The Huntress - Luna Eileen

Alaska, 1950On a cloudless December night, the stars shone brightly in the sky over northern Alaska. The moon was nowhere to be seen. Tonight would truly be a moonless night then. A woman screamed from within the cabin and midwives hurried to tend the pregnancy.“Agnus, are the wards secure?”“Yes, and we have several hunters standing guard.”“Damn, why couldn’t the child come a day earlier. What a fates forsaken night. May the three-faced goddess still watch over us in this dark hour.”The birthing was hard and it wasn’t until the darkest hour of the night that the villagers heard the tell-tale cry of a baby girl pierce the night air. She had a healthy set of lungs on her, that was for sure.In the corner, the old crone, Enid, who the coven considered their seer, began to shake violently. Her eyes rolled back until only white could be seen. In an eerie chanting lilt, “O

Aunt Rihanna seemed hell-bent on keeping me inside this full moon. Perhaps it was the visitor that had her so bent out of shape. Breanna left a bowl of soup for me on the top step around mid-day but they kept the door shut for another full night. I guess it was a good thing I told Makya the day after to come to find me. When the light finally came down the stairs, my stomach was growling so loud, I am amazed it didn’t scare the whole woods to silence. No one was in sight when I climbed the stairs. They must have simply unlocked the door and gone about their lives, not even bothering to check if I was still alive. I dumped my bowl in the kitchen and went to my room. I started throwing on layers and thanked the goddess my idiot family had been kind enough to simply dump my gear on my bed, which meant it was packed and ready, though a bit stale from use. I checked my rifle sleeve and was relieved to find it was all in order. I went to my closet and fished around in the

I closed my eyes against the biting wind as Makya mushed the team back into motion. Our sled slid along the snow path. We continued north for two more days without seeing signs of a wolf pack in the area and finally turned back southwest toward the village. Makya sent Zophiel to alert Dekota and Eris to meet us along the road. With luck, they would cross our path in a day or two just before the village. As dusk settled on our fifth day out, I built our cook fire while Makya set the tent up. A creek wound its way through the woods not far from our camp, giving the dogs easy access to the cold water. The embers were finally starting to burn off the damp from the snow when the ears of every dog in the team went flat. A low growl resonated from each of their throats as I scanned the tree line. “Makya?!” I said in a loud whisper. He looked over at me, and then to the trees trying to see what the dogs were alerted to. He reached over to the sled and slid out his ri

Homecoming to Quinn manner was anything but joyous. Aunt Rihanna stood on the porch with her arms on her hips as if she was ready to berate me into the five hells and then sacrifice me to Morrigan the chooser. The white pillars of the manor porch were a stark contrast to her black dress and furs.“About time you returned. I see your boy has brought you back, though I don’t suppose you managed to keep yourself in one piece.”“And what is that suppose to imply?” I snapped, climbing off the sled and unpacking my gear.“It means that suiters are not going to want a girl like you, if they suspect you have lost your virtue,” a slight lilt slipping into her accent with her anger.I glanced at Makya, mortification likely burning up my cheeks. “Aunt Rihanna, What suiters could you possibly be worried about out here?”“The Coven expects you to carry on the bloodline. The Quinn family has been respec

I snorted as Aunt Rhianna sat at the far end of the table and began cutting into my venison. Cernunnos? Was she blessing them to all start having kids or something? The horned lord had already provided this bounty. What was she on about invoking him in his role as fertility god?“Something humorous?” Arvin asked.I held up a bid of leg bone. “Aside from this bone? My aunt’s choice in blessing.”“Ah, Cernunnos. You are not pleased in her choice?”“Unless you are looking to have kids in the next year, Cernunnos has already done his work by providing the meal. I think this is some of the buck I killed two weeks ago.” I regretted those words about as soon as the left my mouth. The hungry, lustful gaze that raked over me made my skin crawl.“If you are interested in following your Cernunnos’ guidance, I am certainly not opposed.” He purred, low, and guttural. “I understand you