Leonor starts to walk to the jetty as if she’s going but turns to me. ‘Your debt has been paid,’ she says. ‘Please do not come sneaking around Valley of the Sun to steal people again, especially bringing those trained beasts of yours!’
‘Trained beasts?’ Marta asks.
I shrug. I ain’t gonna admit in front of this woman that I ain’t got dangerous sea creatures what can whomp her if she bothers us again.
‘This child has run wild with wild animals,’ Leonor says to Marta like she’s telling tales on me.
Marta smiles too politely. The kind of smile us kids know to run away from. ‘Our children are our greatest asset,’ she says.
Me, I’m burning hot. I ain’t got any politeness left in me. ‘You call me wild, and you’ll go back to Valley of the Sun and treat your old people and your poor people like fish offal, jus’ tossed out like you don’t want them!’ I say.
‘We do not! We have the best of everything there!’ Leonor says and gets all huffy.
‘Then please feed Susan,’ I say. ‘She worked for you until her fingers curled. She worked like a slave barely earning a thing and you leave her to starve and sleep on the stairs.’
‘Don’t you have a heart?’ Jag says, and stands up beside me. And coz we’re standing, eyeing off this boss woman, Saleesi comes and stands next to us too. All of us side by side against the Valley of the Sun.
The woman looks me up and down. This woman who told me I’m too wild. A wild spark. No end of trouble. This woman who stole my best friend to teach me a lesson. I give her Ma’s thunderhead eyes and say, ‘You call me wild, but we don’t treat anyone in our village that way.’
Marta steps up beside us too. ‘Is this true? You don’t care for the weakest among you? You run slaves? Is that the kind of society you’re bringing to the Ockery Islands?’
‘Slaves?’ Jacob asks, and he’s hanging onto Tyrell like he’s changed his mind.
The woman looks from Marta to me. ‘They are usually paid something. Sometimes not enough, but something. You have to understand, the Valley of the Sun has many people and many industries and there’s not always room for everyone to live nicely. Or for us to know what every industry is doing.’
Marta sighs. ‘You know, we don’t use money here on the Ockery Islands. We barter and trade, but we don’t keep count on the value of a human life either. We work until we can’t and we are cared for by those who can. Our strength comes from all of us working together.’
Jag hurries to Gerra, where she’s standing with her arms around her brother. ‘You, Gerra, you feed Susan,’ Jag says. ‘She was an engineer like you. She was your family.’
Leonor translates.
Gerra looks from Jag to me, and finally nods.
Leonor sighs. Her huffy shoulders relax. ‘Perhaps there are things we can teach each other,’ she says. ‘I hope you don’t mind if I call on you for tea again.’
Marta nods. ‘That would be wonderful. Go gently.’
They shake hands.
Jacob walks Tyrell to the jetty with his arm around his shoulders, and Echo runs down from one of the houses with a bag for Tyrell to take.
We watch them sail away in their tin boat with the gold sun on the bow.
‘Looks like we got some law around here now,’ Marta says slowly. ‘I’m not sure where they came from, but it’s probably a good idea.’
‘They come from a floating island made out of mega ships stuck together,’ I say. ‘And slung between them is this massive garden valley growing crops.’
Marta laughs. ‘A floating island made of ships! Honestly, Neoma.’
‘Honestly,’ I say. ‘Ask Jag.’ And then I laugh too, coz Marta’s got a whole world of surprise coming her way.
