Nell Larkspur's Arc

Chapter 20 of 23

They came down the last lane with the sun on their backs. Lena kept Nell's arm across her shoulders. Linny walked on his other side, close, one hand on his sleeve. The fox trotted ahead, tail flicking, checking every doorway. The village was just waking. A cart rattled past. A woman stared, then looked away. Lena pushed open the shop door. Bolts of cloth. The smell of dye and dust. "Papa," she called toward the back. "We have visitors." Her father came from the curtain slow, one hand on the frame. He saw Linny and stopped. His mouth worked. Linny went to him first and put her forehead against his chest. He held her thin as a bird. Nell made it as far as the back couch before his knees gave. He dropped onto the cushions. Lena knelt and pulled his boots off without asking. She set a basin of warm water by his feet. She wiped his face with a wet cloth. Her fingers were quick and blue-tipped at the nails. "Sit up a little," she said. He sat up. She pushed a folded blanket behind him. Linny watched from the doorway. She had not left. When Lena moved to the stove, Linny moved with her. When Lena brought bread and butter and a mug of tea, Linny came too and set the plate on the crate by Nell's knee. She stayed there. Close. Nell tried three times to speak. Each time Linny's eyes cut to him and he shut his mouth. He needed one minute alone with Lena. Linny would not give it. "Eat," Lena said. He ate. The bread was warm. The tea burned his tongue. Halfway through the mug the fox scratched at the front door. Once. Twice. Hard. Nell set the mug down. He got to the back window on Lena's shoulder and pushed the curtain aside. At the tree line beyond the yard, three tall shapes stood in the frost. Long-limbed. Faces like carved bone. The fae. They did not step forward. They could not. Between them and the shop stood a figure Nell could see through. A woman, silver-edged, her hand raised. A line of pale light ran along the fence like a drawn thread. The fae pressed against it and slid back. "Mother," Nell said. He knew the shape of her without knowing how. Linny came to the window. She saw the fae. She saw the barrier. She saw Nell's face. Something in her jaw loosened. She stepped back from him. Just a step. "Sit with her," Linny said. She meant Lena. She went to her father and closed the curtain behind her. Lena did not move. Nell turned to her at last. His mouth was dry. "Lena," he said. "I have to tell you something." She sat down beside him. "Then tell me."