He punched at his foot just as the shadow moved again. Sure he saw it now he moved to stand to his feet. Someone was in the courtyard making a dash for the house!
His father’s muffled voice interrupted the cry of alarm in his throat. “It’s about time you showed up.”
“Shhh! What are you doing outside?” the stranger hissed. “What if I’ve been followed?”
Josué started back from the window, tripping over his useless foot. A million pinpricks told him it had been asleep for a long time.
“I installed an obfuscator earlier this week.” Porfirio’s proud voice echoed across the grounds. “Not even a satellite can hear or see anything in the whole compound. It’s safe. Come on in.”
The voices continued in muffled tones below him. Josué remained on the carpet, pressing his ear to the floor, but all he could hear were murmurs.
Rubbing at his eye, he leaned against the fireplace opposite his bed. Then three things happened at once. He blinked, his vision turned yellow and his thumb twitched against a small square panel in the mantel he’d never noticed before. At his touch, the large fireplace rumbled away from the wall.
A stale breeze blew past, filling his nostrils with the smell of mothballs and sawdust. The voice of his father echoed from the narrow wall-space.
Josué hesitated only a second before stepping in to follow that voice. Something told him this visit was important. The corridor led to a ladder then to a large flat wall with light emanating from its four corners.
Josué stopped. His father was in the middle of a sentence. “. . . you should have seen it tonight.”
“You tested it, then?” the stranger interrupted, sounding familiar – yet unfamiliar.
“Yes, Enrique demonstrated it today. In fact, your grandson almost took the lab down on top of us.”
Grandfather! Josué’s pulse pounded in his toes. How could grandfather be here? He was supposed to be in jail.
“Josué? Excellent. How is he?”
Josué searched for a crack in the wall to catch a glimpse of the man he’d only met as a young child.
“One of Omri’s men took a shot at him today. I wouldn’t have expected them to be so bold. They must be ready to make a move.” The smile had disappeared from his father’s voice.
Josué felt his ears burn at the mention of Timeos. Why did he have to say anything about that?
“You are perceptive,” his grandfather replied. There was a pause. “Leonard hasn’t told you enough. From where I sit, your situation is dire. There is reason to believe your Family has been infiltrated.”
The room grew silent. Josué pressed his ear against the wall, wondering if they were still in there.
Finally, his grandfather spoke, “You don’t have much time, Porfirio. You are first on their list. I suggest a council of war – tomorrow. I’ll return for it. Make sure Josué attends; he is the future of the Trevino Family.”
Council of war! A stale breeze blew past, leaving Josué ice cold from the waist down. Perhaps Timeos had been trying to kill him.
Retracing his steps to his room, Josué wondered if he would be ready for a war.
Chapter 3, Natives
Early the next day, Josué watched speeding marshland blur to a mixture of muddy browns below him. The pilot lowered the skimmer to fly over the sparse treetops.
A ceratopsid with three horns spooked from under the large limb of a Marsh Climber. Barreling along, it kept up with them.
“Dinosaurs won’t mislead you, Josué,” his father said. “Only the richest property supports them. If you don’t see a raptor on your first fly-by, don’t look twice.”
Smiling, Josué listened to the dull thump of hooves above the noise of the skimmer’s rotor and the rushing wind. A ripe smell from the dinosaur wafted up and around him. The strong grey back veered side to side as it tried to lose them. Leaning over the railing, Josué reached his hand out enough for his shadow to touch and retouch the leathery back. What it would be like to ride on a back that rough, behind those long horns? He dismissed the thought. Everyone knew how temperamental these animals were. You never wanted to surprise one without a clear way of escape.
As they sped past it, the animal slowed to a walk, shook itself and took a large bite of marsh weed.
Ahead, the jungle loomed over the wetlands. A low mountain range stood beyond. Warm, humid air rose like a curtain as their skimmer climbed to clip the taller leaves of the jungle canopy.
“One thousand acres of marsh, jungle, and rock.” Porfirio wore a satisfied smile. “The state no longer had a use for it, or needed the money more. However you want to look at it, it turned out well for us. This land will be worth more than gold someday. With the native village on it, it is priceless.” He turned to catch the morning sun on his face.
Josué’s father’s pale complexion and eyes reflected a weariness that hadn’t been there before. The hours in Parliament must be taking their toll, he realized then turned his own face into the sun. The thought of an office life sent a shudder down his spine. He lived for his viper adventures, spending his days searching for the legendary El Umbral!
The skimmer crested a ridge. Porfirio pointed to a cleared section of jungle on a hill. Mud structures under grass roofs nestled within a perimeter of circled spikes. “There’s your village, Josué.”
My village! What if it was his mother’s village? His legs turned to jelly at the thought of seeing her. No. He pushed the thought aside. His father wouldn’t have brought him along if they were going to see her today. This village must be a small one, tucked away in a tract of land nobody wanted.
“Most of the ruling families try to stay away from natives. A serious mistake if you ask me.” His father smiled. “Another reason our bid won at such a low price.”
Josué searched for movement among the thatched roofs. “Does anyone live down there?”
“They want as much to do with us as the ruling families want to do with them. Gary, set us down past the river.”
Gary sped over to a rocky section of ground less than a mile from the village then set it to hover and lowered the skimmer. Josué and his father jumped out.
Porfirio grabbed his pack and turned to the pilot, “We’ll need a ride back before sunset. I’ll give you a call on the radio.”
Gary nodded and revved the rotors. He waved before speeding up and away, disappearing in the thick jungle canopy.
The noise of rushing water became all they could hear when the whine of the skimmer drowned away. White rapids poured over glittering rock, behind large leaves and thick branches. A wide stretch of deep-blue water cascaded between two wide stretches of trees.
His father eyed the whitecaps and Josué wondered how much planning had gone into the request to set them down on this side of the river.
Sun streamed through the trees as they ambled along the lush overgrown banks. The unwelcome sound of a raptor groan cut through the underbrush, much closer than Josué would have preferred. “Did you bring a blaster?” he whispered.
“And kill a dinosaur on our own land?” His father responded in a voice much louder than Josué would have liked, though he did notice his father reach around to feel a lump in the pack. “Earth used to have dinosaurs . . . some sort of parallel evolution. They’re extinct now and no one knows why. I’ll certainly not play a hand in their extinction here.”
His father eyed the brush. “The natural wonders of this world, Josué. You only need to spend a week on a planet like Baca before you realize what we have here. Sonora IV is the envy of the Galaxy, the breadbasket of the human race. Trevino wine is sold everywhere, and do you know why? Look at the pure water, the size of our grapes, and of course our unique processes.”
Josué frowned and raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t know we did anything different.”
“The microorganisms we use in our fermentation set our wine apart in taste and quality. We fetch the highest price on the market.” He leaned over and added in a low voic
e, “Black markets included, as your grandfather perhaps knows too well.”
His father’s smile faded to a sober expression. “I know I haven’t spoken much about him.”
Josué snorted at the understatement, though after last night, he had wondered if the topic of Grandpa would come up.
“It’s probably time for you to know. Your grandfather is the leader of the Syndicate.”
Both of Josué’s eyebrows went up.
“They control the black market and much of their income is generated by Trevino wine.” His father swallowed. “We share in the profit, of course.”
“But why sell Trevino wine on the black market if we own it?”
Porfirio scratched his brow. “Your grandfather saw it as a way to raise our family’s status. It backfired – a little. He’s in jail, as you know. However, he was right. We make more profit selling it illegally than legally. Control over both markets gives us more revenue than we could imagine.”
Josué looked at his father and noticed how he avoided eye contact.
“It’s not something I condone, and it’s the reason you probably don’t know your grandfather as well as you should.”
Josué nodded, unable to remember the last time he’d seen his grandfather – other than his shadow last night.
“It was resourceful, though unethical. And, we ‘own’ the Syndicate. That’s something you may need to know someday. I won’t deny it has raised our family’s status.” His father plucked at a branch. “We could be named a Grandee if we wanted. Let’s just say I prefer to reach that position the right way.”
“Grandee!” How could his father turn down the highest honor given to a family?
Porfirio picked a shriveled grape from a vine over the path. “The Omri Family produces wine. I don’t know, maybe it’s the grapes they use.” He held it under his nose before throwing it into the water. “Or the fact they import their yeast. It has a bitter taste. Their sales reflect it.”
Suddenly something very large crashed through the jungle a hundred meters to their left. Josué froze and glanced at his father.
His father crouched, swung his pack around and thrust his hand inside.
Stepping behind him, Josué peered into the overgrown brush. He looked for movement or a blur of color. He’d never seen a raptor this close.
The jungle grew quiet. Josué let go of the breath he’d been holding. His father stood erect. Then the thrashing started again, this time much closer.
A native man ran across the trail, stumbling toward the water.
Close behind him, the serpent-like form of a midsized raptor sprang after him. Red scales flashed. A wide mouth curved. Josué couldn’t move, unable believe how close it was. The animal’s sinuous body mesmerized him. Muscular hind-legs and curved talons launched it across the trail. A graceful whip-like tail swung behind it, keeping perfect balance.
Gliding over a fallen tree, it reached with razor-sharp teeth, mid-stride. It would have torn the man in two if the bolt from Porfirio’s blaster hadn’t knocked it onto its back.
The native man’s eyes met theirs, shock clearly written on his face before he fell from the river bank and hit the water flat. He floated for a second then disappeared beneath the churning waves.
“The blast must have whiffed him,” Josué said, but his father had already dropped the pack and dove in after the man.
The white water looked rough. Josué eyes darted for something useful. A large vine hung over the bank. Yanking it down, he pulled it in with him.
The coldness hit him before the splash passed his ears. His entire body stiffened at the shock. It was all he could do to stay afloat. Hanging onto the vine, he was afraid he would need to be rescued as much as the native man.
To his left, his father held the man’s head above the water and kicked over to him. Hanging onto the vine, all three of them made it back to the bank’s safety.
Josué stood in the wet grass, trembling, unable feel his fingertips. Glancing at the fallen lizard, he almost wet his already soaked pants. “I just saw a leg twitch! Did you use stun?!”
“Of course!” His father voice was indignant. Josué watched as the man walked calmly over to the pack, picked up his blaster and let the lizard have it with another bolt. The leg stopped moving. But for how long? He stepped around the unconscious native, putting more distance between himself and the animal.
“Let’s try over there.” His father pointed to a ridge stretching most of the way across. A small gap let whitewater through fifty meters out. “We’ll use the rocks to keep our balance.” Porfirio grabbed his pack, hefted the man as if he weighed nothing at all and led Josué back into the river.
Under normal circumstances, getting back into the freezing water would have been impossible, but the thought of the semi-conscious raptor behind him spurred Josué on. He gritted his teeth, moved his toes one last time and stepped in behind his dad.
The current tugged deep and strong around his legs, pushing him against algae-covered boulders. He grabbed onto the back of his father’s belt.
When they got to the gap, water poured down and around them. Josué gulped. He couldn’t feel his ankles anymore and his knees were becoming harder to bend. His father stopped. The white water was as loud as a space cruiser landing right in front of them. The way it hit the rocks below made Josué think of eggs splatting against the pavement. He wondered what it would be like to give in to the incessant push. Maybe he could avoid being splattered and still make it to the far bank if he drifted over the rocks.
Thankfully, the native man chose that moment to wake up and motion to Porfirio to let him down. With his father’s hands free, the three of them helped each other across the gap.
On the other side, the stranger knelt before Porfirio and reached for his hands.
Josué’s father pushed the man upright. “Get up, man. We need to move.” He pointed across the river. “I have a feeling that beast still has some fight in him.”
The lizard’s leg kicked again. This time its head rose with the motion. The native man nodded and led them into the jungle.
When the raptor was far enough behind them Porfirio stopped. “Look, I know how your people feel about us settlers, but I’m the new landowner here and I’d like to meet your elders.”
Distrust mingled with understanding lined the man’s brow. He could obviously speak the settler language, so that was not the problem.
He looked at Porfirio then glanced at Josué. The now familiar amber color returned to boy’s vision as their eyes met. The native’s mouth dropped open. He looked back at Porfirio. “I’ll take you there.”
Porfirio looked at Josué. Father and son shrugged as they followed the native into the jungle.
Chapter 4, The Elders
Over the shoulders of their guide, Josué eyed the spiked perimeter of the native village. The double rows of outward-pointed tree trunks looked firmly planted; a formidable defense against even the heaviest of predators. Beyond the barrier, multi-storied houses revealed a complex culture they had missed on their overhead flight. Wooden doors, glass windows, solar shades, and tiled patios hid beneath grassy rooftops.
A large amphitheater, cut into a hillside, opened over a slight rise. Steps led down to a stage. Stone benches filled each tier in neat semi-circles. Elegant pillars rose, evenly spaced to support an awning-like ceiling under the thatch. Their guide led them to the top row of benches. “Wait here.”
They sat on cool stone seats that were surprisingly comfortable. The sweet air of the jungle blew through the theater. Josué relaxed, mostly because he was inside the perimeter fence, safe from any more raptors.
He looked down at the stage. “Is this much architecture common among natives?”
Porfirio nodded. “Sonora IV natives are very advanced. Most of our literature ignores this fact – an injustice stemming from the prejudices of the ruling families. There is much to be learned from what textbooks wrongly call a primitive pe
ople.”
Four solemn-looking individuals approached. The first wore a golden robe, the second white, the third green, and the fourth blue. The golden-robed man smiled and held out his hand to Porfirio. The strong smell of lye crept into Josué’s nose, conjuring up the feeling of cleanliness and even holiness.
“Welcome, Master Trevino and Josué.” The golden-robed man nodded at them in turn, a smile stretched across his face. “We are honored by your visit.”
To hear him address his father by title and surname surprised Josué only slightly more than to hear the man address him by his own first name.
The man in white spoke next. “As the Elders of this village, we are honored to show you hospitality, and on such a day!” His smile looked genuine and warm as he bowed with an arm extended to a path around the amphitheater.
The golden-robed man placed his hand on Josué’s shoulder. “Please, come and join us.”
The others nodded their heads in unison.
The two settlers followed the native elders around the amphitheater perimeter. The fourth elder, dressed in blue, fixed his eyes on Josué. A large smile framed his face. Welcome.
Smiling back, Josué was unsure if he had imagined the word or simply missed the man’s lips moving.
The golden-robed elder led them down a path to a long pavilion isolated from the rest of the village by thick jungle brush. A set of stairs led up to a platform with a large marble table on it. Columns at the corners of the platform held up another thatched roof.
His stomach grumbled at the delicious smell of grilled meat. On the table, a full-course meal was laid out with more food than the six of them could finish. Josué stepped behind the chair next to the golden-robed man, across from his father.
The one in blue looked at him again. The words, They’re feeding us raptor, sounded softly in his mind. This time Josué stared at the man, certain he hadn’t heard with his ears.
“You’ll have to excuse John.” The man in the white interrupted Josué’s shocked expression. “He likes to communicate mind-to-mind. It gives him the feeling of sincerity that he craves.” The man in white aimed a look at the one he’d just called John.