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CORA
“Cora! Save me!”
I’m throwing open the curtains to let some morning light in when Matt comes rushing into the room. Beth is chasing after him, her eyes bright with fury. “Not fair!! You give it back!”
He throws himself behind me and sticks his tongue out, dodging her swipes as she tries to get around me. He’s got that naughty grin on his face, the one that indicates he’s gotten into trouble. “What’s not fair? It was mine anyway!”
“It was the last one and Laura gave it to me!”
I stoop to stop them from tearing each other’s hair out. “Now, just hold on a minute. What’s this about?”
“He took the last blueberry muffin,” she protests with a huff, stamping her foot indignantly. “Laura said it was mine.”
I glance at Matt, who seems to be hiding something behind his back. With a wry smile I open my hand in expectation. “Give it.”
His smile drops into a gape. “No way!”
“I wasn’t asking,” I say, urging him to produce the pastry. “You know you’re supposed to share it with your sister.”
They both groan. “But he took two last night!”
“Not true,” he retorts.
“Is so.”
It goes on like that until I silence them with a wave. “Enough of this. Mattie, give me the muffin. And Beth, that’s enough hollering. We’ll get it sorted.” Matt finally hands me the pastry, mashed by his tight little grip. I issue a muted sigh. “Now, this won’t do.”
They’re both staring at the pastry with longing. I don’t blame them. Blueberries are terribly hard to come by on Protheka, and especially here, around the work camps. Still, I have a bag on ice and a secretive smile comes over me. “Why don’t we make some more?”
That instantly brightens their moods. “You mean it?”
I nod. “Why not? We’ve been working hard. I think we deserve a reward, after all. And we’ll make enough food for the whole camp. You both can help.”
They cheer and jump about the living room, their excitement devolving into a pillow fight that makes them tumble into a giggling fit. I’m glad they can still find joy in this place. I want to keep it alive as long as I can before they’re forced to work like the rest of us.
Laura, my one and only blood sister, stands in the doorway, drying her hands.
She’s watching the kids mutely, a strange look passing over her face. When I speak, she seems to startle back into reality. “So, I was thinking we could do something nice for everyone.” Her gray eyes home in on me in surprise as I continue. “What do you say?
“Let’s cook a feast for tonight.”
A smile flickers, disappearing as quickly as it comes. “That sounds lovely.”
The kids split their mushed muffin as we wander over to the open kitchens of the camp, Laura drifting behind us, looking to the sky. I look too, noticing a heavy weight over the southern horizon. It’s a beautiful morning, but that storm threatens to overtake the endless blue sky. I wonder, silently, what it means for us.
But I put it to the back of my mind. We’ve got work to do, and I’m not going to let a little rain get in the way of our fun. I roll up my sleeves and instruct the children to their tasks. “Mattie, get me the flour. Beth, you know where the sugar is, right?”
Affirmatives all around.
Laura drifts to the meat racks and starts preparing her own dish. She’s been unusually quiet this morning, and her silent acquiescence is a little off compared to her usual gumption. But the unwavering enthusiasm is my modus operandi. Otherwise, we’re just slaves to the dark elves, and I refuse to live like that.
I want to be an example for others. I want to show them that they may own our bodies, but our spirits are ours, alone. No one can take them away from us. “Beth, get me the whisk and I’ll show you how to mix the batter properly.”
“I want to learn, too!” comes Matt’s complaint, right on cue.
“Don’t worry,” I say with a laugh. “I’ll teach you, next.”
