Page 139 of Fallen Nocturne
One creature Blaire and I once swore we would never approach again.
The memory rises before the summoning begins.
Blaire and I are children, crouched inside a thorn bush beside an old road in Astefar.
A woman sits in the middle of the path, weeping into her hands. Her dress is torn, and long dark hair hides her face. Every sob sounds soft and broken.
Blaire grips my wrist.
We both know what she is.
The Wailing Woman. A trickster.
A human traveler approaches along the road, leading a brown horse laden with bolts of cloth and sacks of spices. He hears the crying and slows.
Blaire and I wave frantically from the bushes. Even the little pigeon perched on Blaire’s shoulder flaps its wings at him.
Go back.
The trader sees us and frowns. Then his gaze moves to the weeping woman.
“Madam?” he calls to her.
She does not answer.
He ties his horse to a tree and walks toward her.
We wave harder. Blaire rises halfway out of the bushes, and I yank her down by the sleeve before the woman can see her.
I press a finger to my lips and shake my head. No sound. We cannot risk it.
We point desperately toward the road behind the trader. I jab my hand toward the trees, toward the direction we came from.
Please. Please look. Please understand. Run.
The trader’s gaze flicks toward us at last. His brow furrows as he takes in two girls crouched in the thorn bushes, waving like mad and pointing at the forest.
“Madam?” he calls, slowing. “Are you all right?”
The woman only weeps harder.
“My name is Édouard.” He takes another step toward her, then glances back at us. “Édouard Lemaire. Let me help you. You’re frightening the children.”
The woman lifts her face.
She is beautiful. Édouard goes still.
The hungry creature searches his heart and finds the shape of the person he longs for most. Her features shift and her hair changes. Even her torn dress becomes familiar to him.
“Bernadette?” he whispers.
The woman smiles through her tears.
“Yes.”
He runs toward her.
“No!” Blaire and I scream together.
