Page 47 of Souls We Rip

Andrei shrugged, his forehead wrinkling. “His story has existed for centuries, but so have the other ones.”

“Others?” I asked, taking the last sip of wine. “You also mean his master? The Elk?”

He dipped his chin, looking at the hole that separated the hallway from the kitchen, as though he was afraid of being heard. “Yes. I am not sure what they are. A coven, a group, a pack, or a hoard?” He placed one finger on his chin. “But I know that all of them have horns.”

“And they are all from Romania?” I asked, fretting with my hands.

“You read, right?” he asked, and I nodded. “Do you know elk to be in Romania?” he questioned, his head leaning on the right side.

I shook my head. This implied that they were from everywhere and nowhere.

And all of them will be witnesses to my baptism.

I swallowed and pushed myself away from the table, images of animal skulls watching me as I emerged from the Souls’ Pool played behind my eyes.

I watched Andrei, thinking that, if he gave me one piece of information, I should do it too.

“I was in the stables earlier,” I began, fiddling with my fingers. “I just stayed hidden, in one dark corner. I grieved once more the life I could have had, if it weren't for your master.”

“Why?” he asked, taking a crempita out of a large tray. The smell of vanilla replaced the one of the soup by magic. Vanilla was hard to find in any household, so how did a ghost procure it?

But as soon as Andrei placed a piece of the dessert in front of me, I forgot everything. He cleared his throat, waiting for my answer.

“Why did I grieve my life?” I asked between mouthfuls. “Because here is darkness and there was light, colour.” I grabbed another piece from the tray, the powdered sugar coating my fingers. “I miss my mum and my sister, even the animals that I had to take care of. I long for the church and Priest Neagu’s sermons filled with wisdom. But the hurtful one is that I won’t see Angelica, my sister, being a bride and many other things.” My heart pounded louder at the mention of my younger sister. I imagined her darker eyes shimmering with tears and hidden by a veil.

“You said things. Which one is the last?” Andrei was perceptive.

I took a deep breath. “The most I would miss is having a family of my own.” The pain was too raw. My dream of having a good husband and a child was wrecked for selfish reasons. “That is why I despise this contract I was pushed into.”

We stayed in silence for a few moments.

“Would you mind if I made my room warmer? I shall miss the feeling of it after…” I gulped.

“Oh, we don’t have that much wood left,” Andrei shrugged. “Neither my master nor I can really feel the cold.”

“But then, I might catch a cold and…”

Wind blew somewhere in the distance, the clack of hooves echoing in the cave.

“I saved your life, peasant. If it wasn’t for me, you would still be hurt by your father, watching uselessly as he plagued your family.” The voice of the Goat Man made me swallow my words. “And yet, you complain.”

I held my head high, trying to still my heartbeat, which betrayed me whenever the brute was nearby.

Its words held truth in them, I couldn’t deny it, in one matter more than the other. That I would have been pointless in aiding my mum and sister.

Every time my father’s hand came down on one of our cheeks, we would cower in the corner. When I was thirteen, I placed myself between him and Angelica. He beat both of us with whatever he could find. Whether it was a belt, a rod from the apple tree, or the broom’s handle, his hands were never empty.

All leaving marks on my skin.

I was too fearful to intervene after that. If I acted out of my place, the punishment would have been harsher on Angelica. As much as I could, I would take my sister out of the house, running around on the crops, hills or village. Just to keep her sane.

Afterwards, I would go to my mum to tend to her wounds.

There were times when I wondered if I had done the right thing by sacrificing myself for him. He still had one hand which could inflict pain. I just hoped that Gavril would help both my mum and my sister.

I turned my head towards the Goat Man, my nostrils flaring. “I hope you will get what you deserve,” I said, taking one step towards him. “Remember this, Goat, while you will be roaming the ground as a man, without your almighty power, I will be carrying the weight of it. And who knows, I might turn it against you.”

Goat took the hood off its head, its skull gleaming in the candlelight. It stood at its full height, towering over me.