Apocalypsis: Book 3 (Exodus) (13 page)

***

The canoe pulled up and Trip sent out a birdcall to whoever was listening.  I couldn’t remember what it meant, but nobody showed up with guns or other weapons, so apparently it wasn’t the attack call.  We all got out and walked to the ceremonial hut.  Everyone in the two tribes was waiting.

“Wow.  Word travels fast,” I said to Paci.

“Yeah.”  He looked down at me.  “Listen … I have to go stand with Kowi, but I’m with you in spirit, okay?  Don’t let Trip intimidate you.”

I smiled.  “Don’t worry.  I won’t.”

Before I realized what he was going to do, he bent over and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.  I was momentarily stunned, giving him time to walk away before I could react.  I was left standing there like a dumb statue.

Peter caught my attention from across the crowded space, giving me bug-eyes and raised eyebrows.  I knew exactly what he meant, and didn’t need to hear what he had to say on the matter.  He was making his way over to me, shoving through the people as politely as he could.  I prayed he wouldn’t want to talk to me about that kiss right now.  We had bigger fish to fry.

Trip and Paci were talking to Kowi now, and he was listening intently.  The crowd was murmuring, everyone whispering or talking in low tones with each other.  The only ones missing were the kids we’d rescued from the canner place. 
Must be considered tribe business only.  I wonder why they let Peter come if that’s the case.
  I was glad they had, though.  At least I had two people on my side.  

Winky waved at me from across the hut and I waved back, trying to smile my thanks for her support; but I’m afraid it came off as more of a grimace because she frowned, her hand dropping.  She whispered to the person next to her - Mandy, if I was seeing properly - and they both started pushing through the crowd headed my way.

A few seconds later, Winky was next to me, casting furtive glances at Jamal and Ronald who were standing just a foot away.

“What the heck is going on?” she asked.  Mandy stood next to her waiting for my answer.

“These guys heard about me from someone we met on the road, on our way down here.  They’re asking to stay.”

“Is Trip going to let them?” asked Mandy.

“He doesn’t want to.”

“I was going to say …,” said Mandy.  “He’s not usually the welcoming type.”

“So what’s the deal?  If Trip said no, why are they still here?” asked Winky.

“Because I said yes,” I said simply.

Mandy and Winky took one look at each other and started giggling.

“What’s so funny?” I asked, feeling uncomfortable that I was being laughed at.

Winky put her hand on my arm.  “We’re not laughing at you.  Get that look off your face.  We’re laughing because we know how pissed Trip is right now.  He’s going to be a miserable beast for days now, you know.”

I smiled.  “It’s not my fault he’s a pain in the ass who won’t see reason.”

“What’d you do?  How’d you convince him to give them a chance?” asked Mandy.

“Nothing much.”

Yokci leaned over my shoulder and filled them in.  “She jumped out of the canoe and refused to get back in until he agreed to let them come and talk to Kowi.”

Winky’s eyes bugged out.  “No friggin’ way!”

I nodded.  “My leg’s killing me, too.  Don’t tell Trip, though.”

Mandy looked down. “You idiot.  That thing’s gonna get infected.  You’d better go get it cleaned right now.”

“I will when this is over.  Looks like I’m up, anyway,” I said, watching Kowi detach himself from Trip’s angry diatribe and come over slowly to where we were standing in our small group.  Peter had made it to my side finally and grabbed my hand, squeezing it in support.

“So, Bryn.  You’ve brought some visitors into Kahayatle,” Kowi said soberly, looking first at Ronald and then Jamal.

The two brothers stood up straighter, maybe not even realizing they’d done it.  They looked so full of both pride and fear, my heart ached for them.  I knew what it meant, to finally find a home after feeling so alone and scared.  It made me even more resolved to do the right thing.

“Yes.  I have.  And I’d like for them to be able to stay.”

“Why should we let them?  Trip makes several good points.  We don’t know who they are.  They bring two more mouths to feed.  They can’t
swim
.”  His last point was said with a certain amount of incredulity.

“You didn’t know who I was, or Peter or Bodo, but you let us stay.  We have plenty of food to feed two more … in fact, many more.  And they can learn to swim.”

Ronald looked fearfully at Jamal.  Jamal’s mouth thinned, but he said nothing.

“You fought for and won your right to stay.  And if we let these two in, maybe we can feed them, but then more will come, and more and more.  We can’t feed every stray kid who wanders into the swamp.”

“I’ll fight for their right then, if it’s a fight you want.  And why can’t we feed everyone who comes?  We have crops, animals … everything we need to start over.”  I grabbed Kowi’s hands, surprising us both.  “Don’t you see?”  I looked over at Trip, including him in my plea.  “Our only hope of survival is building our community and sharing.  We can’t stay isolated and hope to keep our home.  The more desperate kids get out there, the more they’re going to band together for survival.  And the bigger their gangs get, the smaller we get in comparison!  We have to bring in all the non-canner kids we can and show them we can live without the violence and without the craziness.”  My eyes darted between the two leaders.  “Don’t you see?  It’s the only way.”

Kowi pulled his hands from mine and backed up several steps to stand next to Trip.  He turned to his friend and they shared a look.  Trip whispered in his ear for a few seconds and Kowi nodded, putting his fingers up to pinch the bridge of his nose after.

The entire group went silent.  Everyone was waiting with bated breath, on pins and needles, wondering what the verdict would be.  Finally, Kowi spoke.

“This decision is too important to make right now.  Trip and I are going to discuss it tonight and tomorrow, and let you know what we think at dinner tomorrow night.  These two can stay until then, but if we decide they have to leave, they have to agree to go without a fight.  If they can’t agree to this now, they have to go now.”

I looked to Ronald and Jamal for their agreement.  It wasn’t what I had hoped for, but it wasn’t a
no
either.  They both nodded their heads.

“Fine.  Bryn, you take them to your place tonight.  We’ll bring food you guys can eat there.  And we’ll see you at dinner tomorrow.”

“Does this mean her training sessions are cancelled for tomorrow?” asked Peter.

“Yes,” said Kowi.

“Her leg’s not ready anyway,” said Trip angrily.  He didn’t have to say that my jumping out of his boat hadn’t helped.  We both knew he was thinking it.

Everyone started talking again, all of them casting glances our way.  I was exhausted from the stress and my injured leg.  I tugged on Ronald’s shirt.  “Come on.  Let’s go.”

“I’m bringing stuff to clean your leg,” said Winky.  “Be there in about ten minutes.”

“Great.   Thanks.”

Peter led the way in front of us, keeping the scoldings I knew he was itching to throw out at me to himself.  I was glad for that, because I was feeling a little touchy right now and liable to say stupid things at the next person who gave me a hard time.

Paci came running up and fell into step beside me.  “I gotta go with Kowi, but I wanted to tell you good job, first.”

“Thanks,” I said lamely.  “I appreciate the support.  I hope it doesn’t get you in trouble with Trip.”

“I like being in trouble with Trip.  He’s an ass,” said Paci, smiling.

“You’re right.  He is.” 

Peter turned around and scowled at me.  I stuck my tongue out at him.  I noticed Paci looking at us funny, so I stopped.  “I’ll see you tomorrow?” I asked.

“Bet on it,” said Paci.

I could see him getting ready to kiss me again, so I put my hand on his shoulder.  “Bye, Paci.”  I gave him a look that said not to do it, and he got the message.  He frowned for a second and then smiled again before running off.

Jamal and Ronald tripped their way to my hut, and it made me realize how not klutzy I was these days compared to them.  I smiled thinking about how I was adapting to my new home.  I hoped it was still going to be my home tomorrow after dinner.

***

Jamal and Ronald settled into our hut, sharing Bodo’s mattress which we dragged into the kitchen area to give them some privacy.  After nonchalantly bringing our backpacks with weapons inside over by our mattresses, Peter and I laid side by side, talking in whispers about the day and speculating about what might happen tomorrow.

“Did you talk to Trip today?” I asked.

“No.  He avoided me, jerk that he is.”

“Asshole,” I said, being supportive.  But I also meant it.  Trip was an asshole most of the time.

“He’s not really that bad.  He’s just under a lot of pressure.”

“He needs to have sex with someone,
stat
,” I said, giggling.

“Stop,” said Peter, shoving me over.  “Don’t be rude.”

“I’m not being rude. I’m just saying … he’s uptight.  He needs to let out some of that stress.”

Before Peter could protest again, Winky came by to fix my leg for me. Twenty painful minutes later, I was gratefully re-bandaged and back to gossiping with Peter.

“So do you think they’re going to let them stay?”

“Trip will say no, I know that.  But hopefully Kowi will say yes, and then I can do the tie-breaker vote and it’ll be done.”

“You know if you do the tie-breaker against Trip he’ll hate you forever.”

“Forever?  Really?”

“Well, maybe not forever.  But for a long time.”

“I don’t care.  I have to do what’s right … right?  I mean, do you agree with this?”

“Of course I do.  Don’t be ridiculous.  We came here just a little while ago and they let us stay.  And I think we’ve integrated just fine.”

“And you’d integrate even more if Trip would let you,” I said suggestively, wiggling my eyebrows.  I wasn’t sure if Peter could see them in the dark, but he got my meaning.

“Would you please shut up about that, already?  Geez, I never should have told you.”

“Yeah, right.  Like you could deny me.”

“Whatever.  The point is … we’re getting back to the point now, by the way … that yes, I agree with you.  But you have to face the fact that Kowi could very well say no.”

“Do you really think he would?”

“Maybe.  To keep the peace here, yes.  To make sure his people don’t starve by letting new people in.  Yes.”

“But they have all kinds of food here! That’s ridiculous!”

“Shhh!  Stop being so loud.  They’re going to hear you.”  Peter continued in a lower tone.  “I know they have plenty of food - for a couple hundred people.  But for more than that, I don’t know.  Eventually the demand will outstrip supply.”

I frowned at Peter.  “Sometimes you sound like a textbook when you talk.”

“Yeah, well I read it somewhere.  Supply and demand.  Look it up.  They could run out of food.”

“Not with two new guys or even a hundred new guys.  Did you know they have cattle?  And horses and stuff?  All they have to do is breed them and make more.  It’s a never ending food supply!  Not to mention all the gators and deer and turkeys and whatever else is running or slithering around in here.”

“I know, I know.  But they’re afraid, and you can’t blame them.  They have that ancient history of being welcoming to people outside their tribe, and look where it got them a couple hundred years ago.  Trip’s all obsessed about not repeating mistakes of the past.”

“Yeah, well, then he’d better remember what happens when people with bigger numbers come in and want stuff.  If it’s not given, they take it - and either kill people off or run them out.  This world isn’t going to be that different from the last.  We’re all still human after all.”

“Which means we act like animals sometimes.”

“Exactly.  Couldn’t have said it better myself,” I said, smiling.

“I know.  That’s why I said it,” said Peter smugly.

I slapped him lightly on the cheek.  “Go to sleep.  Your mighty brain is making me tired.”

“It does that sometimes.”

“And bored.”

“That too.   Especially with the more simple-minded folk.”

I reached over and kissed him hard on the mouth.  “G’night, sweet prince.  I’ll smell you tomorrow.”  I closed my eyes, but not before seeing him wipe my kiss off.

“God, where’s Buster when you need him?” asked Peter absently.

I didn’t even open my eyes.  “If you’re suggesting that you need that fish-breath dog to lick my nasty kisses off your lips, I’m gonna give you a nut crusher like you’ve never seen before.”

“Who me?  I would never …” He giggled and rolled over.

I sighed, but soon fell asleep, for once my dreams not haunted by snakes, canners, or Bodo’s beautiful face.

***

We spent the day hanging out in our hut, making up games using sticks and leaves.  Ronald and Jamal had come up with a pretty ingenious one using marked sticks, based loosely on dominoes.  Peter soon became the reigning champion, making us all look like idiots and barely-qualified minions with his despotic strategies.

“Come on, let’s go.  It’s too humid to be here anymore,” I said, finally giving up on ever winning a single game.

“Where are we going?” asked Ronald, standing up beside me.  He was a few inches taller but very skinny, probably weighing nearly the same as me because of his marked lack of nutrition.  His brother was broader in the shoulder and meatier in the waist and legs. He looked like he’d eaten twice as much as his twin. 
If they really are twins.  They look nothing alike.

“To the pool,” I said, staring at both of them, trying to pick out any similar features. 
Maybe the eyes…

Ronald sighed loudly.  “I wasn’t joking.  We really can’t swim.”

Jamal slowly sat back down, picking up his domino sticks and shaking them around in his hand, giving up instantly on my pool idea.

“Doesn’t matter,” I said.  “If you don’t want to go in, you can sit on the dock.”