“But how do youknowthe gates take us back?” I regretted my comment immediately.Way to go,Charley.Burst Natalie’s bubble when she needs it to float her.
Natalie didn’t seem fazed. “We don’t, but it makes sense. They bring you here, and they take you somewhere. Why not back home?”
“But how do we know they don’t dump us on another island? Or in another time?” Desperate for answers, I couldn’t stop, but to her credit, Natalie didn’t seem to mind.
“We don’t,” she repeated in the same matter-of-fact tone. “But all the people and animals here are from Earth, and we’re definitely stillonEarth—you can tell by the stars—so we figure the gates take us back home. Whatever this anomaly is, it’s tied to Earth. ToourEarth, and from what we can tell, to the same time. Time on Nil tracks time back home. Didn’t Thad ask you for the date when he found you?”
I nodded.
“Well, it’s because we keep checking to see if there’s a variation, if our calendar still holds. So far, so good. It’s August twenty-third on Nil, and August twenty-third back in our world.”
August 23.I should be in school right now. Studying calculus, reading Plath, playing volleyball, planning to visit Em on the weekend. But I wasn’t, I was here on Nil. Wherever—or whatever—Nil was.
“So what is this place? Nil, I mean.” I knew I was asking her the same questions Thad had already answered, but I couldn’t help it. I needed answers as much as I need food,and Natalie seemed more forthcoming than Thad. “A parallel world? An alternative universe?”
“Parallel world, crimp in space. Who knows.” She shrugged. “Weget older here just like we would back home. Days pass, just the same. It doesn’t matter what Nil is. It just is.”
It just is.Thad’s exact words. No one seemed as desperate for understanding as me.
I played with my last piece of pineapple as Natalie finished her fish.Fish.
“Stupid question, but if only cold-blooded things come through the gates, how come there’s fish?” I pointed to her plate.
“We don’t know,” Natalie said. “The ocean’s full of cold-blooded creatures, but there aren’t any on the island. Not one. Only warm-blooded things come through the gates. So maybe the ocean was here before the island; maybe they appeared at the same time.” She shrugged. Her tone of voice was identical to when she saidIt just is. “But we do know that the gates are the only way out.”
“How do you know?”
“Every so often, someone takes a sea kayak or builds a raft, trying to escape. But the current brings them back. It’s pretty clear that if you want to leave Nil, you’d better catch a gate.”
If you want to leave Nil.I shivered.
“Why Nil?” I rubbed my bare arms. “I mean why is that the name?”
“Because it’s no-man’s-land, Charley,” Natalie said quietly. “A place that doesn’t exist. It’s nowhere, and yet we’re here.”
“Uh,” I said, feeling more creeped out than ever, “I meant how do you know it’snamedNil?”
“Oh, that.” Natalie waved her cup. “It’s carved into the top of the Naming Wall.” She pointed to the sign I’d seen Thad tracing this morning. “You’ll put your name up if you want to stay.”
“What do you mean, want to stay?” I asked, surprised.
“You’re so right.” She laughed, but it sounded hiccupy. “We all want to leave, the sooner the better. That’s why we set up the Searchsystem, to give everyone the best chance at escape.” Her thoughtful look was back. “Did Thad explain Search?”
“He said the City supports the Search teams.”
She nodded, then looked over at Sabine, who was talking to a tall boy with jet black hair, mocha skin, and a thick beard. I assumed he was Heesham, the boy she’d jumped up to greet. He looked like he’d just stepped off a powerlifting mat; his muscles were ginormous. He wore a loincloth, the kind I’d only seen in movies. Then I realized there was no way his massive thighs would fit into a pair of shorts. Grinning broadly, he cradled something green and leafy in his massive hands, holding it carefully as Sabine inspected the leaves. But Heesham was watching Sabine’s face, not his hands.
Abruptly I felt like I was intruding on something intimate and looked away.
Natalie was still watching the couple. “Sabine’s amazing. She knows tons about herbs and medicinal plants. Her mom was into alternative medicine. I’ve been showing her what I know, which isn’t much.” Now Natalie looked at me. “My dad’s an ER doctor. Everyone comes to our house after falling off a bike or whatever, so I know enough to be helpful. Or dangerous.” She smiled. “Anyway, if you’re good with blood, you might want to think about learning a little island medicine. That’s what we call it. An inside joke.”
Neither of us laughed, and Natalie’s small face turned Em-kind. “Take some time. Get to know everyone and what everyone does. Be thinking of what you’re good at or want to do. Some people fish, some hunt. Others tend the crops. There’s not many, just yams, other root veggies, and herbs. Make sure to meet Jillian, she’s the best at identifying paper trees, and Julio, he’s our baker. Macy’s learning how to make soap—it’s pretty easy—but we could use another baker, or a seamstress. Can you sew?”
She talked so fast I felt slow. “Um, sew? No.”
“Crap. Me either, and we haven’t had a good tailor since Han left. Just think of any skills you have and keep an open mind, okay?”
I nodded. I wondered what Thad’s job was.
