Eden

52

Grateful, I take the cup, and sip, and doing that gives me a moment to calm down. The water-seller smiles at me, encouragingly, as if she approves of what I'm trying to do. I don't know if she actually does, but her smile is enough. I feel braver. I feel ready to talk. Everyone is waiting for me, but I make myself not notice that, because if I do notice I might get too scared to speak again. So instead, I just speak. Quickly, before I can lose my confidence again.

"I just wanted to ask," I say. "With the punishment or sentence or whatever it is..."

I stop. Everyone is looking at me. I hesitate. I swallow.

Everyone waits for a moment, for me to keep going, but I don't. I'm silent. And we all wait. Then, still not exactly impatiently, the speech-making man says, "What of it?"

"Well," I say. "Um. You said that if no-one speaks up for her then she gets executed or put in the river?"

People nod. A few near me say, "Yes, that's right." Someone else, behind them, shouts, "And we need to get on with it, too." A few people laugh at that, but I ignore them. The speech-making man keeps looking at me, as if waiting, as if trying to tell me to keep talking.

So I do. "Um," I say. "So this woman. She'll be executed if no-one speaks up for her, but not if someone does? Is that right?"

The speech-making man looks at me for a moment. His face is expressionless, and I'm not sure what he's thinking.

"Is that right?" I say again. I'm so nervous I just blurt it out.

The speech-making man nods slowly. "That's right. This is the law."

I take a breath. I try to think. I try to make sure I know what I'm doing. Around me, the crowd are watching, curious, and waiting. Some are asking each other who I am, and why the execution is being delayed.