2

 

I continued my way along the dirt path which snaked through the woods surrounding the Crescent Point carnival grounds and boardwalk shops. The forest encircling the rides and games shrouded a hidden village where many of the Romany families made their home. The truth behind the illusion of effortless fun and frivolity provided by the attractions, my father used to say. We were the worker bees who made the tourist trade hum here on Noble.

Small cottages, cabins, and the occasional wood wagon lay scattered throughout the untamed brambles and woods of Noble Island. I remembered thinking as a child that we owned the forest because our homes were the only ones nestled among the trees. Some of the newer families or young men lived on houseboats that bobbed along the island’s rocky cliffs.

I blew out a breath just to see it turn to vapor. It had been so long since I’d been back. I forgot how the late summer could turn cold here. The trees, old wood pylons, and everything looked as it always had. In the distance, a low moon shone hazy orange. It floated over the semi-circle formation of rocks rising from an outcropping just above the tree line; Crescent Point Cliffs.

As a child, I played on those rocks in the summer with my cousins and friends. The stones became pirate ships and dragons to be fought. In the winter, we would lie on the boulders trying to soak up the warmth of the meager sun. I had my first kiss just below the crest; Siyah’s eyes had matched the storming sky that day. I had also almost died on the beach just below this cliff. I remember leaving a ribbon of crimson against the sand as they pulled my frantic mother from me. A hand went to my chest to stop the fluttering there. I took in a painful breath, pushing the images of that terrible day from my mind.

I walked towards the arched lampposts that lit up the main cobbled street of the village. After midnight, the shops were closed, but above them, the windows of the apartments lit the way. How had time not touched this place?

The Adder Inn had been on Noble for almost sixty years. My sister, Sonja, used to work the front desk. The red-haired teenager that took my guest card and handed me a key looked vaguely familiar, he’d have been eleven or so when I left. He wasn’t Romany, no recognition sparked in his eyes, and I felt a band of tension loosen from around my chest as I walked down the hall to my room.

I sat at the edge of the twin bed, pulled a bundle of hand-written letters from my bag, and set them next to the lone postcard on the nightstand. After I left, when I was sure that I was alone in the world, my sister had written to me. How she found my address, I will never know, but she reached out from across the miles to give me hope. She was the only one I told that I was returning to Noble Island.

Almost an hour later, a knock at my room’s door, the pattern familiar, made me smile. I rushed to open it, the smile dying on my face when I saw her. “Sonja,” I gasped. “What’s the matter?”

My little sister stood, frail and shaking, her skin pale.

“It’s Niklos…” Her lip trembled, and I took her in my arms. She shuddered against my shoulder. “He—he’s gone.”

“I don’t understand.” I tried to look at her. “What do you mean?”

“We were to meet,” she sobbed and her nails dug into my arms painfully, “in secret, at the caves, but he didn’t come. I–I haven’t heard from him in eight days. Raven, that’s too long. Something is wrong.”

“Sonja, calm down.” I pulled her into the room, checked the hall, and closed the door. She sat on my bed, hugging herself and muttering. Her appearance, disheveled and drawn, sent a trill of worry through me. What had happened to her? “Niklos, from your letter? I didn’t know you two were—”

“That was why I wanted you to come home,” she explained. “The postcard.”

“What do you mean?”

“We’re to be married.” Her jaw jutted out, she wiped her face. “I wanted you here. For your support, but I was afraid someone was reading my letters so I couldn’t say…”

“Sonja, what is going on?” Who would read her mail? Why would she need my support? I did not know Niklos, but his family lived at the northern tip of Noble. That much I knew. So many questions whirled through my flustered mind, but her near hysterical state made me stop. She needed comfort first. “Are you sure he is just not out with his friends? You know how young men often—”

“He would not leave without telling me his plans.” She cut across me, her eyes rimmed with tears. “He would not want me to worry like this.”

“What about his family? What did they say?”

“His parents will not speak with me.”

“The council—”

“No one will listen. I thought you might ask Siyah for help.” She grabbed my hands in hers, her eyes pleading. “I know there is still trouble between you and he, but I have no other choice, Raven.”

“Why would Siyah help?”

“He’s on the council. The Cavaler family holds a seat. You know that.”

“But his father holds the position.”

“He is ill. Deakon relies on Siyah to lead,” Sonja said. “He has been leaning more and more on him.”

“But Tomèo is next to shoulder the burden.” I shook my head, not liking that I knew so little about what had happened in my absence. Siyah’s older brother lived to engage in the affairs of the families here and across the country. Not Siyah, at least not when we’d been together. “Why isn’t he doing it?”

“He took a wife from a family that lives in Florida. They married last spring and he joined them there.” Sonja pursed her lips. “Tomèo wanted the elevation in rank his wife’s father offered with the families in the south. He left only a year after you did.”

“I didn’t know.” A fool to believe that my sister’s cheerful letters revealed everything, I flashed on how burdened Siyah appeared, and my jaw clenched. What had his father done? Deakon did whatever he wanted despite the consequences. That, at least, hadn’t changed.

“I’m unable to sleep, Raven. I have dreams that he is alone, that he needs me.” Her face crinkled into sorrow again. “Please, please believe me when I say that I know something is wrong.”

I stroked her hair. “I believe you.”

Relief flooded her sweet face, and she took in a shaking breath. “Will you talk to Siyah?”

Trying to ignore the tumble of my stomach, I nodded. “What about Mama? Did you tell her I was coming? She didn’t answer my last letter.”

“I did. But she was worried that Papa...”

My heart sank. I tried to keep the hurt from showing on my face. I hadn’t realized how much I wanted to see her, to feel her embrace. “I’ll talk to Siyah.”

“Tomorrow? Do you promise?” Sonja begged. “It’s been too many days. I’m so worried, Raven.”

“Tomorrow.” I did not tell her I had already spoke to him about her, and felt a pang of guilt.

We sat together and talked about everything but the things that most troubled our hearts. When she tired and fell asleep on my bed, I dozed on the settee in the corner of the room, my thoughts going from Siyah to my parents, and back to him.

Thunder sounded in the distant sky, and I rubbed my elbow, at the ache beginning to throb. An old break, I’d been caught up in waves, not noticing the riptide, and was slammed against rocks near the jetty. The pain overwhelming, I’d nearly blacked out. I remember water closing over my head, muted light of the sun fading as bubbles carried my silent cry, and Siyah’s arm around me as he struggled with us to the surface.

Sure to die if not for his embrace in the darkness, I’d clung to him then, shaking, frightened and suddenly aware that my friend had grown into someone strong. Nearly a man, he looked at me with a love so fierce and so complete that it took my breath away.

I feel like I’m trembling to my soul, Lord. It hurts so much for me to see him again. I don’t want to remember. I don’t want to be here and feel all the pain that I fought so hard to leave behind.

I wiped at my eyes, angry at myself for falling back in to this old dance. I wasn’t that girl anymore. I drifted off, a whisper on my lips as I fell away into sleep.

Siyah.