Fed up, I leave them to it. Outside the pub, I bump into a short man wearing a cloth cap and am about to apologise when he claps me on the shoulder.

“You look just like your father!” he says.

“What?”

He holds out his hand, grinning at my surliness. “I’m Hern,” he says.

We shake and I take a closer glance at him. He’s pale of face, though his hair is dark like a Cerel. “Ma has told me about you.”

He gives a sad smile. “I think of your mother often,” he murmurs, and clasps his hands together. “D’you know, back in the day, she had so many admirers. If you were down on your luck, Freya wouldn’t hesitate to help you out.” His sad gaze seems to look into the past, then he remembers me. “But Leho, well met, young man!”

I watch as he darts into the pub, and for some reason I wonder if he’s going to meet Jorzy. These days, nothing would surprise me.

16

The next evening when I get back to the building, Marina is sitting on her mattress playing peaknuckle with Babet. She jumps up when she sees me in the kitchen and grabs my dirt-grimed hand.

“It’s all worked out,” says Marina, her eyes glowing.

I shake her off, heading for my cubbyhole. “What’s worked out?” I want to lie down in my quiet bed and rest. My back hurts from bending over squash and radishes all day, and my head aches from the heat. The city has taken a deep breath and refused to exhale. Each day I come home with the shirt sticking to my back and a stale stink under my arms.

“Leho,” she says, catching up with me in the hallway. “I’m leaving the city after all.” She’s breathless and her eyes are gleaming with excitement.

I want to be happy for her, but it’s not exactly a cause for celebration. I stand warily outside my cubbyhole, putting my hand on the faded wall to steady myself.

“How will you get out?”

The four city gates are guarded by Black Marks and the barren outer land around the city is patrolled: nobody leaves or enters the city without papers or a special dispensation, which of course Marina doesn’t have.

My sister, a spot of pink in each cheek, speaks rapidly. “It’s all arranged. There’s a special way, not something you’d expect at all.” Her dark eyes gleam. “Once I’m clear of the city, everything will be fine. Things are different out in the country.” With a secret smile, she touches her belly. “I’m going soon, before the bump starts to show.”

So that’s why Nanna was so angry the other day.

My eyes slide away from her, thinking about all the things that can go wrong and what will happen if she gets caught.