ELLIE
The little one on my hip has both hands tangled in my hair and no intention of giving it back.
"Nell," I say, trying to free one strand without pulling her fingers. "Come get your sister."
Nell doesn't come. She's under the table with two wooden spoons and what looks suspiciously like a plan.
I glance down at her through the gap between the chairs. "Nell."
She looks up at me, grins, and immediately goes back to whatever she's doing with the spoons.
I can't help the small smile that pulls at my mouth.
Marta comes through from the back with the night's bedding piled against her stomach. She's got the same brown dress on, and the same look she's had every time I've walked in here.
Which has been most mornings lately. It's been six days since Ivy went north, and my phone hasn't r
