Read The Wish Kin for Free Online Page B

town now. Go there and you die.’
    Joe snorts. ‘I’ve seen hundreds of rat plagues in my time,’ he says. ‘But never any that ya can’t get rid of in the end.’
    Marla shrugs and loads another spoonful of food for Ganan. ‘You try tellin’ that to the folk of Midgin if you can find any. Some of ’em were lucky enough to make it to the grave. Most were eaten by the rats where they died. Not pretty, I’ve heard.’
    â€˜How could you hear if everyone died?’ asks Lydia. But Marla says no more.
    Later, she makes up beds for them all. The farmhouse was once large, but sections have been dismantled for firewood and tools. Still, Colm and Lydia are in a room of their own with a window that looks out into the blackness of the hills.
    â€˜How did you know, Lyd?’ Colm asks his sister as they lie on their mattresses. ‘About Midgin and the rats.’
    â€˜Just had a feeling,’ Lydia says quietly.
    â€˜Do you believe that stuff?’
    â€˜Don’t you?’
    â€˜I don’t know.’
    The house softens around them. Lydia falls into sleep, blowing away the day as she breathes into the night air. The room heats and sweats. Colm rises to open a window and hears as he does so a distant whimpering, a crying. He imagines it is one of the children and walks softly to the door, listening. Nothing. He unfastens the window and is about to return to his mattress when the sound comes again. This time he opens the door and walks carefully down the corridor. As he moves through the house again he hears something. Is it the same sound? He’s not sure. It sounds slightly different. He stops outside the room it seems to be coming from. The door is slightly ajar. It is a bedroom, he can see, and Marla and Joe are standing together by the window with their mouths moving over one another’s face and neck. Joe has his hands around Marla’s waist. Marla is sighing and making little noises like an owl. Joe pinches the flesh on her ribs and Marla squeals and slaps at him. Colm backs away and hurries to his room. He pulls the covers over his head and stuffs his fingers into his ears, willing himself to sleep.
    â€¢ • •
    At breakfast, Marla serves them each a bowl of brown grainy mash and they drink some more of the greenishbrew that they had the night before. Colm watches Joe playing peekaboo with Kiah from behind the chair back. The little girl laughs, high-pitched and joyous, and sends her bowl of food skating across the tabletop. Nobody seems to mind when it falls to the floor. Marla gathers the pieces smiling.
    â€˜When are we leaving, Joe?’ asks Colm.
    Joe ducks his head down behind the chair and appears again suddenly. Kiah snatches and squeals.
    â€˜Joe?’
    Joe thrusts his fat fingers into Kiah’s belly and starts to tickle her. Kiah grabs at Joe’s hand, laughing.
    â€˜When are we leaving?’ Colm says again.
    â€˜Eh?’ Joe looks up.
    â€˜We’re all packed,’ says Lydia.
    â€˜Right.’ Joe pats Kiah on the head and looks across to where Marla is feeding Ganan.
    â€˜You’re welcome to stay for a while,’ she says. ‘Nice to have a bit of company for a change.’ She sweeps her hair away from her neck and Colm sees a dark bruise on her throat.
    Joe acts surprised and pleased at the offer, but Colm is certain this isn’t the first time he has heard it made.
    â€˜Well, we could stay another night or two, just to catch our breath,’ says Joe. ‘Long trip ahead.’
    â€˜
You
might want to catch your breath, Joe,’ says Colm, ‘but
we
have to get to Wonding.’
    â€˜â€™Nuther day’s not gunna make a difference.’
    â€˜I reckon it will.’
    Colm feels strangely strong. It’s not like him to challenge authority, but the urgency of their flight is well apparent and he wants to be on their way.
    â€˜For the kids, son,’ says Joe. Kiah is