Nevermor Read Free

got even less from Max, who was
fine around the other children but had never felt comfortable in the presence
of strange adults.  She put her hand on his head to soothe him as he clenched
her dress and hid his face in the folds.
    “His name is
Maxwell,” Wren said for him.
    The woman was
still looking at him anxiously, and Wren would have given anything to have that
sort of attention.
    “Say hello,” she
urged her brother, knowing that he was the ticket, and eventually Max looked
sheepishly up at the woman.
    “Hullo,” he
mumbled.  He couldn’t have sounded more uninterested in her except if he’d been
bawling, but the woman seemed delighted.
    “What a charming
little boy,” she commented, her eyes shining.  “I have so wanted a little one. 
I haven’t been able to have my own, you know.  He even looks a bit like me,
don’t you think?”
    Wren wasn’t sure
what to say to that, so she only smiled.  She supposed that if it went
unquestioned, a resemblance might be seen, but as far as Wren herself was
concerned, it was fairly obvious that she was not related to this woman.  The
lady’s eyes were blue, but small, and her nose was slightly crooked over her
thin lips.  Now that Wren was close enough to notice these things, she wondered
how she could have been reminded of her own mother in the beginning.
    My mother was
lovely.  This woman is nothing like her.
    The woman now
caught her eyes on Wren, who was not always overlooked for being pretty,
especially when one was so close.  Her eyes were blue and kind, her skin pale,
and when her hair was not covered in soot, it was a lovely golden color that
spiraled down her back.  Her lips were sweet, and they always seemed able to
find a smile to lift another’s spirits, even when she was unhappy herself.  It
was as if the core of her soul was visible on her face, revealing her inner
beauty as a rare and perfect pearl.
    “Well, aren’t
you lovely,” the woman commented to her.  Wren put on her best disposition,
telling herself that this was it – this was her chance to make a good
impression.
    Show her that
you’re smart and competent.  If she’s not looking for a daughter, surely she
might be interested in a nanny if she’d rather call Max her son.  Henry could
make himself useful through work.
    But before she
had gotten the chance to speak further, the woman had looked over at her
husband for approval, and Wren saw her downfall there in his eyes.  He had been
staring at her the whole while, gazing intently like a hungry wolf wanting to
gobble her up.  Wren had not even noticed, but his wife saw it now, and she did
not like it one bit.
    That was the end
of the encounter.  The woman grabbed her husband’s arm and pulled him away from
them.  Wren was helpless against it.  Her hope sank like a stone in the deep,
cold well of despair.
    “That went
beautifully,” Henry muttered as the couple passed by.  “They usually have to
see me first before they run away.  Nice job on that one.”
    Wren didn’t
respond to her brother’s chiding.  She swallowed down that rejection; told
herself to be brave.  Beside her, Henry grew quiet again, looking sullen as
usual, and eventually Max had hidden himself behind her dress fully so that he
could not be seen by anyone.  Still, Wren waited, glancing pleadingly at the
others who had come to visit, trying to keep her smile even though she felt
like crying.
    No one else gave
them any attention.
     
    2
     
    The day went by
with no result, just as so many days before.  Afterward, it was back to chores
at the Home – washing and cooking and wiping up coal dust.  Soon enough, Wren
was back in her bed, staring at the drab ceiling of the attic dormitory that
housed all twenty of them – boys and girls alike – wondering once again if she
would get out of here before she was old.
    Another day,
that’s all, she thought .  I’m not any worse or better for it.  She had to think of
it that way, or else she might