Bluewing (10 page)

She brushed a tendril of hair from her eyes and gave me a tight smile. “I recently married. A widower. He has four small children. He needed a wife. This is his house, and I’m Jullia Butcher now.”

“Oh. I...I didn’t know.” Widower? Four children? How old was Jullia? I couldn’t remember. She seemed barely into adulthood. Eighteen?

“My father was arrested. Everiss is gone now.” She made a helpless gesture with one hand. “I needed to eat. He needed someone to look after his children. We found a solution for both our problems.”

“Does Everiss know?”

Jullia avoided my eyes. “It hasn’t come up in conversation yet.”

I swallowed my dismay and climbed the ladder. My mind spun, but I reminded myself that this was not so horrible or unusual. Many people in our village married for purposes of advancement or security. But still, rage burned hot inside me. Jullia was barely more than a child. She wouldn’t have had to make this sort of sacrifice if Raine hadn’t arrested her father to get his land.

Jullia followed me up the ladder and into the attic. A row of beds lined one wall.

“The children stay here,” she explained. “But they’ll be asleep by the time you leave.”

“Does your...does the butcher know?” I was uncomfortable calling him her husband. She was younger than me. When I looked at her, I saw Ivy.

Jullia shook her head. “I was a Blackcoat before I married him. No need to drag him into it.” She showed me a large trunk bored with holes. “You can hide here. You should fit comfortably—you’re thin enough. See, starvation has its benefits.”

Neither of us laughed at her joke. I climbed into the trunk and pulled the lid down.

“I’ll bring you something to eat in a bit,” she promised, and then slipped away.

The day crept by. I marked its passage by the changing light on the floor, visible through the holes in the trunk. Eventually the light faded, and Jullia brought me a little bread, cheese, and water to consume. Then she left again, and I was alone with my thoughts once more.

The memories of the day were a jumble in my head. Raine’s speech, Korr’s arrival, his words to Raine about Ann, Jullia’s new situation. I tried to sort through it all. Korr was back, but I didn’t know why. It seemed that he knew where Ann was...and that he had some contact with her. Rage dug hot fingers into me as I contemplated what he must be doing to her. I remembered his words:
Have them eating out of your hand, trusting you, needing you. Then they’ll give you whatever you want.

With effort, I pushed my anxiety about Ann aside and turned my mind to the other problems. The passes. It would be difficult, if not impossible, for Jullia and Ivy to bring us news about the village now. We’d have to devise a new system for passing information. Perhaps Gabe and I would be making more runs to the village under the cover of darkness.

The clatter of feet on the ladder signaled the children’s arrival upstairs. They whispered to each other in the darkness while I measured my breaths and tried not to make any sound. I heard the thump of covers being thrown back, the squeak of bed frames, the rustle of sheets being drawn up around necks. The whispers died away, replaced by steady breathing. All was quiet.

I lifted the lid of the trunk and stood. My legs ached from being confined, and the air outside the trunk was so cold it made the tips of my ears tingle. I placed one foot on the floor and then the other, moving carefully. I paused to listen.

The children’s breathing never changed.

I shut the lid and padded silently to the ladder. Easing my weight onto each rung so it wouldn’t creak, I descended. The downstairs was dark, silent. A board groaned beneath my foot as I stepped toward the door.

“Who’s there?”

A match flared in the dark, and then a lantern glowed, illuminating the space. I pulled my cloak across my face and whirled to face a man with dark hair and vivid blue eyes. He held the lantern high and glared at me.

“Don’t move, thief. I’m calling the soldiers.”

Jullia appeared, her hair disheveled from sleep. She shot me a wide-eyed glance, pleading for me to let her do the talking, then she laid a hand on the man’s arm. “Please. She’s a friend. She needed sanctuary, but she was just leaving.”

His face softened as he looked at her. He peered at me again. “Go then, and don’t come back,” he said to me, his tone a warning.

I nodded and went out the door before he could change his mind. My heart slammed in my chest as I stepped into the shadows of the alley and scanned my surroundings to orient myself. I was in the tradesmans’ quarter. There was the Baker’s shop, shuttered for the night, and across from it I saw the Blacksmith’s forge.

The door squeaked at my back, and I turned. Jullia stepped into the street.

“I’ve spoken to one of the Blackcoat leaders,” she whispered. “For now, the plans are all on hold until we figure out a way to work around this latest obstacle. Lie low, and they will contact you when they can.”

I nodded. “Thank you. Be safe.”

“You too.”

She slipped back inside.

Turning the corner, I headed west across the village, straight for the breach in the wall where I’d previously entered and exited with Gabe to meet the Blackcoat leaders. Two patrols of soldiers passed me, but I dodged them both, pressing my back against the rough stones of the house walls and holding my breath until they were gone. When all was clear, I made the run for the wall and squeezed through the narrow opening. The metal slats scraped my shoulders and ribcage, and I felt some of my clothing tear, but I didn’t stop to see. Wetness stained my cloak. Blood?

Shouts rang out in the night. Someone had seen me. I kept running, not stopping even when I’d reached the shelter of the trees. Branches slapped my face and dug into my hair. Thorns scratched my cheeks. I slipped on an icy rock and fell hard. I heard soldiers somewhere behind me, but they stopped before entering the woods. They feared the Watchers.

I ran on alone, my heart galloping, my lungs aching with every icy breath I dragged through my parted lips. I ran and ran and ran, splashing through streams and clambering over rocks to hide my tracks so I wouldn’t lead the soldiers to the others.

I reached Echlos almost an hour later, soaked from the snow and ice, bleeding in multiple places, and out of breath. As I staggered through the tunnels, a figure darted out of the darkness and grabbed my shoulders.

“Lia? Lia!” Arms enfolded me, squeezing me so tight that I coughed. Gabe. I pressed my face into his neck and shut my eyes.

“I’m all right,” I mumbled into his skin, but he didn’t hear me.

“We’ve been looking for you in the forest since this afternoon. Jonn is frantic. He thinks you’ve been arrested by Raine. What happened?”

“I was stuck in the village until I could sneak out under cover of darkness. Raine passed a new rule that won’t allow anyone to leave or enter the village without a permit. I couldn’t obtain one, so I was trapped.” I leaned against him as we headed for our living space below, and he wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I felt drained of every drop of energy. My legs trembled and my muscles throbbed.

We reached the main room. Eyes turned to us as we entered, and murmurs filled the air. I saw Jonn spot us across the room, and only the way his shoulders relaxed signaled his relief. As we approached, he dropped his eyes to the table and scowled. Everiss was sitting beside him, and she offered me a tentative smile.

I saw a map of the Frost spread across the table between them. Several marks had been made around the village with charcoal. Jonn’s fingers were smudged black, and as he rubbed them across his forehead, they left a faint smear.

“Lia,” he snapped as soon as we’d reached him. He didn’t take his eyes from the map. “You’ve been gone half a day. We thought you were trapped in one of Raine’s jail cells, or worse. We were planning a rescue party. Can’t you be a little more mindful of the time?”

“It’s not her fault,” Gabe said, helping me to a chair. “Raine wouldn’t let anyone out of the village without some kind of permit, so she had to wait for nightfall to escape.”

“What?” Jonn finally looked up at me, and his eyes widened as he saw my disheveled state. “Oh. Are you all right? Everiss—is there any more of that brandy?”

She went without a word to retrieve it.

I lowered my head onto my arms. I wanted to shut my eyes and sleep for a week, but I needed to tell them everything before I forgot any details.

I recounted the events of the day, from Korr’s unexpected appearance to the overheard conversation at the Mayor’s house to my evening spent in a trunk in an attic and Jullia’s words about postponing the liberation of the Frost until further notice. I didn’t mention Jullia’s husband.

Gabe straightened with interest at the mention that his brother had returned, and a muscle in his jaw twitched, but he didn’t say anything. Everiss returned before I’d finished, carrying a handful of rags and a bottle of brandy. She handed them to me, and I uncapped the bottle and poured alcohol on one of the rags. Gabe took it from me and began attending to the cuts on my arms.

When I’d emptied myself of all explanations, I fell silent. I took one of the rags and joined Gabe in washing my cuts. Jonn leaned back and ran his hands over his eyes.

“This complicates things enormously,” he said. “How will we get into the village for the liberation without passes?”

“Like I said, the revolution has been postponed. And we have bigger problems than that at the moment. Like getting enough food now that Ivy and Jullia can’t bring supplies anymore.”

Everyone was quiet, absorbing these thoughts.

“We’ll just have to set more traps, send more people to gather berries,” I said. “We’ll have to work harder, that’s all.”

“It’s not going to be enough.” Everiss licked her lower lip and blinked. Moisture shimmered in her eyes.

“Well, it has to be.” I looked at all their faces in turn, daring them to disagree. “We have to make it work. We don’t have any other choice. We can’t just give up. We’ll starve.”

“She knows that,” Jonn said. He laid a protective hand on Everiss’s wrist. “But not everyone is as tough as you, Lia.”

Not everyone is as tough as you.

I shoved my chair back and headed for bed.

Gabe followed me. “Lia...”

I sank onto the cot. I was exhausted. Every limb ached. I’d spent the last several hours huddled in a trunk and then running for my life through the Frost without any light to see by.

“I’m flesh and blood just like the rest of you,” I said as he sat down beside me. “I’m not made of stone.”

He touched my shoulder, and I winced as his fingers brushed one of the places where I’d been cut.

“Sorry,” he said.

“No, I’m sorry. I’ve been harsh, I know. I just...” I shut my eyes. I didn’t have words for how wrung out I felt.

“I know,” he said simply.

I leaned against him and put my head on his shoulder. He wrapped one arm around me, and we stayed that way until I fell asleep.

~

Every muscle in my body had stiffened by the time I awoke. I stretched, groaned, and muttered curses as I crawled out of bed and stumbled toward one of the fires to warm myself. Memories from the day before swept over me in a black wave, and I dropped my head into my hands. There would be no more food from Ivy and Jullia unless they could obtain the proper permits. Until then, we would have even less than we had now. And we already had almost nothing.

Everiss stirred a pot by the fire. She avoided my gaze.

“What is it?” I asked of the bubbling liquid.

Her curls bobbed around her thin cheekbones as she spoke. “Mostly watered gruel with a little rabbit meat for flavor.”

I remembered the tension from the day before. The accusations that I was somehow a creature of unnatural capacity for strength or determination. That I was too hard, too tough. “Everiss...”

“I know we must make do,” she said, her voice brittle. “And I will.”

“I was going to ask if you would like to help me forage for food tomorrow.”

She blinked. She saw the gesture for what it was, an offer of camaraderie as well as a challenge.

“I...”

“If you plan to accompany me, be at the entrance to the Frost tomorrow after noon.” I strode away, leaving her staring after me.

~

Later that afternoon, I made the trek alone to the ruins of the Security Center. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust the others, but I wanted to keep this location a secret. Adam’s old reminder came back to me—what you didn’t know couldn’t be tortured out of you.

I found the entrance of transparent material that led down to the room filled with Watchers. Breathing in deeply, I descended the ramp and confronted the sight of the sleeping monsters.

They didn’t stir as I passed them, though every hair on my body prickled in terror. I reached the door and went into the dark hall. This time, I’d brought a lantern. I lit it, holding the light high to illuminate my passage. I hurried through the darkness to the room where the device waited.

The machine hummed to life beneath my fingertips, and a single sentence blinked on the box in response to my question about aiding the Blackcoats:

Do whatever you can.

I LEANED AGAINST the crumbling wall of the entrance to Echlos, waiting for Everiss and Gabe. The wind teased the tendrils of hair that had escaped my braid. My cloak, the familiar blue one this time, fluttered around my ankles. I chafed my hands to warm them and squinted across the field at the trees. I doubted the Farther soldiers combing the Frost would come this far, but if they did...

A footstep scraped the ground behind me. I turned.

Everiss.

She met my eyes without flinching. She had pulled back her curly mane into a knot at the base of her neck, and she wore one of Jonn’s ragged blue cloaks that matched mine. She stepped to my side and surveyed the whiteness before us. “Shall we?”

“We’re waiting for Gabe,” I said.

She fiddled with the edge of her cloak. “Are you and Gabe...?” She made a gesture with her hand that meant nothing, but I knew what she was trying to say.