Red Skies (The Tales of the Scavenger's Daughters) by Kay Bratt Read Free Book Online Page B

curled around his pill bottle. Gently, she pried his fingers off and took the bottle, tucking it into her pocket. She bent and kissed the top of his head, then pulled the coverlet from the top of the couch and spread it over him.
    She stood staring down at him, her arms crossed as she examined his profile. He’d aged, she could see that, and the deep grooves that had appeared between his eyebrows showed his constant irritation with his new reality. Even in his sleep, they no longer disappeared—they were a permanent part of this person who had taken control of her husband and buried him underneath a new being who reeked of addiction and depression.
    On the table she spotted their engagement book and picked it up. The first page showed them dressed up and posed at the garden park. While they hadn’t been able to afford a fancy wedding, her baba had splurged and paid for the day of photo taking. She and Bolin had laughed, and they’d had so much fun that day. Her smile disappeared as she looked closer.
    The faces on the pages of the book were like strangers to her now. Where was that joy? Sapped out of them by real life, she supposed. Now they couldn’t even afford to waste a day at the park, much less have a photography session there. She’d be lucky to pull enough money together that month just to cover their living expenses and have anything to eat. She closed the cover on the book and set it down. Seeing how they used to be—and confronting the truth of how much they’d changed—made her so sad.
    She just had to get them back to where they were before. But until then, it was up to her to keep them afloat. She remembered that she still had Max’s card in her bag. She could call him. But should she leave Chu Chu and do something different? Maybe earn some better money? It was tempting, but she knew Bolin wouldn’t approve of her working with a foreigner.
    A plume of smoke from the kitchen reminded her of their dinner cooking, and that once again, Mari would be eating alone. She sighed and slowly made her way back there to finish up, so that she too could shut out the world by letting sleep overtake her.

 
    Chapter Six

    T he flames licked at his face as Max huddled low to the ground, breathing shallowly to filter his air. It was hot. Hotter than anything he’d ever felt. So hot that he just knew it was comparable to the pit of fire only spoken about in pulpits and bedtime prayers. The heat burned his nose, and the hairs on his arm stood tall, guarding against the scorching they knew was to come.
    But he kept going—inching closer. Why couldn’t he move faster? His legs felt as if they were encased with concrete, and the harder he pulled, the heavier they got. He stopped, dropped to his knees and coughed.
    Then coughed again, this time so hard he felt his lungs straining to burst.
    He was losing his breath—and taking in nothing but black smoke. Finally, he reached the side of a fire truck and crawled past it. He didn’t have much further to go now. He looked up, and through the haze of smoke and flames, there she was.
    She screamed for him, and he lunged.
    He awoke. Drenched in sweat, his body burned from the heat he’d created with his thrashing. Max looked around the small dismal room, trying to figure out where he was. The clock on the bedside table flashed four fifteen—morning time.
    He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed, propping his arms on his knees as he held his throbbing head. He didn’t even remember lying down the night before, nor did he remember how much of the tall bottle of Chinese liquor he’d downed before he’d succumbed to the welcome black void. Bai jiu , they’d called it and laughed at him when he’d handed over his money. The words translated to white wine , but Max thought it should be called firewater, like the Indians used to say. The stuff was harsh, but it had at least put him out of his misery and into a deep, silent sleep—but only for a while, because