“Here, sit down by the fire,” Gregory said as he moved one of the chairs nearer.
She stared at him and then looked down toward her feet. After a few minutes, she sat on the floor, and it looked to Gregory as if she’d collapsed. Gregory gave her the quilt off the extra bed and some sheets. She created a cushion from the bedding and looked more comfortable.
“Here, eat this,” Gregory said slow and loud as he dished up some leftover dinner.
The girl winced when he spoke, but didn’t take the tin dish. Gregory laid the plate on the floor beside her. She just stared into the fire and rocked herself back and forth.
Once the water over the fire was warm, Gregory placed the infant in the tub and gently washed away the grime of her stormy birth. Gregory was just finishing when Frank came in the d
