Blind to Men

Excerpt

Chapter One

It started with an overheard conversation.
A woman spoke to Anya's mother in hushed, urgent tones. Ear pressed against the wooden boards, Anya listened intently, praying not to fall deaf. That happened sometimes, as if some words escaped her hearing, or refused to pass through her ears. Frustration gripped her each time the sudden deafness came about, yet she had never been able to prevent its erratic occurrences.
Coming home from the fields, she’d spotted a big, white horse tied to a post. Someone was in the house, a highly unusual event as nobody ever visited. So, she had crept into the attached shed.
Concealed behind sturdy boards, she couldn’t see the woman talking to her mother. The stranger's voice sounded low and grating, very unlike the lilting notes she and her mother used.
"The girl's been ordered to go to Palance," the woman said. "If she doesn't show at court in a few days, you know how it will end."
Palance! The name alone sounded magical. The legendary city Anya had heard so many tales about, the place where royalty dwelled. A shiver of excitement spread through her, and she wondered if she would ever lay eyes on the beautiful city.
"We'll run away," Anya's mother replied quickly. "We'll hide forever if we have to, but I won’t let anything happen to my daughter."
"That's wishful thinking." The stranger's deep voice boomed like thunder. "You can't hide from the . . . . You know it's pointless for . . . . Will find her anywhere."
By the mighty gods, she had fallen deaf again. The desperation in her mother’s voice was plain though, and apprehension constricted Anya's throat. Why would her mother be so scared? Who was she afraid of? Who searched for them?
Spying a chink in the wood higher up, Anya climbed on an overturned bucket, careful not to make a sound. The crack was too narrow to see anything. She flattened against the boards and strained her ears.
"What else can we do? Do you think I'll just sit and wait for her to—?" A sob broke her mother’s voice. "Heavens help me; I can't even say the word!"
"Don't be upset, my lady. The curse can be broken."
The stranger's rough voice made Anya's skin tingle. Gooseflesh rose all over her body as she wondered why the visitor addressed her mother so formally. Although Mother had been born a peasant, the title didn’t seem to surprise her. Stranger still, Anya had a feeling the two women were on friendly terms. But what curse were they talking about? And who?
"Thank the mighty gods!" A note of hope had entered her mother's voice. "Please, speak your mind."
"To break the curse—"
Her foot slipped on the damp bucket. Arms flailing but unable to regain her balance, she fell down heavily and landed hard on her behind. Before she could move, the door flew open, and the visitor burst in the shed.
Startled, Anya raised her eyes to the tallest and strongest woman she had ever seen. Even her face looked peculiar: unsmooth and irregular features, fair hair cut short, jaw much too square, nose too long, right cheek scarred. She was indisputably the ugliest female on Earth, yet, when their gazes met, Anya felt all funny inside, her stomach fluttering for no apparent reason. Her blue eyes drilling into her, the woman smiled slowly, unhanding the hilt of the sword strapped on her side.
"Anya, I presume?"
"Heavens, Anya, are you hurt?" Her mother rushed to her, worry on her face. "What were you doing in there?"
"No, Mother, I was only . . . ." Under the stranger's sharp gaze, structured speech eluded Anya. "Well, I—"
"Your daughter was listening in on us." A knowing look passed between the woman and Anya's mother.
"Anya, we have a visitor. This is Kylor, child of an old friend of mine." Her mother helped her up. "Now, get some milk, and wash your hands before breakfast."
Dismissed, Anya nodded, rubbing her behind. The woman’s eyes never left her, a darker shade of blue glittering in their depths as Anya brushed dirt from her buttocks. Somehow, her gaze was too hard to hold. Dropping her eyes, Anya smoothed her dress, grabbed the overturned bucket, and left the shed.
She circled the house to get to the barn, questions bubbling in her mind, threatening to drown her. Who was this woman? Why had she come to the farm? She carried a sword; could she be an Amazon? For that matter, why didn't she wear a dress but some fabric that seemed loosely sewn around her breasts, and tight around her legs? And above all questions, what kind of a name was Kylor?
A violent shove sent her sprawling in the dust, the bucket flying from her hand. She hit the ground hard, pain flaring up her hands and knees. Dizzy, she uttered a sharp yell, but was instantly turned over by something—someone—unseen. Heart trying to get out of her body, lying on her back, she was alone.
Something heavy landed on her stomach, pinning her down. Something vicious groped for her neck and then grabbed it. Mouth open, Anya tried to gulp down some air, but it felt like an iron collar clamped around her throat, squeezing it. Head spinning, she choked as her windpipe was crushed, realizing she was dying for no reason.
As her life seeped out of her body, Anya's mind seemed to snap, engulfed in terror. Although her eyes were open, a black veil descended on her, obliterating the familiar landscape. Gone was the farm, shed, and golden fields glowing under the sun. Only darkness and pain surrounded her. The last image she would see would be one of her house.
Just before the black void took over, Anya glimpsed Kylor running toward her. Sword sheathed, arms pumping, the woman looked like a bull charging. Closing the distance, she lunged at her. Before Anya could close her eyes, Kylor collided into an invisible wall above Anya's body. Grunting from the violent impact, Kylor rolled over, seemingly gripping a mass in her arms.
"Anya, get inside!"
Suddenly free from the iron collar, Anya took a deep breath and her throat convulsed. Coughing, hacking, but inhaling to her lungs' content, she sat up, uttering harsh, whizzing sounds. The black veil disappeared, colors and shapes coming back to her in a rush.
"Get inside now!"
Kylor's shout jolted her. The woman knelt a few feet away, pummeling the ground with her big fists. Before Anya could figure out her weird behavior, her mother was by her side, helping her up. Legs weak, Anya leaned on her mother's arm. Together, they hurried back to the farm.
"Mother, I think I've just had a seizure. What's going on?"
"We don't have time for that now. Kylor will tell you all you need to know later." Her chest heaving from the run, her mother took her hands. "Anya, you must go to Palance."
Anya's instinctive reaction was joy. At last, she would get to see the legendary city, perhaps even the queen and her Amazons. Although pleased beyond measure, her recent encounter with death stilled her boisterous happiness.
"Why?"
"You have to see the . . . the queen."
The slight hesitation didn’t escape Anya. Her mother had been about to say something else, but thought better of it.
"Mother, I can’t go to Palance on my own," she blurted, fear striking her heart. "I don’t know the way. I might get lost, and roads are dangerous."
"Hush, baby, don’t be scared." Her mother brushed a lock of hair from Anya's face, but the loving gesture didn't slow her heartbeat. "Kylor will be escorting you. She’s a great warrior, and the best protector for you."
Anya shivered. How could her mother expect her to travel with a complete stranger? To spend days and nights with someone she’d just met? What would they talk about? Or do? Having a protector was all well and good, but why should she trust Kylor? Beyond reasoning, or rationality, the strange emotion that rose in her each time she looked at Kylor, at her hard blue eyes and large, calloused hands, was most distressing.
"I don’t want to go," Anya pleaded, grabbing her mother's arm.
"You must. You can't stay here."
Kylor's rough voice made them jump. Without their noticing, the woman had followed them into the kitchen. Her mother cast the stranger a questioning glance.
"Dead." She motioned to the door. "Must have seen the bucket Anya was carrying. More will come; we have to leave now."
"More what?" Nobody answered Anya's question, but tears fell on her mother’s cheeks, and Anya rushed to hug her.
"Please be strong, Anya. Be strong for me."
They’d never been separated. Anya had no idea how they would fare without each other. Although frustrated by a situation she couldn't fathom, Anya nevertheless felt urgency in her mother's pleading face.
"I'll go. Don’t cry, Mother; I promise I’ll be back in no time."
The stranger, so tall and forbidding, moved to the kitchen door. "Anya, it's time to take our leave."
As they stepped outside, her mother turned.
"I understand you don’t know Kylor, but on everything I hold dear, I swear you can trust her. Whatever she asks of you on this journey, do it. Do you hear me, Anya?" Worry lines creasing her brow, she held Anya's hand. "Whatever she asks! You have my blessing."
Anya nodded. If her mother said so, then it would be so. "I promise, Mother, I'll do everything she asks of me."
The stranger Anya was bound to spend the next days with took her mother's hands in hers.
"Take care of my daughter, Kylor. She's my greatest love in this world."
To Anya’s astonishment, Kylor knelt before her mother.
"Upon my life, my lady." Kylor kissed the ring on Anya's mother’s finger, stood up quickly, and bowed. "I'll die before anything happens to her."
With that, Kylor led Anya to the horse Anya had spotted earlier and helped her up before mounting behind her.
"Go, Anya. May the mighty gods be with you."
"Goodbye, Mother, I'll be thinking of you."
They smiled at each other, and tears blurred Anya’s vision. Kylor clucked her tongue, urging the horse forward. Tearing her gaze away from her mother’s distressed face, Anya addressed a silent goodbye to the only world she knew.
"Kylor!" Face constricted, her mother was pointing toward the nearest hill.
Craning her neck past the stranger's shoulder, Anya spotted a dozen horses on the crest. Riderless.