Cherry Wood Hills *Editing*

Katherine

I pat the pockets of my coat.

Jesus.

"hurry child, It's closing time," He taps his rusty fingertips on the even more rusty countertop.

"swear to God I had the money right here," I pay him with my smile but he seems to reject what I had to offer. The assistant just pointed to the door. He put the slice of pie back into the tray and locked me outside. How lovely. So lovely that icicles started to freeze along the edges of my lungs and veins. The air tasted frigid, and the snow smelt like the sierras and hot apple crumble. It did. Or maybe I was so hungry that even the people passing by smelt like cake.

The sky was nestling deep into the north and the violet lights illuminated the cobbled pavement. The town had an unnatural hue. Maybe I could stop by at one cafe and grab a nice cup of tea. My current situation and empty hands said no to that and anyway I had errands to attend to. Errands that meant I had to deliver the awkwardly tucked envelope to the right person. The right person as in my Father and my Father as in the man we're not going to bother with because he is a hell of a big deal. Just saying. My legs trudge in the heavy icy sleet, reminding me now and again that I had to be quick.

 The street was crowded with faceless strangers smoking pipes, swirling puffs of mist and making ragged sounds. The mass of people thickened, I had to move faster to avoid being crushed in the sea of bodies. The air was fidgety and reverberating with premonition; I sidestepped the passersby and later I found it, an empty ally leading to another lane, which I hopefully presumed was vacant, I slid but drove into a tall stranger. He grasped my upper arm, his hands calloused, marred and that of a grown man and jerked me towards him. Ewww he even smelt like those lower class slums .

He stooped down low, his eyes colorless and his lips withering "get moving lass before they run you over" I pause for an infinite amount of time and he shoves me aside hastily. I stumble into the street, biting my cheek, God some people were just miserable. I cram my fist into my pocket only to meet an empty one.

The envelope.

Heavens.

My nerves start to misfire and I lean on the stone wall to support myself. Forget the message, Katherine, just run home before the stream eats you alive. No Katherine, don't go home, find the letter because if you don't Father will have you skinned.

I took a deep breath and a second to reflect on the compromise I was about to make.

I pull my leather gloves higher and my cape closer.

A hundred thoughts crossed my mind like bullets, but I dodged them and bent down to search for the letter. Rather suddenly everyone pressed together like one big moving body of water and I was very slowly drowning. A plump lady pushed me aside, and I fell on all my fours.

This is not okay.

Get out before you get trampled.

I decided to crawl through the feet of the crowd, believing that somehow there some open space and I could slide away. The letter wasn't worth my life anymore. I was breathing fitfully and my body was rattling with cold.

No, it wasn't cold, it was fear.

That's when it happens.

The howling of the space and sun falling into fragments. I close my eyes and blindly grope my way through; hoping that closing my eyes would erase whatever sound I just heard.