The Tree Shepherd's Daughter (17 page)

The girl, whose nametag read "Gabrielle," said, "The
only cool place to go is Uncle Harry Mac's."

"Uncle Harry Mac's?" said Keelie. It sounded like a fast
food restaurant.

"Yeah, he's got places all over Colorado. And he does it all: tattoos, eyebrows, ears, and belly button rings." Gabrielle lifted her shirt and showed Keelie her pierced belly
button ring. A tiny fairy charm dangled from the ring.
Fairies. She just couldn't get away from the darn things.

"I want my belly button pierced, too," Keelie said.

"So, who's the hottie you're with?" asked Gabrielle. And
she pointed toward Zeke, who still had his eyes closed and
his arms crossed, except now his head was sort of slumped
over to the left, and he was making snorting sounds. Hottie? No way.

"He's my father."

"Whoa, girl." Gabrielle stared at Zeke again, then at
her.

Keelie snatched the remaining pants and shirts from
Gabrielle. The girl may have had good taste in clothes, but
as far as men-gross. Her father.

Keelie tried on a tank top that said Vampire Girl in
glittering sequins across her chest. The short top exposed a
lot of skin. The jeans hung just right on her hips, though
Keelie didn't like the cool air on her butt dimples. What
were her girlfriends wearing in California? Keelie Heartwood was definitely a fashionista, not a Rennie.

She ran her hands across her belly button. "We're going
to be making a little trip to Uncle Harry Mac's," she said
to her little innie. "But no fairy charms. A plain hoop, or
maybe my birthstone."

No matter what Zeke said, Mom had promised. Well,
she'd promised that they'd discuss it when she got back
from her business trip. The world owed her a pierced belly
button.

"Are you decent?" Raven stuck her head over the dressing room door.

"What if I wasn't?" Keelie tried to look indignant, but
then she saw the hand appear under the stall door, holding
a big paper-sleeved coffee cup. "Bless you. You may enter."

Raven came in, sipping her coffee. "Cool outfit. Love
it.

Keelie twirled to show her the back. "Think my father
will let me buy it?"

"Not a chance. But he's out there canoodling with the
shop girl, so you can use that as leverage."

"What?" Keelie stuck her head out of the stall door.
Gabrielle was sitting very close to Zeke. He had a perplexed expression on his face. Eek. Keelie had to put a stop
to this. She jumped out and struck a ta-da pose.

"Hey Dad, what do you think?"

Gabrielle smiled. "Cool outfit. You got it happenin',
girlfriend."

Her father frowned. "Vampire Girl? It's not happening,
Keelie."

"What do you mean it's not happening? What do you
know about fashion?"

He stood and folded his arms across his chest, like the
Jolly Green Giant. "I don't know anything about fashion,
but I know vampires. I'm not buying that for you."

Gabrielle's eyes widened. "Cool."

"Oh, come on. I brought my own money, and I'll buy
it myself if I have to." Keelie looked toward Raven for a
little support. Raven sipped her coffee and watched them
as if they were a vaguely interesting TV show.

"I'm buying it."

"Fine. Buy it. Waste your money. I'm sure Knot will
agree with me. It's too adult for you, and vampires are evil.
You won't wear it."

"What do you mean Knot will agree? Knot is a cat."

"Remember that incident with your underwear?"

Gabrielle looked confused. "Your cat picks your underwear?"

Raven was bent over, wiping coffee from her nose.

"Yuk it up, Raven. You are not helping here." She
turned to Zeke and Gabrielle. "I am so not discussing my
underwear with you." She didn't specify who "you" was.

In the dressing room, Keelie angrily tugged the Vampire Girl tank over her head. One thing Mom had taught
her was not to waste money, even if it was to spite someone. She surveyed the clothes-if this top wasn't happening, then the others weren't happening. Except for maybe
a green cotton shirt with drawstrings at the chest and long
bell sleeves. Galadriel wear. What was the name of that
stupid store? Galadriel's Closet. Probably all the people
walking around with their prosthetic ears shopped there.
Not her. She covered her pointed ear with her hair.

She stepped out of the dressing room. Zeke was looking through some blouses on a round rack. Raven trailed
after them, a hanger over her shoulder. The sales girl had
three on her arm. "Yeah, that's way cool. Sort of Lord of
the Rings-like, you know," Raven said.

Keelie cleared her throat.

"Hey, girlfriend, that outfit is so you," Gabrielle said. She
glanced up at Zeke, all flirty. "If your dad says so, that is."

Dad nodded. "That's more like it. You look beautiful,
Keelie."

Gabrielle held out some more shirts. "Check these out.
Your old man picked them out."

Keelie took them. Great, if you went to a severe private
school for fairy princesses. She was not going back with
Elia's wardrobe.

A white gauze one with colorful embroidery around
the neck was the only decent one. She held it out. "This
one doesn't suck too much."

Raven held out her hanger. Black jeans and two tops,
one a skinny long-sleeved sweater, the other a beaded
gauze poet shirt. All black.

Zeke stared at them. "Decent but depressing."

"Everyone in New York dresses like this." Raven held
out the hangers, admiring her choices. "If you don't like
these, I'm buying them for myself."

"They're very you," Keelie agreed. "I don't know what
to get."

"Something colorful that fits. Something for girls."
Zeke looked at Gabrielle for advice.

"Buttons 'n Lace is over there." Gabrielle pointed to
one side of the mall. "And Noir Leather is over there." She
pointed to the other side of the mall. "Girls wear all of
those clothes."

Gabrielle was trying to be helpful, but Zeke glared at
her.

"You all decide. I'm checking out Noir Leather." Raven
grabbed her coffee cup and stood. "Tarl's girlfriend shops there. You know the one, Keelie. She was scoping out your
Dad's butt the other day."

Keelie also remembered the silhouettes on Tarl's tent.
"Oh, gross."

Keelie watched Raven go. Keelie was so going to get
even with Raven for abandoning her to her father's fashion
sense.

After trying on more jeans and shirts, Keelie wore the
green top with bell sleeves and jeans that hung on her
hips but didn't expose her butt dimples. Dad had bought
her five shirts and five pairs of pants. She'd used her own
money to buy the Vampire Girl top. She was not leaving
it behind. And if Knot did anything to it, she'd have a pair
of kitty-fur earmuffs, too.

Holding the two heavy La Jolie Rouge bags definitely
balanced Keelie. She felt more like her old self.

Her dad, however, looked paler than she'd ever seen
him-even more ashen than when Gabrielle had rung
up the clothes and announced the total. It didn't seem
to make him feel better when Keelie reassured him that
spending five hundred dollars at La Jolie Rouge hadn't
been that bad. They had really come out cheap. He just
didn't get shopping.

After a stop at a shoe store, where he bought her the
latest Nikes, she tossed her muddy Skechers into the box,
demoted to work shoes. Zeke had paled again when the
cashier said the total was one hundred and seven dollars.
Keelie had to pat his arm to reassure him that it was okay.

She pulled the credit card from his hand as he was re turning it to his wallet. "Bank of Dread Forest? Is that for
real?"

The sales clerk smiled. "Sure is, or at least my computer
thinks so. Zekeliel Heartwood. Love that name." Her voice
was sweet enough to draw ants.

Keelie pictured fire ants in the woman's super-short
skirt and smiled. She gave him back his card. "Dread is
Elianard's dog, too. He said he couldn't believe I'd gotten
past him."

Zeke choked on a sip of green tea.

They caught up with Raven at Noir Leather. Just entering the shop was an education. An adult education. Zeke
hastily dragged her back out and made her wait in the mall
while he found Raven.

Keelie stared at the underwear on the mannequins in
the window. They looked like Knot had gotten to them.
Shredded, with chains.

Raven was loaded with packages, too. "Power shopping."

The last stop was a major department store for peefree underwear, bras, and socks. Raven was a big help here,
and two hundred dollars later, even Keelie had to admit
she was wiped. The Bank of Dread Forest credit card had
had a workout.

All the women in the Mall of Colorado kept gazing at
Zeke as if he was some sort of Adonis, but he didn't return
their eye contact. He focused his attention on Keelie. And
she liked that.

"Hey Zeke, how about something to eat before we return to the Faire? There's a food court here." Raven had turned to
look down a corridor, nose twitching.

Keelie's stomach rumbled at the scent of real, non-medieval food. Chinese. Suddenly, she craved egg rolls.

"Is it anything like the King's court?" Zeke asked.

"Surely, you jest," said Keelie.

Zeke stopped and smiled at her. "You made a joke."

"Yeah, she's feeling better." Raven poked her shoulder.

The realization that she'd made a joke startled her. It
had to have been all the shopping. She was back in the
normal world. She had to be careful-she was slipping.
He might get the idea that they were getting along.

On the way to the food court, Keelie saw a stand of
pay phones. A lifeline to Laurie. Maybe she'd have a moment to slip away and call.

At the fast food Chinese restaurant, Keelie ordered
sweet and sour chicken and egg rolls. Zeke ordered some
vegetarian concoction with tofu.

As they stood in line for their food, Keelie said casually, "Hey, I need to use the ladies' room."

"Go ahead. I'll find a table."

"I'll come with you." Raven walked with her toward
the ladies' room.

"Raven, I really wanted to call my friend in California."
She held her breath, thinking that the older girl might tell
Zeke.

"Cool. I've got to wash my hands. I touched everything at Noir Leather." Raven left her by the pay phones
and walked on.

Keelie punched in the 1-800 number on the metal buttons. No hawks here, thank goodness.

"To whom would you like to make a collect call?"

"Laurie Abernathy. I mean, Elizabeth Abernathy, in
Los Angeles, California."

The connection was made, and as before the operator
asked, "Would you accept a collect call from Keelie Heartwood?" to the party on the other end.

"Yes. Most definitely." Laurie's voice sounded wonderful, especially here in the shopping mall, surrounded by her
purchases. Her spirit felt renewed. She felt closer to Mom.

"Go ahead." The operator's voice disconnected.

"Yo, Keelie, what happened yesterday?"

"Long story."

"How's it going? Is it as primitive as we thought?"

"More so. And you wouldn't believe how weird. I need
to get out of here."

"Working on a plan. I've been trying to reach you for,
like, forever on the cell phone."

"I dropped it into the mud. It's not working."

"Major bummer."

"Yeah, and worse, my clothes aren't with me. They're
in Istanbul."

"Like in Turkey?"

"As in the capital of. At least my father's had to buy me
all new clothes. I'm at the mall now. Back to the plan."

"Major problems? Mom may not be so hot on you
moving in. She's, like, got a major new boyfriend?" Her
voice rose at the end of her most of her sentences, making
everything a question.

"Well, I never did exactly firm it up with her."

"Keelie. I thought it was handled."

"I didn't have a lot of time to cement things before the
attorney showed up with the plane tickets."

Keelie knew she had to get back before Zeke thought
she'd fallen into the toilet. Raven hadn't come out of the
ladies' room yet.

"We would have had it all settled if you hadn't run."
Laurie sounded peeved.

"I'll come up with a new plan. Maybe I could stay with
you until I do," said Keelie.

"Way, girl. Are you sure, though? Like, my mom is having major PMS this week. Even I would consider hanging
out in a tent to get away from Grizzly Mama," said Laurie.
"She even made me do my own laundry."

"At least you have a washer and dryer." Zeke had found
a table. Keelie could see him scanning the area for them.
"I'll try to call you in a couple of days. Zeke's watching me
like a hawk." Hawk. A pang went through her chest. She
was supposed to continue Ariel's feedings.

"Gotcha. Take care, Keelie. I'll call my cousin in Boulder to see if she can help us out."

"Great. Bye, Laurie." Keelie hung up. She missed her
friend. They had been together since preschool, and not
being together was like not being with a sister.

She closed her eyes. Hold back those tears. Keeping her
feelings locked in her box was getting harder. A hand with
a tissue appeared in front of her face.

"Thanks, Raven." Keelie took it and dabbed her eyes.

Raven looked sympathetic. "It's tough, I know. Let's eat."

Sympathetic up to a point. They headed back to the
table.

Zeke sat with a big mound of vegetarian noodles studded with tofu nuggets. Keelie wasn't hungry anymore. She
picked at her food while Zeke ate his.

Raven looked from one to the other, then put down
her chopsticks. "I think I have to go back to the leather
shop. I think I left something there."

"Do you want us to come along?" Zeke frowned.

"No, eat. I'll be back. You guys talk."

When she was gone, Zeke turned to Keelie. "Are you
okay?"

She didn't answer. Her chopstick picked up peas and
carrots and piled them into a veggie landfill on a corner of
her plate.