“Like I said, Moira, we won’t harm you.”
“Great. So what are we going to do? Play charades?”
Cobweb grins. “I’m a legend at that game.”
“You wish.” Bunk shakes his head.
The rest of them freeze. Then I realize what he’d said. ‘Wish’ really is a bad word here. Like, worse than the c-word back home (though I quite like the c-word, to be honest).
Bunk glances around then pales. “I take it back!” he yells so loudly it makes me jump.
The others relax a little then return to drying themselves as if nothing astonishingly weird just happened.
“We want you to meet someone. That’s all.” Cobweb runs a towel over her black, curly hair then down along her deep brown skin.“And we weren’t going to have our meetup in the downpour. Not to mention, the Lost Boys aren’t invited.” She wrinkles her nose.
That doesn’t sound so bad, actually, and the fire is quite nice. I scoot even closer until I can feel my sweatshirt steaming a little.
“Don’t catch fire. That might be hard for us to explain away,” Shiner cautions.
“Explain to who? Who am I meeting?”
“Me.” A woman steps from the shadows, her large brown eyes luminous. Has she been against the wall the entire time?
If there was ever a time for bi-panic, it would be right now, because she’s gorgeous. Long dark hair, light brown skin, and with delicate features—she’s got to be the prettiest woman I’ve ever seen in person. She’s wearing a brown leather bodice with a black flowy skirt that flirts with the floor as she walks.
“I’m Tiger Lily.” She gives me a warm smile.
“Moira.” I probably look like some species of drowned rat.
“Welcome to our lodge. I’ve wanted to speak with you since you first arrived, but Peter has kept you all to himself.” She moves toward the fire and sits as something screeches outside.
She must notice me staring out the door, because she says, “They won’t venture in here. We’ve killed enough of their numbers for them to be painfully aware of what happens if they set foot in our village.” She turns to Bunk. “Bring some fruit, please, Bunk.”
“Sure.” He rises and lumbers off into the shadows, which is when I realize there’s a hallway on the side of the round room. That’s where Tiger Lily came from, and it must connect to other buildings.
“Now, tell me about you.” She sits gracefully, her legs crossed as she watches me. “You’re from the mainland, and Wendy was your ancestor. That’s all I know.”
Where do I even start? “Wendy told her family about you, and the story eventually trickled all the way down to me. We all thought it was just a made-up tale, but here you are. She said you were brave, that you fought Captain Hook and defended your people.”
She nods. “Those things are true. I’ve always defended this island. Which is why I was surprised when you arrived. I had no inkling from the island’s magic that you were on your way.”
“You weren’t the only one who was surprised. I was going about my business when Peter showed up and kidnapped me. Though, to be perfectly honest with you, I’m still not sure that this whole thing isn’t a screwed-up dream brought on by a particularly gnarly hotdog.”
Shiner hides a laugh behind her hand.
Tiger Lily leans closer, her big eyes eating me up. “I can assure you this is all very real.”
“That’s what a delusionwouldsay, isn’t it though?” I shrug.
I take a piece of fruit from the plate Bunk hands to me. It looks like an orange slice, but it’s a deep purple. I sniff it, and it reminds me of watermelon. I take a bite. Love it. Then eat the whole slice.
“This is good. Filling.” I chew the pulp.
Tiger Lily leans back and pops a small red berry into her mouth. “How has your time with the Lost Boys been?”
“Fine, I guess. I mean, they make all these meals that I can’t even see. I’m surviving on neverberries and whatever this is—” I eat more of the deep purple fruit. “Other than that, I’ve sort of been getting adjusted. I think Peter is coming up with a plan on how to stop Hook. I’ve explored a little. I tell them stories every night, and …” My voice fades away as they all quickly turn to look at Tiger Lily. “What? What’s wrong?” I wipe my sticky mouth with the back of my wet sleeve—very convenient, frankly.
“Nothing.” She gives me a tight smile. “Putting that aside, what did Peter tell you was the reason he brought you?”
