Turnabout by Carmen Webster Buxton

Author:Carmen Webster Buxton [Buxton, Carmen Webster]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: YA, science fiction, dystopian
Publisher: Cracked Mirror Press
Published: 2017-05-16T18:30:00+00:00

Eleven

I felt like the goat staked out for the T-rex in Jurassic Park—terrified and with no good options. I didn’t even know if I should shout for help. For all I knew an axe murderer had come to call.

Esi was obviously in no doubt. She held the door with both hands and leaned all her weight against it.

A woman’s voice spoke from the other side of the door. “It’s Dorscha. Is anyone home?”

“I’m here, Dorscha,” Esi said.

“Esi? Is that you?”

“Yes.” Esi managed to sound only slightly agitated. She shifted her body so it almost touched the door, both hands still pressing it firmly in place. “I can’t ask you in. I’ve come down with a fever.”

“Are you sure you’re all right?” The unseen visitor sounded concerned. “I saw Marjani leaving a while ago.”

“I’ll be fine.” Esi twisted her head to glance at me over her shoulder and gave me a look that was half pleading and half grimacing. Probably she was afraid I would call for help. If I had thought I’d get help, I would have called for it, but Makoro had taught me otherwise.

“Marjani went to get me some soup,” Esi said. “She’ll be back soon.”

Dorscha made a disapproving noise. “Why don’t you leave that Rufaro trash? If you joined our household, you wouldn’t have to pay for your dinner.”

Esi frowned. “Don’t speak that way about Marjani—not to me.”

An audible sigh sounded through the door. “Are you sure you’re all right, Esi?”

“I’ll be fine.” Esi pressed her body against the door like she was willing the other woman to leave—or perhaps she meant to keep her out bodily. “Really.”

“Very well, then. I’ll see you when you’re feeling better.”

Footsteps sounded and then faded away.

Esi’s shoulders drooped with relief for a few seconds, and then she ran over to the concrete block and shoved it until it moved a few inches. She stopped to rest, panting, and then she pushed again. It took her a while, but she finally got the block wedged in front of the door.

“Who was that?” I asked, when Esi had dropped down onto one of the stools.

She poured herself a cup of water and drank it before she answered. “Dorscha—one of the women from the camp.”

“Why did she call Marjani ‘Rufaro trash’?”

Esi shrugged and looked away. “All the women at the camp are Kabaregas, like me. That’s why they call themselves a household, even though they live in tents instead of a house.” She paused, and then seemed to think that wasn’t enough explanation. “They don’t like that I use Marjani’s last name. She’s Marjani Rufaro Medwar, and I’m Esi Kabarega Medwar.”

“Oh.” It sounded more like a regular marriage than anything I’d seen on Makoro, and yet Esi seemed not to want to talk about it. “Are you going to read some more?”

“Not that book.” She reached for the shelf. “I need something lighter.”

I cleared my throat. “Well, if you’re not going to finish the other book for a while, can you tell me what happened to Bejida Urbi Siti?”

Esi glanced up from the new book.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.