A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat

Author:Christina Soontornvat [Soontornvat, Christina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781536211726
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Published: 2020-05-14T16:00:00+00:00

Strong hands wrapped around Pong’s shoulders and shoved him through the back door of the Mud House. He tried to wriggle free, but the big man behind him gripped him tight.

“Somkit!” cried Pong, turning to look for his friend in the dark hallway.

“Shut up!” said the big man, squeezing Pong’s arms.

“Hands off him, Yai!” said Somkit. “He’s my friend.”

Confused, Pong twisted around and tried to get his bearings.

A short man with a crooked nose sneered at Somkit. “Since when are you friends with the Junior Patrol?”

Somkit returned the short guy’s glare. “Since when do you care who I’m friends with, Yord?”

“Everyone be quiet,” snapped a woman’s voice. Pong heard the clink of an orb switching on, followed by its distinctive buzz. Violet light seeped from an orb lantern and illuminated a long, narrow face with lively eyes. The woman wore a man’s jacket with the collar popped up. She inspected Pong from under heavy bangs that hung down past her eyebrows. “Somkit, your little friend here looks like he’s about to throw up.”

To Pong’s surprise, Somkit rushed at the woman and threw his arms around her.

“Ampai! Finally! Your trip lasted so long, I thought you were never coming back!”

“Hey, no hugs for the rest of us?” asked the little guy with the broken nose. His big friend snorted.

“I need to talk to you,” Somkit said to Ampai. He scowled at the two men. “Alone, please.”

“In a minute,” said Ampai, without taking her gaze from Pong. “We have supplies and money we need to hand out first.”

Ampai sent the big man, Yai, back into the alley to retrieve their rucksacks. As soon as they entered the main room of the Mud House, Ampai was swarmed by people. The rucksacks held food and medicine, which Yai and Yord doled out. But most of the commotion focused on welcoming Ampai home.

The people swirled around her, thanking her again and again for the supplies. She called everyone by name and asked about their families. She reminded Pong a little of Father Cham, making time to speak with everyone, even the children. After a while, she caught Yai’s eye and gave him a short nod.

“All right, all right,” boomed Yai, forming a one-man wall in front of her. “You said you were going to cook up a feast, didn’t you? So go get cooking. Ampai’s got a lot to catch up on from being gone so long.”

She slipped away, up the stairs, and motioned for Somkit and Pong to follow. Yai and Yord clomped up after them. On the second floor, they followed Ampai into one of the few rooms in the Mud House that still had a full set of walls and a door, which Yai shut behind them.

The room was an office of sorts, with a large desk in the center and shelves along the edges crammed with supplies: toilet paper, bandages, shrimp paste, coconut milk, coils of rope and pulleys, and a hundred other random items.

Ampai sat on the edge of the desk with one leg folded underneath her.

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