Lev approached the group, singling out a gaunt woman who was attempting to lay a heavy linen sheet over a clump of reeds to dry. A corner flopped down into the mud. With an impatient exclamation, the woman snatched it up and splashed a flask of yellow liquid over the muddy hem. Callie sniffed, then sniffed again. Urine!
‘Yuck!’ El’s exclamation echoed Callie’s thoughts.
‘It helps to whiten the cloth,’ Magrit explained. ‘The nuns told me all about it when they taught me how to wash and care for our clothes. They also taught me how to weave and spin and cook.’
‘All the womanly virtues,’ El scoffed.
‘Oh no, we were quite self-sufficient. Sometimes I tended the beasts and did the milking. I was also taught to till the land, sow seed, harvest the vegetables and corn, and grind the grain tha
