“A lizard?” asked Kemi, as if I’d said a dirty word.
I nodded. It was against the wall, reducing the risk of shooting anyone if the arrow went wild.
“No,” said Kemi, shaking her head, her lips already in a pout. “I want to enter the forest with you and hunt, shoot a shifter.”
Chapter Nine
A laugh bubbled in my stomach and threatened to burst out. I clasped my hand over my mouth and cleared my throat to cover it up. It wouldn’t be fair to make fun of Kemi’s efforts. I took a deep breath and tried to buy time to come up with something to say.
“Well?” asked Kemi.
“Well, we can hunt, but not in the forest.”
Kemi pouted her lips. “Why not? You have seen what I can do. I’m as good as they come.”
“Well, for someone new at this, you’re holding your own,” I said. “But, killing anything takes practice.” I remembered the first time I shot a lizard and killed it. I ran over and tried to fix its wounds. It took me a while to get used to ending life. Kemi had no experience.
“So?” asked Kemi, eyebrows raised.
“Have you ever killed anything?” I asked.
Kemi counted off her fingers. “Roaches, geckos, mosquitoes. If you can do it, I can, too. I have it in my blood. After all, our father was a hunter.”
I looked at her, smiled, and shook my head. I’d never seen this part of Kemi before; very patronizing. She seemed to have grown overnight. “Mama doesn’t want you to hunt. She’ll be upset if she finds out I took you into the forest.”
Kemi cocked her head. “Well, Mama has to understand that things are changing. You can hunt, and you’ve been bringing in meat. You’re even better than most men at hunting.”
I frowned. “Why today? Why do you want to go hunting today? We can do it tomorrow or next tomorrow.”
Kemi lowered her head and shuffled dirt with her boots. “Well, because I want to spend time with you. If anything should happen today, who knows when I would see you again?”
“Nothing will happen,” I said reflexively, though I or anyone could get picked this afternoon.
“So, what say you?” asked Kemi, flashing me a smile. “Shall we go?”
I wanted to take her. She was right. We hadn’t spent quality time together in a long while. Yesterday when we played ncho, I enjoyed it. I sighed, walked over to the target I’d propped up against the wall, and dropped it back to the woodpile.
I rearranged the pile of wood as I debated whether to take her or not. I would be breaking a direct order from Mama, and the king’s rule, too. Kemi was not yet thirteen. The law required anyone hunting with a weapon must be at least thirteen years of age. Their reasoning was that they would judge you as a grown-up if you, for some reason, hurt someone with the weapon. I mentioned that to Kemi.
“Who would know?” said Kemi, throwing her palms out in front of her. “We’ll be in and out before anybody, even Mama, looks for us.” Then she chuckled. “Rules are meant to be broken.”
I laughed, discovering a new side to my sister.
“Please?”
I turned away and looked towards the forest. As much as it sounded adventurous, it was also dangerous. Poisonous snakes, leopards, insects, boa constrictors, and sometimes armed robbers who would waylay people and relieve them of their goods. The forest could be fun, dull, or downright dangerous.
A few locations in the forest were quiet and nice. Places Baba had shown me with a lot of fruit trees, mango trees, cashew trees, and guava. Those were some of the best memories of my life. Why not make new ones with my sister?
Chapter Ten
I tried to remember how Baba had walked me through during my own early days. We had started with traps and gathering.
I removed all traces of emotion from my face. “Kemi, in the forest you must listen completely and do what I say. It's dangerous out there. I’ve been doing this for a long time, and I’ve learned a lot. Question nothing I say; it might be the difference between life and death.” I wanted to say more, but fear crept into Kemi’s face. Maybe later, I thought, I didn’t want to scare her away.
We left a sleeping Dotan at home and entered the forest. We planned to be back home when our shadows were the shortest. The village was wide awake, and I thought it wasn’t the best time to go, but better now than waiting and having Kemi possibly change her mind. We got on the path and followed it into the forest.
“So, do you think we’ll encounter a lion or leopard in the bush?” asked Kemi, her enthusiasm returning.
“I hope we don’t. It might not end well for us.”
The smile on Kemi’s face wavered. “You’re kidding, right?”
“I haven’t seen any in the forest in a long time. Luckily the one I saw was feeding and didn’t bother me. Not that they are not there, I see their droppings. They try to keep away from people. Most of the time they only attack humans when they are old, provoked, or surprised.”
“Hmm, that is plenty of reason to attack people,” said Kemi. She hesitated. “But, if one shows up, you can bring it down, right?”
I nodded. “Baba told me that the best place to shoot a big cat was in the chest where the heart and lungs are located.” I didn’t tell her he also said not to miss. A wounded animal could be extremely dangerous.
The forest was warming up as we progressed; so far, so good. But Kemi was making a lot of noise. “Watch where you place your feet. Avoid stepping on branches and dead leaves. Stealth and being nimble goes a long way in helping you surprise an animal.”
“Let’s go this way,” said Kemi when we got to where the footpath split into two.
“No, I don’t know where it leads.”
“Isn’t that better?” said Kemi. “Uncharted territory; let’s explore!”
“No, Kemi!” I said in a loud whisper. “In the forest, you don’t do whatever you like. Remember what I said before we started. For now, it’s better to stick to familiar routes.” I didn’t want to sound like a teacher, but she had to know how to move in the forest; otherwise, she wouldn’t survive if she were on her own.
Kemi exhaled, lowering her shoulders. “This is tiring. I haven’t seen any animals yet. Are they hiding?”
“Of course they are hiding,” I said. “If you were them, would you just stick around and wait for somebody to come and catch you?”
“Ok,” said Kemi.
We had gone deep enough into the forest, and I felt we should be ready for anything. “First thing; have your weapon ready. If an animal surprises you, you must be ready. I prefer to surprise them, not the other way round.”
Kemi removed her bow from her shoulder and held it. She tried to knock in an arrow, and I stopped her.
“Not yet, just get used to holding the bow. You’ll add the arrow later. If you’re not used to a pulled string under tension, your fingers will cramp and go to sleep. We don’t want you to get tired and pissed off before we have even started.”
“This is a lot of work,” complained Kemi.
I smiled and kept my mouth shut. We hadn’t even started. Even as we moved, I was the eyes and ears for both of us. My eyes swept the trees, the ground, and the bushes, missing nothing; I hoped.
“Is this what you do every day in the forest? It’s boring.” Kemi wiped sweat from her brow. “And it's hot.”
“Don’t worry, it takes a little getting used to.” I noticed some areas where the grass had been disturbed. A hunter had been here earlier. I looked for what he could have put out there. Must be a trap. Then I saw it, a tree with some bark exposed.
“Stop.”
“Why?” Kemi whined.
I traced the bush from the tree and followed the disturbed grass. It led all the way to where we were. I caught Kemi’s eyes and pointed to her feet. A few feet to her right foot was a piece of metal with giant serrated teeth like the jaws of a hungry animal, concealed by brush.
Kemi’s eyes widened. “It looks like an animal that had opened its mouth really wide.”
I was familiar with the traps. I only wanted to use it to teach Kemi. I watched Kemi’s eyes grow as wide as guava fruits and her bow fall out of her hand.
“Nuju… Nuju,” stammered Kemi. “That trap would have caught my leg.”
“It’s very dangerous,” I said. “I’ve seen it snap off the legs of squirrels and antelopes.”
“Snap it off?” said Kemi. Her voice was still shaky from her close call.
Even though I figured traps were set in that part of the forest, I could never tell the exact locations. I wondered if it was a good idea bringing her into the woods. What if something happened to her? Mama would never forgive me, neither would I forgive myself. I pushed the thought away.
“I have to keep my eyes peeled from now on,” said Kemi.
“Good idea. Let’s go.”
We moved on, our progress slow. Kemi had her eyes glued to the ground and used her bow as a stick to push and prude the grass before placing her feet anywhere on the ground. Though frustrating, better to be safe than sorry. I did the same when Baba trained me until I got used to trusting my instincts.
We had to make it back to the village on time for the harvest, so I took the lead.
“You’re doing what I did when Baba trained me.”
“How old were you?” asked Kemi.
“I was little, four or five.”
“How come Baba never took me?” asked Kemi.
I rolled my eyes. “Come on, you were a baby. But, even if you had been older, Mama would never have let him take you. I was the first, so they used me as an experiment.”
Kemi crinkled her forehead. “Experiment?”
“Yes, with the first child, new parents don’t have a clear idea of what they are doing. So, whatever they tried that didn’t work on the first child, they won’t try on the subsequent ones. Dotan didn’t hunt with us, either. He wouldn’t have wanted to come if he had any say in it.”
“And how do you know that?” asked Kemi. “You’ve been a parent before?”
I laughed. “No, silly. What was tried on me was not done for you and Dotan.” We walked on in silence.
“Wait a minute!” said Kemi. “At six you couldn’t hunt. What about the soldiers?”
“What about them?” I asked.
“They should have arrested Baba. Remember, you had to be thirteen to go hunting.”
I paused. “Things have changed. Baba was already a respected hunter and could get away with most things that had to do with hunting and the forest. He was the forest authority.” I kept quiet as I realized that it was only after he died that they enforced that law a lot.
“What are we going to do next?” asked Kemi.
I knew what we would do next. “Stay out of trouble and keep our eyes peeled.” I led the way towards another section of the forest.
Chapter Twelve
“Where are we going?” asked Kemi.
I pointed. “Just around the corner where I set a bunch of traps.”
“Around the corner? What does a corner look like in the forest?”
I chuckled. “Well, the more often you come here, the more you rely on trees, rocks, and bushes as landmarks.”
“But they all appear alike!” protested Kemi.
“Something always stands out. The angle a branch makes, the shape of a bush. There’s always something to commit to memory. Next time you come to the same place, you’ll recognize it once you see your landmark.”
Kemi nodded. “Do you have landmarks here? Where are they?”
I nodded. “You see that huge tree with a low stump where a branch used to be?”
“Yes,” said Kemi.
“I have several twitch snares in the area.” I walked to the tree, my eyes fixed on the ground. “Follow my footsteps so you do not activate any of my traps.”
“A lot is involved in this hunting business,” said Kemi, shaking her head. “And we haven’t even done any shooting yet.”
I pointed at a young tree, about three feet tall. “As you can see, it's bent like a bow, and I tied twine to it. The half-eaten mango, I placed next to the trigger.”
“How does it work?” asked Kemi.
I pointed at the now rotten fruit. “The animal will activate the trigger once it comes to get the bait. The twine wraps around the part of the body in the coil of rope; a leg, hand, and sometimes the animal's neck. The tree springs back to its original position, tightening the rope and lifting the animal off the ground. Like this.” I tripped the trigger, and the twine wrapped around my hand.
“Sticks!” said Kemi. “Let me try.”
I showed Kemi how to knot, and she went to work while I checked the other snares. They were all empty. “Oh, I forgot to mention this; lifting the animal into the air is to keep it away from smaller predators. And to prevent it from getting a foothold on the ground and then be able to chew through the rope.”
“That’s not the only thing you forgot,” said Kemi.
I whirled. She was struggling with the tree and the rope, her eyebrows furrowed.
“You forgot to mention how tough this is.”
I watched my sister fiddle with the rope. If she weren’t my sister, I would have left her right there. Calm down, Nuju, I said to myself. You took a while, too, to figure these things out.
Kemi grabbed the tree and shook hard.
“Be careful,” I said and held my breath.
“This is just—” Snap. Kemi broke the tree. She took a deep breath and exhaled.
I looked at her, getting ready to yell at her, then turned away, inhaling and exhaling to calm myself. Adding to her frustration wouldn’t do either of us any good. I could always find another tree. I checked the rest of the snares. They were all intact; engaged but empty.
“There! That puts an end to your murderous days,” said Kemi, removing her hand from the trap.
“Don’t worry, it takes only practice. At home, you can practice knot tying before we come out again.” I walked away from the snare zone and motioned for Kemi to follow.
Kemi picked up her bow and fell in step behind me. She stomped her feet on the ground as if she wanted to punish the earth, attracting attention to us and chasing away game.
“Careful,” I said. “The forest ground is still as treacherous as it was on our way in. Be on the lookout for traps and snakes.”
“Sorry.” Kemi’s footsteps slowed right away.
“You’ll like our next stop. Have you ever caught fish with your hands?”
Kemi shook her head.
“I’ll show you,” I said, and we took off in another direction.
Chapter Thirteen
Kemi sniffed the air. “Is that water I smell?”
“Yes,” I said. My eyes darted between Kemi’s face and the stream. I couldn’t look her in the face. This was my favorite area of the forest. I braced for her response, my stomach empty and fluttery.
“This place looks different,” said Kemi, looking around.
Despite the brown color of the stream, this section had a lovely short stretch of sand, devoid of vegetation. Other parts literally had trees and shrubs growing close to the water, and branches hanging over the surface.
Kemi nodded and continued to look around. “Where’s the origin of the stream? Do you think anything dangerous lives in it?”
I hooked my bow over my shoulder and surveyed the water. “From somewhere up on the mountains. Some say the stream originates as a small trickle from a rock around Oyiria. Then flows down the mountain joined by other tributaries and gets bigger and bigger. Baba said the stream finally flows into the great river.”
“Oyiria, the city of magic?” asked Kemi. “They say it was a beautiful place before King Kenzi destroyed it.”
I nodded and remembered the bird from yesterday and what Mamalawo had said. Are they connected to Oyiria?
“Is the water safe?” asked Kemi.
“I’ve only seen fish in the water here.” I didn’t tell her about the wate
r snakes. I didn’t want to spoil things and scare her. The snakes had never bothered me.
“There’s a pool over there with a narrow entrance that fish get into. If we’re lucky, some are trapped already, and we’ll scoop them up easily.”
Kemi snorted. “Stop saying that. Since I’ve been in this forest, nothing has been easy.”
I took off my boots and waded into the water. “You’ll see. Come on.” The water came up to my ankles, and without tree cover over that part of the stream, the rays of the sun could reach us. The small pebbles on the stream bed soothed my feet, an overall relaxing effect.
Kemi took off her boots and waded in. “Ah, so cold.” Her eyes darted all over the water. “Are you sure it’s safe?” She chewed at her lower lip.
“Don’t be a baby. Let’s go see if we can catch some fish.” I walked over to the pool, and, sure enough, a few tilapia and catfish were in the pool.
Kemi walked up, her lips and chin trembling. “Did you say we will catch them with our hands?”
“Yes, the inlet into the pool is like a maze. When the fish are in a hurry to exit, they have a hard time finding the right way. The key is to focus. Follow one fish until you scoop it out. Watch.”
“Okay,” said Kemi.
I targeted a catfish about the size of my arm. The tentacles on its head flickered back and forth in the water. I bent my knees and stooped, eyes on the fish.
“Are you sure it’s not going to bite? I’m scared,” whined Kemi.
I ignored her, my focus on the fish I’d targeted. I took a deep breath, made a cup with each palm, and brought them side by side underwater. Using my hands like a cup, I brought them underneath the fish and scooped upwards, throwing my hand towards the beach. The fish was fast and darted away. I only got water.
Kemi pointed. “That way!” The excitement in her voice was palpable.
The Selection Page 4
