Bitter Winds (8 page)

“Come on, Ivy. It’s over.” Lily was the first to turn away, and Ivy took her arm and together they continued on.

“Okay, we’re at the resting park. Is this where you want to play?” Ivy asked. They’d carefully worked their way through the rows of vendors, shows, and all the exhibits until they’d found the small grassy area at the back of the pavilion.

Lily listened to the noise around her for a second, then nodded. “This’ll be fine. It’s much quieter here. Take me somewhere I can sit.”

Anywhere was quieter than the area of the festival they’d just left, but even here in the park area, Ivy was overwhelmed with the number of people spreading out picnic blankets, walking, flying kites, or just lounging around.

“At least here there aren’t so many beggars, so maybe those with a little jingle in their pockets will help you out,” Ivy said, thankful that most of those looking for handouts usually tended to stay around the busiest part of the festival, hoping for a more generous take for the day. She didn’t begrudge them their efforts, as she knew without the interference of her Ye Ye, she and her sister might have easily been among them, begging for their dinner each night.

She looked around, trying to find a suitable place for Lily. Somewhere out of the sun would be good but the only bench in sight was already taken by what appeared to be another beggar—this time an old man. Ivy saw him lean over and pull a few pieces of trash from the can next to him, then grin when he shook a bag and discovered it wasn’t completely empty.

She leaned her head toward her sister. “Lily, there’s a bench about twenty feet in front of us, but someone already has it. I’m going to ask that man if he’ll move. I still have a few coins.”

They approached the man. Ivy decided to first try to play on his sympathies, even though it was usually something she didn’t do. But Lily played better when sitting.

“Laoren, my sister cannot see. Could you be so kind as to let her have your bench to take a rest?” Ivy asked.

The old man shoved his hand back into his bag of seeds, grabbing a handful and pushing them into his mouth. The seeds that found their way out of his mouth were quickly plucked from his shirt and sent back to where they came from. It was obvious he was consumed with hunger—too consumed to think of offering a simple kindness.
“Bu.”
He spat the word out and looked away.

Ivy sighed. “What if I give you a coin?”

That got his attention and the man quickly stood. Ivy pulled a coin from her pocket and tossed it to him, then led Lily to sit before someone else could slide in and grab the empty seat.

Lily reached up and pulled the violin case from Ivy. She held it to her chest for a moment, then placed it on her lap and fumbled with the brass openers. Ivy saw her hesitate, then look up at her.

“You can go walk around for a while. I’ll do better if you aren’t standing over me watching.”

“Fine. I will.” Ivy felt a rush of irritation at her sister’s brisk dismissal. Lily was taking her new streak of independence too far. If she wanted to be that way, Ivy would just leave her to watch out for her own money—if she was able to earn any. Anyway, she wasn’t in the mood to battle the emotions that Lily’s songs always brought out of her.

She gave her sister one last look and turned away. She’d be okay for a little while. Maybe Lily would miss her and next time wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss her. Ivy would just take a walk around the festival; then hopefully when she returned, Lily would be tired and ready to go home.

Lily heard Ivy walking away and could tell she was slipping into another bad mood. These days, anytime they went out in public, the atmosphere around Ivy turned heavy. Lily knew it was because of her blindness and she wished with all her might that her sister could come to terms with it. But instead, Ivy got angry because people stared and were curious. Which was one of the reasons Lily wanted her to leave. She didn’t need the heavy vibes affecting her ability to play. Ivy didn’t understand that playing for strangers was less about money than receiving the validation she craved. She wanted people to see she had worth in the world and wasn’t just a blind girl dependent on her sister to guide her through life.

Lily was irritated with Ivy, too. Only the night before she’d tried to talk to her sister about their birth mother, but Ivy had refused to cooperate. Lily didn’t understand why Ivy was so angry with the woman. They didn’t even know why they’d never been returned to her care after the fire, so how could Ivy still be angry with her for all these years? It was clear that the unfortunate accident had led to their separation. Lily just wanted to be able to compare and maybe share any good memories they could piece together. But Ivy refused.

Lily took out her violin and laid the case open beside her. After her last concert, they’d figured out it was better to use the case to collect any donations. A bigger target to toss coins, and they could quickly grab the case and leave if they were in a hurry to take off.

Again today she’d felt the now-familiar sense of foreboding but shook it off. Nothing had happened the last few times they’d been out, so she knew nothing would happen today. It was just nerves, she told herself. She was a performer and all performers had stage fright.

Putting the violin to her shoulder, Lily felt a welcome wave of peace wash over her. Her body and mind knew what was to come. She picked up the bow and made her first swipe slowly, then burst into the sweet but sad song she’d been practicing for weeks. Slowly, she pulled the deep, mournful notes from her violin, the bow feeling like a feather beneath her fingers.

As she moved into the second section of verse, she heard a few people coming close to drop coins into her violin case and murmurs of appreciation. Their acceptance made her play even harder, and she dug deeper to find the emotions and pour them out of her fingertips and onto the instrument. She approached the crescendo and was lost in the storytelling of the notes. She didn’t hear the small commotion until she felt someone jerk her arm.

“Who’s there?” She tried to pull back but was gripped harder, this time a steely clamp around her upper arm.

“You’re going to join the rest of them and be put somewhere out of the way,” a strange man snarled at her as she was dragged forward.

Lily had never been manhandled before and it left her disoriented. “Please. My sister. Where’s my sister?” She struggled to find the violin case around her but the man had already dragged her far from the bench. She held Viola and her bow tightly, scared he would try to wrench them away.

“Shut up. No talking. If you’re lucky, you’ll be released at the end of the day when the festival is over.”

Lily felt panicked. Released? From where? Where was he taking her? She suddenly knew by the whispers around her that she had been caught by a
chengguan
officer. She tried to pull her arm back but he kept her close to him—close enough for her to smell his rotten breath and the stench of cigarettes. Her senses were knocked off balance and Lily lost her bearings.

How would Ivy find her if they took her away? She felt the first tears start to slide down her face and she began to tremble. What would they do to her? She stumbled again as her feet hit something; she wasn’t sure what. If the man hadn’t had such a tight grip on her, she would’ve fallen but instead he jerked her upright and cursed her for slowing him down.

“Ivy!” Lily yelled as loud as she could. Surely her sister wouldn’t have wandered too far. “Ivy! Help!”

“
Anjing!
I said shut up!”

Lily felt a slap across the side of her head and her ear started to ring loudly. She immediately stopped struggling and walked easier. She didn’t want to get hit again. If she passed out, someone would surely steal her violin. She cradled it close to her body and prayed that Ivy would be along soon to find her, before this animal took her too far away.

The officer half dragged, half walked her through the festival. Now that she’d calmed down, Lily could tell when they passed the stage, and then, by the smells, she recognized the path she and Ivy had walked through with the food vendors. Was he taking her completely out of the pavilion? Was she going to jail? She thought of Ye Ye and Nai Nai and how ashamed they’d be when they found out their daughter was taken away by a policeman.

He continued to escort her to what she thought was the entrance. The noise got less intense and the crowds started to be less packed, but then he made a sharp left, causing Lily to stumble again.

“How about some warning?” she said, realizing immediately that she’d also left her cane behind at the bench.

He ignored her and walked her for another few minutes until they came to an abrupt stop. Lily listened for some clue as to where they were, but all she heard was more people.

Then he released her arm and she stood still, waiting for him to speak. She heard a large chain rattle, then the creak of a heavy door. The officer grabbed her arm again and pushed her through what felt like an opening. What was it? They were still outside, so she couldn’t understand where she was that would have a door. As she passed through, she tripped on what felt like a bar under her feet. The violin flew from her arms and she heard it skid across the cement as she reached out to break her fall. With both palms and knees slapping the cement, she heard others around her laugh loudly.

They were laughing at her. She felt her cheeks burn as she reached frantically around to find her violin. Where was it? Her fingers touched shoes, legs, and even what felt like small metal bowls, but she couldn’t find her instrument. There were other people around her. What were they all doing there?

“Here. It’s right here, child,” an old woman’s voice called from a foot or so away.

Lily felt her violin being put next to her hands, and the bow resting near her feet. She grabbed the instrument and quickly ran her fingers over every inch of it to be sure it wasn’t hurt. Finally she breathed a sigh of relief.

“Where am I?” She reached out and felt what she thought were iron bars going from the ground all the way up over her head.

“It’s a large metal jail cell, brought out just for us beggars.”

“Jail? But how? Why? I wasn’t begging. I was giving a concert.” Lily moved her head left to right, trying to pick out if she could hear her sister’s voice among the crowd outside.

“If you were taking money from strangers, you were begging. This year the local officials decided to put us all together behind bars so we can’t dirty up their festivities. They say we’re an
embarrassment
to the city.”

Lily could still hear the music and crowd, though they were now some distance away. From the outside of the bars, she heard people pausing to comment on the plight of those imprisoned. Only rarely did she sense any compassion in their voices as they spewed their opinions and then moved on. Her face burned with shame and she bowed her head.

She hoped Ivy would be able to find her and straighten things out. She sat up on her knees, squatting in a more comfortable position. At least they hadn’t taken her violin, and for that she was grateful. But the humiliation of being put into a cage like a wild animal was overwhelming, and her heart began to pound again. She’d heard the
chengguan
was cracking down on street begging, but to be imprisoned in public? What kind of cruelty was this?

The excitement built around her again and Lily heard the chain, then the door creak open. Another body was flung through and the door slammed. Their newest visitor was breathing heavily.