My hands worked swiftly and with well-practiced precision but my eyes kept flickering to West’s form. His back was turned to me, his head bent low as he worked dutifully. He looked able to take care of himself. His frame was light but well-muscled.
His dark hair fell across his eyes, left shaggy and long like the majority of the males in the world. It was difficult to cut hair without shaving it completely off. The only man in Eden who kept his hair short was Avian, who shaved his head completely every other week or so.
As I was tangled in my own thoughts I suddenly realized that he had looked at me, his woodsy eyes holding mine. He had paused in his work, his hand a few inches above the ground, holding a weed. I felt frozen for a moment, unable to look away. Why did his eyes echo something in the recesses of my mind, calling to a place in my memory I had forgotten?
The small smile that tugged on his lips was all I needed to snap back into reality.
“How long have you been here, Eve?” he asked, his eyes turning back to his task. He threw the weed in his hand into the wheelbarrow.
“For as long as I can remember,” I said simply. I felt oddly disarmed, as if he had tipped over a wall in me that I didn’t really realize was there. I didn’t really want that wall tipped.
“Since before the fall?” his voice sounded slightly surprised.
“No, just after it.”
“How old are you?” he asked, glancing up at me for a moment.
“How old are you?” I questioned back. I didn’t like the questions. I felt like I didn’t have enough answers most of the time.
“I turn nineteen in two months.”
We were both quiet for a few moments, only the soft sound of earth being disturbed.
“I’m seventeen,” I said quietly to the dirt. “I think.”
“You think?”
“I think,” I said sharply, making sure not to look into his face.
The sound of feet brought my attention up. Graye had moved into our field, keeping a short distance away but watching us as we worked.
“Who’s he?” West asked, meeting Graye’s eyes for a moment.
“Graye,” I answered. “He can have a temper. Stay out of his way if you can.”
West met Graye’s eyes again for a second, holding them as if to test what I had just said.
We said little else as we finished our shift, dumping the full wheelbarrow of weeds into the compost pile. With the rest of the group, we walked back to Eden. Despite the whispers that flew through the group, no one dared to ask about West’s presence.
I saw little of the newcomers the rest of the afternoon. They stayed close to Gabriel’s side, getting settled in. Word was spreading fast about them, it would be impossible for it not to. Emotions were mixed. Some were elated to have three new members come into our family. There was obvious excitement about Brady. There weren’t many children anymore. Other’s felt like I did, not sure if trust was to be automatically given just because they were human.
The sun started to set, an orange haze peppered with stars. I sat on the hill that protected Eden on the north side, watching as everyone went about their evening routine. Some made trips to the outhouses, others to take an evening bath, some heading to bed early. I watched them, feeling a sense of pride for them yet feeling disconnected and distant. I was one of them but they didn’t understand me and I didn’t really understand them.
I heard rubble being disturbed on the trail that led to my spot and poked my head over the ledge. Avian climbed up over the rounded ledge, giving me a half tight-lipped smile as he joined at my side.
The silence was comfortable as we saw the fires being lit below us. Trails of smoke drifted into the sky before they faded into the darkening light. The sound of Avian’s breathing comforted me. It was so familiar. If anything was home in this wreck of a world it was Avian.
“What do you think of them?” I finally broke the silence, my eyes never leaving the tents below us. I picked West out, walking hesitantly to a fire. He didn’t sit to warm his hands, just stood back from the group and watched.
“I don’t know,” Avian mused, watching. The glow of the fires cast an orange haze to his face that highlighted his sharp brow, the line of his cheek bones. “The woman and child seem harmless. I don’t know what to think of West though. There’s something strange about him.”
I nodded in agreement. West had history to him. Some people were just like that. You just looked at them and could tell there was a story behind their face. “He’s keeping a secret.”
“Like what?” Avian asked.
I shook my head. “I’m not sure. He knows something.”
Avian was quiet, unsure of what to say, echoing my own thoughts. I didn’t like being uncertain about people, especially when those people could end the lives of the others around me. All it would take was one simple beacon to call out the Fallen.
“Happy birthday, Eve,” Avian said quietly. He extended his hand out to me, a small box in his palm.
A small smile tugged at my lips. “My birthday.”
It probably wasn’t my real birthday. Having no memory of anything when I came to Eden, Sarah insisted we pick a day as my birthday. Some date to mark the years of my life as they passed. I had no idea the date had come.
“There was once a time when turning eighteen meant something. It used to be a big deal.”
I took the box from his hand. It was simple, nothing special to it. I pulled it open and something light and shiny fell into my hand. I held it up to the light. It was a silver necklace, attached to it was a tiny set of wings, carved out of a soft black stone.
I took the wings gently in my fingers. They seemed so delicate, yet hard at the same time. I knew I must be gentle with it or it would break. It was the most elegant piece of craftsmanship I had seen.
I smiled as I recalled the conversation he and I had had when I was about fourteen. I had asked him what his name meant. He explained that it related to things to do with birds and flight. I had loved his name ever since.
“May I?” Avian asked.
I only nodded. Avian took the necklace and fastened the clasp behind my neck. His hands felt warm as they brushed my neck, causing goosebumps to rise on my flesh. He sat back and watched where it lay on my chest.
“You made it,” I stated, picking it up again to observe the flawless details. The feathers looked so soft I almost brushed my fingers over them.
He only nodded, his eyes still looking at his creation. “I didn’t want it to go by without some notice. It’s an important day for you.”
“It doesn’t feel important,” I said as I lowered the necklace to my chest again.
“It is,” Avian said, his eyes going back to Eden.
And we sat there on the hard earth, our shoulders barely brushing, until the sky went black and the stars shone with burning intensity.
FIVE
I cinched my pack tighter to my back as I walked out of the armory. A blade was strapped to each of my legs, a handgun secured in my belt, and a rifle rested in my left hand. I stood to the side of the door as Graye looked at me with serious eyes and ducked inside. Bill joined us a few minutes later.
“Same as always?” I asked as they both looked to me. They nodded their heads, Graye shifting a gun into his other hand, Bill strapping a blade to his arm.
“Just a minute, Eve,” a voice came from behind us. I turned to see Gabriel walking toward us, West following two steps behind. “I want you to take him with you.”
“We can handle it, Gabriel,” I said as I turned back to my scouting partners.
“I’m not asking, Eve,” he said sternly as he joined our small circle. “With Tye’s loss we need him. I won’t leave us unprotected because of your pride.”