by Bridie Blake
“It’s fine. I’m surprised it’s taken you this long to ask.”
“I didn’t want to pry,” she replied. “But I am curious.”
Bhatia shrugged. “If you want to know, I’ll tell you, but it’s not pretty.”
“I’d like to know,” she said. “I want to know you better.”
Bhatia frowned at her and then took a breath. “I started working there when I was fifteen. Madame Grayam was kind to me. She found me on the streets and offered me a warm bed and food. She told me to stay as long as I wanted. I was a beaten soul back then and clung to any kindness shown to me. Looking back I should have known that I was signing up for years of more abuse.”
“You were abused?” Tempani gasped.
“Beaten by my pa for as long as I could remember. When he wasn’t hitting me, he was pounding into my ma. But it was more than that. He would call us names. Tell us we were worthless until one day we started believing him.”
“So you ran from home and lived on the streets?”
“I was too stupid to run. I should have grabbed my ma, and we should have left. There’s not a day goes by where I don’t wish I’d done it.”
“So what happened?”
“My pa was a drunk. He gambled every night and lost all his earnings time and again,” she said. “He owed a lot of money to one man. A merchant from the western coast. He came to the house a few times demanding the money. On his last visit he threatened my pa’s life. I remember sitting there, and I prayed to the God to let it happen. The God turned his back on me, and the next time the man came it wasn’t to take my pa’s life but to rob me of mine.”
Tempani reached out to grab Bhatia’s hand, but she snatched it away.
“I screamed for my ma as he dragged me from the house. He had cleared my pa’s debt in exchange for me,” she spat. “For months I was kept in a small room under his house. He would visit me each day, and I would be forced to do things… Sometimes he would come twice a day. Sometimes he would bring a friend.”
Tempani’s eyes welled as she listened and fought against the bile rising in her throat.
“For so long all I did was cry myself to sleep and pray that I would be saved. That was the last time I ever prayed. You may talk about the Great Gods being saviors, but to me they are nothing.”
“Did he let you go?”
Bhatia shook her head. “I realized that no one would help me. I had to save myself. I would not stay there and spend years regretting that I didn’t run. I broke a leg off the chair in my room and spent days sharpening it. I practiced punching and kicking. Doing it against the walls and building up my muscles. Any moment I was alone I did that. I started eating all the meals his wife brought me and got my strength back. I only had one chance at it. If I failed he would kill me.”
Tempani winced.
“Don’t judge me,” she whispered.
Tempani tried once more to hold her hand, and this time Bhatia let her.
“I had the sharpened chair leg under the bed. When he finally rolled off me, I grabbed it and rammed it into his heart. I held it there until I saw the life slip from his eyes. And then I ran. For weeks I walked and walked with no idea where I was going. That’s when I started stealing. First it was just food, but when I made it to the city, it was easier to get my hands on other things.”
“How long before she found you?”
She shook her head. “You have no sense of time on the streets. I was sleeping in gutters, stables, anywhere that was free. And there were so many others like me. All desperate to be saved from starvation. I learned pretty quick that the men ruled the streets and expected a cut of whatever you stole. If you were a thief and worked alone, you didn’t have a chance of living through the night. They were ruthless.”
Tempani sighed. What this girl had gone through was beyond anything she could ever imagine.
“Madame Grayam came for me when I was at my lowest. Later I found out that’s how she does it. She can spot someone at the end of their road, and then she offers salvation,” she said bitterly. “At first it was simple things like helping around the inn. And then she asked me to fill in for one of the girls who was sick because there was one man who hated being cancelled.”
“It’s him isn’t it?” She asked. “The one who gave you that.” She pointed at the burn mark on her neck.
“He was lovely. Very charming. Made me feel special, you know? And then after that he kept requesting me. So Madame Grayam made me sign a contract. She told me I owed her, and I believed her. I was young and stupid and didn’t realize I was signing away my life. Once you’re in, there’s no way out. She has people guarding the doors. If you go somewhere, someone always goes with you.”
“But you managed to escape. You went to Zadi.”
She shrugged. “It didn’t take me long to learn how to give them the slip. A couple you could bribe or sometimes slip something into their food at night to keep them on the privy.”
“Why not leave earlier then?”
“And go where?”
“Anywhere. You had money. You could have begun a new life somewhere.”
Bhatia laughed bitterly. “Do you really think they gave us the money? We were given food, shelter and clothing. That’s it.”
“You went back to thieving didn’t you?”
She smiled. “Under the protection of the inn, I didn’t have to hand over everything I stole. But I only stole from people who deserved it.”
“And how do you choose who deserves it?”
“If you are a man, you deserve it,” she snapped.
“Not all men are bad.”
“Tell that to the girls I work with. Their bodies are violated every day by men.”
“So you just go after the men who hurt the girls?”
“I go after all men.”
Tempani frowned. She didn’t believe her. Bhatia wasn’t a cruel person. She did the wrong thing from time to time, but it seemed more out of revenge than anything. Yes, she killed a man but that was because he hurt her. She stole the broach because he had hurt one of the girls at the inn. She alone wanted revenge on the nobleman who branded her neck.
“No, you don’t,” Tempani said. “You only do it to men you believe deserve payback. And you did have money to start afresh. You’ve been thieving for years, so you could have left.”
“What, you believe I stayed because I wanted to?”
“No, I think you stayed to protect those girls. You’re a fighter Bhatia. You want to help people who can’t help themselves. Look at Thara,” she said. “And when you felt me use my Power that day, you saw your chance to help other girls.”
“I came to you because of him,” she spat. “No other reason than to save my own life.”
“You can believe that if you want,” she said and patted Bhatia’s arm. “Thank you for confiding in me.”
“It still doesn’t mean I like you.”
“I know.” She went back to picking herbs, but she needed to say one more thing to her. Make her a promise that she was determined to keep. “I will never allow a man to lay in your bed again unless you give him permission.”
Bhatia’s eyes flashed at her. “I don’t need to be protected.”
“I will watch your back while you’re busy watching everyone else’s. No arguments.”
Bhatia frowned. “You have no reason to worry. I will never allow a man to touch me ever again. Wanted or not.”
As Tempani lay beside Nic later that night she felt such an overwhelming sense of sadness for Bhatia. To have never felt loved or have felt true affection was something Tempani couldn’t understand. She’d had a distant father but before that her childhood had been full of love. Her years after that she’d had Nika and Mother Chennai. Now she had Nic. She had been blessed in that area.
But Bhatia had none of that. Even now she had no one offering the comfort and warmth of friendship. Tempani had tried to become her friend but was constantly knocked back. It was like trying to work her way
through an invisible shield. Everyone in Bhatia’s life had taken from her and never given her anything. She had been robbed of her youth and innocence, and all that was left now was an untrusting shell.
Yet that wasn’t quite right. Tempani truly believed that there was a part of Bhatia that had never been squashed. A fire that no one had been able to extinguish. She was a fighter. But she had a tenderness in her that very few had ever seen. Tempani had been lucky enough to catch a glimpse of it when she’d witnessed her caring for Thara. And when she’d given her the potion to help her sleep.
She was not broken, and Tempani would make sure she stayed that way. She would make sure Bhatia knew love. And with that she nestled against Nic’s chest and thanked the Goddess for blessing her in this life.
The talk she’d had with Bhatia had made Tempani realize that things with her father were reparable, and she had to at least try and mend the rift between them. Her father did not care for beating around the bush so she knew she would have to be direct with him.
She found him after his morning practice, trudging back down the path toward his tent. He panted heavily as he wiped the sweat from his brow. He couldn’t hide his surprise when she fell into step beside him.
“What happened,” she said. “It wasn’t your fault. I never once thought you were to blame for it.”
His eyes saddened as his face sagged. He looked older, and Tempani hated that the man she’d idolized as a child had been lost to her for so many years. They had been robbed because neither had spoken openly to the other.
“It’s my job to protect my family, and I failed all of you,” he said quietly. “I should have been better prepared.”
“For so long I thought you hated me for surviving,” she whispered.
He stopped in his tracks and grabbed her by the shoulders. “Never.” His voice was tight as he met her eyes. “You and Chae are my world. After it happened I was ready to run with the two of you. We were getting as far from here as possible. If it hadn’t been for Darby making me see sense, we would have spent our lives in hiding.”
“Then why hold us at arm’s length? Why couldn’t we be a family?”
Tears pooled in the corners of his eyes. “I didn’t deserve the love of two such pure hearts. And I figured I would never make it out of this alive. I didn’t want you to lose two beloved parents. Better to think me a cold man and feel my loss less.”
She gasped. “I would never feel your loss any less than I felt hers. We love you. All we’ve ever wanted is to feel that love in return.”
“And it pains me to no end that I held back. Perhaps I did it for selfish reasons. Losing your mother almost destroyed me. To lose either of you, I would never recover.” He tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled sadly. “Do you think you can forgive me?”
She nodded as silent tears fell from her eyes. “I love you papa,” she whimpered as he wrapped her up in a tight embrace. “So much.”
He kissed the top of her head as he too wept.
As the sun set that night, father, son and daughter sat side by side. Happy to once again be a family.
—
She woke to the sound of screaming, and it took her a moment to realize it came from her. She lifted her hand to her face and wiped away her tears.
She turned at the sound of footsteps as Nic and Madoc burst through the flap. Not far behind them was her niska.
“What’s wrong?” Nic rushed to her side, wrapping his arms around her.
She looked over his shoulder and met the older woman’s eyes. “They’re dead,” she whispered. “All of them.”
“Who?”
“Did you see it?” She asked her niska, ignoring Nic’s question.
“I felt it,” she muttered. “Your abilities are stronger than mine.” She hobbled over and kissed the top of her head, surprising everyone in the tent. “I’m sorry you had to see that.”
“Who is dead?” Nic asked again.
“The Uhli tribe.”
“How?”
“He didn’t even spare the children.”
“Who didn’t? How did they die?” The frustration was growing in Nic’s voice.
“Your king,” the Shiasa spat. “His men will move to the next tribe.”
“We have no king,” he said defensively.
Tempani squeezed his hand as she spoke to her niska. “We need to fight back. Surely you can see the need now?”
Her wise old eyes were bright with tears as she nodded once. “I’ll send out a warning. All tribes must go into hiding.”
Tempani shook her head, frustrated with her niska. “No, we have to act now before others are attacked. Hiding will keep us safe for a few days, weeks maybe, but they’ll keep coming. His end game is to rid the kingdom of all Kalaowins.”
“I’ll gather the elders,” she said before disappearing.
Tempani let out an angry cry. “Why won’t she act? I don’t understand!”
“She doesn’t want to see her people get hurt.”
“They’re going to get hurt if we don’t do anything. At least if we fight, they have a chance to survive.”
“She’s stubborn. Most of the elders here are,” Madoc said. “Look, we were mounting a rebellion before we came here so what’s stopping us? I think we’ve wasted too much time trying to get the Kalaowins on board, and it’s pointless. Let’s go back, round up the commoners and start training people who actually want to fight. Helio and the rest of the tribe will join us. And I’m sure the other tribes that believe in the prophecy and want change will follow.”
“You’re right,” she sniffed. “We were planning this before, and I’m tired of her getting in the way. Let’s finish what we set out to do.”
“Tempani!” Chae called out as he raced inside. “The elders have gathered. You have to come hear this.”
She shook her head. “Niska’s telling everyone to go into hiding. She just wants the blessing of the elders before she contacts the tribes.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her along. ‘She’s not. Hurry!”
They ran after him and came to a halt at the fire. The tribes parted and left a clear path to the elders and her niska. They beckoned her forward. With a nudge from Chae, she did as they wanted.
“Tonight the Uhli tribe was attacked. I wanted our people to hide. Disappear until it is safe to return, but my way is not the answer.”
Tempani frowned as the Shiasa walked forward.
“Tonight I stand aside and allow our new Shiasa to lead. She is ready to take her place and forge her own path.”
The gathered tribes gasped.
“She has a strong fire burning deep within her, and she is bound, sometimes unwillingly, to fight for those who don’t have the strength to fight themselves. She has all the qualities of a good Shiasa, but it is my strong belief that she will surpass that. As my successor, she will bring peace to us all.”
She brought her arm up and opened her hand. Lying flat on her palm was the smooth, dull rock that only the Shiasa could touch. Tempani held her breath and slowly picked it up. She raised an eyebrow when nothing happened and couldn’t help but feel slightly deflated.
“The rock I have given her is precious to our people. It was taken from the very mountain behind us where our first tribe lost their lives. It has been handed down to each Shiasa as a reminder of the heartache we have faced. It is our jewel, and now I pass it down to her.” She turned to Tempani. “You have shed the blood and tears along with our First, and now you carry a part of that with you. Behold, your Shiasa.”
A cheer broke out, and Tempani surveyed the scene with tears in her eyes. She was now their leader, and it filled her with such an enormous sense of pride that for a moment she felt overwhelmed and completely out of her depth. But then her gaze fell on her friends and family. Kamari and Kalaowin alike, and she knew she could do this.
Reeta stepped forward and handed her spear to Zadi. “Now cousin, it is your turn. Guard with your life.”
Zadi’s
face filled with pride as she accepted the spear and stood by Tempani’s side.
Tempani noticed Rando lurking behind everyone, and she beckoned him forward. “Now I have two people I trust watching my back.”
Zadi and Rando stared at one another, sizing each other up, until Rando nodded.
Messengers were sent out the next day to each tribe, warning them of the threat and urging them to follow Tempani into action. She would set out the day after next, back to the convent, where she would send out a call to her followers. Her father’s contacts still in the city would start gathering people wanting to fight. They would destroy Hallam and Lord Ricton and anyone who followed them.
~12~
A CURSED LIFE
They travelled quickly, leaving behind only those who were too young or too old to fight. And Colbert. He had refused to join them in a cause he no longer believed in. No amount of persuasion on any of their parts would change his mind. Tempani didn’t want to order him to join them so they left him and the others to go into hiding.
His still unnamed child rode with Thara, with Nika sticking close to the pair. Tempani had noticed him watching Thara. He was never far from her as though he wanted to protect her and the baby.
The mood was somber as they set up camp each night. They set about their tasks quietly, and it wasn’t until they sat down for food that people began to relax. Tempani couldn’t blame them for being scared. One of their tribes had just been slaughtered. They didn’t know who would be next.
After another day of riding, she had stayed up talking to Nic, who had been quiet since the news of the slaughter.
“They all think I’m just like him,” he confessed to her. “They watch me with such distrust. Hatred even.
She turned over in his arms and rested her forehead against his. “Prove them wrong.”
“That easy is it?”
“I did it. They all thought I was like mama, and I had to show them that I wasn’t. That I wouldn’t abandon my duty.”
“That you wouldn’t choose love over them?”
“Yes,” she whispered.