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“Oh.” We’d try to be discreet with our partnership, and I felt bad that Steven had misunderstood, thinking our mutual interest was romantic.
“What you two do is your own business, but it’s obvious he’s taken with you. I wanted you to know how rare that is for him.”
I considered setting him straight, but what was I going to say? I’d have to let David take point on this one. “Thank you for showing me the house, but more importantly, for telling me about my parents.”
David approached us with a leery expression. “What are you two talking about?”
I laughed. “You, of course.”
Steven laughed with me and placed an arm around my shoulders. “You’ve met your match with this one, David. I suspect her father would approve.”
I offered him a smile. “I’m sure Daddy would.” Steven was talking about romance, but I knew Daddy would approve of David’s eagerness to help me.
David’s face flushed. “I think I’ve heard enough.” He shook his head and reached for my forearm, dragging me away. “There’s something I know you’ll want to see.”
Several feet away, he slowed down and stopped pulling, but his hand didn’t drop; it just shifted so that he was lightly gripping my wrist.
“I meant what I said about Daddy.”
He looked amused. “Oh, really?”
“Daddy would have loved you. If he could have handpicked someone to help me, I’m certain it would have been you.”
David gave me a strange look, and his eyes flickered with something I didn’t recognize. Then he shook his head, his excitement returning. “Come on. I really do have something to show you.”
“What?”
“It’s a surprise.” He led me to a hut that was smaller than the others and located at the edge of the clearing. Several primitive symbols were painted by the door, a few of which I recognized.
“Manteo’s hut,” I murmured.
“Yes, but that’s not the surprise.” He led me around the side of the structure, to a table that had been set up under a canopy. “Ellie, look at this.”
There was a slat of wood, covered in symbols.
“We just found it inside. Look at this.” He picked up a pen and pointed to a few of the symbols, keeping the tip several inches above the wood. “Recognize these? The night, the sun, the land, the sea.”
“They’re almost identical to the ones on my door.”
“I know. The symbols for things often changed from tribe to tribe. Collin’s family must have carefully preserved these for the ones he’s using to be almost identical.”
At least thirty symbols covered the slat, and I didn’t recognize about half of them. One symbol in particular filled me with excitement. “Okeus.” I pointed to it. “That must mean that one of these stands for Ahone.”
“Yeah, but the question iswhich.”
Some of my excitement faded. “How do we find out?”
“The books my friend borrowed should arrive at the inn today. Even if Ahone’s symbol isn’t in the text, we might be able to narrow the options down through the process of elimination.”
“How long do you think that will take?”
“That’s what I’m worried about. It might take days or even weeks. How much time do you think you have left?”
I twisted my lips as I thought about what Ukinim had said. “I might already be out of time. Ukinim suggested he wouldn’t have trouble taking my manitou.”
David’s eyes widened. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“What good would it have done? Knowing won’t help us find Ahone’s mark any faster.”
