Yellowhair: An Elf Hollow Prequel

TWENTY-ONE | Woman in the Wall

Note to Readers:

I should give you a heads up. This chapter might end on a cliffhanger (shhh! ;) and...

...Then you'll have to wait, while the podcast catches up to the text version, to find out what's going to happen from there... ;)

Next week, I'll be posting a Special Season Break Chapter 22 story, which you might enjoy on the podcast, especially well, since it contains a bit of the music written especially for Qello's world. The soundtrack says far more than my words ever could! I totally love what was performed! My deepest thanks to its angelic songbird creator. I know you'll be as wowed as I was. ≈ Wez

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Woman in the Wall

The winds of change are often disruptive and although Qello Orkin found time for her grieving, her days with the pup had brought her new life. 

Her leg was unbandaged and her bruises now yellow. Her progress sped up, then bruises faded.

Qello was often able to cross the room, once or twice, at a hop by herself. The pup kept her hopping, quite literally. She played with him long, endless hours. Odd presents still arrived and some were even made for her white omen dog. She kept Luna's things in a big drawstring bag, on the floor next to her chair, beneath the window of flowers.

It was a complete surprise, on one afternoon a little while later, when Qello was pausing to get a rag doll plaything from the bag, and Kreelah came in—looking worried—to say Qello had a visitor at the door.

"I think that you know him," is all that she said. She went away for a few moments and then was heard ushering the visitor in.

Qello's back still to the door, bent from the chair, in a tug of war with the dog, she heard him make eye contact, with the visitor behind her. "Unh!", she chided at his growl. You don't do that!

She turned.

Without any warning, Sigrid appeared as if from a vision,  a much aged and more haggard version--he stood, hesitatingly, inside the frame of the guest bedroom door.

Qello was shocked. How did he find me? If she had not been now in so much pain from hopping after the dog all morning and on strict orders not to move another inch she may have jumped up and hugged him, in her relief. But then she remembered his sadness was hers. Her hands flew like claws to her mouth, eyes wide and in horror.

Keelah hid her surprise, but reached for the pup saying, "Here. I'll hang onto this wiggly thing," and left politely.

Qello often struggled to find movements that conveyed her first thoughts. Only Eldrid had understood most of her signals and her mother had just seemed lucky to guess. Sigrid had never paid much attention, always preferring to be buried in work. Qello's immediate needs had been assigned to her Mum. Sigrid's needs were more his job—to look after himself.

"Is been a mighty long trip that has happened," said her father. He held his hat in his hand as he might do, selecting a stranger to give him directions. "Have come far off muh path to git you."

At this point the pup raced on his own back into the room, followed by Kreelah, who settled him onto the bed, just as politely, and left again through an awkward silence.

When she closed the door, Sigrid continued, "Wasn't aware you'd gone off, 'til I's heard the story of th' miracle girl who wasn't to speak." He used his hat to wipe dirt and sweat from his face. "An' here ye are." Sigrid gaped more around the room.