Free Children of the Wolves by Jessica Starre

she simply believed the way everyone else did. But she couldn’t force herself to believe just by trying.
    She got to her feet, brushed off her trousers, then slipped back inside the fence. She retrieved the wash tub from where she’d left it near the midden, intending to bring it back to the rememberer’s cabin. She paused as she passed a cluster of trueborns crouched in a circle on the near side of the infirmary. She walked over to the knot of children, moving quietly, but Samuel, Michael’s helper, looked up at her approach. Some surprising, wholly unexpected emotion crossed his face — sullenness or anger? — and then he stepped back so she could see what they were doing.
    The children surrounded a collection of small stones — stones she’d never seen before. She didn’t touch them, just crouched next to the children to look. The stones caught the sunlight, revealing a hidden glow. Her eyes widened as she looked. The stones came in colors — some blue, some pink, others orange or yellow.
    â€œHow beautiful,” she said, resisting the urge to pick them up and hold them in her hands. “Where did you find them?” The children said nothing, looking at each other, discomfort marking their faces.
    â€œI found them,” Samuel spoke up. And yes, it was surliness that crossed his face, Jelena was shocked to realize. “And I don’t mind showing them to other people. But — but I was the one who found them … ” His voice trailed off and he looked away from her, staring down at his dirty bare feet.
    â€œAnd it would be hard for you to give them to the community,” Jelena said gently. She glanced about and saw that the sentries weren’t watching them, and still none of the people were about. Everyone seemed intent to stay in the dining hall where it was more comfortably cool and no work needed to be done, and they could mourn the trader and worry about the wolves.
    Jelena wrestled with her conscience. The rules of the tribe had been drilled into her from the time she was newlyborn. Everything they had, they shared. Everyone and everything belonged to the people, all equally. Except — except that didn’t always seem to be the case, did it? She sighed. She shouldn’t encourage frailty in the trueborns, for they would be the ones to lead the community for all the future. But the sullenness on Samuel’s face alarmed her.
    â€œI think,” she said, slowly, measuring and weighing the words as she said them, “that it wouldn’t hurt, Samuel, for you to pick one of these stones that you like the best and to — find a keeping place for it. And you and the other trueborns can look at it now and again — although — ” and here she could hardly believe what she was suggesting, “although I think it wouldn’t be terribly wise to show it the adults. Especially the elders.” Then, lest she leave the wrong impression she added hurriedly, “Because they have to look after the whole community, do you see?”
    â€œYes,” Samuel said, his eyes wide.
    Well, she was glad he did see because she had no idea what she meant. She bent down again and collected the stones in her hand. They reflected obliquely the midday sun and she gasped at the deep blue glow of one of the stones.
    â€œThat’s a sapphire,” she stammered. “These are all sapphires!” The trader had described such gems once, and she recognized these now — not as the exact same gems the trader had traded for, but ones like those he’d told her about.
    Samuel’s eyes grew wider at her words. “What d’you mean?” he asked, abandoning sullenness for anxiety. Jelena was sorry to have worried him.
    â€œWe should ask the others,” Jelena demurred. She knew nothing about stones or gems. It wasn’t her place to know. “Samuel, which one would you like to keep?” Samuel bit his lip and