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Authors: Samantha Bennett
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feet.
“I’m here,” I whispered. I had to say it out loud. It still seemed unreal. I pulled out the xaris to prove that, yes everything had just happened.
Up ahead, a line of swaying palms led into the island’s middle. The palms didn’t look like the manicured trees in my grandparents ’ lawn—these had brown palm fronds hanging over their trunks. Beside one of those trunks, I noticed a girl.
I froze.
The girl had long brown hair and looked about my age. She was small and held a wooden spear with silver prongs that shone like knives. The spear was pointed directly at me.
Chapter 8
B
EFORE I could speak, the girl pounded toward me, radiating a ferocity that sent pricks down my spine.
“Ari!” I screamed.
The girl’s brown eyes widened. She came to a sudden halt.
I swallowed, feeling the hard thump of my heart. “I’m looking for Ari,” I said.
“You know Ari?” she asked. She spoke with a faint accent, just like Ari. And she had the same wheel tattoo near her temple.
“We’re friends,” I said. Or something like that.
The girl’s eyes flashed. She surveyed the beach, to the right and then to the left. An older couple was sprinting toward us. Both the man and woman held spears.
The girl cursed. She yanked me close.
“If you value Ari’s life, then say nothing,” she hissed.
My arm stung from her grip. What was going on? Why did she look so afraid? I tried to free myself, but the girl’s hand was like an iron clamp on my skin.
“Say nothing,” the girl repeated. Her eyes went to the xaris in my hand. In an instant, she snatched it from me and faced the approaching couple, shoulders stiff. “I’ve captured a foreigner.”
The older man and woman slowed as they reached us. They both had tanned skin and silver braids down their backs.
“A foreigner,” the man said. His eyes were wide with shock.
“How did she find us?” the woman asked.
“We will determine that together,” the girl replied. “I’m taking her to my father now.”
“We will accompany you,” the man said.
“No, I need you to spread word,” the girl said, her voice ringing with authority. “Tell the others to meet in the great hall. I’m relying on you.” She gave them each a nod, and they nodded in turn.
With a yank of my arm, she marched me into the jungle and onto a dirt path. As soon as we were out of sight, the girl hurried our pace.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Helping Ari,” she snapped.
“You know him?”
“Apparently not.”
She led us past gardens of fruits and vegetables, through an orange grove, and into a clearing with a sprawling white mansion, five stories high. The great house was a mix between Greek ruins and a Southern plantation home. Fat pillars held up a sloping roof that came to a point in the center, and sea-blue shutters framed every window.
The clearing buzzed with people. They were all tanned and muscular. Even the older women looked like they could take me in a fight. The Aletheians’ attire was simple: sleeveless shirts, shorts, sundresses. No one wore shoes. Several held spears like the girl’s. Most of the men were shirtless—the kind of shirtless you saw in fitness magazines.
Everyone paused at the sight of us, but no one approached. They just gawked at me and the girl who was dragging me after her.
We entered the mansion through an arched doorway on its stucco side. Inside, we made a sharp turn left and followed a tile hall to a deserted back staircase.
“Are you taking me to Ari,” I asked as we climbed.
“You’ll see him soon, yes,” the girl said.
After we’d climbed all the way to the top story, she led me down an empty hallway of midnight-blue tile, straight to a wooden door with an ornate brass knob.
She pushed it open and gestured for me to enter. “This way,” she said.
I walked into a bright room with white stucco walls and a gigantic bed with silky pillows. The bay windows were flung open, letting filmy blue curtains
“I’m here,” I whispered. I had to say it out loud. It still seemed unreal. I pulled out the xaris to prove that, yes everything had just happened.
Up ahead, a line of swaying palms led into the island’s middle. The palms didn’t look like the manicured trees in my grandparents ’ lawn—these had brown palm fronds hanging over their trunks. Beside one of those trunks, I noticed a girl.
I froze.
The girl had long brown hair and looked about my age. She was small and held a wooden spear with silver prongs that shone like knives. The spear was pointed directly at me.
Chapter 8
B
EFORE I could speak, the girl pounded toward me, radiating a ferocity that sent pricks down my spine.
“Ari!” I screamed.
The girl’s brown eyes widened. She came to a sudden halt.
I swallowed, feeling the hard thump of my heart. “I’m looking for Ari,” I said.
“You know Ari?” she asked. She spoke with a faint accent, just like Ari. And she had the same wheel tattoo near her temple.
“We’re friends,” I said. Or something like that.
The girl’s eyes flashed. She surveyed the beach, to the right and then to the left. An older couple was sprinting toward us. Both the man and woman held spears.
The girl cursed. She yanked me close.
“If you value Ari’s life, then say nothing,” she hissed.
My arm stung from her grip. What was going on? Why did she look so afraid? I tried to free myself, but the girl’s hand was like an iron clamp on my skin.
“Say nothing,” the girl repeated. Her eyes went to the xaris in my hand. In an instant, she snatched it from me and faced the approaching couple, shoulders stiff. “I’ve captured a foreigner.”
The older man and woman slowed as they reached us. They both had tanned skin and silver braids down their backs.
“A foreigner,” the man said. His eyes were wide with shock.
“How did she find us?” the woman asked.
“We will determine that together,” the girl replied. “I’m taking her to my father now.”
“We will accompany you,” the man said.
“No, I need you to spread word,” the girl said, her voice ringing with authority. “Tell the others to meet in the great hall. I’m relying on you.” She gave them each a nod, and they nodded in turn.
With a yank of my arm, she marched me into the jungle and onto a dirt path. As soon as we were out of sight, the girl hurried our pace.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Helping Ari,” she snapped.
“You know him?”
“Apparently not.”
She led us past gardens of fruits and vegetables, through an orange grove, and into a clearing with a sprawling white mansion, five stories high. The great house was a mix between Greek ruins and a Southern plantation home. Fat pillars held up a sloping roof that came to a point in the center, and sea-blue shutters framed every window.
The clearing buzzed with people. They were all tanned and muscular. Even the older women looked like they could take me in a fight. The Aletheians’ attire was simple: sleeveless shirts, shorts, sundresses. No one wore shoes. Several held spears like the girl’s. Most of the men were shirtless—the kind of shirtless you saw in fitness magazines.
Everyone paused at the sight of us, but no one approached. They just gawked at me and the girl who was dragging me after her.
We entered the mansion through an arched doorway on its stucco side. Inside, we made a sharp turn left and followed a tile hall to a deserted back staircase.
“Are you taking me to Ari,” I asked as we climbed.
“You’ll see him soon, yes,” the girl said.
After we’d climbed all the way to the top story, she led me down an empty hallway of midnight-blue tile, straight to a wooden door with an ornate brass knob.
She pushed it open and gestured for me to enter. “This way,” she said.
I walked into a bright room with white stucco walls and a gigantic bed with silky pillows. The bay windows were flung open, letting filmy blue curtains
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