Walker Ch. 01.15

Chapter 1.15

It was high morning when they finally emerged from the house. Cedric took them down a bustling avenue running in a southerly parallel a block from the main square. More men roamed the streets but Walker was surprised at the sheer number of women about. It was the week's end and Lumberton was awash with bodies.

Most of the homes were two story wooden structures; some were constructed by layering trunks of fir or spruce about a square frame structure, others were of plank cladding. Stone was sparsely used and only one other home mirrored Edwin's for its use of packed stone and clay sealing. Walker noticed that the structures seemed deliberately spaced away from others, and each had a spacious yard. He noted this to Cedric.

'Fire.' the man explained, 'If'n a place burns, it don't spread too easy. See that painted carvin by the door, looks like a little fire?'

'Aye.'

'Let's us know there's a well for firefighting. If'n ye go to the outskirts, any direction from the square you'll see that polebarns're full up choppin 'n hewing, boats'll have come in from down south with supplies, all that's kept near the water just in case.' Cedric explained.

A group of slavejacks, dirt stained skins and stinking of old sweat, followed a tall hatchet wielding logger. They split like a school of fish to let the guardsman through.

'Will they send soldiers?' Walker's nose, despite having become accustomed to the bitter reek of overworked human bodies, still wrinkled at the stench. He noted growing bellies on many but it was the well defined layers of stringy muscle that drew his attention most, it reminded him of lives spent swinging axes and doing hard labor. The curiosity of their glances at the strangeness of a tiger man was fleeting and instantly replaced by apathy.

'Aye, maybe they'll send some. Thing is, the boat we sent'll only arrive a couple o' days from now. Trip upriver takes a long time.'

They came to a large fenceless yard where the familiar thick grass of the region surrounded a two-storied box shaped log cabin home. It was clearly three rooms wide with a door in the middle and four separated shuttered windows.

'Nothin' fancy. But she's big'n sturdy. Warm in winter too.' Cedric opened the front door inviting them in.

Except for the kitchen area in the back the entirety of the first floor was a huge spacious room. A stone hearth had been built into the wall on the right. In the center stood a single couch of worn brown leather atop a large rug, similarly worn and patchy by age. The stairs were further back than in Edwin's home, wooden steps simply reached through a hole in the ceiling.

Shuq took Walker's hand, leading him to the kitchen door as if there was some danger he needed to protect her from. She peered into the door, there were cupboards and cabinets atop and below, a central counter which lined the wall on three sides, a door to the backyard.

Her eyes were wide in wonderment when she threw the hood back, 'I never thought I'd live in a place like this.'

She dragged Walker to the stairs, a note of giddiness in her step. Sturdy planks bent ever so slightly beneath their weight. They found three rooms on the second floor. Two smaller rooms on either side of the stairs and a master bedroom which occupied fully half of the space. The smaller rooms were bare but for a bed each, a stool, a nightstand with unused candles.

Two plain wardrobes stood against the wall and a massive chest stood at the foot of a wide bed. Light streamed into the room from three sides. There was a table opposite the bed, the window above it lit a sheet of parchment which had never been written on.

Shuq turned to Walker 'It's amazing.'

He shrugged 'It's plain.'

'Aye but you say it like it's a problem.'

His eyes travelled about the walls, where Edwin's home felt darkly cozy, he could feel the space about him here and he liked the openness which allowed the sun in 'I like it.'

Her smile radiated with excitement 'I could decorate.' But her enthusiasm dissipated immediately in the face of his hard gaze 'You said it's plain.'.

Walker's ears twitched, two sets of feet were coming up the stairs, one was about right to be Cedric, the second was infinitely lighter. The tiger turned his back on the talk of decoration and went out the door.

Cedric's back was to him due to the placement of the staircase, the next thing the tiger saw was a head draped in lengthy red hair which curled thickly between very narrow shoulders. It occurred to Walker who the second figure would turn out to be.

The girl cowered behind Cedric when she saw the wide furred face, the whiskered snout and large round inhuman pupils fixated directly on her.

The guardsman seemed almost embarrassed, 'Me 'n you need to decide about this un.'

Walker motioned Cedric into the bedroom. Shuq sat on the bed, questioning Walker silently. He ignored her but sat beside her.

Cedric walked to the middle of the room but the red-haired girl stopped at the threshold craning her neck at the tiger, though she did not stare directly, her eyes were on her naked feet and she seemed to be staring at him with her peripheral vision.

Her freckled face was not pretty in the same sense that Shuq's was, she had a strong jaw that made her seem almost boyishly handsome, the nostrils were flared and the nose was upturned to the extent that it raised her thin upper lip from the lower so her mouth was never fully closed. Above this was a set of large round eyes of pale green.

'Get in here.' Cedric told her sternly.

She almost jumped into the room to get the guard's body between herself and the monster. Cedric grabbed her roughly by the neck and pushed her towards the pair on her bed. The girl shook uncontrollably, her body flush with fear now that she was open and exposed.

Walker looked her over. She was a small girl, narrow hipped and slender; she seemed almost featureless in the canvas cloth that the slavejacks universally wore, but it hung loosely on her frame, unlike the jacks whose meaty bodies generally filled theirs out.

Shuq watched the new girl curiously.

'So,' Cedric began, 'ye want 'er?'

Walker frowned, 'I don't understand.'

'Owner's dead. You's getting the house. Ye want 'er?'

'Hrmm. What happens if I say no?'

The girl had inched backwards when the Tigreni spoke. Cedric wrapped his fingers round her neck from behind to keep her still 'Well, guard gots too many cunts. Loggers won't want 'er, too skinny for that work. Hips're too narrow, so babies gon' be hard.'

'What would I do with her?'

Cedric shrugged 'Dunno. Feed 'er. Fuck 'er. Whatever ye want.'

Walker considered it, he wanted to fight, make money and travel but found himself in possession of property and the prospect of a second mouth to feed. He felt unhappy, a vague sense of resentment at the situation was gradually forming. This was Norrish life, and within a week he'd found himself hammered into the expected role of a human male. For a moment he imagined simply not being there, taking his silver and leaving Lumberton in the dead of night.

Shuq tugged at his arm, 'Let's keep her.'.

He ripped his arm loose and pushed her away from him. 'What's your name?' he asked the girl.

The redhead flinched and her body tried to melt away. Cedric smacked her behind the head 'Answer.'

She said not a word.

The guardsman smacked her again, 'I's not askin' questions, he is.'

Not a word.

Cedric dragged her before Walker, 'Kneel.' he said pushing her down.

Walker leaned towards her 'Look at me.' She didn't and this annoyed him, quickly he grasped her slight chin and yanked her face up. Her eyes were scrunched shut with existential dread as if she expected to be eaten. 'Be calm.' he told her quietly, 'I want to know what you want to do.'

The mouth remained static but the eyes squinted, pulling as if anticipating a blow.

Walker looked to Cedric, 'Her spirit is broken.'

'Aye. Happens to the weak ones. Come, let's look see.' Cedric dragged her to her feet and shoved her towards the table by the window. She just stood, waiting. He moved the chair aside 'Take it off.' he told her.

Hastily she pulled the canvas up over her head, revealing a figure so slim her thick curls seemed weightier. Her ribs were visible beneath the round bumps of her chest, her stomach was sunken and her hips protruded slightly. Faint freckles spotted her neck and shoulders. A small bush of shining red curled between her legs, it had obviously been cut shorter.

'Palms flat on the table.' Cedric told her, 'Legs spread.' She did so, automatically curving her back down and her buttocks upward, she lifted herself up on her toes as if this was a well-practiced maneuver to expose her twat and anus for inspection.

Walker came when Cedric motioned him closer. The man swatted the voluminous amounts of curls off her back and stood with his hand resting on her ass, his other hand tracing the lines there, 'Light whip scarring on the back 'n shoulders. Look at the wrists; calloused from shackles,' Cedric bent, 'same on the ankles.'. Roughly his fingers rubbed her knees 'Thick callous from getting fucked. Elbows prolly the same. This one's been thoroughly used.'. He asked her 'Do you cook and clean?'

She nodded.

'Mostly got fucked like a dog, eh?'

Her head bobbed yes.

'Where's your brand?'

She shook her head, no.

'Means she never left the house.' Cedric told Walker, 'Or didn't care fer 'er te be abused in public.'

Cedric roughly thrust his left thumb between her legs, her buttocks flexed but she did not move as his thick digit vigorously stirred between thin protruding pink lips. 'Eh Walker, she's well used 'n warm. Body's not fully grown yet, lots of use left in it... how many seasons're you cunt?'

She shrugged.

'Prolly, no one would buy her, so Wael took 'er as a bed toy. Loggers sometimes give em to us.' Cedric explained 'You want 'er Walker?'

'What will happen if I say no?'

'Well, can't have 'er runnin' about wild. Will prolly take 'er to the butchers. Putting 'er down's kinder than starvin' or freezin'.'

'Master Walker, ' Shuq pleaded at his shoulder, 'please, let's keep her. I'll care for her.'

The guard cast an approving look at Shuq 'You'll have 'er fer free Walker.'

Walker's fists clenched by his sides 'I do not intend to stay here long and do not want this one's fate on my conscience.'

'Never seen a man complain 'bout bein' given things. No disrespect to ye though.'

The tiger sighed heavily in defeat 'I'll keep her. Why the fuck not.'

'That's settled then. If yer done checkin' the upstairs I reckon we go down 'n get a drink to celebrate eh?'

Walker nodded, his eyes fixed on the bent over girl. He did something then that surprised the others, he swept the girl up into his arms as if she weighed nothing and carried her against his chest from the room. The girl mewled in fear and tried to curl up but he gave her a rough shake, 'Relax.'

Cedric and Shuq stood there a moment watching the red hair wafting in the air. Shuq grabbed the girl's dress from the floor and they followed the tiger down stairs.

The tiger sat on the couch with the redhead cradled in his lap. He was whispering to her.

Cedric joined him and Shuq stood uncertainly on the carpet.

'Shuq,' Walker said, 'see if there's something to drink in the kitchen.'

'What're ye doin'?' Cedric was baffled.

'She's got to get used to me.'

'Aye? What're ye tellin' 'er?'

'Just words in Tigreni.'

Shuq reappeared with whiskey and three wooden cups. She took a tiny table and put it before the men on the carpet. Sitting cross legged she pulled the stopper from the bottle and poured a cup for each.

'There's whiskey everywhere.' Walker remarked.

'Aye, lot's o' grain grown down south. Not much else in the way of drink get sent up with the boats. I think it's on account of price, puts ye on yer arse quick enough but don't take much space bringing it up the river.'

'I see.' Walker said taking the cup from Shuq. 'Drink.' he told the redhead holding the cup to her mouth like one would a babe.

Over the following hour Walker took a few sips but the tiger was ostensibly more interested in feeding the liquid to the girl in his lap. They spoke of the fights, the gamble and Walker's concern of what might eventually follow the warband they had defeated on the road. The redhead's shaking soon ceased as the alcohol took effect. The tiger put her beside him but held her naked form close to him.

'Not ta push it. But when're you wantin' to continue the fights?' Cedric said sipping from his cup, 'Got to admit, I likes the money I could make off it. I'm gettin' old 'n have always lived at the racks, but my soul's achin' for sons of me own. Got some coin stored up, might ask to buy a house now that some're open, buy a woman and settle into a life like the Captain.'

'Tomorrow.' Walker answered, 'Why have you waited until now to consider it?'

'Och, I dunno. I likes the life. The boys 're there, the food's good. There's plenty a puss ta warm my bed. Never saw a need fer it. But when a racks wench shits out a lad, he gets sent to the city for soldierin'. No way of tellin' who a lad's da is anyways. I've a need for me own. You got kids?'

'Hrmm. No.'

'N'why's that?'

'War.'

'That's no answer boyo. You been fightin'?'

Walker considered the grey-haired man, he had been affable and openly helpful from the start but the tiger felt like an alien presence, like the openness of the humans demanded a reciprocation he was not willing to engage. Why did the monkeys place so much store in knowing these things? Why so curious?

He made his choice and decided to share, 'Before, another tribe had pushed mine off its land. The previous Khan had been killed in battle. My mother was a warrior. She took lead and pushed back, winning. I was second son and born into the war. After we resettled, other tribes came... the wars continued and continue. But we are strong now, the tribe has grown through breeding and assimilation and I am not needed.'

The old man handed his empty cup to Shuq, 'Yer mother? She... took lead? How's that?'

'Exactly as I said.'

'Aye aye, my ears got the words, it's my head's that's not gettin' it. Ye knew yer mother?'

Walker filled his own cup, feeding a few sips to the redhead 'Tigreni are not the Norrish.'

'Aye, guess not. ' When it became clear the tiger would not expand Cedric asked 'How many seasons ye got behind ye?'

'About forty.'

The man's eyes widened, 'I ain't no expert in it but ye seem like a young buck.'

'We can live for two hundred.'

'Eh, two hunred? Shite boyo, that's three lifetimes.' Cedric leaned forward and slapped him on the leg, 'Listen boyo, I know we's a strange lot to ye but in honesty I gotta say, I's glad to have ye. I know the Captain's glad too after the scrap. The city men, they're mostly snobbish shites and don't like us wooders much. Don't know what they'll do if'n they get here but it prolly won't help us much. The Captain's hopin' you'd lend a hand.'

'Hrmm. Maybe they were just bandits.' Walker offered evasively.

'Fok, I knows it 'n you knows it, they wasn't no bandits. S'far's I know there's never been real trouble from the north. Tis forest s'far's a man can walk 'n it's filled with beastkin 'n meaner beasties we's only have legend of. Those fokkers, them's that chewed their own necks open, they's not Norrish, nor are they men like I've ever met in me life. Somethin's comin' eventually and I've no shame admittin' my fear of it.'

'Hrmm.' Walker agreed.

Cedric emptied the dregs from his cup 'If'n ye're settled in, I gots to get back to the racks.'

'Mister Cedric,' Shuq stopped him at the door, 'we need to get brands and clothes. Where can we do that?'

The old man stepped onto the narrow cobblestone walkway to the road. 'Ye want to get branded?

'Well... Miss Meri advised me that showing ownership is important, or the men...'

'Aye, aye. Under the bruising you's a clear beauty 'n won't find peace without it. The law says ye need yer owner's mark, a tattoo's rare but just as good. There's a fella named Fel what does tattooin' at the week's end. ' His head whipped around as if searching, 'Square's right there, half a block distant. We's about the north west edge. Fell's usually got his tent about the south east end.'

Shuq breathed relief and gave him a brilliant smile, 'Thank you.'

'We doin' bouts tomorrow Mister Walker?'

Walker nodded, 'Aye. The fat man was angry about the missed bouts.'

Cedric grinned, 'Yah, well, I suspect he ain't got the gravity of the situation yet.', The he took his leave with a wave.