Ember by Tess Williams Page B

Her friend, Leanne,
was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee and her usual
gargantuan pile of muffins, giving a bad name to real pastry lovers
everywhere.
    “Obviously Josephine doesn't care
about the material. I mean, did you see what she was wearing to the
harvest social the other night?”
    I slapped my hand against my head. The
party, I missed the party. Now I'm really gonna be dead.
    “Well, look who it is,” sang Leanne.
    I spared her a patronizing smile, then turned
to my mother who was slowing starting to turn around.
    “What? Who?—” As soon as she saw me her eyes
began to water. Oh God, here it comes. Next her lips started
quivering. She brought her hands up to them before losing it
completely, bursting into tears.
    “Oh, Evelyn!” A few more stifled gasps.
“Where on earth have you been? I've been worried sick about
you.”
    I put my hands out. “Mom, it's fine. I just
twisted my ankle. I had to wait it out in the north cave. I wasn't
farther than a few miles the whole time.”
    “Evelyn, that cave is twelve miles from here. I've told you I don't want you wandering off that
far.”
    Yeah, you tell me, then I leave for five
hours and you don't even notice I'm gone. . . .
    I took a heavy breath.
    All I have to do is wait this out, by
tonight she'll be talking about something else. Oh, and hope to God
that she doesn't realize I missed the -
    Suddenly another sob emerged from my mother,
a look of anguish covering her face. “And, Evelyn, the harvest
social, how could you miss it?!” More crying. “How are you ever going to get a husband if you never go to any of the
town parties?”
    I sighed again, I think it might have been
the fifth time since I woke up.
    “Look, mom, I'm sorry, but there’s nothing I
can do about it now. I promise I'll go next time.”
    She took in an excessive breath and started
to perk up. “Well, alright. But in the meantime I want you to start
working at the bakery shop again. In fact why don't you head over
there this afternoon. I know Lina could use the help “
    I was going to object, until my mother gave
me a ‘don't-even-think-about-arguing’ face.
    At least it will give me an excuse to pass
the stables. . . . I smiled wide. “Great, I think I'll just go
now, grab some breakfast.” I started inching my way towards the
doorway.
    “Wha?— Evelyn, why don't you eat here? You
just got back.”
    This was a bad track. Once my mother got it
into her head that she wanted something, she usually got it.
Normally, I could take the random breakfast with the family. But at
this moment my body was being all-but magnetically pulled to the
stables.
    “Well, I ah . . . I thought this would give
me a chance to talk to some people about the party. You know, be
social .”
    I had made it to the doorway, I spared a
glance down the hallway at the front door.
    “Oh,” she said, somewhat surprised, “Okay
then.”
    “Great!” I exclaimed much too excitedly as I
turned to make my escape.
    “Just promise you'll say hello to Garret if
you see him. He just got back yesterday and I heard he was asking
about you.”
    Yeah right. I held a smiling face.
“Will do. Later mom, Leanne.”
    They nodded and I practically flew down the
hall and through the front door.
    When I was safely outside I leaned against
the wall and blew out a breath.
    I can't believe it. I've been home for less
than a day and they're already trying to pull me into their world
of trivial drama.
    I shook my head, absently kicked a rock
across the grass, and started walking towards town.
    And on top of that she's trying to hook me
up with Garret again. He had never been interested in me and I
was glad for it, because I didn't like him much either.
    I continued walking until I reached a cobble
path. Our house was on the outskirts of Tiver, but the whole city
was pretty condensed, so we weren't more than a few hundred yards
away from the heart of town. The path I was following now connected
most of the homes to