A flutter broke her from her daydreaming. She looked up to see Plum standing on the post of her bed. Lily reached over and scratched Plum on her small purple head.
“We had better get things ready for when Peter gets home.” She suggested to the bird.
Plum tweeted in agreement. The two of them went outside to gather some vegetables from the garden that Peter had planted for her, just outside the stump that lead to their storage area. She pulled a few carrots and potatoes and took them back inside to cook. She always laughed when she thought about her and Peter living in their house and doing their daily activities. Back in Boston it would have been a very strange sight to see a 9 year old and a 14 yr old playing house this way. For the first time she was grateful for all of the cooking and chores and reading that her aunt made her do. It had prepared her for this strange, wonderful life she was leading. She was setting the table and whistling with Plum when Peter came in with a whole net of fish.
“We’ll never be able to eat all that.” Lily stated.
“I guess it’s fish for breakfast too.” he laughed back.
At least playful Peter was back for now.
Peter and Lily cleaned up after dinner, while Plum slept by the fire they had started. It was still fairly early and Lily wasn’t quite ready for bed. She said so to Peter.
“Why don’t you read to me for a bit.” he suggested.
“I like that idea.” she replied.
But she couldn’t help feeling like he was trying to keep her inside. They sat by the fire and Lily read from A book of Grimm Tales. They had found the book in one of the ships on the beach with the lost things story after story and Peter just laid back on the floor and listened. At one point she thought he might be asleep so she stopped reading and nudged Peter with her foot.
“Hey, why did you stop reading?” he asked.
“I wasn’t sure you were still listening,” she replied.
“Of course I’m listening,” he responded, “These stories are amazing.”
“Have you never heard them before?” Lily asked.
“No never. Have you?” he questioned.
“Yes, of course.” Lily thought it was strange that Peter had never heard these stories and then she remembered that of course he hadn’t. He lived in Neverland. They wouldn’t have the same stories as they did back where she was from. She always seemed to forget that she was in a whole different world now.
Lily yawned.
“You must be exhausted!” Peter insisted.
He was way too excited that she was tired. Lily felt like something weird was going on, but she couldn’t put her finger on what. Peter had been acting weird ever since they’d seen that ball of pixie dust. She was dying to know what it was.
“I am pretty tired. I guess I’ll head to bed,” she replied.
Peter just smiled and her and waved goodnight. She followed the path to her room and laid down on her bed. She was determined to stay awake and figure out what he was doing. If he left, she’d follow him.
Sun peaked through Lily’s window.
“Dang it,” she mumbled to herself. She had fallen asleep while waiting for Peter to do something noteworthy. She could hear him in the big room, probably making breakfast. She could smell him cooking the rest of the fish from last night. Lily got out of bed and headed in to see if she could help, or learn anymore about what was going on. She’d have to be sneaky if she was going to get any information from him.
“Good morning, Peter.”
“Good morning,” he replied.
“Breakfast smells so good,” she told him.
“It’s just the same fish from last night,” he replied.
“It was good last night too,” she said.
Peter eyed her suspiciously. She wasn’t usually this complimentary. It wasn’t that she wasn’t always grateful for everything he did for her, this was just over the top for her.
“I’m glad you liked it so much,” he responded.
Lily walked over to where he was and patted Plum, who was sitting with Peter and watching his every move, on the head.
“Let’s eat.” Peter suggested and brought her food to the table. She followed him there and began shoveling food in her face. Peter just watched.
“You aren’t going to eat?” Lily asked.
Peter shook his head.
“I’m not hungry.”
Lily thought that was strange. She knew he didn’t need to eat or sleep as often as she did, but he usually did anyway. He was obviously ready for her inquisition. There would be no distracting him into answers.
“What are we going to do today?” Lily asked, breaking the silence that had come during the meal.
“I thought we’d hang around here. Work on the house. Work in the garden. That kind of stuff.” Peter replied.
“Seriously?” She asked.
They never stayed at home during the day.
“Sure. Let’s have a relaxing day.” He suggested.
“Well can Heather and Dahlia come help?” she asked.
“Not today.” He stated.
“Why not?” Lily was feeling isolated. Something was going on.
“They have tribe stuff today.” He answered.
Lily didn’t believe him. He had never lied before so she had no reason to believe he would now, but she could tell. He was hiding something.
Lily and Peter dug in the garden while Plum sat in the shade and watched. It was the hottest Lily had experienced since being in Neverland. Usually the temperature was always the same. Maybe since the pixie dust was back, they’d start having more different kinds of weather. They planted new vegetables and a few flowers. When they were done they added a few little touches to their house. A new latch the keep the ladder up when they were home and a place inside to keep food. They had been having to walk to the storage Peter had built in the stump every time they needed to get anything to cook or eat.
Peter and Lily worked hard together and the day flew by. Before they could believe it, the sun had crept behind the trees.
“Let’s get some dinner cooking.” Peter suggested.
“I’d actually just like a fistleferp and a banana, if that’s ok with you. “ Lily replied. “I’m exhausted and just want to go to bed.”
“Of course. Here you go and good night.” He said, handing her the fruit.
She quickly ate it on the way to her room and then plopped onto her bed and was instantly asleep.
Chapter 18
Lily woke up to find a banana peel and fistleferp seed in her bed. She had been so tired she’d practically fallen asleep still eating. She looked out her window and realized it was still very early. Early enough that Peter might still be gone. He had hovered over her so much the last few days that she welcomed the break. She also wished she could have followed him to see where he was going. She headed to the kitchen to see what they had to eat. She was hoping for the opportunity to go out and find something. They had stayed home all day the day before. She was anxious to get out.
Lily walked through the doorway from the hall into the kitchen. A giant hand clamped over her mouth as she stepped through and an arm wrapped around her belly, lifting her up. She tried screaming but it was no use. The giant hand blocked all sound. She looked around, but there was no one else there, just whoever had her from behind. She could tell it was a man from his giant hairy arms, but that was all she knew. He dragged her out the door and down the ladder. He lifted her like she was feather light. He rushed into the forest and with the sun rising she could make out bodies hiding behind the trees where he was headed. There were at least a dozen of them. The obvious leader had his back to them. They crunched through the leaves and branches on the ground and the leader turned around.
It was James! How was James here? There was no way he could have followed them here. He had a menacing grin on his face and Lily felt stupid at the thought that she had ever trusted this man. Every inch of him oozed danger. She had just felt so desperate at the time. And for
a while it had paid off. But she had the feeling she was going to pay for that now.
“Miss Lily, it’s a pleasure to see you again.” James said.
“The feeling isn’t mutual.” Lily snapped back.
The giant arm let her go and pushed her forward. She turned around to see that her captor had been burly. She should have recognized his foul odor, she thought to herself.
“Aww, I’m certain you are surprised to see us..” James laughed.
“More disappointed.” She replied.
“Well, if you help us out quickly, we will be on our way. Then you can go back to your simple little life.” he promised.
“I’m not helping you with anything.” She spat.
“Lily, after all I did for you? You can’t help with one little thing?” James pouted at her.
“What little thing?” she asked.
“I just need to know the location of the source.” he stated.
She had a terrible sinking in her stomach.
“How do you know about the source?” She questioned.
“I just need you to lead me to it.” He said, ignoring her question.
“I won’t!” she snapped.
“That’s fine,” he replied, “ We’ll just wait here for your flying friend. I’m certain I could convince him.”
That scared Lily. She was certain he could too. Peter would do anything for Lily. He’d proven that over and over. She couldn’t let him put Neverland in danger.
“Fine,” she whispered, defeated.
“Good girl,” James replied and she glared at him. “Lead the way.”
As they walked through the forest Lily considered telling James that she couldn’t remember the way, but that would just send him back to Peter. She would have to take him there. She walked as slowly as she could, hoping to come up with an alternative.
“You might want to speed things up or would happily even the score,” James said, holding up his arm.
It was the first time Lily had noticed the bleeding stump.
“What happened to your hand?” Lily shrieked at the sight.
“Just one more casualty on my journey here.” James replied.
“What does that mean?” she asked.
“You haven’t asked me how I even got here.” James stated.
“Ok,” Lily replied, going along with it, “How did you get here?”
“I have you to thank for that.” He started, “I had been looking for a map for years. I searched every map shop, pawn shop, and collector. I couldn’t find the map anywhere. And once I found the map, there would still be the question of how to get here. I can’t fly. And I know of no bird large enough to carry me.”
Lily was thinking about what he was telling her when she came to a realization.
“You killed my uncle Cole, didn’t you?” she asked.
“Another causality. I had followed the path of the map to his shop, but was still coming up empty handed. That night, when I questioned him, he mentioned that his brother had always had it. At least since your grandfather had died. Once I discovered that your father had abandoned you, it dawned on me that his oldest child would naturally be the next to inherit it. After your uncle died, I just needed to wait for opportunity to pay you a visit. Lucky me, I didn’t have to wait very long before you came and found me instead. While I was going through your stuff, looking for a map, I came upon your pocket watch and I realized that I had been looking for the map in all of the wrong places all these here. Here it was etched on the back of a watch. I was thrilled, but still had the problem of how to get there. Again, my dear, I have you to thank for showing me how. After you kicked the watch out of my hand, it broke open and fell to the crocodiles. It was in that moment that I realized that not only would the watch show me the way, it would provide the means as well. ”
Lily then remembered seeing the dust sprinkle out of the watch as it fell.
“Your hand!?!” Lily realized. “It was bitten off by a crocodile when you went after the watch.”
“You are such a smart little girl.” James said, patting her on the head.
Lily sank down to the ground and started crying.
“It’s all my fault. Cole dying, you being here. If it wasn’t for the watch, none of this would be happening.”
“True enough,” James replied, “but it’s already happened and I’m all out of pixie dust. So if you would please continue leading the way, I’d love to get my dust and be done with you.”
Burly pulled Lily back on her feet and pushed her back on the path toward the source.
Chapter 19
They made it to the edge of the dark forest. They were almost there and Lily was running out of time for ideas. She needed to figure out a way to get out of here. If they didn’t have her, they would never be able to use Peter to lead them there either. But she didn’t know what. Burly walked with her and James and the rest of the crew were right behind her. She kicked herself for ever getting mixed up with them. On the other hand if she hadn’t, Peter would never had brought her here. Lily sat down on a rock, near the path. They were almost to her turn off and she knew at that point it was too late.
“What are you doing?” James asked.
“Taking a break. I’m tired.” she replied.
James huffed, but said nothing.
They sat another minute in silence.
“PETER!” Lily screamed.
She was hoping he’d hear her and get help. She had no idea what kind of help she was hoping for, but something.
The giant hand clamped over her mouth again.
“You will regret that.” James said to her. “Your flying friend doesn’t have a ship to blow up this time.”
Lily knew he was right. Peter couldn’t help her against them and she didn’t want anyone in the tribe risking their lives for her.
“You’re right. I’ll be good.” She promised.
As soon as the words were out of her mouth she felt a giant thud hit the ground. Beside her stood the Neverbird. He was beautiful and fierce. One of the men ran at him, sword in hand. The bird dodged the blow and scorched his pants with a quick flame. The other members of the crew backed off a bit. The Neverbird maneuvered between Lily and the men. She leapt onto his back and he lifted off easily, not feeling her weight at all.
Lily wrapped her arms around the bird’s neck as they climbed higher into the sky. James had been yelling something at her, but the sound faded behind her. Up here, Neverland looked like a small island, not the huge mysterious land Lily now knew it to be. She felt safe. Nothing could touch her up here. Unfortunately both she and the bird knew they couldn’t stay up here forever. The giant golden bird swooped around and headed toward the highest mountain, where Lily knew his nest to be hidden up in the high trees.
The Neverbird circled his giant nest and then swooped in to land. Lily hopped off of his back and into the next with his mate and eggs. The female came to her and nuzzled her. She almost felt like she was looking her over for injuries. Lily hugged the bird tight for a moment, needing to feel comfort after her scary ordeal with James. As much as she tried to appear brave and act like an adult, Lily was still just a lost and scared nine year old girl.
Lily looked down from the nest, wanting to go find Peter. The problem was, she had no idea where he was. She was sure he had been home by now to discover her gone, but where did he go after that. Did he know how to track them? And if so, how would he discover that she had been freed from James? So many questions were running through her mind, but she was starving and exhausted and couldn’t decide what to do right now. It was getting late and she hadn’t even eaten breakfast today. Burly had interrupted her breakfast.
As if reading her mind, the male Neverbird tossed Lily some fish. It appeared raw, but she was starving so she ate it anyway. After she was done eating, she felt like she couldn’t move. The female Neverbird laid down with her and offered her feathers to keep Lily warm. Lily cuddled up to her and quickly fell asleep, feeling perfectly safe
for the first time that day.
Lily awoke with a sense of urgency. She had slept all night and had lost way too much time on trying to track down Peter. She also had no idea where James was. He could be wreaking havoc anywhere. The male Neverbird was awake, watching over them.
“I have to leave,” she explained to him, hoping he’d understand.
He must have understood because he immediately bowed his head down and urged her to get on. She climbed back on with ease and held on. He quickly flew right to the base of the mountain they had been on. From here she could either make her way home or to the village, so at least she wasn’t lost.
“Thank you so much, my dear friend.” She said to the bird and then kissed the side of his head.
He reached his neck around behind him and then turned back around and handed her one of his feathers with his beak. She turned the golden feather around in her fingers, examining all sides of it. This somehow felt like a big deal for this magnificent bird to give her a gift like this. She felt honored. She thanked him again and turned to run off in search of Peter.
Lily wasn’t sure where to go. She was afraid of going back to her house. What if James was there waiting for her? But what about Peter? She needed to find him and warn him. She would have to face her fear and go back there. She ran as quickly as she could. When she got hungry she stopped and ate a peach she found, hidden away under a bush. She came out from the bush after she had eaten her fill and looked around. She didn’t see anyone so she continued her run to the treehouse. Once she got to the edge of the tree line, she approached the house slowly. She wanted to make sure there was alone. She looked around and listened at the window for signs of someone there. When Lily was finally sure she was alone, she climbed the ladder to the kitchen.
Lily’s beautiful kitchen had been trashed. Her curtains were shredded and the chairs had been smashed. All of her dishes were broken and the food was all eaten. She had been right in being afraid to return. James has destroyed her home while looking for her or some clue to the source. A thought occurred to her and she ran to her room, panicked that her things would be gone. She looked around her shattered belongings and found the 2 things she cared about amidst the mess.
Lost Girl (The Lost Series Book 1) Page 10
