A curious mixture of relief and panic replaced the bleak resolve that had gripped Karla from the moment I glimpsed her at the Reapers’ den. I caught her eye and she graced me with a fleeting smile. But there was work to be done.
She peeled away at the unusually tight knots enclosing her sister while I focused my will on the stalk, unwinding it partially and then snapping it off completely. The entire pod fell to the floor of the tunnel, bounced and split open, unfolding like a flower.
There, in the center of the bloom, looking back at us with a sullen, sleepy expression, was a girl with honey, blonde hair, waves of it sweeping out, framing her face like a corona. She was curled up in a fetal position, reluctant to move.
And then suddenly, she sprang up, her stunned surprise snapping into pure rage. She
“How did you find me? This was my own special place! My private hideaway.”
“It is not special and it is not only for you,” said Karla, seizing her sister’s hand, and tugging her upwards, like she was trying to get her sibling out of bed and ready for school on a Monday.
“It was mine. Nobody bothered me here. Until now.” Her fierce eyes panned the faces surrounding her. “Who are all these strange people?”
“They are my friends. Now come. We need to go.”
“Go away! You’ve spoiled everything, La.”
“Oh, get over yourself. You need to come with us.”
There was a flopping sound, down-tunnel and another blast of wind.
“What was that?” said Isobel.
“It is why you need to come.” She dragged her sister out of the pod and hauled her to her feet. “We cannot play around.”
“Gah! I have no clothes!”
Lille offered Isobel her shawl, which she promptly wrapped around her waist. Isobel saw her sister’s hand come to rest on my shoulder. Her eyes flicked wide. She looked at me and glared.
“Who is this boy?”
“He is my friend, James,” said Karla, “Now come.”
“You have a boyfriend? Does Papa know? Where did you get … did he give you that ring?”
Karla ignored her, her gaze gone soft. “Shish! Listen!”
The tunnel went almost completely dark, apart from a faint emerald glow brushing parts of the walls, like the afterglow from a luminescent toy. The wind reversed direction as if something was sucking all the air back the other way.
“There’s something here,” whispered Bern. “And it’s damn big.”
“It’s about time,” said the freckled woman, with a wry smile. “I’ve been waiting a long time for this.”
