8
Kaley was glad the room she entered was empty. She needed time to grasp the fact that her family was really there. She wanted to hear a more complete version of what her father and grandparents had done to be allowed to come here. Her mother had told them everything? And they believed she was from a different planet? But then, there was Tanek, just a boy, floating around the place and having chickens land on him. Did they see him talking to the birds in the trees? Probably.
She hadn’t yet digested that they’d known about this all her life, but they’d told her none of it. While she was growing up, they’d been cultivating some algae by the stream on their property. All of it was done in preparation for when Jobi returned to take Kaley away—to another planet. She remembered being on the plane and seeing her father. But Jobi put his little blue light on the chip in her arm and Kaley went to sleep. When she woke up, it was three years later, and she was on Bellis.
She—
“There you are,” came a female voice. “We’ve been waiting for you.”
Kaley looked up to see the woman Garen had pointed out as his aunt. Her name was Reena and she was one of the fourwitch sisters. She was tall, gorgeous, and dressed head to foot in red. All the fairy tales in Kaley’s head took over. “Can you cast a spell?” she whispered.
Reena laughed. “Better than my nephew can. Now, come on, you have to get ready for Tanek. Your hair is a disgrace and what you’re wearing isn’t fit for the stables.”
Kaley looked apologetic. “I’ve been traveling with men.”
Reena nodded. “You poor thing. But wait until you see what the Beauty Girls can do, even with someone in your condition.”
Ah, the comforting, bitchy familiarity of women,she thought. “I am yours. Do with me what you will.” She smiled broadly.
“Sit still,” Reena ordered. “You still have an hour to go, so don’t move. And above all, stay away from men. Knowing Tanek, he’ll want you to wrestle some of those birds that trail after him.” She waited for Kaley to answer.
“I won’t move. I promise.”
“You better not! I have to go. The women in my guild are in a frenzy. Half of them are terrified of the men coming and the other half are planning to rip their clothes off and leap on them. Then they’ll...” She waved her hand. “They need me.”
“Understandable. I’ve seen the men from Selkan and—” Kaley didn’t finish. The men played what they called “Cutting Games,” which left their faces scarred. “Go on, I’ll be fine. And thank you very, very much. If there’s anything I can do for you, please let me know.”
Reena looked like she was about to say something but didn’t. She just nodded, then left the room.
When she was alone, Kaley looked around the empty room. There was a little couch and a few hard chairs. To one side was a wood-framed mirror and she looked in it. The white wedding dress the women had put on her was beyond beautiful. She knew that if she’d chosen one, it would be this one. The whole top was lace that looked like it had been handmade. It lefther shoulders bare, but was modest across the front, with long sleeves, then down to a fitted waist and a full skirt. There was more lace at the hem. A veil was pinned to her hair. Reena told her that making the dress had been under the charge of a young woman who said to tell Kaley that she was “Daln’s daughter.” Kaley said to tell her thank you and that she’d love to tell her about her father. That the father and daughter hadn’t seen each other in years made her glad of the coming reunion.
Besides the dress, Kaley knew she looked the best she ever had. When the four young women, Beauty Girls, had seen Kaley, they’d shaken their heads in despair. Sweat, underwater dives, sleeping in caves, soaring in waterfalls, had taken a toll on her appearance.
But the women had repaired the damage. Herbs, lotions, heat and cold had been put on Kaley. There’d been a lot of pain but she was a woman so she could stand it. Her face had been treated with four colors of concoctions that hardened or peeled off. One of them burned like acid.
The result was that she was now glowing. Her skin and hair were like a mix of cream and starlight.
She sat down on an ottoman and didn’t move. When her nose itched, she was afraid to scratch it. Very carefully, she used just the tip of her nail, not daring to dislodge the thick layer of makeup on her face.
She was so absorbed in remaining still that she didn’t hear the door open.
“Oh, sorry,” said a woman. “I didn’t mean to interrupt you. I was just going to leave this for you.” She held out a little canvas-wrapped package. “It’s the photos you left at the museum.”
Kaley didn’t know what the woman was talking about, but then Kaley was having a strong feeling of having seen her before. She was quite pretty, probably in her forties, and she kept herself in shape. She had on a beautiful blue dress, so Kaley thought she’d probably been invited to the wedding.
“I’m Neta and I’m the curator of Museum of Earth. It’s the photos you took of the men on Selkan. We got the printer to work.”
“Yes, of course.” Kaley took the bag and peered inside. They were of the men she and Tanek and Sojee had met. They wanted the photos given to the females of their families who were on Pithan. She opened the package and flipped through the photos. Considering that they’d been printed on a home machine—one Jobi had supplied, and maybe the only one on the planet—they looked good. She made a silent vow that she’d find out where electricity was available on the islands. Was it being kept from the people?
She looked up at Neta. “These men will be here tomorrow. I apologize for stealing your Jeep, but we needed it.”
“That’s all right. I was glad someone knew how to drive it.”
“I do and so does Tanek. But then, he seems to know how to do most anything.”
When she smiled, Kaley again felt that she’d seen the woman before.
“You’re happy here? You want to stay and not return to Earth?”
