Free Shadow by Will Elliott Page B

‘Humans don’t keep secrets real good.’
    Eric said, ‘I don’t know anything. But in a dream last night—’ he sifted through the murky fevered images his memory had held ‘—I saw someone killing dogs. Your dogs, I think.’
    The half-giant peered at him as though reading a story in his features. Eric almost felt manhandled by the two big amber eyes. Gorb said, ‘There’s a trail outside, leads in here. Whatever killed my dogs thought about killing you too. For some reason, it didn’t.’ Gorb peered into Siel’s face. ‘You got a secret too. Better share it before I get angry. That little sharp pricker won’t do more’n make me mad if you use it.’
    â€˜Someone was following us,’ she said. She told him about the distant stranger they’d twice spotted. The half-giant listened without comment.
    â€˜Did the villagers flee because of the Wall?’ said Siel to fill the rather awkward silence.
    Gorb grunted. ‘Oh, no. We don’t care about that. Everyone’s at that new tower. They say a mighty wizard lives inside it. They’re all still over there, can’t believe their eyes yet.’ Gorb sighed. ‘I came back to feed my little dogs. They would’ve been barking loud, like they only ever do when they get hungry. They never minded strangers. Good souls they were.’ The half-giant’s body leaned further forward on the creaking wooden chest. He stuffed two palms over his eyes and from behind them poured a flood of tears.
    Moved by sympathy (and to Siel’s amazement at his surely suicidal stupidity), Eric went to the half-giant and reached to pat his shoulder in consolation.
    Neither Siel nor Eric saw Gorb’s arm move – Eric only felt a push that took the wind out of him and sent him sprawling back on the bed. ‘Can I get dressed?’ he said once he’d got his breath back.
    The question was pondered at length. ‘Suppose so.’
    Dejectedly the half-giant wiped away the last of his tears. There was a spilled jug’s worth of them soaking into the floorboards at his feet.
    Eric dressed. He slung the gun’s holster over his shoulder but to his dismay discovered it was empty. ‘Took it,’ said their host. ‘Don’t know what it is, but I guess it’s a weapon. I let the girl keep her knife, since I know what that is.’
    â€˜You have a mage here?’ said Siel, who also dressed and now examined the thin wooden arm she’d knocked loose from the doll. With her toe she tapped free the knife it clutched and kicked it across the floor to the half-giant, to show him she had no plans for weapons right now. She picked up the wooden arm, testing its joints.
    â€˜No mage,’ he said.
    â€˜But there’s magic to this.’ She flexed the wooden arm’s joint. ‘There has to be. Those dolls seem to be alive.’
    â€˜I made them,’ said the half-giant with some pride.
    â€˜And the spell which hid your village?’
    â€˜That was a mage who comes by,’ said Gorb. ‘Used to come by anyway. He did it a while back. Took all the coin and gems we had.’
    â€˜A folk magician?’ said Siel.
    â€˜Said he was. Didn’t look it, to my eye. Looked to me like one of them school wizards from the old days, that the castle wiped out. Folk ones are grubby, earthy looking. He was different, real strange. Bald as an egg, never blinked his eyes. Couldn’t read his face at all.’
    â€˜Why was it so important to hide the village?’
    â€˜Better if word didn’t spread that the last half-giant in the world lived here.’
    â€˜The head of a half-giant will make you rich,’ Siel explained to Eric.
    Gorb nodded. ‘That’s right. But they’re hard to get. Usual way’s to make friends with one till he trusts you. I don’t fall for that, in case you think to try. But this village, good people