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Eve settled onto the ground several feet away from Luke since, for some strange reason, she felt she couldn’t trust herself, or him. To do what? her mind urged as her body tingled with some strange anticipation.
Her noisy thoughts distracted her from the hard, uneven ground and the river’s constant babble. Ever since she was small, New Eden Citizens, male and female, would swim naked in the lake and sunbathe afterwards. No one ever thought anything of it. Nudity was perfectly natural when it came to such activities. Why did she and Luke suddenly feel conscious about their bodies after years of not caring? Was this what happened to those who traveled beyond New Eden’s borders and why it was forbidden?
Eve awoke early the next morning with painful cramps. Panic struck her. She’d experienced that once, in a slightly different way, when she was smaller and gone swimming too soon after eating. But she’d just been sleeping. Could that pain be from intense hunger?
Luke was still caught in a restless sleep as Eve slipped away behind a prickly bush to relieve her uncomfortable bowels. Horror struck her as she noticed blood staining her undergarments. What had happened? Did she hurt herself sleeping on the pebble-strewn ground? She had never bled like this before.
Her mind churned, seeking answers. Didn’t she once overhear the Birthing Mothers whispering something about “monthly blood?” They were the only women allowed to carry life and the only House denied the pleasures of fireberry juice.
She needed fireberry juice! That would stop the bleeding… and perhaps the queer craving she’d experienced when she’d glimpsed Luke naked last night.
Eve and Luke took turns bathing, turning their backs to give the other privacy. The water was shallow and cold, and the rocks on the bottom made standing up difficult. Eve quickly splashed herself and dressed, pulling her now torn and dirty clothes over her wet skin.
“We need to find something to eat,” Luke said as they followed the river in the direction that led back to New Eden. “But what?”
Eve didn’t answer at first. Despite not having eaten since yesterday afternoon, she wasn’t very hungry. Her mind spun with questions, and her cramps still lingered. When would the bleeding and cramping stop? She longed for one of her House Mothers or Grandmothers to confide in but knew they’d be just as confounded by this as she was.
“I saw some tiny fish in the river as I was bathing,” Luke continued, “but I have no idea how to catch them. Only those from the House of Fishermen can do that. Perhaps we can search for berries. Do you think fireberries grow out here?”
The word “fireberries” caught Eve’s attention. They would staunch the bleeding and relieve her cramps, she just knew it. If only…
“No,” said a man’s deep voice, followed by the sound of multiple feet crunching over the pebble- and needle-covered ground. Eve’s heart leaped into her throat as she and Luke whirled to face the speaker. Three identical men in white robes were striding toward them. Oracles. Her blood instantly chilled, like her first step into that river. A steam-powered skimmer, vehicles only the Oracles owned, stood behind them. It was long and blindingly white, glinting in the sun. “Fireberries are specially grown by the Berry Harvester House,” continued the speaker. “Didn’t they teach you that in school?”
“I-I think so, sir,” Luke stammered in a tight voice as he bowed his head.
“You should have thought of this before you stepped out of New Eden. We Oracles have our ways of locating any Citizens that do leave but the vast majority lack the curiosity, which is a good thing. Living there certainly doesn’t give you the survival skills you need.” The man grinned, an expression that didn’t touch his stony eyes. “You know now why Citizens are discouraged to venture out into the wilderness, don’t you?”
Eve found all she could do was nod. Her entire body was shaking. She was suddenly aware of the mess she must look with her tangled hair and torn, possibly bloodstained, kirtle. She had only seen the Oracles at a distance, across the vast Dining Hall at suppertimes but had never spoken to one before.
“We-we just wanted to find o-out where the Banished go, sir,” Luke stammered and held out the map with a shaking hand.
About Donna Marie Robb
