my only means to directly communicate with them.”
“Like I said last night, I’m sorry,” she answers contritely. But she has no idea just how very sorry she is going to be. I decide to clue her in.
“That Disciple was right when he said they know where to find you. They won’t know what happened, but when he doesn’t come back, they won’t care. They’re like killer bees. When one gets taken out, a whole swarm descends on you with their own form of blind justice. You’re lucky if they kill you quickly.”
The grim look that forms on Danae’s face appears completely out of place, and she takes a deep breath. “I’m sure I’ll figure something out. With Papa gone I have no reason to stay in Port Sadelow. He wanted me to follow in his footsteps and become a doctor, but I just couldn’t do it. There were so many things to memorize, and the facts leaked from my brain like water through a fishnet. Worse than that, whenever he had to sew someone up and asked me to help, half the time I passed out. The only way I could help was by not looking, and that drove him crazy. I can skin a rabbit without thinking about it, but stitch a wound? No way. Port Sadelow has no need for a useless nurse that can’t stand the sight of blood.”
“How did your father end up there?” I ask. “Not that it’s a bad town, I’ve seen a lot worse. But it’s definitely on the other side of remote.”
Danae smiles to herself as she replies, “My mother was from Port Sadelow, but she died when I was ten. Since the town still needed a doctor, Papa stayed on, but after Mother died her family never wanted anything to do with me. They said I was cursed or something. So when Sheldon was lost at sea, that just confirmed the rumors and convinced my relatives.”
Based on my experience over the past day, I might agree with her maternal relatives, if I were the superstitious sort. But I will not let a fisherman wife’s tale spook me, even if she is a widow.
“Just make sure you don’t waste time leaving town,” I warn her. “You probably have a few weeks before he’s missed. But as certain as the sun will rise tomorrow, the Disciples will come, so get out sooner rather than later. Do you know what you want to do?”
As she walks, Danae stares at the ground for a few minutes. I can see that she is thinking, and I just wait for her response.
When it comes, she speaks with a subdued voice. “When my mother died, it was like my childhood died with her. That took my past, and then when Sheldon died it was like my future died with him. So Papa was everything I had to live for, from day to day. Now that he is dead, I don’t even have the present to live for. So I don’t have an answer, except to say that I need to look for it. All I know is that it’s not in Port Sadelow.”
“Good luck with that,” I tell her. “I’ve been seeking that answer for quite a few years.”
Danae laughs quietly and smiles at me. “So what are you going to do from here?”
“I have a backup plan in case I lose contact, a series of rendezvous points. The first one will be a week from now, in another town.”
“Really? Where? Maybe we’re going the same way.”
“Like I’m going to tell you, of all people!” I cannot help it, the words pop out of my mouth before I think about them. Danae stops in her tracks and drops her pack on the trail. By the time I turn to face her, her arms are crossed and she regards me with a cold stare.
“I know what I did was a mistake,” she says with a quivering voice, fighting back emotion. “But I paid dearly for it with my father’s life, and will have to live with what happened to him until the day I die. That weight is everything I can bear right now, and I sure as hell don’t need you to add to it. So believe me when I tell you that I will never betray you or lie to you again. Or don’t. Really, I don’t give a damn. But if you can’t start trusting me then just leave me here. Now.”
For several
“Like I said last night, I’m sorry,” she answers contritely. But she has no idea just how very sorry she is going to be. I decide to clue her in.
“That Disciple was right when he said they know where to find you. They won’t know what happened, but when he doesn’t come back, they won’t care. They’re like killer bees. When one gets taken out, a whole swarm descends on you with their own form of blind justice. You’re lucky if they kill you quickly.”
The grim look that forms on Danae’s face appears completely out of place, and she takes a deep breath. “I’m sure I’ll figure something out. With Papa gone I have no reason to stay in Port Sadelow. He wanted me to follow in his footsteps and become a doctor, but I just couldn’t do it. There were so many things to memorize, and the facts leaked from my brain like water through a fishnet. Worse than that, whenever he had to sew someone up and asked me to help, half the time I passed out. The only way I could help was by not looking, and that drove him crazy. I can skin a rabbit without thinking about it, but stitch a wound? No way. Port Sadelow has no need for a useless nurse that can’t stand the sight of blood.”
“How did your father end up there?” I ask. “Not that it’s a bad town, I’ve seen a lot worse. But it’s definitely on the other side of remote.”
Danae smiles to herself as she replies, “My mother was from Port Sadelow, but she died when I was ten. Since the town still needed a doctor, Papa stayed on, but after Mother died her family never wanted anything to do with me. They said I was cursed or something. So when Sheldon was lost at sea, that just confirmed the rumors and convinced my relatives.”
Based on my experience over the past day, I might agree with her maternal relatives, if I were the superstitious sort. But I will not let a fisherman wife’s tale spook me, even if she is a widow.
“Just make sure you don’t waste time leaving town,” I warn her. “You probably have a few weeks before he’s missed. But as certain as the sun will rise tomorrow, the Disciples will come, so get out sooner rather than later. Do you know what you want to do?”
As she walks, Danae stares at the ground for a few minutes. I can see that she is thinking, and I just wait for her response.
When it comes, she speaks with a subdued voice. “When my mother died, it was like my childhood died with her. That took my past, and then when Sheldon died it was like my future died with him. So Papa was everything I had to live for, from day to day. Now that he is dead, I don’t even have the present to live for. So I don’t have an answer, except to say that I need to look for it. All I know is that it’s not in Port Sadelow.”
“Good luck with that,” I tell her. “I’ve been seeking that answer for quite a few years.”
Danae laughs quietly and smiles at me. “So what are you going to do from here?”
“I have a backup plan in case I lose contact, a series of rendezvous points. The first one will be a week from now, in another town.”
“Really? Where? Maybe we’re going the same way.”
“Like I’m going to tell you, of all people!” I cannot help it, the words pop out of my mouth before I think about them. Danae stops in her tracks and drops her pack on the trail. By the time I turn to face her, her arms are crossed and she regards me with a cold stare.
“I know what I did was a mistake,” she says with a quivering voice, fighting back emotion. “But I paid dearly for it with my father’s life, and will have to live with what happened to him until the day I die. That weight is everything I can bear right now, and I sure as hell don’t need you to add to it. So believe me when I tell you that I will never betray you or lie to you again. Or don’t. Really, I don’t give a damn. But if you can’t start trusting me then just leave me here. Now.”
For several
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