Raven Saga 01 - Raven

the Elders now,” he said authoritatively.
    “You go and I'll stay here and wait,” I said, standing my ground.
    “Lilly you are coming with me and you're coming with me now, young lady,” he said as his nostrils flared. His face and demeanour changed suddenly and I began to get the feeling that Charlie wasn't who or what Gabriel thought he was. I began to think that my intuition the previous evening had been spot on. Charlie wasn't one to be trusted.
    “Charlie... where is my grand-father?” I asked. “What have you done to him?” I asked.
    He turned and laughed a deep laugh, “You're a smart girl Lilly, aren't you? I thought I had fooled you both last night, but clearly not. Now listen to me. If you want your grand-father to remain alive, you had better do as I say.”
    I knew I had no choice but to do exactly as he said. Until I knew where Gabriel was I couldn't risk losing him altogether. I nodded, trying hard to keep myself from transforming.
    “Pick up your bag and walk ahead of me... that way,” he said, pointing in the same direction where I had seen the owl the night before.
    I stumbled ahead and tried to think of ways to escape but I knew I couldn't go anywhere. Because if I did, I might never see Gabriel, alive, again.

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX

    “Why are you doing this?” I asked Charlie after we'd walked in silence for over an hour. “What have you done with Gabriel?”
    “Be quiet and keep walking,” he said, while I wondered how my grand-father had trusted this beast. He was usually such a good judge of character, how could he have let this happen? But I knew it wasn't his fault. Being so close to the Elders, Gabriel had assumed he could trust him. Clearly he had been wrong.
    Charlie was after something. I didn't know what that was yet but I would find out soon enough.
    The fact that Gabriel was gone and Charlie was kidnapping me suggested I had something he wanted. I dreaded to think what it was. As I thought about this evil creature, I began to notice something familiar on a tree a little further ahead. It was an owl. And it looked an awful lot like the one from the night before. It was watching me. I wondered if it was just an owl or if it had special abilities. I stared at it, hoping that it would somehow swoop down and rescue me. But it didn't. Like before, it swiftly looked away and then took flight.
    “Keep moving!” yelled Charlie and he shoved me causing me to stumble on the loose stones beneath my feet. As I fell onto my knees, I contemplated whether I should just change and rip the goat to shreds.
    But I calmed myself down again, thinking about Gabriel's safety. I pulled myself back onto my feet and rubbed my hands on the front of my combats, to get rid of the grit and dirt. In the distance I could see what appeared to be another cave. We seemed to be heading in that direction. After another ten minutes or so, as we approached it, I noticed that we were not alone. Somebody was waiting for us.
    The person was well hidden by an old black cape that covered them from head to toe.
    Charlie spoke first. “Here she is, Master, here she is. Just as you requested. Lilly Tulugaq,” and he pushed me so hard that I fell once again to the feet of the stranger.
    The fall angered me and I yelped. It was with great difficulty that I stayed calm.
    “Don't you mean Lilly Taylor?”
    As she said those words, I felt as if I had been kicked in the stomach. I was winded. I closed my eyes momentarily and then looked up as she removed the cape from her face. I gasped at the sight of Vivian.
    This wasn't the woman that I had lived with for thirteen years. This Vivian had thin greying hair and wrinkles. Her shoulders stooped forward and her back curled over, like a hunchback. This Vivian had become an old hag.
    “I might have known that you would be responsible for all of this,” I spat. “Where is my father?” I demanded.
    “Now that's not a very nice way to greet your dear mother, is it?” she spat as she circled me, looking me up and down with a scowl.
    “My mother is dead... and you killed her, along with my sister,” I shouted, as I became increasingly angry.
    Charlie shoved me down to the floor again and told me to shut up.
    I could feel the lion in me trying to take over but I knew if I transformed then, not only would I lose Gabriel but I would lose my father too.
    “I raised you and this is the thanks I get,” said Vivian.
    “You haven't got a clue how to raise a child,” I spat