Island of Graves (16 page)

But these men weren't useless at all. They seemed to be
constantly tinkering with things and working on projects. The greenhouse was proof enough of that. It was so uncommon for Aaron to see anybody act so passionately about something, much less old people like Ishibashi and Ito and Sato. Granted, Aaron would have sent anyone like these men to the Ancients Sector years ago if he'd been in charge. It made Aaron think a bit. Did Eva Fathom have anything she was passionate about? What about the other people he'd sent to the Ancients Sector? He'd never thought about it.

The scientists' passion made Aaron a little jealous, he supposed. They had some pretty interesting things here on this horrible, desolate island. He wished he could get a closer look at the telescope.

After a rest, Aaron got up and made his way back through the shelter. He could hear the three talking excitedly in the greenhouse. And when he saw the broom that Sato often used to wipe away the water at the entrance to the shelter, and the puddles of water still standing on the rocky floor, Aaron remembered the servant line that Ishibashi had said. And then, almost as if his body were moving without direction from his mind, Aaron walked over to the broom, picked it up,
and followed the trail of water all the way into the greenhouse. Then he began to sweep the water and silt back out of the shelter.

He wasn't going to lie—he wanted to make sure Ishibashi noticed him. Maybe it would get him something. Lunch, or at least dinner. But the three islanders were so intent on cleaning lenses and taking apart the telescope, and so giddy with their excitement when something went right, that Aaron didn't think they noticed him there.

As he swept, he thought more about how much they seemed to love that instrument, and he wondered if there was a way to bring more of the items from the ship into the shelter.

Not that he would touch them without being asked, of course. Aaron had learned a lot in the last several days. And it was actually sort of entertaining to watch the men in their enthusiasm. It reminded him of when he'd designed the Favored Farm, or when he'd made the oil press. Seeing them so intent on that telescope made Aaron wish for something like that—something that would wake him up inside like the oil press had done.

By the time all the water was swept out and the floor was
drying, Aaron realized something. He really liked sweeping floors. It gave his hands something to do so his mind could think, and it reminded him of doing similar chores with Alex when he was a little kid. He looked around and decided to sweep the rest of the open area.

The one thing that still surprised him was how rarely he thought about Quill and his home in the palace. And that was very strange, because when he'd been kidnapped, he was just about to take over everything . . . hopefully, anyway, once General Blair finished the attack on Artimé.

His eyes widened. That would have been weeks ago. Did Blair succeed? And who was running things now? Had Alex survived the attack?

He continued sweeping, finding home to feel so distant, almost like it wasn't even real. He wondered if that was normal, or if perhaps the trauma to his head had altered him somewhat. Maybe he cared less than he expected to because there was absolutely nothing he could do about getting back there. There was no way out of here. No way to escape. No way to build a boat, and Aaron had no idea how to sail one even if it fell into his lap. Especially with the hurricane surrounding the island.

“I might have to live here forever,” Aaron said to himself in
wonder. And then fear struck his heart. “What happens to me when they die? I'll be alone. Forever. I'll starve to death.”

Perhaps he could try to find some materials to make magical animals to be his companions. The thought comforted him a bit, until he remembered he'd tried to make that strange statue come alive right before the attack. It hadn't worked. Maybe his breed of magic worked only in the jungle. At least the making animals part of it, anyway. Because the other magic he'd done in Quill worked just fine.

“Aaron,” Ishibashi said, interrupting the boy's thoughts.

Aaron looked up. “Yes?”

Ishibashi was holding his bowl and cup. “It's time for lunch. Come. You can fill your bowl in the kitchen.”

It seemed like hours since Aaron had thought about his hunger. He nodded, and then said, “Thank you,” just in case it was required.

That phrase, along with “please,” never seemed to hurt the situation, Aaron had noticed. The men were picky with their rules, but at least they were consistent. And Aaron had given up on being treated the way he was accustomed to. It wasn't
going to happen here. If Aaron was going to be stuck with these people, he may as well try to tolerate their weird ways.

Aaron watched as Ishibashi filled his bowl with items from four different pots. The scent wafting from them was delicious. In the first pot was a brown grain. In the second pot, tiny pieces of raw fish. In the third, a colorful array of vegetables, including pea pods like the ones Aaron had thought about stealing earlier. And in the fourth pot was a boiling broth, which Ishibashi poured over his food, to make a soup. Aaron eyed the raw fish nervously, but he picked up his bowl and did the same. He followed Ishibashi out to the fire room.

Ishibashi sat down in his usual spot, but Aaron hesitated at the door, waiting for Ito to acknowledge him.

“
Douzo tabete
,” Ito said after only a minute or so.

Progress,
thought Aaron. He pressed his lips together to remind himself not to say anything to jeopardize his chances of eating, and he moved to his spot and sat. Keeping his head down, he held his teacup out for Ito to pour tea into.

When the food had cooled enough for Aaron to eat, he took his utensils in his fist and dug in, trying to get food to float and land on top of the sticks. He chased the fish, which
had cooked in the boiling broth, around the bowl, managing to get some now and then, and concentrating very hard on the task. He didn't notice the look Ito and Sato exchanged, nor did he see the smile that threatened Ishibashi's lips.

Aaron watched as Ishibashi, Ito, and Sato sipped the remaining liquid from their bowls, and he did the same. When they were finished eating, Ishibashi looked at Aaron.

“Tomorrow,” he announced, “Aaron is chef.”

T
ensions ran high in the mansion between Alex, Lani, and Samheed. After a few days of completely ignoring Alex and stewing over what had happened with Gondoleery, Samheed finally stormed up the stairs and down the not secret hallway in search of Alex. He found the mage sitting at his desk, dozens of books spilling off piles, and him poring over two of them at once.

“Stowe,” Samheed said, “I just can't get over how stupid you are.”

Alex looked up. “Nice to see you too. Have a seat.”

“I'll stand, thank you very much.”

“How are your burns?” Alex asked.

“Fine, no thanks to you.”

Alex blinked. “Okaaay.”

“If you had
gotten to us in time, I might not have any burns at all,” Samheed said.

“I suppose that's true,” Alex said. He could feel the first bits of heat prickling at his neck. “I made a mistake in timing, thinking that Lani wouldn't fly through Quill at breakneck speed when I told her to go slow.”

“Leave her out of it,” Samheed warned. “This was your idea.”

“Was it?” Alex asked. “Was it really my idea to have Lani disguise herself as a driver and drive a vehicle when she's
never driven one before
?”

“You signed off on it,” roared Samheed. “You're the head mage. It's your ultimate responsibility! Besides, that's not even the point.” He clenched his fists at his sides.

Alex tried to breathe evenly, but it wasn't easy when all he wanted to do was punch Samheed in the stomach and throw him out the giant picture window onto the lawn. “What's your point, then?” he asked.

“My
point is that you should have killed Gondoleery when you had the chance!”

Alex very deliberately closed the book he'd been looking through, pressed his palms on the desk, and rose to his feet. He folded his arms across his chest and looked at Samheed.

Samheed took a step toward him. “Well?”

“Thank you for your comments,” Alex said stiffly.

“You wouldn't even have had to do it yourself!” Samheed said. “Lani would have done it. She was right there! She killed Justine, and she could have killed Gondoleery, and all of this would be over.”

Alex's eyes flickered.

Samheed wasn't finished. “Do you even realize how huge a mistake that was? You said you weren't a coward, but you were. Just because Gondoleery can't defend herself doesn't mean you shouldn't take her out. She's
dangerous
, Alex. And she attacked us. A real leader would have killed her without blinking. You were a complete coward. And cowards don't make good leaders.” Samheed ripped his fingers through his hair, growing more frustrated by Alex's refusal to yell back at him. “Alex, do you understand what I'm saying?”

Through clenched teeth, Alex said, “Why don't you spell it out for me.”

Samheed stared at Alex, searching his friend's face, not finding whatever it was he was looking for. “I'm saying,” he said, softer now, “that I don't know if I can trust you as a leader anymore.”

Alex didn't flinch, though the words hurt more than he cared to admit. He didn't take his eyes off his friend's face. He just stared at him, a thousand defensive thoughts fighting to reach the forefront of his brain. Without fully realizing what he was doing, Alex reached up to his collar and unfastened his robe. Slowly, deliberately, he slid it off his shoulders.

“Do you want to do this job?” Alex asked, holding the robe out over the desk toward Samheed. He shook the robe slightly, indicating Samheed should take it.

Samheed glared. He didn't reach for it. “No, Alex,” he said. “I don't want the job, and I never did. I just want you to do it right.”

Alex gave him a patronizing smile, and his voice was eerily calm. “Oh, I see. Well, as I mentioned before, thank you for your comments. I'll consider doing something right
next time. That really hadn't occurred to me until you SAID SOMETHING.”

All of Samheed's muscles were tensed, and his mouth twitched with anger. But he held his tongue. After a moment he turned and stormed out of the office, his footsteps echoing down the hallway.

When all was silent once more, the robe slipped from Alex's grasp into a heap on the desk. He sat down heavily in his chair, closed his eyes, and let out a defeated sigh. A few minutes later, he opened his eyes and wearily went back to studying Mr. Today's spell books.

Not long after, Alex heard a new set of footsteps. He trained his eyes on the doorway, waiting to see who was coming this time.

It was Lani.

“Hey,” Alex said. “Come in.”

Lani marched in, eyes blazing. “So you're blaming this on me?”

Alex blinked. “What?”

“You told Samheed that I drove too fast and it's my fault the plan didn't come together, right?”

“Not exactly,” Alex said. “I told him I made a mistake in
thinking you would drive slowly as we planned, so I was off on my timing.”

“Aaron fixed the oil problem, you know,” Lani said accusingly. “The vehicles used to run very slowly but now they go faster. All Liam told us was that the vehicles run more smoothly. He didn't say anything about speed. And in fact, Alex, I did a great job delivering Gondoleery to the designated area. I'm sorry you weren't there yet. I had no way of knowing that since Matilda was hidden in the trunk, and I couldn't see her to find out if anything was going wrong.” She crossed her arms and tapped her foot. “Besides, that's not the point.”

“Here we go again,” Alex groaned. “Tell me, then. What
is
the point?”

“The point is that you should have let me kill Gondoleery when we had the chance.”

Alex nodded. “Okay. Anything else you need to say?”

“Don't talk down to me, Alex Stowe.”

Alex's shoulders relaxed. “You're right. I'm sorry. I just heard this same complaint from Samheed, plus a few other choice insults, and I'm a little touchy at the moment.”

Lani's chin jutted out. “Listening to people is part of your
job
! And when you're wrong, I'm going to tell you you're wrong.”

“Yes.” Alex closed his eyes briefly. “I am aware of that.”

“It was a big mistake, Alex,” Lani said. “It's going to cost us more lives.”

“You don't know that,” Alex said.

“It's really stinking likely, though, isn't it? Don't you think?” asked Lani. She frowned at the robe on his desk. “Why aren't you wearing your robe?”

Alex stared at her. He thought about offering it to her like he had offered it to Samheed, but he was afraid she might take it. And as much as he thought she'd be a great mage, and as much as he knew she'd do a good job, it wasn't what Mr. Today had wanted. So for now, at least, he had to keep it.