The Book of Glass

Waektown (8)

"That must be it." Emory pointed upwards of the vineyard rows, where a large wooden wall protruded among the edge of the forest. The logs stood high by at least two or three grown humans, but there were no visible signs of entrance. "Seems welcoming."

"How do we get in?" Ingrid strained to see a door or gateway of some sort, but couldn't find any.

Shay perked up. Demetrius had mentioned a hidden passage. It was for any famers in the vineyard who were too tired to walk back to their own village. They didn't want the entrance to be too obvious, because they didn't have enough money to pay patrolmen to watch out for raiders. "I know the way in. Don't worry, though, we won't have to walk around the wall to find the entrance."

The women continued to walk through the vineyard, pulling Barley along with them, until the perfectly lined rows of trees and vines came to an end. Grass sprouted from the ground, returning to the lush carpet they were used to. Waektown, much like their own village, was surrounded by trees and foliage. The undergrowth among the trees was unbelievable, and the sunlight that peaked through the leaves of the trees cast golden shapes upon all of the flowers and plants below. Birds chirped cheerfully, as if welcoming them to the walled-in place. It was here that Barley finally stopped walking and bent down to eat.

"Just lay low. Back home we don't get many raiders, but Waektown is different," Shay said quietly as she looked around the forest once more. "I just don't understand why. What separates our village from theirs?"

"Well to start, it's just that. We're a small village. Farmers without much money. From what I've heard, Waektown deals with all kinds of trading and travelers passing through. It makes sense that raiders would follow the money." Emory picked a flower as she strode through the field between them and the wall. "I remember Zekiel bringing me here once when I was a kid, but we took the real way, then."

Ingrid looked over, her throat catching. Then, she turned away and kept her eyes down. Her heart sank at the sight of her friend. Shay spoke up as she grabbed Emory's hand with her own. A small squeeze was enough to make the pressure in Emory's chest lessen. She held Shay's hand gratefully.

"There it is." Shay nodded to a sign on the wall.

NO TRESPASSING

"That's how we get in?" Ingrid rose an eyebrow, casting doubt. "I think we may as well take the main entrance. Besides, we have a horse. If we're supposed to crawl through a hole, we're going to have to leave him here. And we can't afford that."

"Just wait."

Shay moved up to the sign, before grabbing the bottom and lifting it up to reveal a chute. Reaching down to her bag, she grabbed a bottle wrapped in cloth. "Wine makes the best currency in this part of Eden, apparently." Dropping it into the chute, the girls waited to hear glass breaking or any sign that their bribe had been delivered. After a minute, the wall beside Shay shifted, and locks could be heard moving around.

A square door wide enough for three men swung open to reveal a few young men with bow and arrows pointed straight at them. One of them dropped their aim upon seeing they were women, and accidentally let the arrow fly into the ground. His once fair face turned a deep red.

The men beside him sighed, dropping their aim as well. "Get in. Quickly."

"Our horse is eating, we'll have to grab him." Shay spoke up and the men all looked to her before one of them glanced to Barley in the distance. "Frederick. Retrieve their horse."

The red faced boy handed another man his weapon before jogging out to Barley.

Ingrid was the first to walk in, with Emory trailing behind her, and pulling Shay inside the wall. "You three don't look like farmers. Why come this way?" The one who had ordered Fredrick to grab Barley put his weapon away and crossed his arms. "We don't want anyone bringing trouble."