Delta-Victor (12 page)

“No, he can't.” Staci took a deep breath. “OK. Home, it is.”

“Are you sure it's what you really want?”

“Yeah. To be honest the novelty wore off a long time ago. I just never had the courage to say so. I kept going because of him.”

Lou shook her head. “So you were doing it for him, and he was doing it for you?”

“Yeah. It's that downward spiral of consequences again, isn't it?”

“Yeah, something like that.”

Ailsa came over to them. “We must get ready for the party,” she said. She looked from one to the other. “What's going on?”

“I want to go home,” Staci said. “I have for ages. Today just made up my mind for me.”

“Have you told Jim yet?”

“No. I'll tell him tomorrow. I want to stay for the wedding. What will you do?”

“I don't know.” Ailsa paused as Staci's face fell. “Of course, I'm coming. I want to go home, too. I have no idea what I'll do when I get there, but hopefully something will turn up.”

“Maybe Nichola will help,” Staci said. “Or, if they've found Mum and Dad, you could come live with us. Jim would like that.” She grinned. “Unless he's already proposed.”

Ailsa blushed and tugged Staci's hair. “I wouldn't tell you even if he had.”

“I'm his sister. You have to tell me everything. Actually, when he does propose that will make you my sister and then you won't have an excuse to keep secrets from me.”

Lou turned away, heading slowly across the clearing. Now more than ever, she was the outsider. The sooner the next few days were over, the better.

14

Lou sat quietly in the hut, rubbing her leg absently.

Keika came in and smiled at her. She unfastened her hair and began to rebraid it. “Are you all right?”

Lou took a deep breath. “If I decided not to go with the others, would I be able to stay here?”

“Here? With us?”

“In the village, somewhere; not necessarily here with you. I don't want to impose. I could sew, help cook. I'd pay my way.”

Keika studied her for a long moment. “It would be Kelmac's decision.”

“But would you speak for me?” She paused, switching to Agrihan. “I mean, if I ask, would you second my application to stay.”

“Why don't you want to go home?”

“I have nothing to go home for,” she said quietly. “All that matters is that the others are safe. Once they are, and if I can come and live here, things will be fine.”

Keika held her gaze and nodded. “I will speak with him once you have,” she said.

“Thank you. I'll find him tomorrow and talk to him then.”

“You will need to phrase your request in such a way, that it doesn't look as if you're abandoning your friends.”

“I'm not. It's just better this way.” Then as the door opened and the others came in, she switched back to English. “Is everything ready, Stace?”

Staci nodded. “Yes, it is. All the food is ready and divided between the two groups, bar that last tray which is to come with us. Jim will keep the men over on the other side of the village.”

Keika smiled. “That's good. I hope things go well tonight, for everyone.”

Staci nodded. “I hope so, too. Otherwise Lou will never be asked to throw a party again. Anywhere.”

Lou pulled herself to her feet, leaning heavily on the crutches. “I won't be either way. Come on. Let's go. Can someone bring the bag?”

“Sure.” Ailsa grabbed it. “What's in here?”

“Couple of bits I need. Nothing that exciting.”

Keika picked up the last tray of fruit and led the way outside.

Ailsa crossed back to the others and she and Staci followed.

Lou swung herself slowly behind them. She took a deep breath. If this didn't work, they wouldn't let her stay. She had to make a good impression tonight.

Outside all the women began to gather under the huge woven leaf awning the men had fixed up for them.

Tayba looked nervous, but then she had no idea what to expect.

Lou crossed over to them and they all sat down. “The whole point of the next few hours is to have fun,” she said. “Not to make fun of Tayba or embarrass her.” She opened the bag. “Where we live, tradition states that the bride has to wear a veil.” She pulled out a cream length of fabric which Keika had found. She carefully fastened the veil in Tayba's hair. “Just so we don't forget who the bride is.”

Her voice was drowned out by laughter. For a moment she wasn't sure if it was her Agrihan or if they'd genuinely found what she said funny.

Hoping it was the latter, Lou continued. “Now I'm handing over to Aryna for a moment. She has something important to do.”

Aryna took the bag from Lou and gave it to Tayba. “These are for you, from all of us.”

“For me?” Tayba asked.

“Yes. Giving the bride gifts is a custom we all share.”

“But everyone lost so much in the fire, it hardly seems fair that…”

Keika hushed her. “That does not mean you have to start with nothing. You will become the wife of our healer, second only in standing in our community to Aryna, but more importantly, you become my sister.”

For the next twenty minutes, Tayba pulled her gifts one by one from the bag. A pile of coconut shell cups, woven trays, and some of the precious cloth grew next to her.

She was moved to tears by the love and generosity her friends and neighbors had shown her. She spent ages looking at each gift as she opened it.

She pulled the last one from the bag and unrolled the fabric gently. Her eyes widened at the cross-stich picture of the sun rising over the beach. She looked at Lou.

“It's from us,” Lou said. She'd worked hard at finishing it in what little time she had. She hadn't wanted to give the white horses on the beach away—that one was in her bag with instructions to give it to her mother. She'd started the sunrise picture just before the hurricane. “It's cross-stich. I made it.”

Tayba looked back at the fabric. “You made this?” She asked.

Lou nodded.

Tayba hugged her tightly. “Thank you. I will get Mafuso to make a frame for it.”

All the other women gathered around to admire the picture.

Next they ate. Raucous laughter echoed across the village.

“The men sound like they are having fun,” Ailsa said. “Maybe we should go see what they are up to.”

Staci shook her head. “No way. Once we've eaten, we'll be the ones laughing.”

“Why? What have you got planned?”

“No idea.” She looked at Lou. “Bet it'll be fun though.”

Lou glanced up from the piece of fruit which she'd hardly touched. “I thought we could play the sad and solemn occasion game.”

“Never played it.”

“It's easy.”

“Really?”

Lou nodded. “Yeah, really. I'll explain it in a bit.”

Once everyone finished eating, she began to explain. “Everyone sits in a circle. You then turn to the person on your left, look them straight in the eyes and say, ‘this is a sad and solemn occasion,' without smiling, laughing or breaking eye contact. But you can say it in whatever tone of voice you like.”

“That's it?” Keiko asked.

Lou nodded. She turned to Staci. “This is a sad and solemn occasion.”

Staci raised an eyebrow. “Piece of cake.” She turned to Keiko. “This is a sad and solemn occasion.”

Easy to begin with, it became increasingly difficult as the game progressed.

Staci broke eye contact with Lou, making her have to repeat herself. Then Staci cracked up laughing and caused a ripple of laughter which spread and grew, until eventually no one could keep a straight face.

Then they moved onto some of the other just as silly games that Lou had planned. By the end of the evening, they had all laughed until they'd cried.

As she left to go home Tayba gave Lou a hug. “Thank you so much. For everything.”

“You're welcome. It's been fun.” The girls made their way back to the house.

“The men have gone very quiet,” Staci said. “They obviously can't take the pace.”

Ailsa yawned. “Nor can I,” she said. “I hadn't realized how late it was. It must be about midnight.”

“How can you tell that?”

“Position of the moon. Easy when you know how.”

They crept into the hut, but the men weren't there.

The girls lay down and were soon asleep.

Lou lay there with a hand on Deefer's collar. She'd just dozed off as dawn's early light broke over the village, when someone tripped over her crutches and landed heavily on her leg.

“Sorry,” Jim said. “Did I hurt you?”

“It's fine. What time is it?” she asked, holding her leg, somehow keeping in the groan of pain.

“Dawn. Go back to sleep. We have to be up in about three hours.”

“You get the DSO,” she yawned.

“DSO?”

“Dirty Stop Out award.”

Jim grinned, and lying down was asleep before his head hit the pillow.

Lou watched him for a while before closing her eyes.

Mafuso and Amilek come in, but rather than sleep, they sat by the fire talking quietly together.

She didn't want to listen, but the voices carried. Tears burned her eyes, as Mafuso confirmed what she already knew, but she wouldn't let them fall. There was plenty of time for that later.

~*~

Surprisingly all the men, except Jim, were up by seven and ready to do a day's work. He moaned as Lou shook him.

Lou pulled the covers off. “Get up.” she said unsympathetically. “You only have yourself to blame. Now get up or I set the dog on you.”

He didn't move.

Lou sighed. “Deefer, lick him.”

Deefer immediately started licking Jim's face until he reluctantly got up.

“OK I'm up. I shall go and throw myself into the cold river to wake properly.”

“Mind the shark doesn't get you.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Shark. Yeah, right. Since when have you seen a shark in the river?”

Lou rolled her eyes. “You should have paid attention in your geography lessons. Look out for the piranhas as well.”

The day was spent decorating the village and making the final preparations for the wedding.

Jim spent most of the day dozing under a tree, and Lou wisely left him to it. He'd only be crabby and bad tempered if she disturbed him again.

Mafuso found her as she crossed the clearing. “The picture you gave us is beautiful. Tayba made me make a frame for it this morning. It will take pride of place on the wall of our new home. Thank you.”

Lou smiled. “You're welcome.”

He frowned at the way she balanced awkwardly. “You are still using the crutches.”

“Yeah, it's the only way to keep up with Deefer. Is Kelmac around? I wanted to ask him something.”

“He is in the chapel.”

“OK, thanks.” She turned, pausing as his hand closed on her arm. “What is it?”

“You are thinking of staying here when the others leave.”

Lou frowned. That was a statement not a question. Was she that transparent? Or had her confidence been breached? She doubted anyone was reading her coded entries in the logbook and in any case, that would be Jim and no one else. “What if I am?”

“Do not lie to me. Keika said you spoke with her yesterday. You asked her to speak to Kelmac on your behalf. Why leave your friends to go on alone when you have come so far together?”

She sighed. “I know that I can't go with them. I have my reasons. I can't leave, so I need somewhere to stay. And I like it here.”

He held her gaze. “Are you staying because of me?”

“Don't be silly. You're getting married. I know what that means. Besides, don't take it personally, but you're
way
older than I am.” She spoke rapidly, her conscience barely even twinged at the lie. But then, lying had become second nature to her now. Despite not being as religious as the others, she'd tried to be good and tell the truth at first. But deception was far easier.

Actually it was kind of ironic. She hadn't been able to give the cops in Southampton, or even Jack Davies, the American she met in Cornwall, and who'd come to their aid more than once, most recently on Grand Turk, a false name when they'd asked.

But now, lying was simply water off a duck's back, easy as pie, as Jack would say. She wondered briefly what he was doing now. Presumably still working for the American government in whatever secret capacity he did.

“Those that do not eat cannot work and those that cannot work are no good to the community.” Mafuso's voice jarred her back to reality.

She smiled at him. Trust him to bring her not eating into the conversation again. “I could help you with the medical bits or sew clothes or something.” She changed the subject. “Anyway, you do realize you shouldn't see Tayba after sunset, and then not until the ceremony tomorrow.”

He grinned at her. “That is a silly notion. Why ever not?”

“It's bad luck.”

“There is no such thing as luck,” Mafuso said firmly. “We make our choices and then follow the path God has set for us. Lou, you are still a child, on the verge of becoming a woman. Do not presume to know the path set out for you before you reach the signposts.”

“I should go and find Kelmac.” She turned to head across to the chapel.

“Will you be at dinner later?” he asked.

Lou didn't even pause. “Of course.”

“Because if you stay, you will be back under my care, and you will have to eat and take care of yourself. The same as everyone else does. You will not heal if you do not eat.”

Lou stopped and turned to face him. “Mafuso, we both know that's not true. I heard you, last night, first talking with Amilek, and then praying. I don't have many choices left, but this is one I will make for myself. I want to stay either here in the village, or somewhere on the island. I'd rather say goodbye to the others and wave them off, than have them…”