The Legend Of Black Eyes 142 Morrison's Decei

I learned two things from my sneak-in mission with the bounty hunter. The first was that Peg Leg was a cry baby, I got why Zoey liked him so much. The second was that the villagers were in cahoots with the Bodricks, relying on a horrifying creature to solve their problems. The darkness that saved us the other day was their enemy. They were willing to do anything to stop it, and I was apparently their way to do so.

It took a lot of effort and convincing to get Peg Leg to move. I still didn't know his name, I had no choice but use the nickname Morrison told me about. The scene had shocked him to the core, so much that he barely heard a word I was saying.

We managed to leave the haunted mansion after a lot of kind and supportive words. I would've left him there if I knew my way around. The bounty hunter regained some strength in the end to lead us out, and into the forest.

When we reached the cave, it was almost dawn.

"We have to get out of here," I told Nag as soon as we arrived.

The bounty hunter didn't seem to have recovered though. He just stared into nothingness, his eyes hollow, devoid of all emotion. As soon as he got into the cave, he sat in a corner and mumbled to himself.

"What happened to him?" Nag asked.

"They fed Zoey to some goat headed demon," I said. "He's still shaken up."

Morrison, upon hearing the news, rushed to us. "She's dead?" he asked. "So soon?" That last statement rung an alarm inside my head.

"I don't think Bodrick and the mayor are willing to wait for the end of the festival," I said. "Besides, I may be the main course. So I don't think Zoey counted as proper sacrifice."

"A goat headed demon you say?" Nag asked. "And he didn't spot you?"

"I was wondering about this myself," I admitted. "I was worried he'd sense our presence the entire time, but he didn't seem to be in full control of his powers. Whenever he spoke, I could hear everything he said. My previous encounter with demons taught me that they choose who to speak to."

Nag stroked his long beard as he paced around the cave. "Do you know why they're targeting you?" he asked after a little while.

"The demon says I'm a fairy slayer," I replied. "He concluded that after he realized I was friends with a Child of the Forest."

'Then we're both in danger,' Nag told me through psionic conversation. 'Let me lead this conversation for now.'

"How did they conjure the demon?" Nag asked out loud.

"The tanner chanted something," I replied. "The demon appeared out of some black colored jewel."

"Hmmm…" Nag turned toward the tavern owner then. "Does everybody in the village know of this?" he asked.

"I knew they had some hidden rituals," Morrison said. "Jenkins's a heavy drinker. He tends to run his mouth after a couple of drinks." Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.

'He's hiding something,' I told Nag. The latter nodded.

"Have you ever seen the demon?" Nag asked Morrison.

"N-no," Morrison said. "I've never been allowed to their secret meetings. I'm not originally from here. They let me live here because I serve good ale."

"What about her?" I asked, motioning my chin toward Wanda, who was fast asleep.

"She doesn't know anything," Morrison said. "She's an orphan. I took her in after she came into our village, not too long ago."

"You have a strange habit of inviting strangers to stay and work with you," Nag said.

Morrison's eyebrows furrowed at this remark. "It's called hospitality," he said. "Where I'm from, people don't chase strangers away, especially if they have nowhere else to go."

"You didn't seem to approve of him," I said, looking at Peg Leg who was s.h.i.+vering, staring at the ground and mumbling to himself.

"His reputation precedes him," Morrison said. "He's already caused trouble in the village before. It was only a matter of time before he caused some more."

"You're really on the defensive here old man," Nag said. "We just want to understand what's going on here. We're not accusing you of anything."

"It does sound like you're accusing me of something though," Morrison said.

"We most certainly aren't," Nag a.s.sured the man. "But you must understand our position too. We haven't even spent a good day in this village, and we were already attacked, and now hunted down."

"You were simply in the wrong place, in the wrong time," Morrison said.

"And we wouldn't have," I said, "if you hadn't sent us on a hunt. It was your suggestion that made us go after the Song-folk."

"I was simply suggesting the easiest hunt with the best pay," Morrison said. "Where is this going?"

'You're pus.h.i.+ng it,' Nag told me.

'You haven't seen what I've seen,' I retorted.

"What I'm saying, old man," I spoke out loud this time, "is that I suspect you knew what the Song-folk were. I also suspect that you knew a fairy protected them, that my good friend here was the fairies' natural enemy. You either wanted to get him killed, or you wanted me to kill it to protect him."

I advanced toward the old man and held him by the collar. I made sure my eye looked intently into his. "Either way, you'll have a good reason to use me as offering to your demon G.o.d, or whatever you people consider him. You even made sure to drive my good friend here away from the village."

"Y-you're out of your minds!" Morrison yelled. "Both of you!"

"Are we?" I asked. "You did your best to protect me from Bodrick," I said. "Was that because you're a good man? Or was it because you people didn't know who killed the fairy?"

"Zedd," Nag put a hand on my shoulder. "What are you talking about?"

"Mr. Morrison here stood up for me. Do you know what happens to people who harbor criminals? Especially those wanted by rich lords?"

"They get beheaded," Nag answered.

"See?" I told Morrison. "Even a Child of the Forest knows that, yet Lord Bodrick decided to keep you alive. He only remembered to keep his act together when he was about to leave. He threatened to kill you, but that was all. I knew something wasn't right the moment he decided to spare you."

"What's happening?" Wanda had just woken up. She looked at me, holding the tavern owner by the collar and giving him my most threatening look, then at Nag. "Why are you attacking him?"

"You say she doesn't know anything?" I asked Morrison.

The latter shook his head.

"Know what?" Wanda asked then rushed next to her boss. "What's the meaning of this? Where's Zoey?"

"Zoey's dead," I said. "Were you planning on offering her too?" I asked. "Or perhaps you grew fond of the girl, then decided to give Zoey up instead?"

"Zedd," Wanda said. "Will you please let go of him? He's a weak old man."

"I'd like to get some answers first," I said.

Nag pulled Wanda away. "Zedd's right," he told her. "The old man's hiding something."

"What the h.e.l.l are you talking about?" Wanda started screaming. "He's the only one who's been good to you people. He even offered you shelter when no one else was willing to."

"We were willing to pay for our accommodation," I said. "We just couldn't afford it. We would have been on our way if it weren't for him."

"And that's reason enough to suspect him?" she asked.

"Let me ask you this," I turned to her, a bitter smile on my face. "What do you do to lamb before you lead it to slaughter? You feed it, offer it a place to sleep, make it feel safe, warm. You hide the knife in your house, sharpening it while the unsuspecting creatures eat and get fat."

I turned toward Morrison then, drew my knife and put it against his throat. "Who are you?" I asked.

Morrison smiled. He started chuckling, as though his life wasn't at stake. "I have to admit," he said. "I didn't think you'd be smart enough to figure all of this out. What gave me away?"

"Your resolve to get back to your tavern, although you were in the verge of losing your head," I said. "You couldn't just blame it on your dedication to your business. Something wasn't right, and I knew just then, that you were hiding something."

"Who killed the fairy?" Morrison asked.

"What's it to you?" I asked back. "You're a dead man now. The dead don't get to ask questions."

Morrison started chuckling again. His continuous chuckles sent s.h.i.+vers down my spine. Then the chuckles developed into an eerie laughter. The old man seemed as though he'd just lost his mind. When he spoke next, his voice was full of contempt, full of hatred.

"You think you can kill me?" he said. "You're far too weak to achieve such a feat."

I was about to drive my knife through the man's gullet when a blinding light covered the entire cave. It was so bright that I had to s.h.i.+eld my eye, lest I go blind. I felt the old man struggle against my grip and free himself. Then, something hit me in the back of my head, and I fell to my knees. I tried to look around, but it was too bright to make anything out.

I reached next to me, fumbling for the old man, but couldn't catch anything. I heard a shout then a heavy thud. Peg Leg also screamed something and received a heavy blow for it. Wanda screamed her lungs out, but was immediately silenced. I didn't know what was happening. My eye wouldn't open even if I forced it to.

When darkness finally came back, Morrison had gone. Wanda was gone as well. Only Nag, the bounty hunter and I remained. Nag was on the ground, unconscious and bleeding. The bounty hunter was screaming, saying something about divine punishment.

Just what the h.e.l.l did we get ourselves into?