So much for hiding emotions.
He didn’t care why she’d done this; he just wanted to enjoy it while it lasted. He’d only seen this kind of emotional outburst from Dinah with Gerhard or her children. Certainly, he’d never merited this kind of joy. He kissed her cheek, hoping his face wasn’t flushed. What must Gerhard be thinking?
Vulcan’s forge, forget Gerhard. The whole village was staring at them, including Sky, whose eyes were so wide they looked like a deer caught in an unexpected light.
“Time to put me down, boy,” Dinah said, laughing.
Ceti grinned and did as he was told. “I haven’t been a boy for a long time.” He spoke in Latin, as she had.
She tilted her head and studied him. “Odd. I hadn’t fully realized how tall you’d gotten. My mind still supplies my young, skinny boy. Well, I better revise that picture.”
The guard slapped the shaft of his spear across Ceti’s chest.
“Enough of this,” the warrior said.
Dinah straightened her shoulders and glared. Despite her small statue, she still looked intimidating. Ceti wondered how she did that. Perhaps the fact she had killed before somehow showed in her body language.
“Ask politely,” she said. “And take your weapon off my friend.”
“Please do as she requests.” Deep Water walked up to them.
The guard nodded to his shaman and backed away.
“He was only doing his duty,” Deep Water said. “He meant no harm.”
Dinah took a deep breath. “Understood. How soon can Ceti leave with us?”
“Your offer of seedlings is a proper one, and I believe, made in good faith.” Deep Water looked around at the village. “But it must be talked over first before the final decision is made.” Unexpectedly, she shrugged. “People must have their say before the decision is finalized.”
Dinah glanced over at the crowd. Her lips twitched. “Of course.”
“Your people should wait by that thing that your Roman used to fly.” Deep Water looked at Ceti. “Sky will be with you. Let her know if you need any food or water while you wait.”
Dinah bowed, a gesture of deep respect. “Thank you, Shaman.”
“What is your husband going to think of what you just did?” Ceti asked in Latin as Deep Water walked away.
Dinah grinned. “He knows exactly what I just did. You will too, in a moment. Now let’s go see the damage to your aquila.”
Ceti followed Dinah. As he walked, something dug into the small of his back, under his tunic. He resisted the urge to reach for it. He knew what it had to be. Dinah had slipped a small knife to him. The hug had been cover. The knife was Dinah’s way of arming him, but more, it was also her way of telling him that this situation was far from settled, despite Deep Water’s friendly words.
He must have made some motion that gave away his discovery because Dinah glanced sideways at him.
“My joy to see you is very real, Ceti,” she said.
He grunted, pleased.
“So this is the friend you spoke of?” Sky asked him when they reached her. “The one who taught you to carve wood?”
Ceti thought Sky’s voice was sharper than yesterday. She was also frowning. Why was she angry?
“Yes, this is Dinah.” He looked from Dinah to Sky. “I see you’ve met.” He cleared his throat. “Will I be able to leave with them?”
“You’ll leave with us, one way or another.” Gerhard touched his sword.
“Husband.” Dinah sighed. “That won’t be necessary.”
Gerhard grinned. “How disappointing.”
Sky glanced sideways at the Viking.
“He’s teasing,” Ceti said.
Dinah clicked her tongue. “He likes playing the barbarian, but he knows better. Be nice, husband. This girl is Ceti’s friend.”
“Ceti’s friend? So quickly?” Gerhard said. “Well, that makes me regret drawing my sword, then.”
“Thank you.” Sky’s eyes widened, perhaps not quite knowing what to make of Gerhard.
That made two of them. Ceti had always found Gerhard inscrutable, though Dinah certainly understood him just fine.
“Your wing cloth ripped, Ceti,” Dinah said, pointing to the aquila’s wings.
“I have more cloth in the workshop,” Ceti answered. Sky moved over to stand at his elbow, which pleased him beyond all measure.
“How soon can we leave, do you think?” Gaius asked.
“They’ll be talking for a while,” Sky said. “The elders will have to take time to get used to the idea. But they’ll agree in the end, especially with Deep Water pushing for the exchange. By noon, you should all be able to leave. I think they’ll also let you take the aquila, Ceti.”
“And you, Domina?” Ceti asked. “Would you come to Manhatos with us and see my workshop, as you asked yesterday?”
Sky looked away. Ceti was suddenly aware that everyone around them had gone silent. As much as he was happy to see them all, he wished nothing more right now than to be alone with Sky.
“Not today, I think.” Her voice was close to a whisper. Ceti felt something twist in his stomach, a pain that went deeper even than when he’d crashed the aquila.
He might never see her again. She knew it, too.
“Today is not forever,” Gerhard said unexpectedly. “The situation may change, Sky of the Wolf Clan.”
Sky smiled. She stepped closer to Ceti, her hand almost touching his. He brushed the back of her wrist with his fingers.
“May that it be as you say, Gerhard,” Sky said.
The silence hung among them for a long moment.
“Did you know you flew farther than all your calculations said you could, Ceti?” Gaius asked.
Ceti frowned. “And how do you know how far I went?”
“I tracked you with the far viewer, just like you asked.” Gaius grinned. “I used the formula you provided to calculate the length of the flight using the time you were in the air. Still, you went a third farther than expected. Do you know why?”
“Possibly because a pilot can actively steer into the wind,” Ceti said. “I’ll have to look at the calculations when I get back.”
“Gaius’s calculations are how we found you so fast,” Dinah said. “He estimated where you went down. We would have been here yesterday, but I thought it better to sail up the island rather than hike through it.”
“And then it took time to get the ship ready,” Gerhard said.
“Manhatos can spare you?” Ceti wanted to ask about the imperial ship in the East River, but not in front of Sky.
“For now,” Gaius said, circumspect for once.
Dinah glanced to their left. The circle of elders had returned to the square.
“They were quicker than I expected,” Sky said.
“Let’s hope it doesn’t mean there are problems,” Dinah said. She and Sky walked up to meet Deep Water. The three women talked for a moment. Gerhard put his hand on his sword again.
Ceti felt for the knife at his back. He palmed it and hid it up his sleeve.
After a moment of intense conversation among the three women, Dinah walked back.
“They have more questions,” Dinah said. “We’re going to sit here, in the open, and talk it out.”
“Is it all right, wife?” Gerhard asked.
There was a world of concern in that one question. Ceti didn’t understand Gerhard but he knew one thing. The Viking would never allow anyone to hurt his wife.
“Yes, it’s all right.” Dinah nodded. “There’s a chance for more than a simple truce that I think is worth a little extra time.”
The village elders and his rescue party sat down in a circle in the middle of the square. Sky sat on Ceti’s left. She smiled at him, but said nothing. Her actions were enough. She was next to him. He brushed his fingers against the back of her hand and was rewarded with a satisfying blush on her cheeks.
Dinah sat on Ceti’s right, with her husband on her other side, then Gaius and Licinius. Deep Wat
er, Nighthawk, the war chief, and the other elders of the village completed the circle.
Two women brought them jugs of water. They all passed it around and drank. Ceti didn’t realize how parched he was until the cold water splashed his throat.
“Speak,” said Deep Water.
“We appreciate your hospitality and your care of Ceti after his crash,” Dinah said. “We are hopeful that such hospitality may lead to stronger ties between our communities.”
“Stronger ties?” Nighthawk said. “How so?”
“Storyteller, your job is to listen right now,” Deep Water said.
“My apologies,” Nighthawk said.
Deep Water waved a hand. “Continue, Dinah of Seneca.”
“We face a fight against Romans from across the sea,” Dinah said. “The Lenape would be valuable allies in our struggle. I would like your people to consider giving us aid and support.”
Deep Water sighed. “And what do you offer in return?”
“Respect,” Dinah said.
“Respect is not enough for us to risk our lives,” Deep Water said.
“Manhatos will agree to not build further or attempt to deplete your hunting areas without first receiving your permission,” Gerhard said.
“Your offer of alliance would be more attractive if it did not come after years of doing both those things without permission,” Deep Water said blandly. Beside her, the war chief grunted in agreement.
“It’s true that we have much to apologize for,” Gaius said. Dinah gestured for him to go on. Ceti realized Dinah was going to let him speak for Tabor.
“My stepfather is the leader of Manhatos now,” Gaius said. “He sent a message with me. He regrets that the previous leaders of Manhatos have not respected the Lenape. He wants that to change.”
“Shaman, may I speak?” Nighthawk asked.
“Now you may go ahead, storyteller. You know more of their transgressions than any of us,” Deep Water said.
“It is very convenient that wanting to change comes at a time when Manhatos is threatened,” Nighthawk said.
“Acknowledged,” Dinah said.
“I will tell you a story and maybe then you will understand.”
Sky and the other Lenape shifted their legs, as if settling in for a long tale. Ceti held back a sigh. He didn’t think he was going to like this at all. Still, it kept him near Sky longer. He wondered if he could somehow get close enough for their knees to touch.
Nighthawk stood. He raised his arms and closed his eyes, as if calling on the gods. It was very like a Roman priest before a ceremony. Around him, Ceti could feel the full village gathering. No one spoke, not even the children.
Nighthawk lowered his arms and opened his eyes. He seemed to have grown taller, as if there was an invisible cloak of power around his shoulder.
I have underestimated him.
“This is the tale of the island gifted to us by the gods.” Nighthawk’s voice was louder than usual, but perfectly calm.
“Once, the Ancient People all lived on the mainland. They were a happy people, hunting, building villages, planting food. They especially loved to grow the seeds that honored the Corn Goddess.
“They had one sorrow. Travel to the water was difficult. The river that ran past was swift and fierce and destroyed all boats. They wished to nourish themselves with fish and bathe in the waves of the ocean, but the river god would not relent.
“Our ancestors, the Ancient People, were trapped.”
Nighthawk took a breath, a dramatic pause. Ceti put aside his boredom. This was history, perhaps going back past the birth of the Empire. If only I had a scribe here to record this.
“So the Ancient ones prayed to the gods of the sky, to the gods of the river, to the gods of the sea but especially to the Corn Goddess for a way to open to the great ocean.”
Nighthawk’s voice quieted to a near whisper, but Ceti could hear perfectly. Around them, the villagers maintained their silence, enraptured, though they must have heard this story many times.
“Then came the day of the Great Waters and the horrible flood.
“The day began at dawn. A massive roar of thunder crashed in the sky and the ground moved beneath their feet. Animals panicked around them.
“The leaders of the Ancient People took it for warning from the gods and led their tribes to the high hills to avoid whatever danger was coming. Those hills still look out over the Mannahanituck River from the mainland.”
Ceti nodded, as caught by this tale as any of the Lenape. He knew those cliffs. He’d almost launched the aquila from them, but decided against it. A steep drop would almost ensure that he would have been killed if his test had ended in failure. He trusted his work, yes, but there had been no reason to risk his life on such an attempt.
“And then, as the last straggler made it to the cliffs, water came crashing and smashing down the river bed, water in such force and with such width it was ten times the size of the original river.
“The Ancient People watched as the new river cut through the earth, scraping out a new path to the ocean.” Nighthawk lowered and deepened his voice. “And there arose a land in the middle of all the water, a land pushed up from the seabed, violently spewing forth dirt in all directions.” The storyteller spread his hands. “It was pushed upward by the great turtles of the gods, an uneven surface where fresh water could flow, where ponds could form, where trees and plants would be fed, where beaches reached into the salt water and allowed access to the bountiful ocean of fish.
“This is Turtle Island.” Nighthawk stood and swept his hands to encompass all around them. “This is a gift from the sacred gods, one that allowed the Ancient People to grow into our clans, a gift that allowed us to thrive in the summer months, look out upon the great water again, and enjoy the nourishment of the sea.”
Nighthawk sat back down. Deep Water stood up. The shaman somehow seemed taller, more commanding, as Nighthawk had. Ceti brushed his hand against Sky’s knees. She had been enraptured during the story, but she was frowning now.
Ceti realized she had no idea what Deep Water was going to say.
“And now, Romans wall up Turtle Island, this special gift created by all the gods,” Deep Water said. “More of them pour in every day and defile what should be the sanctuary of the clans.
“You ask us why we mistrust Romans, Dinah of Seneca. That is why. I am sorry, but we cannot accept your offer of alliance. There is too much yet that separates our people.”
Dinah sighed. “Understood, Shaman. I am sorry that it has come to this.”
“As are we all,” Deep Water said. “But turning down an alliance does not mean we cannot take small steps.” She nodded to Ceti. “Ceti, you’ve made yourself welcome here. The children will miss you. I offer you an open invitation to return.”
Ceti glanced at Sky. Was that also an open invitation to see Sky again?
Ceti stood and bowed to Deep Water. “You honor me. I will come, if I can.”
Dinah stood. “Deep Water, I have learned that gods, whoever belongs to them, often have plans we cannot see. The Romans might be part of that plan for Turtle Island. Our fate may be bound to yours. It is something you should consider.”
“I consider it.”
Sky stood. A murmur arose from the crowd. Nighthawk started to speak but his daughter cut him off.
“No, Father, I must speak. There has been talk of gods and what they want. I may have the answer.” Sky looked at Deep Water, not her father. The shaman nodded, giving her permission to continue.
Sky took a deep breath. “All know that my name has a destiny attached. I have wondered what this means, as I have never been guided by any visions.”
“Until now.” She put her hand on Ceti’s shoulder.
Ceti could feel the warmth of her palm. His face grew hot. He hoped it didn’t show.
“This Roman fell out of the sky before me. If that is not a sign, then I do not know what is.”
“And what do you propose to do
because of it?” Deep Water asked.
“Ceti is a messenger and I cannot receive his message here. I must see the other Romans, I must see all of what he is, all of what the Romans are.”
She’s coming with me. Yes!
He resisted the urge to pick her up and twirl her around as he had with Dinah earlier.
“You want to go with him?” Nighthawk stood, chopping his hand in front of him. “No.”
“To act without knowledge is to react from ignorance,” Sky said. It sounded to Ceti as if Sky was quoting something, perhaps some old piece of wisdom from her tribe. “I would go with him to see his people, Father.”
“Some will claim that to mingle with the Romans is to betray us,” Deep Water said. “And we have already turned away an offer of alliance, Sky.”
Sky flushed but she shook her head. “There is no betrayal here. Only the need to learn what might save us in the years to come. I cannot offer alliance. But I will have knowledge.”
“Sky of the Wolf Clan is welcome to travel with us,” Dinah said.
“And then you’ll make her a slave, as you have made others slaves,” Nighthawk said. “What protection can you possibly offer her?”
Gerhard stood. “She would have the personal protection of myself and my wife.”
“And mine, on behalf of my stepfather,” Gaius said.
“Viking and Roman promises? Those have proven to be worthless in the past,” Deep Water said.
“That’s not true.” Gaius stood, angry. “My stepfather keeps his word. He’s kept it with the Mahicans and—”
“Easy, Gaius,” Dinah said in Latin. “They don’t know Tabor. It took time for him to make changes in Manhatos.”
Ceti wanted to add his offer of protection but if Dinah and Gaius’s declarations were not accepted, he had no illusions that his would be. It might even make things worse given Nighthawk’s hostility toward him.
Sky winced at the back-and-forth, as if in pain from the tension. It cost her, he suspected, to cause this tumult. She didn’t want to publicly cross her father and Deep Water.
Licinius stood. “I will promise to protect her at the cost of my life.”
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