Craft (19 page)

“Any time, baby girl,” Momma said.
“Now tell me about this whole kidnapping thing. I’m dying to know
how my baby girl got away from the mean, old Coopers.”

Ellie hesitated. Her hands tightened
on the book her momma had given her. She did not know what to say.
Telling her momma a lie felt different from telling Neveah one to
keep from getting a beating. She always shared her dreams and her
hopes with her momma. Momma was the only one who ever encouraged
such daring ideas of travel and adventure. She encouraged Ellie to
think beyond the world she had known.

Telling Momma in front of the others
was not an option. They would hold the truth against her. When
Momma was gone again, there would be hell to pay for her honesty.
They would punish her for the lie. Too, her momma, despite her long
absences from the family, was still a Bumbalow by marriage. Some
habits died hard, no matter the distance and time a person put
between them. Momma would not be pleased to learn Ellie had spent
two days with a Cooper without trying to hurt him. Such things were
not done.

Decided that a lie was the only way to
go, Ellie told a story of her kidnapping, adding small, true
details to make it seem believable she had been kidnapped against
her will. When she was done with her story, she left the house so
that the others could badmouth the Coopers. Her momma was indignant
over the Coppers’ brazen act of kidnapping and, for once, Momma and
Neveah did not argue. A kidnap was not something the Bumbalows
could easily ignore. They would have to make sure the Coopers
learned their place.

Ellie went to her shack as they
focused on insulting the Coopers. Ellie was not interested in
joining in on that particular conversation, not when she was facing
such confusing emotions about Thane and his whole family. She would
not be able to hide her sincere emotions from Momma.

Ellie’s departure did not go as
unnoticed as it would have on most days.

Ellie was not long in her shack when
she heard Momma call her name from outside. The call was out of
respect for Ellie’s personal space. Momma could have parted the
vines if she wanted to. She was one of the few. Ellie stood and
crafted the vines out of the way obligingly. Momma walked inside.
She was the only other person beside Thane to see the interior. She
looked around Ellie’s sanctuary with pride at her daughter’s craft.
The furniture reflected Ellie’s skill at forming things out of
nothing. The books reflected her affection for her
momma.

A smile on her face, Momma crafted a
large chair to sit on. When she sat, Caw called out in confusion to
Ellie. The bird was sitting on a pile of books above Ellie’s head.
Momma’s confidence and similarity to Ellie perplexed him. He did
not understand where she had come from. Ellie touched him on the
beak, to calm him, and whispered words of comfort. She urged him to
be still. She was not sure how Momma would take Caw. Momma was not
mad at the craft, however. She was not Neveah.

“Did you craft him?” Momma
asked.

“Yeah,” Ellie agreed.

“He’s beautiful,” Momma
said.

“Thanks,” Ellie said.

Momma looked around the heaps of books
again and at the candles stacked around wherever there was room.
Finally, she focused on her daughter, who looked nervous and
relieved at the same time. Ellie was worried the truth would come
out, and she was not sure if she wanted to face it. She was happy
to see her momma, but she was still wound up. Her adventure was too
fresh for her to be completely normal and relaxed.

“What aren’t you telling me?” Momma
asked.

Ellie started fidgeting. Her Momma’s
eyes took in every awkward shift.

“What do you mean?” Ellie
asked.

“I know when you’re bothered, baby
girl. It’s in my blood to know,” Momma said.

“I’m afraid you won’t like it,” Ellie
admitted.

“The Coopers didn’t really kidnap you,
did they?” Momma asked.

Ellie was surprised at her momma’s
guess. No one else had assumed she was capable enough to run away
on her own. No one thought she was capable enough to make it to
town without the aid of the others. She did not say anything,
afraid her admission would mean punishment. Momma was not thinking
along the lines of punishment. She knew a person had to see the
world some.

“I would be disappointed if you didn’t
sneak out now and then. It’s your right…I snuck off to town more
than my share. I just don’t want you to get mixed up in things that
could get you killed. The feud has a way of killing off the
dreamers,” Momma said.

“Like Daddy, you mean?” Ellie
asked.

“Yes, like Daddy,” Momma agreed
sadly.

“I…”

Ellie fidgeted some more. She could
not hold in the truth. It had to come out. “I saw where he died,”
Ellie admitted. “The bear is gone. It’s gonna be an office or
something.”

Momma sighed. “Everything changes
eventually.”

“Not the feud,” Ellie said.

“No, not that,” Momma said.

“Momma…why was Daddy in town that day?
Why was he there? No one ever said,” Ellie said.

Seeing where he had died made her
realize how deep inside of Cooper territory he had gone. He was too
far in for it to be an accident. He had to have had a reason. Was
he there looking for a Cooper to kill? Ellie had only recently
discovered that her family was not as innocent as she would have
cared to believe. They searched out the violence as much as the
Coopers did. Would the truth of her father’s death be different
with the perspective she had gained? Could she face the idea that
her father was as violent as Neveah?

Momma did not answer right away. She
was lost in the past. The question was not easy for her to answer.
She was not sure if Ellie was ready for the truth. She knew,
however, that Ellie would not have asked unless she needed to know.
Momma trusted her daughter that much.

“He was supposed to meet someone
there,” Momma said. “He didn’t tell me who. He just said that he
had a way of making our daughters’ future better than ours could
ever be. I think he thought he could singlehandedly end the
feud.”

“So, he wasn’t there looking to pay
someone back for bloodshed?” Ellie asked.

Momma shook her head. “Things were
different when your father was alive. We protected our end of
things, but we didn’t go looking for a fight. Your sister…your
sister is different.”

Ellie breathed a sigh of relief at her
momma’s words. She had worried her father was not the man she had
thought him to be. She had worried he was more like Neveah. Her
momma always told her that he was a good man but Neveah and Careen
acted as if he had not existed. It was difficult to reconcile the
two ways of treating his memory.

Another thought came to mind. With
town, she had started something she could not stop. There was a
feeling in her heart, to go wherever the road took her. She wanted
to escape the feud. If she went with her momma, she would feel
safe. She would be protected. Neveah would not come looking for
her. No one would get hurt because of her adventure. She could
leave without there being repercussions. The words sprung to
Ellie’s lips before she had time to think about them.

“Momma, why can’t I come with you when
you leave? I promise I won’t be a hassle. I’ll do my end of
crafting and keep things tidy wherever we go,” Ellie said. “I’m
quiet and keep to myself and won’t slow you down. I
swear.”

“Oh, baby girl. I love you more than
air, but you can’t come along with me. It makes things too
complicated. Besides, the road is no place for a girl like
you.”

Ellie’s expression fell. She had
expected her momma to say something along those lines. Momma never
agreed to take Ellie along when she left. She never explained her
reasons. She just let the ‘no’ speak for her. Ellie had hoped that
her momma would see her as more than a girl who needed to beware a
dangerous situation. She had hoped seeing town might prove to her
momma that she could take care of herself on the road. Of all
people, she had hoped her momma would see the change. The
disappointment rocked her to her core.

Ellie was the only one who really
understood the changes that had taken place. She would be stuck at
the house with those changes eating away at her forever. The idea
sent shivers down her spine. She had never felt so
trapped.

Momma shook off the darkness of their
conversation, unwilling to let her brief stay be tainted by the no.
She smiled at Ellie, her face transforming with the
smile.

“Let’s go on a walk, baby girl, and
you can tell me about your adventures,” Momma said.

“Okay…” Ellie agreed.

Caw hopped onto Ellie’s shoulder, and
Ellie and her Momma left the shack together to take their walk.
They walked along the road, away from the house and from Neveah,
who had gone back to talking with the grandparents.

Ellie told her story, knowing Momma
wanted details. She explained about her time in the woods, the men
with rifles, and her joy at seeing the ocean for the first time.
The only thing she left out was the fact that she had become
friendly with a Cooper. If her momma knew about the lie Ellie was
keeping – that she had not made the journey alone – she did not
mention it. Momma listened in silence, occasionally making comments
about the area, asking if Ellie saw certain buildings and
landmarks, but otherwise allowing Ellie to share her
story.

Ellie found that telling her momma
about her adventures made the confliction of good and bad in the
world she had discovered feel easier to resolve. The actions were
simply part of the adventure, part of the story she had to tell and
nothing more. What she had gone through was not so confusing. As
she told her story, she realized it was okay to feel the way she
did about Thane. Their adventure had linked them in a way she could
not change. Thane was different from the rest of the Coopers. It
was okay to remember him fondly. His help in her adventure made it
okay.

By dusk, it was time for Momma to
leave. She did not tell Ellie about her impending absence but Ellie
knew the truth. Momma never stayed past dusk. She never stayed
longer than a day. Her wandering nature would not allow
it.

Ellie had never felt so sorry to see
her go. This time it was not simply because there were no chores
and no bullying from Neveah when her momma was around. Momma was
the only person who understood the adventure Ellie had gone on.
Someone in her family had heard her story.

Neveah and Careen watched with Ellie
as Momma walked down the road and out of sight. Momma turned to
wave once before the road curved out of sight. Careen and Ellie
waved back. Neveah maintained her frown. She did not wave; she did
not act as if she even saw Momma. Momma smiled, then focused on the
road ahead. In the next breath, she was gone. It took all of
Ellie’s willpower to not chase after her and beg to go along.
Momma’s answer had not changed. Neveah’s expression hardened when
Momma was gone. She turned to Ellie.

“You didn’t do your chores,” Neveah
said to Ellie. “I think for that, you get to clean out the
basement. If it’s not done by morning, I’ll give you the worst
beating of your life.”

Ellie turned away from Neveah without
answering her threat or acknowledging her angry bitterness. Seeing
her momma leave had put Ellie in a bad mood. It always did. Dealing
with Neveah was always twice as hard after Momma was gone. Ellie
did not want to get in trouble for speaking her mind. It would just
cause problems she was not equipped to deal with after the
circumstances of the day.

Neveah’s eyes narrowed as Ellie
silently turned away. Neveah waved a hand and applied her craft.
Ellie stumbled and fell over the invisible rope stretched out
before her. She hit the ground hard. Careen laughed once as Ellie
pushed off the ground to stand again. The front of Ellie’s dress
was ripped at the bottom. Her knees and arms were covered in the
gravel of the driveway, and she had skinned her knees and hands
during the fall.

Ellie looked at her bloody palms for a
brief second then glared up at Neveah. She felt as if she had never
hated anyone more, not even a Cooper. Careen stopped laughing at
the look, sensing trouble. Neveah had not laughed at Ellie’s fall.
She was too eager for Ellie to retaliate in a stupid way. She
wanted a real reason to punish Ellie.

“You’re a bully,” Ellie said. “The
only time you’re happy is when you’re making others feel as bad as
you do.”

Neveah’s face hardened and an angry
fire burned in the depth of her eyes. Ellie had never dared speak
the truth so pointedly before. Her anger had made her brave.
Neveah’s hand lashed out and she slapped Ellie on the face. The hit
was hard. Neveah put the whole weight of her arm behind it. Ellie’s
eyes filled with tears at the slap. She clutched at her cheek in
surprise. The pain was intense. The whole side of her face burned
with a tingling fire. She felt blood in her mouth.

“Don’t you dare talk to me like that!”
Neveah demanded.

Ellie looked up at Neveah. Her anger
boiled over. She wanted to yell back, to give as much as she got.
She wanted to hit Neveah or use her craft. She felt her craft move
around her body. It whispered of the coming violence. It was the
first time Ellie had felt so out of control. Her craft was moving
without her command. She would hurt someone. The fear of losing
control was the only thing that kept her from forcing powerful
craft on her sister’s head. Ellie did not want craft she could not
control. Neveah did not know how close Ellie came to attacking her.
All she saw was Ellie’s pain.