getting dark. He stood, stretched, and began trimming a candle. A heavy knock at the door rattled the entire lodge and Mubela stepped inside without invitation. Her pale face brought him to instant alert. "What is it Mubela?" "Galen, Aranée has been gone for hours on a hunt." She bit her lip, her eyes moist. "Her horse just returned on its own." She put a hand on his arm. "Galen... there is blood on the saddle." --- TO BE CONTINUED! View episodes in sequence for the entire story. PLEASE leave a comment or suggestions, your words mean a lot to me. Your encouragement truly gives me the energy to carry on... Image and story © 2010 by Larry Hodge