Toby Alone

by Timothee de Fombelle

  “Pleeeease Toby,” Mano called out. “Pleeeease, come back…”

  His voice rang out in the darkness.

  “Tobeeeeeeeeeey!”

  His only answer was the whistling of the wind. Mano collapsed against the bark. He felt a drop of rain drenching him. Then another, right next to him. Mano stayed where he was, unable to get up or take a step. It was raining harder now. The storm was rumbling.

  When you’re less than two millimetres tall, a raindrop is a very big deal. Mano was soaked through in just a few seconds. He stood there sobbing, on the very spot where Toby had deserted him.

  “I’ll tell the whole truth, Toby. I won’t lie ever again…”

  At first, he didn’t hear the humming noise coming towards him. Thirty seconds later they arrived, in a buzzing din: a cloud of mosquitoes seeking shelter from the storm. When they saw Mano unprotected on the branch, they clustered towards him. Mosquitoes, along with a few other insects and birds, ranked among the most dangerous predators in the Tree. A single bite was enough to drain a hearty grown man of all his blood.

  Right now, there were fifteen of them buzzing around Mano. Mosquitoes with proboscises sharp as blades, who were so excited by the warm blood flowing in Mano’s veins that they had forgotten all about the wind and the rain.

  Lost on his branch, defenceless, while lightning flashes ripped across the sky, the poor boy saw his last breath coming. The beating of mosquito wings made the raindrops fly in splashes. A watery haze was enveloping this bloodthirsty army.

  Where had Toby gone?

  The downpour from the storm wasn’t enough to disperse the mosquitoes. Mano was just about keeping them at bay by shrieking and waving his arms and kicking his legs. But one of the mosquitoes had attacked him in the stomach, tearing through his clothing and grazing his skin.

  Suddenly Mano saw a wave of water surging towards him, along the bark, with Toby’s red trousers occasionally showing through. The mosquitoes rose slightly to let the torrent of water through.

  “Hold on, Mano!”

  Mano saw a hand coming out of the water, which grabbed him and dragged him in its wake. Toby and Mano rolled down the slope of the branch for several seconds, unable to breathe.

  Then they couldn’t feel anything underneath them any more. They were suspended in midair.

  Toby’s short life, culminating in this fall, flashed before his eyes. He decided it had been a good life, after all.

  He had experienced a lot, for a thirteen-year-old. He thought about his parents, who wouldn’t hear any more news of him. And about the Asseldor family.

  He thought about Elisha.

  A month earlier, she had said goodbye on the shores of their lake.

  Elisha didn’t like farewells. She was wearing her green dress that came down to her ankles; when she stood in the water she had to lift the hem. Toby had rolled his trousers up to his knees. They couldn’t look at each other, just at the water and the circles forming around their legs. Elisha didn’t make any big declarations.

  “Are you leaving?”

  “Yes, but I’m coming back.”

  “You say that…”

  “I mean it, I’m coming back,” Toby insisted. “I’m going up to the Treetop, to my grandmother’s place in the Summit, and then I’m coming back.”

  “We’ll see.”

  “No you won’t, Elisha. Don’t you believe me?”

  Elisha let go of her dress, as if she didn’t care how sopping wet it got any more. She even took another step in the water. Toby stayed behind a bit. He imitated the sound a cicada makes. It was their secret code.

  “When I come back, I’ll make the same noise. There’ll still be one cicada left singing in autumn. Me.”

  Elisha’s reply had been harsh.

  “You know what? There’ll be plenty of cicadas in the Low Branches next summer. Life doesn’t just stop…”

  Elisha was like that sometimes. Stabbing you with her words. She did it when she was sad.

  Toby didn’t say anything else. He floated a small bright red shell that he’d found, then he walked away. The shell drifted slowly towards Elisha. She picked it up when it washed up in the folds of her dress, which looked like long beaches of green silk as they rippled on the surface.

  Elisha didn’t return home until it was very late, with the red shell in the palm of her hand.

  Toby remembered Elisha’s last words: “Life doesn’t just stop.” He kept saying them over and over again to himself, as he went careering into the void.

  The downpour had ended. A distant echo of the storm still rumbled in the Tree.

  Several minutes went by, then Toby started asking himself a few questions. He felt as if he was lying on a mattress of air. It was a very comfortable kind of a fall. Was this what happened when life did stop?

  It’s not so bad after all, he thought. Then he heard a voice.

  “Toby…”

  And he had company too! What a nice surprise.

  “Toby, it’s me, Mano. Can you hear me?”

  “Yes. Are you still falling?”

  “No, I think we’ve stopped. But I can’t see anything.”

  Toby tried to move his hand. Something was restricting his movements. A bit further off, Mano was starting to panic.

  “What on earth’s going on?”

  Then Toby shouted, “Don’t move, Mano! Whatever you do, don’t move!”

  Mano froze.

  “What’s the matter?”

  “Don’t move a muscle.”

  Mano didn’t dare say another word.

  “We’re in a spider’s web. We’ve landed in a web.”

  Mano’s and Toby’s fall had been broken by a web that had saved their life. But it was about to become their tomb if they couldn’t get out before the spider returned.

  With every movement they risked getting even more entangled. Each vibration might alert the spider to the fact that there were two tasty steaks in her shopping bag.

  Toby sized up the situation as calmly as he could. He knew all about spiders. He knew how to recognise the fine mesh of a black widow’s trap. His father, Sim Lolness, had written his thesis on selected arthropods, with three chapters dedicated to the lethally dangerous black widow.

  Sim’s research had led him to encourage the use of spider’s silk in the Tree, because it was finer and stronger than any plant-based twine.

  But what had particularly stuck in Toby’s mind was that any prey caught in the web had only a few minutes to play with before the spider detected its presence.

  Toby tugged on one of the web ropes. He wound it around his wrist. He needed to amass enough rope without weakening the supporting structure. While he was working, he gave Mano his instructions.

  “Cut out the web around you. You need to snap the threads off, cord by cord. Just leave the ones that are supporting you.”

  Mano did as he was told. He still had his Joe Mitch Arbor knife.

  Toby managed to wind in a thick reel of silky rope. The wide loops of the bare meshwork were all that surrounded him now. He attached the end of the rope to one of these loops and let go of the reel. It only took him a few seconds to make his way across the web and lower himself down the rope.

  He could hear Mano’s voice above him.

  “Toby, I’ve nearly cut it all.”

  Toby called back, “I’m down here. When I give the word, drop. Don’t waste a single second. When I shout, you let go.”

  “But I’ll be falling into the void.”

  “Do as I tell you. I’ll catch you. Jump when I give the signal.”

  “I can’t.”

  “You can, Mano.”

  “I’m frightened.”

  “Yes, Mano. At last you’ve got a real reason to be frightened. Use it to jump.”

  And Toby started swinging on the end of his rope. Every two seconds, he swung directly below Mano, like the pendulum on a clock. He calculated that he had to give the signal just before, in order to catch Mano as he fell.r />
  Mano was dangling above the void. He knew he would never be able to jump. He had to tell Toby. He needed to say, “You go, Toby. I’d rather stay here. You can tell my family the whole truth.”

  “Toby…” he whimpered.

  Mano could feel a shadow hovering just behind him, which was odd, because he knew nobody could have come near to him without making the web vibrate and giving themselves away. Nobody had the aerial skills to pull that off. Nobody.

  Except, perhaps … black widow! She was poised right next to him.

  Mano heard Toby’s signal.

  He let go.

  14

  Seldor Farm

  It was a typical early morning at Seldor Farm.

  Lola and Lila had heard the storm rumbling in their sleep. They got up without making any noise, so as not to wake their two brothers. The boys had worked deep into the night with their father, making a hundred jars of winter preserve from a mushroom that they’d found on the far reaches of their land.

  After a downpour, the girls always went over to the Ladies’ Pond. This was the name Grandfather Asseldor had given to a polished bark ditch, which filled up with clear water every time it rained. It had become a communal bathing area for the women of Asseldor.

  Lola was rubbing herself down with a sponge.

  “It’ll be too cold for this in a month’s time, so I’m making the most of it.”

  “I bet Mano’s got a proper bath-house at his home in the Treetop,” said Lila.

  “I bet he has servants to scrub his back, and people who tip bowls of hot water over him.”

  This was their favourite game: imagining the life of their brother, Mano.

  The Asseldors had been brought up never to boast. So if Mano’s letters were always positive, it meant that in reality things were even better. He said he had two houses, so he probably owned four. He wrote that he had a hundred and seven pairs of socks, so he must have at least a thousand.

  “It’s such a shame we can’t write back to him. He never puts his address on his letters,” said the elder daughter.

  “I’d like to tell him about Lex,” replied Lola.

  Lex was the only son of the Olmechs, a neighbouring family in the Low Branches.

  Lex had followed Mano’s whole story, and now he too dreamed of going into sales up there, like Mano. He also dreamed of taking Lola, the younger Asseldor daughter, with him.

  Lola and Lex had been in love for a year and a half. It didn’t go any further than holding hands when they went on walks together, but even that made them feel dizzy. It was easy to fall in love with Lex, whose velvety eyes made him so handsome, and it wasn’t hard to be seduced by Lola, with her dark-red hair and moon-like pale complexion, not to mention her hands as delicate as pieces of frayed cloud. Shy and good-looking, they made an old-fashioned couple.

  Lex hadn’t told his parents he was in love, or discussed his plans to go away. The Olmechs were counting on their son to take over the small family business – a leaf mill, which was famous for its fine white flour.

  “Mano will explain to Lex’s parents.”

  “Yes,” said Lila.

  Lola was looking at her big sister, who was just as beautiful as she was.

  “Isn’t love strange? Why was I the one who fell in love with Lex, and not you? All of a sudden, something just happens between two people. Lex and Lola. Lola and Lex. And the rest of the world doesn’t matter any more.”

  “Yes,” said Lila.

  Lila knew exactly what her sister was talking about. All of a sudden something just happens between two people … and the rest of the world doesn’t matter any more.

  Lila had also been head over heels in love with Lex – for the past five years. She had never dared tell anybody. Especially not Lola. Or Lex. She wouldn’t even know where to begin. “Um, Lex, I think I…” or “Lex, there’s something I want to tell you…” or “Lex, if I told you that…”

  A year and a half earlier, in a matter of hours, her little sister had snatched handsome Lex from under her nose. Just like that, without thinking about it, simply following her heart. Perhaps she hadn’t even said anything at all. Perhaps she just brushed against Lex’s hand.

  Lila didn’t blame Lola. And she didn’t blame Lex either. She blamed herself. But it was too late. Now, in the Ladies’ Pond, Lola was bound to start talking about Lex, as if Lila needed convincing that he was kind and good and strong. Lila knew this better than anybody, it was why she hadn’t been able to sleep for the past five years.

  She changed the subject.

  “I bet we don’t recognise Mano when he comes back.”

  “Maybe,” said Lola, dreamily.

  They wrapped themselves up in their blue towels and ran towards the house. It would soon be October, and it was almost cold. They were shivering. They both entered the big vaulted room where a fire was crackling away. They stopped in their tracks, flabbergasted.

  Everybody was standing up, motionless, like a painting.

  Their mother was holding a steaming kettle. Their two brothers were just behind her, leaning against the wall. Tall Father Asseldor was backlit as he stood by the window.

  Someone else was sitting on the hearth in front of the fireplace, swaddled in a blanket. The steam from the bowl of herbal tea they cupped in their hands clouded this person’s face.

  “It’s me, Mano.”

  The two girls reeled backwards. Silence ran the gamut of those dark vaults. Lola was the first to go up to him.

  “Mano?”

  “I want to ask your forgiveness.”

  On a board, next to the window, was a great thick album into which Mrs Asseldor had carefully glued all her son’s letters. On the front she’d written Mano in the Treetop, as if it were the title of a novel.

  And here was its author, poor and stripped of everything, huddled in a blanket. He had made it all up; he was like one of those insipid writers who lack any of the vibrancy of their heroes.

  The father spoke.

  “Mano lied to us. For years now he has been deceiving himself and deceiving us. He’s made all the wrong choices. Except one – he’s decided to come back to us. That choice doesn’t change what’s happened, but it will make up for it.”

  Mano put his bowl down, and he held his head in his hands. Yes, he had come back. That was what mattered. Life could get back to normal. But his father carried on in his beautiful, deep voice.

  “I want Mano to go away again one day.”

  General consternation. The entire Asseldor family turned towards the head of the family.

  “I want Mano to make his dream come true. And his dream isn’t to be with us.”

  “Yes it is, Father!” Mano sobbed.

  “No. You’re saying that because you’re frightened. And fear…”

  Father Asseldor grabbed the album and hurled it into the fire. Then he tried to regain his composure. The flames shot up. At last, Lila and Lola noticed Toby, who was sitting in a dark corner of the room, next to the bread bin.

  “Toby!” said Lila. “Is that you?”

  “He brought us back our Mano,” explained their mother.

  And Father Asseldor added, “For the time being, Mano and Toby are in danger. There are people looking for them. We’ve got to hide them. Mano will go away again, once it’s all over.”

  “Hide your son first,” said Toby. “I’ll manage. You can’t have two fugitives in Seldor. It would be dangerous for your whole family.”

  But Lila objected. We can’t just abandon Toby…”

  Lola couldn’t say a word. She looked at Mano. Then at the dancing flames. Her dream was shattered, and so too was that of her sweetheart, Lex, which had been broken at the same time.

  Milo, the older brother, piped up. “At least Toby never lied to us.”

  Toby paused.

  “Your brother deserted Joe Mitch’s army. If they ever find him again, he’ll be massacred. I’m the one who made him leave his post. And I’m asking you to take care of M
ano.”

  Silence again. The album was almost burned to cinders now. Mano heard his father’s voice.

  “Behind the flames in the fireplace, there’s a square plaque. And behind the plaque, there’s a tiny ventilated room. Only one person can hide in there. They’ll be on the hunt for you for several weeks. You can’t both stay in that hole.”

  “Hide Toby,” croaked Mano.

  “No,” muttered Toby. “I just want to rest up for a night and then I’ll go down towards Onessa, to get back home.”

  Milo, stepped out of the shadows.

  “I’ll take you to the Olmechs. They’re just an hour away from here, if that. You can spend the rest of the day there, and the night too. Nobody’ll go looking for you there.”

  Lola gave a little shudder when she heard the Olmechs’ name being mentioned. Her father seemed to have his doubts.

  “I’m not sure you should involve the Olmechs in this story. I’m very fond of them, but—”

  “Dad,” Milo cut him short. “If the hunt is on for Toby and Mano, we might even get a visit today. We’ve got to hurry. The Olmechs have a cellar where they store their leaf flour, under the floor of the main house. Toby can sleep there for a night.”

  Toby stood up.

  “I’m off. I don’t know the Olmechs well, but if you think we can trust them … I don’t need you. Thank you, Milo,” he told the Asseldor brother. “I’d prefer not to tell them about Mano being back.”

  Lola sat down on a chair, relieved. Toby wasn’t going to talk to Lex about Mano. She would tell him all about it later.

  Lola wrapped some bread, grasshopper rolls and other fried delicacies in a tea towel. Toby slung the bundle over his shoulder. He hugged each member of the family in turn.

  When he got to Mano, he said very quietly, “Remember your promise.” And he took his friend’s hands in his.

  Then Toby was out of the door.

  Gathered around the window, the Asseldor family watched him head off until he disappeared at the end of the bark path.

  Mano had made a promise to Toby. He had sworn an oath, with his forehead pressed against Toby’s, which is how things are done in the Tree.