The Lamb by Lucy Rose

Author:Lucy Rose
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2024-12-16T00:00:00+00:00

Forty-Four

When the stars came out, shimmering in the blackened sky, Mama and Eden were at odds. Eden stood on the rug in the living room, pulling her clothes back over her bare shoulders. When Mama spoke, Eden’s eyes rolled back into her head. The whites of her eyes had red veins coursing through them. I wondered if she would pack her bags and leave. She seemed flighty. Exhausted with Mama’s whining. Impatient. She wanted us both to do as we were told.

‘I’m tired of waiting,’ Mama said. ‘How can you deny us what is natural? What we are craving?’ Mama grabbed Eden’s arm and squeezed. Her knuckles whitened.

Eden looked down at Mama’s grasp and pulled herself free. ‘Your belly will be full again. It will. I promise you,’ Eden said. ‘Just be patient.’

Mama sank into the couch and put her head in her hands. She wanted Eden to cave. Knowing she wouldn’t stop until she got exactly what she wanted, Mama summoned her tears. They trickled down her cheeks. Her skin shimmered. Mama did not wipe her tears away.

Eden was always steadfast. She knelt at Mama’s feet. ‘I’m doing what’s best for us,’ she said, brushing her thumb over Mama’s skin to wipe away the crocodile tears. ‘I’m looking after you.’

‘You don’t know what’s best for me,’ Mama said through gritted teeth. ‘Maybe you don’t know me as well as you think you do.’ Her jaw strained. Biting her tongue, she pressed her teeth hard into her own flesh. Mama wanted blood. Her fingers curled over her scalp and clutched onto her roots. This was Mama’s anger. She tried to contain it, but she was never able to. It always slipped out.

‘Listen to me, Ruth,’ Eden said. ‘I’m just trying to love you. And protect you.’

‘Eden wants to keep us safe. What if someone notices us taking lots of strays for our dinner? They’ll follow the smoke to our chimney, Mama. Abbie talks about her papa at school all the time. She won’t let him go.’ The words came tumbling out before I could stop them.

Mama’s head lifted from her hands and I saw the deep black of her eyes. She was wolfish as she leant forward, hurtling off the couch towards me. Her fist took my school collar. ‘What have you said to her?’ Mama spat. ‘That stupid little stray friend of yours.’

‘Nothing,’ I said.

‘She will be our next one if you don’t nip this in the bud. I don’t want you talking to her.’

‘But she’s my friend,’ I said.

‘What did you just say to me?’ Mama asked. But she didn’t want an answer. She wanted her Little One to cower, obedient and silent. ‘You’re not to make friends. You’re not to draw attention to yourself like this. You’re supposed to go unnoticed.’ Mama bit down on her bottom lip with the sharpened edges of her two front teeth.

I kept my head low before glancing at Eden. Help me. Do something.

‘Look at me,’ Mama said, pulling my chin up and holding it tight between her fingers.

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