Near the Bone(37)

Mattie could almost taste the soft yellow cake with the cream in the middle, that first burst of sweetness on her tongue. She’d take very small bites to make her dessert last for as long as possible.

William never bought sweet things. They never had a cake or a pie because Mattie didn’t have the flour or sugar to make them. She’d never asked, never thought to ask because after a while she’d forgotten about sweets, but she was sure that the reason they didn’t have dessert was because it was not godly.

The sounds of William digging nearby continued, so Mattie busied herself with various chores around the cabin. She tried not to think about the money she’d hidden beneath the couch. How long would it be before William discovered it was gone? Would he even say anything to her about it? He generally seemed to pretend that money didn’t exist, or at least that Mattie didn’t know about it.

William had told her to eat as much as she liked, and the previous day Mattie would have, but now she was so nervous about the money she’d discovered that she didn’t have much of an appetite. She forced herself to swallow a slice each of the bread and cheese, because he would be upset if she didn’t eat when he told her to do so.

After a while the sounds of William’s shoveling ceased. Mattie wondered if he’d moved on to another location yet, and if so, how far he’d gone. It wasn’t safe for her to try to open the trunk if he was on his way back for lunch or to take a nap. He might have changed his mind altogether and decided not to dig the second pit today.

He didn’t tell me not to go anywhere. He didn’t say I shouldn’t leave the cabin.

(It’s implied, though. You know it’s implied. You’re not supposed to leave when William isn’t at home.)

She could make him a cheese sandwich and wrap it in a cloth and go out to the place where he’d just been digging, and if he was resting there she could say that she thought he might be hungry from his work. Surely he couldn’t be angry with her then. She was only trying to be a good wife, to look after her husband as she was supposed to do.

Mattie sliced off two thick pieces of bread and several slim pieces of cheese. William usually preferred sandwiches with meat in them, but any meat they had was in the storehouse and the storehouse was locked.

No it isn’t.

Mattie’s hands stilled. She’d watched William unlock the storehouse that morning and emerge holding the bread and cheese. She hadn’t seen him lock it back up again.

I could get some food and hide it somewhere for the night I escape.

But where could she hide it? It would have to be somewhere outside, where it could stay cold. She couldn’t put food underneath the couch. And it would have to be something she could eat without cooking—slices of ham and cheese and bread. It wouldn’t do her any good to hide a hunk of venison. That kind of food would only attract a bear, anyway—a real bear, not the thing in the woods that was pretending to be a bear.

Pretending to be a bear. Is that what the thing is doing? Is it copying other animals it has seen?

That didn’t make any sense at all. Why would a creature copy animal behavior?

“And where did it come from, anyway? It wasn’t on this mountain with us all along. We would have known.”

Griffin and C.P. said they were on the mountain because of a “sighting.” Who had seen the creature besides Mattie and William? The animal must have migrated from somewhere nearby, and Griffin and C.P. had followed its trail somehow.

She tried to think about what all of this information meant, but she couldn’t pull it together. Anyway, it wasn’t time for her to worry about the creature or the strangers on the mountain. She wanted to leave William. She had to have a concrete plan.

Chance had given her that roll of money, which would help her when she reached a town. William’s own preoccupation with the animal he called a demon had given her a second opportunity—to take food out of the storehouse and hide it away for the day she escaped.

She wanted to rush out to the storehouse right away, but she needed to think this through. First, she should continue with the plan to bring William a sandwich. Whether she was opening the storehouse or opening the trunk, she still needed to be certain that he was gone from the immediate area.

It had taken him at least two hours to dig the nearby pit, so if he’d moved on she would have at least that long to make her preparations. Mattie finished assembling the sandwich, wrapped it in a clean white cloth and tied a knot in the top. Then she pulled on her coat and wrapped her scarf tightly around her neck. Before she went out she made certain to close the cracked-open window, because even the small amount of cold air coming in had chilled the cabin. If William found the window open he would be annoyed, especially since he’d built up the fire and left enough wood for the cabin to stay warm while he was gone.

Mattie put on her boots and stepped outside the cabin. As she pulled the cabin door closed she noticed her hands were trembling. She’d never defied William so openly before.

You can’t be afraid. You have to be brave, or at least try. William’s in such a good mood today that he’s unlikely to punish you if he finds you outside.

But finding her out of the cabin might cause his mood to change. And she knew his mood could change without warning, could flare up like a summer storm.

You’re only taking him a sandwich. You haven’t done anything wrong. Not yet, anyway. If he finds you in the storehouse . . .