Josefine

Trixie

"Trixie?" Seffy called, out of breath, as she reached their cave.

"You good?" Trixie asked, pushing the curtain of vines aside. Her dark braid swung forward over her left shoulder, and she flicked it back briskly, irritated.

"Yeah, but I set off some alarms."

"How? You're always so careful."

"I'll tell you in a minute." Seffy grunted, heaving herself into the cave with Trixie's help.

Trixie helped Seffy load her goods into the safes and coolers, then bandaged up her hand by the light of a valuable LED bulb. The bloodied glass shards had taken a while to remove from her hand, and they hadn't even started on the glove. As they worked, Seffy regaled her cousin with her adventure.

"I thought I'd heard something down there," Trixie commented as she tucked the tail of the bandage under a fold. "But you haven't told me why you've got glass in your hand. So, tell me."

"Pass the bag," she replied. Trixie obliged. Seffy rummaged around in the base, then retrieved her quarry.

Trixie gasped. As Seffy handed one to her, Trixie's scarred, leathery palms caressed the cover in admiration. She glanced up, grinning. "It was worth it."

Seffy smiled, wincing as the action caused her half-healed split lip to break open again. "Good. I didn't get a chance to see what books I got. Wanna have a look?"

She thought Trixie couldn't get any more excited. She was wrong. The girl squealed delightedly, grabbing the other books and beginning to read. Her weathered face became childlike, much closer to her eleven years of age than to her usual appearance of an older woman. Her chapped lips formed silent words as she traced the titles with a grubby finger.