LITMIR.BIZ

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didn’t complain. He never did. Jesse had counted on that. He probably enjoys the peace and quiet.

      Jesse found a shallow part of the river, where the muddy bottom was higher and current slower. He took one glance back to make sure no one had followed him. Then he pulled his net from underneath his shirt.

      His father had taught him how to catch fish in a homemade net. It was quicker and easier than waiting for fish to bite on a line, and the materials could be found on nearly every riverbank in Amarias. All Jesse needed was waterflax, a thin reed that grew in patches all along the riverbank.

      The long days of walking had given him plenty of time. With his crippled leg, he was always the last one in the group. If the other members of his squad thought it was strange that he braided reeds as he walked, they never said anything.

      It had taken him three days to make the net. It was a bit like a basket, only more flexible, with a looser weave. True, it wasn’t strong enough to hold much weight. But small fish can be cleaned, baked, and eaten just as well as large ones.

      He knelt down on the very edge of the bank, making sure his shadow was behind him. Any movement could startle the fish. Then it was a waiting game. Jesse carefully studied the water, waiting to see a fish poke out of the weeds. Dinner should be here any….

      All of a sudden, he was tumbling face-first into the water. He came up, sputtering and wiping the wet hair out of his eyes, grabbing at the bank to pull himself out.

      There, shaking her head at him, was Rae. “Pure skill, hmm?” she said, hands on her hips.

      Jesse gave her a weak smile. “Yes?”

      For one wild, crazy second, he thought about pulling her in with him. Then he checked himself. Do I want to die?

      Since the answer was no, he just floated there, doing his best to look repentant when what he really wanted to do was burst into laughter.

      She just shook her head and marched back toward their camp. Jesse quickly stood and sloshed over to her. “It wasn’t cheating,” he said. “I made the net myself. I caught the fish myself.”

      But she didn’t even slow down. “Then you won’t mind if the others hear about your stroke of brilliance.”

      Actually, Jesse wouldn’t mind. He was rather proud of it and was planning to tell Silas eventually. “You made me lose my fish, by the way.”

      “I don’t care,” Rae said. “Now, move away. You’re getting that dirty lake water on me.”

      “It’s a river, Rae,” Jesse said, rolling his eyes, “not a lake.”

      “It’s not well water,” Rae fired back, walking faster. “That’s all I care about.”

      Unlike in District One and Two, where most children learned to swim shortly after they learned to walk, residents of District Three avoided water whenever possible. As to why, all they could get out of Rae was mention of some old superstition. She always ended those conversations as soon as possible.

      They had reached the camp. “She’s delusional,” Jesse cried in protest, running ahead of Rae. “It’s the journey—it’s just too much for her. Don’t listen to anything she says.”

      Parvel and Silas just stared at them. “Anyone feel like explaining?” Parvel asked.

      Rae was only too happy to volunteer, going into great detail about Jesse’s net.

      “So that’s how you caught so many,” Silas said, shaking his head. “Is that really fair, Jesse?”

      “Yes,” Jesse said. “We were keeping track of how many fish we caught. No one said how we had to catch them.”

      “True enough,” Parvel said, “however, for acts of deception and general braggery—”

      “I don’t think that’s a word,” Jesse interrupted.

      “As squad captain, I officially sentence you to the chore of gathering the rest of the firewood for tonight’s meal,” Parvel pronounced solemnly.

      Jesse made a face. In the rocky terrain that was a hard task. The trees that grew in the shallow mountain soil were mostly varieties of pine. It was backbreaking work to collect dead branches scattered on the ground.

      “Fine,” Jesse said, taking the hook and line off of his staff, “but you realize that leaves Silas in charge of catching our dinner. And we know he doesn’t have the best record….”

      “I’ll do just fine,” Silas said coolly. He had never taken his line out of the creek. “And I’ll do it without your fancy net.”

      By the time the sun was low in the sky, they had a nice river flateye to share. As usual, Jesse and Parvel prayed over their meal, but Silas and Rae did not.

      “Eat quickly,” Silas said, glancing at the sun. “It’s almost dark, and we need to put out the fire.”

      Jesse knew why. They never lit a fire after sundown. Anyone passing by could see it from a distance, although the rocky terrain worked in their favor. Silas suggested never starting a fire at all, but when the others objected that raw fish were not very appetizing, he settled for making the fire as small as possible.

      As soon as they finished eating, Silas poured water on the fire, making the coals hiss and sputter. He started to throw dirt on them to smother them.

      “Can’t we keep the fire going?” Jesse protested. “I’m still wet!”

      “I’m sorry,” Silas said, not sounding sorry at all, “but I value our safety over your comfort.”

      “And you deserved that trip into the river anyway,” Rae added bluntly. Jesse just shook his head, sprinkling her with water and earning a look of disgust.

      “Well, the good news is, I patched your shoes,” Parvel interrupted, holding them up.

      Jesse took them and turned them over. There, stuffed into the holes, were two rocks.

      Jesse threw one of the shoes at Parvel’s head, but for being so burly, Parvel could move quickly. He ducked, and the shoe plunked into the river.

      “Next time, I’m throwing the rock,” Jesse threatened, limping over to the river as quickly as he could to fish the shoe out.

      “With your aim, I doubt I should worry.”

      “Thanks a lot,” Jesse grumbled, but Parvel’s deep, rumbling laughter drowned him out.

      He marched back and dropped the shoe, rock and all, next to the dying fire. “Goodnight,” he proclaimed, making a show of shivering as he lay on the ground, covered only by his blanket. They had lost their tents long ago, back in the Rebellion headquarters. “Wake me up for my shift on watch.”

      “Oh, I will,” Rae said. He always followed her during the night watch. “Maybe even a little early tonight.” She gave a loud yawn that was clearly fake. “I’m very tired, and I know I can count on you to be a gentleman, Jesse.”

      Jesse just moaned and wrapped his blanket tighter against his damp clothes. “Nice to know I’m falling asleep among friends.”

      And, though he wouldn’t have believed it a month before, it really was true.

      Chapter 3

      The next night, Jesse remained exiled from fishing duties; however, that didn’t stop Silas and Parvel from borrowing Jesse’s net. They had gone a distance down the river to use it. Silas said it was because the river was too fast where they had made camp. Jesse suspected Silas didn’t want him to watch and taunt him if he missed his first few tries.

      “He’s so used to being perfect at everything he can’t stand making a mistake like every other human,” he muttered to himself.

      He had to admit, though, that the four of them made a good team. We might even be

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