James Somers: The Realm Shift

A signpost appeared on the road ahead. “A town!” Ethan reported.

Elspeth had seen the sign, but hoped to ignore it.

“Please, Elspeth, may we at least see if any soldiers are there? I’m hungry too.”

It was a bad idea. Elspeth felt her own belly grumble its complaint. She had taken very little water for herself, trying to keep most of it for Ethan. However, she couldn’t go much further without sustenance. “All right, we’ll leave the road and then come upon the town,” she said. “But if I see any sign of soldiers, we leave immediately. Is that clear?”

Ethan nodded enthusiastically.

The signpost read, Grandee, as they entered the town. Fortunately, there wasn’t a soldier in sight. “Come on,” Elspeth said, leading their way out of the woods.

Grandee was larger than most of the small villages and towns she and Ethan had come upon in their journey. People hurried to market through busy streets. Here and there, gentlemen and ladies wore fine clothing-pretty colors that reminded Elspeth of the homemade dresses her mother used to make for her.

She held Ethan’s hand as they kept to the side of the street. Elspeth could not bring herself to look the people in the eyes, but she felt their stares just the same. Despite her efforts to wash their clothes in creeks and ponds along the way, they had become stained and torn. Her nightgown bore grass, mud, leaves and the occasional insect. She realized the two of them were a sight. It made her want to cry, but she didn’t.

“Look over there,” Ethan said. He broke loose from Elspeth’s grip and shot across the earthen road.

A team of horses whinnied wildly. “Ethan, No!” Elspeth cried.

The driver pulled the wagon up short, stopping his animals just shy of running Ethan down. “What are you doin, boy?” the driver said, hopping down from his seat. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?” His voice bellowed, and Ethan froze before him like a hypnotized frog.

The man grabbed Ethan’s arm, pulling so hard the boy’s feet began to leave the ground. Elspeth ran up to them. “Please, I’m sorry, sir. My little brother got away from me.”

The man looked at her with one eyebrow cocked. “You two aren’t from Grandee. What are you doing here?” he asked.

“We’ve traveled very far and have no food or water, sir,” Elspeth said. She felt ashamed, but hunger and thirst forced her confession.

The man looked around. Other wagons drove by them in the street. For all of the commotion, very few people appeared interested in what had happened. “I suppose you want a handout-some of my hard earned money to line your pockets?”

Elspeth bowed her head. “No, sir. I wouldn’t ask you for money, but if you only had some water, I would be very grateful for your kindness.”

The man sighed and eased up on Ethan’s arm, but did not let go of him. “Can you cook, girl?”

Elspeth lifted her eyes. “Cook? Oh yes, I can-very well. My mother taught me.”

“And where are your parents?” he asked.

“Dead, sir.”

He stood silent, contemplating for a moment as the traffic broke around them. “I’ll make you a deal,” he said. “I’ll provide the food and you cook it. Then we’ll talk. Okay?”

Elspeth let go of the tension building inside her chest and exhaled. “Yes, sir, that would be wonderful. Thank you so much.”

The man let go of Ethan completely and the boy returned to her. “I’m Mr. Howinger. Get in the back of the wagon, and I’ll take you out to the farm.”

Elspeth smiled and did as instructed with haste. She helped Ethan into the wagon as Mr. Howinger climbed back onto his seat. When Elspeth was inside, he started the horses. “Giddy up!”

“Ethan, we’re going to have a home cooked meal,” she whispered excitedly. But Ethan glared at the man seated in front of them. “I don’t like him.”

“Shhh!” she hissed. “You’ll be good, if you want to eat.”

Ethan folded his arms and reclined against the side of the wagon. Elspeth smiled and gave him a wink. It drew a smile from him-she always could. “You’ll see,” Elspeth said. “Things are going to get better now.”

Ethan woke to the sound of crashing dishes in the next room. He sat up in bed, listening to the voices of his sister, Elspeth, and their benefactor, Mr. Howinger beyond his door. “You call this a meal?” Mr. Howinger complained. “I’ve told you a thousand times, I like my eggs runny. You’d think, after all this time living on my farm, you could get it right.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Howinger,” Elspeth said.

“Why I ever agreed to take you two in is beyond me,” Mr. Howinger continued.

Ethan twisted the sheet around his fists, his knuckles turning white.

“We are grateful to you, Mr. Howinger,” Elspeth said. Ethan heard his sister start gathering broken pieces of dishware off the floor.

“Grateful? Ha! I’ve been putting up with your stale cooking and your brother’s laziness for nine years now-”

Laziness! Ethan fumed, but he remained in his room.

“-if only my Ethel was still alive,” Mr. Howinger moaned.

“I’m sure she was lovely,” Elspeth said. “You must have loved her very much.”

Ethan heard: a chair scoot across the floor, a cup hit the tabletop, boot steps, then the front door slamming.

As Ethan opened the door to his room, he saw part of Howinger’s breakfast lying on the wood floor and his sister trying to clean it up. The plate lay broken, and the cup tilted to one side on the table. Ethan noticed Mr. Howinger had barely left any of the food. Only the fragments of the dirty plate remained for her to clean.

Ethan knelt down in the floor with his sister. He began picking up some of the pieces of the shattered plate. “I wish he would just leave you alone,” Ethan said.

“I’m all right. Now don’t fuss over this mess. I’ll take care of it.” She took the pottery pieces from his hand and hurried to clean the rest of the mess up.

Ethan patted his sister on the back between her shoulders. Elspeth winced. Ethan withdrew his hand quickly. His anger kindled. He stood and marched toward the door with Elspeth on his heels. Ethan had hardly crossed the threshold before she caught him, pleading for him not to say anything. “I’m all right, Ethan.”

“All right? He’s whipped you! I’m putting a stop to this once and for all.”

“No!” she insisted. “We need a place to live. I’m not going to have you living on the streets. I promised Mother I would take care of you and that’s what I’ll do.” The look in her eyes made him back down.

“I’m sorry, Elspeth. I don’t want to upset you more,” Ethan said.

“Ethan, Mr. Howinger, is a good man at heart, only troubled.”

“You mean he troubles us,” Ethan spat.

“It’s better treatment than you would get from Mordred,” she whispered.

“Mordred doesn’t care about us.”

Elspeth stared into his eyes, searching them. “Have you forgotten our mother and father-the people of Salem? He wanted all of us dead for a reason.”

Ethan blinked, taken in the memory of a night long ago. He blinked, returning. “Sister, we must forget, or it will drive us mad. Mordred took the House of Nod and the whole kingdom with it. We’re of no consequence to him now, no matter why Salem was before.”

Elspeth caressed his cheek. “We must never forget.”

She turned and started back into the house to finish cleaning up the spill. “Ethan, go to your chores and don’t worry me with your temper. If you love me, then you’ll do what I say.”

He watched her go inside. Ethan breathed out his frustration, letting go of the anger. He started toward the horse barn. “I won’t forget, sister.”