ICE BURIAL: The Oldest Human Murder Mystery (The Mother People Series Book 3) (7 page)

“
The Great Spirit has come. All power belongs to the Great Spirit. Submit to the power, the power that will heal your hearts and minds, the power that will give you strength. Give yourself to the Spirit; it waits for you, waits for you...
”

All around the clearing a murmur rose as the people answered.
“
We give ourselves to the Great Spirit; to the Great Spirit that has all power we submit our hearts and minds.
”
Over and over they repeated the answer, their voices rising and falling in harmony,
and
then there was silence again.

The Leader
’s
voice rose once more.
“
The Great Spirit hears you, hears us all and is pleased by our submission.  Now we must wait for the words, the words of truth that will
soon
come...
”

A jolt went through his body, as if he had been hit. His eyes opened
wide
but he seem
ed no
t
to see the people or the clearing. Words pour
ed
from him, measured words that came in a deep, sonorous voice that mesmerized the listeners with its intensity.

“
Know my people that I, the Great Spirit, am among you. Always, I am there. I see your faces, know your thoughts, read your hearts. All that you do I watch, all that is within you is open to me. Listen now as I speak the words of truth that tell you how you must live, what you must do to please the Great Spirit who rules you. There is no other but myself; there is only the Great Spirit. The Great Spirit is all...
”

The voice went on, lyrical, compelling. The villagers listened attentively, but
Zena
hardly heard the words. They
did not
seem to matter, so mesmerizing was the voice. It
did not
just make words as other voices did; it seemed able to use all the variations and tones and intensities of sound she had ever heard and make them magnificent, without equal. She wanted only to listen, to close her mind and listen.

Reluctantly, with a great effort of will, she forced herself to hear the words again, to get meaning from them. And as she did, fear clutched at her heart. Just as
each person
must submit to the Great Spirit to avoid retribution so must
each
wom
a
n submit to the m
an
who w
as
selected for
her
. Only in that way could
she be
among the chosen, the ones who were blessed by the Great Spirit.
There
was no mention of the joy of Akat or the
pleasure
of children, only of obedience and submission.
And yet, in the Leader’s voice, the words somehow rang with truth.

There was more:
only by sacrificing that which they loved most would the Great Spirit know of their
dev
otion.
Zena
was not sure what
sacrifice
meant, but the word still m
ade her afraid. She looked
at
the people and saw her own fear reflected in
the women’s faces.
The men seemed not to feel it so much. In them she saw awe, and
another
emotion she thought
was
pride. And perhaps it was, for the Leader was telling them that their maleness was special, that new life came from that maleness, not from the women
’s
bodies as they had once thought.

Lief saw the fear and confusion on
Zena
’s
face and
understood
for the first time the enormity of the task he had undertaken
when he had
pledg
ed
to watch over her.
This
Leader
was powerful, as powerful as the Great Spirit for whom he spoke.
Zena
would have to be very strong to challenge him, and yet he must be challenged. Even he, who was not really of the Mother People, understood that. The Leader
’s
words violated
all
their most cherished beliefs even as they sounded so reassuring.

As if to confirm his thought
,
heads began to nod in affirmation all around the clearing
.
Zena
saw them too, and scanned the faces again, trying to read them. Did they really believe, or did they nod because they must?

Her eyes stopped abruptly. Mara; she saw Mara, at the very edge of the clearing. She had brushed her headscarf away from her face and was staring at
Zena
, almost as if she were willing
Zena
to look at her. When
Zena
’s
gaze stopped on her Mara did not look away
.
There was skepticism in her eyes, skepticism
Zena
felt sure she was meant to see. Mara, at least, did not believe.

Fear suddenly replaced Mara
’s
skepticism, and she lowered her face.
Zena
glanced at the circle again and saw that Korg
’s
head had risen from the dirt. The bird-like mask had fallen from his face, and his eyes roamed restlessly across the attentive faces. She saw them stop on one face, then another. Had they stopped on Mara
’s
? With movements so slow they could hardly be seen,
Korg
wriggled to one side of the circle
;
then he was still again, all but his eyes.
His
nubile body was tense with waiting, as if
he were
preparing
himself
for would happen next
.
There was menace in
hi
s
stillness
, and
even as the people listened to the Leader, they stole glances at Korg, their faces wary.
Tension rose in the
visitors
bodies
too
.

The Leader was speaking now of the horrors that would come if the rules were not obeyed
.
In powerful tones, he described the afflictions that would
result
from disobedience
, lingering on the
spreading ice that had covered th
e
land before the Great Spirit had come to them
. The ice is still there,
he warned, pointing up at the glaciers that hung over the valley, and could come crashing down to bury them all, as had happened in another
village.
Zena
’s
eyes follo
wed his pointing finger and
she
shivered. Could one of the glaciers really crash down upon the village?

“
All will be well,
”
the Leader told them sternly,
“
if only we obey.
”

The massed heads nodded again, and
Zena
almost found herself nodding with them. The message sounded so simple, so reassuring. Obey, and all will be well.

Another
long
silence came, and now fear was palpable among the listeners.

“
Transgression!
”
The word came so suddenly that everyone jumped.
“
There has been a transgression!
”

As soon as the Leader
’s
voice rang out, Korg was on his feet. He ran through the crowd, his body once again stooped like that of an old man. Abruptly, he stopped and pointed his finger at a young woman. Her eyes dilated with fear.

“
I have done nothing,
”
she shrieked.
“
Nothing!
”

“
The Great Spirit points to you, and the Great Spirit cannot speak other than truth,
”
the Leader answered quietly. There was sadness in his voice and in his face, and
Zena
had the impression he
did not
like this part of the ritual.

“S
he has sinned against the man chosen for her.
”
This time the voice was Korg
’s
, hard and menacing compared to the Leader
’s
gentle tones.
Nothing more was said, but no one looked at the woman after that. She slunk away, misery and fear etched on her face. Lief saw that she was big with child.
No wonder
the women
he had approached during his travels
had been so afraid
!

Another woman was singled out, then another. Korg
’s
accusing finger went next to an older man.
“
He has taken what did not belong to him!
”
Korg spat out.

The man
made no response
, only stared sullenly at the ground.

“
The Great Spirit knows all truth,
”
the Leader said, and now his tone was weary, as if he wanted only to be finished with the ritual.

Two children were the next to be accused.
“
They have not obeyed their elders as they should,
”
Korg said, raking their young faces with malevolent eyes.

The Leader
, however,
regarded them tolerantly.
“
Children must obey the man who fathers them first, then all the other men of the tribe and after that the woman they call mother,
”
he reminded them gently.
“
This must not be forgotten again, lest all in the tribe suffer.
Next time, you must obey.
”

One of the children looked abashed, the other rebellious. To this one, Korg gave another long, hard look before he turned and rejoined the Leader in the dirt circle.

The Leader
repeated t
he opening refrain and the audience responded,
but
their tone
was
automatic now.
As soon as the words stopped, they
began to talk among themselves, and
Zena
sensed that the ceremony was over.
She looked again for Mara, but she was no longer there. In the place where she had been was an older woman who regarded
Zena
gravely
.
There was a terrible weariness in the woman
’s
face, as if she had endured many trials, but at the same time there was great strength.

She w
ill
be an ally
,
Zena
thought, and a moment later knew she was right. Her eyes still holding
Zena
’s
, the woman raised
a
hand and traced spirals in the air. It was the sign for wisdom for the Mother People, the ever-expanding wisdom that came to them from the Goddess. The gesture was so quick no one would have seen it unless they
were
watching closely. The next instant, the woman was gone.

CHAPTER FIVE

S
adness
enveloped
Zena
. Th
at
woman
, perhaps
the whole village, must once have worshipped the Goddess. They had been Mother People and now they were not. That was why Mara had known her name, known the symbols.

She sighed heavily, too weary
suddenly
to absorb the information or even
to
make
an
effort to rise from the ground. The ceremony had been an exhausting experience, one she would n
ever
forget.

Beside her, Durak pulled himself to his feet and extended a hand.
Zena
clasped it gratefully, glad of his touch. It reminded her that others like her existed, who did not follow the
tyrannical
ways of the Great Spirit, ways that seemed to her to speak more of fear and malice than of love and compassion.

The woman who had brought them to the clearing came then to show them the hut that had been prepared for them to use while they were here. They
followed her
gladly, happy to have a chance to rest and to
ta
lk among themselves.

“
The Leader is indeed persuasive,
”
Durak remarked
as they gathered just outside the hut where the
sun
would
warm
them
.
“
I can see why so many
people
follow him. W
hat he says sounds wrong in many ways, though it seems so right when he speaks.
”

“
I thought there was truth in some of what he said,
”
Hular countered.
There was a look
of awe on his face.

“
There certainly is not!
”
exclaimed Sorlin
indignantly
.
“
Did you hear what he said about women? How they should submit and obey?
”

Lief listened with interest
.
Sorlin
was
a practical young woman
, not
easily fooled
. The Leader had been unable to impress her
,
but
Hular,
who seemed
more susceptible to persuasion
, had found
the Leader’s
messages convincing. So would many others, he thought grimly. Especially men.

He looked intently at Zena, wondering what she thought. Zena surprised him - and herself - by asking first. “
And what of you, Lief,
”
she
said
suddenly
. “What do you
think of the Leader?
”

“
I think that his words bind people
’s
thoughts as surely as a hemp rope might bind their bodies,
”
he replied promptly, recalling his thoughts as he traveled.
“
Whether he speaks truth – and I
do not
think he does – matters less than the invisible web his words weave.
”

The others looked at him with respect but he
was not
sure they understood what he meant. For a moment he wished he
had not
spoken. Perhaps
Zena
would not
understand either. In another moment, he knew she had.

“
Like a spider
’s
web,
”
she murmured, looking up at him.
“S
o fragile and hard to see, yet so strong.
”
He nodded, unable to look away. Their eyes held for a long moment.

“
Except I
do not
think the web he weaves is real,
”
Lief
went on slowly, still holding her eyes.
“
Everything about the ceremony
was u
nreal in a way
I
c
annot
understand
.
It is as if some other reality waits just behind the
illusion
he creates, only I
do not
know what it is.
”

Zena
frowned, trying to imagine what that
other
reality might be
, but the
idea kept sliding away from her
. She
thought she knew what he was trying to say
, but it was
so
hard to see
through the web of
fantasy
the Leader had created
.

“
Nor do I,
”
she answered finally.
“
Nor do I.
”

“S
he is very beautiful,
”
Durak said
abruptly
, interrupting their musings. They followed his gaze and saw that he was staring at a young woman walking past the
ir hut
.
“
I wonder what she is called?
”

“
Why
n
ot
ask her?
”
Sorlin teased. Despite his confidence in other areas, Durak was shy with women. This one had an almost child-like quality, as if she had never quite made the transition to adulthood.
P
erhaps she
had not
,
since
she alone among the women wore no head covering. Her pale hair hung to her waist, and her slender form moved with supple grace.

To their surprise, Durak immediately approached the young woman and asked her name.
“
I am Rofina,
”
she said, glancing up at him quickly.

“
And I am Durak,
”
he replied, smiling at her. She looked up at him again with a tentative smile, her gaze lingering longer this time; then she dropped her eyes
.

Durak was about to say more when Korg appeared.
“
The Leader wishes to see you,
”
he told Rofina. His voice was quiet, without intonation, but it left no room for argument, and Rofina responded immediately.

“
Good bye,
”
she said to Durak. Once more, she gave him a long look before she walked away with Korg.

Zena
was intrigued. At first totally devoid of expression,
Rofina
’s
eyes had come briefly to life when she looked at Durak. As soon as Korg c
a
me, they closed down again and a puzzled look
ca
me over her face, as if she were a child trying to understand
an idea that was
new to her.

Durak watched Rofina disappear with Korg.
“
I must speak with her again,
”
he said urgently.
“
I
do not
like the way that man watches over her, commands her.
”

“
Nor
do
I,
”
Sorlin agreed.
“
It is as if he is her master
. He tells her what to do
and she cannot disobey.
”

Zena
nodded in agreement.
“
It is very strange,
”
she mused.
“
I watched her earlier, before the ceremony, and thought perhaps she was not fully aware, as if her mind had not matured with her body. But when she looked at you, Durak...
”

“
I saw th
at
, too,
”
Durak interrupted.
“
It was as if a light came into her eyes, and then it disappeared again.
”
He shuddered.
“
I am afraid for her. I
do not
like the way Korg looks at her, either. It
is not
lustful exactly but it is wrong, bad…

“S
omething is very wrong in this whole place,
”
he burst out suddenly,
“
only I
do not
k
now what it is.
”

“
I
do not
know either,
”
Zena
answered slowly,
“
except that I think that it is as Lief says. What
the Leader says i
s wrong
,
even cruel,
but even worse is
his ability to make peo
p
le listen
to him and think that he is right.
The wrongness comes from Korg, too. There may be kindness in the Leader but there is no kindness in Korg, and he also has great power.
”

“
They said it was this Great Spirit that knew everything the
people
did,
”
Sorlin scoffed,
“
but it seemed to me it was Korg. It was he who accused the
m
. I think he watches everyone to see if they have transgressed and then tells the Leader.
”

“
If a person has transgressed, perhaps they should be reminded,
”
Hular said mildly.
“
That helps to keep peace in the group. Besides, it
is not
right to take something that belongs to another or to betray another person.
”

“
Perhaps the people did nothing except to offend Korg,
”
Sorlin argued.
“
He might have made up those accusations.
”

“
Perhaps,
”
Hular conceded, not wanting to argue with Sorlin, who was known for her stubbornness as well as her quick willingness to comfort anyone in distress.
“
But you must admit that the man is wonderful to watch. Never have I seen such leaps.
”

“
Yes,
”
Zena
agreed
. “
Korg is
remarkable
, and so is the Leader.
Because of this, they could convince many others to believe them, to follow the ways of this Great Spirit. What then would happen to the Mother People, to the Goddess?
”

It was a question no one could answer.

************************

From a distance, Mara watched the young woman approach
Zena
outside the hut
where the traders were staying.
As Mara had instructed, s
he
smiled and held out
her baby for
Zena
to see. Now she was speaking. Mara could see her lips move, knew already the words she would say.

“
You must look at the baby, admire her and have only this on your face,
”
the young woman said softly, her own face still wreathed in smiles as she held out the baby
.

“
I come from Mara,
”
she added, even more softly.

“
Oh, such a beautiful baby!
”
Zena
replied obediently, though it was indeed true.
“
You must be proud of her.
”

The woman nodded.
“S
he is a beautiful baby. Mara will meet you tonight after dark. When you hear the owl hoot three times you must go to the bushes. She will find you. Be ready. No one must see you. Be very sure of that. I will be watching too.
”

“
I will be ready.
”
Zena
smiled and
focused on the baby as she spoke, to make sure her face gave nothing away.

Mara watched the two women separate, calling cheerfully to each other; then she returned to her
own
hut.
“
I hope she will not lead them to me,
”
she whispered to her mother with a worried frown.
“
If they knew...
”

“
They cannot know,
”
Runor replied with a calm certainty Mara had not heard for a long time.
“
And I am certain the woman
Zena
will give nothing away.
”