by Sharon Sala
“See who?”
“The boys standing at my feet.”
Again, his heart was pounding, but this time in fear. Spirits were an enemy that could not be killed.
“I do not see them,” he whispered.
All of a sudden, Layla heard voices in her head and realized it was them.
“I hear you. Why are you here?”
If we came to you, would you save us as you saved the others?
Layla gasped. “You are not from Naaki Chava. How do you know of what has happened here?”
We are from your time. We went through a different portal, but because yours was also open, I think it drew us to the same place.
Layla grabbed Cayetano’s hand. “The spirits of these boys have asked if I would save them as I saved the others. They say they are from my time as Layla Birdsong. They did not come through our portal, but because it was open when they went through theirs, it drew them here.”
“What if this is witchcraft?” Cayetano said.
We aren’t witches. We’re psychic. I am Adam and this is my twin brother Evan. We have no family, and are being held captive by a war chief on the other side of your mountain. His name is Bazat.
“Cayetano, do you know a war chief on the other side of the mountain by the name of Bazat?”
Cayetano stood abruptly, the knife gripped tightly in his fist.
“That is the name of the man who killed you… the man I tracked down into the jungle and cut up in pieces. How do they know his name?”
“They tell me that he’s holding them prisoner because they are like our Shamans. They know things other people cannot. They know how to spirit walk, which is how they got here tonight. Lots of my… lots of Layla’s people knew this was possible. It was not a secret. We knew those who could do this and those who could not.”
He frowned, staring hard into the darkness, but without sight of anything mystic.
Will you help us?
“How?” Layla asked.
We are going to run away. We will run toward your city, but we cannot protect ourselves for long. We are twelve years old, but have no knowledge of weapons. If we run, will you come find us?
Layla relayed what they said to Cayetano and waited for him to speak, but he was still silent. She turned to the little shadows. They appeared to be fading.
“How did you know to come to me?” she asked.
Back on earth, the man who owned us sent a man to find Layla Birdsong. He collected people with special powers. He saw you on television and wanted you, just like he wanted us because of what we can do. We have never been free. Will you help us? If you do, we will gratefully spend the rest of our lives helping you.”
“Oh my God,” Layla muttered.
“What God?” Cayetano whispered.
She shook her head. “No, not that. It’s just a figure of speech that doesn’t pertain here.”
She looked back at the boys. “When you leave, can you send me a message so I’ll know when to go look for you?”
In your mind, you will suddenly hear birds… lots and lots of singing birds because your name is Birdsong. That is when we will be running.
“Then yes, when that happens, I will go into the jungle to look for you.”
Cayetano grabbed her arm. “No. You cannot do this. Think about your purpose here.”
“I am thinking,” she said. “They are part of the solution, and I am going to get them.”
Thank you, Layla Birdsong. You will never be sorry.
And just like that, they were gone.
“Are they still here,” he asked.
“No.”
“I don’t like this, but I will find them for you. You stay here.”
“No. I go, too. I have to. You can’t hear them and I can.”
He pulled her into his arms and then held her close.
She could feel the rapid beat of his heart against her breasts. He was afraid, and so was she, but instinct told her this was all part of the plan.
***
Three days passed and there was still no message from the boys. What if they sent the message and she had not heard it? What if Bazat killed them before they could get away? She was sick with worry, and also, beginning to be physically sick.
She had not bled since all this began, not in Layla’s time or in this one, and now she was beginning to feel sick every morning when she woke up.
Morning sickness. Cayetano had been right. She was pregnant, but she wasn’t going to announce it. In time, people would figure it out for themselves.
Cayetano was happy to keep this news between them. In the eyes of all around them, they would see this as his child, and in his heart, it would always be so. Nothing else mattered.
For Layla, the thought of a baby was both exciting and frightening. Before Firewalker, it wouldn’t have scared her. There had been hospitals, and doctors and nurses who knew what they were doing. Here it would be left up to her and whatever servants happened to be around. But, countless women had given birth since the world began, and countless would afterward. Any way she looked at it, it was still a blessing.
To pass the time, she thought of what she could do toward helping change the face of this lifestyle without interfering in the natural progression. Back on old earth, she’d been a school teacher. She decided that had not been an accident, either. She would need to teach these people new ways. It was good she knew how.
Excited about creating what would amount to a school here, she began planning what to use as educational tools and prayed a sign from the boys would come soon.
On the morning of the fourth day, Acat appeared with a small boy in hand. The skin on his shoulders and the bridge of his nose was not as brown as the rest of his body; obviously new skin. He was thin and listless, and his eyes welled continually, but it was his silence that had worried Acat most. He ate only what she put in his mouth and showed no interest in feeding himself. It was as if he was willing himself to die. She didn’t know what to do and slipped into Layla’s quarters, hoping for answers.
Layla heard the footsteps approaching, and when she saw the expression on Acat’s face and the little boy at her side, her heart skipped. She knew Acat was caring for the child she’d carried into the portal and she had wanted to meet him. It appeared today was the day.
“Good morning, Acat. I see you brought me a visitor.”
Acat dropped her head. “He does not eat and is too sad for a child to be. I am sorry, Singing Bird. I do not know what else to do.”
“Bring him to me,” Layla said, and when he stopped at her knee, she lifted him onto her lap and waved Acat away and lapsed into English.
“I am so glad to finally meet you. We came into this place together. Do you remember?”
Tears were rolling down his face. He shook his head and never looked up.
“How old are you?”
“I am eight. I was going to be in the third grade.”
“Where did you live?”
“Tahlequah, Oklahoma.”
“Tahlequah! That was a beautiful part of Oklahoma. Are you Cherokee?”
He nodded.
“Will you tell me your name?”
“Yuma Littlehawk.”
“I’m very glad to meet you, Yuma. That’s a good name. Do you know who I am?”
He shuddered; fighting back tears. “Daddy said your name was Layla Birdsong. He said we had to go with you, but I didn’t want to go. I wanted to stay home,” then he covered his face.
Layla felt his grief as sharply as if it was her own. She already feared the answer, but had to ask.
“Where is your daddy, Yuma?”
He began to sob. “He died in the camp when we were waiting for you to come.”
The answer shocked her. She couldn’t imagine how sad and afraid this child had been.
&n
bsp; “And yet you waited alone?”
“Daddy said we had to go with you. I am eight. It was my time to be a man. Some people fed me and gave me a ride. But when we walked, I walked alone.”
The pain in her own heart grew stronger as she pulled him against her chest, and began to rock back and forth in a slow, gentle motion.
“Are you all that’s left of your family?”
He nodded.
“Want to know a secret?”
For a few seconds, he was silent, and then he nodded.
She put her lips against his ear. “So am I.”
She watched his eyes widen as he looked at the elegance of her clothes and the luxuries in this room that were hers alone, and saw the confusion.
“Yes, I belong here, but I also belonged there where you lived. I was born to lead the Last Walk. My grandfather was all the family I had left and he was with me. But he was killed as I fought the people who tried to hurt us. And so I stood alone at the portal as everyone went through. I had no one with me, either, and then I saw you coming. You were also alone and when you fell and didn’t get up, I ran to help you. We came into this place together, so that makes us a kind of family, don’t you think?”
She paused, watching the expressions coming and going on his face. He was interested, that she could see.
“What do you remember of the Last Walk?”
“I wanted water and there was none,” he said softly.
“I know. It was terrible, wasn’t it? What else do you remember?”
“The sun burned me even though my skin was brown. It never did that before.”
“It wasn’t the sun, Yuma. It was a meteor that fell from the sky we called Firewalker. Did you ever study about the stars and the planets in school?”
“Yes. I remember Ursa Major. That means Big Bear, doesn’t it?”
She nodded as she smoothed down the hair on his head.
“Do you like living with Acat?”
He shrugged and looked down at his hands.
“I know she’s not your family, but she was very nice to you, wasn’t she?”
He nodded.
“I know no one can take your daddy’s place in your heart, just like I’ll never forget my grandfather. His name was George Begay. He was Navajo.”
Yuma was listening again.
“Would you like to meet Cayetano? He is my husband here, and he’s also the chief of Naaki Chava. He is a good man. You don’t have to be afraid.”
He shrugged, but slid off her knee and then waited for her to get up.
She hid a smile as she took him by the hand.
“I had a tribe and a clan, but it is gone. You had a tribe and a clan, but it’s gone, too. One day, we will all be of the same tribe and clan, but for now, I think you and I need to make a new one. We are alone, like a lobo wolf. Do you know what that means?”
“A lobo is a wolf without a pack,” Yuma said.
“Right, so if you don’t have a clan and I don’t have a clan, we could be the wolf clan, but only if we stuck together.”
His eyes widened. “The wolf is a totem for the Cherokee.”
She gave his hand a slight tug. “It’s up to you. What do you think?”
He nodded. “I think that would be good.”
“You know that means you could live with me, if you wanted to, but first we’d have to thank Acat for all the good care and food she gave you.”
He nodded.
“So, let’s go talk to Cayetano. He will want to meet the newest member of our family, for sure.”
Yuma Littlehawk was no longer crying. The tears were still there, but they were drying, and when he walked at Layla’s side, there was just the slightest of bounce to his step.
***
The Shamans had asked for a meeting with Cayetano. The moment they started talking, it was all he could do to hide his shock.
“One at a time,” he ordered.
Chak was the first to speak.
“For three sleeps, I have been dreaming about the Little War-Gods, the twins of Sun and Earth Mother.”
Cayetano hid his surprise. Twins, like Singing Bird had seen.
Naum, another Shaman, spoke up. “They are among us. I know this because I saw them as I slept, standing at my feet.”
“I did not see them, but I felt their passing,” Ah Kin said.
Cayetano looked to the last, a man called Chak, who remained silent.
“What of you, Chak? Have you seen the Little War-Gods?”
He frowned. “No. I did not dream them. I did not see them. I did not feel their passing. I don’t believe this is so. It is nothing but fear brought on by the coming of the New Ones in our midst.”
Cayetano leaned forward. “What of the New Ones? They are but more of our people. Just because you do not know their faces does not mean you should be afraid. You heard Singing Bird’s words. Do you doubt her truth?”
Chak knew any wrong words could mean losing his head.
“I do not fear them, but I don’t think they should be here. It makes more mouths for us to feed.
“We are not short of food now, and we will not be short of food in the time to come. We have been planting more for the last five seasons and storing it because two of you predicted that many strangers would come. Have you forgotten that?”
Chak refused to look at the other shamans as he continued.
“I do not doubt that your woman believes what she said. But I doubt that it is true. Firewalker only spits and fumes. Firewalker would never destroy the world.”
Cayetano frowned. “And how do you know this? Are you greater than these three? Are you wiser than a woman who has been where none of us have been? Singing Bird was not talking of next season. She was not talking of our next generation. She talks of thousands of years into a future we cannot see.”
Chak forgot to be cautious. “Once you were our chief and now you let your woman speak for you.”
Cayetano stood up. “She does not speak for me. She spoke for the thousands she brought with her. You saw their burns. They walked through Firewalker’s fire. You saw her scars. She came back a red feather warrior. She has killed her enemy. Are you her enemy? If you are, be warned. She does not take prisoners, and I do not take to threats against my woman.”
Chak felt the blood draining from his face.
“I am the enemy of no one. I read the stars. I see the people of Naaki Chava as strong and brave.”
Cayetano looked at the other three. “Do you hold his thoughts as your own?”
They shook their heads in unison and glared at Chak for being a fool.
Cayetano looked into each man’s eyes, looking for signs of deception.
“I have heard your words. We will watch for the twins. If they come into our midst, then I will believe that we are being blessed by Sun and Earth Mother. It would be a great honor if they have given their twins into our care,” Cayetano said.
“As do I,” Ah Kin said.
“As do I, Chac said.
“As do I, Naum said.
Chak hesitated. “As do I,” he said, but the hesitation was a moment too long.
He had lied and they knew it. And if a man lies about one thing, he will lie about another.
They were walking out the door as Singing Bird entered with a child.
They nodded cordially, anxious to get out of sight before Cayetano told her what had been said. If the truth be told, they were all afraid of her now; Chak more than the others, because he’d seen something in his dreams that none of the others had mentioned. She was with child, and it was going to be the ruin of their importance in Naaki Chava. That child needed to die, and if Singing Bird died with it, then that would be that.
Chapter Sixteen
The sight of Singing Bird sent the anger from Cayetano’s thought
s. He smiled at her, and then at the little boy hanging onto her hand. It was the first time since her return that he saw peace on her face. He was grateful, whatever the cause.
“Welcome. It is good to see happy faces.”
Layla arched an eyebrow. “Some are not happy?”
“Some are not, and it does not matter,” he said abruptly.
She stored the knowledge for when they were alone, and focused on the boy instead.
“So, love of my heart, I think you should know this boy. We both came into this place alone, and so we have decided to form our own clan.”
His smile widened. It was the boy Acat had been caring for. He had wondered how long it would take her to find him.
“Your own clan? Is this so?” he asked, looking down at the boy.
Yuma’s grip tightened, but he faced the great chief with a nod.
“How did you come to be alone?” Cayetano asked.
Yuma looked down.
Layla answered for him. “His father died even before the Last Walk began. He told me it was his time to be a man and so he made the walk alone.”
Cayetano’s opinion quickly shifted. The child was small, but he had a warrior’s heart. This was a big omen. He laid a hand on the top of the little boy’s head.
“That is a very brave thing,” he said softly.
Yuma nodded, but wouldn’t look up.
Cayetano decided it was time to change the mood.
“So, you and Singing Bird have formed a clan? What do you call it? Is there a place in it for me?”
Layla sighed. She should have known he would ‘get’ what was happening.
“Tell him, Yuma.”
“We are lobos. That means a wolf without a pack. We came to this place without our families so we made a family of our own.”
She quickly translated.
Cayetano felt a quick moment of pain knowing there was a part of Singing Bird he would never get back. She had given away a part of herself to Layla Birdsong, but he didn’t care. As long as he had just a piece of her heart, it would be enough.
“So, I, too, am a lobo,” he said. “My mother and my father are no more. I have no brother. I have no sister. I only have Singing Bird. Do you think I might join your clan?”
