Elara bent over the map, spread over the table. The herb patch… The berry bushes… The maples on the north side…
A presence tugged on her. She raised her head. Hugh stood in the doorway.
Alive. Uninjured.
She let out a mental breath and straightened. “You’re back.”
“I am.” His voice held no bravado. He sounded, not subdued exactly, but quietly resigned. She braced herself.
“Casualties?” she asked.
“None on our side. Something smells amazing.”
“I made chicken for dinner.”
He smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Is it for me?”
“Yes. You did come back safely.”
“Can it wait?” he asked. “I need your help.”
“Of course.” What was going on with him?
He invited her out with a sweep of his hand. She left the room, and they went down the hallway side by side. The Keep was quiet. Soft afternoon light spilled through the windows, drawing long rectangles on the hallway floor.
“What happened in Aberdine?” she asked.
“Falcon blocked our approach. We had some words and then Bale decorated the road with Falcon’s brains. The rest of the mercs cleared off.”
He still sounded off.
“Is this going to come back to bite us?” she asked.
“Possibly. The second half of the company is enroute to Aberdine. The woman who is leading it could prove difficult. It depends on whether she decides to make an issue out of Falcon’s death or if she assumes command and takes what’s left of them somewhere else. If I were her, I’d count my blessings, but some people lack common sense.”
They reached the staircase and started down the steps.
“And if she decides to attack?”
“I’ll crush her.”
There was no force in his voice. He said it so matter of fact, as if he were talking about taking out the trash.
“Hugh?”
“Yes?”
“What’s wrong?”
He looked straight ahead.
“About ten years ago we came across a corpse town in the Laurentian Uplands in Ontario. Men, women, kids, all dead, rotting in the street.”
His tone was flat and weary.
“We found one survivor. A skinny kid about fifteen or so. Someone nailed him to a tree.”
Nailed?
“He should’ve died but he was too stubborn to let go. We took him with us.”
“What happened to town?”
“He never told us. He barely talked. Once we fed him enough for his legs to support his weight, I asked him what he wanted to do. He said he wanted to get stronger.”
Hugh sighed. “Some people are born swordsmen. It’s not something you can teach or train. The kid picked up the sword, and he was gone. He’d wake up in the morning and train until he passed out in the evening with a sword in his bed. Bale’s berserkers had adopted him. They all used to watch out for him, because he forgot to eat. He wasn’t the strongest or the most skilled, but he was fast, and he had the killer instinct. When he faced an opponent, the world disappeared. Nothing else existed.”
He fell silent.
“Was he as good as you?” she prompted.
“Almost. With magic down, he’d be a problem for me. Possibly even for Daniels.”
He brought up Kate. That usually meant he’d gone into a dark place. Roland’s biological daughter was the reason for his exile. They had a long and tangled history, none of it good. Hugh had done horrible things while under Roland’s control and they plagued his soul festering there until they ruptured into open sores. Kate was a wound that never healed.
“How long was he with you?” she asked.
“Eight years,” Hugh said. “We had a winter base near Wichita Falls in north Texas. Pretty country down there. Mild winter, lakes, rivers. We’d come back to it year after year when not on mission. One day he came to me and said he wanted out. He met a girl and decided he was done being a Dog.”
“But he loved being a swordsman?”
Hugh shook his head. “It wasn’t love. More like compulsion. It consumed him, and when he was with her, he could put it away. She freed him of it.”
“What did you do?”
“What could I do? I let him go. It was his second chance at life. He could be whatever he wanted to be. Everyone was happy for him.”
A cold unease washed over her. “Did you find him in Aberdine?”
“I did. I found him in that shithole of a camp. With people who didn’t deserve him and treated him like an attack dog. Those assholes couldn’t even be bothered with basic shit like guards and patrols. Elara, we just rode right in there. It was dirty and disorganized, a fucking disgrace. And those shitheads thought they could hold a town for ransom, and we would just let them.”
He was disgusted by all of it. The mercenaries had no idea how lucky they were. He could have just wiped them all out, and his face told her he had considered it. They probably deserved it.
“How the fuck did he end up there?” Hugh stopped. “He left with enough money to last him for five years. It should have been enough to take her anywhere and do whatever they wanted. Should I have kept him?”
“He wasn’t yours to keep,” she said gently. “You saved him, you trained him, and then you let him go. The rest was up to him.”
He gave her a dark look. “And he fucked it up.”
On the scales of Hugh’s life, with so much guilt and darkness piled up on one side, this young swordsman must have been a counterweight. Someone Hugh saved. Proof that he wasn’t irredeemable, that the Iron Dogs stood for more than slaughter and destruction. Even while under Roland’s influence, with his life going up in flames, Hugh had let him go. He was a remarkable asset, but his future happiness mattered, and Hugh released him.
Now that happiness lay in ruins. Seeing that broke something in Hugh. She could feel him retreating deeper inside himself, in the place where Hugh faded, and Roland’s warlord took the front line. The memory of a burning maelstrom with fangs she once saw in his soul scalded her. She had to keep him with her, anchored in here and now no matter what it took.
“If you’d kept him against his will, he could have died,” she told him. “You said yourself that Roland wrecked everything you built. As good as he was, he would be near the top of the execution list. At least he’s alive.”
“There’s that.”
“What happened to the girl?”
“I’ll show you.”
They’d reached the third floor. A trace of magic tugged on her. It came from the left, from the direction of the guest suite where they put potentially troublesome visitors. It felt sharp, almost spiky, like a cocklebur bristling with hooked needles. It pulsed in a subdued rhythm, active but muted.
She sped up. They marched down the hallway to the door. Hugh knocked and pushed the door open, not bothering to wait for an invitation.
A young woman with long dark hair lay on the bed. The burr of magic wrapped around her, fused with her body, strangled her vitality, growing from it like a parasite. Her eyes were shut, her skin was pallid, and patches of fuzzy dark growth, rippling with black, red, and purple, marked her exposed arms and neck. It looked like someone had scooped a toxic bacterial colony from some giant petri dish, smeared it all over her, and it took root.
A man in his mid-twenties sat in the chair by bed. He looked up at their approach and his eyes were full of grief.
The magic burr pulsed with power.
“A curse.” The word fell from Elara’s lips. She had never seen one like that.
“Can it be undone?” Hugh asked her.
“I don’t know. But we will try.”
Neat bit of back-story; thanks!
I’m loving ❤️ the story can’t wait to buy it.
Thank you for sharing these snippets! I love it all so much!
This was the pick me up I needed this week. I’ve newly subscribed and have no idea what hughday is but I’m hooked on this blog now and will be devouring everything momentarily.
We’ve been getting snippets of Hugh’s 2nd manuscript on Fridays, so we rebaptised it as Hughday 😅
You can find the previous chapters here: https://ilona-andrews.com/category/blog/kate-daniels-world/hugh-dambray/
Welcome to the Horde! You’re so lucky to have all that reading ahead of you!
Welcome to the Horde! 😁🎉
Oh my. So much pain and hurt and love and dedication. Such a powerful scene! Thanks.
Thank you!
Since reading Magic Bites in 2009, I have enjoyed your worlds, characters, plotting, and dialogue. You make me care for the characters. I am so happy that my sister introduced me to your writing. I’m very thankful for that wonderful April Fool’s Day blog post so many years ago.Thank you for all you have written and will continue to write.
Thank you for the snippet. Darkness happens, but love and hope and faith keep it from gaining control.
I almost hate to say this, as I always enjoy all the antics on the blog, but everyone at HA should take a well-deserved break. The blog output has been glorious and much appreciated, but please kick back for a bit— I would hate for burnout to set in;) Take care of yourselves!
Thank you for thinking of us. 🙂 We really appreciate it.
I…. couldn’t…. resist…. any longer! I wanted to wait until everything was done, just before we get the warning that Hugh2 would be taken down and then binge everything. I lasted 5 chapters. I don’t know if I should pat myself on the back for my patience or disappointed in myself for the lack thereof. I can’t blame myself for reading it and not being able to stop though, it’s simply too excellent for words.
Thanks for the update, it’s amazing as always.
I have loved Hugh from the git go! From technically second tier bad guy, to more developed bad guy, to really bad, bad guy and then fell in love with redeemed asshole kinda sorta almost bad guy! He just keeps getting better and better! Thanks!
Thank you!
This was a comfort to read. It was the familiar cadence that I love from IA. It was far too short, too. Sorry, I feel greedy for the words and the story’s images.
This is why I love this world so much. House Andrews has so much talent. I never know what to expect and I am always amazed at the scenes they evoke in my mind create.
I wish this world was never ending.
Thank you!
Oh oh oh oh!!! Thank you!
Oooh, GOOD snippet! I like this a lot.
God. I love you two. Not in a creepy stalker way.
Thank you for writing and sharing.
So much at play here in a small snipit. So enjoyable to read on a Saturday morning. Thank you.
Very nice! Elara and Hugh growing closer even if neither is sure they want it.
A curse and the mystery of the plants.
I just know this book is going to make me so happy.
I have the norovirus, haven’t been this sick in forever. I started reading this and everything calmed…..this is true beauty.
Get well soon.
APPLAUSE! APPLAUSE! I love this snippet, it shows a “chancy” marriage/partnership getting deeper roots and blossoming. So looking forward tot he presale link. Happy, happy, joy, joy!
I’ve been sick with the flu all week (still sick) but finally feeling well enough to read something. What a fun nugget. Although may have to reread when not sick.
That was wonderful. Thank you.
Just hate curses. Thank you for this!
Drawn in with a snippet
Good work !
Thank you for another wonderful snippet! I just love Hugh and Elara so much! They are both so powerful, scary, insecure, loving, and caring…all at once! They are really fascinating characters, and I look forward to the finished book.
Here’s hoping HA and Mod R are all having a nice relaxing and fun weekend! 😁💕💕
HA it’s amazing that you have made a the time to send these much appreciated snippets of Hugh 2 every week.
Every line is much beloved and enjoyed by the horde but also take time to have a break and relax !
PS mod R you rock and love your quizzes !
😱😱😱😱
This is so good, thank you very much
<3
Is it weird to say how much I’m loving this story despite he dark turns? But I am and I wish I could order it right now. Thanks HA, something great to look forward to.
Curses!!! Oooh!!! Waiting for the book to be completed and be published is so hard!!!
Great post per usual! I did laugh quite a bit at Wichita Falls being described as pretty country 😅. I’ve never heard anyone say that but maybe in a post shift world it would be able to have full lakes and wouldn’t be plagued with droughts due to global warming.
I did too. I thought “Really? Wichita Falls? Okay.” 😂
Oh, so good. Thank you so much for the Hugeday.
Best wishes!
Debbie
Thank you!!
The plot continues to grow arms and legs!!
+1
Hugh & Elara are like peanuts and potato chips: you’re never satisfied with just one. I waiver between reading each chapter as it comes out or waiting for there to be a few so that I can have a nice chunk……*sigh*. I was able to hold off a little with Roman, but I’m eating this one as each chapter is posted.
Hugh Day Rocks x Thank you 🥰
Thank you!
Loving this so much. Thank you for HughDay 💚
Thank you!
Another twist! So happy for hughdays.
Wow, and thank you. That you can put all that together while doing Maggie is amazing. I know you’re finished with Maggie but this couldn’t have just sprung up in an instant. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
You’re REALLY making it hard for me to keep disliking Hugh. I’m re- reading
Magic Breaks, and my emotions are all high and angry… then I read this snippet.
UGGGHHH! 😞
I’m gonna need a therapist after all of this.
Hip hip Hugh-ray!
This is a much needed spot of cheer in a very challenging time for me.
Leaves me salivating for the finished tome.
I’m worried about the chicken. Does Hugh get to eat the chicken or is it forgotten and left to slowly get cold in the pot, while Hugh contemplates his evil past and Elara battles the Petri dish curse. I mean who could eat after battling a fuzzy mold?
I learn something new everyday. When I read Laurentian Uplands, I thought you meant the mountains which are in Quebec. However, after Googling, I see the Uplands are in Northwestern Ontario and go down into the Northern States. Here in Ottawa, Ontario, people go skiing in the Laurentians aka the mountains which are not very far away (Mont-Tremblant is a popular spot).
I love it when you show such complexity and depth in the characters. Thank you. However, I horrified myself for thinking I was looking at a picture of lovely pomegranate herbal tea when, after reading, I figured out that it was a petri dish… Yikes.
As a card-carrying BDH member, for at least several years I (obsessively, duh) checked the blog 2-3 times a day. At least.
Then November fell.
Since then… well, hmmm. Anyway.
Today is my first time back in 2025. And look… Hughday.
Awww. Thank you!
Thank you House Andrews. Thank you Mod R. Just, thanks. And good to see you.
Good to be home. *hugs*
*waves to the Horde*
Welcome home!
Thank you!
Good one….my mind is scurrying around saying when where why what. 11 pm sunday uk. so no sleep. Will start katebook 1. thank you
Hugh Day is the best day!! Even if its a couple of days later.
I horded this to read when I could really savor it, anticipating it since Friday, drawing out the enjoyment…
But now I’ve devoured it and it was delicious! Dang it, I need MORE! It’s soooo good!!
How are you guys so good at this?! I’m always impressed. I love your writing and your care for your crazy fan horde. Thank you.
So good!!!! Too short!!!! Thank you!!!!
I’m a nurse, so Fridays don’t normally mean much to me-I often work them. However, these snippets are making Fridays my new favorite day!
TGIF!
Hence the moldy red drink. This was a great teaser. I feel that longing again to know what’s next. Poor Hugh. I never thought I would say that and mean it. He and Elara make a great team. Different from Kate and Curran but great. Man I’m loving on Hugh now. Can’t wait to see the crops sitch etiology. Another curse. Thank you for this. Tough week.
Hello,
I heard about the hurricane or tornado that crossed over multiple states in the USA, I hope all of you are safe.
I had a migraine on Friday. It was a 3 day migraine so I am just now getting to read the Hughday snippet.
HA you are so amazing and you treat us so well. This was wonderful and knowing it was there waiting for me to read helped keep me sane while I wasn’t feeling well.
I was stationed in Wichita Falls, TX for a year when I was in the Air Force and have wonderful memories from there. I love that it made it into the story.
Thanks so much for this!
A bright spot in a crappy week. So much drama, not tragic, but I hate drama anywhere but in a book or a movie. My response, I checked for posts. As usual, you don’t disappoint. I was looking in eBay at a bunch of entries for auctions today for hand made shawls, made me think of the wonderful community here that is so compassionate and supportive of others. Bless you!
oooh so the herbs are cursed?
Words cannot describe how much joy your stories bring me. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I will cry so hard the day you retire (may it be many, many years from now!!!).
Thankyou for sharing this! It means alot when we get these gifts.
Such beautiful and meaningful writing. No surprise I’m hooked.
Ahhh, so exciting to get an update and a curse! I hope Elara manages to bring Hugh back from that mental place, although I have no doubt she will, even if it’s just be annoying him!!
OMG, Hughday is my favorite day!
But question to all because maybe I missed something. I’m re-reading Iron and magic (again), and it’s still a lose end to me – in the beginning of the book Nez asks Hugh about the North. What had him worried, was this ever resolved in some other book/side story or something?
Tonight I decided to go back and read ALL the snippets (including the prologue, answered questions, and ModR’s quiz about IM 1).
And again I find myself amazed and thrilled by your writing! I’ve been reading a lot in the 1 1/2 years since I retired. And I have to say there are a lot of just ok and good writers out there (and some bad), but HA is at the top of the list. You are amazing writers. I find myself laughing out loud, drawn in by the questions, wondering about the people, and reveling in Hugh and Elara’s relationship.
Thank you for the snippets. They really are a delight. I look forward to reading the whole book, and truly, I am ok w**ting. A classic needs time. So I will continue to read the blog and whatever snippets you post, and look forward to whenever the new books are released.
And give yourselves a break from the writing when you need it. You deserve it!
Have a great Wednesday!
Just wanted to take the time to say thanks to you both for writing this, posting this and making the world a slightly better/more beautiful place in your own way. I’ve been a fan of everything you have written over the last 15 years, and carry the words and worlds you have created with me so that I may delve back into them every time I need a shot of sunshine. (I don’t want my post to be deleted so let’s just say) current events we all are living through right now makes that secret sunshine even more precious these days, 😉 and so I hope you know that what you are doing is meaningful and brings a lot of joy to many fellow human beings around the world.
Loving these. Life is hard right now. You are helping it go just a bit easier. Thank you for that 🙂
Love Hugh Day – look forward to the next instalment!
Quick (or maybe not so quick) question about Hugh’s healing ability: presumably if this was some magical disease rather than a curse, he would have been able to cure it?
Thank you!!
Thank you!! Love this story.
❤️❤️❤️