by Tara Brown
I hesitated, not wanting to actually hear the list of things I’d done wrong. We would have to go back very far. But she had bared her soul to me, so I sauntered over and slumped on the stoop too. The words came out with a bit of a struggle, but by the time I had reached the part about the river folk, the story had taken on a life of its own.
She laughed and cried with me as I explained exactly how well I knew her pain.
Little lost girl
Watching my mother sleep wasn't so bad. She was peaceful at least. Watching my father pace in the window as the sun came up was horrid. I could have sworn he’d aged since we arrived.
“Gwyn, can I see you?” Rodin peeked his head in the doorway. His beard almost made me smile. It was so large that I could see bits of his lunch in it.
I got up and followed him out into the hallway.
“You and your father need some sleep.”
I nodded, feeling the truth in his words. We had been taking turns with broken sleep in the chair next to Mom’s bed. “So much for not seeing me again, huh?”
He chuckled, stroking his beard and scratching. The bits of food fell out, slowly drifting to the floor. “I spoke with the council and your father’s trade is a highly sought after one. They have agreed you should have a house and he could start work immediately.”
I didn't know what to say so I said nothing.
He looked confused at my lack of gratitude maybe. “You could take your mother home to a house that would be hers and maybe that might perk her up.”
Still a bit lost on why they would do this for us, I cocked an eyebrow. “What do we have to do to get that?”
He wriggled his lips, processing my question. It made me think I was right to assume the worst until he spoke, “Your dad would need to work a regular schedule in the technological departments of our city. What would you expect to do for it?” He started to grin and by the blush on his cheeks I assumed he was about to ask me for the moon and stars. “I would be interested in one thing, if possible, but you could consider it a favor and not something you had to do.”
I grimaced, making him laugh. “I would appreciate a better opinion of me, thank you very much. I wouldn't ever ask for whatever is making you scowl and blush.” He shook his head and chuckled again. “Nan has a sister named—”
“Maria.”
He smiled wide just at the sound of her name.
I smiled back, unable to avoid it. “I will see what I can do.”
“Just maybe dinner or something where we are both at the same place at the same time. You could have a party to celebrate your father’s job and the house.”
My smile faded. “Why would we do that?”
He rolled his brown eyes and sighed. “You droids kill me.” He walked back down the hallway. “Tell your father to see me on his way out and I’ll get the person in charge of the housing to come and meet you at the house.”
I walked back inside, waving at my father as he continued to wear out the floor in front of the window. When he caught my wave he hurried over. “Did he say she would be all right?”
I nodded. “More than, I guess. He said that we were being given a house here in the city if you would agree to work in the tech trades here.”
“Of course, I would expect to have a job like any other citizen.” He scowled. “Why are they giving this to us?”
My eyes darted at the door behind him. “I think Rodin thinks Mom will do better in her own space, in her own house.”
His eyes lit up. “Of course she would. When can we go?”
“Now. We can go and get the house ready for Mom to come there this evening.”
He nodded, looking back at Mom’s door. “Okay, let’s do it now while she’s sleeping.”
I agreed and followed him down the hallway. He seemed fidgety and nervous about asking for something from strangers, but I knew once he was working it would be a similar life to the one we had left behind. Minus the manipulation of course. Rodin looked excited as Dad approached him, ready to talk about housing and a job so soon.
Michael walked to us as Rodin explained the offer to my dad. I excused myself and walked to Michael. “How is everyone?”
He shook his head. “Getting them settled and assigned jobs. Found Lisle, Clary, and Anna. So that was odd but incredible all at once.” He nudged me. “They asked about you.”
“I’ll have to come and see them. Where are they working and living?”
He rolled his eyes. “With the school teachers, obviously. They managed to round up a bunch of kids at the mines. Apparently, we rescued a whole horde of them. I didn't even notice. I was so frazzled by the task of getting them here. The women cared for them.”
I furrowed my brow. “Is there a girl named Angelina, about seven years old?”
He raised one eyebrow. “Do I look like a nurse maid?”
“Can you take me to them?” I didn't think there was a chance of finding her, especially not with the odds we’d been working with, but I followed him anyway. He hailed a horse-drawn carriage. We climbed up into it and rode across the city.
I grimaced and clutched to the side of the carriage for dear life. It felt unnatural to ride this way. The thing was rickety and shifty.
I finally started to breathe normally when we got to an area that felt small. The carriage slowed between the narrow streets and small homes. The buildings were little, dwarfed by what was in the center of the city. There were trees and flowers and bushes everywhere. The carriage stopped outside of a small house with a pretty garden.
Michael climbed out, stalking up to the door and banging on it.
I climbed down, with shaking legs, stepping off just as the driver took off.
Anna opened the door, instantly smiling when she saw me. I was still a memory for her. She ran at me with a face full of tears. I let her nearly climb me as she wrapped around me so tightly. She sobbed into my hair as I closed my eyes and smelled her.
I heard other shrieks and cries as the other women made their way into the yard and attacked me with love and sorrow at the same time.
Lisle dragged me inside of the house with the other two clinging to me. “How is Amber? Did she lose the baby?”
I choked. “What?”
Lisle paused, eyeing up the other two women. “The baby. She was with child when they came for us. She and Greg had just married.” Her voice broke again. “It was a wonderful wedding done in the old tradition.”
I bit my lip to the point I tasted blood.
Anna nodded. “It was lovely, Lisle has told us that often. Then they came, Greg—” she stopped short. “I am so sorry about Greg. He died trying to save us. He tried to save Amber.” Her eyes lowered, sending a flood of tears down her cheeks.
Lisle nodded at Anna and Clary. “We have been working on making memories a lot.” She changed the subject but my mind stayed on the mention of Amber and the baby. I nodded, not even realizing Anna and Clary shouldn't know anything like weddings or how Greg died.
Lisle sighed. “They separated us at the slave camp. I went with Anna and Clary to the mines to work with the coal and Amber was taken somewhere else.”
“Was she showing?” Michael asked looking rather grim.
Lisle shook her head.
Fear ripped through me. She had died carrying my brother’s baby inside of her. “I never found her. Her or Brooke.”
Lisle winced. “The girl you had been seeking from the beginning?”
“Yes.”
Lisle looked sad for me, or with me. “I am so sorry, Gwyn. I know how hard you searched for her. I don't even know how to say sorry the right way for a moment like this one. Your brother and Amber and the baby. It’s so terrible.”
Michael slapped me on the shoulder. “At least we are here. At least a few of us made it.”
I wanted to stab him in the eye but Anna lifted a hand. “Where is Lyle?”
“Lyle is missing with another friend. His cousin Bran and another couple friends are dead. The city is
burning as we speak. Everyone has their memories back but they have revolted and are attacking.”
Lisle sat down with a thump on the chair next to her while Anna and Clary both started to cry softly.
“The superior engineers are dead then?” Lisle gave me a blank stare, clearly stunned by my news.
“Yes. They are all dead.”
“Good God,” she muttered and I realized it was a saying from the kingdom.
“How is the king? Did he escape?” I asked.
Lisle nodded. “He and his family got out. They are here. Devastated, obviously.”
“The slave city is burned to the ground. There will be no revenge this time. Lyle burned their city to the rocks it was built on. When I left it was nothing but rubble.”
She smiled savagely. “Good. I hope they all died slowly, taking whatever sickness was inside of them too.”
I nodded, agreeing completely. I hadn’t ever wished an entire people dead before, but for them I would make an exception.
“Can you stay?” Anna asked in her soft voice.
“No. My mother is ill and my father is starting to work here so we have to move into our house. I came to see if you had a girl named Angelina in your group of kids from the slavers.”
All three shook their heads. I knew it was a lost cause. No one was going to live through this.
“When will we see you again?”
I smiled at Clary. “Soon. I will come see you when we are settled in.” I hugged each of them again, as did Michael.
“Thank you for coming for us, both of you.”
I nodded at Michael. “It was his idea.”
His cheeks brightened and for a second I could have sworn he gave Anna a bit of a look. She returned the stare and I walked to the door to provide them with the moment they needed. “Did Helena make it out of the kingdom?”
Lisle shook her head.
I winced. “Everything is such a mess. I wish I hadn’t left the kingdom.”
Lyle hugged me gently. “You did the right thing. You would have died trying to save everyone. It is a shame we don't know the Angelina girl. Who was she?”
I shrugged. “A lost cause, like the rest of us.”
Lisle swatted me softly. “You know that's not true.”
“I do.” I sighed, feeling the strain of my defeat. “She was a girl who was simple. She couldn't talk or anything but she was a sweet kid. Seven or maybe eight by now. She was taken a few months ago from here.”
Clary paused. “The girl who’s mute?”
My eyes widened. “You knew her?”
Lisle smiled wide. “Know her. We call her Butterfly—she’s always finding them. Or they’re finding her rather.”
My insides tightened. “You sure?”
“Yes. Green eyes, sweet smile. Always upbeat, even in the mines. She found something to smile about every day.”
Clary laughed. “Yes, we adored her. We made certain she got out with us. She’s at the healers for children, in a room. She won’t talk so the doctors are looking her over. They think she might be even more traumatized by the escape.”
“Where is that?”
Lisle grabbed my hand and tugged me from the front door. “Not far from here. All the teachers live here, near the schools. The children’s healers are close to the school in case of injury at school.” She dragged me down the path and onto the wide road. We ran a few blocks before she turned up the next street. When we got to a small building she turned and ran inside. We huffed and puffed as she explained the situation to the lady at the front of the building. She hurried us down the hall. When we got to the room my insides swelled. The little girl with the dark-blonde hair and green eyes was staring, not speaking. She seemed so forlorn until I spoke, “Angelina? I know Nan. Do you want to go home?”
Her lips lifted into an instant smile. The dark circles under her eyes made her look weak and sickly. I walked to her bedside and sat down, taking liberties like I knew her. “Do you want to go see Nan and Maria?”
She nodded.
“You know this girl?” a man asked from the doorway.
I nodded. “Sort of. I have heard many good things about her.” I offered her my hand and helped her from the bed.
“You can’t just take her like that.”
I gave the man a look. “She’s been missing for months. How anxious would you be to see your child again?”
He opened his mouth but closed it again. Lisle smiled wide. “Come on, Butterfly.”
We walked out of the healers building and headed for the street to get a carriage to the adult healers building. I didn't know how else to get back to Nan’s house.
The carriage ride across the city was less intense this time. I was focused on the angelic face of the child across from me, and how she stared into the sky peacefully, instead of being scared of me. It was as if she just trusted everything would work out.
When we walked her through the front doors of the building, Rodin paused, tilting his head to the side. “Angelina?”
She ran to him, hugging him tightly.
He wrapped his arms around her, giving me a look. “How?”
“It’s a long story.” I shrugged. “Why don't you send someone to get her sisters?”
He guided her back to the sitting area, looking her over and asking her questions. She answered with nods and head shakes. She understood everything, she just didn't talk.
I watched as he made her smile.
When Nan and Maria arrived they screamed, hugging her. A man and woman came in moments later, each panicking with excitement. Angelina was hugged until she was nearly blue in the face. They looked her over, hugging and smiling and crying. Nan never left the small girl’s feet. She knelt there, holding tight and sobbing silently.
It was a treasure to watch. I was jealous and excited and angry all at once.
I couldn't help but wonder why not me too? Why didn't I have any of the people I had lost?
His Highness and a new house
The king gave me a look of sympathy. “You are a brave girl rescuing my people like that.”
I shook my head, wishing my father had come with me but he had insisted on staying at the house to make certain Mom felt at home there. It was a lovely home with furniture, linens, and dishes already there for us. We walked in and lived. It was remarkable.
The city had it set up so that every house belonged to the city and was used for the workers in the area. Teachers lived close to the schools. Technologies workers lived close to the city council building. It meant we were close to Nan, Maria, and Angelina and their parents.
“Your brother was an amazing man. I am so sorry for your loss. But you should rest well knowing he is with the Lord. He was baptized in the sacred lake and had taken the Lord as his savior and shepherd.” His words did not give me comfort. Nothing did.
He took a large bite of the sandwich on his plate and spoke with a mouthful of food. “We are going to start rebuilding as soon as we are all finished with the plan.”
My eyes lifted. “You mean to rebuild there?”
He nodded. “It is a sacred place to us. We had our cathedral built on sacred land. It was a holy city.”
I didn't know what to say. I didn't understand the value of a holy city, and I was starting to see that of the outside world, I knew very little.
“I wish for you to come back with me to the kingdom. I believe Lyle meant for you to live there with him.” His eyes glistened with emotion. He truly was a good man. “Did you really mean to marry my nephew?”
I nodded. Remembering how excited Lyle and I had been when we found the kingdom. I was amazed we had found such a beautiful place full of kind, accommodating people. Especially after having lived with the river folk. Not that they weren’t kind and accommodating in their way. I wished every moment of my life that we had just stayed there. Bran died in the city anyway. We never changed a single thing.
“I have heard reports that one of The Last City of Men is in some trouble.
Fires and other attacks have been reported.”
I didn't know what to say so I said the only thing I imagined might be acceptable. “The people are becoming aware of who they are and who the engineers and planners are.”
His eyes narrowed and he leaned forward on the table. “And who are they?”
“Free people.”
He cracked a grin and sat back again. “Good for them.” He folded his arms over his belly and smiled warmly. “Thank you for coming to see me.”
I stood, realizing I was being dismissed. “It was lovely to see you, your highness.”
“Again, I am sorry for your losses. Lyle and Greg were two men I will miss all of my life.”
I still refused to accept Lyle’s death the way everyone else seemed to have. I refused it in ever way. I knew, deep down, that I would have felt his death, even if we had been on opposite sides of the earth. I would have known he had left me there. But I hadn’t felt it, which meant he was alive.
“I will wait for your answer.” He smiled softly, squishing his chubby cheeks up into his eyes and making them squinty and small.
I nodded once, not sure what I would do. I didn't see the kingdom as a possibility for me until I found Lyle. I knew I couldn't live there without him.
I walked out of the inn where the king was staying with his family and shivered as the air had grown cold outside. Nan was waiting for me on the street. She had refused to see the fool king. She didn't understand him or his religion but she always misunderstood in a judgmental sort of way.
She flicked a cigar on the cobblestone and stepped on it; the twig she smoked with the sweet smell in its smoke. I had tried smoking it once but was certain I was dying. The appeal of smoking was lost on me.
“What did his holy fatness have to say?”
I tried not to laugh at her rude joke but it was impossible. “He would like me to consider going to the kingdom when it’s rebuilt.”
“They’re rebuilding?”