Chapter 11: Digging the Well
The next morning, Violet called everyone in Gray Rock Tribe who could work to the center of camp.
She stood by the fire. The full map of Thornveil Gorge lay spread before her. Gray Bone stood at the front of the crowd, his arm bound in a sling. Darryl leaned against a tent pole. Finn pushed into the middle. Leon stood behind her.
"Starting today, we dig wells." Violet said.
Silence. Gray Bone frowned. "Dig wells?"
"North Spring is dry. The water source you're using now will be dry in three months."
Gray Bone's mouth opened and shut. "How do you know?"
"Read it in a book." Violet didn't explain. She pointed at three spots on the map. "These three locations. Dig down to the water table. First well, finished in five days."
A hunter raised his hand. "We've never used wells. We drink from rivers."
"Rivers dry up. Wells don't." Violet looked at him. "Unless you want to buy water from Silver Spring in three months."
No one spoke.
"Astrid will sell to you." Violet's voice was quiet. "One barrel of water for one good hide. One barrel of water for one bag of salt. One barrel of water for your hunting grounds."
Gray Bone's fist clenched. "She wouldn't dare."
"She would. Because you'll have no water." Violet looked at all of them. "Unless you start digging now."
Leon's voice came from behind her. "Do as she says."
Gray Bone glanced at Leon, then at Violet. He picked up a shovel. "Let's go."
---
Day one. Gray Bone and the others dug four meters at the first location. No water.
Day two. Five meters. No water.
Day three. Six meters. Gray Bone's forehead was slick with sweat. The wound on his left arm had split open. Blood seeped through the bandage. He didn't stop.
Day four. Seven meters. Still dry.
Finn climbed out of the pit. His palms were covered in blisters. "Cecilia. Are we digging in the wrong place?"
"Keep going."
Day five. Eight meters. Gray Bone's shovel hit something that sounded different. Not sand. Mud. Wet mud.
His shovel stopped.
"Water." He said.
Finn dropped to his stomach and pressed his ear to the bottom of the pit. The sound of water. Rising from deep underground. Soft. Distant. But constant.
"Water!" Finn's voice exploded through the gorge.
Gray Bone climbed out of the pit and walked to Violet. Covered in mud. He stared at her for a long time.
"How did you know there was water here?"
"It's in the hunting records. Three years ago, the recorder drew a circle here. Next to it he wrote—'In summer, the grass grows taller than elsewhere.'"
Gray Bone's mouth opened and shut. "He never told me that."
"He drew it. No one could read it."
Gray Bone looked down. The bone teeth on his chest swayed in the sunlight.
"Keep digging." He said.
---
Day seven. The well was finished. Water rose from the earth and filled the bottom.
The hunters gathered around the well, staring at the pool of water. Gray Bone crouched down. He scooped up a handful and drank.
"Sweet." He said.
He passed the water to Finn. Finn drank. His eyes lit up. "It really is sweet!"
The water passed from hand to hand. Everyone drank.
Gray Bone walked to Violet. "Where's the second well?"
"East side. Two miles south of the cave spring."
"We dig tomorrow." Gray Bone said.
---
Night. By the fire.
Violet recorded the first well's depth, flow, and location on a hide. Her fingers no longer shook.
Leon sat across from her. "Why didn't you tell them the well locations earlier?"
"Too early, they wouldn't believe me. Now the water's here. They believe."
"You waited until Gray Bone's arm was wrecked to tell him?"
"I waited until he dug up the water himself." Violet didn't look up. "He dug it up. He believes. He believes, so everyone else believes."
Leon stared at her. "You're always calculating."
"I'm a merchant. Merchants calculate. That's how it works."
Hoofbeats sounded from the gorge. One horse. From the south.
Leon's ears twitched. Violet's fingers paused on the hide.
A rider burst from the dark. Gray cloak. Hood.
"Astrid says—your well. Well done."
Violet looked at him. "How does she know?"
"Silver Spring has eyes everywhere."
Violet stood. "Go back and tell Astrid—my well is dug on my people's land. It's none of her business."
The stranger didn't move. "Astrid also says—three months from now, at the Trade Market, she'll bring three hundred men. How many does Gray Rock Tribe have?"
Violet's fingers tightened.
"Thirty." The stranger answered for her. "Thirty against three hundred. Your well won't save you."
He rode into the dark.
The camp went quiet. Everyone was looking at Violet.
Gray Bone walked out of his tent. His arm was still in a sling. But his eyes were bright.
"Three hundred." He said. "Silver Spring is bringing everyone who can fight."
"Scared?" Violet asked.
Gray Bone looked at her. "Scared. But that won't stop me from digging."
The corner of Violet's mouth lifted. "Second well. We dig tomorrow."
---
Late night. Violet sat by the fire. Silver Spring's map lay spread before her.
Leon walked over and sat beside her. "Are you scared?"
"Yes." She didn't look at him. "Three hundred people. Thirty people. I can calculate all I want. Numbers don't fight wars."
"Gray Bone can fight. Darryl can fight. I can fight."
"Thirty against three hundred—"
"Enough." Leon's voice was low. "If what you've given us is enough."
Violet turned and looked at him. Firelight danced in his amber slit pupils.
"Have I given enough?"
"Your wells gave Gray Rock Tribe water. Your maps gave Gray Rock Tribe roads. Your words—"
He looked at her.
"You've given more than anyone."
Far off in the gorge, a Thorn Wolf howled. Distant.
Violet rolled up Silver Spring's map and held it to her chest.
"Three months from now, I want more than just beating Astrid."
"What do you want?"
"I want Silver Spring's granaries. I want Silver Spring's salt mines. I want Silver Spring's trade routes."
She looked at Leon.
"I want the entire North to know the name Gray Rock Tribe."
Leon stared at her. A long time.
"You're not digging wells." He said. "You're building a city."
The corner of Violet's mouth lifted. "Cities need water. So first, we dig wells."
She pulled the coat tighter. Leon's coat. Warm.
Three months. She still had three months.
---
End of Chapter Eleven
The first well is dug. The water is sweet. But Astrid's three hundred are gathering. Gray Rock Tribe has only thirty who can fight. Violet marks the second well on the map. She's not just trying to survive the drought. She wants the entire North to remember the name Gray Rock Tribe.