Page 11 of Einar

ROWAN

Fullydressedin clothesIfound in discreet cubbies in the bathroom,Iexit the room.Rubyjerks at the sound the door makes and peers at me from where she’s sitting.Thedrone of the television fills the room, eliminating the oppressive silence.Concernis clearly visible on her face.Iknow my face is swollen fromRobert’slast session and the extended crying jag did me no favors.I’msureIlook like hammered dog shit.Notthat there is really anythingIcan do about it right now.

Ihear theTVclick off asIturn down the covers on my bed.I’veno more than settled myself when the overhead light cuts off and the comforting warmth ofRuby’sbody slides in next to me.Shepulls me into the curve of her body as she starts humming the song mom used to sing to us before bed.

Evenwith the comfort of my sister’s body and the bolstering sound of her humming,Istill can’t relax.Myanxiety keeps my entire form taut with tension and it’s a long, long time beforeIfall asleep.Thelast thingIremember before nodding off is the quiet hitch ofRuby’schest as she cries into my hair.

Knockingwakes me.

Terrorshoots through my body asIjerk awake.

He’sfound me!

Myheart feels like it’s going to pound out of my chest, it’s beating so hard and fast.

“Girls, it’s just me,Edith.Ihave your breakfast.”

Thesound of the older woman’s voice is a balm across my fractured mind.Ican feel the rigid tension slowly easing from my body asIhearRubywhisper and talking to herself as usual. “Damn,Imust have overslept.Hell,Idon’t even remember the alarm going off …”

Shecalls out toEdith, “Sorry,Edith!Giveme a second, andI’llget the door.”

Inotice her sideways glance at me, butI’mstill too dazed to fully acknowledge it.Thedread ofRobertfinding me hasn’t had time to leave my body.Itmust look worse than it feels because her next words are nothing but reassuring.

“Hey, look at me.It’sok.I’llcheck the door beforeIlet her in.”

Rubyhops out of bed and immediately stumbles when her feet hit the ground before making her way over to the door.Peeringover the edge of the bed,Isee the culprit.Rubykicked some of the covers off the bed just like she used to do when we were little.

Iwatch as she checks the peephole in the door prior to opening it.Edith’snext words drift through the door. “Ruby,Ican leave this here if it’s a bad time.”

Rubyflips all the locks on the door and eases it open slightly.Justenough that the door could be considered cracked, not actually open.Squintingthrough the sliver of light beaming in,Ican barely make out the figure standing on the other side.Thankfully, it is the older womanRubytalked to last night in the lobby.She’sstanding there patiently, as if she’s got all the time in the world to wait on us to answer the door.

Assuredthere isn’t an active threat at the door,Iease out of bed and make my way over to the bathroom, leaving the door open soIcan hear what’s going on out in the main room.Thesounds of their voices float across the room asI’mtending to my morning ablutions.

“It’sfine girls.There’sno one here right now, and the few that were here last night have already checked out.Ihave some instructions fromJanetthatIneed to give you two before you take off.”

Somethingstrikes me as a bit odd in her demeanor, and then it hits me.Sheisn’t looking around furtively at all; she’s basically talking to a mostly shut door.

Thatisn’t suspicious at all.

“Please, forgive my manners,Edith.IpromiseIwas raised better than this.It’smy first time being on the run, soI’mstill trying to figure out how to think like a criminal.Ishould have watched a few more documentaries.”

Leaveit toRuby, of all people, to apologize to the older lady for any perceived rudeness.Nomatter the extenuating circumstances.

“Youdo need to be cautious, dear.Youshould know thatI’vebeen watching all the local news channels, and they haven’t reported either of you missing yet.That’sa good thing because it gives us more time to get you to safety.Let’ssettle in the kitchen and talk for a bit.Ruby, we’ll wait until your sister joins us, that wayI’mnot telling you guys this twice”

AtEdith’swords,Iturn the sink off and dry my hands, making sure my sweatshirt is completely covering me beforeIwalk back into the main room.It’sbad enough thatIhave to look at my injuries,Isure as heck don’t need anyone else seeing that shit.

IseeEdithshoot me a poignant look before looking back atRubyand note the almost imperceptible shake of my sister’s head.

Great.

Avoidingfurther eye contact,Iwalk over to the table and sit down.Shortlyafter my butt hits the seat,Ihear someone approach before softly spoken words register andIrealizeEdithis talking to me.

“MayIhave a look, dear?”

Indecisionfills me andIshoot a somewhat desperate look over at my sister before meetingEdith’sknowing gaze.Hernext words are even more gentle than her earlier question. “Iwon’t touch anything but your face.Weneed to see if anything is broken, honey.”

Takinga deep breath,Ipull my hood down and close my eyes, tilting my head up soEdithcan take a closer look.Thefirst whisper of contact along my jaw makes me flinch, no matter that it’s light as a feather.Herfingers glide from my jaw up to my cheek and across my nose to the other cheek.Ican feel a hint of a touch at the cut in my eyebrow, then down at my busted lips.

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