Chapter 16
16
As they ate and drank more, Kaley didn’t consciously think about what she was doing, but she vividly remembered Sojee saying, “There’s just one secret.” With every minute that passed, the more she wanted to know what that secret was. Maybe she wanted to feel that she belonged. That she was part of the group.
She thought young Mekos might be the weak link in keeping the secret. When he emptied his cup of wine, she refilled it. Tanek frowned but Mekos made a quick grab at the cup and drained it.
“Parents protect their children.” Kaley was reminding Tanek that his father hadn’t told the truth about what happened at the homestead.
Tanek gave her a calculating look, as though trying to figure out what she was up to. She smiled at him as sweetly as she could manage. After Mekos had another cup, Tanek held out his hand. He wanted to connect with his son’s arm to clear away the fuzziness the wine was causing. But Mekos stood up. “My father can project his abundant strength into others,” he said to Kaley.
She stood up with him. “And what can you do?”
“Hear things. Smell. See. I can move quickly and squeeze through tiny places.” He gave her what he seemed to believe was a lascivious look. But he was a drunken teenager who needed practice.
“Come on,” she said. “Let’s dance, and I’ll teach you the meaning of the word killjoy . Then Daddy can clear your mind.”
“You can teach me whatever you want.” Again, he was trying to be sexy, and again, it failed.
But Kaley didn’t laugh at him. She went into his young arms, and as Sojee began to sing, Mekos twirled her around the room. She let him nuzzle her neck.
“You earthlings smell good.”
“No foxy scent?” She was teasing him.
“If you did, I’d think you were my relative.”
She laughed. As a folklorist, she loved the myth that his mother was half fox. It’s probably what was told to him to explain his misshapen ears. “But you’re an earthling, too. I’m just from another country.”
He pulled her closer. “You’re from a whole other planet. We must thank Jobi for bringing you here.”
She smiled. “Another planet? That’s impossible. It would take years to get here.”
“It’s three years from Earth to here,” he said.
Three years? With all the wine she’d had, her mind wasn’t the clearest it had ever been, but she remembered Jobi saying, What if I told you that my country is on another planet and it takes three years of Earth time to get there? Mekos was holding her more tightly. What he was saying couldn’t be true, but something about it was giving her chills. She glanced at the table. Tanek was watching them, looking as though at any minute he’d spring forward and separate them. She put her head back and laughed as though Mekos had said something funny. “I saw a woman,” she whispered. “She was tiny and surrounded by light.”
“That’s Arit,” Mekos said. “My father’s Never. She thinks I’m a worthless child, but then she’s in love with him.”
Kaley was trying to control her breathing. “What does she do?”
“Communicates. Papá talks to people through her.” Mekos twirled her around. “My father thinks I’m a virgin.”
“Any woman can tell that you’re not.” She was lying. “A dragon, swan wings that grow on a man’s back, fairy tales that are real. They’re things that I’ve seen.”
“And there are many that have been hidden. Nessa let me ride Perus once. It was almost as good as soaring.”
“Who put the thing in my arm?” she whispered.
“Jobi. He told Grandpapá that he had to go back to get you when you were ready.”
She pulled back to look at him. “Ready for what?”
“I don’t know.”
Kaley again glanced at Tanek. He looked like he was about to pull his son away. “Does Tanek know why I’m here?”
Mekos put his face on her neck and she could smell the wine on him. “No. He yells at Jobi that he must tell you where you are and that I must—” He suddenly stood up straight. “Oh no! He told me I’m not to tell you.”
Kaley stepped away from him, then with a face not showing her emotion, she went to Tanek and held out her arm. She wanted all the effects of the alcohol removed. He touched his forearm to hers. As always, the little electrical current went through her, but this time she could feel his energy. He was worried about something.
“What did my son say?”
“Nothing of interest. You should put him to bed. I’m...” She nodded toward the darkness that surrounded them. A nature call.
When Tanek’s eyes were on his son, Kaley slipped away. She wasn’t sure where she was going but she couldn’t stay there. She went to the bedroom where their things were stored. She carefully took off the beautiful dress. Holding the soft fabric against her face, she thought that she should have been suspicious at hearing the gown was made from swan feathers. There was no such thing. But then, there were lots of things that should have alerted her to... What? That she’d been taken to another planet?
She changed into trousers, a T-shirt and a jacket, then stuffed her backpack with a full outfit. When she left, she saw that the men were at the table, still drinking, but Mekos looked like he was dreading telling his father what he’d done.
Kaley crept along the side of the building, but Sojee stepped in front of her. For someone so big, he could certainly move quietly. “You know,” he said.
“Yes. I...” She wasn’t sure what to say. None of it had sunk in yet. “I’d like to be alone for a while.”
“You deserve that.” He looked into the dark surrounding them. “There’s no one else here or Mekos would have heard them.”
“Because his mother is part fox?” Her voice was full of sarcasm.
Sojee nodded.
“Do you know why I’m here? It couldn’t be just to help find that obnoxious prince.”
Sojee’s face was more serious than she’d ever seen it. “Jobi is in the Order of Sight. He sees into the future. He says you’re needed, but that’s all we know.”
They turned at a noise. Tanek was propping his limp son upright and trying to get their forearms together.
“Don’t let him follow me,” Kaley said. “I need time to think. Alone.”
“We owe you that.”
Feeling stunned, with too much in her mind to be able to think clearly, she walked into the darkness, but there were tree branches on the ground and she stumbled. Without thinking where she was going, she turned and went toward the derelict village. The houses had been broken and blasted, with axe marks on some of them. Maybe the destroyed village was symbolic of the way she was feeling.
The gravel crunched and slid under her feet, but she kept going. The blue of the moonlight allowed her to see enough that she could walk. She went down side roads and between the crumbling houses.
It couldn’t be true, she told herself. These people were insane. That had to be it. These islands were an asylum for delusional, mentally unhealthy people. Someone told them they were on another planet and they swallowed it. They...
She couldn’t embellish the lie enough to make herself believe it. Mekos said Jobi returned when she was ready . Did that mean when she was an adult? If so, her entire life had been directed toward now, on this planet.
She began to think of odd things that had happened throughout her life. She’d been homeschooled. When she finally did integrate with people her own age, she’d learned how different she was. Animals liked her. Not a little but a great deal. She rarely fit in with other people. Later, Jobi, twice her age, was the closest friend she’d ever had.
At least that was what she’d thought. But it seemed that he’d had an ulterior motive. Was he paid to befriend her? To kidnap her? To steal her away from her family? Had those years of training been a duty to him? All their laughter, shared meals, shared... In her mind, they’d shared confidences.
What about the single entry she’d read on her computer about his islands? Did he put that in there? Her eyes widened. Did he have something to do with her professor turning down her dissertation? He wouldn’t have done that. Couldn’t have. That would be too cruel, too low-down, mean and dirty.
Her grandfather had often said, “Honey, if you want to know what a person’s up to, look at the result.” The result of her life was that she had suddenly found herself alone, with no future, and only one close friend. Then that friend had conveniently decided to leave the country. Kaley had begged and pleaded to go with him.
Everything she thought she knew about Jobi had been a lie.
She sat down on a rusty iron chair that was in front of a house that had once been pretty. A wooden shutter hung by one hinge. A flower box was on the ground and the moonlight showed little white flowers peeping out of the soil.
When she looked to the side, she saw two gleaming eyes. They were cautious, looking like they were asking her a question. It was the little creature she’d pulled out of the witch’s trap. She patted her lap and he silently came forward and leaped onto her legs. She stroked his fur. “You’re so quiet I bet even Mekos couldn’t hear you. But then, from the look of you, maybe you’re his second cousin.”
She’d meant it as a joke, but the words brought tears to her eyes. Three years to get here, three to get back. Even if she left tomorrow, it would be six years that she’d been away from her family. Did that mean nothing to Jobi? Did only his world matter?
Her tears came harder. Would she ever see her grandparents again? They weren’t young, and six years was a long time. Her father! She remembered seeing him at the airport. That was when Jobi put that pen on her arm and she blacked out. What had he done to her father? Did Jobi care about anything or anyone except his own interests? What had Sojee said he was in? The Order of Sight. That made sense. Jobi’s premonitions. He saw car pileups before they happened. What else had he foreseen and prevented?
It seemed that all Jobi cared about was his mission. His goals in life. Kaley’s plans and dreams, the people she loved, meant nothing to him.
The little animal seemed to feel her stress and snuggled into a ball on her lap. It would soon be daylight and she was feeling the exhaustion of what she’d learned and all that had happened during the day. The door to the house was open. She picked up the little animal and went inside. A room held an old wooden bed frame with a rusted iron lattice across the bottom. She stretched out on the bed, drew her knees up, with the soft warmth of the animal next to her, and was instantly asleep.
When she woke in the morning, she wasn’t surprised to find one of the swan blankets covering her. She had no doubt that Sojee had found her and covered her as she slept. By now Tanek had been told that she at last knew the truth, but he would probably stay away from her. A wooden crate was in the front room and it contained food.
Part of her thought she should go back to the others. Maybe she should sit down and talk with them. Like an adult. She’d ask questions about how to get back home. Was there a spaceship schedule? Did anyone have enough credits to buy a ticket?
But she didn’t go back to the old house. Instead, she put some food in her pockets, took a ceramic bottle of water and started walking. She didn’t want to stay still, and she definitely didn’t want to talk to anyone. She needed to adjust to what was impossible yet seemed to be true. And most importantly, what did she do now? Ask? Plead? Demand? If she knew what they wanted from her, she might have a card to play. Something to work with in her threats. If you don’t take me home now , I’ll... What? Not prevent any more fairy tales from coming true? None of them had seemed bothered by a witch in a house made of cake.
She left the village and followed the gravel road upward. There was a path going up the mountain, with trails wandering off to the sides. She followed two and they led to what may have been seating areas. Had Tanek’s famous grandfather hiked these paths? Or did some animal that she’d never heard of live there?
She went back to the main trail and started up. It was a hard climb and she was breathless when she got close to the top of the mountain. Beside her was the little animal, scurrying in and out, sometimes pausing to listen. When she got to the top, she gasped. Before her was a large pond. It was perfect in its stillness, cleanliness and the beautiful blue color. To the side was a tall stone pavilion. It was like the one near the house but this one was intact. It hadn’t been blown away by some angry enemy.
Kaley went to it. There were four stone pillars to the roof, with steps leading up to a wide floor. There were four chairs made out of carved white stone. Of course the arms were in the shape of swans. She sat down on a middle chair, the creature on her lap, and looked out at the perfect water.
“You’re going to have to tell me your name.” She closed her eyes and tried to listen. Nessa’s dragon had told her right away, but this one was silent.
When she opened her eyes, she drew in her breath. On the water, having arrived in absolute silence, were three white swans. She’d seen many of them at home...on her own dear Earth...but none like these. They were as big as the iridescent swans she’d seen on the first day with Tanek, but these were only of the purest white. The only color was the black band that went around their eyes, then extended back. “Like Cleopatra,” she whispered. “Are you Egyptian?”
The birds didn’t seem to be afraid of her.
Kaley stood up, put the animal to the ground and walked to the birds. They didn’t move away, but then she didn’t expect them to. She sat down on the side of the pond, slipped off her shoes and put her feet into the water. It was cool but not cold.
Slowly, the swans came forward and paused in front of her. She bowed her head to them and they bowed in return. Then they glided forward and bent so she could touch them.
The little animal was beside her and she turned to him. “Aren’t they beautiful?” She looked startled. “Tibby. Is that your name?” He made a soft sound like a snuffle, then crawled back onto her lap. “Jealous, are you?”
The swans rubbed against her shoulders then her neck and up to her cheeks. Their feathers were as sleek as they looked. One of them moved back, then bent its long neck to the water, picked up a white feather and held it out to Kaley.
“I am honored,” she said as she took it.
The swans moved back and effortlessly slid across the still water.
Time seemed to pause. She had food and water and her thoughts, but they didn’t seem to have a solution. It was as though she went through the stages of grief. She’d gone through shock, then denial. Her anger was taking longer. How could Jobi have done this? Had he really planned it for years? Did he cut her arm and put whatever it was inside there? Did his premonition tell him that her mother was going to die?
She had no answers for any of her questions.
She paced, going around the pond several times. The swans stayed close by on the water, and Tibby curled up on the grass. They were calm, not in the least upset by her movements that were sometimes fast and angry.
By sundown she was into bargaining, thinking how she’d play it to make Jobi return her to her own country. It was too far-fetched to think of Earth as “my own planet.”
When it grew dark, she was exhausted. She stood at the side of the pond and stared sightlessly into the water. The swans raised their heads, went to her and seemed to want her to follow them. She went to the far end of the pond where there were tall reeds. One of the swans extended its enormous wings and flew a few feet into the thick, dense field of waist-high grasses.
Kaley knew she was to follow and she didn’t hesitate. It was wet walking, but she made her way through and she saw a huge, soft, feathered nest. With gratitude, she stretched out in it, and the swan sat down close to her. It was warm and quiet, and she was soon asleep.
In the morning, Kaley didn’t feel any better. She had no answers to her questions. She had no idea why she was there and certainly not how she could get away.
As before, she wasn’t surprised to see that the box of food had been brought up and was under the cover of the stone pavilion. Of course Sojee had done it. For a moment she thought how she needed to go back to them, needed to talk, to ask questions. It didn’t do any good to hide away in isolated silence. Her inner therapist said she needed to address her problems and figure out how to deal with them.
But Kaley couldn’t make herself do any of it. If Jobi had spent years of his life to achieve his goal of hijacking her to his planet, a few words from Kaley wasn’t going to make him backtrack. And any person who could keep such a monumental secret for so long wouldn’t spill his guts the moment he was asked to tell all.
She ate a bit, then snuggled with the swans and Tibby. The way she felt now, she might stay there forever. Then what will the others do? she thought.
Tibby suddenly came alert and the swans quickly went to the far side of the pond. They looked like they might fly away at any second.
Kaley braced herself. It was probably Sojee, sent by Tanek, to try to persuade her to return and do...whatever it was that she’d been kidnapped for the purpose of doing. Save their planet? How? Her blood was needed? Her...? She couldn’t think of anything she had or could do that was superior to what others had and did. Why me? screamed in her mind.
She was so sure she was being warned of Sojee arriving that Kaley didn’t at first see the tiny light, then the wings, then the bright pink of a little skirt. She just sat there blinking as the tiny woman came into view. “You’re Arit.”
The little woman said, “I am.”
Her voice was stronger and louder than Kaley would have guessed. “Mekos said you’re called a Never.”
Arit straightened her body, her wings fluttering more slowly, and proudly said, “We never betray, never share.”
“Really?” Kaley said. “You know any Lost Boys?”
Arit’s shock made her wings beat so fast that she shot backward in a flurry of wings and clothes. “Yes,” she whispered. “Peter. How...?”
“I’m beginning to get the hang of this place. Did someone send you to try to talk some sense into me?”
“No one knows I’m here. Could we...?” She looked at the pavilion in the background.
“Sure.” Kaley got up from her seat on the grass and went to one of the chairs. Arit settled on the arm of the one next to her. “All the stories left out how tiring wings must be.”
“I usually lean on Tanek,” she said. “His beard is very soft, and his arms are exceptionally strong.”
“Et tu, Brute?” Kaley saw that she had no idea what was meant by that. “Are your clothes made from the swans?”
She gave a quick nod, indicating her lack of interest in that matter. “Tanek and Mekos left to search for Prince Nessa. If they return him to the king, you’ll be given Papers of Passage and you can leave. Tanek is deeply worried about you.”
Kaley could see she was upset about that. “Is he angry at Mekos?”
Arit stretched out on the stone arm, her gossamer wings folded beneath her. “That couldn’t happen, but Mekos is hurt. He blames himself for having disobeyed his father, but Tanek is glad you’ve been told. He just hopes you aren’t blaming him .”
Kaley looked out at the water. The swans were still on the other side of the big pond, and Tibby was nowhere to be seen. “Tell him I found his white swans, and that I slept in their nest. And they gave me a white feather.”
“You should tell him when he returns.”
Kaley avoided replying to that. “Do you know anybody named Tinker?”
Again, Arit looked shocked. “My oldest sister. She’s with King Aramus.”
“Of course she is. Higher up and she gets the perks.”
The two women looked at each other and exchanged girl smirks of understanding.
For a while they sat in silence, looking out at the water and the beauty of the swans.
“Why was I brought here?”
“I don’t know,” Arit said. “I’m not sure anyone does.”
“Except that it was all done by Jobi. Was he paid to pretend to be my friend?”
“I don’t think he knows why he’s done things. There are only three people at a time in the Order of Sight and Jobi is the weakest one. He knows you’re to help his country, but he isn’t clear on how it comes about.”
“What about Sojee and Tanek? Mekos? Are they being paid?”
“Not in the way you mean. The men have their own reasons for agreeing to guide you.”
Kaley nodded at that. “Sojee wants to protect his princess, and Tanek is doing something in secret. He has meetings with people. I think Mekos just wants to be with his dad.” She looked at Arit, but she was silent. As Mekos had said, the beautiful little woman was in love with Tanek, and she was obviously very loyal to him. “Can you read people’s minds?”
Arit took her time answering. “I can see into the minds of some people.”
“Tanek’s?”
“Oh yes. Everything.” She gave a chuckle. “He likes you.”
Kaley ignored the last comment. “Sojee?”
“Less so, but I know that he will kill to protect his order. He knows that you’re important.”
“Mekos?”
“No,” Arit said sharply. “He has a very strong mind, and he can hide what he thinks and feels. There is not a Never who will join with him.”
Kaley thought she could understand that. “And what about me?”
Arit shook her head. “I can see nothing that’s in your thoughts. Someone very powerful is watching over you.” She put up her hand. “No, I don’t know who it is.”
“Can you see into the future?”
“Not at all.”
“Too bad because I’d like to know if I’ll ever see my family again. My grandparents. My father.” She turned to the woman. “For as long as I can remember, I’ve known what I wanted to do with my life. I could see the house I’d live in, my studies, what I’d write.” Kaley took a breath. “All that’s gone.” She tightened her lips. “Do you know if Jobi made my professor turn down my dissertation?”
“Not for sure, but he probably did. I see in his mind that he’s ruthless in what he wants to achieve.”
“At the expense of my entire life. I’m sorry, but I don’t really care about that nasty little prince getting with a princess who doesn’t want to marry him. I just want to go home to my family. I want my stone house and to...” The tears were coming again. She’d kept them at bay but now they were back.
“I’m sorry this has been done to you.” There was sadness in Arit’s voice. “Please return.”
“Not yet.” Kaley gave a half smile. “I’ll stay here for a while longer. Maybe I’ll find some frogs to kiss.”
Arit looked at her in horror.
“It’s a joke. If you kiss the right frog, he turns into a handsome prince, then you get married and live happily ever after.”
Arit looked serious. “A lot of men could offer you that, and just so you know, Tanek loves anyone who loves those farken birds of his.” Her wings began to flutter. “I’ll find Tanek, and I’ll tell him all.” She grimaced. “And maybe I’ll find someone who can turn him into a frog. Why any woman wouldn’t want him just the way he is, I do not understand.” She didn’t give Kaley time to answer but vanished.
She looked out at the swans. “Farken, are you? Now I see why you run away from her.” Tibby came out of the grasses. “You’re afraid of a tiny creature like Arit? Wait until you see Tanek after she’s made him into a two-hundred-pound frog.”
There was no response from them. Kaley stretched out on the grass, hands behind her head, and looked up at the sky. Maybe I’ll stay here forever , she thought. If I refuse to participate, maybe they’ll send me home.