Heartbeat

Chapter 17- Clem

When Clem was born, Granny wanted to tattoo the Widow's 'W' on her immediately. Hattie argued against it. She said Clem had to earn her place in the Widows and demonstrate her value to the gang. By six, Clem had not yet achieved it by Hattie's standards, so she often looked like a stray child who was allowed to play independently.

Clem was six years old when she first discovered that she was a Corporalki. As a child, Clem was advised by Granny to try and play with all the children of the merchant class as often as possible. She would be dressed up and look like one of them to gather as much information as possible from them. Granny's ulterior motive was to give her experience with blending in with a higher class. Clem preferred to spend time with the orphaned and poverty-stricken of the Barrel. She would always try to split her time without Granny knowing. The Barrel kids attempted to intimidate Clem due to her fancy clothes, but Clem wasn't deterred by their roughness and found it amusing with a sense of familiarity.

On a hot summer day, Clem had lost track of time while playing with the kids in the Barrel and was running late. They had been playing in the water near the docks, and she appeared more dishevelled than usual, with her hair plastered in mud. Clem was a fast runner and headed to the Res to clean up before Granny saw her.

While she was preoccupied, thinking of an excuse to explain her tardiness, she was grabbed by two older men and a younger woman. She was immediately blindfolded, gagged, and thrown in a rough sack. Clem had been warned as early as she remembered that slavers would take children. But, at six, she could never truly comprehend the concept and always brushed off Granny's warnings about coming in late or running alone for too long.

Clem was frozen with fear in the bag, unsure if she should bother struggling, yelling, or wait to save her energy until she could run. Part of her mind thought Granny was possibly testing her or had sent someone out to get her because she had been late. She prayed Granny would pull her out of the bag, yell at her for being careless, and then tell her to get some food.

Clem had no idea how long she was in the sack. Feelings of panic creeping in, but she would force them down.

Granny will find me. Granny would never let anyone take me. Granny will find me. She can find anyone. No one would ever cross Granny. They're going to be so sorry for what they did. Clem repeated over and over to herself in her head. She tried to focus on their voices and what they were saying, but her panic was becoming louder than theirs.

Clem hit the ground, the rocking motion of being carried ending. She didn't move but could hear whimpers released from the back of her throat. The top of the bag was open, and the light made her eyes squint. Directly in her view was a very square, very old-faced man. Clem couldn't help but notice the size of his white bushy eyebrows; they seemed to reach his enormous moustache above his thin lips. He was smiling at her, and his teeth were stained orange from chewing jurda. Clem tried to back away, but he grabbed her shoulder.

"Why, hello, beautiful. Don't be afraid. You're safe now." Clem had never felt less safe in her life.

"Do you know Granny?" She asked. She had seen Granny with all types of people and couldn't give up hope that this was all part of something Granny wanted.

"Yes, I'm good friends with your Granny. I told her I needed help from a little girl, and she told me you would be perfect. She told me you would do everything I asked and that you would behave." An alarm rose in her chest. No one ever referred to Granny as 'your Granny.' No one was supposed to know she was her real Grandmother. Clem desperately wanted this man to be genuine, but it went against all her instincts. This is not right; I'm not ok. Clem knew it was the wrong thing to do, but she began to cry.

"Now, now, shhh shhh, we don't need none of that. Remember, you need to behave. I'll give you a candy if you behave." She could feel the grip he had on her shoulder tightened. Clem's eyes darted around the room, and she saw the three who had taken her were standing in the corner.