Tree of Life

by Sarah Joy Green-Hart

  "Spirit,” Jade answered.

  Dumbfounded, Cole closed his mouth and took off his hat to scratch his scalp, push up his glasses, rub his jaw. Anything to avoid losing his temper further. Was she giving up? This unearthly bundle of positivity and passion was giving up?

  "We will accommodate your wishes, Mrs. Chandler,” Ariana replied.

  "How gracious of you to accommodate her wishes,” Cole retorted. "Accommodate a wish of mine, if you please, I wish and appeal to you for her to be imprisoned and her child spared for a period of three months. During that time, I will organize a committee, with the aid of the Kyrios, for the purpose of contacting God.”

  Destroying the child in three months would be an uglier process, but if waiting might save Jade . . .

  "Your appeal is denied,” Vincent answered. "Isn’t it clear God has denied her? Adequate contact has been made.”

  Cole raised a finger, cringing, "Dispose of the mongrel if needs be, but let the time and space be given for a committee—”

  Hesper strode to the front to stand beside Cole. Feet planted with confidence, shoulders back, chin up—the pose looked unusual in a dress like hers, but if she were wearing hides? She’d have looked as fierce as a mountain lion. She wore anger like a crown, and it was always beautiful.

  She pointed at the Kyrios. "You are sick people! Your minds are sick! Your god is sick! I would call you brute beasts, but even beasts have more honor!”

  David rushed to grab her hand and lead her back to her place. She resisted him, managing one more firm point at the council. “Death is too good for you! The soil would spit you out! I hope you live forever with the agony of your conscience and may you never find rest!”

  David wouldn’t comfort his wife in front of the Kyrios, but he corrected and stopped his fiancé when she stood up for something? Too worried about people liking him to love anyone deeply.

  Cole would have stood with her if she were his. Naturally, he would have tried to talk her out of it if it had been planned, but after doing it, she deserved respect and support.

  Vincent responded gently, "David, you will have her here daily for conversion classes, beginning next week. I will take the responsibility for her instruction myself. I think we’ll get along nicely.”

  The genuine amusement on his face concerned Cole. He liked her. Too much.

  “Considering her kindness to one of our own, and that she is new to our ways, I grant leniency for this passionate behavior. I will do the same for your brother, though he has no such excuse.” He eyed Cole as he descended the platforms and beckoned. "Jade, step forward.”

  Cole caught Jade’s arm. Though he rarely perspired due to stress, the situation had dampened his hands. He squeezed her arm harder to keep a grip.

  Vincent stood on the floor, level with the Chandler family. "What now, Cole? What shall we do? Shall we have a bit of hand-to-hand combat? Your work with the Gentles has made you quite barbaric these days.”

  Jade waited, no questions, no wondering. She knew as well as Cole that they were powerless, even though his entire body and soul screamed to do something. If anyone required evidence of the effectiveness of Meros psychological tactics, they needed to look no further.

  Quiet surrender to death.

  That’s what happens when people grow accustomed to allowing others to rule over them. Cole was equally guilty. Reluctantly, he released Jade.

  "I request that she be granted the right to the death-light,” Cole blurted. What a stupid request. "She has been a true believer, pious through and through, despite this superstitious practice that condemns her, due to her piety, an exception should be made that she may enter the afterlife.”

  Vincent exchanged a surprised glance with Ariana. Suppressing a laugh, he answered, "Denied. No Gentle has ever been permitted a death-light burning. We’ll certainly not begin with a witch. We realize it’s distressing, but God’s ways are higher than our own.”

  Vincent touched Jade’s face and kissed her forehead, then ordered her to kneel.

  This absurd prolongation and the benevolent display of the kiss made Cole’s face hot with anger. He cleared his thoughts, focused on breathing, and tried to leave behind the fury. He failed. A livid fever was rising.

  Coolness. Calm. Breathe it away. Press it down with a blank mind.

  Now. Now.

  Failure.

  He gritted his teeth and bit his fist. He had to put his faith in training and self-discipline. Survival meant flipping the switch on feelings, even if he hated it.

  Shut it off. Shut it off. Why couldn’t he shut it off?

  Vincent placed his hands on Jade’s shoulders. "Jade Chandler, you have violated the laws of God and the laws of the Meros. Your punishment, as you have chosen, is by spirit. We the humble servants of God are here and stand ready to reveal Its wrath against unbelieving atheists.”

  Reverenced Ones Pierce and Minh joined him to tie her feet and hands together and lay her on the stone floor. Trinity handed a long black strap to Vincent who knelt beside Jade and wrapped it around Jade’s neck. Without further ceremony, he tightened it.

  Cole could whip Vincent in a fight and help Jade up from the ground, but she would still die. The Kyrios might kill him, too. Cole’s death would add to the family’s grief and, potentially, result in the deaths of many more in his own family and the Unified. He had to resist his noble impulses.

  Dear God, it’s painful to sacrifice one for many. One? No. Two. This is the sacrifice of two.

  Beyond the heavy thoughts he found to keep himself centered and in control, Hesper’s scream filled his heart with ice that spread and splintered through his whole body. Why wasn’t David helping her? Anise did much to restrain and little to comfort.

  Hesper would never calm down long enough to listen to him. David could do it. He often broke through the barrier of will while guiding someone to calm. His voice worked well for his job, but it was probably not so easy to use when his wife was being murdered before his eyes.

  Cole joined his family and waved Anise away. Hesper stopped screaming and looked into his eyes. “Would you just kill me now? If you do not kill me now, I will die like that baby. Even after its mother is dead, it may live for just a little while, but for no purpose and for such a short time, there is no sense in it.”

  That was not a good sign. If she remained calm, perhaps he could do something for her. He opened his mouth to speak—

  "David, you may take her body and burn it,” Vincent announced. "Her possessions and whatever she’s given to you must be burnt to remove evil influences from your home. Do not mourn her.” His hands held out to them, he used his gentle authoritative post-execution voice. "No tears are to be shed for the wicked. In the fear and reverence of God, consider the iniquitous ways of an atheist and her witchcraft. You are warned.” He adjusted his tunic and strutted out, followed by the unfazed council of Kyrios.

  Hesper’s sobs echoed in the great room, disrupting the stillness of the stunned atmosphere.

  Many crimes were punishable by death with blood, water, or spirit. None of the options were pretty. It was a shame she had to see it. Unified brutality was emotional, not physical, and despite the emotional trauma Hesper had suffered in her life, she remained an open-hearted woman. It was no wonder she would love quickly and mourn a horrific end to it all in the same manner. The Unified sense of loyalty and justice demanded grief. However, they were accustomed to untimely deaths. Survival remained the priority. Hesper would be okay. Unless this was about principle more than Jade, which was quite possible.

  Hesper wrenched her arm out of David’s grasp as he tried to draw her away. Cole wanted only to do the natural, human thing: to hold her and be there while she cried. It was the right thing to do, but it might add a terrible insult to a soul’s critical injury. So, he stood with her and grabbed David as he passed in the direction of the platforms.

  "You go on. I’ll bring her home,” Cole murmured.

  David rubbed his jaw a few t
imes before he waded through his dread to Jade, picked her up, and carried her away, followed by the rest of his wives.

  Now alone, Cole placed his hand a finger’s breadth from Hesper’s head and focused, trying to send all his affection, concern, and empathy through it. There was little to lose in trying, though this was desperation at its finest.

  Hesper stopped crying and shook with involuntary, residual sobs. "I feel it, Ada—Cole.” She shuddered.

  He shouldn’t have tried. The warmth from his hand offended her.

  "The water and light feeling. I feel it from you.”

  That? Cole felt it, too. He didn’t think she would.

  Trembling, she took feeble hold of his uniform coat. Cole sucked in a sharp, surprised breath. Keep a grip on yourself, man. No matter how right it seemed, he would never put his arms around her without invitation.

  "Forgive me for this.” Arms wrapped around his ribcage, she finished her cry as humans should. If this wasn’t an invitation, he didn’t know what was.

  Footsteps echoed off the stone walls.

  Vincent.

  Cole squeezed Hesper tighter, and she turned her face away from the Glorious One.

  "So, Cole, listen. Your behavior today was really something.” Vincent patted Cole’s back, disbelieving but impressed. "I think you know it. I understand you were close to Jade. She was a lovely creature. However, your work with the Gentles ends now.” With a long, silent, steady stare, he forced Cole to acknowledge him.

  "Yes, Glorious One.”

  "I don’t think it’s healthy for you anymore. I should have you in the jail overnight, but I’m opting for mercy. Your family needs you.”

  The jail? Yes, well, perhaps that was a reasonable punishment. Cole had behaved in an unacceptable manner, though how could he have behaved any other way when no one else dared to speak up? Someone had to rage against the powerlessness. He couldn’t let it know he felt it.

  "Thank you, Glorious One.”

  * * *

  The Chandlers tossed Jade’s possessions and gifts into a pile, including her paintings and, lastly, her body, David set the pyre ablaze. The stench of burning flesh chased away the sweetness of Jade’s drawer of incense, bringing a sick finalization to the ugly ordeal. The smell of an innocent’s death. Cole and David watched over the fire for several minutes, saying nothing until Cole couldn’t bear it.

  "Something has to be done, Dave.”

  "Like what? Don’t be so sure they’ll have mercy on you again. No one’s that valuable. Guest lecturers are a dime a dozen, and others will rise to wave education’s standard. I promise.” He took a cigarette and lighter from his pocket. "You may be the best, but it doesn’t mean you can’t push the Kyrios farther than your worth. That’s why I don’t try anything. I’m not worth much to them. I’ve got a smooth voice and a few tricks. That’s about it.” David lit the cigarette and tucked the lighter away.

  "Unless Trinity dies—you know she’s sick—and you’ll take her place. You’re worth a lot because they don’t want me to take that position.”

  The brothers turned away from the pyre and walked toward the house.

  "Don’t even think about it.” David brought the cigarette to his lips, looking to the west. "I don’t need this right now.”

  Cole wrinkled his nose. "Why not think about it? Someone needs to find out what’s happened to the Book.” He spun around to walk backward, facing David as he spoke. "I mean, did you see how ridiculously they behaved? Did you really notice it? They don’t hear from any god I know!”

  David’s derisive laugh blew a few puffs of smoke in Cole’s direction. "Oh, you know God yourself now, hm?” He snapped. "Did the two of you have tea? Go for a stroll through an ethereal garden of wisdom and spiritual enlightenment? Forget about it.” He blew the smoke from his nostrils as he dropped the cigarette and assumed a quicker pace to walk ahead.

  Cole crushed the cigarette under his shoe and let out a deep breath to kill the pressure in his chest.

  He tried to appreciate the sunshine as Jade would have, closing his eyes and paying attention to the warmth on his skin, but the fire crackling and Jade’s treasures popping and shifting in the flames thwarted his efforts.

  He hadn’t paid attention to the current phase of the moon. Out of reverence for its greatest lover, he hoped it would glow full in a cloudless sky tonight. Jade deserved it.

  This wasn’t over for him. David may play the coward, but Cole refused.

  * * *

  Hesper stood in the doorway of the house, numb, watching the smoke. She reached out and squeezed David’s hand as he slid by. He glanced at her with a whisper of a smile and passed through. When Cole arrived, she stepped back and allowed him to come in.

  "Ada—Cole, do you think it should be raining? This should not be a sunny day.”

  She did not look at him. The thought of his uniform made her sick, and she had seen enough Meros authority symbols to last for a long time. Instead, she fixed her eyes on the flaming pyre, built near the spot where she abandoned her escape efforts. At least Jade had escaped.

  Without conversation or even permission, she spent the day with Cole. The man she once loved would be a proper sanctuary because he was wise and would not bother or hurt her.

  By day’s end, she still sat, facing the window, willing herself to love the moon as much as Jade did. Cole sat on the floor, reclined against the sofa, looking at a book. Smoke drifted through the air as embers of the great injustice slowly flickered out. By morning, it would be warm but otherwise gone. Hesper toyed with the rhodonite necklace no one noticed or, perhaps, cared to try to take from her to burn.

  "Cole.”

  "Hm?”

  "What happened?”

  "The wrong thing.” He closed the book.

  "Is that truly the god you believe in?”

  "No, no, it’s not.”

  "Does It judge and kill?”

  "It can do what It wants to, but It is just,” Cole said. "This wasn’t the right way.”

  "What is the right way?”

  "Hm . . . I guess you have to get to know It to find out. God is bigger than this, and you’ll like It, from what I know of It.” He smiled. "Jade was more of a gift from God than an example of Its wrath. If you can imagine what a god who gives gifts like that must be like . . .”

  Hesper rolled the delicate silver chain between her fingers. The tender sting of the black X came to life on her cheek.

  "Intervention is required now, and the Book,” Cole said, "the Book is the key. I have to look at it.”

  Nineteen | Post-Conquest: 227

  This friggin’ cold spell would not let up. It sneaked past Jes’ stolen furs and under his worn-out clothes with the tenacity of a lonely, young housewife. If only he could run into one of them tonight. She’d give him somewhere to . . . warm up.

  He managed a frozen smirk.

  A few degrees less cold and he’d make it just fine outside. Most seemed to think someone his age likely deserved to be a bum, so he stayed outdoors a lot more since he started looking and sounding like a man.

  Fifteen years wasn’t that old, was it? Maybe it was. Maybe he did deserve this. He couldn’t think of why, but . . . well, it was hard to think straight when he couldn’t feel his toes.

  Apple Gate looked like a good place to find a nighttime landing spot. Any of these houses might be friendly enough to open its doors. His nose and fingers needed a break from the cold before playing the door-knocking game, so he’d step inside the first open business on his path.

  Gentle drums beat their way through the air. Must be a wedding in the woods. Though it would be weird to have a Meros gate so close to inhabited trees unless Apple Gate was an Earth Person community. He looked around. Nah. Earth People never built Gates this big. They kept more trees, too.

  It was a good thing for him that the Gentles were so close, though. Just in case. The Gentles gave him a warmish place to sleep a few times in the past.

  The light from a g
eneral store window in the town circle ahead promised warmth and a bite to eat.

  Promises, promises. Lights don’t mean open.

  It was worth a shove at the handle at least. The door opened with the surprisingly loud jangle of sleigh bells.

  He sniffed the air. Castor oil, chicken soup, and a hint of mint. He hadn’t eaten since—when was it?

  "Good evening, sir!” A clear, friendly voice came from somewhere. An old person. A nice one.

  Easy as whore-pies! If he was respectful, old people never suspected he’d steal—

  "You look as if you’ve been walking a long time. I’ve got a fire in the back and some soup you ought to have. Posthaste!”

  Where was the guy? Jes looked around, trying to spot the source of the voice.

  A strong hand with swollen knuckles grabbed Jes’ shoulder and pushed him forward. A short old person. They were sneaky . . . and dangerous when wielding canes or purses.

  And shotguns.

  Oh! That lady with the knitting needle a couple years back. That was actually super scary.

  No matter the weapon of choice, terror was the name of the game when a short person felt the need to attack him. They were easy to miss ‘til it was too late.

  Jes laughed. "Whoa, buddy. I’ll come without pushin’.”

  Releasing Jes’ shoulder, the old man strode ahead and giggled as he disappeared around the corner on surprisingly long legs for a short dude. "C’mon, big guy,” he called, clinking dishes and slopping liquid somewhere out-of-sight.

  Jes pulled back his hood and followed the old man into a fire-lit room. A pot hung over the fireplace. People who could afford to run a business and have electricity usually had a regular stove, but okay.

  A bowl of soup waited on a lace-edged, quilted, brown placemat.

  "This for me?” Jes pointed at the soup.

  "No, no, no, that’s for the dog.” The man scowled in the unsettling way of frustrated, angry old people.

  Jes looked around. "Dog?” At the table? What the . . .?

  The old man giggled. "You got looks but not brains, I see. Yes, the soup’s for you!”

  Jes smiled. A friggin’ funny guy, huh? All right, old man. Let’s be friends—after I knock your dentures out.