Page 1 of A Winter Admire

ChapterOne

“Well, isn’t it your lucky day, Edwin!” Rhorton said, handing Edwin a cream-coloured envelope. “Looks like the letter from your mother has finally arrived.”

Edwin took the envelope, smiling as his gaze ran over his mother’s familiar loopy handwriting. “Thanks, Rhorton.” It was three weeks until Winter Solstice. Edwin had wondered if he would receive a letter from his parents before then.

“You must be elated. You’ve been coming in every day to check!” Rhorton said. Rhorton and his wife, Mila, ran the village store. Ores was so small that the store also functioned as the village post office and even a restaurant where one could get a cheap meal at night. “It’s been a couple of months since you heard from them, right?”

Edwin nodded. “Yes. It’s been a while.”

Four months to be exact. Four months without a word from his mother, father, or sister. He’d sent them three letters in that time. But he hadn’t heard back. He’d begun to worry that something might have happened to them.

Or they had forgotten him, too caught up with their new lives in Bordertown, the capital city of Norend.

But his family hadn’t forgotten him. The letter in his hand proved it. Perhaps the reason there’d been such a delay between letters was because one, or maybe even two, had been lost. It was a decent journey between Ores and Bordertown. No doubt letters got lost all the time.

Edwin turned towards the door, careful not to knock into anything in the cluttered shop. All the while, his eyes remained glued to his mother’s letter. His fingers tightened on the envelope, the envelope that had been in his mother’s hand not that long ago. Even just holding it made him feel closer to her and his family.

“Goodbye, Edwin.” Rhorton chuckled.

“Oh, right.” Edwin turned towards him and smiled. “Yes. Bye.”

“Mila is making a lentil stew tonight. You should come by for a hot meal and some company.”

“I’ll think about it.” Edwin took a step towards the door. He wanted to leave and read his letter. “I should get going. I’m going into the forest.”

Rhorton glanced out the window at the blanket of white beyond. “Well, you’ll definitely need a hot meal after being out in the snow all day.”

Edwin smiled. “We’ll see. Thanks.”

“Good day, Edwin.”

Edwin left the store and walked through the village, towards the forest. It wasn’t like Edwin was opposed to eating a meal at the store at night. It was nice eating something more elaborate than bread with smoked sausages and cheese. But there were two people in the village he did his best to avoid, and unfortunately, they sometimes ate at the store.

No, better to eat his simple meal at home.

“Who would care enough to sendyoua letter?”

Edwin looked up into Ulir’s sneering face. Edwin’s stomach sank. Beside Ulir stood Torin, a condescending look on his face. The two stood directly before him in his path.

Of all the people in the village, why did I have to run into Torin and Ulir? It is like they are seeking me out.

“It’s from my mother,” Edwin said. Avoiding their gazes, he tried to step around them, but Ulir blocked him. Edwin pressed his lips together and stared at the ground in front of his boots.

“Your mother?” Torin laughed. “Well, isn’t that sweet?”

“I suppose she had no choice in who her son is.” Ulir chuckled. “But then again, she and your family did leave you behind when they moved to Bordertown. Isn’t that right?”

“I went with them,” Edwin protested weakly.

“That’s true.” Ulir smiled, but there was no kindness in it. “And then you came back. Alone. Did they send you away? Did they get sick of you? Did they feel ashamed having you around all their new friends?”

Edwin swallowed. He wanted to deny it, but he couldn’t help but feel the truth in the words.

Determined, he stepped around them, but at the last moment, Ulir’s elbow hit him in the side, knocking him off balance. He slipped. The world spun. With a thud, he landed on his back.

“Oomph.” The air was knocked out of his lungs.

He lay for a second, staring up at the blurry clouds above. He pushed his wire-frame glasses back into place, and the grey clouds became clear. Shoving himself to his feet, he ignored the sharp pain in his shoulder. His letter lay in the snow. He picked it up, wiping at the snow and mud that stained it.