Chapter 15
15
The contents of the cellar were a treasure trove, hidden away under a door concealed by floor tiles. They all went down the stairs together.
Tanek held up a robe of velvet. The cuffs and borders were embroidered with gold thread. “This was ceremonial. He wore it when he met with the king and ambassadors and...” There was no need to explain who he was. Tanek’s voice was heavy with memory.
“I think it’ll fit you,” Kaley said.
He stepped back. “It’s too big. I could never fill it.”
“Look at this!” Mekos held up a robe of deep blue that looked to be silk but was probably made from swan feathers. “It’s exactly my size.”
“That was mine when I was your age,” Tanek said. “I wore it to the first meeting with a Peacekeeper.”
“How do I look?” Sojee asked. He’d removed his burned shirt and put on one of black that had silver embroidery on the cuffs and collar. “Was it Haver’s?” When Tanek nodded, Sojee said, “I am honored to wear it.”
Each of the men chose clothes while Kaley stood silently to the side and watched. Finally, they turned to her. “There.” She pointed to a tall cabinet against the wall.
“It’s Grandmamá’s cabinet, the one that was against the wall.” Tanek looked at Kaley. “She was about your size.”
“And her husband was Sojee’s size?” Kaley asked in surprise.
“Obviously, she was a woman of taste and wisdom.” Sojee sounded so serious that they all laughed.
Kaley withdrew a dress of pale pink, the fabric smooth like satin. The top was low cut, but had folded panels over the upper arms. The bodice was embroidered in an intricate design in heavy silver thread. It went down the front of the skirt. “It’s a princess dress,” she whispered.
Tanek went to her. “Grandmamá sewed it. I used to hold the yarns for her, and when she got older, I threaded her needles.”
Kaley held the dress in front of her and turned halfway around. “It is fit for a queen.”
“Look at this!” Mekos said. He was holding a flute made of wood and inset with thin blue stones laid in a complex pattern. He blew the dust off, put it to his lips, then played a little tune.
“That’s wonderful,” Kaley said. “We can dance. We can—”
“Ow!” Sojee had hit his head on the low ceiling. “I want cheese and wine and a ceiling fit for a man.”
“I agree,” Kaley said. “I just need my makeup from my backpack and some privacy, then we can dance the night away.”
The men were feeling her happiness. They picked up clothes and went up the stairs. Tanek tossed her pack down to her.
By the time Kaley was dressed—and the gown fit like it had been made for her—she was shy about appearing. She hid in the shadows for a moment. The men had set up a table from parts of the ruined house. It was growing dark and there were candles lit. The wide board they’d found was bowed by the weight of the food they’d unpacked. There were even pewter mugs, plates and flatware.
As for the men, they were an extraordinarily handsome trio. The fading light gleamed off the sparkle of the clothes they had on. Sojee in his black shirt, Mekos in a robe his father had worn, and Tanek... To Kaley’s eyes, he was by far the best. Contrary to what he’d said, his grandfather’s robe fit him perfectly.
Slowly, she walked out and was pleased when the men stopped talking and turned to look at her. Their silence was the greatest compliment she’d ever received. The dress, the bracelets she’d found, the star pins in her hair, which she’d put up, made her feel beautiful. She twirled full circle. “I’ve never worn anything like this.”
Mekos came forward and offered his arm for her to take, and she did. He led her to a seat at the table. Even though the chair was bricks that had been stacked up, it felt like a throne.
“To our lovely princess.” Sojee raised his mug of wine, and the men drank to her.
“Not a real princess,” Kaley said. “Not like yours.”
“Aradella would kill to look like you. Literally.” Sojee wasn’t laughing.
“Should I feel sorry for Nessa?” she asked.
“No.”
The way Sojee said it made them laugh and they tore into the feast. Cheeses, breads, meats, pickled vegetables, dishes she’d never seen nor heard of. There were many new flavors for Kaley, all of which she liked very much.
“These are from all of the islands?” she asked.
“Only three,” Tanek said. “There is nothing from Empyrea.”
“The mystery island,” she murmured, and kept eating.
The abundant wine made Kaley feel good. “I think I could soar in this dress.”
Mekos stood up. “Shall we try?” He held out his hand to her.
“But you have to provide the music.”
Sojee wiped his mouth with one of the napkins that had been sent. “I can make music. Take the girl to dance.”
Kaley took Mekos’s hand and he led her to the flat area in front of the table. It had once been a big room. Now there was no roof but the floor was fairly intact. “I’m not sure—Oh!”
Sojee started singing in a rich, well-trained voice. It was a fast song in a language she didn’t understand. When Mekos picked her up by the waist and swung her around, she realized that it was a movement Jobi had taught her. He’d not told her it was part of a dance from his country, but she knew the moves. With her hands on his shoulders, he lifted and spun her around, then he put her down and they stepped back, then forward. The movements were repeated to the rhythm of the music.
“I am soaring.” She was laughing.
“No,” Mekos said. “To soar together, both people’s feet must leave the ground. Only my father can do that with a person who is not of our order.”
The wine was making her forget her reserve. “Then he does that with your mother?”
Mekos laughed as if she’d said something hilarious. “I’m a Lely.” Sojee changed to a slower song and Mekos pulled Kaley closer to him.
“I have no idea what that is, except that it’s something special.”
“Strange is what we are.” Reaching up, he moved his hair back on the side that wasn’t facing the table. His ear was pointed and a bit hairy. When Kaley’s eyes widened, he said, “You should see my mother’s tail!”
“Oh no! I told your father that since I spent more time with animals than with humans, I should have a tail and fuzzy ears.”
“Did he laugh at that?”
“He did. So, what do you mean your mother has a tail?”
Mekos pulled her closer, spun her around again and put his mouth by her ear. “My father is a rare man who can reproduce with a woman like my mother.”
“Is something wrong with her?”
“She is an older woman, but no, nothing is wrong with her. Please don’t tell Papá but she’ll probably come here soon.”
Kaley quit smiling. “Still carries a torch for her, does he?”
“A torch? Do you mean a fire big enough to burn a town down?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I mean.” She felt like a balloon deflating. “He loves her that much?”
Mekos’s smile turned to a frown. “I meant that he’d like to throw her into a burning building.”
“Well, in that case, I love hearing good news.”
His laugh echoed around the old walls.
When Sojee stopped singing, they went back to the table. Kaley picked up her wine, but Mekos took the flute and went to sit along the far wall. He began playing a quiet, haunting melody that made Kaley close her eyes to listen.
Sojee said, “He’s good with that.”
“There isn’t much that my son can’t do.” Tanek sounded awed as well as proud.
“So how did you win a woman like his mother?” Sojee asked.
Kaley put down her mug and leaned forward to listen.
“I didn’t. She came to me.”
Sojee nodded. “That makes sense. I guess she knew you could give her a child.”
“She knew but I didn’t.”
“And she left the child with you? How old were you?”
“Sixteen.” Tanek was smiling. “It’s not in her nature to keep her cub. So yes, she brought him to me when he was only minutes old. He was very small. I grew up the moment I held him.”
“Maybe you grew up together,” Kaley said.
“No. That wouldn’t have been fair to him. He didn’t need a friend. He needed a father.”
“And what did you need?” she asked.
“Everything I have. I have a home beside my father and I have my son.”
“And you have your swans,” Kaley said. “Add your precious white swans and your life will be complete. You are a one-man island.”
He gave her a look as though he was trying to figure out whether what she’d said was good or not.
Sojee gave a snort, and said, “It’s the blue swans he needs to look after. They are the most valuable.”
Tanek started to speak but Mekos stopped playing and Sojee stood up. “There is too much talking and not enough wine. And far too little dancing.” He looked at Mekos. “Can you play ‘Hana mokea’?”
“Of course.” The two men looked pointedly at Tanek, still sitting and holding his wine.
“If I must.” Tanek heaved himself up, then held out his hand to Kaley.
She did not like his attitude! “I don’t think—” He took her hand and pulled her to him, chest to chest. She was staring into his impossibly blue eyes.
“Properly!” Mekos said as he took up his flute and played while Sojee sang.
“That’s a folk song,” Kaley said. “I’d know one if I heard it in any language. I bet it has a story. I need to—” She started to pull away, but Tanek held her tight.
“It’s a story of love that lasts forever,” he said. “Love that is unbreakable, that withstands all the trials that it’s put through.”
“Like Haver and his wife?”
He didn’t answer but twirled her around. Her beautiful skirt spread out, seeming to pull them closer. When he stepped back, he took her with him. His eyes grew dark and she could feel a slight vibration coming from him. It enveloped her, passing from him to her. In the next second, her feet came off the ground. She thought he was lifting her up, but his arms were level with her body. She bent to the side to look down. They were three feet off the ground. She felt a moment of fear, then it left her, and pure pleasure flowed through her. She felt the joy of soaring through the air. She put her head on his shoulder, wanting to be closer to him. His hands left her waist and engulfed her body, as though he was pulling her into him, merging them completely and totally. It was as though they were one person.
She wasn’t sure how long they were in the air but it wasn’t long enough. Holding her, he went down to the ground slowly. Her toes touched so lightly she could hardly feel them.
For a second, they held each other, eyes locked, then Tanek abruptly released her. He turned his back on her and took his seat at the table.
Kaley stayed where she was, blinking rapidly, her body vibrating. She didn’t know when the music stopped but it was silent around her. She managed to get herself under control, then, without looking at Tanek, she sat down at the table. She drained the rest of her wine and looked across the floor at Sojee and Mekos. They were staring at her. “Anybody want to do shots?”
They didn’t know the literal translation of what she’d said, but they figured it out. The air filled with their laughter and they went back to the food. Suddenly, they were all ravenous.