The Scourge (A.G. Henley) - By A.G. Henley Page 0,55

I. But like the legend of the flowers, life goes on and hope blooms again.” We walk a little farther among the trees and pause in front of what must be Kadee’s home. The door squeaks as it opens, and the aroma of cooking food greets us. “I’ve brought Fennel to you, Kadee.”

“Would you like to stay for dinner, Nerang?”

“Thank you, no. I need to speak with Konol before he leaves with the hunting party. There’s much to do to prepare for the Feast of Deliverance.” Then he says to me, “I’ll be checking on your friend in the morning, if you’d like to visit him again?”

“I’ll bring her,” Kadee offers.

“That's okay, I think I can find it myself,” I say, not wanting to create work for her.

“After only one day?" Nerang says. "Impressive. I’m beginning to understand how you found your way through the Dark Place.”

“Oh, Peree helped. He had torches, and we used crampberries to mark our path–”

“I meant your tenacity, young one,” he says, and shuts the door. I turn to Kadee, smiling self-consciously after Nerang’s compliment.

“Would you like me to show you around my home, so you know where things are?” she asks.

I accept her offer. Her home has smooth dirt floors and wooden walls, like ours, but it’s larger. It has two rooms: a sleeping room, and the sitting area, situated around a small fire pit. I wash my hands in the basin against the wall as Kadee ladles our dinners onto plates. We take them outside to eat.

“I hope you’ll be comfortable here,” she says, when we're settled.

“I already am. It reminds me of home.”

“And you miss your home, no doubt. Will you tell me about it?”

I describe our part of the forest. I tell her about Aloe, Eland, and my friends. I tell her of the freedom of summer afternoons swimming in the water hole, my love of dancing and baking bread, the expectant silence of the caves that makes me feel they’re only quiet when no one is around to hear their hushed conversations. Conjuring my home helps me feel less homesick. The pungent scent of the greenhearts and the breeze tousling the leaves overhead almost convince me I’m there.

“It sounds like a peaceful place,” she says.

“It could be, without the Sc—the sick ones.” Or the Lofties, I almost say, before thinking of Peree. I take another bite instead. Leftover rabbit stew, and it’s still delicious. “So, what’s the Feast of Deliverance that Nerang mentioned?”

“Every summer the anuna celebrate the anniversary of finding Koolkuna, and deliverance from the fate of the sick ones. The hunting party will gather enough meat for all, and we’ll harvest the first summer crops in preparation.”

I swat at a mosquito buzzing close to my ear. “When is it?”

“At the next full moon, and we have much to do before then, as Nerang said. Would you like to come to the gardens with me tomorrow? We can certainly use your help.”

“I’d love to, after I check on Peree.” We laugh, because she said, “After you visit your friend, of course,” at the same time.

We talk through the cool evening, until the mosquitos’ persistent questing drives us indoors. Kadee is a good listener, quiet, but with a surprisingly exuberant laugh. I like her. As I fall asleep I realize I did most of the talking; she said very little about herself.

The incense is almost gone when I visit Peree the next morning. Nerang says the fresh air should encourage him to wake. He tells me he’ll send someone to find me when he does, so I go to the gardens with Kadee.

I enjoy wandering through the rows, handling and sniffing each plant as we tend them. Many of the herbs and vegetables are familiar, like the carrots and potatoes in the stew; others are foreign to me. Kadee tells me their names and uses. I try the leaf of something called a turnip, and make a face at the bitter taste. She assures me the roots are delicious when cooked, and I tell her I’ll take her word for it. At one point I smell rosemary, and I can almost hear Aloe scolding Eland for throwing clods of dirt at his friends in the next row. Homesickness backhands me, leaving me off-balance the rest of the morning.

Kora finds me in the gardens and invites me to their home for lunch. I meet her little brother, Darel, and Arika’s partner, Derain. Derain has a big booming voice. He sounds huge,