Red by Liesl Shurtliff Read Free Book Online Page B

overwhelming perfume. “Get away—
aaaahaaaaCHOO!
”
    “Oh, dear, I’m sorry. Let me help you.” Goldie reached down to pick me up. I tried to slip under her arm, but my hair got tangled in one of her buttons.
    “Aaaargh!”
    “Oh! I’m sorry! I got it.” Goldie yanked on my hair.
    “Grrrrrr!”
    “Hold still!”
    “You hold still!” We wrestled and I growled until I finally ripped myself free, and we both tumbled back at the very moment an arrow hit the ground right between us.
    Horst tore through the brush, his bow nocked with an arrow. “Ha! I got you, you wily…girls?”
    Goldie and I sat frozen on the ground.
    “Where’s the wolf?” Horst swatted at the trees and brush, surely frightening every creature within a mile.
    “There’s no wolf,” I said. “Only us.”
    “Shhhhh. I heard him growling just now.”
    “That was Red,” said Goldie.
    “Who’s Red?”
    “Her.” Goldie pointed at me.
    “That’s a girl. Not a wolf.”
    “She’s a very growly girl.”
    Horst huffed in frustration. “Well, what are you doing all the way out here growling like a wolf?”
    “We’re on a quest!” said Goldie.
    “A quest?” Horst asked. “What kind of quest?”
    “To save Red’s granny!”
    “The witch? What’s wrong with her?”
    “She’s dying, so we’re going to find—”
    “Ingredients,” I cut Goldie off. “We’re gathering ingredients. For medicine.” I sent Goldie a sharp look. I didn’t think it wise to make our true quest widely known.
    Horst nodded, a look of pity in his eyes. “Death is a terrible thing. Terrible.”
    “It’s only a cold,” I said.
    “Well, a cold can kill an old person,” he said gruffly. “And even if they do get better, everyone dies eventually, don’t they?”
    I flinched, feeling the sting of his words.
    “Excuse me,” said Horst. “That was rude, wasn’t it? Don’t pay any attention to old Horst. I’ll tell you what. You help me, I’ll help you.”
    “How?” I asked.
    “Old Horst knows a thing or two about staying alive. I’ve survived more than colds.” He laughed a wheezy laugh. He wasn’t exactly the picture of health, and I doubted he knew as much as Granny or dwarves about staying alive, no matter his age, but I thought it would be impolite to say so.
    “What do you want from me?”
    “You seen a wolf in these parts? Big black beast?”
    “Sometimes,” I said.
    “I’ve been tracking him for months, but he’s slippery as a ghost, always evading me. If you help me catch the wolf, I might be able to help your granny with that cold of hers. Horst knows a thing or two, yes?”
    Horst hobbled over and plucked his arrow from the ground. As he bent down, I noticed a pouch dangling around his neck. It was a leather pouch about the size of my fist. I wondered what was inside it. Gold? Gems? Teeth?
    Horst straightened up, bones creaking in a dozen different places. “If you see the wolf, just—”
    Something rustled in the bushes. Horst lifted his bow. A gopher darted out and skittered away. Horst shot and missed. He grumbled and hobbled over to retrieve his arrow again.
    Poor Horst. He couldn’t possibly last much longer.
    “We’d better get going,” I said. “Lots of ingredients to gather.”
    “Don’t forget,” said Horst, “if you see that wolf, you call for Horst!”
    I nodded. “Come on, Goldie.” I was anxious to be on our way.
    “Goodbye, Mr. Huntsman!” Goldie waved.
    As we drew farther away, I glanced over my shoulder. Horst was watching us through the trees.

    We walked along the river for most of the morning. The river was straight for as far as I could see, and I was beginning to doubt the dwarf’s directions. Had he misled me somehow? Tricked me? We walked for three miles, perhaps four. The terrain became rougher, and the trees grew thicker along the river, making it difficult to travel with any sort of speed. My legs grew sore and my energy waned quickly.
    “I’m hungry,” Goldie said at almost the