“Katya, where are you going?”
“Grandma, I’m going to the forest! I’ll gather some herbs to treat you,” the granddaughter replied.
“What nonsense. I’ll take a pill and get better.
And at your age, it’s better to stay at home. Didn’t you hear on the radio? They said some convicts escaped from prison.”
Laughing, Katya kissed her grandma on the nose and said:
“Oh, do you really think they stayed in our forest? Grandma, you listen to too many stories and then start imagining things. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine!”
Watching her granddaughter head straight into the forest, Ulyana Nikitichna felt a wave of unease in her heart.
She had taken Katya in a few years ago. The girl’s parents had died, and the grandmother accepted her 11-year-old granddaughter into her home.
Katya had always been an unusual child. She treated animals and birds, finding healing herbs.
When she came to live with her grandma in the village, she started helping people too.
The forest began almost immediately beyond the village. Walking along the path, the girl heard:
“Katya! Are you out picking mushrooms?”
Stopping, she saw a neighbor.
“It’s too early for mushrooms, Uncle Misha. It’s just the start of summer,” Katya laughed.
“I need to gather herbs for my sick grandma.”
“That’s a good thing. You must take care of your grandmother,” Mikhail replied.
“Can you take a look at my cow? She won’t let anyone near her.
I heard you saved the Semenovs’ stallion last year.
Maybe your remedies can help my cow too? I’d owe you one.”
“Of course I’ll take a look, Uncle Misha. We live in the same village, don’t we?” Katya agreed.
As she entered the forest, Katya didn’t notice how far into the thicket she had wandered.
Her little bag was already filled with various herbs.
The forest didn’t scare Katya. She knew how to tell where north and south were, and she always found her way out quickly.
Tying her herb bag tighter, she started heading back to the village.
Suddenly, Katya felt a sense of danger in her body.
Remembering her grandma’s words about the convicts, she shook it off.
No, they couldn’t be in this forest!
Just then, she tripped and hurt her knee badly.
Looking up, Katya locked eyes with a bearded stranger.
“Well, well, what a little creature I’ve found!” the man exclaimed. “Come on, get up now.”
Realizing who he was, Katya stood up.
The man pointed with his knife where she should go. Soon, they arrived at a clearing where three other men were gathered. One of them, the youngest, about 20 years old, was lying on the grass with a bleeding wound.
“Where’d you find her?” one man asked in surprise.
“In the forest!”
“And why did you bring her?”
“So she doesn’t go telling anyone about us!”
“What, now we have a hostage too?” another one muttered.
“Shut up already,” ordered the bearded man. Then he shoved Katya and said:
“You sit here and don’t move. Or else. I can slit your throat, got it?”
Katya nodded. She kept her eyes on the injured young man.
While the three men argued about something, Katya carefully crawled over to the wounded guy.
He had clearly lost a lot of blood. Gently, she rolled up his pant leg.
Then, pulling herbs from her bag, she began rubbing them in her hands and applying them to the wound.
The men stared at her in silence but said nothing.
“Can I make some hot water?” Katya asked.
“How? If we light a fire, the smoke will be seen immediately!” one of the convicts said.
“They won’t see it. The wind isn’t blowing toward the village,” Katya explained. “Your friend will die if he doesn’t drink this tea.”
“Alright. Let’s do as she says, or we’ll have even more sin on our heads,” agreed the clean-shaven one.
“Yeah, Stepa, let’s save the guy,” added another.
Katya realized Stepa was their leader. He had probably organized the escape.
While Stepa went to look for water, the others spoke quietly:
“What do we do now? We’ll have to keep the girl too.”
“Exactly. But we can’t go against Stepa.”
Katya cut in:
“What if we put him to sleep?”
Suddenly, Stepa appeared from the bushes. He gave the men a suspicious look.
Katya turned away, pretending to keep treating the injured man.
Soon, the water boiled. Katya brewed the tea and handed it to the men.
“Here, drink this. It’ll give you strength.”
“What are you, a healer?” one laughed.
“Almost. But my grandma knows more about herbs than I do. I’m learning from her!” Katya replied.
“Don’t waste your effort. This one won’t make it anyway, and we’re not dragging him,” Stepan said.
Suddenly, the guy coughed.
“Where are we?” he asked.
“Oh, he’s awake!” one of the convicts exclaimed.
“Who are you?” the young man asked, looking at the girl.
“I’m Katya,” she replied with a shrug.
“Alright, enough sitting around. Let’s move!” Stepan ordered, grabbing his knife.
Then he swayed. “You put something in my tea, you little rat?”
And Stepan collapsed to the ground.
“Whoa!” one of the convicts exclaimed, watching the leader snore. “How long will he sleep?”
“A day at least,” Katya said. “Then a couple more days to recover.”
“So we’re turning ourselves in? They’ll find us anyway,” one man suggested.
“Let’s surrender,” the other agreed. “Katya, will you report us? How far is it to the village?”
“About an hour. I’ll find the constable. Don’t worry about him, he won’t wake up.
Here, take more herbs—brew them if your friend gets a fever.”
She quickly headed home.
…Eight years later. Katya had become a medical assistant and now helped both people and animals, not just with herbs. Her grandmother had long since passed. Katya lived alone in the house.
It was her day off. Sweet smoke from home saunas rose from almost every yard. Katya stepped outside with her buckets. At the well, a young male voice called out:
“Miss, can I help you? So delicate! You shouldn’t carry such heavy buckets.”
Katya turned. A man around 30 stood before her.
“Alright, but are you sure it’s not too much for you?”
Laughing, he replied:
“No, I may be a city boy, but this is nothing for me.”
Then their eyes met.
“Vadim, is that you?” Katya asked in surprise. She remembered those eyes for life.
“I thought you wouldn’t recognize me. I’ve been looking for you for a long time!”
Half an hour later, they sat at her table.
“You know, I went to prison for a fight. When I saw you in the forest, I swore never to end up there again,” he said.
“And I haven’t gone that far into the forest since!” she shared, then offered, “Want to try the sauna?”
Vadim smiled. A month later, they left for the city together.
He had searched for her to say thank you. She had simply waited for the day Vadim would return and take her away.
