The Hidden Boy (15 page)

Theo was looking at her oddly. “What are you humming?” he said.

“Sssh!” said Bea, putting her finger to her lips.

“I learned a wind song from the Tree People,” said Theo. “Do you want to hear it?”

Bea shook her head. The Ledbetters had fanned out in the woods on either side of Phoebe. They were moving to cut her off. Fear spread through Bea like ice water. Maize had come to a halt now, no more than twenty paces from Phoebe. She was staring at her, but Bea could not read her expression from such a distance. She felt her plan rapidly unraveling. “Wait here,” she said urgently to Theo, and she slid from her perch and began to slither and drop from branch to branch.

“Where are you going?” she heard Theo call.

“Where the blazes are you?” added Trigger in Bontoc's voice.

“Stay put!” she shouted. “I'll come back for you.”
Sweat stung her eyes and the bark of the tree scraped her legs and arms raw. She landed badly among the elm's knobbly roots, twisting her ankle. The pain burned like fire. She pulled herself upright, biting hard on her lip.

As she limped around to the path she heard an enraged squawk from the direction of the falls. “Scheming and trickery!” Maize screeched. She raised a quivering arm and pointed, and her eyes burned with a pale malevolence. On either side her sons and her grandsons closed in on Phoebe, whose disguise looked suddenly foolish and transparent. As Bea watched in horror Maize Ledbetter made a twisting motion with her outstretched hand, and Phoebe dropped instantly to the ground, as though her very soul had been jerked from her body.

B
ea Flint stood on her one good leg, her hand on the rough bark for support and her twisted ankle throbbing with pain. She had awoken from a dream to find herself in a nightmare. The ancient trees leaned in over the path, holding at bay the last of the evening light, and in the cobwebbed darkness she could see the Ledbetters clustering around the lifeless figure of Phoebe. Mutton Ledbetter, a big lumbering man with a limp, hoisted her onto his shoulder like a half-empty sack of feathers.

Maize Ledbetter stood where she was, her arm still extended. She turned slightly like a squat weather vane and pointed directly at Bea. Her scratchy voice carried along the twilit path. “This one goes in the lake,” she croaked. “She'll fatten up the fishes nicely, I reckon. We
don't eat children, despite what your friends might say, but we is partial to a nice bit o' fish. We'll be coming back for you, girly, when it gets good and dark.”

Bea was frozen to the spot. It was like being in that tiny room with Ike Ledbetter, but she was not dreaming now. She glanced over her shoulder. In the shadows at the edge of the square she could just see the members of the Quorum. Granny Delphine was there, and Morganfield, who could hear for miles, and Horton, who had lost his niece. They were muttering urgently among themselves, and she knew they must be well aware of what was happening. She felt a fool. Her beginner's grasp of Mumbo Jumbo had made her so cocky that she had taken on the entire Quorum and promised them she could take on the Ledbetters too. She had let Granny Delphine down, and put Phoebe in mortal danger. She knew that in a moment the Quorum would reach a decision. They would have to act to save Phoebe, and she would forever be the child who made such a mess of things that Bell Hoot's pacifist ways, already tarnished by the Ledbetters, were lost for good.

She felt a flash of anger melting through her fear. She turned to see the Ledbetters trotting swiftly away
toward the lake, carrying Phoebe with them. She did not know if her friend was alive or dead. “Girly, is it?” she said, and she began to hum. It was a loud and urgent hum. A tremendous cloud of sound broke out in response from the distant hive at the curve of the path. The hive was packed to bursting with fat, restless bees. They were fueled up with nectar and waiting for the starting gun. Bea focused on their song, shutting out every other sound. She closed her eyes and burrowed into the center of the hive until she heard the old queen's buzz. She took the sound and made it her own.

MMMM
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM,
she buzzed, and all at once the fat bees burst from their hive like a million miniature helicopters. Bea opened her eyes. The Ledbetters had stopped in their tracks at the curve of the path. Around them the air was thickening by the second. A dense swarm of black dots fizzed against the yellow backdrop of the moon that sat like a full bowl of honey on the horizon.

Bea called to the swarm. She ordered them to fly low and to make their way toward her. The bees were elated to be free from the hive, and ready to do anything she asked. They formed a fuzzy cordon around the Ledbetters, who spun around in terror, looking for a way
out. Some flapped their arms and yelled in panic, while others covered their heads and crouched low. Mutton dropped Phoebe to the ground and pulled his ragged scarf up around his ears.

The bees began to move, and Maize, who had been at the head of the column, turned back toward Bea with a cry of rage. She began to drive her clan ahead of her like an agitated sheepdog, aiming a kick here and a box there to keep them moving smartly. Bea watched, transfixed, as they tripped and fell and rolled upright again, no less afraid of Maize's wrath than of the bees themselves. The roar of wings grew louder by the second.

Bea hopped gingerly back off the path as the swarm drew near, blowing dust and dry leaves before it like a small hurricane. In its center the Ledbetters were fearful and confused, but not Maize. She was marching toward the square now with grim determination in her eyes. As she drew level with Bea the old woman suddenly lunged in her direction, breaking through the swarm. Bea stumbled backward. Her twisted ankle gave way and she fell to the packed earth. A layer of angry bees coated the old woman, and Bea stared in dismay as they began to sting her mercilessly.

Enough!
Bea hummed, as loudly as she could.
Leave her alone.
The noise was so loud she did not know if the bees would hear her.
Up!
she commanded.
Fly
up! It was the only thing she could think of. The bees began to lift off from Maize. They were joined by the others in the swarm, and within moments a funnel of bees was rising into the air as though they were being sucked up by the moon.

Maize Ledbetter dropped to her knees. Her yellowish skin was turning an angry red, and she was swelling up like a grub.

Bea struggled to her feet. The Ledbetters stood in a sullen knot where their buzzing herders had deserted them. “Help her!” shouted Bea, but they just stared at her with dull resentment, as though they had been expecting this all along.

She could see Granny Delphine and Mr. Morganfield hurrying toward her across the square.

The rapidly ballooning Maize seemed to be trying to speak. Bea leaned closer in horrified fascination. Maize's words squeaked out through swollen lips. “Must be my birthday,” she said. “I knowed for many years I would die this day.” She paused for a moment, gasping for breath. “I knowed it was bees that would
do me in, too,” she wheezed. “Only way to bring out the…Hidden Boy, as it turns out. It's all got to work together. Didn't…see that bit till now.”

“What can I do?” asked Bea.

“Can't do nothing, girly. Just step aside.” She waved a bloated hand that looked like an inflated rubber glove. Bea hopped to one side, puzzled. Maize was staring at someone beyond her. “Your turn now, boy,” she said. “You is head of the Ledbetter clan. Don't roll over for nobody.”

Bea spun around, following Maize Ledbetter's gaze. Theo stood there among the roots, a bedraggled parrot on his shoulder and his jaw hanging open in amazement at the sight of the pink swollen woman kneeling before him.

“It's your fate, boy,” squeaked Maize. “Can't escape it, neither. Even old Ma Ledbetter can't escape her fate.” She gave a jerky wheeze that sounded almost like a laugh; then she toppled slowly over and was still.

A
fat yellow moon hung over the main square of Bell Hoot. It looked as though a circular hole had been cut in the evening sky to let some daylight through. Half the population of the town had converged on the main square as news had spread of Maize Ledbetter's death and the return of the Hidden Boy. Ma was there, sitting on the steps of the library, her arms wrapped so tightly around Theo that it looked as if she would never let him go. Theo in turn hugged Nails the meerkat, and both boy and meerkat had given up struggling and submitted to their fate. Clockwork Gabby sat beside them, straight as a pencil, a wide smile bisecting her face, and Trigger the parrot, ousted from his perch on Theo's shoulder, stalked up and down the steps and sulked. “Where the blazes are you, Trigger?” he
muttered from time to time.

Pa had given Theo such a mighty bear hug that Ma had had to send him off to rescue Phoebe from where she lay, for fear that he might squeeze the boy to death. As he thundered along the path Pa wiped tears from his eyes with the backs of his tattooed hands. He hoped that nobody would notice, then realized that he really didn't care if they did.

A knot of some twenty Ledbetters squatted sullenly in the middle of the square. The library had been unlocked and a desk carried out and set in front of them, along with three chairs on which sat Mr. Morganfield, Mr. Horton and Granny Delphine. Mr. Morganfield was clearing his throat and tapping a pencil on the table, but nobody paid him much attention.

The ballooned body of Maize Ledbetter had been covered by the largest sheet that could be found, and lighted candles had been placed at her head, hands and feet to light her way home, as was the custom in Bell Hoot.

Bea had sent the bees on their way, and was waiting anxiously for Pa to return with Phoebe. As they came into view she gave a huge sigh of relief to see
that Phoebe was walking, albeit somewhat shakily, on her own two feet. She was holding on to Pa's arm for support.

Mr. Morganfield cleared his throat more loudly, and the babble of the assembled crowd subsided. Two yellow moons in less than a week, strange tales of swarming bees and the death of Bell Hoot's most feared matriarch had given them plenty to talk about, but they could see there was more to come.

“The Quorum of Bell Hoot is now in session,” said Mr. Morganfield, “and let us hope this will be the last extraordinary session for some time.” He shuffled some papers on the desk. The papers were advertisements for yoga classes, book clubs and missing cats that Miss Hopkins had been sorting for the library notice board, but for people who regularly preside over meetings paper shuffling is a hard habit to break.

“The Quorum would like to extend its sympathies to the entire Ledbetter family on their tragic loss,” began Mr. Morganfield. Mr. Horton examined his fingernails and frowned. “However,” Mr. Morganfield continued, “the passing of Maize Ledbetter presents an excellent opportunity to turn over a new leaf.”

“Glad to hear it,” said Mutton Ledbetter.

“I was referring to you, Mr. Ledbetter,” said Mr. Morganfield. “As the senior member of your clan I assume you will take over as leader. The Quorum demands that you cease harassing the citizens of Bell Hoot, and leave at once the dreams of all those whom you have afflicted to date.”

Mutton Ledbetter shrugged. “No need for that no more. The Hidden Boy is found. He's the new head of the Ledbetters. You'd best talk with him.”

“Don't be ridiculous,” said the beefy man, who stood with his arms folded behind Mr. Morganfield. “The boy is only six or seven, and he's not even of your clan.”

“Each clan got the right to choose their own leader,” said Mutton. “That's Bell Hoot law, and you been spouting the law at us since as long as I can remember, Morganfield. Old Ma told us over and over the Hidden Boy'd be the next leader. Said she'd live to a hundred too, and not a day more, and there she is lying dead on her hundredth birthday. Everything she ever said come true, and this won't be no different. Can't nobody escape their fate.”

“Who's the Hidden Boy?” said Theo. He had finally allowed Nails to escape from his arms, and the meerkat had settled beside him on the library step, his head on
Theo's lap and his little snout sniffing for beetles in his master's pocket.

The Ledbetters turned as one to look at Theo. “You is,” said Mutton.

Theo's eyes opened wide. “You want
me
to be your leader?” he said incredulously.

Ma tightened her hold on Theo. “You must be joking!” she said. “I won't be letting Theo out of my sight, not for a second. It's an absurd suggestion anyway—he's just a baby.”

“No, I'm not,” said Theo indignantly. He turned to Mutton Ledbetter. “We're only here on holiday, though.”

Mutton Ledbetter laughed. “That's what they told you, maybe. There's no way back from Bell Hoot, boy. You're here for good.”

Theo looked at Ma, but she was avoiding his eye. He turned to Bea. “Are we really?” he said. Bea nodded.

Mr. Horton looked up from his fingernails and fixed Mutton Ledbetter with a cold stare. “If you knew all along that the Hidden Boy would be found,” he said, “why was it necessary to bully all those people with your insidious tricks? Why did my sister's child have to die?”

“Maize didn't mean for no one to die. She just wanted
the boy sooner, is all,” said Mutton. “She knowed her time was running out. She wanted to teach the boy our ways before she up and died, didn't she? You should have handed him over.”

“We couldn't have done so even if we had wanted to,” said Granny Delphine “We arrived only three days ago, and he's been lost since then.” She was interrupted by a piercing screech from the bedraggled parrot on the library steps. Trigger made a short run and took off, skimming the heads of the assembled Ledbetters and almost colliding with Mr. Horton, who ducked just in time to avoid getting a faceful of ancient parrot.

There was an astonished cry from the far side of the square. It was Captain Bontoc. He had just walked from Cambio Falls, his head abuzz with strange events, and the last thing he had expected was to find his long-lost parrot heading for him like a flying feather duster. “Trigger!” he cried.

“Where the blazes are you, Trigger?” said the parrot happily. He tried to land on the captain's shoulder, but his momentum was too great and his brakes had long since ceased to work. He glanced off Bontoc's ear and fluttered to rest on the sheet-covered mound that was the mortal remains of Maize Ledbetter.

Captain Bontoc was so overjoyed to see the parrot that he did not seem to notice the grim nature of his perch. He lifted Trigger and placed him gently on his shoulder.

Mr. Morganfield looked up pointedly at the moon. A blue cast was spreading across it, chasing the yellow back into hiding. “Bontoc!” he said sharply. “The crossing, man! What about the numbers?”

“Crossing has been made, Morganfield,” said Bontoc. He scratched his head in a puzzled fashion, and Bea noticed he wasn't wearing his cap. It was the first time she had ever seen him without it.

“What do you mean?” demanded Morganfield. “Nine souls must go through. You know that.”

“No one knows better,” agreed Bontoc. “Funny thing happened tonight, though. Firstly it wasn't supposed to be no yellow moon. Chart said the next one is in three weeks; I'm sure of it.”

“You must have read it wrong,” said Mr. Horton.

“You can check it yourself,” said Captain Bontoc cheerfully. “Anyhow, it so happened I was on the Blue Moon Mobile fixing the periscope, which has been jamming lately, when I noticed the yellow moon rising. Naturally I took out my keys, but that was as far as I
got.” He paused, and his pink cheeks turned slightly pinker.

“Well?” said Granny Delphine. “Are you going to tell us what happened or just stand there blushing like a schoolgirl?”

“You won't believe this,” said Bontoc, “but before I could get into the driver's seat who should step aboard but Arkadi himself!”

There was an intake of breath from the entire crowd. Even the Ledbetters looked astonished. Bontoc realized they were hanging on his every word, and he dragged out his pause for dramatic effect. “He took the keys from my hand, cool as you like,” he said finally. “Took my cap too. ‘Take the night off, Bontoc,' he said, and he sat down in the driver's seat and started the engine.”

“That's impossible!” said Mr. Morganfield. “Arkadi has been dead for forty years.”

“He's been missing for forty years,” Bontoc corrected him, “but it was him nonetheless. I'd stake my life on it. Met him once before when I was a lad, and I'll never forget those eyes. Looked right through me and out the back of my head.”

Bea exchanged glances with Phoebe, who sat on the step beside her now, sipping a warm drink that Mrs.
Miller had brought for her. She was still pale, but she gave a little smile.

“Anyhow, I got off the bus like I was told, and Arkadi made the crossing instead,” said Captain Bontoc. “Going to make a right mess of the schedule when Cap'n Fuller gets here.”

“Are we all done with the chitchat?” interrupted Mutton Ledbetter loudly. “Only we'd like to take the boy and be gettin' back home. We got an old lady to bury.”

“You're not taking him anywhere,” said Ma fiercely.

“Sit down, please, Captain Bontoc,” said Mr. Morganfield. He turned back to face Mutton. “We are not finished, Mr. Ledbetter. The Quorum proposes that your compound on Mumpfish Island be dismantled, and that your clan come to live here in Bell Hoot, where you can be better integrated into the community.”

A mutter of discontent rippled through the crowd. It was the first they had heard of this idea, and it was clear that not everyone liked it. The Ledbetters looked angry too.

“You can't throw us off the island,” said Mutton. “That's been our home for always. I built half that compound with my own hands.”

“You live on a
real
island?” said Theo.

“All our lives,” said Mutton.

Theo looked up at Ma. “Where are we going to live?” he said.

“We're staying with some nice people at the moment,” said Ma. “We'll have to see what happens later.”

“You always say that,” said Theo. He turned back to Mutton. “Do you have to do everything your leader says?”

“Always did what Maize told us,” said Mutton.

“Even if she told you to wear a pink dress, you'd have to do it?”

“Maize weren't the pink-dress type,” said Mutton.

Bea could see the cogs turning in Theo's mind, and she knew what was coming.

“Just suppose I did become the leader,” said Theo slowly, “and I told you to build a house for my whole family on the island, would you have to do it?”

Mutton nodded. “If we gets to stay on the island, I reckon that's a fair swap,” he said.

Theo looked at Ma. She shook her head. “I don't think that's a good idea,” she said.

“I think Theo is right,” said Bea.

“Theo is not right,” said Ma sharply. “I'm still head of this family, and I say where we live and what happens to us.”

Pa opened his mouth to speak, then thought better of it and closed it again.

Ma turned to Mr. Morganfield. “The Quorum will have to provide us with a house. We were brought here under false pretenses, and since you seem to be the nearest thing to a government it's your responsibility to house us.”

“We got the right to choose our leader,” repeated Mutton. Bea could see on his face the same stubborn look she knew from Ike.

Mr. Morganfield sighed. “That is the law,” he conceded.

Bea looked at Ma. “It makes sense, Ma,” she said. “We need somewhere to live. If Theo becomes head of the clan he can insist they plant the island again. Imagine the whole island covered in fruit trees! I could keep bees, and we could sell the fruit and honey at the market. You could take up tattooing again, if there's anyone left to tattoo.”

“No bees!” said the Ledbetters with one voice.

“You don't have to be afraid of bees anymore,” said
Bea. “Maize knew that bees would be the end of her. No wonder she was always afraid of them. Bees won't hurt you if you leave them alone. I'll make sure of that.”

“Wait a minute,” said Theo. “Are meerkats allowed on the island?”

“We got dogs, chickens, plenty of fleas,” said Mutton, counting off the species on his fingers. “Don't suppose meerkats lay eggs, do they?”

“Of course not,” said Theo. “Anyway, Nails is a boy.” He raised his eyes to the fat blue moon. “I can see I'll have my work cut out here,” he said under his breath, but only Bea and Mr. Morganfield heard him.