In the Skin of a Nunqua Read Online Free PDF Page B

Nunqua talking about? ‘Do not speak of me.’ Who are you hiding from?”
    “Blackmail won’t work, either. Why not leave, go to a different camp? Escape?”
    “Because he controls supplies at the other camps, too.” Leanna hung her head. “I trusted Mossgail. Thought he would take care of me, protect me, marry me. I was wrong to get involved with him. Now he won’t give the infirmary the supplies we need, just to make me look bad. Nobody takes me seriously, because he’s a commander and I’m . . . I’m just a woman.”
    “Did you practice that speech?” Shanti said. Mossgail was as slippery as a skinned eel—she had sensed it from the moment he offered her the armband—but she wanted to stay out of trouble.
    “Haven’t you ever made a mistake because of a man?” Leanna said.
    A pang of remorse seized her as she thought of Caravey. Perhaps she should help. There was no winning a fight against a healer, but Mossgail was different. And the supplies did belong in the infirmary. “What’s your plan?”
    “Ladies.” Four men pulled chairs around the table to join them. They wore sheepish grins on their clean-shaven faces. One, tall and bright-eyed, put an arm around her. Shanti stared at him until he pulled away.
    “Thank you for the drinks,” Leanna said, “but now isn’t the time.”
    “Just looking for some company, nothing more.”
    “I’m sorry, but we’re busy.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Yes.”
    The men left, and the two younger women waved and flirted. “Bye-bye, boys.”
    Leanna remained serious. “We take the medical supplies while he’s sleeping. We’ll go to jail if we’re caught . . . or worse.”
    “And all of you are willing to take this risk?” Shanti said.
    “Yes.”
    “Yes.”
    “Absolutely,” Leanna said.
    Shanti drummed with her fingers on the table. The more she thought of Mossgail, the more the idea appealed to her. “I’m in,” she said, “on one condition.”
    “What is it?”
    “Acquiring a few medicinal items will only annoy him. You must injure his pride. We take all of his supplies, his boots and clothing, too. Humiliate him. Mossgail will be seen as incompetent if his entire inventory is stolen from right under his nose. And if it’s ever revealed that he was raided by a bunch of women while he slept, we may pay the price by going to jail, but he’ll be laughed out of camp. The soldiers would be better off without him.”
    They clinked their cups together in agreement.
    *
    Shanti led the three women through the dark camp, avoiding the guards on duty. They padded around buildings and crawled through bushes until they reached the supply quarters. Leanna put a key in the lock on the door as Shanti held her breath. During festivities in town, she had taken the key and poured sleeping powder into Mossgail’s drink while the fair-haired woman from the infirmary danced with him. What if it was the wrong key? The door opened, and Shanti tensed. So many things could go wrong.
    An orange glow emanated from the hearth, and Mossgail snored in bed, his left foot sticking out from under the wool blanket. Pants and boots were strewn across the floor of the small room next to the supplies.
    “Take everything you can carry,” Shanti whispered.
    They filled sacks with blankets, medicines, dishes, tobacco, and whatever else would fit. The fair-haired woman lifted a nest of hairless baby mice, then dropped it, stifling a squeal, when she realized what it was. They moved the nest to a corner of the chamber.
    Shanti entered Mossgail’s bedroom and filled a sack with his clothing. He grunted and turned over in bed. She froze. Drool dripped from his mouth, and his eyes were partly open. She waved her hand in front of his face, flicked her finger close to his eye. Nothing. She continued packing his gear.
    Leanna entered the room, knife in hand, as if in a trance. She moved toward Mossgail.
    Shanti intercepted her, grabbing her wrist and squeezing. The knife fell to the