Ninka Evertrue's Arc

Chapter 8 of 29

The cabin was full and quiet in the wrong way. Eleven children sat on benches and on the floor. One boy chewed the strap of his backpack. The girl with the shaved head stared at the door. Ninka smelled sweat and wet wool and the sharp edge of fear turning to hunger. She had brought them inside. She had nothing to feed them. Luna opened the low cupboard by the hearth. Half a loaf. A jar of honey. A tin of oats meant for two people for a week. She looked up at Ninka and shook her head once. "When did you last eat?" Ninka asked the room. A few shrugs. The girl who had taken her hand first said, "Yesterday. Before." Ninka's throat closed. If they cried, if one of them bolted, the others would follow. Her father was already moving toward the meadow. She could not lose them in the trees before dark. She stepped into the small back room and shut the door. She pressed her palms to her eyes. She could not project. The dome would tear. She whispered anyway, the way her mother had taught her to whisper when there was no one left to call. "Please. Anyone." The air went cold behind her. When Ninka turned, a woman stood between her and the wall. Long dark hair. War paint under both eyes. A quiver over one shoulder, feathers red at the tips. A small beaded pendant rested at her collarbone, the kind a child would string. Ninka had seen her once before, standing behind Rebecka in a doorway, watching. Her mother's ghost. Her mother's guard. "Aiyana," Ninka said. "Your mother sent me ahead." Her voice was low and even. "She is coming with the rest." "I have eleven kids and no food." Aiyana looked past her at the closed door. "Open the tall cabinet by the hearth. The one with the runes on the frame. Your grandmother stocked it before the deed burned. She meant it for this." "I've opened every cupboard." "Not that one. It hides until it is needed." Aiyana stepped through the wall and was gone. Ninka went back out. She crossed to the hearth and ran her hand along the wood. Under her fingers, carved lines warmed and rose. A cabinet she had not seen before stood flush against the stone, dark wood scrolled with symbols. She pulled the doors open. Baskets of bread. Jars of stew. Bottles of clean water. Folded blankets on the bottom shelf. Bundles of herbs hanging inside the doors. Enough for tonight. Enough for tomorrow. Luna made a small sound behind her. Ninka lifted out the first loaf and turned to the room. "Wash your hands at the basin. One at a time. We eat, then we talk about who's coming for us." The girl with the shaved head stood up first.