“It’s a date then. I’ll pick you up in the morning.” He helped me take off the silly shoes and then slowly we strolled, wet and laughing back into the main fale. Where Nafanua was patiently waiting, sipping cocktails with the others. She bestowed a radiant smile on me and raised one perfect eyebrow at my disheveled state but said nothing. There was only impeccable politeness as we fare-welled the men.
In the car, I waited for her anger. Her rage. But it didn’t come. Instead, she was exultant. “Leila, you are a genius. I admit I wasn’t sure if you could do it, but you were perfect!”
“What do you mean?” I was confused.
“Why, you did it. You had Dr. Williams completely enthralled, It looks like the two of you had a wonderful time tonight.” A cold fist of realization clenched around my heart.
“Wait, what do you mean? I barely even spoke to Dr. Williams the whole night. I was with the assistant, with Jason.”
Nafanua laughed again. And it was coldly musical in the speeding darkness. “Yes, Dr. Jason Williams! Well done Leila, it appears you will make a brilliant telesā after all.”
“No, aaargh.” I stifled my exclamation of shock and sat rigid with amazement as I replayed my night with the blonde. Why did these dumb screw-ups always happen to me? What an idiot I was. And he had totally let me play the fool. My eyes narrowed in the darkness as Nafanua continued prattling on triumphantly. What was the man’s agenda anyway? I had confessed and instead of getting mad – at my mother, at me – he had played along. Actually, if I was being honest, truthful - he had been quite pleasant about the whole thing. But why? I reserved my cold anger for Nafanua. The strange Jason I could excuse.
At the house, I stomped up the stairs without responding to Nafanua’s good night. But I couldn’t contain myself when she asked, “Why Leila, what’s the matter? Didn’t you enjoy yourself tonight?”
“No … yes … oh, that’s not the point.” I took a deep breath before continuing, “Nafanua, you haven’t had much practice being a mother, so maybe I should cut you some slack here. Let me spell it out for you plain and simple. No mother in her right mind asks her daughter to … to … prostitute herself the way you expected me to tonight!”
Nafanua arched an eyebrow but I rushed on. “What you did, what you expected me to do … telling me to play up to the scientist so he would give you what you wanted, that’s just sick. Deceitful, cheap, and sick. I can’t believe you asked me to do that.”
Nafanua spread her arms questioningly. “But you had a great time with him. I saw you. You two were laughing and talking and he seemed quite taken with you. Are you saying you didn’t enjoy yourself tonight? Are you saying that befriending Dr. Williams was a CHORE for you?”
I gritted my teeth, “That’s just it. I didn’t know he was Dr. Williams. He introduced himself as Jason. I thought the old guy was the scientist.”
Nafanua was puzzled even further. “So why were you so quick to ooze all over Jason then … oh, I get it.” She frowned and folded her arms, looking up at me from the foot of the stairs with awareness. “You were trying to defy me. You thought you would antagonize me by focusing on the younger, obviously junior, member of the group. I get it.”
Like two fighters sizing each other up in the ring, we stared at each other. My fists were clenched and I was ready to snap and snarl. But Nafanua laughed. Loud and long. So much that she sat weakly on the bottom step.
“Oh Leila, you’re funny.” She turned to wave me to a seat beside her. “Come down here, sit with me. This is classic.” Cautiously, I took the several steps to sit beside her. “You’re right, I don’t have much experience with being a mother, with teenage daughters, with beautiful young women who know their own minds and aren’t afraid to speak them. I forget that you are new to all this. You still have much to learn about telesā and I must be patient as you go forward on this journey. Will you accept my apology?”
Mutely, I nodded. She didn’t try to hug me or touch me – which I was grateful for. The touchy-feely stuff was still far too uncomfortable for me.
“Now, apart from that, did you enjoy your first night out in Samoa?”
I nodded. “I guess. I’ve been stuck here training for so long now that it was good to get out and be around regular people. I didn’t even think about my fire stuff.”
Nafanua frowned. “Yes, you did well tonight, but still you must never let your guard down. Never forget what you really are. You don’t want to be caught unawares and have your fire unleash. Always be watchful.” She repeated the mantra that I must have heard a thousand times over the last few weeks. “A telesā must always be in control of her emotions. Only then can she hope to truly be one with her gifts.”
“I know, I know. I’ll keep that in mind.”
“So am I forgiven?”
I shrugged. “I guess so.”
We said goodnight and I went up to bed, grateful to finally be able to peel off the sheathe dress. Unlike other nights, sleep came quickly.
NINE
I was ignoring all sounds of morning when the raucous car horn woke me.
“What the heck?” I stumbled to the window to see who could be defiling my Saturday sleep in. There was a huge red monster truck in the driveway. And standing beside it with one hand on the car horn was a blonde-haired, blue-eyed demon. Jason.
Behind me, Netta spoke dryly. “The Professor says he’s here to pick you up. I believe you have an appointment with a volcano?”
I groaned. The last thing I wanted to do was spend my day with a man who had witnessed my miserable attempts to be an “alluring temptress” the night before. And who had known what the joke was before I did.
“Tell him that I’m sick, please Netta. I don’t feel good at all. Thank him and tell him maybe another day.” Or another lifetime, I thought as I stomped back to my bed in search of sleep. Which still was denied. As Jason honked on the horn again. I hid my head under the pillows and waited for Netta to send him on his way.
Another “ahem.” Netta again. “He said he’s not going anywhere until you get down there. He said you owe him. Big time. He said, and I quote – tell her I will come up to her room and drag her artificial bimbo self out of bed, with or without stiletto heels.” Her tone sharpened, “Leila, you better go down there and talk to him yourself because I’m not climbing these stairs again to pass on any more messages.” She sniffed at me derisively before trudging away back down the stairs.
“Damnit!”
There was no escaping this one. Not while the car honking kept going, one long continuous blare as I hastily dressed. What did one wear to visit a volcano? I rifled through my wardrobe, settling on long denim jeans to protect my legs and a cotton tee. I had a harder time finding my sneakers. It had been so long since I had needed to wear closed-in shoes, they felt awkward to pull on. I washed up but didn’t bother with much else, twisting my thick hair into a ragged bunch. Downstairs, I raided the refrigerator for a water bottle and two of Netta’s muffins. She looked at me sourly as I waved goodbye. Nafanua was reading the newspaper in the living room.
“I’m going out. With Jason.”
She shrugged indifferently but there was a smirk on her face. Which had me fuming. And less willing to be amiable.
On the veranda I stood still to yell at the horn honker, “Do you mind shutting that thing off now? What the heck is wrong with you? People are trying to sleep round here!”
Jason paused mid-honk to smile. Golden hair ruffling in the breeze, a shade unshaven and rumpled in khaki shorts and a red tee. “Why, good morning, Leila Folger! Aren’t you just bedazzling this fine morning?”
I poked my tongue at him and stomped down the stairs. “Oh just shut up. An old man like you shouldn’t be up this early. I mean, wow, at your age, I’m surprised you’re even still allowed to drive.” I pulled up in front of him, my arms folded in front of my chest, my stare accusing. “Dr Jason Williams, I believe?”
He had the grace to look abashed, pulling his white cap back and
rifling through his hair. “Nafanua busted me?”
“Yes. Yes she did. And I have to say, that I’m surprised you have the nerve to still show up here on my doorstep. What do you have to say for yourself?”
He gaped. “Excuse me? Aren’t you the one who should be groveling in supplication? You’re the one who was out to deceive me and mislead me with your alluring bimbo slinkiness! Don’t you feel bad? What if I had believed your act last night huh? What if I had fallen deeply and desperately in love with you? You would have had the blood of my lovesickness on your hands Leila Folger.”
I hid a grin. This man was interesting. Funny. Likeable. Like Maleko and someone else all rolled into one. Someone like … my dad. The realization hit me. That was it. The teasing jibes and the light banter – that was totally like me and my dad on a regular day. He was looking at me with his head tilted to one side, gauging my reaction. I grumpily pushed past him to the other side of the truck. “Oh just shut up. And stop calling me by my full name for goodness sake. It’s just Leila. You make me sound like my grandmother.”
I climbed in the passenger seat and slammed the door with so much force that the side mirror rattled. He didn’t react to the manhandling of his truck, merely got in and started up the engine. But there was a dancing grin on his face.
“Oh, I’m just trying to make sure you remember that I’m a full-blown genuine bona fide mantle geochemist … DOCTOR Jason Williams. In case you mistake me again for a lowly pitiful assistant who’s only good at digging dirt and wiping the volcanic dust off people’s boots.”
I groaned and rolled my eyes heavenward. I could see this was going to be a very long day.
Jason took me first to a grassy airfield at Fagalii. Where there was a helicopter waiting. My very first chopper ride was a stomach-heaving event. Thankfully, the magnificent view of the island distracted me enough from the antics of the pilot, who seemed to think he was a gunner pilot in World War II. We flew low over Apia, splayed out like a collection of child’s toys, then over the blue ocean cloth towards the big island, Savaii. Jason had to shout over the chopping blades as he pointed downwards.
“We’re based back in Apia but we spend most of our time onsite. We’ve got a camp up ahead on Mt Matavanu, the site of Samoa’s last volcanic eruption. See there!”
One could clearly see the spread of black that stretched for miles down to the ocean. It was awe inspiring. It wasn’t difficult to imagine the surging, rolling flood of red lava consuming the land as it spilled over the top of Matavanu. I shivered, remembering my quick Google of local eruptions. What a terrifying experience it must have been for the villagers, fleeing before the wave of fire that would not stop. The volcano itself was misleadingly dull looking. I tensed as the chopper descended to a flat space beside a collection of brown canvas tents that billowed in the upwind. As the blades whirred to a halt, Jason helped me out. He mock bowed. “Your highness, welcome to Matavanu, this lowly assistant grovels before you. Our tent is yours.”
I studiously ignored him. We were a short distance from the peak. It loomed before us, a craggy black chute like a vast chimney. I knelt and touched the black earth. It was solid lava rock, broken here and there by tufts of green as grass struggled to find space in the blackness. My breath was a hushed indrawn breath. I felt her. I heard her. She was real. A rush of sweet heat burned through me like none I had yet felt. It was like sinking into a pool of hot chocolate and then being slowly drizzled with black cherry sauce. Warm, sinuous, fragrant with delicious sweet promise. I closed my eyes in contentment and wanted to melt with happiness. There was no denying it. Somewhere deep beneath my feet on this decades-sleeping giant, someone or something was happy to find me. To feel me. To know that I was here. Call her Pele. Matavanu, whatever – something or someone lived. She called to me. Through layers of rock and sediment. Through subterranean water and metal, from where rivers of red fire slept. I could have knelt there all day.
But from a faraway distance I heard the puzzled worry in Jason’s voice. “Leila, hey? Are you okay? Leila?”
I shook myself out of my trance, pulling myself unwillingly away from the heat that was calling to me. Opening my eyes, I had to shade them against the sun. Jason was kneeling beside me, a hand on my shoulders where he had been shaking me. He looked anxious. I rushed to calm him with a smile.
“Hey, yeah I’m fine. Sorry about that. Was just a bit dizzy from the flight up here. And cos I didn’t get enough sleep last night. Was supposed to sleep in this morning you know, until a know-it-all Professor interrupted my beauty sleep.”
His face creased into a relieved smile. We both stood. “Whew, you had me worried there for a moment. First time I bring a guest up here to the site and she gets all spacey on me.”
I waved a hand at him. “Oh, it must be the ditzy bimbo in me. You should be able to relate to that.”
We were back to the casual banter. It was light, fun, and so easy. I looked around. “Where is everybody? You know, the rest of the team?”
“They’re further up taking readings. Soil, temperature, water – all that stuff. We do it every day so we can track what’s going on. Trying to figure out the patterns so we can decide what Matavanu’s plans are. You know she’s been dormant for almost a hundred years so she shouldn’t really be doing anything at all, but – as your mother probably told you – there is something fishy going on with Matavanu.”
I was intrigued. Just as Nafanua had been. I strove to keep my tone light and casual. “Oh? Like what?”
Before Jason could answer, there was an excited shout from further up the mountain. We both looked up at the same time. It was the three men from the previous night. Scrambling and half slipping down the loose dirt slope. With them were another two. Both about Jason’s age, both with brown lanky hair and the same surfer physiques. One wore glasses. Catching sight of Jason, the group increased their speed and I braced myself, doubtful they could make it down without slipping and smashing into us. All five of them looked very excited about something. I glanced worriedly at Jason – maybe my coming here was breaking a science camp rule or something and they were rushing down here to yell at us? But Jason looked as puzzled as I felt.
“What’s going on?”
The young guy with glasses was the first to reach us and the first to catch his breath. He pushed his glasses further up on his nose before launching into an explanation, words tumbling over each other like bubbles in a soda fountain.
“ Jason, you have got to check out these figures! It’s crazy, I’ve never seen anything like it.”
The grey-haired tired-looking man interrupted, his hands fluttering and gesturing wildly. No longer did he look worn and wasted. Now he was jittery and jumpy. “The data Jason, the data. It’s incredible. We should all be burning up in a lava river right now according to the data – nothing makes sense!”
Jason held up both his hands for calm. “What are you talking about? Slow it down, slow it down. Marcus” he motioned to the paunchy man, “Marcus, what the heck is going on? What’s got Blaine all excited?”
Privately, I thought he had made a poor choice for spokesperson. Marcus looked like he was battling a heart attack he was so out of breath from his frantic run down the mountain behind the others. But Jason waited for him to suck enough oxygen from the humid air.
“Jase, its true. We were finishing up the usual tests, about to pack it up and come back down when out of nowhere, all the machines just spiked. The readings were so high, they set off the alarms, near gave us all a stroke I can tell you.”
Jason lost all the boyish teasing and his whole stance changed. His brow furrowed, his eyes darkened and his shoulders tensed. In that moment, he looked like the lead scientist of a geothermal expedition. “Well what are we doing standing around here? We need to evacuate immediately, and get a warning out to the Disaster Management office, you’re saying Matavanu is going to blow?”
All of the men chimed in, “No, no, that’s just it, Jaso
n. The machines spiked but then they all went back to normal, well, they’re still above normal, but at least not at danger levels.”
Telesa - The Covenant Keeper Page 30