Ice

by Sarah Beth Durst

  Stepping back from the window, she checked around her to make sure she wasn’t crushing any vines. Father Forest would feel it. Four months of worrying about what Father Forest would think or feel, and still no opportunity to escape. She thought, as she often did these days, of her mother in the troll castle. Now Cassie sometimes woke screaming at night. But no one came to comfort her.

  “Hellooo, little mother!”

  Cassie looked out through the shutters. Outside at the gate, the aspen waved her twig arms over her head as if she were waving in an airplane.

  Oh, not again.

  The aspen skipped down the singing stones. “Tell Father Forest that I am here!”

  Without fail, the aspen came every morning, but today Father Forest had other visitors too. Tree-people from the southern part of the boreal forest had come to the cottage to discuss placement and exposure and color of autumn leaves, as if they were artists participating in a vast art gallery. “He said he can’t see you today,” Cassie said through the shutters.

  Racing at the window, the tree-girl hissed at Cassie—eyes wild yellow, sharp green teeth bared. In that instant, she’d transformed from a childlike tree spirit into something feral. Cassie instinctively flinched away from the window, and then the aspen burst into wailing. “Oh, my aspens! They suffer! It’s the spruces. Their roots spread—they steal soil from my aspens!”

  “I’m sorry,” Cassie said, eyeing her through the shutters. No matter how cute the tree-girl could look, she wasn’t a child. The perky innocence was an affectation, as much as Father Forest’s Santa Claus image.

  The aspen shrieked. Her leaves spiked, her eyes rolled, and her mouth widened into a gash across her bark face. “He must come see! Spruces crowd my aspens back into the valleys. My aspens lose mountain exposure. My aspens starve for sunlight!” Her stick body shook. “You must let me see him!” Launching herself at the window, she clawed at the shutters.

  Cassie retreated fast. “I’ll tell him you’re here,” she said.

  The aspen beamed, again a green child. “Goody.”

  Cassie escaped into the living room. Phosphorescent moss lit the walls in a faint green glow. Open flames, Father Forest had said, made his visitors nervous. Six visitors, birches, sickly green in the moss light, had planted themselves into the wood floor.

  Stepping over their roots, Cassie whispered to Father Forest about the aspen. Father Forest grimaced—an odd expression on a Santa Claus. “Can you tell her ‘not now’?”

  “You know how she is,” Cassie said.

  “Oh, dear,” Father Forest said. “I should go—”

  “This is not acceptable.” One of the birch-men flopped the leaves on his head. Another birch frowned and said, “We have traveled a long way.” A third spoke up: “We have important decisions to make.”

  “Oh, dearie dear,” Father Forest said. “Cassie, my child, can’t you pacify her?”

  Cassie began to refuse, and then she stopped. Maybe this was her chance. If she could use the crazy tree-girl . . . Cassie’s heart thudded, and she tried to sound nonchalant as she said, “I could convince her to show me the spruces. Tell her that I will report back to you.”

  He frowned. “Surely, she can wait a few—”

  “She is seconds away from bursting in here,” Cassie said. “As you can imagine, I would prefer not to walk so far.” She patted her round stomach for emphasis. “But if it would help you . . .”

  “Let the human go,” one of the birch-women said. Another birch said, “Yes, let’s get on with it.” Another added, “Please, we have limited time.”

  Father Forest surrendered. “Very well. Go, then.” He waved his hand to dismiss her as one of the birches tapped Father Forest’s knee and said, “About that shade of yellow . . .”

  “Golden tones are better, don’t you agree?” Father Forest replied.

  Cassie backed into the kitchen, certain he’d change his mind. Any second now, he’d realize his mistake. Her hand shook as she laid it on the door latch. Always before, it had behaved like solid wood.

  She squeezed the latch and pulled—the door swung open, and Cassie fell outside. Her knees shook. She leaned against the door frame. She sucked in oxygen. It smelled of spruce and soil. It smelled of shadows and sunlight.

  “Little mother, is he with you?”

  Cassie barely heard the aspen. She walked to the gate. Brown and brittle ferns brushed her skirt. She felt the warm crunch of spruce needles under her bare feet.

  Run, her mind whispered, run.

  “Little mother?” The aspen’s voice held a dangerous note. She stomped her twig foot, and Cassie focused on her. She had to keep the aspen pacified if her escape was to work.

  “He asked me to observe in his place,” Cassie said. “I am to report back to him.”

  “All we want is our due,” the aspen said, sweet again. “It is not fair. Other trees have much better exposure.” Cassie opened the gate. Legs shaking, she walked out as the aspen continued, “Some trees have such good exposure that they can speak to the winds. Never aspens, though. It is not fair at all. It is injustice.”

  Just beyond the picket fence, the dark of the forest was primeval. Shriveled ferns shrouded the forest floor. Above, leaves and branches were knit so tightly that they choked light. She could lose herself in that darkness. She could disappear.

  Cassie glanced back at the cottage. Innocent as a gingerbread house, the cottage glowed in the warm pink of morning. She could hear the rise and fall of the birch voices through the shutters. She expected Father Forest to tear out after her any second. Her heart beat as fast as mosquito wings. Forcing herself not to run, in case he watched from the window, Cassie walked into the forest, and the shadows swallowed her.

  The aspen bounced beside her, again childlike. “What do you think?”

  She knew it was her imagination, but it felt as if the trees were leaning in on her, suffocating her. As she squeezed between shrubs, she missed the openness of the pack ice. Out on the ice, her soul expanded—but here, she felt boxed in, claustrophobic even. Filtered through the canopy of evergreen branches, the light in the forest was an underwater green. Ferns and horsetails filled the spaces between the spruces. She stepped over roots and brown-leafed bushes.

  “Are you listening to me?” the aspen demanded.

  Cassie hadn’t been. “You want exposure?”

  “Yes!” The aspen’s yellow eyes flashed. “Some trees on mountainsides can speak to the winds. Is that too much to ask? Some space to be heard?”

  Cassie looked back over her shoulder. She couldn’t see the cottage anymore. Now it was time to run. She didn’t know how much time she had before Father Forest realized his mistake, but she had to be well beyond the reach of his vines when he did. She broke into a jog, cradling her oversize stomach. Rocks jabbed at her bare feet.

  “Slow down, little mother.”

  “We have to reach the spruces!” Cassie said. “You want me to see them quickly, don’t you?” As soon as she had enough distance, she’d distract the aspen and lose her. Her skirt snagged on bushes and wrapped around her ankles. Reaching down, she hiked it up to her hips. She ran faster.

  The aspen loped after Cassie. “But you’re going the wrong way. My aspens are east! Little mother, stop!” Her shrill voice pierced the wind. She let out a screech.

  Needles quivered overhead.

  Holding her stomach protectively, Cassie ducked under a low-hanging branch. It slapped her forehead. She pressed her hand on her stinging head. Blood or sweat, it felt wet.

  Ahead of her, bark melted like molten metal.

  Cassie veered to the left, and a second wall of bark blocked her. She looked behind her. Bark sealed all the gaps. Caught! Cassie stumbled to a stop. All around her, wood ringed her in a solid circle. She spun.

  Perched up in the branches, the tree-girl peered down at her. “I said east!”

  Cassie heard a horrible cracking noise as the wall of trees split. It fell open as if lightning
had struck it. Father Forest stood where the wall had been.

  Cassie retreated until her back hit the wall of bark.

  “You disappoint me,” he said softly. “I thought we had an understanding. After all, it is your own interest that I am protecting.”

  “I wasn’t . . . I mean, I didn’t . . .” Cassie wanted to weep. Months, wasted!

  “Oh, my child, you have to know it is pointless. You cannot run from the forest when you are in the forest, any more than you can escape the sea from within the sea.”

  “I wasn’t trying to escape,” Cassie lied. “I was confused, and then the trees began to move and I was scared. That’s why I ran.”

  Father Forest tsked with his tongue. “Come, come, now . . .”

  Dropping from the branches, the aspen landed on the soft needles. “It is my fault. She was hurrying to help me, and she went the wrong way.”

  Cassie stared at her. The crazy aspen was unintentionally saving Cassie.

  “Truly?” Father Forest said.

  The tree-girl shrugged. Disgust colored her voice. “She’s a foolish child.”

  Please believe it, Cassie thought at him. She said out loud, “She was upset. I wanted to hurry. I only wanted to help you. You’ve been like a real father to me.” She nearly choked on the words.

  Lines eased on his face. He nodded. He knew how insistent the tree-girl could be, didn’t he? He could understand how it could make someone run, couldn’t he? Cassie did not breathe. “Forgive me, child, for doubting you,” he said. “Come back to the cottage.” Smiling at her, he looped his gnarled arm around her waist. She tried not to tense.

  The tree-girl bristled. “But my aspens!”

  He put his other arm around the aspen. “Come too. We can discuss it.” Arm around each of them, Father Forest propelled Cassie and the tree-girl forward through the rift in the wood wall that he’d created. Cassie glanced over her shoulder and saw the spruces slowly reverting to individual trees. She shivered. “Cold?” he asked.

  “I’m fine,” Cassie said. “I’ll make her some tea to calm her.” As soon as she saw the cottage, she strode forward, breaking out of his circling arm, and walked down the singing stones. The stones chimed cheerfully at her. She entered the cottage, and the latch clicked shut behind her. She did not let herself look back.

  Inside, the birches were gone. Stepping over their root stains, she carried the kettle to the sink. Hands shaking, she filled it with water. Her mind ran in circles. She had not known he could control trees from a distance. Outside his home, Bear hadn’t been able to affect molecules he wasn’t touching. But Sedna could, Cassie thought. The mermaid had saved Cassie without touching her, and Father Forest was an overseer like Sedna.

  How would she ever escape if he had that kind of power? How could she run from the forest within the forest? What part of the forest was not forest? The kettle overflowed. Water poured down the drain.

  “Cassie, the water?” Father Forest said, entering the cottage. “It is not an endless well.” Mechanically, she turned off the faucet. She stared at it without moving her hand.

  Water was not part of the forest. She remembered: The rivers are not my region. Suddenly, she knew how to escape. She needed a river, a stream, a bog. Yes, a bog would be perfect. He could not watch the whole circumference at once. She could lose him in the middle and come out on an unexpected side. But how would she ever get to one? Father Forest would never let her outside again, much less near water. What excuse did she have to get near water?

  The aspen let out a screech.

  “Tea here, please,” Father Forest said.

  Cassie put the kettle on the stove, and after a few minutes, it whistled. She poured the steaming water into his cup. She thought she sensed an idea forming as she poured. He needed water for his special tea.

  She brought the cup to Father Forest for the aspen. Father Forest concentrated on the tea for a moment and then encouraged the aspen to drink. After a few sips, the tree-girl was calmer. Father Forest gave Cassie a grateful look. “Thank you.”

  Cassie smiled sweetly.

  * * * * *

  The next morning, as soon as Father Forest secluded himself in the living room, Cassie completed her preparations. Checking over her shoulder to make sure she was alone, she shoved a wad of mud, sticks, and stones into the kitchen faucet. She jammed it farther in with the broom handle and then added more, mixing it so it was as thick as mortar. All the while, she listened for the telltale xylophone chime of the stones outside the cottage.

  She was certain the tree-girl would return. She’d listened to Father Forest the day before. He’d only soothed her; he hadn’t solved her problem. The aspen would be back.

  Cassie finished plugging the faucet, and then she straightened. Her stomach sank. “Whoa, kiddo, what’s going on in there?” She clasped her hands over her abdomen. It felt lower. What did that mean? Her heart thudded faster. She had time left, didn’t she?

  She could not give birth here. No doctors, no nurses, no hospitals. No Max to airlift her to Fairbanks. Just Father Forest and his crazy trees. She closed her eyes; the world spun. Oh, God, not now. Not here.

  She could not let this child be born here with Father Forest. It would grow up a prisoner. she couldn’t let that happen.

  “Hellooo, little mother!” she heard.

  “Work with me,” Cassie whispered to her stomach, and then she called through the shutter slats, “So sorry to hear about the spruces.”

  Several octaves too high, the tree-girl squeaked, “Hear what?”

  “Father Forest awarded the foothills of the Mackenzies to the spruces,” Cassie said. “He decided last night. Didn’t he tell you?”

  As she’d hoped, her words were a match to kindling. The aspen exploded. Shrieking, the tree-girl slammed her stick body into the door. With a mighty crack, the cottage door burst open.

  Father Forest ran into the kitchen.

  The aspen was screeching loud enough to fell trees.

  “Cassie, tea!” Father Forest shouted. “She’s hysterical!”

  Cassie ran to the kettle. Conveniently (and intentionally), it was empty. She brought it to the sink. She glanced over her shoulder. With his back to her, Father Forest wrung his hands over the tree-girl. The aspen whirled around the room, scratching gashes into the wood walls and tearing at leaves. Cassie turned the sink handle. “Plumbing’s clogged!”

  “Fix it!” Father Forest cried.

  Cassie opened the cabinet under the sink. She squatted. She’d inserted the clog in the faucet to prevent drips, but the real problem with the plumbing was down here. She knew she could not fix it—not after all the trouble she had gone through to break it. This was one time when Father Forest’s dependence on man-made things instead of magic worked to her advantage. She patted the Spic and Span fondly. “Doesn’t look good,” she said out loud. Pulling herself up by the counter, she said, “I’ll try the bathroom.”

  “Hurry!” She could barely hear him over the aspen. For a tree, she had quite a set of lungs. Ears ringing, Cassie waddled to the bathroom.

  “No luck,” she called. “The well must be dry!” She returned to the kitchen.

  He was near tears. “She needs tea!”

  Cassie went for a pitcher on a shelf. Now here was the final step. She uttered a silent prayer. Heart beating in her throat, she said, “I could fetch some. Where’s a stream?”

  “Quarter mile north.” He pointed. “Go!”

  Cassie went.

  The trees did not stop her.

  TWENTY-SIX

  Latitude 63° 55’ 02” N

  Longitude 125° 24’ 08” W

  Altitude 1296 ft.

  CASSIE RAN, SOFT STEPS ON THE NEEDLES. She clutched the pitcher to her chest. Her breath roared in her ears. She felt the baby kick as if running with her. “Hang in there,” she told it. “We’ll make it. Just hang in there.” Ligaments tugged as her stomach bounced.

  She heard the stream gurgling like a drowning ma
n.

  She jumped over a root and landed on feather moss. Her feet slid, and she flailed for a branch. Catching one, she steadied herself before remembering it could be an enemy. She let go fast, and the branch snapped back.

  The ground softened as she neared the stream, and Cassie sank into it like it was a sponge. Mud sucked at her feet, slowing her. She spotted the stream. Oh, no. It wasn’t wide enough! It wasn’t safe. The narrow stream was still within Father Forest’s reach. Balsam poplars and alders leaned over it. Horsetails and ferns draped in it. Cassie plowed through them and splashed into the water.

  Bare feet on the wet rocks, she ran through the stream. She clenched her teeth as the rocks pinched. Miniature rapids swirled around her toes. Please, let it lead to a river, she thought.

  Cassie saw a fern unfurl. Her gut tightened. He knows. Bushes rustled, and horsetails whipped her ankles. Branches stretched to scrape her skin. How could he know so quickly?

  She heard the red squirrels chittering from the treetops—spies.

  Branches waved like octopus tentacles. She kicked through them. She jammed her toe on a rock, and winced, slowing. Branches snagged her hair. She wouldn’t get another chance at this. She had to make it now. She yanked. She felt strands rip from her head as she splashed downstream.

  Shadows fell across the stream. Cassie glanced up to see branches weaving and bending into a net. She chucked the pitcher at the tree. It recoiled. She ran under it. Shrub willow seized her skirt. She heard it tear.

  “Little mother, wait!” Waving her arms, the tree-girl sprinted through the spruces. Father Forest could not be far behind.

  Holding her bouncing stomach, Cassie bolted down miniature waterfalls. Rocks and twigs flew under her feet. She had to run faster—for Bear, for Dad, for Gail, for the baby inside her.

  “Stop!” Leaping over bushes, the aspen raced beside the stream. She stretched out her stick arms to Cassie. “It’s too dangerous!”

  Avoiding the aspen’s arms, Cassie tripped over loose rocks. She fell, and her hands slapped the rocks. She clutched her stomach and propelled herself onto her feet.