Red as the Dawn

Epilogue

Epilogue

(/Cal/)

"Mom, I can brush my own hair!" Mare argued, as she tried to pull away from her mother, who was feverishly trying to brush her hair. Her mom grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled her back, though, replying, "Enough of this, Gisa said you need to sit still and stop moving or else you'll tear the stitches."

"I can brush my hair with my other arm!" Mare cried in frustration, but her mother silenced her by pulling on an exceptionally bad knot. I snickered from my position on the other side of the room, where I was with Torin and Maggie, who were trying to play cards. It wasn't really working, considering the fact that Maggie didn't know what cards she had, and she couldn't see into my mind to see what she did have without cheating. Apparently it was against her moral code, at least, from what she had told us. So, she would hold it out to Mare, and I would see it, and then pretend that I hadn't.

"Do you have any twos?" Maggie asked as she dropped one of her cards on the table. Torin sighed in annoyance and replied, "For the last time Maggie, we aren't playing Go Fish."

"Fine, then I'll go fish on my own." She reached for the stack of cards and pulling one, put it in her hand. By now, she had a hand of seventeen cards and it was funny to see her try and hold onto all of them.

Gisa poked her head inside the tent, and as she carried in clean bandages, she glared at Mare. Apparently she had heard her mother outside, because she immediately admonished her older sister. "If you want to get better and get out of here quicker, you need to stop fighting, and do as you're told. Cal did come and tell me earlier today, that you tried to get out of bed."

Mare turned her furious eyes on me and mouthed, traitor. I smiled and gave her a wink before leaning back in my chair and asking Maggie, "Alright Maggie, do you have any sixes?"

Maggie leaped up from her chair in excitement, and almost tripped running over to Mare. She showed her cards and asked, "Are there any sixes?"

Mare sighed, but before she could reach up and grab the cards, her mom slapped her hand down and pulled them out of Maggie's hands and said, "You have two, darling."

Maggie bounced back to the table and shouted, "Now, I can go fish!"

"That's not even how Go Fish works!" Torin shouted, and Maggie stuck her tongue out at him in response. "I have two sixes, so I get to get two cards."

"No, that's not how it works! You have to give him your cards cause he asked."

"No! I get to go fish!"

"No, you don't!"

"Yes, I do!"

"Enough," I groaned, as I pushed the deck of cards toward Maggie, "She gets to go fish."

Maggie cheered and sticking her tongue out at Torin, again, she grabbed the last two cards in the deck. Throwing her cards in the air, she cheered, "I won!"

As the card rained down in a storm, Torin threw his cards down onto the table and grumbled, "Well, you always win when Cal plays with us."

The tent flaps opened again and I looked over to see Shade step in. Dressed in fatigues, he looked like he had finally gotten a good night of sleep. He looked around at the mess of cards on the floor, then at his sister, who looked like a cat getting a bath, and he raised his brow at the spectacle before turning to look at me. "Farley says she's demanding to speak with someone."

I sighed as I set my cards down, and went to get up. Torin took one look at them and then cried in disbelief, "Are you serious, you were bluffing the whole time?"