"How long have you all been here?" Alex asked, looking over the gardens and judging their growth with a practiced eye. You could normally tell the productivity of a commune by the health of their gardens.
"Long enough," the farmer answered. He rooted through our bag of supplies. "What do you want in exchange?"
"We need mosquito netting. And bug spray, if you have it. Maybe something for bites," I said.
He looked at me. "That's it?"
Alex spoke, "Maybe one of those water filtration systems, if you can spare it."
The farmer looked at us, eyebrows furrowed. "Are there more of you? A child, maybe?"
My blood ran cold. "What?"
He shrugged. "Just seems like if it were the two of you, you wouldn't be so concerned about bugs." He walked over to a pile of supplies under a tarp and pulled out a mosquito net. "We ran into someone a few weeks back. He traded some things, then said to be on the lookout for another group coming this way. Said they'd have a child with them. So I ask again, do you have a child with you?"
I looked around at the women and children. They looked back at me, eyebrows raised, hands fidgety. They painted a picture of reserved excitement and anticipation.
They must have Micah somewhere, I thought.
Alex came to the same conclusion more quickly than I did. The knife appeared in his hand.
The three men backed away.
"Whoa, whoa – hey. It's not what you think," the farmer said. He retrieved the bow on his back.
I reached out for the wind, sending a strong enough gust their way to throw them all on their backs. The bow and arrows went flying. I disintegrated the bow with a well-aimed fireball. Tightening my weaves around the arrows, I managed to catch them mid-air. Carefully controlled, it took a lot of energy. The arrows moved position, first up then down, settling into place. They wavered in front of the men's faces. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Alex's shoulders sag. Properly out-gunned, he put away his knife.
"Where is he?" I took a step forward, fists clenched.
"He…he left. Safely – I swear!" the farmer stuttered.
I released one of the arrows at the farmer's son. It shot just past his head, nicking his ear. A trickle of blood ran down his shoulder.
"I ask again, where is he?" Now I aimed all my arrows at his son.
The farmer's eyes went wide, "He told us to follow you. He said there would be a child named Bee. And that there would be more allies, along the river. He went ahead, recruiting for you." The words tumbled out of his mouth, "And he said if you didn't believe me, to tell you…"
"What? Tell me what?" I wanted to strangle it out of him.
"Dirty boots."
My eyes widened, and a small burst of adrenaline shot through me, settling at the pit of my stomach like a heavy weight. That phrase struck close to home; too close.
I looked at Alex. "I think he's telling the truth."
Alex stepped over to my arrows, still hovering in the air. The longer lengths of his hair blew, giving away what held the arrows in place. "Okay, but we're keeping the weapons for now." He plucked them out of the air and I released the energy.
Alex walked over to me, hissing in my ear, "Where did you learn to do that?"
I glanced at him. "I've been practicing." Truth was, I slept very little. Practice kept the nightmares away. I turned to the farmer, who was picking himself up off the ground. "What's your name?" I asked.
"Robert. And this is my son, Robert Jr. – we call him Bobby. And this is my cousin, James." Each of the men nodded as they were introduced. Bobby held his ear with a rag. He avoided my gaze.
"What about all the women and children? You have collected quite a few." I studied them again. Their eyes were still wide, but not with shock or surprise. It seemed more like…approval.
And then I noticed the higher levels of energy that buzzed within the small clearing. "They have powers, don't they?"
"So I've been told." Robert grimaced.
I looked at the gardens behind the tent again, growing with more intensity than I'd seen in the past year.
"They're all Earths. This here's my wife, Margie." The eldest of the women stepped forward and nodded her head. "And her two cousins – and their kids." Robert pointed down the line. "Micah brought the rest. Said he's been collecting them along the way."
I flinched as I realized Micah had been doing what I had just accused Robert of.
But why just Earths?
Earth magic was slow, steady, and ran on much lower frequencies. It was very hard to detect. Perhaps it would easier to sneak past whatever detection rings Shawn set up.
"And what about the children?" I asked. There were several, ranging from infants up to teenagers. "Do they have powers?"
"Some of the older ones do – we're not sure about the babies."
I nodded. Still none of the women spoke. Robert ran a tight ship. "How long ago was Micah here?"
"It's been three weeks now."
I chewed at my lip. I supposed I could begin to forgive Micah for his absence. He was clearing our path to Shawn, making it safe for me and Bee – and giving me the tools I needed to defeat Shawn once I got there.
Still, I could use a good foot rub – like the one Alex gave Susan every night. I longed to be touched by Micah again, and even more so to laugh with him. I missed my partner.
I rubbed my temples, swallowing the hard lump fighting its way up my throat. "Well – you still want to come with us?"
Robert hesitated, looking back at his son. "What if we don't?"
"I'll take the women and kids anyway, along with whatever can be reaped from your gardens." We had plenty of canned food, but now I had an army to feed.
He looked at me sharply. "We'll starve come winter."
"Okay then – start packing up and let's get on the road," I said.
As the camp whirled into action, the women moving faster than the men, Alex stepped closer to me. "River."
"What?" I asked.
"Let's get on the river – not road."
"Oh, shut it." I pushed him toward the tents. "And go help. We're going to need more mosquito netting."
Chapter 9
No Rhythm
Fortunately, Robert's group had several kayaks and canoes, enough for the people and their supplies. Alex, Susan, Bee, and I stayed in our own canoe. I needed to get some of the women alone; none of them seemed to want to talk much, especially with Robert nearby.
Halfway through the second day with our new crew, Robert paddled up to me on his kayak. "We need to talk about supplies."
"What about them?" I pulled my oar out of the water, glancing up at him.
"They won't last us long; maybe another two weeks."
Alex continued to row behind me. "And who knows how many more we'll collect along the way."
"Maybe we need to be foraging – a little bit each day, and when we stop for the night."
Robert snorted, "I ain't no gatherer."
"So adapt." My words were clipped. "We've been doing it the past year and a half. How have you managed to get by?" I made a pointed glance at some the women in a canoe next to him.
He grumbled, but didn't answer.
I took a deep breath, backpedaling. It wouldn't do to chase Robert away now; or not yet, anyway.
"How will we know where Micah has people stationed?" I asked. "I'm sure they won't want to advertise who they are in case One Less comes their way."
Robert paddled deep twice, then rested his double oar in front of him. "He said there'll be signs you recognize. Oh, and the water filters. They were his design. Said to look for them along the path."
I looked over at another canoe holding two women, including Margie, and the bulk of the group's supplies. "Can you get me one?"
He nodded his head, slowed and angled his kayak over to the supply canoe. Why he wasn't in there with his wife, helping, was beyond me. He retrieved a water filter and paddled it back to me.
"Thanks." I looked at the
contraption, turning it over in my hands before attempting to disassemble it. "Did he make these using your stuff or did he have these with him?"
"He had them with him. Said it came from another camp. But he showed us how to make them."
I'd seen several versions of water filters; they had quickly become the most essential personal item anyone could own. They ranged from complicated contraptions filled with rock, sand, and charcoal to a basic water filter of plastic bags suspended over pans of mucky water. It took forever for the condensation to drip off into smaller jars, but it was the purest way to retrieve water and it could be done from basically anything letting off condensation. Micah's seemed to be a combination of the two.
I dismantled the filter as Robert kept talking. "There will be Chakra Centers along the way; places that supposedly have an abundance of food and other resources. Wiccans teaching people how to live off the land or something."
I nodded, still inspecting the filter and shirking my navigational duties. Bee was doing a good enough job of that, pointing out every fish and rock she saw over the clear water. I searched the inside of the contraption, and each side of the material for a message. An 'I love you' or 'thinking of you' would have been enough. There was nothing.
I analyzed every small nick, scratch, and dent, piecing them together in my head, searching for a pattern. Still no luck.
"Kaitlyn," Susan said behind me. "Put it back together. I think his message to you is pretty clear."
"Yeah? What would that be?" I asked, with more bite in my voice than I intended. "Just keep paddling?"
"Something like that," Susan mumbled.
I reassembled the water filter and tossed it back to Robert, feeling sick to my stomach. I had been in a boat too long, and my old motion sickness was beginning to resurface. At least Bee didn't have that problem. I watched as she leaned over the side, swiping at fish that came close. She had been born on a boat – she was right at home.
"I think that Micah knows what he's doing, better than the three of us, at least," Alex spoke from the rear of the boat.
No one responded because we all knew he was right. But it wasn't what I wanted to hear. I was tired of straining my neck around each bend of the river, hoping to catch a glimpse of Micah waiting on his boat. I was tired of counting the days that passed since our handfasting ceremony. A year and a day was the agreement, then we tie the knot for good. That had come and gone. We should have been married by now.
Shawn's voice echoed through my head, "You can't have your cake and eat it, too."
Chills ran down my spine. I was pining after one man, who was leading me straight to the only man I never wanted to see again. And I was dragging everyone left in the world I cared for with me.
"This is so stupid," I said aloud.
"Stupid!" Bee repeated gleefully. "Stupid basherd!"
"That's it," Alex said. I heard him plunge his oar into the water and the entire canoe lurched toward the bank. He whistled, motioning for the boats ahead and behind to do the same. "Quick break," he yelled at them.
Once the bow hit soil, he jumped out and jerked the canoe to shore. He threw his oar back into the boat, narrowly missing Susan's head.
"Hey!" she shouted.
He took a deep breath. He was pissed. "I’m sorry. Could you please take Bee to use the restroom while I talk to Kaitlyn for a minute?"
Oh, crap.
Susan lifted Bee out of the boat, and started for the woods.
Bee started to squirm. "Fishies! I want to see fishies!"
Susan started to point out different tree species, making it seem far more interesting than it really was. I had to give her credit. No matter how much Alex and I treated her as a punching bag, she was always great with Bee.
Another canoe came ashore, the women gravitating toward Bee. "Wanna sing a song, little miss?"
"Yes," Bee squeaked. "Stupid basherd song!"
I cringed, watching the group walk off into the woods. After they disappeared, I turned to Alex and crossed my arms, "What?"
He waited for two more canoes to come ashore and their occupants to disappear into the woods before speaking, "Do you remember when you first came to the Chakra? You were a brand new addition to our team that had been together for years. You hadn't even known you had powers until we told you. But within months, you had us all standing behind you – willing to do anything for you."
"Except one," I mumbled.
He rolled his eyes. "Besides Shawn." He picked up a rock and skipped it across the river while we waited for the last of the boats to pull in. "And with the Athame, full of Shades. You had your own little army right there in the blade, teaching you to do more things than any Gaia in history."
I stayed silent, willing him to make his point.
"Which brings us to Easter Island. When we found you there, the entire island was standing ready to fight for you."
"For Bee," I corrected him.
"For both of you. Then your triumphant return to the Chakra turned out to be not so triumphant. But you worked at it, and won each Elemental over in your own way. In a way Susan, Micah, and I hadn't been able to do ourselves. What I'm trying to say, is if all of this has taught you anything – it should be to have confidence in yourself. Cut the bad mood, quit wishing Micah were here, and act like the Gaia you really are!"
By now, Alex's fists were clenched tight by his side.
I sighed. "Alex, I know I can do this – that isn't the problem. I just…"
"What?" he asked.
"I just don't want to do it by myself. I mean, I know I have you and Susan, but I need more. I need Micah." I kicked at the rocks at my feet. "I'm…you know, lonely. It's like this empty feeling in my chest that won't go away."
He put his hand on my shoulder. "You'll get him. But let him do his thing – let him help you in his own way. Deal?"
I didn’t respond.
He lifted my chin up with the crook of his finger. "Come on, Katie. Is it a deal?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.
I smiled. "Deal."
"Good. Now let's go find Bee. I think she's this way. I hear curse words."
I laughed, letting him lead. He was better at spotting the infamous three leafs and red tinted stem of poison ivy than I was. We walked to a group of three women, clapping their hands and stomping their feet in rhythm. One sang a country western song. Susan stood off to the side, stretching out her limbs and watching the show.
I walked around the women and found Bee in front of them, squat-dancing in time to their music. She kept with the beat, but about the only dance move she had thus far mastered was bending her knees, then straightening them again. She'd mix it up a little by throwing her hands over her head for a few squats.
"Mommy, watch!" she squealed when she saw me.
"I see you, honey. Very good!" I began clapping my hands, joining the circle of the other women.
Bee looked up at me, a proud smile on her face that matched mine.
"Wait." Susan walked into the circle, raising her voice to be heard above us. "What is that?"
"It's our insane rhythmic beat," I said, stomping my feet now.
"You have no rhythm, Kaitlyn!" she shouted back. She wasn't teasing, her eyebrows were furrowed and lips pursed, the way she always did when she was concerned.
I stopped stomping and clapping, and noticed the ground vibrating beneath me. "Stop – stop!" I yelled at the women.
They abruptly stopped their routine, looking at me confused.
"Something’s happening."
"Earth magic," one of them said. "But not from me."
"Me either," the other two chimed in.
"No, no. It's from Bee." All of us looked down at her. She had given up her squat dancing and was now spinning in circles, expending all of her pent up energy from being stuck in a canoe for days on end.
"Bee, honey. Come here – give mommy a hug."
She ignored me, continuing to spin.
"Bee, stop it now." I used my stern voice,
lowering it a pitch.
Bee stopped and looked at me. Her lower lip quivered, embarrassed to be chastised in front of an audience.
Crap, if she throws a fit now, the earth vibrations might get worse.
I took a step toward her, tripped on a tree root, and fell smack onto my face. Now I had the audience. I rolled over onto my back, groaning and feeling my nose to make sure it wasn't bleeding.
Bee laughed. "Stupid Bashterd!"
The rest joined in her laughter.
Susan helped me up whispering, "Nice save."
I raised my eyebrow at her. "That wasn't on purpose."
"Wasn't it?" she asked. "Sometimes I wonder about you."
Alex returned from relieving himself in the woods. "Come on ladies." He zipped up his fly. "Time to get moving." He took Susan by the hand and looked at me. "What happened to your face?"
Chapter 10
Afternoon Dip
We were back on the Ohio, in separate canoes, with a new game plan. Lots of shore leave to allow for Bee's 'energy breaks'. I hadn't really thought of it until now, but the past few years had to be exhausting for her. We had constantly been on the move, and as soon as she had learned to walk, she did a lot of the hiking herself. She expended her energy in a physical sense, and as soon as that wasn't possible, she’d found another outlet.
"Why Earth this time?" Susan was obviously mulling it over, same as me. "The last time this happened, at the Chakra, it was with fire."
I shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe she channels the magic of the people around her."
"Was there a fire around her in the library that time?" Susan asked.
I thought back – it was a long time ago. Almost two years. Bee had been only four months old. "I think so. But Fire may be her best element. The Elementals on Easter Island thought she was a Fire."
Susan pushed our canoes apart with a paddle, glancing at my boat's other occupant. "I'll give you some privacy."
On our way back to the boats, I worked out a riding plan with Susan and Alex. We would split up to take turns riding with different people in order to discover the extent of their powers, and to look for any signs to pinpoint spies from One Less. Bee would stay with me or Susan; I had yet to get her a life jacket. Right now she was sleeping.
Akasha 4 - Earth Page 4