Isle of Broken Years

by Jane Fletcher

  Catalina held the paper at an angle, trying to catch the best light. The first splash was the worst, leaving only a faint trace. Yet it was possible to imagine the words might be Pandora’s jar, one of the rare allusions to Greek mythology she had come across, and obviously not suffering from Erasmus’s mistranslation. In which case, Pandora’s jar holds all we have for the thoughts Tydides has set on his bow could mean Tydides’s plan is our only hope.

  A knock disturbed her.

  “What is it?”

  The door slid open. Liz stood outside. “Can I come in?”

  “Yes. Yes, of course.” Catalina made space for her, shuffling the papers into a pile.

  “I wondered how you were doing. You left the dining room rather sharpish this evening.”

  “I wanted to read these.”

  “And avoid somebody?” Liz took a seat on the end of the bed.

  “Maybe.”

  “You still think Sam was responsible for Alonzo’s death?”

  “I think she’s not saying everything she knows.”

  “None of us do that, dear.”

  Catalina picked at a loose thread on her smock while she tried to order her thoughts. “Kali said there’ve been criminals here before.”

  “Still are. Ricardo and Jorge are drug smugglers. Sam might be considered a pirate, depending on who picks the judge. I managed to notch up an arrest for disorderly conduct at an anti-nuclear demo when I was your age. Floyd could be looking at a death sentence.”

  “Floyd? I thought he was a sort of policeman.”

  “He was.”

  “Then wasn’t he supposed to uphold the law?” Catalina struggled to imagine what serious crime Floyd might have committed.

  “It all depends when and where he is. In the wrong court he’d be in serious trouble. Even in New Zealand, in my day, he’d have been breaking the law, although it could only be a question of time before it all got repealed. The old anti-sodomy laws were on their last gasp.”

  “Oh yes, that. I hadn’t given it much thought.”

  “You knew then?”

  “It came up when we were working on a translation. I told him he’d have gotten on well with the ancient Greeks.”

  “You’re not bothered? People from a strict religious background can have issues.”

  Catalina shook her head. “Maybe because I’ve been reading Greek philosophers since I was a child. I’ve always preferred their questions to the priests’ certainty. Even being told not everyone here is Christian, part of my surprise was at how little it bothered me when I had time to think.”

  “Then you’re doing better than some. Jorge and Ricardo took a while to come around. But the point is, we all come from different times, different backgrounds, and with different moral codes, and we all have to get along. If it’s not harming you personally, then mind your own business.”

  “Although secondary smoke inhalation isn’t so easy.”

  Liz blew out her cheeks. “You’re telling me. But Babs has agreed not to smoke her bloody pipe when Madison is in the same room. And Madison had promised not to comment on the smell of tobacco on Babs’s clothes.”

  Catalina smiled. The argument had gone on for days, and had, to her mind, reached silly proportions. Her thoughts returned to more serious concerns. “But they’re all side issues, aren’t they? Somebody getting murdered might not harm you personally, but you can’t ignore it.”

  “You’ve got no evidence Sam was responsible for Alonzo’s death, and it’s hard to see what she could have done. Worst case, she lied and told him the hunters wouldn’t hurt him. But I don’t think he was such a fool to believe her, even if she did.”

  “What if we found evidence?”

  “Then we deal with it when we need to. Kali’s right about some of the people who’ve lived here. For a while, the first mate from a crew of slave traders set himself up as dictator. There was a man who strangled a woman who used to be his lover. And at least six people have gone missing in odd circumstances, leaving a finger of blame pointing one way or another. Each time, folk dealt with it the best way they could. We don’t have the resources to start locking people up. All we can do is exile them to the outer island. That’s a death sentence, and life here is too short anyway.”

  “Kali said much the same thing. She’s worried for her baby.”

  “In what way?” Liz’s voice held a sudden sharp edge.

  “That she and Ricardo won’t live to see the child grow up.”

  “Oh well, yes. That would be a worry for her.”

  “Is there something else?”

  “No. No. Of course not.”

  Catalina stared at Liz. “Why do I get the feeling this is another example of somebody not saying all they know?”

  “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “Yes, you do.”

  Liz’s expression wavered. “Please. I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “About what? You seem on the point of tears.”

  “Honest. It’s nothing.” Liz was blatantly lying.

  “Say that while you’re looking me in the eye.”

  “Promise you’ll say nothing to them.”

  “I promise. Now, what is it?”

  “Most likely nothing, just me being a goose.”

  “You’ve already said that—except for the goose bit.”

  Liz sighed. “It’s the records. They can be patchy. But with all the people who’ve been here, you’d think there’d be more mention of children.” She shook her head. “Occasionally, the records have said that a woman is pregnant, but then nothing. No note of a baby’s birth or anything about them as children, growing up.”

  “What do you think happens?”

  “The caretakers. They tolerate us on the inner island, but it’s clear they were programmed to treat us as temporary visitors. The way they tidy up after us. I can’t believe the aliens couldn’t put anything down for fear of losing it. I think humans used to come over to help with work in the Barn, maybe the kitchen too, and were allowed to walk around outside. Essential jobs, but nothing more. That’s why the caretakers undo every change we make.”

  “You think the caretakers are a threat to us?”

  “Not us.” Liz drew a deep breath. “If we’re right, the inner island is a little home away from home for the aliens, a copy of their world. We’re the only Earth species the caretakers don’t treat as vermin. You’ve seen them go bananas when seagulls try to nest here. They’ll tolerate a level of human presence, but that’s as far as it goes.”

  “Babies are human.”

  “Do the caretakers know that? Anyway, babies aren’t essential. When Kali came here, she was just eleven or so, and she confused the caretakers. You could see that. They’d follow her around, dithering. Then she grew another inch or two, and they left her alone. I’m frightened they think children are rubbish, literally.”

  “Kali and her baby could live in the Barn.”

  “It won’t work. Someone found a litter of puppies on the outer island and brought them back. The caretakers hunted them down. It’s the only time they’ll go into the Barn. I’m guessing they have special vermin eradication programming.”

  “That’s awful.”

  “Beyond awful. But I may be wrong. Hopefully, I’m just worrying over nothing.”

  “You don’t think you should warn Kali and Ricardo?”

  “There’s no point. If I’m wrong, I’ll just scare them needlessly. And if I’m right there’s nothing they can do.”

  “They could build a tree house on the outer island.”

  “They might want to give it a go. But they’d be lucky to see out half a year. The hunters mostly come out right after a jump, but you can never rule them out of the picture.”

  “So we have three months to find a solution.”

  “I admire your optimism, dear. But if you manage it you’ll have done better than anyone who’s come before.”

  Catalina picked up a sheaf of papers. “I’ve got one a
dvantage. I can read this.”

  “Have you found anything new? Come on, give me a reason to hope.”

  Hope—forever locked in Pandora’s jar. “Maybe. There’s hints of something. Like this letter here.” Catalina picked up the water-stained page, holding it again to the light. “Some of it’s hard to read, but I think it says, Pandora’s jar holds all we have for the thoughts Tydides has set on his bow. Four apples of destruction we ask you please to rob for him to hold when the night falls. The detailed drawing of the center of all has Meriones in his rooms for life away from unwelcome eyes. A path to victory if find we not my heart says our names Hades will write in his book.”

  “And what do you think it means?”

  Catalina had become familiar with some technical phrases. The apples of destruction had featured in one recent manual she had read with Madison, and other parts she could guess at.

  “I’d say it goes, Tydides’s plan is our only hope. We need you to steal four of the explosive charges and get them to him tonight. Meriones has the core schematics hidden in his lodgings. If we can’t succeed in this, I fear we are all going to die.”

  * * *

  Catalina leaned back in her chair and yawned. “I need to take a break. Get some air.”

  “I’m cool with that. When would you like me back here?” Madison asked.

  “After lunch will be fine.”

  They separated outside the Barn. Madison headed toward the Squat. However, Catalina turned in the other direction and strolled along the embankment. The weather was cooler. Presumably, it was winter. The year was not worth making a guess at. Clouds were building over the outer island, and a downpour would come before evening, but for now the weather was pleasant.

  The outward facing embankment of the alien island was just over three miles in circumference. Floyd ran a complete circuit each morning, before the day warmed up. Catalina had no intention of running, and certainly not in her blue gown, but the rhythm of her steps helped the flow of thoughts.

  Once she had started looking, Tydides’s name cropped up often, mostly in technical notes. He had obviously played a major role in whatever had been going on. Frequently, even people from the twentieth century could not begin to guess what it meant. The aliens must have had him in their confidence, and whatever he had learned caused him to doubt their motives.

  Would Tydides have known why Atlantis started jumping through time once the aliens left? Would he have known how to stop it? Those were the big questions, along with, where would he have written the answer down? Would they be able to make sense of it, if they found his notes? And finally, where should they start looking for this hypothetical notebook? This last question was the easiest. The answer was wretchedly obvious.

  Catalina stopped and looked across the water. Directly across from where she stood were the ruins of Old Town. The jungle was encroaching, but not enough to hide the buildings lining the waterfront. The town was extensive and might easily have once housed thousands of people. Why had the aliens needed so many?

  Admittedly, the writing made it clear not all humans were treated the same. Some, such as Tydides, were favored scientists; others were servants, farm laborers, and even the subject of experiments. From what she had learned, while the more fortunate had luxury quarters in the center of town, many humans lived in prison barracks. How hard would it be to find Tydides’s home? Was it worth taking the risk to search for it?

  So many questions.

  Catalina turned her back on Old Town and retraced her steps. The castaways were gathering at the Squat, although lunchtime still had a while to go. Liz, Charles, and Horatio sat on crates in the sun, chatting and playing cards. Kali lay on her back, sleeping on the grass. At the other end of the lawn, Ricardo and Jorge were playing a new game. This one involved much running around, barging each other, and bouncing a ball. They had tied a wire hoop to a tree trunk.

  Catalina continued walking. A short way farther on was a lookout tower with a zigzag stairway leading to an open-sided deck thirty feet above ground level. A cover shaped like an oyster shell, curved over the top, and a pair of circular sitting areas jutted from one side. These seats struck Catalina as precariously suspended in midair, and she avoided them. However, the deck itself was sturdy enough, and one of her favorite spots. Even though only the stairs and sitting areas had guardrails. Presumably, the aliens had no fear of heights or falling.

  When Catalina got to the top, she found she was not the only one there. Sam was sitting on the edge of the deck, with her feet dangling over the sea below. Catalina almost turned around, but that might look like running away, and she was not the one with something to hide. She settled for turning her back on Sam and taking in the view over the Squat. They had not exchanged a word since the Inflatable returned from the outer island without Alonzo, and that was the way Catalina wanted things to stay.

  She heard the sound of movement, but did not look around. Sam’s footsteps came close. Doubts sprang into Catalina’s head. Was this really a sensible place to be? Was she about to be thrown off?

  “You can’t keep on acting as if you don’t see me.”

  Catalina risked a sideways glance. Sam stood with her arms crossed defiantly. “I don’t see why not.”

  “I wasn’t responsible for his death, you know.”

  “I know no such thing.”

  “So what do you think I did to make him leave the roost?”

  “I don’t know. But you played a part. You fought. You hated him.”

  “No. I disliked him, I admit it, but I didn’t hate him. He hated me.”

  “Do you know why?” At the silence, Catalina turned to face Sam and repeated, “Do you know why?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then tell me.”

  “I can’t. I gave him my word.”

  “What?” Catalina took a step closer. “You did something to cause him offense, and then you promised you wouldn’t tell me what it was? That’s nonsense. You’re just ashamed to admit it.”

  “No.” Sam was also looking angry. “I didn’t do anything.”

  “He hated you for no good reason? You expect me to believe that?”

  “He had a reason, but it wasn’t good, and it wasn’t my fault.”

  “You’d slander his name.”

  “No. I’m saying nothing.”

  “You know why he wouldn’t stay in the roost with you.”

  Sam merely shrugged in answer.

  “You know why he killed himself, and you won’t tell me.”

  “Dying wasn’t in his plan. He thought Atlantis was an illusion and I was a demon, sent by the devil to tempt him.”

  “You’re lying. When he warned me about you it wasn’t because of diabolical enchantments. He said you threatened him with a knife. Can you deny it?”

  “That was on the Golden Goose. I was defending myself.”

  “You’re accusing him of attacking you!”

  The muscles in Sam’s jaw bunched, and she turned to leave. “Oh, forget it. Believe what you want. Forget I spoke.”

  “You can’t just walk away.”

  “Watch me.” Sam started down the steps.

  She was unbearable. Catalina wanted to grab her and shake the story out of her. And then what? If she knew the truth, all of the truth, would it ease the pain? Sam was hiding something. Maybe learning the what and the why would not make her any happier, but Catalina could not go on stoking her anger in ignorance. Sam had to speak.

  Catalina was about to chase after her when a motion on the lawn below caught her eye. Two caretakers were slowly, stealthily, creeping out from behind a bush. Catalina almost ignored them, but their behavior was so unlike their normal bustle. And then, with horror, she realized they were approaching Kali. Catalina felt her insides turn to water. One caretaker stopped, shuffled strangely on its six feet, and backed away. The other continued until it was within touching distance. It extended one of its front appendages so it hovered over Kali’s distended stomach.

&nb
sp; Catalina was too far away to have a chance of reaching Kali in time. She tried to shout a warning, but her voice was a strangled croak. The effort to drag air into her lungs made her rib cage feel about to shatter. Then Kali moved, shuffling her arms and shoulders in her sleep. The caretaker bobbed up and down twice and scuttled away.

  Catalina was shaking. She clung to the rail to hold herself up. Her legs had lost all strength.

  Sam was at her side, holding her. “What’s up? Are you unwell?”

  “It’s…” Catalina turned her head, looking across the water. The overgrown buildings were out of sight, hidden behind the curving shoreline. “I’m going to talk to Liz. I have to explore Old Town.”

  * * *

  “You sound just like Gerard.” Liz’s face held the expression of a woman who knew she was going to lose, but still felt she had to make the effort.

  “Is that a bad thing?”

  “It got him killed. The daft bugger.”

  “It’s not as if avoiding Old Town would have guaranteed a long and happy life.”

  “Just because you’re sitting in a lion’s den doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to set yourself on fire.”

  The two of them were alone in Liz’s room. Catalina had not given herself time to change her mind. As soon as her legs were working properly, she had dragged Liz from the card game. Maybe she should have taken longer to prepare her arguments.

  “Trying to find out more about Tydides isn’t a pointless activity. It might be our only chance to get away from Atlantis.”

  “Might.”

  “What other hope is there?”

  Liz ran a hand through her gray hair. “Is there any point asking you to hold off until after you’ve gone through all the papers in the Barn? You never know what might turn up.”

  “It will take years. Kali’s baby doesn’t have that long.”

  “Getting yourself killed won’t do Kali or her baby any good.”

  “Are you going to forbid me to go?”

  “No. That’s not my place. The rest might treat me as leader, but there’s never been a vote or anything. You’re an adult and free to go where you want.”