Kingdom of Cages(78)

Chena nodded miserably. “It had to be something you sent with us. There isn’t anybody else who could have got us in trouble.” Except almost with the hacker-tailor, but I turned him down and Sadia wouldn’t…

Every part of Chena froze solid for a moment. No. He disappeared her father. Sadia wouldn’t…

Unless she thought it would keep her close to him. Unless she thought she could get something out of him.

Unless he offered to tell her what happened to her father.

“Mmm…” Nan Elle nodded. “You seem to have hit on some reason yourself.”

“I…” Chena swallowed and stumbled backward. “I have to go.…”

“Chena Trust.” Nan Elle stood. Chena stared. The old woman seemed to have shriveled, as if something had been taken out of her. “If you’re in trouble, Chena…” She walked slowly forward and laid her wrinkled palm onto Chena’s hand. “If you ever need help getting… away, you use my name—Elle Stepka. You say I am your grandmother. I will help you, and your sister, if you ever need it.”

Chena pulled away, rubbing her hand, as if she thought Nan Elle had left something behind.

“Thanks,” she muttered, retreating toward the door.

“I’m sorry, Chena Trust.” Nan Elle hunched even further in on herself. “This was not my doing. This is the way things sometimes are on this world.”

“Yeah.” Chena’s fumbling hand found the doorknob and she escaped into the daylight. She bit her lip hard and started running again, back to the cop’s house. She had to tell him what happened wasn’t Sadia’s fault. She would tell him about the hacker-tailor. It was his fault, whatever had happened. Sadia had been bullied or bribed. It wasn’t her fault.

But when she got there, the cop’s house was dark and no one answered when she pounded on the door.

Chena stared at the blank wooden door and felt her mind go numb. Where had they gone? Where was Mom? Where was Sadia? What should she do?

What do I do?

But her mind was so full, so frightened, there was no room in it for new ideas or plans. All on its own, her body turned around and trudged her back home. Chena walked into the empty house and sat down on one of the pillows. She stared at the table waiting, but for what, she wasn’t really sure.

Eventually, though, her knees got stiff and her mind got bored. She stood up, drank some water she poured from the pitcher by the stove, sliced up some bread for lunch, and poked at the beans soaking in the bowl of water by the stove to see if they were soft enough to start cooking yet.

She had the beans gently boiling and had just tossed in a handful of salt when Mom came in, with Teal in tow.

Mom took in the situation at a glance.

“Thank you, Chena, for starting lunch. We’re going to need it.” She closed the door behind them. “We’re moving again.”

Chena couldn’t say anything. She just bowed her head.

“Back to the dorm?” asked Teal. “It’s the rent, right?”

“No,” said Mom, sinking down to one of the pillows. “There have been some complications. We’re not going to be able to stay in Off-shoot.” She ran her hand over the table, pausing to trace the nails that she and Teal had put in. “We’re going to the hothouse. I’m going to take their offer.”

Chena bit her lip. It’s not my fault, she thought desperately. I didn’t do anything. I had permission to be out there. It can’t be my fault.

Teal spoke the words Chena could not. “You’re going to have a baby for them? You said you wouldn’t do that.”

Mom nodded. “I know.” Her eyes were shining.

No. Chena took a step forward. Don’t cry. You can’t cry. This isn’t my fault.

“Sometimes we have to do things we don’t want to do.” Mom didn’t look at them. She looked at her fingertips as they traced circles around a crooked nail. “Sometimes we even have to do things we said we never would.”

“But why?” Teal cried. She stood with her hands balled into fists. “I don’t want to go. I was just getting used to it here.”

“None of us want to go,” said Mom. “But we can’t stay. They are asking for too much.”

“Why?” Teal stomped her foot. “What happened? I’m sick of all this stuff going on and I don’t know why!”

Teal, shut up. Just shut up, Chena, frozen in place by guilt and fear, thought fiercely at her sister. I’ll tell you all about it later, I promise. Just shut up now.

There was a splash and a hiss. Chena jerked her head around. The beans were boiling furiously, the water slopping over onto the stove. Chena snatched up a rag to use as a hot pad and grabbed the pot off the burner, but she moved too fast and caught her toe on the hearth corner and stumbled, sending boiling water and squishy beans spilling in a huge wave across the floor.