Order of Swans (The Blue Swan Duology #1)

Chapter 4

4

After a long, hot shower, Kaley felt better. She put on a blue robe that was hanging on the wall and wrapped her hair in a soft towel. She sat down on a stool to admire the beauty—no, the majesty—of her room. It really was out of a fairy tale. The bed was shaped like a big shell, with gauzy fabric hanging from a carved bar in the ceiling. The rug was a delicious mix of pale pinks and greens. The furniture was covered in peachy-pink silk. Someone had unpacked her suitcase. On a pretty dressing table all her cosmetics had been laid out. On the bench at the foot of the bed was her red dress. It looked like it had been freshly steamed. There was a tall, old-fashioned wardrobe filled with the clothes she’d brought—and half a dozen beautiful pieces had been added.

“No wonder wars were fought to become king,” she said.

She rubbed her hair dry—she couldn’t find a blow-dryer—and put on her red dress. It showed off what hard work with Jobi had done to her body. Red high heels went with it.

When she was ready, she opened the door to the hall but saw no one. Should she wander about or wait until someone came to get her and lead her to dinner?

She was about to step out when she heard someone talking. The voice was muffled, but it sounded male and it seemed to be coming from the room next door. It’s probably Jobi , she thought. He hadn’t said so, but it made sense that he would be in a room connected to hers.

When she saw that the door was ajar, she pushed it half-open. It wasn’t Jobi there, but the guide, Tanek. He had on one of the gray uniforms, his back to her, the right side of his body hidden behind a bed curtain.

Instantly, Kaley stepped back into her room. She didn’t mean to invade his privacy. But then his words stopped her.

“How do I know what that island is like? I’ve never been off this one.”

He was the guide but he’d never been to the island? she thought.

“You should go with us,” he said. “I need a wedge between her and me. She... I’d rather not tell you how she acted toward me. It was embarrassing.”

Kaley could feel her face flush. Remembering the way she’d looked at him, it was not her finest moment.

“I was in the water, chasing after Indienne, and she—” He cut off as he listened. “Yes, I had on very little clothing. Stop laughing! I can’t figure out what Jobi is up to. Why her? She knows nothing. She’s utterly useless. You’ve heard what Selkan is like. I’ll have to take care of her every step of the way.”

He was quiet for a moment. “What’s she like? From what I’ve seen, she thinks she’s to run the whole trip. I guess I’m supposed to carry her luggage.” He gave a low laugh. “Yeah, maybe I am the useless one. Please go with us. Jobi can arrange it. It’s the king and you know how much he loves to spend money. We’ll have the best Selkan has to offer.” His voice took on the sound of secrecy. “All right, I’ll tell you the truth. After I get rid of her, I plan to go to the homestead. You and I’ll get to see the old place.” His voice became coaxing. “We can stay for a week. Just us. Does that sound good? Please, Mekos, I need some help with this woman, maybe even protection. I have to go. It’s time for feeding. Think about this.” He paused. “Yeah, me, too.”

Quietly, Kaley shut the door. He was right. She had been thinking she’d run everything. And as a result, she’d been the quintessential “Ugly American.” At home, she would never have so blatantly lusted after a man as she had with this man. Her excuse was that he’d caught her off guard. She hadn’t been expecting... What? A half-naked man on a tropical island? Ha ha. It’s exactly what she should have expected.

Obviously, the man had a family and people he loved. His girlfriend, or maybe his wife, whom he’d been talking to, was someone he wanted to be with, but he was giving up time to take Kaley to an island he’d never visited.

She sat down on the bench at the foot of her bed and looked at herself. Red dress, low-cut at the top, high-cut at the bottom. Nope. She wasn’t going to wear that to dinner. She went to the wardrobe and pulled out something that was more in tune to the island. Over a plain cotton tunic and trousers, she put on a loose robe. The fabric was beautiful and its volume concealed the shape of her body.

I can’t start the trip like this , she thought. I have to set things right with this man. She’d make sure he knew she wanted nothing from him other than being a guide. And yes, the girlfriend or wife he was talking to—on a cell phone?—was welcome to go with them.

She left the room and went back to the water. It was still and quiet, with no swans or any other animals in sight. As she’d hoped, the man was there. He was sitting on a short stool with his hands inside a canvas bag of what looked to be feed for the swans.

He glanced up at her but then looked back at the bag. He gave no greeting.

This is a very bad way to start the trip , she thought. She sat down on a stool that was a few feet away from him. She didn’t know where to begin, but she needed to be honest with him. “I overheard you talking to your...friend.”

He gave her a one-eyebrow-cocked look.

“I want to apologize and say that you’re right. In this expedition I am the useless one. I don’t know anything about your islands or your way of life.” She paused, giving him time to politely contradict her, but he was silent. “I want to make it clear that I don’t think it’s empowering for a woman to say, ‘How dare you!’ then to never listen to anybody about anything. You are the leader and I will respect that.”

He was looking at her intensely and he seemed about to say something, but she felt a gentle nudge on her shoulder. When she turned, it was the silver-and-gold swan. It was much larger when it was so close to her. She’d seen how tame they were but even so, she doubted if she’d have any trouble with them. To put it mildly, animals liked her. She lifted her arm and the swan curved its long neck, then rubbed its face on her cheek. Smiling, Kaley talked to it in that singsong baby talk people used with animals. “You are so beautiful that you take my breath away.” She stroked its long neck. “When I saw you, I gasped. Surely nothing on this earth could be as lovely as you.”

The swan wrapped around Kaley’s neck so that its head was on the other side of her face. It was like a glorious scarf. Kaley nuzzled more, then looked back at the man. He hadn’t moved, and he was staring at her in wide-eyed, stony silence.

“I’m just here to observe,” she told him. “I want to hear stories, take a few photos, then I’ll go home. I promised my family that I’d only stay for three months. That’s all the time anyone has to put up with me.”

The swan tightened its grip on her neck. “You want to show me something, don’t you, sweetheart? What is it?”

Kaley looked back at the man, who hadn’t moved so much as an inch. “I’ve never seen swans as gentle as these. You’ve done a magnificent job with them.” She gave a little cough when the swan tightened the grip around her neck. “All right. You have my attention. Oh! I bet you have babies. Could I see them? Please?”

As though it understood her words, the swan removed itself from her body and stepped to the side, waiting for Kaley to follow. She stood up. “Sorry, but I need to go. Is this Indienne?”

He gave a curt nod.

Kaley took a step forward. “When I get back, I’ll apologize more. I really am sorry and I promise to behave myself. And please tell your girlfriend—or is she your wife?—that I’d love to meet her and I’d like to see the homestead, too. Ow!” The swan had pecked her shoulder. “All right, let’s go.”

She followed the swan down the path.

Tanek watched her until she was out of sight. When he turned away, he wasn’t surprised to see Jobi standing there. He wore an expression of pride, but he also looked shocked.

“Did you see that?” Tanek said. “Only people in my order can do that. They—” He stopped as a swan ran its head against his leg. “Traitor!” he mumbled, then looked back at Jobi. “Who the starken-el is she?”

Jobi’s face lost its look of surprise and went full-on pride. “She has no idea who or what she is and I’m certainly not going to tell her. As for you, find out for yourself.”

He started to walk away, but Tanek stepped in front of him. “At least tell me what is empowering to a woman. Does she have a chip that makes her strong? Does she grow bigger? What does it mean? Power of what?”

Jobi didn’t say anything.

“And she spoke of this earth and that she plans to be home in three months. Does she even know where she is?”

“What a lot we all need to learn,” Jobi said. “As for me, I have a meeting with the king—unless you want to keep me here to ask more questions. I’m sure King Aramus will understand my tardiness.”

Tanek’s face showed what he thought of that, but he stepped aside. “She thinks Mekos is my wife.”

“I guess she knows as little about you as you do about her. It’s a perfect match.” Jobi walked away at a quick pace so Tanek couldn’t see his frown. At least he’d escaped for the moment!

It was late when Kaley got back to her room, and she was exhausted. She’d had to tell the swans the story of the Ugly Duckling three times. They’d sat so still, had been so attentive, it was as though they could understand her. But she was used to that. After the third telling, Indienne ran all of them off in a flurry of giant wings and angry squawks, and escorted Kaley back to the king’s house.

Kaley’s only thought was that she was glad she didn’t see Tanek. She didn’t want any more of the man’s disapproving looks. Tomorrow she’d tell Jobi she was very sorry she’d messed up her first meeting with the guide. Maybe she should have ignored the fact that he was mostly naked and hugging a couple of giant swans. She should have been cool about it. But she hadn’t been and now he despised her so could she please have another guide? Certainly someone who had been to the island they were going to visit would be better.

When she got back to her beautiful room, she realized that she’d forgotten about dinner. But there was a platter of cheese and olives, bread and sliced meat, and a huge glass of cold white wine. There was also a note from Jobi saying they were to meet the king tomorrow morning at nine.

“And what do I wear to meet the king?” she asked, yawning. She was too tired to make any decisions. She put on her flannel pajamas and went to bed. Where is a telephone? she thought as sleep overtook her.