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Janco grinned. “The magicians were frantic. Search parties were sent.” He shook his head as if amazed by the uproar. “We had no idea what they would find in the dark. We just hoped they wouldn’t ruin the trail. Once the sun was up, it took us no time to follow the tracks. Goel used a wagon to wheel you out of the Keep and Citadel.”
I thought of the burlap sack lying in the wagon. Goel must have hidden me in that sack.
“I guess Cahil followed us,” Janco said. Scratching his scar, he added, “Of course, you didn’t want our help. Now I have to go beat up some soldier just to keep my ego intact.”
As we reached the east gate of the Citadel, I spotted a commotion near the guardhouse. A loose horse was giving the guards some trouble. Kiki.
She stopped when we crossed through the gate. Lavender Lady tired. Need ride.
How did you find me?
Follow scent of Strong Man and Rabbit Man.
She referred to Ari and Janco. I apologized to the gate’s guards about Kiki’s disruption. Ari helped me onto her back and gave me my pack.
“We’ll catch up with you later,” Ari promised.
Before Kiki and I headed toward the Keep, I thanked my friends.
“For what? We didn’t do anything,” Janco grumbled.
“For caring enough to follow my guards. And the next time, I might need the help.”
“There better not be a next time,” Ari said, giving me a stern look.
“How touching,” Janco said, pretending to wipe his eyes. “Get going, Yelena. I don’t want you to see me cry.” He faked a sniffle.
“I’m sure your ego can handle it,” I said. “Or will you need to beat up some trainees to feel like a man again?”
“Very funny,” he said.
I waved and asked Kiki to take me home. On the way, I connected to Irys and updated her on what had happened. She promised to send some guards out to arrest Goel.
If I don’t make it to my room, I’ll be asleep in the barn, I said, yawning. I felt her hesitate. Now what?
Your parents arrived this morning.
Oh, no!
Oh, yes. Esau is here with me, but when your mother found out you were missing, she climbed a tree and we can’t convince her to come down. She’s hysterical and won’t listen to us. You’ll have to talk to her.
I sighed. I’m on my way. Where is she?
Perl was in one of the tall oak trees next to the pasture.
Kiki took me to the base of the tree. A handful of orange and brown leaves still clung to the branches. I spotted my mother’s green cloak near the top. I called to Perl, telling her I was fine. “You can come down now,” I said.
“Yelena! Thank fate! Come up here where it’s safe,” she said.
I resigned myself to the fact that getting Perl down would be difficult, and took off my cloak and backpack, dropping them to the ground. Even standing on Kiki’s back, I still had to stretch to reach the lowest branch. My mother’s climbing ability was impressive.
As Kiki grazed, I hauled myself higher, climbing until I reached my mother. I settled on a branch below her, but she appeared next to me in an instant, hugging me tight. When her body started shaking with sobs, I had to grab the tree’s trunk to keep us both from falling.
I waited for her to calm before gently pulling her away. She sat next to me, leaning against my shoulder. Her face was streaked with dirt where her tears had mixed with the dried mud on my clothes. I offered the one clean spot on my shirt, but she shook her head, taking a handkerchief from her pocket. Her dark green cloak had many pockets, and the garment had a slim tailored cut, eliminating the bulky excess of material. It wouldn’t make a good blanket, but it was perfect for keeping warm while traveling through the tree tops.
“Is this one of Nutty’s designs?” I asked her, fingering the cloth.
“Yes. Since I hadn’t left the jungle in fourteen years…” She gave me a rueful smile, “I needed something for the cooler weather.”
“I’m glad you came,” I said.
Her smile fled. A look of terror touched her eyes before she took a few deep breaths. “Your father gave me some Eladine to keep me calm during the trip, and I was doing so well, until…” She put a hand to her neck, grimacing.
“Bad timing,” I agreed. “But I’m fine, see?” I held out an arm. My mistake.
She gasped, staring at the bloody bruises around my wrist. I pulled my sleeve down to cover them.
“They’re just scratches.”
“What happened? And don’t sugarcoat it for me,” she ordered.
I gave her a condensed version with only a slight dusting of sugar. “He won’t be bothering me again.”
“It won’t happen again. You are coming home with us,” she declared.
After this morning, I wanted to agree. “What would I do there?”
“Help your father collect samples or help me make perfumes. The thought of losing you again is too much to bear.”
“But you have to bear it, Mother. I’m not going to run or hide from difficult or dangerous situations. And I’ve made some promises to myself and others. I have to see things through, because if I ran away, I couldn’t live with myself.”
A breeze rustled the leaves, and the sweat on my skin felt like ice. My mother pulled her cloak tight. I could sense her emotions as they twisted into knots around her. She was in a strange place, dealing with the realization that her daughter would willingly put herself in harm’s way for others, and she could lose her again. She struggled with her fear, wanting nothing more than the safety of her family and the familiarity of home.
I had an idea. “Nutty’s cloak reminds me of the jungle,” I said.
She glanced down at the garment. “Really?”
“It’s the same color as the underside of an Ylang-Ylang Leaf. Remember that time when we were caught in a sudden downpour on our way home from the market, and we huddled under a big Ylang-Ylang Leaf?”
“You remembered.” She beamed.
I nodded. “My childhood memories have been unlocked. But I wouldn’t have them now, if I hadn’t taken a risk and followed Irys to the Avibian Plains.”
“You’ve been to the plains.” The horror on her face transformed to awe. “You’re not afraid of anything, are you?”
“During that trip, I could list at least five things I was afraid of.” Especially getting my head chopped off by Moon Man’s scimitar, but I was smart enough not to tell that to my mother.
“Then why did you go?”
“Because we needed information. I couldn’t let my fear stop me from doing what I needed to do.”
She considered my words in silence.
“Your cloak can protect you from more than the weather,” I said. “If you fill the pockets with special items from home, you can surround yourself with the jungle whenever you’re feeling overwhelmed or afraid.”
“I hadn’t thought of that.”
“In fact, I have something you can put into your pocket now that will remind you of me. Come on.” Without waiting to see if she followed, I climbed down. I hung from the lowest branch before dropping to the ground.
As I searched my backpack, I heard a rustling and I looked up in time to see my mother shimming down the tree’s trunk. I found my fire amulet in one of the pack’s pockets. Considering my recent run of troubles, the amulet would be safer with my mother.
“I won this during a time in my life when fear was my constant and only companion.” I handed it to her. It was the first place prize for an acrobatic competition at Ixia’s annual Fire Festival. What followed after was the worst time of my life, but I would have competed for the amulet again, even knowing the outcome.
I handed the amulet to my mother. “This is one of only four items I hold dear. I want you to have it.”
She examined the fire amulet. “What are the other three?”
“My butterfly and snake.” I pulled out my necklace, and I showed her my bracelet.
“Did someone make those fo
r you?”
“Yes. A friend,” I said before she could ask more.
She raised a slender eyebrow, but only asked, “What’s the last thing?”
I rummaged in my pack while I decided if my mother would be shocked to know I held a weapon dear. Far from being the perfect daughter, I figured she wouldn’t be surprised at all. Handing her my switchblade, I explained what the silver symbols on the handle meant.
“Same friend?” she asked.
I laughed and told her about Ari and Janco. “They’re more like older brothers than friends.”
