Read The Island Online

Authors: Jen Minkman

The Island (6 page)

“No, actually. I layered on the love to needle Ben.”


Ben
? How so?”

I quickly debrief
Mara about Ben’s misguided ‘lesbian-lovers’ assumption. Mara’s eyes sparkle when I tell her the whole story. “Awesome! What a joke. We have to keep up the charade, you know – being all over each other in front of the others, so Ben will finally leave me alone. Although I’ll have to tell Andy what’s really going on then.”

“Uh-huh. You and
Andy.” I raise an eyebrow. “So, what’s up with that?”

She blushes. “Well, nothing’s up. Things are going fine. He wants to go on another date. But if
Colin is planning a rebellion with him, Andy will probably be occupied with other things.”

“If it feels right, don’t question it,” I say with a smile.

Slowly, we’re making our way through the forest, collecting wild plants and edible roots. It’s a good thing Saul’s ‘army’ already passed through this morning, or we would have tripped over one of his lackeys in search of The Book at every step.

Some of the blackberries
are already ripe, and we pick some to quench our thirst and curb our appetite. I can hear birds scrambling around in the low shrubs, but we leave them alone, because we haven’t brought our bows and arrows. Archery isn’t my greatest talent anyway – I usually leave that to Colin. I like fishing better, and I’m good at it, too. On a good day, I can even catch fish from the river with my bare hands. We have a river running through the valley that comes from the top of one of the mountains on the island.

Two years ago, I was sitting at the summit of that mountain, catching my breath from the steep climb, when I saw a Fool’s ship sailing in the distance. Strangely enough, I couldn’t make out any sign of life on the western part of the island. Just endless trees. For a minute, I thought I saw a plume of smoke trailing up toward the sky, but for all I know it could have been my imagination. Now, I’m
starting to think I was actually right about seeing that smoke.

The Fools are a part of our world, and it’s time we open up to it.

 

***

 

When the sun is nearing its highest point in the sky, a nervous flutter starts in my stomach.
Mara and I are carrying our overflowing baskets to the spot where I talked to Walt last night. I have no trouble finding my way back – I know the trails of the forest by heart after countless hikes into the wild at Saul’s command – but I’m not so sure about Walt. Will he be able to make his way back here? Or was our encounter the previous night the last I’ll see of him?

Walt is
here. He’s wearing dark-green clothes serving as camouflage among the bushes he was hiding in. I almost didn’t see him. Almost, because his light-blonde hair is clearly visible. In his hands, he’s holding a green beanie hat which he apparently took off so his head would stand out. Or maybe taking off your hat is a Foolish custom and he’s trying to be polite.

“Leia,” he calls out quietly, getting up from his squatting position and glancing sideways at
Mara curiously.

“This is my best friend,” I quickly explain. “She’s okay. She knows you have The Book.”

“I understand why you wanted to keep him all to yourself,” Mara mumbles under her breath.

I ignore the flush creeping into my face and walk up to Walt. In broad daylight, his skin still looks pale
, but his light-blonde hair looks shiny and more vibrant in the sun. His hair is shot through with darker strands of a color that reminds me of the golden pendant worn by the Eldest’s wife on special occasions. Walt is almost as tall and broad as Andy. His eyes look at everything around him with boundless curiosity, including me. I suddenly feel shy under his inquisitive gaze.

“Did you bring it?” I
ask.

Walt pats the brown leather bag slung over his shoulder. “Of course. And I brought some news, too.”

He pulls The Book from his bag and shows us the front cover, tapping the first Luke and Leia with his index finger. “Tony knows them. Your ancestors.”

My mouth falls open. “He does?”

Walt nods seriously. “He wants to talk to you. Explain things. Don’t ask me what he meant by that, but I think it’s important you gather a few friends you trust and come to us in Hope Harbor. You think you can do that?”

“Well, I guess we don’t have a choice,” I reply
grumpily. All of a sudden, I can’t stand Walt seeming so savvy next to me. I feel like a right lemon.

“I’d
love
to,” Mara supplies. Knowledge-hungry Mara, who always wanted to know what’s on the other side of the Wall anyway.

“But we have to solve the problems on our side of the Wall first,” I
point out. “Force our leader out. Free Henry. Consult with the parents.”


The parents?” Walt asks in a tone suggesting he’s never heard of parents before.

“Uhm,
yeah. They live in Newexter. They might want to help us getting rid of Saul, even though I told my mother it wasn’t necessary.” I sigh and pause for a moment. “Actually, I wouldn’t mind if they stepped in. We sure need the help.”

Walt blinks confusedly. “So
… you don’t live with your parents?”

I frown. “No. Of course not.”

“How old are you girls then?”


Mara’s fifteen and I’m sixteen.”

“Huh.” Walt shrugs non-committally and hands me The Book. “I had no idea it was that bad.”

“Bad?” I glare at him.

Walt’s eyebrow quirks up. “Yes. Don’t
you
think it’s bad?”

Suddenly, my grandmother’s words pop into my mind. “So you
do
live with the parents?” I ask hesitantly.

A mother’s love never
fades.

Parents and children don’t separate.

That’s how she described it – the situation on the other side.

“Yes. We do,” Walt answers softly. He seems to realize his remark
s puzzle me, and thankfully he doesn’t pursue the subject.

We sit down in the grass, the three of us.
Mara and Walt are flanking me on either side, and The Book is in my lap.

“So I’ve read the first couple pages,” I say. “There was nothing important in them. At least, nothing we can use right now.”

I turn the pages, while Mara leans on my shoulder and looks at The Book. Walt’s warm shoulder presses into my arm on the other side when he bends forward to have a peek as well. Does he
have
to sit this close?

“Look, here’s something about leadership,”
Mara pipes up, pointing at a drawing of Dark Father accompanied by a long text. I hold up The Book and look more closely, my eyes taking in every word.

“Luk
e’s father crossed over to the Dark Side,” I read out slowly. “He no longer had access to the Force, because he only thought of himself. He abandoned his children, while trying to accrue all power for himself. He became a bad leader because he used his Force to suppress and manipulate people. They lost their Light when it was within arm’s reach. For collaboration makes us the strongest, and no leader is needed to work together.” The word ‘collaboration’ is underlined thickly.

Have I ever
. Saul sounds like the spitting image of Dark Father.

“That’s it,”
Mara whispers excitedly. “
This
is the page Andy was talking about. This is what he read. And now we have proof.”

I still can’t quite believe it. All these years we’ve been living a lie, and suddenly I feel like a blind Fool for never doubting the things
Saul taught us. The truth we thought we knew doesn’t make sense.

“We’re not that different after all,” Walt speaks up. “We also strongly believe in collaboration. But we don’t know that Dark guy, Luke’s father. Our leader is the Bookkeeper. He’s a descendant of the very first Bookkeeper on the island.”

“Do your people have a Book, too?”
Mara wants to know.

Walt laughs a little boastfully. “Oh, we have more than just one. They are a bit like this book, but the words look neater. Very precise. Full of
information about the World across the Waters.”

The knuckles of my han
ds gripping The Book turn white, and I can hear my friend inhale sharply. I wouldn’t be surprised if she decided to flee to Hope Harbor with Walt right this instant. He couldn’t have made Mara more curious.

“There really is proof?” I say quietly. “Of the other side?”

“The Books tell us about it,” Walt shrugs. “If that’s proof enough for you.”

“Do they say anything about us?”

“They say the Unbelievers have turned away from us because they don’t believe in the World across the Waters. Or at least they don’t believe anyone from that world will come for us. They want to determine their own fate and be on their own.”

“So we once were together? The Fools and the Unbelievers?”

Walt nods curtly. “Once upon a time.” He makes it sound like a fairytale, but I’m starting to believe it’s all true.

Undecidedly, I look at the page with the proof we were looking for. “What should we do?” I wonder aloud, searching
Mara’s eyes. “Should we take the entire Book or just the one page?”

Mara
worries her lip. “I don’t know. It feels wrong to damage The Book.”

“Seems like a bad idea to tear out the page if you want to use it as
some proof in a trial,” Walt adds. “How else would your people know for sure it’s actually from your book?”

Oh, right. I’d f
orgotten all about Walt being an intolerable smartass. “You’re right. We must take the Book back with us,” I conclude with a withering look aimed at the know-it-all Fool’s boy.

“Here’s to hoping no one will subject us to a full body search,”
Mara mumbles.

“Okay. Sounds like you two have a plan. A dangerous plan, but a plan nonetheless.” Walt looks at me. “Will you be careful?” he adds a bit anxiously.

I nod slowly, confused by his sudden worry.

“Will you come to Hope Harbor soon?”

I nod again. “When will you have time for us?”

“For you, always.” He smiles broadly. “I’m the Bookkeeper’s nephew, so everyone knows me. Just ask for Walt.”

I try not to roll my eyes. A Famous Fool – just my luck. “I will.”

“And, Leia?”

“Yes?”

“Try bringing a smile next time, okay?”
He grins at me teasingly, and I turn red.

“Come on,
Mara, let’s go,” I say, ignoring his comment. His strange accent still sings around in my ears when I walk down the trail with my best friend, a basket of plants in my arms and The Book tucked away in my underwear.

 

-10-

 

ONCE WE’VE
crossed the manor grounds littered with tents and huts, we spot Andy standing by the oak in front of the house. He beckons us, putting a finger to his battered lips when he pulls us inside one of the huts. It belongs to Pete and Tim, but they’re over at the northern beach catching fish.

“What have you two told Ben this morning?” he asks tensely.

“Nothing,” Mara replies with a grin. “We kindly told him goodbye before trotting off into the woods holding hands.”

“We might have provoked him a little bit,” I admit honestly.

Andy’s eyes dart to Mara. “Well, congratulations. Ben finally pulled it off. He’s made his case with Saul – probably been nagging him for so long that our great leader couldn’t stand it anymore. So he arranged your wedding party. Scheduled it for tonight.”

The world stops spinning.
Mara gapes at Andy, and I swallow painfully. We were joking about this – we didn’t think Saul would
actually
do this.


Yes, you heard me. Saul wants you to marry Ben.” Andy looks at Mara grimly.

“But – he can’t do that,” she cries out in fear. “It’s against the rules.”

“You
do
realize Saul hasn’t been a big fan of the rules for quite some time,” Andy comments.

Mara
turns pale as a sheet and plonks down on the rickety bed in the corner. “What am I supposed to do?” she wails. “I can’t marry Ben. The minute he officially becomes my husband tonight...” She doesn’t finish, but the implication is clear. A blow to the head isn’t going to stop him this time around.

Andy
takes her hand. “Escape to Newexter,” he urges her. “Hide there until the situation here has changed. Once we’ve confronted Saul with the things we’ve learned…”

“But where?”
Mara asks in a shaky voice. “I can’t rely on the parents. And the villagers of Newexter will send me back instantly when they discover I’m not married, because as long as I’m not, I belong here.”

I suddenly have an idea. “Go to my mother. She won’t send you back. I’m sure of it. She doesn’t agree with the things that are happening here either.”

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