by Wendy Wang
“What do you mean?” the old woman asked. Her soft tone sounded more patient and willing to believe.
Neala took a deep breath and calmed herself. “About nine weeks ago, I was taken captive by an ex-warden. He tricked me into coming here to Nydia then drugged me. I’m still not completely clear on how I escaped and there are holes in my memory, but there are also…” Neala swallowed hard. “There are also very vivid memories of where I was and what was done to me. I believe Peter’s soldiers may have taken your daughter.”
“Why? Why would he do this to my daughter?” The old woman’s voice cut through her.
“I don’t know why she was chosen. I don’t know why I was chosen. I do know that I remember hearing at least one other woman where I was being held.”
“And you think it was my daughter?” the old woman asked.
“I don’t know. I doubt it. I escaped after just a few days. But I do think she was someone’s daughter.”
“If this is true, there must be a commonality. Some similarity you and Paldraelle share,”Alessé said.
“Yes, I was thinking the same thing.” Neala nodded her head. “Perhaps all the women have something in common. Some trait or something he wanted.”
“All right. Let’s think this through.” Alessé stood and began to pace. Her soft, round face transformed along with her body in the way she held her shoulders and tapped her finger against her lips. Neala couldn’t help but smile as Alessé the Defender emerged, looking for the logical argument, the evidence. “They were all mothers, and they had no living male family to represent them.”
“I don’t think that’s it. I’m none of those things.” Neala shook her head.
“Yes, but you are single, as were they,” Alessé said.
Neala rubbed her forehead and closed her eyes. Something niggled at her—another memory–Peter’s voice telling someone else to bring him others like her. As far she knew, there were no others like her besides her mother and sister. But maybe she was wrong. Maybe the realms were filled with girls like her, girls who could command if not five elements, four or three, which still made them powerful.
“Belldraelle, did your daughter have more than two affinities?” Neala asked.
“She did.” Belldraelle’s eyes narrowed. “What difference would that make?”
“What were they?” Neala asked. The old woman glanced to Alessé and shifted on the couch.
“It’s all right.” Alessé placed her hand over the old woman’s and gave it a gentle squeeze.
“Fire, of course. Water and earth. Why does it matter?”
“I’m not sure yet. Alessé, do you know if any of the others had more than one or two affinities?” Neala asked.
“I don’t, but that would be easy to check. Do you think it’s important?”
“I don’t know. Something keeps popping into my head.” Neala rubbed her forehead again, as if it might coax the memory from her mind.
“What is it?” Alessé put her hand on Neala’s upper arm and knelt down next to her. “Can you tell me?”
“I don’t know—” Neala scrubbed her forehead harder. “Just…the image is there, but it’s just out of my reach. I can hear his words.”
“What is he saying?” Alessé asked gently.
“He wants more like me. Women like me,” Neala said.
“To what end?” Alessé said.
Neala shook her head and frowned. “I don’t know.”
“I believe we have enough to go on,” Alessé said. “We should be getting back now. It’s almost time to start preparing lunch.” Alessé looked at the timepiece hanging from the silver bracelet around her wrist.
The old woman’s face softened and she took a sip of her tea. Her wet eyes drifted to something on the wall over Neala’s shoulder. Neala glanced behind her. A framed portrait of a young woman with large, dark eyes wearing a wide, joyful smile stared out at the room. She wore no veil or hood and her dark hair spilled over her shoulders in thick waves.
“Your daughter is beautiful,” Neala said. “Thank you for telling us her story.”
“I hope it will help you find her,” the old woman said.
“I promise you I will do everything I can to bring her home to you.” Neala stood. “And I will make sure my mother knows what’s going on here. I know she will be very displeased with how the women are treated here.”
“Thank you,” the old woman said and rose from the couch. “Your mother is a wonderful ruler.”
“I’ll be sure to tell her you said so.” Neala smiled.
Alessé kissed the old woman’s cheek and whispered something into her ear that Neala couldn’t hear. Neala and Alessé put on their veils and covered their hair with their hoods before heading out into the hallway.
“Alessé?” Neala whispered as they approached the edge of the third floor landing. Alessé turned to Neala and cocked her head, leaning in close so she could hear Neala. “Is there somewhere we can go to talk?” Alessé nodded her head and the two women headed down the steps in silence.
******
“We can talk freely here.” Alessé took a seat and pushed her hood from her head then removed her veil. Neala sat across from her, scanning the room. She took notice of the exits first, just in case they needed to take their leave quickly. Alessé put a menu in Neala’s hands and she looked it over. There were coffees and teas that Neala had never heard of and a long list of pastries and sandwiches. A server appeared and Alessé ordered a coffee and a honey cake. Neala was not particularly hungry so she picked something familiar, a mint tea.
“So, I take it the authorities don’t know about this place?” Neala said.
“No, of course not. Farrasce told me recently that legislation has been proposed to eliminate the education of women altogether. Soon I won’t even be able to send my daughter to school when she’s old enough.” Alessé stared at the bookshelves lining the walls of the hidden café. “If they found this place, every book here would be burned and we would all be arrested.
“Why do you stay?” Neala asked. The server returned with their order, placing Neala’s tea in front of her. The server gestured towards a small container of honey and a dish of sugar cubes. Neala pointed to the honey and the server placed it on the table next to the cup of tea. Neala lifted the wooden top of the container and took the long, wooden stick with the round, honeycomb-shaped ball full of honey and drizzled it in her tea. Once she felt it was sweet enough, she stirred the pale, amber liquid and took a sip. Despite the warmth of the liquid, it had a cooling effect on her throat she found interesting. Neala propped her chin with her hand and watched as Alessé doctored her coffee with sugar and cream.
After Alessé took the first sip of her coffee, her forehead creased and she focused on Neala. “I stay because this is my home.”
“Yes, but if you left for another realm your daughter would not be denied an education,” Neala said.
“I understand that, but—” Alessé frowned and the lines around her mouth deepened. “I suppose foolishly I keep hoping that if we stay long enough things will go back to the way they were.”
“But how will that happen unless you do something to change it?” Neala asked.
Alessé’s expression distorted and she opened her mouth as if to say something, but then closed it. Her mouth pressed into a flat line and her eyes filled with sadness. “I don’t know if you are just naive or hopelessly idealistic. I’m afraid the world’s not quite so black and white, Your Highness.”
Neala glanced around at the other women sitting at the tables scattered throughout the room. Some still had a sense of pride about them while others held their shoulders up straight, defiantly.
“I suppose I’m both,” Neala said. “But that doesn’t make me wrong.”
“No, it just makes you—young,” Alessé said.
Neala shrugged. “You can dismiss me because I’m young, if you like, but even I know nothing can change without action. Who better to take those actions than those
whose rights have been taken away?”
“You see things so simply. I have a daughter to think of. If I end up arrested, what good will I be to her?” Anger edged into Alessé’s voice.
“Perhaps, but what good will it be for your daughter to see a mother who won’t stand up for herself? Or others like her? What lesson will she learn then?” Neala said.
“She will learn to survive,” Alessé said.
“Not to offend, but how is that better? How is being alive but unable to live freely better than dying in order to ensure your daughter lives in a world where she doesn’t have to hide who and what she is behind a veil?” Neala said. She knew she was overstepping a line—after all, she was not a parent, but the idea that Alessé could just accept these new rules about educating women and girls did not make sense to her. Alessé’s eyes narrowed and dark patches of red appeared on her cheeks. Even without trying, Neala could hear her new friend’s most dominant thoughts. Who does this girl think she is? I don’t care if she is the Queen’s daughter. She has no right — and maybe she didn’t have a right to see the world so black and white, but Neala couldn’t stand by and just let these women be treated this way.
“It is very easy to say such things when you will be gone tomorrow, back to the safety of a heavily guarded palace.” Alessé jutted her chin and the muscles in her long, beautiful neck tensed.
“I suppose it seems that way,” Neala said. “Which is why we need to do something today before I leave.”
“Today?” Alessé laughed. “What do you expect to do today? We need to wait until Farrasce gets home. Perhaps if he learns of your experience—”
“There’s no reason for him to help us.” Neala gazed across the room and shook her head. Peter was behind this, she knew it in her gut. Cai would never believe her without proof. To get Cai behind them, they would need to bring him more than just one old woman’s story. “We’re on our own with this one. Are you with me or not?”
“I don’t know if you’re brave or just mad,” Alessé said.
“So you’re with me.” Neala brought her eyes back to Alessé and a grin played at the corners of her mouth.
Alessé shook her head no, but her eyes told Neala a different story. “I can’t believe I’m about to do this.”
“You will,” Neala said, leaning forward, letting her smile stretch across her face. “First thing we have to do is figure out the most likely place where he’s keeping them.”
“I believe I may know that answer,” Alessé said.
“Please enlighten me,” Neala said.
“I think he may be hiding them in plain sight. Someplace where no one would question women in a jail cell,” Alessé said.
“And where would that be?” Neala asked.
“Where all dissidents are held. The justice building. Which means you and I have no access to it.” Alessé sighed and her shoulders deflated. Neala frowned, unsure of how her friend could give up so easily.
“You and I dressed as women may have no access to it, but—” Neala signaled for her to move closer. Alessé leaned in and Neala whispered, “But if we dressed as men, we could move freely.”
“Impersonating a man is considered an unholy act for a woman. If they caught us, they would kill us where we stood,” Alessé said, sounding frightened. Neala took her friend’s hand and held it between both of hers. She locked eyes with Alessé as she spoke.
“Then it’s very important we don’t get caught,” Neala said.
******
“What is this stuff?” Neala jutted her chin and squeezed her eyes shut as Alessé used a soft-bristled brush to paint her face.
“It’s skin tint. Now hold still. You’re worse than a child,” Alessé teased.
“It tickles.” Neala squirmed.
“Yes, well, I’m sorry. But since you’re the only one of us that will actually pass for a man, you must endure it,” Alessé said. After they left the café, Alessé convinced her to come back to the house so that they could dress appropriately in Farrasce’s court clothes. Alessé’s short stature and ample curves were not easily disguised but Neala’s tall, lean frame fit Farrasce’s black robes and her small breasts flattened with enough binding. Neala’s pale skin and red hair proved more problematic. Alessé had suggested wearing skin tint to make Neala blend with the crowds.
“When you arrive at the guard, what are you going to do?” Alessé asked. They had gone over the plan and now Alessé was testing her.
“I am going to ask to see the dissident.”
“And if he says no?”
“I will show him the papers you forged and tell him the Chief Defender of the People will not be happy. Then I will cite the law, that you’ve so conveniently written down for me, and threaten his job.”
“Very good.”
“And you’re sure this will work?” Neala said.
“Absolutely. A dissident may be held without a trial, but he must be treated humanely. All you are doing is verifying the conditions. Turn your head, please.” Alessé lifted Neala’s chin and started to apply the tint to her neck.
“What if they’re not held in the dissident’s chamber?” Neala asked.
“Then get out of there as quickly as you can. No need to tempt the fates.” Alessé said. “I think that looks good. What do you think?”
Alessé held a small mirror up for Neala. The skin tint was only a few shades darker than her own coloring, but it made her blue eyes stand out. “I still look like a girl. What about facial hair?”
“I’ve been thinking about that.” Alessé stepped back to view her work. “I have some hairpieces that I use for different ceremonial occasions. What if we use the hair to make a goatee and to bulk up your eyebrows? I’m still not sure what to about your red hair.”
“I can mask it easy enough.” Neala picked up a lock of her hair and stared at the copper curl. “What about the length. I’d rather not cut it.”
“There’s no reason to cut it. The men here wear their hair very long. If you can change the color, I can style it the way Farrasce does.” Alessé said.
“All right.” Neala closed her eyes and let Alessé work her magic.
After an hour, Alessé stood up and stretched her back before announcing, “You are done.”
Neala’s fingers went to the hair glued to her upper lip and chin. She wiggled her nose, ignoring the itchiness caused by the glue. “So how do I look?”
“Stand up,” Alessé said. Neala rose and threw her shoulders back, trying to look taller.
“Well?”
“Very passable,” Alessé said. Her eyes went over Neala’s body. Alessé had dressed her in one of Farrasce’s work suits—a gray robe over gray pants with a black tie at her neck. Her eyes trailed over Neala’s body and stopped at her hands. “There is one thing missing. Wait here.” Alessé disappeared into the closet and when she returned she held out a rectangular leather binder. “Every defender carries one of these. It’ll keep people from looking at your hands, which are a little small for a man. Otherwise, I think you look perfect.” Neala beamed and her mouth twitched as the hair from her fake mustache brushed against her bottom lip.
“Thank you,” Neala said. “I couldn’t do this without you.”
Alessé’s dark eyes filled with concern. “Are you sure you want to do this? It could be very dangerous for you, Highness. If you were caught—”
“I understand the consequences. I also understand how powerful our thoughts are. By thinking about being caught, surely I will be caught. No, I’m doing the right thing. For the right reason. And I’m not scared,” Neala said silently, adding at least not yet. “Just make sure you are nowhere near me if something does happen. I couldn’t bear if something happened to you, too.”
Neala threw her arms around Alessé’s neck and hugged her close. It took a moment for Alessé to return the hug. But once she did, she squeezed Neala fiercely as she whispered against Neala’s ear, “You be careful. Do you have your escape routes with you?”
“Perhaps you should carry that in your binder. Just in case,” Alessé said.
Neala nodded and folded it into fourths before slipping it into the binder.
“I will walk you as far as I can. I have to pick up my daughter at my mother’s by four o’clock, so I cannot wait long,” Alessé said. Neala looked at the timepiece in her pocket. It was 2 PM.
“If I’m not out by 3:30 PM. I want you to leave. Just walk away and don’t look back. All right?” Neala said.
Alessé ‘s hands went to her belly and she took a deep breath and nodded. “All right,” she said. “But you will be out before then so there’s nothing to worry about.”
“Exactly.” Neala forced a smile. Nothing to worry about—Neala hoped the words would become truth.
Fifteen
Neala walked up the sandstone steps of the Justice building, and suppressed the urge to look back. Even from this distance, she could still feel Alessé watching her from a dark corner of the square, where the women were allowed to buy from the street vendors. They had talked at length about the plan. What she was to do, where she was to go, how she was to act.
Neala held her head high as she strode across the rotunda and took the long hall to the left, just as Alessé had told her to do. No one gave her a second glance. It helped, she supposed, that most Nydians had a primary affinity for fire and that she wore Cai’s pendant.
Make no eye contact. She thought of Alessé’s words as she rounded the corner and headed for the double doors at the end of the hallway. With one milestone down, Neala pushed through the doors and headed down the three flights of steps towards the holding area.
A guard at a desk propped one foot on the surface, anchoring him as he leaned the chair he sat in back on two legs. He held a newspaper between his hands and rested part of the paper on his rotund belly. Neala stepped up to the desk and cleared her throat to make him notice her.