The Sisters of Reckoning

by Charlotte Nicole Davis

  “—but,” she continued, swallowing. “I’m asking you to try, hear? Just … give me a little more time to figure this out. It’s … this … is new to me.”

  She withdrew her hand, smiling, relieved when Eli smiled back, crinkling up the corners of his eyes.

  “All right,” he conceded. “But I still don’t like Derrick.”

  Aster glanced over her shoulder to where he was still waiting several yards away, swinging an old piece of wood around like a bo staff in his boredom, slashing at unseen assailants. Aster rolled her eyes, even as a certain affection for him rose up in her. It was not the same as what she felt for Eli, but the strength of it surprised her.

  “No,” she allowed with a sigh. “But we need him.”

  * * *

  The next day, one of the Scorpion scouts returned with a copy of the morning newspaper. In it was the list of demands they had left for the law to find. Aster and her friends gathered around excitedly to see their words written large.

  TO MR. JERROD MCCLENNON:

  WE SPEAK FOR THE WOMEN AND GIRLS YOU HAVE SILENCED. WE BURNED DOWN YOUR WELCOME HOUSE. WE BURNED DOWN YOUR GAMBLING HALL. AND NOW WE HAVE TAKEN YOUR LAST LIVING HEIR CAPTIVE. IF YOU WISH TO SEE DERRICK MCCLENNON AGAIN, LISTEN WELL TO OUR DEMANDS AND LET THEM BE KNOWN TO THE PEOPLE:

  YOU WILL CEASE BUSINESS AT ALL WELCOME HOUSES IMMEDIATELY

  YOU WILL PAY ALL GOOD LUCK GIRLS FOR THEIR STOLEN LABOR

  YOU WILL FORGIVE ALL OUTSTANDING DUSTBLOOD DEBTS

  YOU HAVE ONE WEEK TO ISSUE A PUBLIC RESPONSE. THE TIME HAS COME AT LAST FOR THE PEOPLE IN POWER TO PAY WHAT THEY OWE.

  SIGNED,

  THE RECKONERS

  “Do you think they’ll cave?” Tansy asked, clutching her collar anxiously as she scanned the page.

  “I sure as hell hope so,” Aster muttered. She had thought it would make her feel better, seeing it all in ink, but instead, it just made the pit of anxiety in her stomach grow heavier.

  There was no turning back now.

  “It’s a good sign they published this—that means they’ve already done one thing we asked,” Zee pointed out.

  Derrick shook his head once, gnawing at his thumbnail. “If they’ve published this it’s because they think it’ll be advantageous to them somehow. They’ll want the public to know so that they may turn them against you, offer rewards for information and such.”

  Derrick always seemed so certain things were going to get worse before they got better. Aster refused to believe that. She had to have hope.

  “So … what are we supposed to do if they don’t cave, then?” Mallow asked, looking around the circle. “Send them one of Derrick’s fingers? Or?”

  Derrick blanched.

  “No, they’ll give in,” Aster insisted. “We just have to wait.”

  And so wait they did. The week passed at a crawl, Aster and the others checking the papers every day for McClennon’s response. As tense as things had been with the Scorpions when Aster had first asked them for help, she could sense a shift in the air among them now. They seemed to take pride in the part they’d played in bringing the landmasters down a peg, in embarrassing a man like McClennon on such a large scale. There was a feeling that they were all in this together now. Every day the scouts would let them know what the folks in town were saying, tripping over their own words in their excitement.

  “I heard it was a bunch of escaped convicts from the Scorchbrush mines—that’s where they keep the worst criminals. The animals—”

  “No, it’s the Nine Nations. They’ve been planning this for years. Another war to undo what the Empire did—”

  “McClennon and them need to do something, even if that means negotiating with these bastards. I got family in one of his mining camps. I don’t want them getting hit, too.”

  “Attacking our hardworking lawmen who put their life on the line? For the sake of a bunch of Luckers? What kind of morally depraved—”

  And on and on. Aster didn’t know how to feel about what she was hearing.

  “The wrong people are scared,” she said in frustration to Violet halfway through the week over a distracted game of cards. “I’m not out to hurt regular folks. We were so careful about that. It’s only the lawmen and raveners and brags I have an issue with.”

  In the back of her mind was the fear that Derrick had been right about this whole thing after all, and they had already ruined any chance of success by turning the masses against them.

  “Look, Aster, lawmen are regular folks,” Violet said with a sigh. “So are most brags. And so were the raveners, before they became what they are. And even if the landmasters aren’t, a lot of regular folks look up to them. They see an attack on a landmaster as an attack on their own dreams for themselves. So of course they’re going to take it personally when you threaten to take that dream away.”

  Aster scowled. “So what are you saying we do?”

  “I’m not saying we do anything,” Violet said. “I’m just saying—it’s impossible to try to change things like this without making some ‘regular folks’ upset. And that’s okay. It’s not as if they cared when we were the ones suffering.”

  Aster was silent, chewing her lip as she looked over her hand. It seemed like every move she made would be a losing one.

  “I just don’t want to lose myself, Vi,” she said quietly. “Sometimes I feel like I am. Everyone’s counting on me, but … what if they shouldn’t?”

  Violet’s smile faded. “Of course they should. I can’t think of anyone better equipped to lead a group like this. You’re the only one who could’ve gotten all of us to Lady Ghost—and that’s just the truth.”

  “I didn’t save all of us. I couldn’t save you,” Aster said quietly.

  “Don’t start. You did the right thing in leaving me behind. It’s what I wanted. And I know you don’t believe in this shit, but maybe it was meant to be. How else would we have ever gotten to work with Derrick?”

  Aster tried to take the words to heart, but she still couldn’t.

  “You’re not the only one I’ve let down, though,” she said. “I betrayed the Lady Ghosts’ trust when I left them. I almost lost the alliance with the Scorpions—”

  “So you’ve made some mistakes. We all do. The dead know I have. At least you were acting on others’ behalf. Most of us are just out for ourselves,” Violet said dryly. “Look, at the end of the day, no leader is ever going to be able to please everyone. You just do the best you can with the circumstances you’re given. Sometimes there are no easy choices, Aster.”

  Sometimes there are no easy choices … if that wasn’t a summary of her life so far, Aster didn’t know what was.

  Aster sighed. “I reckon you’re right.”

  “I always am. You just don’t listen, is your problem,” Violet said, in that maddening tone she sometimes took. “And now I’m telling you to listen to me again: you have nothing to feel guilty about, Aster. The laws of this land are evil. The welcome houses, the raveners, the Reckoning—evil. But your fighting against all that isn’t. It’s self-defense. Someone hits you, you have a right to hit them back.”

  Aster sighed again, setting her cards down. “All right, all right, I’ll let it go.”

  “You just trust me: McClennon’s going to make a deal with us before the sun sets tomorrow. I can feel it.”

  In the end, though, it wasn’t until the very last day of the week that they received the McClennons’ response.

  Aster and her friends had gotten into a routine of waiting for the scout in the meeting hall every evening after supper, and with each passing day, more and more curious Scorpions and hotfoots waited with them. Aster felt the weight of their expectation like a stone on her chest, growing heavier every time the scout greeted them with an apologetic shake of his head as he handed her another evening edition without an official response. By the last day, the pressure was so immense that she could scarcely breathe. The meeting hall was filled with raucous, excited chatter, but it felt so distant A
ster might as well have been underwater. What would she say to these people if McClennon hadn’t given them a response by this deadline? Or if, the dead forbid, his response was no? What the hell was their next move supposed to be? How could she possibly—

  “Here he comes,” Clementine said excitedly, grabbing Aster’s arm. The doors to the main hall swung open, and everyone turned as one to stare at the triumphant figure in the doorway.

  “Front page!” the scout cried breathlessly. “Jerrod McClennon’s response. It’s right here.”

  “Well don’t keep us waiting, you fool! What did he say?” Sam demanded.

  “I didn’t read it yet. I wanted to let you all be the first.” The scout ran towards them, avoiding the eager hands that grabbed for the rolled-up newspaper in his grip. By now the noise in the room was deafening, and for the first time that day, Aster allowed herself to hope, the excitement sweeping up through her stomach and pulling a smile to her face. It was with a shaking hand that she grabbed the newspaper from the messenger.

  “Go on, read it out loud!” someone demanded.

  “Yes, let’s hear it!”

  “We all have a right to know!”

  “Only if you all shut up first!” Sam ordered, holding his hands up for quiet, and within moments the roar fell to a murmur. Aster nodded at him in thanks, that loose smile still hanging uncertainly on her face, and took a moment to meet the eyes of the rest of her friends, too. Not just the Good Luck Girls. Sam and Eli, Cutter and Zee, Derrick … everyone had risked their lives to bring them to this moment. All of them looked back at Aster with excitement and encouragement. Feeling steadied, she unfolded the newspaper and considered the bold, black headline, reading the words aloud for all to hear.

  TO THE GOOD PEOPLE OF ARKETTA:

  AS A BUSINESS MAN, AS A FAMILY MAN, AND AS A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ARKETTAN STATE AND A CANDIDATE FOR ITS GOVERNANCY, I, JERROD MCCLENNON, DECLARE THAT MY ANSWER TO THE DEMANDS OF THESE “RECKONERS” IS NO.

  Aster swallowed, cold dread sinking into her stomach at the words, but forced herself to continue in a strong, clear voice.

  OURS IS A NATION OF MEN BORN OF STEEL AND STONE. NOT KINGS, NOT EMPERORS, BUT COMMON MEN WHO BUILT ARKETTA FROM THE GROUND UP THROUGH THEIR HONEST WORK ALONE.

  BUT THE DUSTBLOODS KNOW NOTHING OF HONEST WORK. IT IS IN THEIR VERY NATURE TO LIE, TO STEAL, TO KILL FOR THEIR FORTUNE. THEY MUST BE KEPT IN LINE BY A FIRM HAND, AND WHEN MET INSTEAD WITH A SOFT HEART, THEY WILL NOT HESITATE TO STOP IT WITH A BLADE OR BULLET.

  AND SO IT SHOULD COME AS NO SURPRISE THAT A NUMBER OF THEM HAVE RISEN UP AGAINST US NOW: THEY HAVE BEEN IN A STATE OF UNREST FOR MONTHS, REBELLING AGAINST THE REDEMPTION OFFERED BY THEIR WORK, AND RATHER THAN MEET THIS CHALLENGE WITH THE BRUTALITY THEY UNDERSTAND, WE HAVE SHOWN THEM A TOLERANCE THEY DO NOT DESERVE.

  SO, NO, I WILL NOT BOW TO THE WILL OF COWARDS WHO WOULD USE VIOLENCE AND TERROR TO CONTROL US.

  I WILL NOT SHUT DOWN OUR FAMILY’S WELCOME HOUSES, WHICH KEEP THE DUSTBLOOD POPULATION UNDER CONTROL AND PROVIDE THEIR WOMEN WITH NECESSARY WORK.

  I WILL NOT PAY THESE WOMEN, WHO ALREADY ENJOY MORE WEALTH AND COMFORT THAN MANY HARDWORKING FAIRBLOOD FAMILIES.

  AND I WILL NOT FORGIVE THESE WOMEN THEIR DEBTS TO SOCIETY, AS THEY MUST EARN THEIR FREEDOM JUST AS THE REST OF US HAVE.

  THESE “RECKONERS” THREATEN MY NEPHEW’S LIFE, BUT IT IS FOR LOVE OF HIM THAT I DO THIS: HE WILL NOT BE FREE—NONE OF US WILL EVER BE FREE—UNTIL THE DUSTBLOOD THREAT IS DEALT WITH.

  THE LANDMASTERS’ GUILD IS UNITED IN THIS. AND SINCE THE RECKONERS HAVE FOCUSED THEIR ATTENTION ON OUR WELCOME HOUSES, OUR RESPONSE TO THEM IS THIS: THE PROPOSED LAW LOWERING THE AGE OF SUNDOWN GIRLS TO THIRTEEN IN NORTHROCK WILL NOW BE TAKEN NATIONWIDE. FURTHERMORE, EVERY DUSTBLOOD FAMILY WILL NOW BE REQUIRED TO SEND THEIR FIRSTBORN DAUGHTER TO A WELCOME HOUSE. NEVER HAS THE STRUCTURE AND CONTROL THESE SPACES PROVIDE, OR OUR COMBINED EFFORTS TO PROTECT THEM, BEEN MORE NECESSARY.

  AND AS FOR THE RECKONERS THEMSELVES: DO NOT WORRY, FELLOW CITIZENS. WE WILL FIND THEM, WE WILL CAPTURE THEM, AND WE WILL SEE THEM EXECUTED. FOR WE ARE MEN BORN OF STONE AND STEEL—AND WE DO NOT YIELD.

  SIGNED,

  THE LANDMASTERS’ GUILD COUNCIL:

  JERROD MCCLENNON

  DENNIS BOYLE

  LEONARD SULLIVAN

  SYLAS CAIN

  ANTHONY HARKER

  COLIN HARKER

  19

  Aster knew she needed to remain strong for the others, but in those wretched moments after she finished reading McClennon’s response, it was all she could do to keep the tears from falling from her eyes.

  Clementine did cry, curling into Zee’s arms and stifling her sobs in his neck. Mallow’s jaw was tight with fury, Tansy’s face pale with shock. Raven swore, a dark expression descending over her eyes as she turned away from them all, Sam reaching for her shoulder to comfort her. And Derrick and Eli both turned to Aster, desperate and helpless, like lost children. Violet reached for her, Aster’s name forming on her lips, but Aster could not bring herself to face any of them. She threw the newspaper down and ran from the meeting hall, closing herself in her cabin and crumpling onto the bed.

  How could he …

  Aster could scarcely control her growing anger at McClennon’s words. His hypocrisy. He was the coward who had built his fortune off of blood and deceit. He was the animal who used violence and fear to control others. They had just been trying to stop him.

  And now, as a reward for their efforts, he was going to pass a law that—

  Aster coughed around a sob. She had felt this before, this pure, white hatred that would drive her to madness if she let it. She had always been careful, for her own sake, not to give in to it. She knew such uncontrolled anger would only make it that much harder to focus on the work that needed to be done.

  But how the hell was anyone supposed to remain calm in the face of something like this?

  Clementine entered the cabin then, with Zee and his little sister Emily behind her. Aster wiped away her tears, struggling to mask her emotions before the others could see her.

  “Dawn, please—you don’t have to pretend for me. By the Veil, I’m so sorry,” Clementine cried, hurrying to Aster’s side and wrapping her in a hug. Her own face was still wet with streaks of tears. “I don’t understand how this happened. I really thought he was going to back down.”

  “He was never going to back down,” Aster muttered darkly. “I was a fool to think he would.”

  “You weren’t a fool, Aster. You had hope. Can’t any of us get anything done without hope,” Zee said, helping Emily into her bunk.

  “Why is she crying?” Emily asked, worry crinkling a line between her brows.

  “She just got some sad news, is all,” Zee explained gently.

  Emily’s expression smoothed with understanding. “Like when you told me about Papa.”

  “Yes.”

  Aster felt her anger melt into a sorrow so cold and heavy it almost made her sick. What kind of world were they leaving for Emily? For all the little girls who would now grow up in a country where every family had to sacrifice a daughter to the welcome houses, and every welcome house started sundown work at thirteen?

  All Aster had wanted to do was help them, and instead she had made things worse than she ever could have imagined.

  No, she thought desperately.

  I do not accept this.

  Aster swallowed, holding Clementine tighter as she forced herself to find her resolve. They could not give up now. They could not let this stand. McClennon had escalated this conflict beyond all recognition—they would simply have to do the same. If he wanted to blame and punish the entire dustblood population, then it was the entire dustblood population he would have to answer to. They outnumbered him, and he knew it. Why else would he be so desperate to destroy them?

  Aster pulled away from Clementine, standing, pacing the room as her plan gathered speed. “We need to call on our allies,” she said quietly.

  Zee looked up from tuc
king in his sister. “Which allies?” he asked.

  “All of them.”

  * * *

  The next day Aster gathered her friends in the meeting hall, steeled by cold calm. She sat at the head of the table, reading their faces as best she could. It didn’t seem as if any of them had slept any better than she had last night, but neither did they look defeated, not yet. They were too angry for that.

  Good.

  Violet sat at Aster’s right hand, Derrick just beyond her. He leaned across her to whisper to Aster as the others took their seats.

  “Aster, I’ve been up all night with this. I don’t even know where to begin. I’m so sorry—”

  Aster met his eyes and shook her head once. She knew he meant well, but if she acknowledged him, then she would only feel the need to soothe his guilt, and she did not have the time or energy for that. Jerrod McClennon was more evil than even she had thought, and that wasn’t Derrick’s fault, but still … even just seeing the resemblance in his face was difficult today.

  Sam sat at Aster’s left side, with Eli next to him. The glare Eli shot across the table at Derrick could have cut steel, but Derrick seemed too wretched to notice.

  “So, what now, boss?” Raven asked Aster with a heavy sigh once everyone had settled in. “Do we strike back? Or do we retreat?”

  “We strike back, obviously,” Eli said, leaning forward. He looked to his brother for support. “It’s bad enough they kidnapped our ancestors and dragged them over to these cursed mountains. Now they want to kidnap a bunch of little girls, too? No.”

  Aster scowled. The welcome house system had always been a form of kidnapping, as far as she was concerned. It didn’t matter that the families were paid, or that they’d been given a “choice”—girls were still taken away, locked up, and never seen again. The problem was not that a just thing had been made unjust, the problem was that the unjust thing was now going to affect everyone else.

  “I wouldn’t be too hasty,” Derrick cautioned. “Something has to be done, of course, but maybe we ought to consider our strategy.”