Page 104 of Hollow Valley

It had been surprisingly emotional for me, saying goodbye to him.He’d been a reliable companion for so long, and I know I would’ve died without him.Maybe Ripley, too, since Vince was the one who ran for help outside Xwechtáal.

But that was also why I knew I needed to say goodbye.He deserved to go back to Lazlo, Nova, and the rest of his family in New Emberwood.Along with instructions on how to care for Vince, I gave the porter a letter for Lazlo, so he’d now how much the mule deserved to be pampered.

I stroked his fur, I pressed my forehead against his, and I thanked him before I told him goodbye.Ripley had also seemed to understand, because she twined herself between his legs when she tended to be more physically aloof with him.

The two of us stood in the middle of the muddy main street one warm morning, and we watched as Vince and the porter walked out of town and out of our lives.

“What do you say, Ripley?Should we get a drink?”I asked her, and she let out a chuffing sound.“Well, you can have fish, and I’ll have the drink.”

Heading over toGlacier’s Edgefairly early in the morning had also become a part of our routine.The owner Henry didn’t usually start serving food until the evenings, but I had worked out a deal with him for Ripley.He kept a whole intact salmon on ice for us, and when we came in, I sat in the back corner drinking my cares away while the lion happily chomped down on a frozen fishcicle.

So after Vince left, that’s where Ripley and I went.This early in the day, there weren’t many people here yet.Most folks out here had to work hard all day long to survive, but the ones who didn’t had a funny way of ending up in the pub.

The proprietor Henry was behind the bar, pouring a drink for an old man who was here even more often than I was.Henry was a wiry man in his mid-fifties, with medium-brown skin, and long black hair that he often wore pulled back in the warmer weather.

“Remy, Ripley,” Henry greeted us when we went inside.“Shall I bring you your usual?”

“That would be fantastic, thanks, Henry.”I sat down at a corner table, and Ripley spun three times before laying down on the floor near my feet.

A moment later, Henry set my glass of wild berry brandy in front of me, before he crouched down to present Ripley were her hefty frozen fish.

“Long morning?”Henry asked me.He was still crouched beside the lion, stroking the fur on her back as she licked her treat.

I nodded, swirling the liquid in my glass.“Saying goodbye isn’t easy, even when you know it’s for the best.”

“You did right by that mule,” Henry said in a knowing way.“If you mean to go to Alaska, he’ll be happier here.”

I glanced over at him.“How’d you know that my mule left?I didn’t tell you that yet.And how do you know I mean to go to Alaska?”

“Glacier Valley isn’t that big of a town, and I have an ear for all the news,” he replied with a quixotic smile.

He straightened up, then went back to tending the bar.Glacier’s Edgewas one of the places in town that had electricity, so fairy lights were strung along the wall, and music played softly out of a crackling stereo.I settled back into my seat and downed my brandy.

Right now, I felt in limbo between journeys, and that’s where I would remain until Cold Shore let me in.So, I supposed, I might as well relax and enjoy it.While Ripley purred as she gnawed on her fish, I flagged down Henry and ordered another drink.

64

Stella

It had been nearly three weeks since Boden, Edie, Leandro, Fergus, Fae, and I had left Xwechtáal, and fortunately, the descent down had been much more peaceful than the climb up.The mountains, the canal, and the glacier made it an inhospitable area for zombies, and most predators and people, honestly.

In the days following Dougal’s death, Fergus didn’t let himself slow down.He kept up on the hike, sometimes even leading the way, and he’d even returned to his usual chipper banter.

But at night, when most everyone was sleeping, I’d hear him crying softly with his back to the firelight.I left Fae slumbering in between Boden and Edie, and I laid down behind Fergus.I didn’t say a word, I just wrapped my arm around him.He linked his hands with mine, hanging onto me, and he would cry until he fell asleep.

By the time we reached the valley, Fergus seemed mostly back to his old self.Not that any of us were truly our old selves anymore.It was so strange to think that it had only been two months ago that we were all on the Barbarabelle, and over that time eleven people had dwindled down to six.

But we were still here.Tired, dirty, and hungry, but we were alive.

Even with as much as we had seen, the landscape surrounding Glacier Valley was especially breathtaking.The shimmering blue expanse of the fjord cut through the verdant forests before ending in the vast glacier to the north.

As we approached, I was surprised to see that there wasn’t an actual fence surrounding the town itself.Three sides had natural barriers with estuaries leading into the inlet, the expansive flowing icefield, and the snowcapped mountains.But I had still expected an entrance gate or at least health vetting.

Instead the dirt trail we’d been following through the forest widened into a real road heading straight into the town.The salty air from the brackish water left everything vaguely damp, and the main street running through the Valley was a rutted mess of mud, dry dirt, and horse droppings.

On either side of the street, in front of storefronts and homes, were wooden boardwalks for people to avoid the mess of the road.And as for people, there were a lot of them.Some walking, but others were in horsedrawn carriages, and I saw a few on bicycles or riding in pedicabs.

“This is a right proper town,” Fergus said with an impressed whistle.