Oppression (26 page)

“So?” William asked, his eyes alight with the anticipation of my response.

“I loved it,” I answered truthfully.

“I knew you would.”

Nics and Sam stayed put, even as the sea of people around them began to flow like a current in all directions.

“So now what?” I asked. “Where is everyone going?”

“Now it’s whatever you want,” Nics answered.

“Most people head for the food,” Sam added with enthusiasm. “That’s where I’m going.”

Food sounded good. In fact, the mention of it had my stomach rumbling.

“Okay. Let’s eat,” I agreed.

“You heard her,” Sam said, jumping up and taking off at a full run into the woods behind us.

“Sam,” Nics yelled back, and before I knew it, she was chasing after him.

“Race ya,” William shouted using my leg to propel himself out of his seat.

“William, wait,” I laughed. “I don’t even know where I’m going.”

“So you better keep up,” he teased, yelling over his shoulder. His strong legs were quick as he maneuvered in and out of the trees, but I never lost sight of him. My body moved faster than I knew it could, as if some desperate instinct had kicked in at the thought of him slipping through my fingers. When he stopped up ahead of me, I felt my heart settle as he looked back with a wild smile.

“I won,” he said, rubbing it in as I approached.

I rolled my eyes playfully.

“I thought I was going to lose you.”

“You’ll never lose me, Ellie,” he said with an unexpected brush of his lips on mine. “I’ll always find you.”

I let myself enjoy the moment despite the truth, despite the fact that what we had was impermanent. Maybe he would, though. Maybe he would find me in the next life, on the other side.

“Promise?” I asked with downcast eyes.

His finger lifted my chin so that I could look nowhere but at him. “Promise.”

“What are you guys waiting for?” Sam yelled from the clearing that stretched out in front of us.

Just then, the smell of a thousand different flavors overcame me, and I noticed the feast awaiting us. I had never seen so much food in my life. Tables upon tables were filled with everything from burgers to filet mignon. A separate section was even set up for traditional Greek delicacies that I had never seen before.

“You’ve got to try this,” Sam said more times than I could remember. He seemed to think of himself as a connoisseur of sorts when it came to the array of Greek dishes, taking it upon himself to give me a tour of the food.

Once we had our plates, we settled down below a giant birch at the edge of the clearing.

“So where’s Nics?” I asked as I ate my ambrosia and nectar.

“She took her food over to the bonfire with Rach and Paul,” Sam answered.

“Why didn’t we go?”

William shrugged. “They’re probably already gone. They like to get to The Cavern before everyone starts packing in.”

“Yeah, but if you get stuck in the center like they do, you’re not getting out until it’s over.”

“What’s The Cavern?” I felt like I’d asked a million questions already, but the two of them didn’t mind answering.

“It’s the place where they have the . . . what would you call it, William, a dance?”

“More like a tribal celebration,” he laughed.

“Basically everyone has their fair share of traditionally brewed moonshine, and they all go nuts on the dance floor,” Sam clarified.

“The music is pretty unique,” William added. “Probably unlike anything you’ve ever heard.”

“Really? Like what?” I asked, imagining a variety of musical instruments straight out of Dr. Seuss.

Suddenly, a thud reverberated through the entire cave so strong it shook the dirt we sat on.

Sam laughed. “Speak of the devil.” Two more thuds sounded in succession.

“It’s starting,” William said, unfazed by the powerful booms. “You wanna go?”

“What’s starting?” I asked, a little startled as the ground shuddered once again. “Is that the music?”

The Cavern was just beyond The Kitchen, as they called it, past the array of feasting tables and through a narrow corridor that sloped deep into the floor of the mountain. The intricate drum beats got louder as we got closer, and when the small closed-off path opened up, the full impact of it was spectacular. The entrance put us high above the dancing masses, so we could see the whole display of activity happening before us.

There was no attempt to mask the natural appearance of the stone mountain walls. It was amazing in its own right. Stalactites that must have taken centuries to form hung decoratively from the ceiling attaching themselves to equally impressive stalagmites that rose from the ground like pillars encircling the dance floor. The musicians played from a platform that protruded out from the cave wall. William was right. The music was unlike anything I had ever heard. They beat massive wooden drums with large hammer-like sticks, and smaller ones like bongos for the quicker rhythms. There were several flutes and miniature harp-shaped string instruments that hung from straps around several women’s necks. The singer used no microphone, but somehow his deep humming carried throughout the space loud and clear. He sung no actual words, but instead, used his voice like an instrument that tied all of the music together.

It wasn’t until William asked if I was ready that I realized people were moving past us down the winding cut-away that trailed down to the dance floor.

“Sure,” I answered, eager to join the moving masses for the first time. As we headed down the path, I could feel the energy emanating from them like heat, and as we got closer, I realized that a large portion of the music was coming from the people themselves. Some sung their own tune as they danced, but most hummed along as one to a single repetitive melody.

“I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do,” I said, speaking over the music. I stood stiff and awkward as people swayed in rhythm around me.

“Just dance,” he smiled, pulling me into the crowd of bodies.

I had never been dancing. I didn’t know how.

“But is there a certain way?” I asked, unsure.

Without another word, he drew me in by the waist, tight against his body and began to move like everyone around us in a slow dipping motion that reminded me of the movie
Dirty Dancing
. He bent my body back over his arm and swung me low, sweeping my hair across the dusty floor.

“I feel ridiculous,” I laughed.

“Who cares? Just have fun,” he said, our hips still rocking to the beat.

I looked around at everyone feeling the music, moving in any way they pleased, and it seemed almost more ridiculous not to dance. I opened my mind to the alluring rhythm and let it move through me.

“You’re right,” I said, more confident. “Who cares?”

At first I stuck to a subtle sway, but before I knew it, we were both dancing as though we were a part of the sound—the physical representation of the music.

We danced until we ached and couldn’t possibly keep on.

“Come on,” William whispered in my ear. “Let’s go back to the camp site. I have a surprise for you.”

“Sure,” I agreed, wiping the sweat from my brow.

We looked around for the others, but they were nowhere to be seen, so the two of us left unannounced.

“That was incredible,” I raved as we trekked through the trees. “This whole place, the show, the food, the music—I can’t get over it.”

He laughed at my overly exuberant ranting. “I told you. You’ll never forget your first Lenaia.”

Stepping past the large roots, I expected to see the empty space we’d left behind and gasped as William’s surprise came into view.

“What’s this?” I asked in amazement.

The bare ground of our campsite had been transformed into an oasis of wild flowers and willows that canopied over a deep pond. Cherry blossoms showered down off the exotic trees onto the surface of the water, where they floated like lily pads blanketing the pool with shades of pink.

“It’s for you.”

My eyebrows raised in shock. “You’re kidding, right?” I stepped forward and dipped my hand into the cool water, scooping up a petal. “You did this?”

“Well, not myself,” he admitted. “I had my mom’s friend Lily do the trees and flowers, and Sam’s mom did the water while we were at the show.”

The beauty of their work weighed on my conscience. They had gone to so much trouble for me, and for what? So that I could abandon them and their prophecy, their next generation oracle, and break William’s heart?

“I don’t deserve this, William,” I said, dropping the petal to the ground.

He looked at me with power in his eyes and threaded his fingers through mine. “Yes, you do.”

I could see that arguing my point wouldn’t exactly show my appreciation, and I wanted him to know that I loved it, that I loved him.

“Thank you,” I said, ignoring the gentle yet persistent ache in my chest. “Really, for everything.”

“Hey, I’m just glad you’re having fun.” He smiled and kissed my cheek. Then suddenly his eyes brightened as an idea surfaced. “I packed our swimsuits.”

He let go of my hand, leaving it cold and empty, to grab the suits out of the tent.

“I figured, since we’d get all sweaty from dancing, it would be nice to wash off.”

He was right. My skin was still sticky from the heat of The Cavern, my hair still wet and stringy, and my heart, which was constantly egged on by William’s close proximity, still pumped hot blood through my warm body.

After changing behind a tree, I emerged timidly with my arms wrapped around my stomach. The last time I wore a bathing suit was fifteen years ago, when Betsy still had the strength to get into a pool. William, already swimming gracefully in the still water, glanced instinctively in my direction when he saw me coming, but turned away politely while I slipped into the pool.

“Is it too cold?” he asked as we swam toward each other.

“No. It feels good. Refreshing.”

Once we reached the center of the pond, the depth seemed to diminish and we were both able to stand.

“It’s beautiful,” I said, watching the cherry blossoms float like feathers onto the water around us.

He tucked a nearby blossom behind my ear. “So are you.”

I sighed deeply, trying to release the pent up emotion that tended to build in me whenever William was around, but his lingering hand made that difficult.

It wasn’t necessary anymore to pull me closer. We seemed to draw to each other naturally. Water dripped down his face from his wet hair. Our moist lips met, and he kissed me gently.

“What if we had never met?” I asked, reflecting on all the past events that had led me here. I held him tight against me and buried my face into the warm skin of his shoulder.

“We did,” he said simply, resting his cheek against the top of my head.

“No, seriously.” I looked up. “What if I hadn’t moved in upstairs, never came in to buy coffee?”

“You were moved in to that place for a reason, Elyse, not by chance. I would have made sure to talk to you, even if you hadn’t come in for coffee.”

“What if I would have stayed locked up there all day?”

He shrugged. “And what if red was blue and blue was green? What does it matter?”

“I don’t know. I’ve just been wondering if you can recover from heartbreak. I mean, do you really think it is better to have loved and lost, than to never have loved?”

“Yes, but who’s going to break your heart, Elyse? It definitely won’t be me.”

My fingers made ripples as I combed them over the surface of the water. “Not even if you had to do something you couldn’t turn your back on?”