The Island (7 page)

“But…” Mara starts to object.

I take the necklace from my pants pocket. Grandmother’s note is tu
cked away in the cracked walnut once more. “Give her this and tell her to read the note. I’m telling you, she won’t hesitate to take you in after that. You can even tell her…” I stop for a second. “That we need the parents’ help over here,” I finish softly.

“Where’s The Book?”
Andy asks.

I pull it out of my underpants and hand it to him.

“You should go right now,” I tell Mara. “Once you’re at the gate, start running and
keep
running until you reach the village. If no one sees you leave, Ben will only find out you’re gone when he’s stood up at the altar tonight.”

“Okay.” She nods
and gets up. Her eyes drift to Andy, who pulls her into his arms and kisses her so passionately it makes
me
blush.

Then she’
s gone and I’m alone with Andy.

“Tonight we’re going to strike,”
Andy says with a stern look on his face. “I’ll focus all attention on myself and tell everyone what Saul has done.”

“What’s your plan?”

“Colin will help me. He’ll distract Saul’s buddies. They always stand guard on opposite sides of the manor house portico where Saul does his speeches, so no one can get to him. But I want to get Saul away from there and stand on that very spot myself. So I can show The Book to the youngsters. So I can read from it.”

I shiver. “You’re one brave guy. He’s going to
kill you.”

Andy
’s eyes sparkle with anticipation. “No, he won’t. If I do well, they’ll kill
him
when I’ve had my say on account of all the lies he’s been telling us.”

“I sure hope you’re right.”

Andy nods, putting a hand on my shoulder. “Leia, you’re wonderful. I haven’t had a chance to thank you yet, but you did the bravest thing of all. You stole The Book. Thanks to you, Saul will have to give up his imaginary crown.”

I swell with pride. I may not be the best survivor of the lot, but at least they can leave it in my capable hands to start a rebellion.

“You’re welcome,” I mumble.

“See you later, at the assembly.”
Andy takes a step back and leaves the hut to go to his own dwelling.

My heart beats in my throat when I step out of the hut
after him. I book it for the kitchen, the two baskets of food piled high in my arms. Already, I’m nervous for tonight, and it isn’t even dark yet. My stomach rumbles, but I’m way too apprehensive to want to eat anything. Every now and then I scan the grounds looking for Colin, but there’s no one here. They’re all probably out hunting, fishing or harvesting. The grain on the fields was already partly ripe yesterday.

When I enter the house, I hear voices down the hall.
Saul and Ben are just stepping out of the old dining room in the manor. The long table in there accommodates up to twenty people. When Colin and I were still allowed into all rooms of the house, we’d often fantasize about our forefathers having dinner parties there, all sitting together. Nephews, nieces, children and grandchildren – all who have given life to the island. Swords are on the wall above the fireplace, and although they don’t emit light like the ones Luke and Leia are holding on the front cover of The Book, I’m sure those weapons belonged to them.

I wonder what Ben and
Saul were doing there. Nobody goes into that room anymore nowadays.

“Hey, butch,” Ben yells at me across the hall. “Where’s your lovely girlfriend?”

I clench my jaw. Oh, how I would
love
to kick that piece of shit in the shins and throw all the roots in these baskets at his miserable head, but I shouldn’t. He’ll get his just deserts tonight.

“She went fishing with
Andy,” I reply, avoiding his eyes.

“Hmm,”
Saul says. “Well, when she gets back, you tell her she should come see my brother. He has a surprise for her.” His smile is dripping with malicious pleasure.

I can’t help but gloat
when I think of the blow Ben’s ego will suffer once he discovers Mara’s gone. It’s going to hurt even more than that nasty punch to his hooked nose. I smile at him sweetly. “Of course, Saul. I will.”

I dodge around him and push the kitchen door open. My hands tremble when I put the baskets on the table, and they only stop shaking when I walk over to the well to haul up some water to wash the vegetables. Soon, this
whole nightmare will be over. I’ve lasted all these years – surely I can tough it out for a few more hours.

***

When evening falls, I help the others when they bring out the candles to light up the portico. Saul barks orders at us to put candles on either side of the stairs, alongside the white flowers a few other girls have gathered.

“What the heck is he planning?” whispers Padma next to me, decorating a big candle with some bindweed. “Is he finally tying the knot? This looks like a wedding venue.”

I say nothing and catch Ami’s eye while she’s fussing around with some wild daisies. She knows what’s going to happen tonight. I talked to her and Colin right after I was done in the kitchen.

“Who knows,” Ami shrugs.

“Well, who’s the lucky lady?”

“No idea. N
ot me, that’s for sure. Let’s just wait and see.”

“Whoever she is, I’m eternally grateful,” Padma sighs. “
Saul is a total grinch. It’s about time he left for Newexter.”

If only.

When the sun dips below the skyline, we light the candles. It’s perfectly still. There’s not a breath of wind, and even the crickets seem to have stopped chirping waiting for something. The world awaits the big shift that will take place this evening, under these stars.

At the edge of the manor grounds, behind a storage tent,
Colin is waiting. He and Pete have made torches, which they will use to set fire to a part of the field. Pete sprinkled oil on the already dry grass earlier today so it will light up in no time. Once the flames erupt, they’ll suddenly appear, call Saul a liar and a fraud, and insist he has to step down.  Hopefully, this will cause enough of a kerfuffle to distract Saul’s bodyguards, so Andy can sneak up from behind, knock Saul unconscious and read from The Book to our group without censorship. With a little luck, Saul’s chums won’t dare to silence him with everyone present.

In the silence, we all wait for something to happen. Then, the door swings open and
Saul steps onto the portico, followed by his burly friends. Ben positions himself on Saul’s right side, next to a column, a sly smile on his face. Still, he looks somewhat restless – of course he hasn’t seen his blushing bride yet. Mara hasn’t taken an interest in his ‘surprise’ whatsoever.

“Dear attendees,”
Saul breaks the silence. “Tonight is a special occasion. Two people will be joined in matrimony, witnessed by all of you. The Force be in them.”

Of course,
Saul can’t whip out his Book to read from, so he must be glad with this distraction. No one wonders why he’s not carrying it. They’re all far too curious about who’s getting married.

From the corner of my eye, I can see
Colin and Pete approach. The torches flare up in the dark.

“But first, we have another item on the program,”
Saul continues.

The
main door opens, and Max and Cal appear in the doorway, dragging a handcuffed Henry outside. Cal gives the man a big push so he stumbles forward and lands on his knees in front of Saul.

Oh no. What is this?

“This Fool,” a red-faced Saul shouts, pointing an accusatory finger at Henry, “has crossed the Wall. He has invaded our community to spread lies. He claims our Book is mere fantasy. He says Luke and Leia have never really existed!” He drops his voice dramatically. “He even stubbornly maintains he comes from across the sea.”

His words send a
shock through the crowd – myself included. Fantasy? Is this man from the World across the Waters trying to tell us that our ancestors are not real?

I stand there petrified, watching the
scene unfold. Saul kicks Henry in the side, beckoning Cal and Max over to join him.

They’re carrying swords. The swords from the dining room.

“He wants to destroy our world,” Saul yells, his face heated and his eyes glittering restlessly. “Question my leadership. He wants to make doubters of us all with his Foolish talk. But I won’t let that happen.”

Cal takes a step forward. Sweat is dripping from Henry’s forehead. My heart speeds up and my throat goes dry. All of a sudden, it hits me – this whole situation is getting way out of hand.

Speechlessly I watch Max move over to Henry’s other side. He’s lifting the sword into the air. I’m as dumbfounded as the rest of the youngsters surrounding me. No one steps forward. No one says a word, but their fear is palpable.

When
Saul steps aside to make room for his henchmen, I finally regain the power of speech and storm forward. “No, wait!” I cry out. “You don’t understand!”

But it’s too late. With a sickening thud, Henry’s body slumps down on the front steps when Cal and Max viciously stab him with their swords. Blood trickles down the stairs. Henry’s eyelids droop and his head hits the marble.

I look around in a panic. Where the blazes is Colin?

My brother finally kicks into action. He and
Pete rush forward and throw their torches onto the lawn in front of the manor house. Fire blazes instantly. “Liar!” they shout at Saul. “You’ve kept things from us!”

For a split second,
Saul seems unhinged, but then he smirks at them. His guards don’t attempt to protect him – they’re too busy dragging Henry’s body away.

“Me, a liar?” he says angrily.

“You’ve been lying to us,” Colin splutters, but it’s not convincing anyone. This is not working.

Saul
laughs scornfully. “Hold on. Do you actually
believe
what this man was telling us?” he challenges Colin in a threatening voice. “How about we give you the same treatment as him?”

Our whole plan goes up in flames. Literally. I can hear the
muttering of the onlookers around me, see the awkward glances they steal at Colin and Pete. Like
they
are the liars.

Colin
pales, helplessly looking over at Andy who’s still waiting at the other side of the portico. He hasn’t moved. And then, Colin’s eyes rest on me.

Saul
follows Colin’s gaze and seems to suddenly remember I was the only one who objected to Henry’s summary execution. His eyes narrow almost imperceptibly. His calm tone chills me to the bone when he tells his soldiers: “Seize her.”

For just a moment, time seems to slow down. I gape at
Saul, unable to move.

“
Run!” Colin hollers. “Leia,
now
!”

That shakes me out of my stupor. I turn around and run like the wind. I don’t even stop to think where the
blazes I’m supposed to go or how I can be so selfish as to leave Colin behind to fend for himself. He’s right in telling me to run. If Saul catches me, he will most likely kill me too. He’s gone insane. I have to get off the grounds and disappear into the blackness of the night as fast as possible.

Branches hit my face when I plunge into the
dark of the forest. The moon is only a small sliver in the night sky and does little to improve my sight. Then again, it also means my pursuers won’t be able to see me.

It’s only when I reach the Wall that I realize where I was headed all this time. This is the place where I encountered Walt for the first time.
Saul’s friends can’t be far off, so I have to be quick. I grope my way up the tree next to the Wall like a squirrel and don’t hesitate when I lower myself and drop down on the other side of the barrier.

Blindly, I run on. I’
m in uncharted territory, in an unknown world where Saul fears to tread. He won’t follow me here.

I’m in Fool’s Land.

-11-

WHEN I
finally see the first houses of Hope Harbor looming in the distance, I’m no longer running. Rather, I’m stumbling on. My feet are bleeding from hitting stones on the path in my frantic flight. Tears are running down my face. Even though I didn’t really believe Saul would follow me across the Wall, I still wouldn’t slow down.

I accost the very first man I encounter. “Walt,” I pant. “Where is… Walt. The Bookkeeper’s nephew.”

“My heavens, girl, what happened to you?” the elderly man asks with a bewildered face, putting his arm around my shoulders. “Why don’t you take a seat first, love? I’ll go and get Walt out of that meeting he’s in.”

I sit down on the wooden bench the man has steered me toward, underneath a street lantern next to one of the houses. My heart hammers in my chest and my hair is sticky with sweat. I
f I could make one wish now, it’d be for hours of rest, just sitting here and letting the world go by, but I know I can’t. Walt is in some meeting – well, so much the better. He can ask all the people gathered there to help him. To help
me
. I have to save Colin, Andy and Pete. If they’re still alive, that is.