After her husband’s funeral, the stepmother left her mute stepdaughter to die in the forest swamp… But a year later, a surprise awaited everyone…
«People come to her from many miles away. She’s quite temperamental. She’ll heal some for free and refuse others even for a lot of money.»
«I’m sure she can cure your muteness.» Mary listened, holding her breath. It really felt like a fairy tale.
However, it was frightening to go to some old woman. What if she turned out to be as wicked as her stepmother? She had grown somewhat accustomed to Kevin. «Unless she will visit you,» Kevin continued.
«She once cured me as well, and I thought I’d never recover. Now, I help her in any way I can: fix things around her house, tend to her yard. Neighbors, so to speak.»
«Agree, Mary. There’s a chance you’ll start speaking again.» Mary nodded hesitantly.
«That’s settled,» Kevin exclaimed. «You stay here. Here’s a crossword puzzle you can solve, and I’ll gather some gifts for Karen.»
«We can’t go empty-handed when we ask for help. Besides, your clothes will dry.» He left her alone with her thoughts.
Mary couldn’t sit still. The future frightened her. She looked around and found a broom, then started sweeping the floor.
Afterward, not thinking of anything better to do, she wiped the window with a piece of cloth and cleaned the dust. Eventually, she lay down on the bench and fell asleep. «Are you tired, hostess?» Kevin’s voice woke her up.
Mary opened her eyes and timidly smiled at him. He didn’t seem as scary now. Her stepmother, for all her pretense, had turned out to be a real witch.
But this huge man living in the forest with his tamed wolf hadn’t done anything to harm her. He had fed her and even promised to help her recover. «Look at the order you’ve created.»
Kevin looked around. «Thank you. Don’t be offended.»
«I can’t leave you here. It’s not right. And what kind of caretaker am I, you know?» Mary nodded hesitantly.
He was saying the right things, but she had already been through so much fear, and now she didn’t know what to expect. «Don’t drift away,» Kevin encouraged her. «I’ve gathered gifts.»
«If you’ve rested, it’s time to hit the road.» Mary sighed. Leshy peered into the partly open door, making a sound resembling encouraging silence, as if to say, «We’ll get through this.»
«Here, hold this bag with gifts.» Kevin handed her a woven sack filled with berries. «Karen has a sweet tooth.»
«It won’t hurt to butter her up a bit.» He had packed various odds and ends into a backpack, apparently also as gifts for the mysterious Granny Karen. Then he took Mary’s hand, and together, accompanied by Leshy, they set off down the path.
Mary looked around with curiosity. Now, with the huge and strong Kevin by her side and the faithful Leshy close by, life didn’t seem so bleak. Besides, on both sides of the path, blueberry bushes were starting to appear.
Soon, she was thoroughly covered in berry juice, and every time Kevin, who towered above her, looked down at her, he would chuckle, hiding a smile in his mustache. Nevertheless, when the forest suddenly ended and they arrived at a row of very dilapidated cottages, the girl became frightened and gripped Kevin’s broad hand even tighter. «You promised to be brave, didn’t you?» Kevin smiled encouragingly, and Mary, taking a deep breath, straightened up and tried to stop trembling.
Granny Karen lived in the farthest cottage, the one closest to the forest. However, as Mary would later find out, it was the only inhabited house. The owners of the others were no longer around; some had left, and some remained forever in the graveyard.
The village and its resident would have been completely forgotten if it weren’t for the reputation of the healer, which had spread for many miles around. «Granny Karen, open up!» Kevin shouted, using his hands as a makeshift megaphone. Inside, Mary felt her heart clench, and she tried to hide behind her savior’s broad back.
Meanwhile, the door creaked, and out into the light came Baba Yaga, or at least that’s how Mary imagined her; she was wearing a long skirt and a tattered shawl, despite the summer heat. Mary shivered and started to withdraw her hand, but Kevin held her firmly.
«Is that you, Kevin?» the witch asked in a creaky voice. «It’s me, who else?» Kevin confirmed. Leshy cleared his throat briefly, apparently that was his version of a bark.
«And who’s with you?» Baba Karen covered her forehead with her hand as if shading her eyes. Mary felt as if this strange character was peering right through her. «I found her in the woods,» Kevin shrugged.
«She can’t talk; only wrote that her stepmother abandoned her in the forest.» «She’s not lying,» Granny Karen rendered her verdict. «I can spot a lie from a mile away, but this little girl truly got the short end of the stick.»
«What do you want from me?» «Please, heal the girl,» Kevin requested, placing the trembling Mary in front of him. «She’s not mute by nature; it’s out of fear. Can you help her?» «I might be able to,» Karen kept her gaze fixed on the pale girl.
Now Mary was imagining what would happen when Kevin went into the woods, leaving them alone with the witch. «It’s hard to compete with fear; she’s afraid of me even now. Are you scared, for example?» She turned to Mary.
Mary, after some thought, nodded. «You see,» Grandma Karen shrugged. «Nothing will come of it.»
«Let the doctors treat her. The child needs to be sent to the city, to a good hospital.» «We can’t send her to the city,» Kevin said, shaking his head.
«They’ll likely put her in an orphanage, or her stepmother will take her back sooner or later. She might even harm the child.» «Maybe they won’t,» Karen squinted, «if the proper authorities keep an eye on her.»..
