Despite the lack of windows in Georgianna’s bedroom, the morning light streamed through the open door. She rolled onto her front, burying her face into her pillow in the hopes of blocking out the offensive rays, but movement throughout the house and even outside chased her dreams further and further away. From the kitchen, she could hear Braedon asking Halden what he would be doing while her brother tried to get ready to leave.
In the tunnels, when she stayed below, it was easier to keep consciousness at bay despite the bustle of movement and everyday business. While the murk of the constant shadows remained, it was easier to push distractions aside, but not here. Sure enough, Georgianna had only just set her feet on the floor when Braedon ran past her bedroom with a racket disproportionate to his small size.
“Grandda’, grandda’!” he called. “Da’ says you take me tradin’!”
Her father’s low rumbling laugh echoed through the small home as Georgianna pushed herself from her bed and padding over to the trunk that held the majority of her belongings.
“Did he really?” her father’s voice echoed. “Well, I guess if your da’ says so, it must be so.”
Lifting the trunk lid, Georgianna rummaged through her clothes, pulling out a dress. Tugging her shirt from her body and over her head, she tossed it onto the mattress and swung the dress around her, slipping her arms into the long sleeves and wrapping the material around her body, buttoning the inside together before pulling the leather belt around her waist to tie at the side.
By the time she emerged from her room with a change of clothes already tucked under her arm, her brother was almost out the door, turning back to give her a quick pat on the cheek and a thoughtful gaze. Georgianna returned a weak smile, clapping her hand on top of Halden’s for a moment before he left.
“Gianna, you coming tradin’ with us?” Braedon asked, already dressed in clothes that were a little too big for him.
Georgianna pouted back at him, crouching down in the light of the open doorway.
“Afraid not, Brae. I have to go do my own work.”
“Med’cines,” Braedon nodded knowledgeably.
“That’s it,” she said.
Glancing up from Braedon’s shining face, Georgianna smiled sadly at her father. He smiled back, though it wasn’t a true smile. His green eyes remained distant, and there was a forced look to his expression.
“You’ll return soon, my Gianna?” he asked.
Georgianna leaned closer and kissed her father on the cheek.
“Soon as I can.”
He held her face in his hands.
“Soon as the sun allows,” he told her before the moment was over and he lightly swatted the back of her arm to get her moving.
Georgianna collected her bag from the front room, stuffing in the change of clothes, and stepped out into the glaring morning sun. Heading south through the camps, she wove a winding path through the houses. Even though the camps of the different tribes bled into each other in an uneven pattern, Georgianna had walked the path so many times that she knew immediately when she had stepped into Nerrin territory. She didn’t feel fear at the different tribe, not like she used to, but her father had always told her that it was best to tread with caution when dealing outside your own. These days, Georgianna supposed that related more to the Adveni than it did to the other tribes, but unlike the Kahle, the Nerrin had no reason to protect her should anything happen while she was on their ground.
YOU ARE READING
Dead and Buryd
Science Fiction"You are an inmate, not a medic. You should get used to that." On the planet Os-Veruh, the native Veniche have endured a decade under the oppressive rule of a race of invaders, the Adveni. When Georgianna Lennox, a Veniche medic, discovers her child...
