Scaderstone Pit (The Darkeningstone Series Book 3) by Mikey Campling Page A

from the street lights. But even so, I could see the car’s windows were tinted. It was the same car that had waited for me at the station. And it was waiting for me now. I was sure of it.

Chapter 15

    3550 BC
    CLEOFAN STARED UP AT THE DARK FIGURE looming over him. A blade was pressed tight against his throat, and he hardly dared breathe, but he had to say something. “What do you want?”
    There was no reply.
    Cleofan’s head felt like it was splitting apart, and the ground shifted and swayed beneath him. He blinked, trying to see his attacker more clearly. A woman! He’d been struck down by a woman!
    The woman’s face was covered with a curling pattern of swirling black lines. But her eyes burned with fury, her teeth bared in a snarl.
    “What do you want?” Cleofan croaked.
    The woman pressed harder on his chest. “Demon!” she growled. “They sent you to find me, to take me back.”
    “No,” Cleofan said. “I came for firewood. For the village. The feast.”
    “Village? What village?” The woman forced a hiss between her clenched teeth. “What people are you?”
    Cleofan swallowed hard. “Take the blade away,” he said. “I can’t talk like this.” He coughed.
    The woman grunted, but she moved the blade a little, easing the pressure on his throat.
    “Thank you,” Cleofan wheezed. “You have a baby. I saw it.”
    The woman tensed.
    “It’s all right,” Cleofan said. He hesitated. “I heard him cry. Is he all right?”
    “He’s hungry” She pressed the blade harder, digging it into Cleofan’s neck. “You have food?”
    Cleofan licked his lips. “A little,” he wheezed. “Let me get up and I’ll give it to you.”
    The woman shook her head, but she looked away from his face, running her eyes along his body hungrily. And Cleofan took his chance.
    He grabbed her wrist with his left hand and twisted the weapon away from his throat. Then he drove his right fist into the woman’s face. She toppled backward and Cleofan rolled over, throwing his weight on top of her, pinning her arms against the ground.
    The woman twisted and writhed beneath him, but he held her tight. She still had a weapon in her right hand and Cleofan grasped the blade, twisting it from her fingers. It was heavy, a brutal weapon, but before he could raise it, the woman clawed at his face, digging her fingernails into his skin. Cleofan cried out and tossed the weapon aside, then he grabbed her wrist and squeezed it with all his strength.
    The woman roared in frustration, gnashing her teeth, but Cleofan held on. For a moment, the only sound was their frenzied breathing as they struggled. And then the baby began to cry.
    The woman finally lay still. She looked up at Cleofan, her eyes burning into his. “Get it over with,” she spat.
    The blood drained from Cleofan’s face. “I…I don’t want to hurt you.” He shook his head. “ You attacked me . I don’t know why. This place is ours. I came here for firewood.”
    The woman stared at him, a sullen sneer on her lips, but she said nothing.
    Cleofan clenched his jaw and glared at the woman. What should he do now? He couldn’t stay like this, but if he let go of her hand, she’d tear his eyes out. Unless…unless she was ready to listen. “If I let you go, you must stay still. If you do that, I’ll give you what food I have. It’s not much, but you can take it. Do you understand?”
    The woman grimaced but she gave a single nod.
    “I’m going to let you go, now.” Cleofan took a breath then pushed himself back, taking his weight from her and scrambling up to his feet as quickly as he could.
    The woman sat up slowly, looking rapidly from side to side. Her eyes went to the weapon on the ground, but Cleofan followed her gaze. He stepped forward and scooped up the strange blade. It was the oddest weapon he’d ever seen: heavy and cold to the touch.
    “Food,” the woman said. “You told me you had food.”
    “Yes.” Cleofan opened his pouch and felt inside it. There