In Between

Chapter Sixteen: The Turnip Lady

Thankfully, Gilda chose not to make a scene in the middle of the Black Market. Instead, she grabbed Apryl and Bri by the wrists and began quickly dragging them along the road. Don't discuss your true origins out loud, she scolded.

I'm sorry, that was a bad idea, Apryl answered.

Oh, so you can mind-speak...interesting, Gilda thought as the group carefully made their way through the worst of the crowd.

"Where are you taking us?" Kieran asked nervously. He was falling behind and looking more confused than ever. Draven and Mel stuck to his sides, shooting identical looks of distrust at Gilda. Apryl wondered where they were going as well. It seemed like Gilda was drawing them farther and farther away from all of the shops and people—soon there was barely anyone left on the road.

"I don't want to risk us being overheard by the wrong ears, but I'm interested in knowing how you Outsiders came to be in our world," Gilda answered, "so I'm taking you to my home where we can discuss this privately."

"Wait a minute," Draven cut in. "You're walking away from the village. Nobody even lives out here. We're almost at the boundary."

"I like to think that I'm a nobody, and I don't live in the village. My husband and I built a home away from all of the other houses. We liked our privacy," Gilda explained.

"Um, if you don't mind my asking, was your husband taken into the Dark Forest? I think I heard a rumor about him," Kieran said, careful not to look her in the eye.

Gilda stopped walking and turned slowly to face him. Apryl could see the sadness in her eyes as plain as she could see the wrinkles on her face.

"Hmm, so word made it all the way to the upper-class citizens? That's quite a surprise. Who told you about him?" she asked calmly.

"My driver, Lyon. Is it true that you actually saw the person who took him?"

"That's sounds awful!" Apryl squealed sympathetically.

"It's true. Although, I'm convinced it was no normal person. I witnessed the whole thing, but all I saw was the shadow of a man as it came out of my house with my husband in its arms. I will never forget how he screamed as it dragged him into the trees," Gilda said quietly.

"This happened at your house?" Draven asked, apparently unfazed by the story.

"Yes."

"And you live beside the Dark Forest?"

"Yes."

"Then why are you taking us there? Doesn't that seem a little dangerous? That is, of course, if you're even telling the truth," Draven said skeptically. Gilda eyed him with another patronizing respect-your-elders look, and Apryl swore that he was almost properly ashamed.

"I suppose I'll leave the decision up to you. Follow at your own risk," Gilda responded. She turned and continued walking even when the road ended. Apryl followed, completely unhesitant, which prompted the others to do so as well. After a few minutes of walking through scratchy, half-dead weeds, a large wooden fence came into view that spanned the length of the surrounding field. Once Gilda reached it, everyone paused to look around; there were no people, no houses, and luckily, no shadowy monsters.

"We walked through a stupid field full of sharp weeds that put rips in my pants, and there's nothing here? You're crazy, lady," Bri complained, crossing her arms.

Apryl tried not to smile at how down-to-earth Bri looked with her salon-styled nails chipped, and her less than perfect hair. This is good for her—spending time with a clean face and no material comforts for once. I think she could be happy here if she tried, Apryl thought absently.