Leave it to Zinnia to pick up on things. The girl isn’t just nosy—she’s also perceptive.
I pick up the shirt and stand slowly, chewing on my lip before I say, “She’s … upset with me.”
Zinniaturns to look at me fully, like she’s expecting more, but I don’t give it. I’ve already broken Sol’s trust by telling Rose about the trials, and all it got me was this lost, shattered feeling in my chest. I can’t do it again.
After a moment, Zinnia asks, “Does this have something to do with why you’ve been real weird this past week?”
“I haven’t been weird,” I say reflexively. But then I remember Rose teasing me about being a bad liar, and I sigh. This time I give her a real answer. “Yeah. It’s got something to do with why I’ve been weird.”
Zinnia purses her lips. “Do you wanna talk about it?”
“Not really.”
“Even if I say that gossip would makemefeel better?”
I laugh at that, and Zinnia smiles.
“Was worth a shot,” she says, adjusting her grip on her pencil and going back to her drawing. “And if it makes you feel better, you ain’t the only one Rose seems upset with.”
The other person is Sol. That becomes obvious as the day goes on. Each time they cross paths, I see Rose meet Sol’s smile with a flat, neutral expression, red lips pressed in a firm line. And Sol notices.
“Rose,” he says that night as we all sit in the living room after dinner. His smile is bright and warm, in stark contrast to the coldrain still coming down in sheets outside. “Are you feeling all right, sweetheart? You look like you’ve got a lot on your mind.”
I tense and look away from the television, whereLittle Womenis playing. Rose, sitting on the couch between Poppy and Lily, turns to look at him. For a moment, she doesn’t answer. There’s an uneasiness in the air, like the seconds between lightning and the thunder that follows. Or maybe I’m the only one who sees it. No one else seems to react.
Finally, Rose says, “Yeah. I guess you could say that. There’s a lot on my mind.”
“Care to share?” Sol asks, the cheer in his voice unwavering.
I hold my breath, and my eyes dart to Rose. For a moment, I’m afraid she’ll tell him the truth. Tell him why she’s upset with us both. That she knows about the fire, knows about the trials. I’m worried she’ll tell him how messed up she thinks this all is. And I don’t know what about that possibility scares me more: that Sol would know I broke his trust or that Sol might decide Rose can’t stay here if she is so opposed to the trials.
But of course Rose doesn’t say any of it. Because she promised she wouldn’t.
“Not really,” she says with a shrug.
“Maybe at your next Growth Session, then,” Sol says.
“Maybe.”
Thunder rolls outside. The tension eases as both Rose and Sol turn to look at the television again. I’m relieved. Until I notice another pair of eyes that have been watching the exchange.
Violet is staring at Rose, too. And the look on her face, even colder than usual, causes something like dread to settle in my stomach.
We are only ever allowed in Sol’s room during Growth Sessions or when personally invited. That’s the one part of the house that is off-limits to us. It’s a rule that’s understood rather than spoken.
Sol is usually busy during the day, either hunting or chopping firewood or doing odd jobs in town to try and bring in a little bit of money, so Growth Sessions only happen in the evening, usually after dinner.
That’s why, when I catch Rose sneaking out of Sol’s room the next afternoon, I know something is wrong.
“What are you doing?” I ask.
She jumps, not realizing I just came in the back door, putting me in the hallway behind her.
The storm moved on late in the night, leaving the hollow soaked through, water from the hills trailing down until the soil can’thold any more. But we’re back to business as usual this morning, trudging around in the water and mud if necessary. Just now, most everyone is outside, picking up fallen branches and drying out the shed, which has apparently developed a leak in the roof. The only people inside the cabin are Rose and Poppy.
Until I walked in, at least.
Rose spins around, eyes wide with panic. But she breathes a sigh of relief when she sees me. It’s the first time since I told her what I’ve done that she seems relieved and not cold or sullen in my presence.
