Swift footsteps came nearer and louder to the door. Sal kept to her position, curled up behind the small space between the wall and the wooden bed. The lady was probably there to check on her, but instead she questioned whether someone else has come inside. Sal dared not to look as she said strange things like asking if one of the children barged in and harassed her. The lady angled down to look at her face. As Sal took in her surroundings, delineated from their original position. She mumbled to herself, “ It was too bright.”

And when she did, the sourness in the lady’s voice returned. She went on and on, sounding a bit like the lady from their Casa droning on about the importance of order and cleanliness. Just appalled at her changing things, to what was probably a mess. A mess that was not there before she came, isn’t it?

“ What are you even thinking?” the lady said. The lady in the Casa would get angry, but because it was against order, it was what was expected of her, it was what was against what the Signor wants to. She was not angry herself. Looking at this lady with the same emerald-green eyes, she would back herself into a corner, already taking few steps back at the sound and the volume of this lady’s voice. As the lady stood over her, Sal cannot help herself. The corners of her lips tugged into a smile. Finally, a punishment.

“ You are hard to read, aren’t you? ” the lady rubbed her temples with her fingers. “ What do you even want? “ The lady did not face her as it seemed that she said that to herself. Sal kept her head bowed as her hand clutched her chest.

Then, the lady mentioned the constable coming in, asking for his help, maybe. Heavy, dark, footsteps stomped on the wooden floor. His feet, the color of the earth and his muscular legs covered by long, khaki trousers. It must be a big man. Maybe he was about the size larger than the middle-aged men lounging about in their Casa before. He would have strong hands. Arms strong enough to whip some sense into her. A voice harsh enough to scold her. Sal kept her head down, as she welcomed a lashing that may come her way.

“ You have to listen to her. Lea’s actually my mother.”

Sal whipped her head up to look at him. What she saw was eyes that seemed to glow bright and a wide, boxy smile. The man squat on the floor to reach her eye level.

“ She hates it when things are messy.”

“ Sei, I need a graceful exit, please. I don’t need any more added to my already sullied image here. ” The lady said.

“ See? She does not even call me brother. Proof she is my mother.” Sei waved a large hand for the lady standing by the doorway. Clearly, the lady looked younger of the two, with her slender stature and shorter height than this man. “And it looks like she’s mothering you too” The man laughed as he ruffled Sal’s already disheveled hair.

Their next words flew over head as she stared at these people. A man on a constable uniform with the face of a kind godmother in fairy tales plopped on a scary physique. On the right is a husky voiced woman with a strange single braid and similar eyes as hers. What kind of creatures are they?

She nodded along with what they said as their words flew around, floated, disappearing around as the thought that these people, these strangers. They were not angry at her.

And if not them, someone else will. Sal made sure to shut the door tight as they left. She piled the wooden chest against the edge of the doorway, blocking anyone from coming in, keeping her from going out. Sal sat on the chest and rested her head against the door. Waiting. Listening.

It was not a few hours later when a knock came at the door. A sound that progressively became louder at each minute she maintained her silence. Then, it went quiet. She listened as muffled voices engaged in conversation. Was it the lady and the constable? Probably. A few more knocks came, then a request to be let in.

She did not. She deserved the isolation. She needed this cage. Requests were followed by a call turning louder. “ What do you want us to do?” the lady said. Sal squat on the floor, calm amidst the ruckus. They were strange people. They acted like the servants in the Casa but they also did not. They were not angry at her. Someone should.

The voices died down,then came heavy footsteps. The sound of wood hitting the floor. Coming to and fro. Was it him? Sal squeezed her hands together as she yanked open the door earning an inch’s worth of space to peek in.

“ Signor?” she called. It must be a Mercantile, or any Signor. Heavy footsteps. Canes. It must be one. “ Signor?” she called again. As the footsteps moved again, she held her breath in anticipation, but it was only the Constable, holding a yantok stick. She pushed the door close. Useless. She could see his laughter in her mind and cringed inside.

Hours passed. Conversations outside the door. Brief shrieks and giggles of children. Arguments. And a neighing horse pulling what must be a carruaje. A carruaje! Sal darted to the side of the door, pressing her ears against the surface. Noise erupted. A mixture of high-pitched voices as if clamoring for something. Another knock.

“ Open the door” It was the lady. A stuttered word”Please. Oh, stop. I sleep here, why do I need to-”

“ Do you want to go outside for a while, kid?” The constable said.

He sounded kind, inviting. Despite the thick timbre of his voice, he spoke slowly.

“ This rarely happens, but a Signor came to take Lencia home. So all the other kids are in the big hall to say goodbye. Figured you might want to see it too.”

At the mention of the word, Sal pushed the chest aside, kicking it after getting tired of using her hands.She bust the door open, half-walking and half-running into empty unfamiliar hallways as murmurs became louder mixing with the hushed calls of the two people behind her. She stopped.

There were sounds of crying. One voice was sobbing. She peeked a little. It was the children.It droned on. Sal put a hand over her ears. It was not loud, but it was too uncomfortable to hear. From her position, a man wearing a suit was visible. Ah, it must be the Signor. That must be why there is this display of emotion. It was not the Signor, but perhaps he might see her standing a head above the banisters. He will notice, he will get angry at her, just like all men of that age do.

“ I’m gonna miss her. Such a sweet kid, finally, she’s coming to a home.” The constable stood beside Sal and rested his arms on the banister. The strange expression wiped from his eyes as the lady pulled him down to the floor.

Through the slits between, the man stood there with a woman who was dressed in brighter clothes and finer cloth. People from Calare, perhaps.The couple who adopted her are from Calare. The woman, will she be like the other women who only talked garbage at others' backs? What if they would hurt, punish at the slightest mistake? The people from Calare knew no affection.

The child bade a goodbye, her speech interrupted by small sobs. Sal glanced to her right and there were the lady and the constable with a smile on their lips and the constable with glistening eyes. The couple from Calare walked through the door with the child, their figures slowly becoming silhouettes.

Father. Mother. Child. A Family. A family shows understanding and care. A family should love each other. That is what the books said. Sal touched her face, pressing her hands on her face. Looking for tears that are not even there.