He looked at me wide eyed and short of breath but didn’t say anything. His shirt bulged from his waist unnaturally, as if hiding something.
“Hello little brother,” I said, cocking my head with curiosity, “What have you been up to?”
“Nothing!” He squealed before darting away into the bedroom. Quickly he reemerged as if nothing happened. The bulge under his shirt was gone.
“Are you hungry?” I asked. “It’s past supper time.”
“No,” he said, wiping his nose on his arm. “I just want to play soldiers.” He walked over to the hearth where his wooden toy was and almost instantly began to play his imaginary game.
I watched for a minute, daring to nibble on some bread and dried sausage even though I had already eaten once that day. Casually I got up and went to the bedroom to find whatever Raini had been hiding.
Quietly I snooped. It didn’t take long to find his stolen treasure. Under a dirty tunic was a brilliantly colored scarf. Even in the poor light of the bedroom I could see its woven yellow-green pattern, bordered by a thin strip of golden thread. I was startled—it was likely the most beautiful thing ever to have been in this house. But it wasn’t ours.
I kept quiet until my father came home, tired and dirty from a long days work. Nervously, I approached him about the scarf.
“Raini has been stealing again Papa,” I said.
He lifted his eyebrows, but didn’t speak.
“It’s not right,” I added.
“What is it this time?” he asked with a sigh.
I got up and walked silently into the bedroom, carefully moving between the two small beds that we all shared with each other. Raini was fast asleep.
The gold of the scarf glimmered in the soft light of the oil lamp.
“Well, let me see that,” he said as he gently lifted it from my hands. “My, what a pretty thing.”
“We should have Raini return it to its owners,” I offered.
“No. Then he might be punished if they report him. He’s to young to learn that lesson.”
“Then let’s donate it to the Saans.”
“There’s no need for that.”
“But Papa, he stole it. It’s not right for us to keep it or sell it for ourselves.”
“Good Aethan Yossinda, can’t you see we could use some more money? Or at least something beautiful in this house?”
I scoffed in disbelief. But maybe I shouldn’t have. This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened.
Raini rubbed his eyes with his little fists, trying to get the sleep out. Even so, his eyes were caked with the yellow of his ever present sickness.
“Raini, my little son, come here,” Papa said from his seat on the hearth. Raini climbed on his lap and leaned against his chest.
“You know you shouldn’t take things that aren’t yours,” he whispered.
Raini nodded.
“We found the scarf. Yossy wants to return it to the owners and we both want you to stop stealing. Bad things happen to thieves in SaanSanti.”
“But Papa, we need the scarf,” he begged.
“What on Terro’s lands do you mean son?”
“We are so poor. Yossy and Yeidi never eat and you are always dirty. I wanted to help. That’s all.”
Papa and I locked eyes. From across the kitchen I could feel his heart break.
Chapter 13
Aneh
People filtered in and out of the house like detectives searching for clues and offering solace whatever way they could. Ive stuck around for once and took care of the chickens and the goats, Yakeh talked to me at night and Khati made sure I could fall asleep. I mostly sat on the patio wrapped in wool, my face as blank as white sky before snowfall. My insides crept and crawled in despair. I had so many questions and no answers. I let it paralyze me.
One day I got a visit from an old man. So lost in thought was I that I couldn’t even recognize him. It seemed like I hadn’t been able to speak for years until Rhys came to call. I tried to count the time since they took Olei but all I could recall left me somewhere between five and thirteen nights. I sat silently.
“You don’t know that Olei is gone from your life,” Rhys said, a lilt in his voice.
“Don’t I?" I asked, emotion rising in my voice. "Rhys, did you see those men? They were mean and huge and powerful! Olei cannot come back! They will not let him. Besides, I know Olei, he will not escape, he is too passive...and he's injured. He cannot run and he wouldn't even if he could."
"I had a fear, though I forgot it for a while, that something like this would happen,” Rhys replied. “When I was young and still part of the Saans, SaanObith passed away. People came to the city from all over, bringing elaborate gifts – even bringing their own people as gifts – to the Saans. They were praying for the new SaanObith, some were hoping their people would be chosen as the new SaanObith. What happened, as far as my little ears could tell, is that the Saans themselves were out searching for a replacement. A young, earnest and obedient boy, almost if not already a man, easy to shape and mold into the new Saan. They demanded these boys from the villages governed by Saansanti, even from villages so remote they did not even know they were part of the Kingdom. Once all the boys were present, they made their choice. Praise the reborn SaanObith, we all said."
"What happened to the ones who weren't chosen? Did they send them back?" I asked, hopeful.
"Oh, good Aethan no, they kept them as Underlings. Some of the luckier ones rose up to become Brothers. The Five Great Saans used the Underlings and the Brothers do their work and run their Houses. They kept them, cut their manhood, praised them for their sacrifice and congratulated them on their acceptance into the Saans. The way the Saans convinced these young men not to run away was quite brilliant, actually.”
“Do you think that’s what will happen to Olei?” I asked.
“Yes. One of those two fates will be his. I don’t think he will ever be able to return on his own.”
“What am I going to do, Rhys?” Emotion clung to my voice.
"Aneh, I think you have two choices,” he began. “You can stay here and move on with your mind. We will find you a new partner, go back to work. Or, you can move on with your body. You can go to Olei. You can find him in SaanSanti and do your best to live alongside him. I don’t think hope of his escape is worth having. He will be a changed man once you find him."
I thought about the Saans that had taken Olei and I was frightened. Going to a place where people were like them was petrifying. There was no way I would succeed, let alone survive. But the thought of never seeing Olei again was too painful.
"If it had been you that was taken, Aneh, what would Olei do?"
I told my loved ones what Rhys had said. And that I thought I should leave and try to find him.
“We can’t lose another!” Khati sobbed to me, “You’re all we have left of Olei.” My mother and father were deeply unsupportive and told me not to go. Yakeh said he knew I could succeed, that he believed in me, but agreed with the others that the risk was too great.
Looking at their pained faces, it was easy to agree with them too. I would move back into my parents’ home, back to my chickens and herbs. Though my heart told me to do otherwise, we’d mourn the loss of Olei and then continue living our lives.
Chapter 14
Yossinda
From what I could gather, the Saans were up to something special. For weeks we had been engaging in special prayers when at the Houses and the blessings in the yard of the Citadel were often led by Brothers—Saans who were less powerful than the Five Great Ones but still very wise and spiritual.
Travelers continued to come to the city, bringing gifts for the Saans that ranged from decorated pots to embroidered linens. Some, Yeidi said, even brought their children as gifts to the Saans. She said they were hoping their child might be chosen as the next SaanKote.
People whispered that the Five were out looking for the new SaanKote.
I heard others say that they were spending their days and nights fasting and praying. At least there was one thing we could agree on, the new SaanKote would be coming soon, Aethan willing.
Of all the people I would have expected to rejoice in the coming of the new Saan, the Queen was not amongst them. Ever since the day she threw the little Tinea tin out the window she had been more quiet and broody in private, though in the company of others she seemed her normal, elegant self. I watched now as she effortlessly produced a smile for her company of relatives. Her eyes sparkled in the midmorning light.
She spied me looking at her. With a graceful flick of her fingers she called me to her.
“Prepare me a bath,” she whispered. “Make it hot. I will finish here after this glass of wine.”
I nodded and left.
A little underling in blue stopped me on my way to the bathing room in the Queen’s solar. His childlike blue eyes told me he was young. His hollowed checks told me he did not eat enough.
“Missus, the Brothers of SaanReas send this for the Queen’s health. It is for her bath waters, to help her majesty rejuvenate.” He crossed his arms and bowed to me. I returned the gesture.
What a lovely gift, I thought, amazed by the perfect timing of this gift. How divine the Saans should know of her Majesty’s desire to bathe at this moment!
The Queen was much less delighted by her gift than I was.
“Of course.” She said with a frown as she picked up the packet of salts. “Rejuventate myself…” she mumbled, “You didn’t put any in here did you?”
“Nnnno. No you Grace.” I stammered.
“Are you sure Yossinda?” She asked venomously.
“Yes your majesty.”
She opened the doors to the balcony and walked out with the salts still in her hand. I waited anxiously for her to throw it into the Citadel yard below. But she remained calm. The only movement for a while was the cool breeze of the fall air.
“Send it back,” she said. “I don’t need their toxins. It’s their money that I need.”
“Your Grace?”
“Do not tell them I said that. Take the salts back. Instead, tell them I appreciate their gift of healing but that it would be wasted on me. Only coin will help me to…what was the word…rejuvenate. See if you can get the word to SaanObith. He might be very upset if I do not get what I want.
“Leave me now. I will bathe alone.”
Chapter 15
Aneh
“Get up,” Yakeh demanded.
I looked up from my wool blanket to meet his eyes and shook my head.
“If you’re going to stay here, then be here. You’re like a ghost haunting our patio. I haven’t seen you move than five steps for days.”
The truth was I had moved more than five steps. At night, when everyone was asleep, I had taken to pacing around the edge of our house, stopping only to look at the heavens and wonder what sort of fate Aethan laid for Olei and me there. I hated Aethan for what he had done to us. But I didn’t care to tell Yakeh this.
“Put on your sandals. We’re going to the falls.”
I groaned. The falls were so far away. They were full of memories of Olei.
Yakeh bent over and pulled me out of the chair. With one swift movement he hoisted me over his shoulder. Surprised, I giggled.
“I’ll make you go, like it or not Aneh.”
“Stop! Stop!” I laughed. “Put me down and I’ll come. I promise.”
“Okay let’s go!” He said with a chuckle. I won’t race you this time because I’ll win.”
“Are you so sure?”
And with that, we left.
A couple times I looked back towards our house. It felt so good to stretch my legs and see familiar sights. The worn wood of a dead juniper tree still standing leafless in the pink sand. Fall colors decorating the remaining foliage on the plants and bushes. Giant cracks appearing and disappearing on their route through the sandstone cliffs towards the sky. The cliff faces themselves like old ancient peoples watching over me.
But not all was the same as we walked towards the washer woman falls. The creek bed was wide and sandy. Only small bits of browning water pooled in the shade.
“Yakeh,” I asked, “Where is all the water?”
“I was just wondering the same thing,” he replied.
“Isn’t it unusual for it to be so dry? We haven’t even had a drought this year!”
He looked at me and I felt my puzzled expression reflected in his. We continued on.
To my relief, the more we ascended the more water we saw. We arrived at the falls to find the pool was still there. Yakeh pulled off his tunic in his usual style—balling it up and throwing it at me.
As we laughed I looked more closely at the water. Something didn’t look right. It had a sheen like a rainbow but at the same time almost looked gray. From the corner of my eye I could see Yakeh getting ready to jump in.
“Yakeh No!” I yelled. I lunged to my side to grab hist wrist, pulling him back with a jolt.
“Ow!” He yipped. “Why did you do that?”
“Look at the water. What do you see?”
“It looks strange…like shiny and dirty…but not mud-dirty.”
“Do you remember that fish I found? It was gray like the water.”
He gulped, remembering, “I almost went in! I could’ve gotten poisoned!”
“What is happening to our water?” I asked the sky.
Yakeh shook his head, “I’m not sure. Let’s get away from here.”
We told our parents and we told Rhys. Later there was a village meeting but everyone agreed there was probably nothing to be done. No one knew where the water came from that fed the washer woman falls. Some thought perhaps Aethan or Kote was angry with us for letting one of our own go. Others thought that a heard of animals had died and their decomposing bodies were poisoning the water source.
All I could think of was the fish.
Chapter 16
Yossinda
Once again I spent another nearly sleepless night in my Father’s house. It seemed only minutes from the time I finally drifted off until the time the street roosters began to cry. The whole time I was waiting for the creaking of a door or the soft padding of footsteps. But after supper the night before, Yeidi never came home.
Anxious to see her, I looked down every alley, turned to look at the face of any blonde woman I passed. Perhaps she slept in the servants quarters in the inner city? No. She would have told us. I hoped she was safe.
The energy of the Kitchens was a nice distraction. Over a hearty flame, I let a pot of water boil hard before placing the first of several dozen eggs in. The bubbles stopped for a minute and I let the pot stay on the heat before replacing it with another kettle. Lillian caught me staring into the fire and came over.
“Yossinda, Katrine sent for you. She wants you to find her this evening in the Citadel. She needs you in case your sister is still unwell this evening, but I need you too," she said rather impatiently.
“Is she here? In the Inner city?” I asked.
“How should I know such a thing?” she retorted.
Yeidi’s apparent absence meant one thing to me. Tinea. That horrible, dreadful drug. I suspected that she was telling Katrine she was too unwell to work—that she had caught Rhys’ ever present illness.
I would have no rest today, but perhaps I would work hard enough to eat something. Standing in for Yeidi meant I would likely help serve the Saans in their giant Citadel. The excitement of working in the Citadel wakened me from my sleep-deprived state. A second later, I found myself lost in a fear that I would be inadequate to serve them.
“Eat this, you look as sick as your sister,” Lillian snarled as she gave me some bread and cheese. My reflection in the window was worse than I had expected. I decided not to look up until my cooking was finished.
I left for the kitchen at Saan Citadel by ducking into a dark passage way so infrequently used that the ste
ps were soft with dust. Through the stone walls I could hear commotion in the Great Hall and was grateful to have avoided passing through it. By the time I reached the exit the bottom of my skirts were gray with dirt. I brushed myself off in the doorway of a small servants quarters only to walk into a pile of dried leaves. I could feel their frail structures crunched beneath my feet as I entered the chaos of the crowded and muddy commons. People screamed and laughed for we had a reason to celebrate. Within the coming season we would have a new SaanKote.
Amidst the slowly moving entourage came a series of blue caps and robes making haste for the Red Keep. The costumes meant the men were coming from Saan Citadel, the markings on their robes indicated their rank among the Saans. They were led by an ugly little man hustling nervously at the front of the pack. I recognized him as Theodorius, one of the highest ranking Brothers. In their speed the Saans nearly knocked me over, I dove for a safe space between cart and wall, just within reach of a scummy urchin child looking to steal from a passing bread wagon.
We’re all children of the Elements, I thought with eyes closed, and hurried on through the commons. Smells of vinegar and sausage and hot oil surrounded me; the air was clogged by the smoky stench of peasant celebration. Good Aethan save them all.
The guard at the door recognized me but refused to let me in. He lurched forward and brought my face up to his. His musky odor was thick and foul smelling.
"I haven't seen you here in a while, Missy. Don't you know the password? Of course, if you don't know the password you can give me something instead," he said wantonly.
I looked him in the eye and stayed silent. His breath made me want to vomit, but with no food in my stomach, I simply doubled over and heaved. Even in his state, he was disgusted and let me go.
“You're not good enough for me. Git.”
He meant get to the Saans, and I meant to hurry.
The kitchens were run by the dark headed Dinia. She usually hustled about the kitchens with with rosy cheeks and a round belly covered in drippings and flour. When I walked in Dinia was wiping her eyes in between cutting onions and Loris was teasing her for crying. He stood turning a fat lamb on a spit, its still-raw body dripping blood into the fire. Loris lunged over to grab my waist I walked in, whispering something I didn’t care to hear. He fancied a screw, but I was not my sister, and I would not fulfill her informal duties while acting in her stead.