it?
“ You
could call me the bank,” she finally said.
My jaw
dropped.
“ You’re
the one who pays all of us for doing our jobs?” I asked.
She placed her
empty bowl into the grass by her feet and nodded proudly. I
couldn’t help but laugh.
“ That
explains a lot,” I said, remembering the defeated look on Hammer’s
face in the Tools tent when Ellie had caught her in a scam and the
way Sumi had remained silent when Ellie filled my bowl with
food.
“ Which
means you have even more leverage,” she said.
“ What do
you mean?” I asked.
“ Not
only are you a Hunter, but you’re also friends with the Village’s
bank.”
I smiled—not
because of the power I suddenly realized I had over other women but
because she’d called me a friend. All I wanted on this island was a
friend. She placed a hand over mine and squeezed it, and I felt
comforted for the first time in a very long time.
CHAPTER
2
“ This is
soap?” I asked, rubbing the edge of my fingernail against the waxy
surface.
“ The
finest in all of Kormace,” she said slowly. She walked around the
wooden table, her slender figure swaying from side to side as she
moved. She picked up the unevenly chopped brick of soap and smirked
all-knowingly.
“ Coconut
oil, seaweed… and a few other ingredients.” She rubbed the soap’s
surface with the side of her thumb. “The rest is a secret. Keeps me
valuable.”
There was a
certain elusive quality about her. Her pale, crooked smile made her
appear all knowing, almost to the point of arrogant, yet her
plant-constructed jewelry and messily braided hair gave her the
appearance of simplicity and authenticity.
She dropped
the soap into my hands and I pressed it underneath my nose. It
smelled fresh but also earthy and somewhat salty—if salt had a
smell. I’d take anything at this point. I just wanted to rid my
body of its filth. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d
showered.
“ How
much?” I asked.
“ Three,”
she said quickly.
I knew she was
referring to pearls, the Village’s currency. I couldn’t understand
how she was charging three pearls for this little bar of soap. I
remembered Hammer, the butch woman from the Tools tent, and how
she’d tried to scam me into spending all my pearls on a flimsy
little leather pouch.
“ Weakness won’t get you anywhere,” I remembered Ellie telling
me.
Although it
wasn’t in my nature to be assertive or confrontational, I reached
into my pouch and extracted one shiny pearl.
“ One,” I
said, holding the single pearl out in front of me.
She eyed me
carefully from top to bottom, and I became uncomfortable. I stood
there, with my arm stiff out in front of me, refusing to back
down.
“ You’re
the new girl, aren’t you? The one Murk’s assigned as an Archer
among the Hunters?” She rubbed her chin with her thumb and index
finger.
I
nodded.
She
stared at the bar of soap for a moment.
“ Consider it a welcome gift,” she said.
I
hesitated. Was this a game? A test? Why would someone hand over
free merchandise? This had never happened to me before. I’d never
had anything handed to me for free.
“ Don’t
overthink it, sweetheart,” she said. “I happen to have a working
relationship with you Hunters… I’d like to keep it that
way.”
And
there it was—leverage.
She
smiled. “Maybe one of these days, I’ll be in need of ingredients
farther out on the island, and you’ll be the one to help
me.”
“ Sounds
fair,” I said, realizing that our exchange was mutually
beneficial.
“ I’m
Tegan,” she said.
“ Brone.”
“ You
need anything else, you know where to find me.” She walked to the
back of the tent and sat on a thick piece of log. Beside her were
coconut shells, plants of different lengths and colors, powders,
feathers, skins, and many other ingredients thrown into a pile for
future creations.
I was
about to leave Tegan’s tent when I realized something.
“ Tegan?”
I asked.
“ Yes,
doll?”
“
“ You
could call me the bank,” she finally said.
My jaw
dropped.
“ You’re
the one who pays all of us for doing our jobs?” I asked.
She placed her
empty bowl into the grass by her feet and nodded proudly. I
couldn’t help but laugh.
“ That
explains a lot,” I said, remembering the defeated look on Hammer’s
face in the Tools tent when Ellie had caught her in a scam and the
way Sumi had remained silent when Ellie filled my bowl with
food.
“ Which
means you have even more leverage,” she said.
“ What do
you mean?” I asked.
“ Not
only are you a Hunter, but you’re also friends with the Village’s
bank.”
I smiled—not
because of the power I suddenly realized I had over other women but
because she’d called me a friend. All I wanted on this island was a
friend. She placed a hand over mine and squeezed it, and I felt
comforted for the first time in a very long time.
CHAPTER
2
“ This is
soap?” I asked, rubbing the edge of my fingernail against the waxy
surface.
“ The
finest in all of Kormace,” she said slowly. She walked around the
wooden table, her slender figure swaying from side to side as she
moved. She picked up the unevenly chopped brick of soap and smirked
all-knowingly.
“ Coconut
oil, seaweed… and a few other ingredients.” She rubbed the soap’s
surface with the side of her thumb. “The rest is a secret. Keeps me
valuable.”
There was a
certain elusive quality about her. Her pale, crooked smile made her
appear all knowing, almost to the point of arrogant, yet her
plant-constructed jewelry and messily braided hair gave her the
appearance of simplicity and authenticity.
She dropped
the soap into my hands and I pressed it underneath my nose. It
smelled fresh but also earthy and somewhat salty—if salt had a
smell. I’d take anything at this point. I just wanted to rid my
body of its filth. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d
showered.
“ How
much?” I asked.
“ Three,”
she said quickly.
I knew she was
referring to pearls, the Village’s currency. I couldn’t understand
how she was charging three pearls for this little bar of soap. I
remembered Hammer, the butch woman from the Tools tent, and how
she’d tried to scam me into spending all my pearls on a flimsy
little leather pouch.
“ Weakness won’t get you anywhere,” I remembered Ellie telling
me.
Although it
wasn’t in my nature to be assertive or confrontational, I reached
into my pouch and extracted one shiny pearl.
“ One,” I
said, holding the single pearl out in front of me.
She eyed me
carefully from top to bottom, and I became uncomfortable. I stood
there, with my arm stiff out in front of me, refusing to back
down.
“ You’re
the new girl, aren’t you? The one Murk’s assigned as an Archer
among the Hunters?” She rubbed her chin with her thumb and index
finger.
I
nodded.
She
stared at the bar of soap for a moment.
“ Consider it a welcome gift,” she said.
I
hesitated. Was this a game? A test? Why would someone hand over
free merchandise? This had never happened to me before. I’d never
had anything handed to me for free.
“ Don’t
overthink it, sweetheart,” she said. “I happen to have a working
relationship with you Hunters… I’d like to keep it that
way.”
And
there it was—leverage.
She
smiled. “Maybe one of these days, I’ll be in need of ingredients
farther out on the island, and you’ll be the one to help
me.”
“ Sounds
fair,” I said, realizing that our exchange was mutually
beneficial.
“ I’m
Tegan,” she said.
“ Brone.”
“ You
need anything else, you know where to find me.” She walked to the
back of the tent and sat on a thick piece of log. Beside her were
coconut shells, plants of different lengths and colors, powders,
feathers, skins, and many other ingredients thrown into a pile for
future creations.
I was
about to leave Tegan’s tent when I realized something.
“ Tegan?”
I asked.
“ Yes,
doll?”
“
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