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IV • or rats' feet over broken glass in our dry cellar

CHAPTER FOUR

O R R A T S ' F E E T O V E R B R O K E N G L A S S I N O U R D R Y C E L L A R

The cellar was silent on the day that the girl would escape. She had been jolted out of a dream by Esperanza accidentally kicking her in her sleep, and the girl was grateful that she did not have to finish the nightmare that she had been trapped in. She could not remember exactly what had occurred in her sleep-induced prison, but nightmares and reality seemed to blur together.

The air was stagnant and heavy, as if the atmosphere was holding its breath in anticipation. The girl could not blame it; her stomach felt knotted together from either anxiety or hunger, she could not tell. The girl remained lying on the floor, keeping her breaths shallow and even to feign sleep. Her hand was trapped in Esperanza's tight grip, but she did not mind.

Drew's plan was clear enough, but the girl had long ago abandoned hope; the idea of escape was foreign and far too good to be true. The girl would not believe it until she watched this damned cellar burn to the ground. But freedom was close, that much she could feel.

Seven days had passed since Drew presented the plan to the girl, and she had long ago committed it to memory. Drew would escort her and Esperanza out of the cellar while Dolos was meeting with Willow, and just like that, they would walk out of there. If anything went awry, Drew would be adorned with enough weapons for the three of them, despite the girl's constant protest that she did not know how to fight (Drew had merely winked at her, and told her that she did). The girl was not completely confident in the plan, but Drew had told it to her with a contagious sense of confidence that the girl could not help but believe that it work.

But the girl had her own plan, a backup plan if it looked like they would remain trapped here. She would steal one of Drew's weapons and slit her own throat before they would drag her back into the cellar. All failed escape attempts were tortured then killed; the girl was merely doing it on her own terms, with her own dignity. Esperanza was small enough that she might be able to escape undetected, but the girl was not going to spend another night inside this cellar.

Esperanza stirred, then woke up suddenly. The girl blinked down at the young child, and allowed the ghost of a smile to creep onto her face. She held a finger to her lips and blinked three times, which was their coded greeting. One blink for no, two for yes, three for hello, four for I don't know, five for stop. Esperanza grinned, and blinked thrice in return.

Silence was not necessary, but the girl would prefer if no one was aware of their presence. So much hung on them being stealthy today that they could not afford to be clumsy with their words. Esperanza frowned slightly and extracted her hand from the girl's only to return it to the girl's arm. Gently avoiding the freshest scars, she began to trace words onto the girl's arm. Esperanza repeated the action twice before the girl understood.

Are we leaving today?

The girl turned to Esperanza and blinked twice. The wide-eyed child grinned and traced the word good. The girl could not help but agree, and she fought the urge to ruffle Esperanza's hair (the motion was too obvious and would attract even the smallest bit of attention).

There was no way to tell the time, but Drew had told them to be ready early. The girl hoped that they were awake early enough for Drew not to abandon them. The girl kept her gaze latched on the door while her hand stroked through Esperanza's brittle hair, silently taking stock of all the other occupants of the cellar.

Though they had been down here together for awhile, the girl had only spoken to a handful of the other prisoners. Most had been her pleading for them to tell her anything, and they had all ignored her. Their eyes had been hollow and void of any life, even when she screamed at them. The day she had woken up down here was her most painful memory. She had woken up and could not remember her name, anyone from her life, not even a vague idea as to where she was. She had woken up with no memories and under Dolos' blade. He had been in the middle of a sentence when the girl had woken up, and he was confused by her reaction, as if she should have been accustomed to torture at that point.