Chapter Six #2
“A lot of factors. The volcanic soil. The island is secluded. Plants love that sort of thing. Some people, too.”
I sound like a bumbling idiot.
But Diana nodded. She wet her lips with a flick of her tongue.
Faye remembered the feel of that tongue in her mouth, and her stomach somersaulted. Maybe there was still something between them. Or maybe the altitude had turned Faye’s brain into mush. Hard to tell.
But then movement out of the corner of her eye made her turn her head. Molly stood under the archway, observing them with a frown.
Is she jealous?
Molly’s stare narrowed, then with a huff, she disappeared back inside.
Strange…
Diana stood up and dusted her hands. “I should go in now. Thank you for showing me these.”
“No problem.” Faye watched as Diana joined the others under the archway, her gaze lingering on the jumpsuit swaying with her hips.
She didn’t usually find herself checking someone out with such fascination, but there was something extremely addictive about the woman’s slow, controlled movements.
“Literally any time,” she said to herself.
She supposed she should join the others too and see how Quin was doing, but she didn’t want to look too eager following Diana.
She looked out over the sea, counted to twenty, and then left to join the rest of the group.
They were dotted around the different parts of the structure, tilting their heads back to observe the large bell tower.
Quin was chatting with Sanjay, one of the older men in the group, standing beneath a huge tree whose branches had grown through one of the open holes and formed half a roof.
Ella and Riley gathered inside, in the sunlight pouring through the holes and lighting up the grassy floor.
“What do you think?” Ella asked when Faye neared.
“It’s beautiful.” The damp, earthy smell tickled her nose. “Musky, but beautiful.”
Riley nodded. “The ruins are an undeniable beauty. Even in the rain—especially then.” The two of them shared a glance, and Faye’s jealousy flared again.
Her gaze passed over the crumbling stone and the moss growing up the rocks. “What room would this have been?”
“The princess’s chambers.” Riley pointed up at one of the windows. “The princess would spend every morning looking out at the view, writing her poetry, and then reciting it to her servants in the afternoon.”
“Really? What did she write about?”
“Love. Heartbreak. Feminism. The poems she wrote either brought people together or tore them apart. She had a power through words like no one else.”
Sounds like Princesa Inês had heaps of the enigma, too.
“Didn’t she write something famous about the moon?” Ella asked. “‘Do not swear by the moon, for she changes constantly’?”
Riley’s eyebrows drew together. “I don’t think that’s one of hers…but it’s pretty.” She gave Ella a kiss on the forehead, and they linked hands, heading out the back “door”—an empty hole—to chat with some other guests.
“Shakespeare.”
Faye smelled Diana’s perfume before she appeared beside her.
“Pardon?”
Diana gazed up at the window in question. “‘O, swear not by the moon, the inconstant moon.’ It’s Shakespeare.”
Faye wet her lips and swallowed, thrown off by the woman’s sudden presence and her reciting poetry in that rich tone. “A big Shakespeare fan?”
“Not particularly.” Her mouth ticked. “But I admire that quote.”
“I’m not a Shakespeare fan either.”
Diana took a few steps, examining the structure. Her playsuit teased at the curves underneath, and Faye loved how the material fell over her figure with every step.
“Do you believe that?” Diana asked.
“Believe what?” Faye hoped she hadn’t missed something by admiring her too hard.
“That Princesa Inês acted like a Cupid of the island, using poems to unite and divide whoever she saw fit?”
She breathed in Diana’s intoxicating scent, the space between them shrinking. “It’s not as far-fetched as some things, so sure, why not?”
Diana’s eyebrow quirked. “A romantic, are we?”
Faye shifted her feet. “Perhaps.”
“It shows.” A slow smirk spread across Diana’s face, one that dripped gooey heat from Faye’s sternum into the pit of her stomach.
A rustle in the foliage interrupted her thoughts. Green and white flashed across the open doorway. A series of sharp, distressed chirps grew louder until a bundle of feathers tumbled through the space and cowered in the corner, flapping.
Faye’s heart sank. A bird flailed in the white net, its wing caught in the holes. Each frantic movement further entangled itself.
The rest of the group appeared at the doorway, and Faye jumped into protection mode.
“Wait outside,” she said. “We need to give it space to calm down.” She dropped to a crouch, trying to appear less threatening, and cooed at the bird.
“Hey. It’s gonna be okay. We’re going to help you take that nasty net off. ”
The bird twitched, letting out another distress call that pulled at Faye’s heart.
She took in the bright green feathers and orange beak.
Some sort of parakeet. The net obstructed some of its head, but when it angled towards her, she caught a flash of pink, like a little pink crown. A Pink Polari parakeet.
She released a breath. To have seen one of the rare birds endemic to the island was incredible. But not like this. She inspected the net. It appeared new and clean, not like an old fishing one the bird had accidentally tangled itself up in. Someone had done this on purpose.
“What’s going on?” Riley peeked through one of the holes in the wall.
“A Pink Polari parakeet is caught in a net. Looks like it injured a wing.”
“Oh, Jesus. Let me alert the wildlife centre.” After a few steps, Riley’s walkie-talkie crackled to life, and Portuguese rolled off her tongue.
The darkness inside the structure seemed to help the bird. It sat in the corner, breathing heavily but no longer fighting against the net. Faye spotted the brown patch above the beak. A female.
“Will it be alright?” Diana asked in a low whisper, raising the hairs on Faye’s arms.
“I hope so. They’re close to becoming endangered.”
That was putting it lightly. Birds in high demand in the pet trade, like the Pink Polari, were targeted for their colourful feathers.
Poachers were known to clip their wings, making it impossible for them to escape and putting them in excruciating pain.
As if that weren’t bad enough, they were starved and kept in such bad conditions that many wouldn’t survive the journey to be sold.
The idea that people could do this to other living things made Faye want to destroy them in a blaze of fire. She looked at the poor little bird and the net entrapping it. Could it be a coincidence? Or were there poachers on the island right now?
“Come on, everyone,” Ella called. “Let’s make our way back and give the bird some space.”
The group dispersed, talking quietly among themselves. Quin popped their head through the doorway and raised two questioning thumbs-ups.
“I’ll catch you later,” she whispered, and Quin nodded, shooting finger guns back at her.
“Are you coming?” Diana asked.
Faye’s muscles burned from crouching, but she shook her head. “I’m gonna stay with her until the wildlife team gets here.”
“How do you know she’s female?”
“See the brown patch above her beak there? That’s the cere.”
“You really know your stuff.” Diana slowly got to her feet, smiling when her knees audibly cracked. The way she moved with such care and fluidity so as not to scare the bird made Faye’s heart squeeze. “Good luck, Faye. See you tomorrow.”
They shared another look before Diana joined the others. The feeling of her gaze lingered long after she’d left.
“Guess it’s just you and me for a little bit,” Faye whispered to the bird.
She didn’t realise until much, much later, that she still had Diana’s phone in her pocket.