The Lizard and The Maiden (3.2)

By Tracie McBride

Award-winner Tracie McBride brings Maori legends and culture firmly to the shores of Refuge with this tale of revenge, sadistic brutality, and a mystical lizard called Whiro. A few sprinkles of Refuge's political intrigue has been added to make this tale pivotal to the over-arching story that weaves between the tales from Refuge... Art by Will Jacques. Proceeds to Sanctuary Australia Foundation

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tracie McBride
• Release date: Feb 22, 2016
• ISBN: 9781310976599

Tracie McBride

Tracie McBride is a New Zealander who lives in Melbourne, Australia with her husband and three children. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in over 80 print and electronic publications, including Bleed, FISH and the Stoker Award-nominated anthologies Horror for Good and Horror Library Volume 5. Her debut collection Ghosts Can Bleed contains much of the work that earned her a Sir Julius Vogel Award. She helps to wrangle slush for Dark Moon Digest and was the vice president of Dark Continents Publishing (2010 - 2014). Visitors to her blog are welcome at http://traciemcbridewriter.wordpress.com/.

Book preview

The Lizard & The Maiden

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Part of the Refuge Collection Tracie McBride

Copyrights

‘The Lizard & The Maiden’

© Copyright Tracie McBride

Artwork:

‘TuaTara’ by Will Jacques

© 2016 Will Jacques

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. It may not be re-sold or given away to other people.

Please purchase an additional copy for each recipient.

All author and publisher proceeds go to:

Sanctuary Australia Foundation (http://www.sanctuaryaustraliafoundation.org.au)

"For over 25 years, Sanctuary has sponsored, provided interest-free travel loans, and resettled Government approved humanitarian entrant refugees, helping them to rebuild their lives in Australia from war zones around the world. Sanctuary is an award winning organisation,

run with the utmost integrity."

The Lizard & The Maiden

by Tracie McBride

The first portent came to Mahi Bennett in the form of a lizard.

It clung halfway up the wall above her bed, an innocuous creature—bright green and a little longer than her hand, its tail pointing skyward and its head facing the floor. She had never been squeamish around God’s less cuddly creatures—a childhood spent catching eels and frogs in the creek and swatting off all manner of insects in the bush had seen to that—but there was something about this one that made her uneasy.

What was it her koro used to say about lizards?

Stay away from them, Mahi. You never know when it might be the god Whiro, come to eat you from the inside out.

She shuddered, her hand instinctively clutched the protective carved bone manaia about her neck, and she eyed the reptile. The lizard gazed back, its eyes unblinking. You can’t fool me, it seemed to say. I know who you are and I