Chaos Descending by Toby Neighbors Page B

shoulder. All he could see was light-colored fur and a maw of savage looking teeth bared in a snarl. Then several more beasts joined the chase, and Quinn felt a stab of terror as he realized that if he’d doubled back he’d have been ambushed by the pack of vicious animals. The creatures, whatever they were, had surrounded him on the path. His only option would have been diving into the river, which would most likely have killed his horse and perhaps even ended his own life by drowning.
    Dashing forward had been the right move, but Quinn realized it had just been a stroke of luck. The horse was terrified of the animals behind it, and kept running at full speed in the darkness despite the risk of tripping or falling over some unseen obstacle. The animals kept up at first, but soon slowed and gave up the chase. Quinn’s heart was pounding. There had been reports of wolves in the Great Valley, but they were rare, and Quinn didn’t think the creatures he’d seen were wolves.
    When he finally reached Zollin’s home, the cottage was quiet and dark. Quinn dismounted and walked the horse into the yard between the house and the workshop. The animal was tired and Quinn knew it would need a break before making the return trip, so he took the time to unsaddle the weary animal and found some water in a bucket for the horse to drink.
    “Is there trouble?” Zollin asked, stepping quietly out of the house and into the yard.
    He shut the door behind him and wrapped a heavy robe around his shoulders.
    Quinn nodded. “Kurchek attacked Mansel with a knife.”
    “Is he okay?”
    “No,” Quinn said. “He’s lost a lot of blood, and I think his forearm is broken. We had to cauterize the wound.”
    “Oh, no,” Zollin said. “How did that go?”
    “He was unconscious at the time.”
    “Well, at least he didn’t suffer through that. What happened to Kurcheck?”
    “Lost an eye, but the bastard can suffer for all I care. Mansel could use your help, though. I wanted to get here before you left.”
    “Of course,” Zollin said. “I’ll come right now. Did you bring me a horse?”
    “No, the morning should be soon enough. And there were some wild animals on the trail. I don’t think it’s safe to travel on foot.”
    “Canines or something like them?” Zollin asked. He went on when Quinn nodded. “We encountered them too. Did they attack you?”
    “They would have, but the horse smelled them. I got lucky, to tell you the truth. They had moved in behind me and I didn’t know it.”
    “That is so strange,” Zollin said. “I could sense that they were intelligent. I’m afraid they might be magical creatures.”
    “They use magic?” Quinn asked, his voice betraying his fear.
    “No,” Zollin said. “But there are some animals and creatures that only wake up when magic is being used in the world. It’s sort of like a bear waking up from hibernation.”
    “And they’re smart enough to coordinate their attacks?”
    “It would seem so. It might be smart to take a hunting party after them if you can round one up.”
    “I’ll do that. You got room for your old man to spend the night?”
    “Just a chair by the fire,” Zollin said.
    “Sounds like heaven to me.”
    The next morning Quinn woke to the smell of bacon frying nearby. The sun was streaming in through the cottage windows, and Brianna was cooking breakfast. She had sliced some bread and laid it out on a platter with eggs and bacon. But what Quinn really wanted was the mug of steaming coffee that was also on the platter.
    “Good morning, Papa,” Brianna said.
    “Papa?” Quinn asked.
    “What do you think? Could our baby call you Papa?”
    “That child can call me anything it wants,” he said with a smile. “I’m thrilled for you and Zollin, not to mention me.”
    “Zollin told me about Mansel. Is he going to be okay?”
    Quinn stood and stretched. His back ached and his eyes burned with fatigue. He guessed he had slept maybe three hours, but it would have