Mother Lode

by E. Rose Sabin

  Lina strode in, looked around, and gave a nod of approval at the activity. Her gaze settled on Mother Cooper’s corpse. “We need to get that out of here and out of sight,” she announced. “Her son, too. I got him. We’ll have to hide the bodies a good distance away. Ground’s too hard to dig, and we don’t have time anyway. We’ll cover them with stones. Plenty of those around.”

  So she’d killed Vee Cooper—or the panther had. Bryte saw panic in Mistress Wilcom’s widened eyes. She stepped in front of Mistress Wilcom and said, “Mistress Wilcom and I are starting supper preparations. We have to have a big meal ready when the orphans come back from the mine.”

  “First things first,” Lina responded, frowning. “We’ll face a battle with the miners before anyone eats.”

  “No more killing,” Mistress Wilcom begged in a tremulous voice. “Please, no more.”

  “We’ll do whatever has to be done,” Lina snapped. “No one wants a slaughter, but the miners have to be stopped.” She turned to Master Wilcom. “Looks like you’re the only one free to help. How’s the boy?” The latter question was addressed to the doctor.

  Doctor Metheny looked up. “He’s asleep. I used a cloth soaked in an anesthetic solution. I’m sorry, but I’ve had to remove his lower arm. I saw no way to save it with the limited tools I have here. I’ve cleaned the area and I’m ready to suture the stump.”

  Lina simply nodded as if the removal of an arm was of little consequence. “Master Wilcom, help me with this.” She bent down and grasped Mother Cooper’s body beneath the shoulders. Master Wilcom, wearing an expression of distaste, lifted her by the ankles. They carried the corpse out of the house.

  Bryte grabbed a towel, soaked it, and wiped up the blood where Mother Cooper had lain. Mistress Wilcom averted her eyes, busying herself with chopping the carrots and adding them to the potatoes, while Bryte cleaned the floor of Teddy’s blood as well. When she finished, she did her best to wash blood from her own hands and arms, wishing she could change clothes.

  By the time she finished mopping the floor and cleaning herself, Nia had also washed up and joined Mistress Wilcom in adding the carrots and onions to the stew pot.

  “What shall I do with the rotten potatoes?” Mistress Wilcom asked, her plaintive tone still reflecting inner turmoil.

  “Just toss them back into the barrel for now,” Bryte said. “We’ll empty it outside somewhere later.” She found a knife she could use for chopping the meat. The cleaver would have done the job faster, but even with Teddy’s blood scrubbed off it, she couldn’t bring herself to use it.

  It took Bryte and Mistress Wilcom together to lift the heavy pot of stew onto the stove. Nia scrubbed the table where the doctor had performed his surgery and dragged it back into the dining room, then busied herself setting the table with bowls and utensils. By the time Lina and Master Wilcom returned, dirty and sweaty from their unpleasant task, Bryte and Nia had the stew bubbling.

  While Lina and Master Wilcom went to wash, Bryte explored the pantry and found bread and butter in the Coopers’ private stock. She added these to the table. The meal would not be fancy, but for the half-starved orphans it would seem a feast. If they had the chance to eat it.

  Time was growing close when the orphans and their guards would be returning from the mine. Bryte had thrust into the back of her mind Lina’s words about facing a battle when that time came, but now she had to consider them. With Mistress Wilcom unwilling to use her knife-throwing skill, Dr. Metheny busy caring for Teddy, and Master Wilcom such a poor marksman, the odds were not in their favor. Lina still seemed confident they would prevail, but Bryte was far less convinced of that.

  CHAPTER TEN

  PLANS GO AWRY

  Lost in these concerns, Bryte somehow missed the sound of the front door opening. She heard heavy footsteps approaching.

  “Vee, where are you?” Rale’s rough voice shouted before she could call out a warning. “Get your lazy butt out here and help with the brats.”

  She had time only to position herself in front of the kitchen door before that door slammed open and Rale stepped inside and stopped short, taking in the scene. Light burst from Bryte. Rale backed from the room, blinking furiously, and his footsteps retreated toward the front of the house.

  “Oh, my!”

  Mistress Wilcom’s exclamation jolted Bryte into action. “Lina!” she shouted, her glow fading. “Master Wilcom! Hurry!”

  Lina dashed into the kitchen, water dripping from her hands. Master Wilcom entered moments later.

  “Arm yourselves!” Lina ordered, reminding Bryte of the miniaturized pistol she’d put into her pocket. She drew it out and offered it to Lina. “You can fix this and use it, can’t you?”

  Lina took it from her and answered her question by restoring it to normal size and holding it in a way that implied familiarity with the weapon. Nia availed herself of Mistress Wilcom’s rejected knife. Their guarded stances told Bryte they all expected to face an assault right there in the kitchen. But Bryte, fully alert and listening intently, heard Rale tell the accompanying guards, “Get these brats back to the mine. On the double! Something’s happened, and I don’t know where Vee or his mother are. We can’t take chances.”

  “They’re taking the orphans back to the mine,” Bryte said. “We’ve got to stop them before they get there.”

  “All the guards will be with the children. Without Teddy and the doctor, we’re badly outnumbered,” Nia pointed out.

  “We can catch up to them,” Lina stated, heading for the door. “They can’t move fast with the orphans.”

  “They’ll use the whips to make them run.” Nia said.

  From remembering her single day in the mine, Bryte wondered how many could run after a long day’s work, the abuse they suffered, and being half starved. She grabbed up the bullwhip that Dr. Metheny had claimed as a weapon, knowing that the doctor would remain by Teddy’s side. “We can run faster than they can,” she said. “Let’s go.”

  With an approving nod, Lina ran out. Bryte followed close behind. She heard Nia race after them and, hearing a fourth set of footsteps, glanced back to see Master Wilcom, pistol in hand, follow Nia. Mistress Wilcom stayed behind, calling out, “I’ll tend to dinner.”

  Once outside, Bryte caught up to Lina and ran beside her, with Nia almost on their heels. Ahead of them on the stony path to the mine she heard not only the pounding of multiple feet but the shouts and curses of the guards, both male and female. The crack of whips mingled with shrieks of children being driven to and past the limit of their endurance. Night was falling, and Bryte could scarcely see the path. Lina, with her exceptional night vision, sprinted on ahead, but moments later she stopped so abruptly that Bryte trod on her heels, nearly toppling her.

  Lina pointed to the side of the path, where a girl lay, crumpled and shaking. As Bryte bent to help the girl, Nia drew up beside her. “It’s Gretta,” she said. “She’s been ill. And look what they’ve done to her now.” Nia pointed to red streaks and gashes on the girl’s bony arms and blood seeping through the thin garment covering her shoulders.

  “Get her back to the house,” Lina said. “I’ll keep going.” She sped off leaving Bryte to wonder how they were going to carry the unconscious girl. That question was answered when Master Wilcom jogged up to them.

  “She needs the doctor’s help,” he said. “I’ll carry her. Thin as she is, she won’t weigh much.” He bent and gently gathered the girl into his arms. “I can manage. You two go on.”

  He turned and headed back toward the house. Bryte beckoned to Nia and the two raced on along the winding, stony path. They rounded a bend, and Bryte nearly fell over a young boy huddled in a dip in the path. He raised his head, eyes wide with terror until his gaze focused on Nia, who quickly bent and asked, “What happened, Ander?”

  “My ankle twisted,” he said. “I couldn’t run, so they shoved me down.”

  “He’s the youngest of the boys,” Nia told Bryte. “Shouldn’t I help him back to the
house?”

  “That just leaves Lina and me to deal with the guards,” Bryte said. “If he isn’t too badly hurt, maybe he can just wait here.”

  “No,” the boy begged. “I’m scared.”

  At that moment Lina strode toward them, a young girl in her arms. “This one fell, too,” she said. “The rest reached the mine. We’re too few to go in after them. We’ll have to go back and consider what our options are.”

  Bryte’s heart sank. Lina was right; they had no chance of getting the other children away from the armed guards, especially in the growing darkness. In the mine the darkness would be complete. But what would happen to the captive orphans, exhausted, hungry, and no doubt terrified?

  Lina must have guessed her thoughts. “We’ll find another way to reach the rest of the children. If we just dash in there with no plan, we’ll be slaughtered, and the orphans will never get free.”

  “But what if they sneak out during the night?”

  “Hmm, yes, they could well do that,” Lina mused. “We may have to keep watch. But I rather think they’ll stay in the mine. Where could they go where they could take the children? They’ve already lost three of them. That mine is their source of wealth, and they depend on the children to provide the free labor that makes it profitable. They’ll want to defend it.” Lina shifted the child in her arms as she walked briskly back toward the house.

  Bryte and Nia had to coax the little boy to his feet and help him along, she and Nia each taking hold of his arms as they tried to follow Lina. Master Wilcom had already disappeared in the distance. Night had fallen, and Bryte could hardly make out the borders of the path. Lina could see in the dark, a benefit derived from her panther alter ego. Nia probably could have walked it blindfolded, as familiar with it as she was. Bryte had neither advantage. If her gift-light would burst out from her, she’d have plenty of light but unfortunately it would blind her companions. Anyway, she couldn’t bring that light on demand. “Slow down a bit, can you?” she called to Lina, who was getting to far beyond them.

  “We need to get back quickly,” Lina said without slowing her pace. “The miners may well leave the children in the mine with a single guard and come to attack the house. They don’t know the Coopers are dead. They probably think we’re holding them prisoner, and they’ll want to try to free them.”

  Bryte hadn’t thought of that. She told Nia to go on to warn Dr. Metheny and the Wilcoms. She’d carry Ander and keep close behind Lina. When Nia started to object, Bryte gave her a push and said, “Go!” as she lifted the boy into her arms and forced her feet to move faster, praying that she wouldn’t stumble on the rough path.

  She did stumble a few times, but managed to stay on her feet each time and somehow keep going until, with a great sigh of relief, she saw the house looming directly before them. Lina dashed inside, and Bryte soon followed. Once inside the door, she set Ander down and followed the welcome aroma of stewed meat and vegetables emanating now from the table.

  “I’m hungry, Ander,” she said. “I’m guessing you are, too.”

  He nodded, and Bryte helped him along. His eyes widened as he limped into the dining room, where Lina had already seated the little girl she’d carried and was ladling a thick stew into her bowl.

  “Real food?” Ander stared, marveling.

  “Real food, and plenty of it,” Bryte affirmed. They’d prepared enough to feed all the orphans at least a bowl full, but now they had only these two little ones and the girl Master Wilcom had carried. Bryte didn’t see him or his young charge, but guessed Master Wilcom had taken her first to Doctor Metheny.

  Her guess proved correct. Shortly after she settled Ander into a chair, served up a bowl of stew, and set it in front of him, Nia came in and joined them at the table. Only moments later, Master Wilcom led the girl into the room.

  The girl ran to Nia. “I’ve been so worried about you and Cara,” she said. “None of us knew what happened after you and Cara and the new girl got away. What about Cara? Where is she?”

  “I’m fine, Gretta, and so is Cara,” Nia said, hugging her. “Cara is safe in town. She’s with the doctor’s wife. Now sit down with us and eat.”

  None of them had washed, but as hungry and tired as the three rescued orphans were, they disregarded dirty hands and faces—their own as well as the three they’d rescued--and they all dug into the stew with great enthusiasm.

  It wasn’t until she finished her first bowl of stew that Bryte asked Mistress Wilcom, who’d come in from the kitchen, “How’s Teddy?”

  “He’s awake. The doctor’s staying right with him. He got really upset when he discovered the loss of his lower arm and hand, but he’s calmer now. The doctor even got him to eat a few spoonfuls of stew.”

  Gretta looked up from her second bowl of stew. “Teddy lost his arm?” she asked, setting down her spoon and looking at Master Wilcom, her face etched with horror.

  Ander began to cry, and the little girl, whom Nia introduced as Alida, moaned and asked, “What happened to him?”

  Bryte was thinking how to explain to the younger children, when Lina spoke up. “He did a very brave thing. He lost his arm saving my life. Not only that, but because of his bravery, you will never need to fear Mother Cooper or her son again. They are gone forever.”

  Lina’s fervent declaration surprised Bryte. Her friend rarely displayed the sort of emotion Bryte heard in her voice.

  “Where is Teddy? Can we go see him?” Ander wanted to know.

  Mistress Wilcom shook her head. “You children can see him in the morning. He needs to sleep now, and so do you—after you’ve had baths.” She began gathering up the empty bowls.

  Gretta was not as easily satisfied with Lina’s answer as the little ones were. “How do you know Mother Cooper and her son are gone forever?” she demanded of Lina. “Are they dead?”

  “If they were, would you be sorry?” Lina asked.

  Gretta shook her head, the firm set of her jaw expressing defiance. “I’d be glad. I’ve been here long enough to see friends die from their cruelty. That’s why I’m so happy to see Nia again and know her little sister’s safe. I’ve been terribly worried about them.”

  “Lina and Bryte got us away safely. And Teddy—he helped,” Nia said, going to her friend and giving her another hug.

  “And we’re going to do all we can to rescue the others,” Lina declared. “Now you take Ander and Alida into Mother Cooper’s bath and help them get clean. Doctor Metheny will want to tend to your hurts before you go to bed, but you’ll need to bathe first. Don’t worry about what happened to the Coopers. Everything that was theirs is ours now.”

  Bryte figured that was Lina’s oblique way of answering Gretta’s question. She lacked Lina’s confidence. No, the Coopers wouldn’t be back, but did that really make everything that had been theirs now belong to the winners of the battle that cost them their lives? Not with a larger battle still to come. Until they had bested Rale and the other guards and safely rescued the rest of the orphans, they couldn’t claim victory. This house and everything in it, including the rescued orphans, could still be wrested from them. They had better be on guard.

  Lina helped Mistress Wilcom wash dishes and clean the kitchen, preferring that disagreeable task to helping the children get ready for bed. Bryte supervised the girls’ baths and found towels and sheets to wrap around them, while Master Wilcom did the same for Ander. Before getting them into bed, Doctor Metheny would tend to their wounds from the cruel whips as well as examining and wrapping Ander’s twisted ankle.

  Lina had tried and continued to try to hide the discomfort she felt around young children. She almost felt relieved that they hadn’t managed to rescue all the youngsters. What would she have done, how could she have coped with sixteen of them? She’d vowed to free the remaining captives, and she would do her best to keep that vow, but then what?

  They’d have to find homes for the orphans. She couldn’t take responsibility for them. It was not her nature to be nurturing. But i
f she didn’t take at least temporary responsibility for them, who would? Could she persuade the Wilcoms or the Methenys to serve as parents for the rescued children? They’d been willing to help get the orphans free of the cruel clutches of the Coopers and their accomplices, but the Wilcoms were, after all, here in Marquez for a vacation, and the Methenys had only been passing through on their way to the coast. Grateful as she was for their assistance, Lina feared that neither couple would want to change their travel plans to take care of sixteen orphans.

  That left her and Bryte, who was still a child herself. Though Bryte’s difficult childhood and harrowing experiences had matured her well beyond her actual age of thirteen, Lina doubted the girl’s readiness to take on the role of mother. Truth be told, Nia, at sixteen, was more suited for that role than Bryte.

  Bryte had proved a pleasant traveling companion, and Lina didn’t want to forgo her company. Lina had not lost her determination to travel on to her eventual destination. Although she hadn’t told Bryte what that destination was, the girl probably guessed that she intended to visit the shrine to Lady Kyla, for which Oryon had headed. Just to see if he really had gone there. Merely to satisfy her curiosity, she told herself.

  She and Oryon Brew had been classmates at the Lesley Simonton School for the Magically Gifted. They’d begun as enemies but become allies in the effort to stop a series of horrific murders in their last year in the school. In that effort Lina had first seen and had the opportunity to use a power net, a magical tool she’d been unfamiliar with until then but had found extremely useful. She hadn’t been able to keep the net she’d used then, but had heard she might find one in Tirbat, Arucadi’s capital city. Oryon decided to go to Tirbat to seek a government position there. What more natural then that they should travel there together? They’d become friends, but neither had obtained what they sought in Tirbat, and Oryon, badly shaken by what had happened there, had resolved to make a pilgrimage to the shrine of Lady Kyla in search of healing. So she and he had parted ways, and on hearing that a power net might be found in Marquez, Lina had set off with Bryte to search there for the coveted tool.