The blindfold that the Warden had placed over Fable’s eyes pinched her ears and pulled her hair. With her hands tied together, she squirmed in her seat in the back of the Warden’s car. The car rattled Fable about as it bounced down the road.
Where the hell is he taking me? she questioned. Will Liam be able to find me?
The wolf was surprisingly docile, despite being shot and given a muzzle. It cuddled up beside her, its head resting on her lap. Before he had covered her eyes, she’d noticed its foot was bleeding from the gunshot wound, but the bullet seemed to have only grazed the animal. The wolf’s presence was somewhat comforting, despite her circumstances. Having the wolf so close reminded Fable of her grandmother, who had a fondness for animals. As the car bounced down the road, she shut her eyes and forced her mind to replay happier times.
* * *
Twelve-year-old Fable held her mother’s hand tightly as they navigated the dirt road. The path between the Chicago Settlement and her grandmother’s cabin had always been dark and scary. She could hear creatures hissing and scurrying about as the cold night air made goosebumps emerge on her skin.
“Why can’t we bring a flashlight or something?” Fable whined. “I can’t see.”
Mother carried a basket full of food, clothes, and supplies. She shifted the heavy basket from one hand to the next before answering Fable. “Too many eyes in the woods. That’s why we wear black, keep our heads down, and hurry to where we are going.”
“But my feet hurt.”
“It’s good exercise.” Mother reassured her, checking her hip for her weapon with her newly freed hand. Fable’s mother was a tall woman with long, black braids pulled back into a ponytail. Loving but protective, she shifted her eyes around the forest as she pulled Fable closer. “We are almost there. How about you sing our song, baby?”
Fable crossed her arms and groaned, but her mother’s singing voice filled her with peace.
“This little light of mine …” Mother started. It was a song from before the Bio Wars that her mother had sung to her as a baby.
“I’m gonna let it shine,” Fable joined in.
“This little light of mine,” they sang together. “I’m gonna let it shine.”
It didn’t take long for Fable to spot the cabin the distance. Her heartbeat sped up a bit at the sight of Liam standing outside of it, looking around the forest with wrinkles on his young forehead. Fable wasn’t sure why the sight of Liam filled her with joy, but she forgot about the long journey and her sore feet and picked up her pace to reach him.
His face smoothed and his eyes brightened at the sight of her. “Fable!” he called out, racing over and embracing her. He hugged Mother as well, then the worried expression came back.
“She left again.” He looked from Fable to Mother. “She’s been gone since early this morning. I was thinking about going to look for her—”
“No!” Mother said quickly. “You are safer here.”
“But…” Liam protested.
“My mother knows how to take care of herself. Now let’s go inside for the night. I’m sure she will be back by the morning.”
Liam laced his fingers through Fable’s before following Mother into the cabin. Fable blushed as a wave of warmth spread through her. The touch of Liam’s hand in hers sent a flutter of emotions that she was still trying to figure out.
* * *
Inside the cabin, Liam and Fable stayed up late. They used Grandma’s old quilts and wooden chairs to build a blanket fort, which they filled with additional blankets and pillows. Inside, they listened to wolves howl at the moon outside while chatting amongst themselves. Fable could tell Liam was nervous about Grandmother’s disappearance, and she tried to distract him, retrieving a book she had stashed inside of Mother’s basket.
“What’s this?” Liam asked.
“It’s about a kid who finds out he’s partially a Greek god,” Fable said. “I’ve been reading it at school.”
She noticed a hint of sadness flash over Liam’s face at the mention of school, and so she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a hug. Liam held her longer than she expected. In that embrace, Liam held her hand.
Fable’s eyes went from her hand to Liam’s eyes.
“You must think I’m being a baby.” Liam said, moving his hand away.
“Not at all,” Fable said quickly.
“I think I’m just nervous about your grandma. She’s been leaving more often, staying away longer.” Tears filled his eyes. He turned his head and tried to blink them away before Fable could notice.
“Look at me,” Fable said, her voice more confident than usual. “You don’t have to hide your pain from me. You can show me how you feel.”
He brushed the dampness on his cheek away before fixing his gaze on her. His inquisitive stare left Fable perplexed. Why was he afraid to reveal his emotions? He was her best friend. Didn't he understand that she was a refuge where he could be himself? She had never felt freer than when she was with him and she had assumed he felt the same.
“What if she doesn’t come back? I’ll be out here all alone.”
Fable pulled him back into her arms. “You’ll never be alone,” she promised.
Uncertainty flickered in his eyes, and Fable continued to hold him. They didn’t speak, but their silence was comfortable. She listened to his quick breathing slow down while she listened to wolves and other wild animals shuffle about outside.
“You’ll never be alone,” she whispered again.
He slipped an arm around her waist and held her close, lacing his fingers between her fingers once again.
Moments passed by, and his eyes were perfectly dry, but he still didn’t seem ready to let her go. His hands became warm, and he couldn't seem to stop fidgeting, his thumb brushing against hers in a nervous rhythm. His grip tightened as if he needed the physical connection to ground himself amidst a whirlwind of emotions.
“You okay?” Fable asked. She noticed sweat starting to pool on his forehead even tho the crisp night air had cooled the cabin.
“Y…Yes.”
A smile tugged at the corners of Fable's lips. He was cute when he was nervous, and the sight of him caused butterflies to dance in her stomach. But what did he have to be nervous about? It was just the two of them.
“Fable…” he said, but the word trailed off at the end, as if he wasn’t sure how to say whatever it was that he wanted to say.
“Yes?”
He leaned forward, a question in his eyes as he looked up at her. As they held each other in the blanket fort, tension seemed to electrify the air around them.
He stole a glance at her lips, his gaze lingering for a heartbeat too long, and she sensed his desire to kiss her. Fable's heart raced in anticipation as she offered a subtle nod and a shy but hopeful smile.
He closed the distance between them and his lips met hers in a tender, cautious kiss—their first kiss. A warm glow spread through her as his kiss grew more sure and confident. He pulled away, and a shy grin played on his lips. She could sense a shift in their friendship to something that felt like more. He rested his head on her chest, and she held him until he fell asleep as she watched the full moon shine outside of the cabin window.
By morning, Grandma was back, wide-eyed and wild-haired. At five foot two, she was about Fable’s height, but plump, with silver hair and clothes that looked too fancy for a simple life living in the woods. She gave Mother a guilty grin before scooping Fable and Liam into a hug.
“How’s my beautiful granddaughter?”
* * *
They stayed in the cabin together for three days. Fable, Liam, Mother, and Grandmother cooked together, shared stories, and played in the woods. Fable helped her grandmother leave food out for the wolves and woodland animals. This time spent outside of the settlements was one of her fondest childhood memories.
Fable knew her grandmother had a mutation that made it unsafe for her to live in the city, and Grandmother preferred the woods to The City Below. Fable had never been told exactly what her grandmother’s mutation was, but she wondered if it led her to run off and abandon Liam from time to time. Though Liam lived with her grandmother, he was just as clueless. He said she would often disappear into the forest and come back looking weak, tired, and wild. Eventually, Grandma never came back.
Fable had tried to convince Liam to return to The City Below and reunite with his family, but he insisted he was capable enough to manage the cabin on his own. She suspected he harbored some sense of shame about his abilities that kept him away from his family.
As the Warden’s car bounced down the woodland road, Fable thought about her childhood promise to Liam that he would never be alone.
She’d find a way to keep that promise.