Vengeance: Chapter 1
Excerpt from forthcoming novella
AISLY PINES’ SHADOWS haunted me. Spirits danced around, fluttering with the leaves, begging me to solve life’s riddles. But I couldn’t. All I could do was stand in the copse and stare at her lifeless body.
One eye greeted me—blue and speckled with red—while the other was sewn shut, surrounded by a sea of purple and black.
I focused on the Svefnthorn carved into both sides of her face. They were identical in length and depth.
Next, I studied the crescent moon engraved on her forehead before following the trail of blood that ran from her torn septum to her lips. My attention shifted to the symbol etched on her chin.
I stepped back and surveyed the scene. Her battered corpse hung before me, her shirt torn open, flesh carved through. Her arms were stretched out beside her, bound at the wrists with ropes. I followed the cords until I reached their end, tied to a tree branch.
The flash of a camera over my shoulder forced my eyes to journey down the rest of her body. Runes danced around her torso, running across her abdomen underneath her breasts. My eyebrows knitted as I stared at the bind rune etched above her belly button before shifting my attention to her blood and dirt stained pant legs. Her bent knees rested on a wooden altar.
Captain Jansen shuffled through the forest, parting the crowd of detectives gathered around the crime scene. “Please tell me you’ve found something.”
“I haven’t figured out the eyes—why one is open and the other sewn shut—but her cheeks bear the Svefnthorn, a Norse symbol meaning ‘sleep thorn.’ The two crossed arrows on her chin represent traveling.”
Damon tapped his pen against his notepad. “Any particular place?”
“It depends on your beliefs.”
“Care to elaborate?” Captain Jansen inched closer to the body.
“For Christians, it’s heaven or hell. For everyone else, it varies based on their culture and views of the afterlife.”
“What do you believe?”
A gust of wind swept through, muffling the surrounding chatter. A few evidence unit technicians battled with loose sheets of paper fluttering in the breeze, but I remained entranced by the markings on the altar. Damon cleared his throat, breaking my concentration. I glanced at him and smiled. “I’m not a Christian.”
He chuckled and pointed to her abdomen. “What’s that?”
“A bind rune. It’s for protection.”
Captain Jansen peered over his shoulder. “From what?”
“From evil.”
“Jesus!” He hurried over to Coroner Watts and a group of evidence technicians huddled beneath a maple tree.
More detectives arrived on the scene, among them Smyth, smirking and glancing in my direction.
Damon stepped between us and sighed. “He’s not worth it.”
“I know.” I moved to the right side of the victim, focusing on the rope around her wrists before examining the ground. A piece of broom sedge lay beside the altar’s base. I knelt and signaled for an evidence technician, pointing at it. He retrieved a paper envelope and a pair of forceps from his case and collected the plant.
“Is that significant?” Damon asked.
“It’s used to make brooms and is connected to cleansing, purification, and protection.” My eyebrows knitted as I stepped back and surveyed the victim. “Like a witch’s broom.” I knelt in front of the altar, my eyes drifting from the etchings on the altar to the markings on her flesh. “Brooms symbolize feminine strength, freedom, and defiance.”
I circled around to the back of the body. Her shirt draped over her shoulders, revealing a bloody handprint in the middle of the fabric. “Sweeping is about getting rid of the old. A new beginning.” My eyes traveled down her back, past the altar, and toward the terrain. One set of footprints was embedded in the soil.
Damon stood on the other side, shadowing me. My cautious steps drew everyone’s attention as I turned my gaze to the trees. Broken limbs, leaves, and twigs covered the undergrowth, complicating my search.
Other officers and detectives joined us. Captain Jansen and Coroner Watts pushed past the technicians, positioning themselves at the front of the crowd while monitoring my movements.
I rushed to the second tree. There, at the base and nestled in the brush, was a basket containing three apples.
Captain Jansen hurried toward me. “Tell me that means something.”
“Nehalennia.”
I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of Vengeance, my forthcoming crime thriller novella. The book will be released on December 15, 2025, and is currently available for pre-order. The second chapter will be posted tomorrow.