Celia barely remembered walking to the bed. She lay down, her head found the pillow, and she was gone.
When she woke, the room was washed with the dim light of midafternoon.
“You’re awake,” Friedrich said. “You must be hungry. Come.”
Celia made her way to the table and sat while Friedrich dished up a thin stew from a pot on the stove.
“Where’s Greta?”
“Gone to get some more turnips, if she can. She’s a marvel with them.”
Celia smiled and glanced at the door worriedly. Dunfield wasn’t a safe place, no matter what time of day or night it was.
“Don’t worry.” Friedrich had caught her glance. “My Greta can take care of herself. Besides, she’s only gone next door. The widow there has a small plot that she’s been able to coax a few root vegetables out of. How she does it is a mystery to me. But Greta will get a turnip or two, and in return, I’ll repair her door again.”
“Again?”
“Afraid so. Word has gotten around that she has a food source, and some have tried to take advantage. Luckily, the door is stout, the widow armed, and most thieves are cowards. Still, we’d like her to come here with us, but she won’t hear of it. Instead, we try to take care of each other.”
Celia regarded Friedrich as she sipped the broth from the stew. “Why aren’t there more like you here?”
Friedrich glanced at her, his cheeks coloring slightly. “Ah, there’s plenty around. Less than what were, at one time. But we’re still here.”
“And those outside? The ones who tried to escape?”
Friedrich sighed as he brought two more bowls to the table, sat, and began slowly stirring a spoon in one of them.
“That was a horrible thing. Horrible enough that none have tried in many weeks now.”
“Why are they dead, though? What happened to them?”
“No one really knows. After things went bad, when the hunters, as you call them, came and started taking folk, and the decent people started being overwhelmed by those who preyed on others… well, some tried to leave. A family at first.”
Friedrich stopped and stared into his stew. “He was a friend, actually. Someone I worked with. I remember him telling me, ‘Fried, this isn’t home anymore, and it’s not safe for my family. I’ve got girls and you see what’s been going on.’ And he was right, too. Lyssa was still little and we could keep her inside, away from trouble. Esau’s girls were older, teenagers, and the type that was left here…” He shook his head. “He had no choice really.
“Greta and I went to the gate with his family, to see them off. We’d miss them, but knew they were doing what was best. We pulled the gates open…they were still working then, you see, although the guards were long gone. Esau headed out, his family trailing behind him. He turned and waved once, then set his sights to the horizon and walked on.”
The door to the house opened and Greta entered, two scraggly turnips clutched in her hand. “Dinner!” Her smile faded when she took in the scene. “What now?”
“Nothing bad, dear,” Friedrich said. “Celia was asking about those who tried to leave this place.”
“Esau,” Greta frowned.
“Esau,” Friedrich agreed. He motioned to the still steaming bowl of stew on the table. Greta sat, but didn’t reach for the spoon.
“Now, as I was saying,” Friedrich continued, “Esau and his family began walking away, and all seemed well. No one challenged it, there was no outcry. I was beginning to think that he had the way of it, that maybe I should grab Greta and Lyssa and light out after him.”
“Thank the gods we didn’t,” Greta said.
“Indeed. Thank the gods. Esau started to slow down. Almost as if he were dragging a heavy weight. Behind him, his girls were already stopped, and his wife was barely moving at all. Then…”
He stopped, swallowed and found Greta’s hand.
“Then, they came. The rats. Huge, swollen things, they swarmed up out of the grass and bit them. They never tried to eat them, they just took a single bite, then faded back out of sight. But those bites must have hurt, because we could hear their screams. I started to go out to them, but Greta grabbed hold of me and refused to let me go. Then another ran past me, cursing me for a coward. He made it as far as the first girl before he started to slow down as well, a horrible look of confusion on his face. He turned to come back, but never made it. After a few steps, he stopped too, and the rats came for him.”
Celia stopped eating, the terrible scene that Friedrich was describing playing out before her.
“It took two days for them to die,” Friedrich finally continued. “One by one, they collapsed, their groans and wails still coming from time to time. Their skin turned black and swollen, and still they couldn’t move. Once they fell, the rats returned…and then the end came quicker, although not any easier.”
“But there were so many bodies out there,” Celia protested. “Surely once that happened to Esau and his family no one else would attempt it.”
“Of course, they did,” Greta said, gently. “People were desperate and thought of all kinds of ways of trying. Some, those who were younger and faster, made it further than others. That gave hope that someone could make it out, maybe get help. And a couple did make it, or at least we think so. They made it far enough to get out of sight at any rate, although we never saw them again. No one has tried now for a long time.”
“And don’t you be getting any ideas in that head of yours, girl,” Friedrich growled. “We just got you back again.”
