The Tree Shepherd's Daughter

by Gillian Summers

  "Green tea," he corrected. "With honey."

  "Fair trade honey." Raven laughed. "Okay, folks, see you in a bit." She disappeared into the crowd.

  Zeke stepped awkwardly onto the escalator, and Keelie took his arm. She didn't want him to fall down and cut their shopping trip short. He drew himself up, standing straight, and patted her on the hand, but his gaze was fixed overhead, on the skylights, where rain pattered onto the glass panels. Zeke's hair had parted around his ear, and Keelie saw a pointed ear tip.

  She touched her round right ear, then felt the left one, the one with the funky pointed tip that she always kept covered with her hair or a headband. Mom had said it was a kind of birthmark. Now she knew who to blame.

  Maybe all the pointy ears she'd seen earlier weren't fakes, but she was at the mall. She'd ask him about it later.

  In La Jolie Rouge, she raced to the teen section, where she quickly started picking out clothes to try on. She narrowed her choices down to ten shirts and five pairs of hip-hugger pants. Zeke sat on a wooden window seat and leaned his head against the glass wall, arms crossed and eyes closed. Shopping obviously wasn't his fave activity.

  A young salesgirl with a pierced eyebrow helped Keelie carry her clothes to the dressing room.

  "Where did you get your piercing done?" Keelie whispered, glancing toward her snoozing parent.

  The girl, whose nametag read "Gabrielle," said, "The only cool place to go is Uncle Harry Mac's."

  "Uncle Harry Mac's?" said Keelie. It sounded like a fast food restaurant.

  "Yeah, he's got places all over Colorado. And he does it all: tattoos, eyebrows, ears, and belly button rings." Gabrielle lifted her shirt and showed Keelie her pierced belly button ring. A tiny fairy charm dangled from the ring. Fairies. She just couldn't get away from the darn things.

  "I want my belly button pierced, too," Keelie said.

  "So, who's the hottie you're with?" asked Gabrielle. And she pointed toward Zeke, who still had his eyes closed and his arms crossed, except now his head was sort of slumped over to the left, and he was making snorting sounds. Hottie? No way.

  "He's my father."

  "Whoa, girl." Gabrielle stared at Zeke again, then at her.

  Keelie snatched the remaining pants and shirts from Gabrielle. The girl may have had good taste in clothes, but as far as men-gross. Her father.

  Keelie tried on a tank top that said Vampire Girl in glittering sequins across her chest. The short top exposed a lot of skin. The jeans hung just right on her hips, though Keelie didn't like the cool air on her butt dimples. What were her girlfriends wearing in California? Keelie Heartwood was definitely a fashionista, not a Rennie.

  She ran her hands across her belly button. "We're going to be making a little trip to Uncle Harry Mac's," she said to her little innie. "But no fairy charms. A plain hoop, or maybe my birthstone."

  No matter what Zeke said, Mom had promised. Well, she'd promised that they'd discuss it when she got back from her business trip. The world owed her a pierced belly button.

  "Are you decent?" Raven stuck her head over the dressing room door.

  "What if I wasn't?" Keelie tried to look indignant, but then she saw the hand appear under the stall door, holding a big paper-sleeved coffee cup. "Bless you. You may enter."

  Raven came in, sipping her coffee. "Cool outfit. Love it.

  Keelie twirled to show her the back. "Think my father will let me buy it?"

  "Not a chance. But he's out there canoodling with the shop girl, so you can use that as leverage."

  "What?" Keelie stuck her head out of the stall door. Gabrielle was sitting very close to Zeke. He had a perplexed expression on his face. Eek. Keelie had to put a stop to this. She jumped out and struck a ta-da pose.

  "Hey Dad, what do you think?"

  Gabrielle smiled. "Cool outfit. You got it happenin', girlfriend."

  Her father frowned. "Vampire Girl? It's not happening, Keelie."

  "What do you mean it's not happening? What do you know about fashion?"

  He stood and folded his arms across his chest, like the Jolly Green Giant. "I don't know anything about fashion, but I know vampires. I'm not buying that for you."

  Gabrielle's eyes widened. "Cool."

  "Oh, come on. I brought my own money, and I'll buy it myself if I have to." Keelie looked toward Raven for a little support. Raven sipped her coffee and watched them as if they were a vaguely interesting TV show.

  "I'm buying it."

  "Fine. Buy it. Waste your money. I'm sure Knot will agree with me. It's too adult for you, and vampires are evil. You won't wear it."

  "What do you mean Knot will agree? Knot is a cat."

  "Remember that incident with your underwear?"

  Gabrielle looked confused. "Your cat picks your underwear?"

  Raven was bent over, wiping coffee from her nose.

  "Yuk it up, Raven. You are not helping here." She turned to Zeke and Gabrielle. "I am so not discussing my underwear with you." She didn't specify who "you" was.

  In the dressing room, Keelie angrily tugged the Vampire Girl tank over her head. One thing Mom had taught her was not to waste money, even if it was to spite someone. She surveyed the clothes-if this top wasn't happening, then the others weren't happening. Except for maybe a green cotton shirt with drawstrings at the chest and long bell sleeves. Galadriel wear. What was the name of that stupid store? Galadriel's Closet. Probably all the people walking around with their prosthetic ears shopped there. Not her. She covered her pointed ear with her hair.

  She stepped out of the dressing room. Zeke was looking through some blouses on a round rack. Raven trailed after them, a hanger over her shoulder. The sales girl had three on her arm. "Yeah, that's way cool. Sort of Lord of the Rings-like, you know," Raven said.

  Keelie cleared her throat.

  "Hey, girlfriend, that outfit is so you," Gabrielle said. She glanced up at Zeke, all flirty. "If your dad says so, that is."

  Dad nodded. "That's more like it. You look beautiful, Keelie."

  Gabrielle held out some more shirts. "Check these out. Your old man picked them out."

  Keelie took them. Great, if you went to a severe private school for fairy princesses. She was not going back with Elia's wardrobe.

  A white gauze one with colorful embroidery around the neck was the only decent one. She held it out. "This one doesn't suck too much."

  Raven held out her hanger. Black jeans and two tops, one a skinny long-sleeved sweater, the other a beaded gauze poet shirt. All black.

  Zeke stared at them. "Decent but depressing."

  "Everyone in New York dresses like this." Raven held out the hangers, admiring her choices. "If you don't like these, I'm buying them for myself."

  "They're very you," Keelie agreed. "I don't know what to get."

  "Something colorful that fits. Something for girls." Zeke looked at Gabrielle for advice.

  "Buttons 'n Lace is over there." Gabrielle pointed to one side of the mall. "And Noir Leather is over there." She pointed to the other side of the mall. "Girls wear all of those clothes."

  Gabrielle was trying to be helpful, but Zeke glared at her.

  "You all decide. I'm checking out Noir Leather." Raven grabbed her coffee cup and stood. "Tarl's girlfriend shops there. You know the one, Keelie. She was scoping out your Dad's butt the other day."

  Keelie also remembered the silhouettes on Tarl's tent. "Oh, gross."

  Keelie watched Raven go. Keelie was so going to get even with Raven for abandoning her to her father's fashion sense.

  After trying on more jeans and shirts, Keelie wore the green top with bell sleeves and jeans that hung on her hips but didn't expose her butt dimples. Dad had bought her five shirts and five pairs of pants. She'd used her own money to buy the Vampire Girl top. She was not leaving it behind. And if Knot did anything to it, she'd have a pair of kitty-fur earmuffs, too.

  Holding the two heavy La Jolie Rouge bags definitely balanced Keelie. She felt more like her o
ld self.

  Her dad, however, looked paler than she'd ever seen him-even more ashen than when Gabrielle had rung up the clothes and announced the total. It didn't seem to make him feel better when Keelie reassured him that spending five hundred dollars at La Jolie Rouge hadn't been that bad. They had really come out cheap. He just didn't get shopping.

  After a stop at a shoe store, where he bought her the latest Nikes, she tossed her muddy Skechers into the box, demoted to work shoes. Zeke had paled again when the cashier said the total was one hundred and seven dollars. Keelie had to pat his arm to reassure him that it was okay.

  She pulled the credit card from his hand as he was re turning it to his wallet. "Bank of Dread Forest? Is that for real?"

  The sales clerk smiled. "Sure is, or at least my computer thinks so. Zekeliel Heartwood. Love that name." Her voice was sweet enough to draw ants.

  Keelie pictured fire ants in the woman's super-short skirt and smiled. She gave him back his card. "Dread is Elianard's dog, too. He said he couldn't believe I'd gotten past him."

  Zeke choked on a sip of green tea.

  They caught up with Raven at Noir Leather. Just entering the shop was an education. An adult education. Zeke hastily dragged her back out and made her wait in the mall while he found Raven.

  Keelie stared at the underwear on the mannequins in the window. They looked like Knot had gotten to them. Shredded, with chains.

  Raven was loaded with packages, too. "Power shopping."

  The last stop was a major department store for peefree underwear, bras, and socks. Raven was a big help here, and two hundred dollars later, even Keelie had to admit she was wiped. The Bank of Dread Forest credit card had had a workout.

  All the women in the Mall of Colorado kept gazing at Zeke as if he was some sort of Adonis, but he didn't return their eye contact. He focused his attention on Keelie. And she liked that.

  "Hey Zeke, how about something to eat before we return to the Faire? There's a food court here." Raven had turned to look down a corridor, nose twitching.

  Keelie's stomach rumbled at the scent of real, non-medieval food. Chinese. Suddenly, she craved egg rolls.

  "Is it anything like the King's court?" Zeke asked.

  "Surely, you jest," said Keelie.

  Zeke stopped and smiled at her. "You made a joke."

  "Yeah, she's feeling better." Raven poked her shoulder.

  The realization that she'd made a joke startled her. It had to have been all the shopping. She was back in the normal world. She had to be careful-she was slipping. He might get the idea that they were getting along.

  On the way to the food court, Keelie saw a stand of pay phones. A lifeline to Laurie. Maybe she'd have a moment to slip away and call.

  At the fast food Chinese restaurant, Keelie ordered sweet and sour chicken and egg rolls. Zeke ordered some vegetarian concoction with tofu.

  As they stood in line for their food, Keelie said casually, "Hey, I need to use the ladies' room."

  "Go ahead. I'll find a table."

  "I'll come with you." Raven walked with her toward the ladies' room.

  "Raven, I really wanted to call my friend in California." She held her breath, thinking that the older girl might tell Zeke.

  "Cool. I've got to wash my hands. I touched everything at Noir Leather." Raven left her by the pay phones and walked on.

  Keelie punched in the 1-800 number on the metal buttons. No hawks here, thank goodness.

  "To whom would you like to make a collect call?"

  "Laurie Abernathy. I mean, Elizabeth Abernathy, in Los Angeles, California."

  The connection was made, and as before the operator asked, "Would you accept a collect call from Keelie Heartwood?" to the party on the other end.

  "Yes. Most definitely." Laurie's voice sounded wonderful, especially here in the shopping mall, surrounded by her purchases. Her spirit felt renewed. She felt closer to Mom.

  "Go ahead." The operator's voice disconnected.

  "Yo, Keelie, what happened yesterday?"

  "Long story."

  "How's it going? Is it as primitive as we thought?"

  "More so. And you wouldn't believe how weird. I need to get out of here."

  "Working on a plan. I've been trying to reach you for, like, forever on the cell phone."

  "I dropped it into the mud. It's not working."

  "Major bummer."

  "Yeah, and worse, my clothes aren't with me. They're in Istanbul."

  "Like in Turkey?"

  "As in the capital of. At least my father's had to buy me all new clothes. I'm at the mall now. Back to the plan."

  "Major problems? Mom may not be so hot on you moving in. She's, like, got a major new boyfriend?" Her voice rose at the end of her most of her sentences, making everything a question.

  "Well, I never did exactly firm it up with her."

  "Keelie. I thought it was handled."

  "I didn't have a lot of time to cement things before the attorney showed up with the plane tickets."

  Keelie knew she had to get back before Zeke thought she'd fallen into the toilet. Raven hadn't come out of the ladies' room yet.

  "We would have had it all settled if you hadn't run." Laurie sounded peeved.

  "I'll come up with a new plan. Maybe I could stay with you until I do," said Keelie.

  "Way, girl. Are you sure, though? Like, my mom is having major PMS this week. Even I would consider hanging out in a tent to get away from Grizzly Mama," said Laurie. "She even made me do my own laundry."

  "At least you have a washer and dryer." Zeke had found a table. Keelie could see him scanning the area for them. "I'll try to call you in a couple of days. Zeke's watching me like a hawk." Hawk. A pang went through her chest. She was supposed to continue Ariel's feedings.

  "Gotcha. Take care, Keelie. I'll call my cousin in Boulder to see if she can help us out."

  "Great. Bye, Laurie." Keelie hung up. She missed her friend. They had been together since preschool, and not being together was like not being with a sister.

  She closed her eyes. Hold back those tears. Keeping her feelings locked in her box was getting harder. A hand with a tissue appeared in front of her face.

  "Thanks, Raven." Keelie took it and dabbed her eyes.

  Raven looked sympathetic. "It's tough, I know. Let's eat."

  Sympathetic up to a point. They headed back to the table.

  Zeke sat with a big mound of vegetarian noodles studded with tofu nuggets. Keelie wasn't hungry anymore. She picked at her food while Zeke ate his.

  Raven looked from one to the other, then put down her chopsticks. "I think I have to go back to the leather shop. I think I left something there."

  "Do you want us to come along?" Zeke frowned.

  "No, eat. I'll be back. You guys talk."

  When she was gone, Zeke turned to Keelie. "Are you okay?"

  She didn't answer. Her chopstick picked up peas and carrots and piled them into a veggie landfill on a corner of her plate.

  "I guess coming to a mall is too much like home and reminds you of your mom."

  Keelie looked up at him, amazed that he knew what she was thinking. "Why did you let Mom leave?"

  He seemed to be trying to keep his face blank, to hold some deep emotion back. Keelie could give him a lesson or two on that.

  "Mom said she didn't want to live in a fairy tale world where she could never belong. Is that the truth?"

  Dad lowered his plastic fork. "Your mother needed to be in her world, and I had to be in my world. She was young, as I was, when we met and fell in love."

  Keelie placed her hands underneath her knees. "Why did you guys get married?"

  "I couldn't imagine living without her. She felt the same way about me. Or at least she did at first." He slumped, as if he was very tired.

  "And because you had me."

  "No, I married your mother because I loved her." He smiled, but it wasn't happy. "You came along after we had been married for a couple of years. Y
ou were a blessing to us both, Keelie."

  When had his eyes gotten bloodshot? Was he going to cry in the food court? Keelie looked around nervously. No one was paying attention. She wanted answers, and this was neutral territory for everyone.

  "Then why didn't you guys stay together?" Her voice sounded strained. She was trying to keep it down.

  "Even when two people love each other as much as your mom and I did, sometimes it's too hard to blend their two worlds into one, especially after they have children. If there can't be a compromise, then one of them must choose. We tried. Your mother wanted you in her world, but I couldn't join you there. I loved you both, and I thought it would be better for you." He looked sick as he said it.

  "I wanted you both, too. Why couldn't you come to California? It's nice there. People love high-end furniture, too. Your stuff is great; you would've made a killing."

  "It's pointless to discuss it now. You're here with me."

  "Hey, everyone ready to go? I saw the Weather Channel on the news monitor by the restrooms. Tornado warnings all around the range." Raven looked worried. "I don't want to leave Mom alone."

  A sharp pain shot through Keelie's chest. If Mom was alive, Keelie would do exactly the same thing that Raven was doing: get back to her mom because she was worried about her. It hurt that she wouldn't have that opportunity again.

  Zeke stood up and swayed.

  "Whoa, Zeke. Are you all right? You look awful." Raven grabbed his elbow.

  "He's looked bad since we got here," Keelie said.

  Raven looked at Zeke, who hadn't answered. She bit her lip. "Okay. I drive up the mountain."

  "I can do it. Maybe it was the food." He looked down at the Styrofoam tray and plastic fork.

  Keelie thought she heard him mutter, "Wood." He managed to walk all the way back to the truck, then collapsed on the bed in the back.

  "Looks like I'm driving after all." Raven took the keys from his hand. Keelie lifted the seat of a built-in bench and took out a folded blanket. She unfurled the thick folds and tucked them around her father. He murmured "wood" again, but didn't open his eyes.

  She took his hand and moved it until it touched the wall. Her own fingers brushed it. Cedar.