Free The August 5 by Jenna Helland Page A

ship.”
    Tommy didn’t laugh. He’d swum in the Aeren Sea many times and knew how cold the cottagers must be right now. Their ferry continued toward Sevenna, and Tommy returned to his bench. He watched the turret ship, hoping to see the cottagers get rescued from the water. By the time the ship disappeared in the distance, not a single lifeboat had been launched. As their ferry sailed into Sevenna Harbor, Tommy wondered how long the cottagers would be able to endure the cold, rolling waves and whether they would finally be saved.
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    Inside the Seminary, Tommy closed the shutters of his dorm room to block out the sounds of the noisy city. His suite was on the top floor of Tauber Hall, which was in the western sector of the walled campus. From his window, he had a wide panorama of the city, with its smokestacks and ugly stone buildings. He could see the murky Lyone River snaking through the district, and he had a clear view of one of Sevenna’s seven historic bridges, but he wasn’t sure which one.
    He hadn’t spent much time in the city in recent years, and was surprised at how different it felt. When they arrived at the docks, throngs of cottagers waited for a place on the steamer back to Aeren. Zunft soldiers with chatter-guns patrolled the streets. On the carriage ride north through the city, Tommy counted dozens of beggars, including young children who stared at him with vacant eyes. He’d never seen beggars north of the Lyone River before, and he was surprised that the Zunft allowed them to cross the river into North Sevenna.
    The Seminary campus was enclosed by high stone walls. Students had to enter through gates that were monitored by guards. Once inside, Tommy felt more relaxed. The Seminary had numerous grassy sports fields and immaculate gardens, which made it tolerable to live there, but all he had to do was look out his window to see the squalor and unhappiness of the rest of Sevenna. Tommy finished putting his books on the shelves and turned the gas fire down. His rooms were outfitted with the latest innovations, including heated water and an automatic fireplace. The small kitchenette even had an icebox, hot plate, and kettle. Tauber Hall had been recently refurnished, and he wondered if Bern’s digs over in Sachsen Hall were as nice. Tommy assumed they must be. With the Zunft’s acute sense of fairness, there would be riots if some boys got better accommodations than others.
    Tommy put on his crimson Seminary jacket and headed into the corridor. It was nearly six p.m. and everyone was required to be in their seats in the dining hall before the bell chimed. Tommy trotted down the polished mahogany staircase, glancing briefly at the parade of oil paintings of various Zunftmen that hung on the wooden paneling. Earlier that summer, his father had commissioned his official portrait. Before, it might have been hung somewhere like Tauber Hall, but now that he was chief administrator, his portrait would find a home in a government building, probably the Chamber itself.
    At the bottom of the staircase, he was startled to hear the sounds of girls laughing. There were three young women heading out the front door. Two of them were blond, one tall and willowy and the other shorter with long, corkscrew curls. The third was a slender, black-haired girl with a thick braid down her back. Their laughter sounded nervous and excited, which was precisely how Tommy felt. At least he knew Bern and would have a familiar face to sit with at the first dinner of the new school year. These were the first girls ever to be matriculated in Seminary. The Zunft did not change easily, and the girls represented Hywel’s politics of openness. Undoubtedly, there would be some students and professors alike who didn’t appreciate their presence. Tommy thought about Hywel’s legacy as he walked to the dining hall. Hywel had tried to accommodate the cottagers, and Tommy felt sad that his attempt