Page 74 of The Harbinger
He tilted his head to the side.“Vy umeyete govorit’ Russkiy?”
Russkiy…I recognized that word from the dictionary.
Was he asking me if I spoke Russian?
“Uh… Yes? I mean… No.Nyet.“ I didn’t really speak Russian. I could say a few things, but that was it. I didn’t get very far in my self-made lessons, and Katya was busy with her household duties.
I pointed toward the kitten sitting in the tree. “Koshka.”Cat.
Yergi followed my finger towards the tree, spotting the frightened animal, then turned and walked away.
That’s it?
He wasn’t going to help me? How could you look at the poor thing and walk away?
The dogs stared at me through their kennel, vying for a weakness in their cage so they could annihilate me, their jowls drooling from a missed opportunity.
I walked towards the tree the kitten cried in and grabbed hold of the first branch when Yergi appeared with a ladder in his hands.
So he wasn’t heartless after all…
I moved out of his way as he leaned it against the tree, wiggling it back and forth to find purchase, then climbed up.
Yergi’s hand seemed to swallow the tiny kitten as he firmly grasped it by the scruff of its neck with his two fingers, causing the frightened animal to emit a high-pitched screech. He pulled it away from the tree, and fragments of bark fell to the ground as the kitten refused to relinquish its death hold on the wood.
He hopped down from the ladder and thrust the kitten into my arms. It squirmed and dug its tiny claws into my skin, needles of pain coursing through me, yet I held tight so it wouldn’t flee.
“It’s okay, little one.” Dirt matted its snow-white fur and sapphire-colored eyes right down to the skin.
“Spasibo.”
Yergi walked away with a clenched jaw, taking the ladder with him.
The kitten wriggled in my arms, and its petrified meow had those dogs barking anew.
I brought the kitten tighter to my chest, shielding it from the mad beasts. “Let’s get you cleaned up.” After tripping through the tree line, I disappeared into the greenhouse and straight to the outside sink in the corner, then ran him a warm soapy bath.
He squirmed and screeched as I dunked him in the water, his claws cutting into my hands. Beads of blood trickled down my skin as I tried to keep a firm grip on him. “It’s for your own good.”
“What is this?”
I glanced over my shoulder as Katya walked up behind me. She furrowed her brows at the wet ball of fur in my hands when she stopped beside me.
“I found a kitten in a tree. The dogs were going to kill him.”
Shetsked. “That’s what they do.”
“And you don’t have a problem with that?”
She shook her head. “They’re guard dogs. This time it was a cat. Last time it was another dog.”
I shook my head, my stomach upturned with nausea. Was everyone in this household so inhuman?
“Do you have a towel anywhere out here?”
Katya shook her head again. “I’ll get you one.” She disappeared, and I scrubbed around his eyes, carefully avoiding rubbing them directly.
“Here you go.” She tossed me a white tea towel.