The Purlieu Experiment, Book 1

by Linda L Rigsbee

  Chait frowned at her. “We enforced a law.”

  She nodded. “Mindlessly, as if the captives had no life other than what we provided. We treated them like livestock.”

  Chait looked at Donte and Kenyon. “It wasn’t our fault.”

  Akira frowned at Chait. “Whose fault do you think it was; theirs?”

  He shrugged. “We didn’t invite them to our territory. They came without asking permission. We didn’t make the no-contact rule. The Parliament did. We only enforced it.”

  She gasped. “And yet, here we are. When it serves our purpose, suddenly The Parliament rules are outdated.”

  Chait looked uncomfortable. “We can’t do anything about the past.”

  Kenyon looked surprised. “Does that mean you will release all the captives without protest?”

  Chait squirmed in his seat. “It isn’t up to me. It never was.”

  Kenyon’s smile was sardonic again. “Is that a fact? You seemed to enjoy your little game of letting me get almost to the border before recapturing me - and anyone with me. If you were against the law, why didn’t you simply let us escape?”

  Chait turned red. “I was sent to get you. It was my job.” He glanced at the two guards in the seat behind Donte. “You should understand about following orders.” He shrugged. “In any case, if I had come back without you…”

  “What?” Kenyon interrupted in a cold voice. “You’d lose your prized position on the council?” He shook his head. “No, you would have lost your game.”

  Quade cleared his throat. “Now boys, we can solve nothing this way. As Chait pointed out, we cannot change the past.” His gaze fell on Kenyon. “When I think about what they have done to you…and Donte…I become furious. Anger is a poison that grows and destroys the soul. We must let go of the past and concentrate on the future if we expect things to improve.”

  Kenyon leaned back in the seat and stared out the window as he spoke. “So little time left. All the women mascots my age are beyond childbearing years. In another ten years, there will be none left.”

  Donte stared at Kenyon. It was possible that he hadn’t thought of that fact - but for him, there was an option…Celyn. Maybe he was thinking about Rianne.

  Akira turned her attention back to Kenyon. Until now, she never thought of him as a family man. He seemed to enjoy flirting too much. Maybe because that was all he had been allowed to do for the last thirty years - and yet, what was it Quade had said? Kenyon hadn’t changed. Of course, he was a young man when he was captured. He was still browsing the ranks of the eligible female mascots. Back then he had a lot of competition.

  “I know it isn’t much consolation, and it doesn’t excuse us at all,” Akira said, “But if we had not captured you and held you in a place the plague never reached, you wouldn’t have the option of children now.”

  Kenyon looked at her, his expression slowly softening. “That’s true,” he finally said. I might not even be alive.”

  They were all silent for a while, probably all contemplating his words. Finally Donte broke the silence.

  “What about our children? They will all be related.”

  Kenyon and Quade looked at Donte and then one another. It was a fair question. Not only a subject that had not been offered as yet, but one for which no one had an answer. When it came to looking for a different genetic pool, there was only one choice - Lochfowk.

  Donte looked at Quade. “Dad, have you heard of any mascots having children since the plague…mascots that were previously thought to be sterile?”

  Quade shook his head. “No, but I suppose it’s possible, why?”

  “King Neirin has a nine year old daughter.”

  Quade frowned. “A mascot, I presume?”

  Donte nodded and glanced at Akira. She wasn’t certain, but once again she had the feeling he wanted her to remain silent about Celyn.

  Quade glanced at each of them. “Why do I get the feeling that there is much more to this story?”

  Donte looked at Kenyon, his expression unreadable. Perhaps he wanted to confide in his brother in private. Come to think of it, what made her think he hadn’t already done so?”

  ****

  When Quade asked why he had the feeling that there was more to the story, Donte looked at Kenyon. He wasn’t sure how much Kenyon had been told about Celyn and he’d rather Quade didn’t know about one of Celyn’s visions.

  He turned back to Quade, who was still watching him expectantly. Donte smiled. “It’s actually rather interesting. She is a seer.”

  Quade frowned. “Like you?”

  “No, not like me. I’m intuitive. She has visions that are accurate down to details. She saw Akira and me in the desert - even the way I was dressed and precisely where we were. She was able to send her father to the exact spot where they found us.”

  Quade pursed his lips and whistled softly. “That is interesting, and unusual.” He studied Donte a moment. “So she saved your life. No wonder you’re so attatched to her.”

  Donte frowned. “I’m not attatched to her.”

  Quade smiled. “I see.”

  Donte leaned back in the seat, his gaze accidentally falling on Akira. She was watching him with a strange expression. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes. He wasn’t attached to Celyn in any way. What made Quade think that? Had Akira told him something?

  “Tired?” Quade asked.

  Donte opened one eye. “Yes.”

  Quade chuckled. “You shouldn’t have stayed up so late last night.”

  “I didn’t,” Donte said. “I played a few games of words with Rianne and then went to bed.”

  Chait gave him a mischievous grin. “Hers or yours?”

  For a moment Donte was startled into silence. He glanced at Akira, but she didn’t appear to be concerned with the subject. Chait couldn’t be expected to know all their customs. He gave Chait a level look.

  “It is considered rude to talk of such things in front of or about a female.”

  Chait flushed. “I was only joking.”

  Donte nodded. “I assumed so. I should add that in Bergen it is considered inappropriate for a man and woman who have not exchanged vows to become intimate.”

  Chait shifted uncomfortably in the seat. “I didn’t know.”

  Chait didn’t apologize and Donte didn’t make excuses for him. Chait was obviously capable of finding enough excuses. He wished he could like Chait. For some unexplainable reason, Donica seemed to favor him. But the truth was, he didn’t even trust Chait. It didn’t say much for a man when he refused to take ownership of his decisions.

  Donte leaned his head back again, but before he closed his eyes, he found Kenyon watching him, a glint of humor in his eyes.

  “You’re getting a little touchy, aren’t you?” Kenyon asked.

  Donte closed his eyes. “That’s because I’m tired.”

  Quade and Kenyon both chuckled. Why they cared what he was doing last night was beyond his comprehension. All he knew was that he’d better get some rest now because he probably wouldn’t get any for a while.

  CHAPTER 24

  Celyn was getting ready for bed when the vision started. She sat on the bed and leaned back, letting the vision lift her into the darkening sky. Below her was a place she had never seen. The hills and valleys were tree covered and there were many lakes. She swooped down on a ridge, startling a feline. It snarled at her and watched as she lifted into the sky. Its attention returned to some equines in a small valley. One of them was a beautiful spotted animal. She descended lower to get a good look.

  The equine snorted and tossed its head. Under an overhang nearby, some people were making a camp. The feline screamed and one of the men stood. His green eyes were wide with fear and he said something to the others in a language she could not understand. One of the men walked over to the spotted equine. He was tall and lean, wearing a dark blue uniform with a gold flower on the sleeve near his shoulder. She glided down to get a closer look and he glanced up at her. It w
as Donte!

  The spotted equine snorted again and danced away from her. She soared away from him as a man in a light blue uniform joined him. Donte pointed at her and said something, but he spoke in a language she had never heard. As she flew away from them, the feline came to the edge of the overhang. Donte spoke to the man again and suddenly lightning flashed, striking a rock beside the feline. The ground exploded, sending rocks and dust high into the air. Bombarded with rocks, the feline turned and ran.

  Celyn soared up and out of the vision, tumbling from her bed to the floor. She cried out in pain as her elbow hit the stand beside her bed. Footsteps outside her door announced that someone had heard her cry. The door opened.

  “Celyn?” Gyn said as she came into the room. “Are you hurt?”

  Celyn sat up, clutching her elbow and moaning. “I fell out of bed.”

  Neirin came into the room. “What happened?”

  “I fell off the bed,” she repeated. “I was having a vision. A feline was going to attack Donte, but lightning scared it away.”

  Neirin sighed. “Donte again. Where was he this time?”

  She shook her head. “I don’t know. There were a lot of trees and lakes. He was with some people. One man had red hair and green eyes.” She frowned. “Donte was wearing a uniform.”

  Gyn finished examining her elbow and helped her stand. “She only scraped it a little. She will be fine.” She pulled back the covers and helped Celyn into bed.

  Neirin pulled the covers up to her chin. “What color was the uniform?”

  “Blue…dark blue. There was another man with him and he had a light blue uniform.”

  Neirin nodded. “Bergen. He’s been home. Go to sleep. The man in the blue uniform will protect him.”

  “His uniform had a gold flower on the sleeve.” She added.

  Neirin frowned. “A gold flower?”

  “On his shoulder.” She pointed high on her arm, near her shoulder.

  He nodded again. “Go to sleep. We will talk in the morning.”

  He left the room with Gyn.

  ****

  Neirin lay on his bed, his hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling. When Celyn first started having visions, it had frightened him. Gradually he became accustomed to it, but now it was starting to get scary again. Her visions were dominated by Donte. Sometimes he wondered if they were merely dreams. Tonight he had no trouble believing it was a vision. Celyn had never seen the uniforms of Bergen. The gold flower on his shoulder was puzzling, though. He had only seen that once, on the commander of the Moeder. The dark uniform with the gold insignia was only worn by those in the highest command. If Donte was wearing a dark uniform and accompanied by someone in a light uniform, that meant he was in command. The country Celyn described sounded like what he had heard about Lochfowk. If that was true, why was Donte in Lochfowk dressed in the uniform of Bergen? Why did he go back? Had he delivered the message? He said he would be back for Celyn’s birthday. Hopefully he would have information about who would attend the conference - if they ever got the conference together. He tried to convince himself that Donte hadn’t had time to notify everyone, but this vision… He pushed the thought from his mind. There was nothing he could do about it tonight. He would have to trust Donte. What choice did he have?

  ****

  Akira rode beside Quade. Donte was in the lead on his spotted equine. He kept glancing up at the hills, as if he knew someone or something was there. It was spooky. When they were traveling in Anialwch, he sensed that the Nyumbani raiders were following them. What did he sense now? His two guards, Edzer and Felte, rode behind them. Akira glanced back to see if they noticed Donte’s sudden attention to the hills. Edzer was watching him. He said something to Felte and urged his equine forward until he was beside Donte. He rode in silence for a few minutes before talking to Donte. Akira glanced at Quade, who was obviously concerned about their conversation.

  “What is happening?” she asked Quade.

  He shook his head. “I’m not sure. Donte senses something out there. He says he doesn’t think it is human, but he thinks it is stalking them.”

  Chill bumps invaded Akira’s arms. “He would know.”

  Quade looked at her. “You have seen this happen before?”

  She nodded. “When the Nyumbani were following us in Anialwch. He knew they were there - not once, but twice - before there was any indication. He knew when the Anialwch were there and he knew when Kenyon found us. I don’t know how he knew, but he did. If he says something is following us, it is. If he says it isn’t a human, it isn’t.” She shivered. “Sometimes he’s spooky, like Celyn.”

  Felte rode around them and joined Edzer and Donte. Once again they spoke. Felte rode ahead and Edzer stayed beside Donte.

  Chait pulled his equine beside Akira’s. “What’s going on?”

  “Donte thinks something is stalking us.” Akira said.

  Chait gave Akira an amused look. “He’s starting to get nervous already. There wouldn’t be any patrols in this area right now.”

  Akira glanced at Quade and found him watching Chait. It was impossible to know from his expression whether he was annoyed or what. She turned back to Chait.

  “I traveled with him long enough to be concerned when he is.” She inclined her head at the two guards. “They’re concerned.”

  Chait studied the two guards for a few minutes. “What do they expect to find?”

  Quade finally spoke. “What kind of animals do you have in this area that might stalk a man?”

  Chait looked at Quade, obviously beginning to feel concerned. He gave a nonchalant shrug. “Maybe an ursidae or a lupus. It might be after the equines, but I don’t think it would do anything with all these men around.”

  Quade nodded. “All the same, we’d best not lag behind.”

  They urged their equines and caught up with the others. Quade rode up beside Donte and spoke to him for a few minutes before dropping back with Chait and Akira.

  “He says there is an overhang ahead and some water nearby. We’ll camp there for the night.”

  They reached the overhang before dark and had time to set up camp with the light of the day. The equines were watered, unsaddled and secured within sight of the camp.

  Donte and Quade began cooking the evening meal. Akira got up to help and the next thing she knew, Chait was helping. Edzer and Felte kept watch for whatever might be out there. She was beginning to wonder if Chait might be right. Maybe the mission had put Donte on edge and he was more anxious than intuitive. Whatever the case, he had Quade spooked enough to instruct Akira to sleep nearest the wall and let the men sleep on the outside. If it had been anyone but Quade, she might have resisted, but she wasn’t about to contest his instructions. Even Chait didn’t argue with him. In fact, once she thought about it, no one did - apparently not even Pieter. And yet, Quade was the kindest person she had ever met. Even when he scolded them that first day, he had not threatened. He had merely told them in no uncertain terms what was going to happen. She had no doubt the council would concur. Frankly, she didn’t want to be in the room if they didn’t. She had a feeling that Quade could handle almost anything that came up. Quade had made it clear that Donte was in charge of that chore. Still, if Donte stumbled, she had no doubt that Quade would back him up.

  She wasn’t being entirely fair to Donte, though. If what she had heard about Quade was correct, he had nearly 75 years of experience on Donte. To stay in office that long, he would have to be an effective negotiator.

  She was rolling her blankets close to the wall where Quade had indicated when a tall figure stopped beside her. She looked up to find Quade with two tins of food. He handed one to her and squatted beside her.

  “I’m hungry enough to eat whatever is out there.” He said, his lips permitting a wry smile.

  She accepted the food and sat cross-legged on her blanket. “I’m beginning to wonder if anything is out there.”

  He responded without looking at her, focusing his atte
ntion on the food on his tin. “Something is out there. I have no doubt of that.”

  At that point a frightening scream filled the night. It was impossible to tell where the mountain feline was, but it sounded close.

  Akira scooted closer to Quade. “I retract that last statement.”

  Donte set his tin on the ground and stood, looking around. When his equine snorted, he cautiously stepped out from under the overhang and looked up.

  ****

  Donte wasn’t sure what was following them until he heard the scream. They had mountain felines in Bergen, but they generally stayed away from people. This one had been stalking them for hours.

  When Schilderen snorted, he moved toward the edge of the camp.

  “Monomi,” a voice spoke softly behind him. “Be careful.”

  He shouldn’t have brought Schilderen. The unusual color probably attracted attention. He slowly stepped out from under the overhang, searching the hill above them. He saw nothing, but then, he didn’t expect to. The feline was probably staying in the trees.

  He turned and walked to Schilderen and Felte quietly followed him. As he approached the equine, a whisper of sound alerted him and he turned in time to see a beautiful white strigiforme swooping down on them. Flapping its wide wings, it flew off into the night.

  Schilderen snorted and stepped back. Donte pointed after the strigiforme, speaking to Felte. “Did you see that?”

  Felte nodded. “I’ve never seen one so pure white.”

  Donte checked to make sure all the equines were secure and turned to go back to the camp. That was when he saw the feline. It was crouched, ready to leap.

  “Felte!” Donte called.

  But Felte had already seen the feline. He palmed his weapon and shot a beam, all in one smooth movement. Donte wasn’t sure if he meant to hit the rocks beside the animal or he missed, but the results were spectacular, either way. The beam exploded against the rocks, sending a shower of rocks and dirt on the feline. Frightened, it snarled and turned, running into the forest.

  “That should keep him away for a while,” Felte said.

  Felte and Donte returned to the camp to find Chait staring at them, his expression a mixture of amazement and fear.