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The Black Widows

 

  Glenada had traveled on his horse, Atrax, for three days into an unexplored territory. He was mapping a route to find an alternative way to travel to the towns on the other side of the continent to find work, instead of traveling through the mountains.
 
            Glenada was a gladiator and he was thirsty, so he picked up his canteen of water and took a sip. The young man with green eyes, black hair and bristly face could see that Atrax was getting spooked from the trees. The twenty-year old gladiator could feel the heat from the sun and felt sweat drip from his forehead. He was wearing a black tunic with a black colored armor covering his chest. His muscular arms could be revealed and he wore a black cape that extended to his knees, just over his tunic. There was no river or lake in the area and he hoped that there would be some sort of settlement where he could lodge to continue mapping his rout.  
            The forest was thick and the trees were close together; a lot of them were intertwined into each other. He continued on foot and found a big house made of stone and brick. It was the size of a mansion with a strange roof made of leaves and branches.
 
            “Who do you suppose lives here?” he whispered to his horse.
 
            Glenada tied his horse to a nearby tree branch and walked to the front door. There was a gold bell with a sign inscribed; guests ring bell.
            A few minutes went by and after ringing the bell a girl that looked about six years old answered. She had black hair tied in braided pigtails with grey eyes and wore a strange black dress.  
 
            “Is your mother home?” he asked.
            “Yes,” she answered with a straight face that turned into a creepy smile.
            Then an older girl with long black hair and grey eyes walked up to the door, “hello, my name is Cora and this is my little sister Tara.”
            “My name is Glenada and I’m exploring this region. I’m from the town of Oxford.”
 
            Cora was quiet because she was looking at his mighty arms and then she turned to look at the gladiator’s tan face. He looked at her strangely and wondered why she was feasting her eyes over him like a piece of meat. She nodded her head and smiled at the gladiator, which gave him chills.
 
            “Yes,” she began. “You must join us for supper, my mother is downstairs teaching my sister Malaria how to mend an incision.
            “It wouldn’t be for long, I would be gone the next morning,” he answered
            “Oh, but I’m sure you would want to stay longer than that, come in,” she insisted with a smile.    
            Glenada walked into their home and straight ahead of him was fancy furniture made of wood with sewn pillows created with complex designs of black widows.  He saw a fireplace and on the edge of the fireplace were life size human statues, one a man and the other a woman, made of wood. They were both naked and holding up a stone ledge above the fireplace that was full of stone and crystal knick knacks.

To be continued. . . . . .

Available on "Blue Dragon Fantasy; Faded Memories and Short Stories" and "The Legacy Anthology". Coming soon to Nook.