Ravensblood Forest the seas did not forgive, and they did not welcome their wayward children home

every instinct screamed at the girl to run as he stalked toward her, muttering to spirits she could not see. and when he loomed before her, over her, kukutux dropped her gaze less for the fact that he was male, and more that she had seen brimstone in his stare.

his soul — so he lived with one foot in this realm, half in another. there had been a woman like this in her village; she screamed from time to time that her spirit was gone, did not bathe, and roamed the dangerous recesses of the island. as a girl, kukutux recalled going with her mother as they carried food to the woman, hoping to sustain her body even if her mind was no longer present.

after a momentary pause, kukutux pulled the skin from her shoulders and spread it upon the ground, gingerly dipping her delicate nape beneath his heavy jaw. ”here,” the girl murmured up at him, pushing a stick of dried meat toward the spirit-walker. ”eat.”