The Child Thief

15

Viktor and Petro had walked back in the direction of the shelter we found earlier that day, but their quiet conversation had focused solely on what they were going to do. Neither of them wanted to return home. For different reasons they both wanted to be by my side, so when they reached the shelter, instead of settling down, they turned round and headed back the way they had come. At the open steppe they found my tracks and followed them to the line of the hedge and across the field, but once inside the trees, they had lost sight of them.

‘We stayed together,’ Viktor said. ‘Looked for signs, but we couldn’t find anything. It was like you just disappeared, and then we heard…’

They were sitting by the shelter, backs to the low wall, talking in whispers. I clasped my hands together, my fingers held tight to hide that they were shaking. There had been a moment when I had almost shot my own sons.

‘What was it?’ Petro asked. ‘What made that noise? You think it was Dariya?’

No one answered. We all thought it was Dariya’s scream. We knew of no one else out there who would make such a noise.

‘We’ll find her.’ I put a hand on my son’s shoulder and Petro looked at me. I could hardly see his face in the darkness, but the light reflected from the snow into his eyes.

I told them to try to get some sleep. There was enough room in the shelter for both of them if they lay close and didn’t move around. It would work well: we could take turns staying awake, watching the forest. It made sense, and I felt more comfortable. I’d at least be able to close my eyes for an hour or so later on, knowing one of my sons would be watching.

‘I’m glad,’ I said to them. ‘I’m glad you came back.’

‘You’re not angry?’ Petro asked.

‘That you disobeyed me?’ I smiled. ‘Of course, but you’re not children any more. It’s good to have your company and I feel safer having you here. We can watch each other.’

As my sons slept, I watched over them, the revolver never leaving my hand. I sat until my legs were numb, then I moved slowly, keeping to the shadow until it was my turn to sleep.

At first light Viktor woke me and Petro as instructed. I handed them my satchel, telling them to make a fire, and trudged back towards the hedge, through the area where I had brushed the snow last night.

Up close, I could see the forest edge was a tangle of brambles and briars, the perfect place for rabbits to build their winter burrows, and there were fresh tracks where the animals had come to forage in the early morning. I was disappointed to find the first of my snares empty, and I took it up, removing the stakes and putting the noose into my pocket. As I came to the spot where the second snare was, however, I saw movement in the snow and hurried to grab the rabbit struggling in the trap. It must have been a recent catch because it still had plenty of energy, jumping and fighting to free itself, but the stake and the noose held tight. I took the animal’s back legs in one hand, gripping it tight, before removing the noose and holding it behind the ears. A quick pull and the rabbit’s neck was broken.

‘It’s not much for three,’ I said putting the carcass by the fire, ‘but it’s better than nothing.’

Viktor cleaned the animal and we cooked it over the flames, sharing it equally. As I ate, I glanced over at the place where I’d seen the mound last night.

‘What is it, Papa?’ Petro asked, seeing me stare.

Ignoring the question, I got to my feet and took the revolver from my pocket.

‘You see something?’

Both boys reached for their rifles as I advanced on the place where the snow had collected over the fallen log. Only there was no longer any mound.

There was no fallen log.

All that remained was a slight disturbance in the snow. Enough to tell me that someone had been there, concealed just a few metres from our camp.

‘Someone was here?’ Viktor asked. ‘Last night? Right here?’

‘It seems so,’ I said.

‘Was it him?’ Petro couldn’t hide the fear in his voice.

‘Who else?’

‘How the hell did we not see him?’ Viktor said. ‘How did we not know?’

‘I thought I saw something, but…’ I stared at the place where the child thief had been lying.

‘You thought you saw something?’ Viktor asked. ‘So why didn’t you come and look?’

‘I thought it was nothing.’

‘There’re no tracks,’ Petro said. ‘Coming or going. Nothing. How did he do it?’

I shook my head and scanned the trees. I studied the branches, searched for any sign.

‘Who is he that he can come and go without leaving tracks?’ Petro asked.

‘When he wants,’ Viktor added. ‘Otherwise he leaves enough tracks for any idiot to follow. Who is this man?’

I looked at my sons, understanding what this meant. The question now was not whether the child thief could kill us whenever he wanted, but why had he not done so already? And how long did he intend to wait before he tried to take another of us?