Craft by Lynnie Purcell Page B

We broke them last night,”
the boy said smugly. “They were easy to break.”
    “Those were just general wards to keep
out the curious…crafting from a long time ago. We put up new ones.
These ones boil your blood in your body, unless you’re a Bumbalow.
Or if a Bumbalow lets you pass through. Do you feel them?” she
asked.
    “No…” he said, looking
confused.
    All he felt were the ropes around his
body and the hard earth pressing against his back. The craft Ellie
could not ignore was not as obvious to him.
    “Well, the wards are there, and
they’re gonna stay there, unless I let you through,” she
said.
    “What are you suggesting?” he
asked.
    Ellie put her hands on her hips and
tried to act confident about what she was asking. She knew what she
wanted would sound weird to someone as worldly as the boy was, but
she was determined.
    “I wanna know how to get to town. Tell
me how to get there and I’ll let you pass through the wards like
you own them. Once done, neither of us gotta look back, nor even
remember any of this happened.”
    “That’s all? You want to know how to
get to town?” the boy asked incredulously. “Why in the world would
you trade my life for that?”
    “You don't have to make a big deal
about it. Either tell me how to get there, or rot in this spot
until my family finds you,” Ellie said.
    “You’ll be killed for sure if you try
to walk to town,” the boy said.
    “That’s my problem,” Ellie
said.
    The boy did not trust her. Her bargain
sounded too ridiculous to be true. She would free him for
directions? He was smarter than that.
    “What’s the catch?” he
asked.
    “No catch. It seems to me, considering
the state you’re in, like you got a reason to be hoping for some
kindness from me,” Ellie said. “How’s about you listen to that
hope?”
    The boy thought about that for a
moment. “You’ll really let me go as easy as that?” he asked. “You
didn’t capture me to torture me and take out my tongue?”
    “Why on earth would I want your
tongue?!” Ellie demanded.
    “Bumbalows are known for taking out
the tongue,” he said.
    “We do no such thing!” Ellie
exclaimed.
    He was relieved to hear those words.
He could not hide the relief from his face. “Not saying I believe
you, but you do know that town is close to a two day walk, don’t
you? Unless you have a car somewhere in that dress,” he
said.
    “Two days?!” Elli May
exclaimed.
    Her hands fell from her hips in
defeat. She had not been expecting such a hefty walk in front of
her. When the others went to town, they were only gone for a couple
of hours at most. But they had always taken Cousin’s truck. They
did not have to depend on their own legs to take them.
    Ellie had a moment of indecision,
where she considered abandoning her plan and spending the evening
reading alone in her shack, like always. It was a plan that would
not include a beating for running away from her chores. A feeling
of rebellion moved through her body at the thought.
    She could not let her moment pass her
by. If she did not go now, she never would. She could not deny her
wants any longer, not when they pulled against her mind so
forcefully. The attack on her house had been the beginning of
something she could not fully understand. It was the need to face
her fear, mingled with an overwhelming sense of adventure. Ellie
squared her shoulders and put her hands back on her
hips.
    “Two days is just gonna be what it
takes,” she said. “Now, tell me how to get there, and I’ll let you
go. A deal’s a deal.”
    The boy’s eyes narrowed again. He
could not trust her, no matter how sincere her words seemed. “How
would you know I’m not lying? How do I know you’re not lying now?”
he asked.
    “People usually wanna do right, if you
give them chance enough, even a Cooper,” Ellie said.
    The boy considered her words. He could
not deny the excited look in her eyes or the determination to
follow through on her plan. She really