While she was gone, Dandy said to Free, “We need to send someone to get that doctor. I want to open the cell, but I guess it would be prudent to be sure beforehand.”
“What exactly happened?”
“When I woke up, he was like himself in every way except that he doesn’t know me.”
“He doesn’t know you?” Free looked a little more intense.
She shook her head. “He asked who I am, said he doesn’t know me, and asked why he’s locked up. He said he does remember being a prisoner. Then he asked for clothes.”
Free took in a big breath and opened his mouth to say something, but hesitated because Serene was rushing down the stairs excitedly. “Here,” she said, shoving clothes and boots at Dandelion. Having overheard what was said from upstairs, Serene told Dandy, “We’ll send someone to get Dr. Reising and be right behind you.”
She grabbed Dandy’s arm and squeezed to indicate that they were sharing a moment of emotional upheaval which held the possibility of ending in celebration.
Free opened the front door for Dandy since her arms were full of clothing and footwear, including a lined flannel jacket since the weather had turned colder overnight.
Dandy trotted back to the holding facility. She shifted the load so that she could turn the latch and open the door, and practically stumbled in, out of breath.
Crave was standing in the cell with a light blanket wrapped around his waist.
“I got some of your own clothes from your mother,” she said as she began passing things through the bars.
“My mother?” he asked, as if he was grappling with the concept of maternity.
“Yes. Your mother. Serene.”
Crave’s eyebrows pinched together in a scowl as he looked down at the clothes in his hands. Looking up at Dandy, he gestured with the clothes, and said, “Do you mind?”
It took her a couple of beats to understand what he meant, since she’d spent months with Crave not caring about being naked, it took a minute for his newfound modesty to register.
“Oh. Of course. I’ll, uh, go outside for a few minutes.”
Dandy stepped outside and closed the door behind her, trying desperately not to think about what it might mean for Crave to be functioning normally, but not know her. Free was just outside, talking to Easy, one of the members of Carnal’s crew. He was motioning like he was using his hands to emphasize orders and she suspected he was sending Easy to fetch the head doctor. And maybe Charming, too.
After five minutes that felt like hours, Dandy cracked the door open and said, “Can I come in?”
She heard Crave’s deep voice. “I’m dressed.”
He was , but his clothes were hanging on him.
“You sure these are my clothes?” he asked, and it was certainly a reasonable question.
“They were. But you’ve lost a lot of weight.” She gave him a small smile. “Bacon and cinnamon rolls will fix that.”
He rubbed at the beard that had grown. “I don’t like this.”
“The beard?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“Easy enough to take care of that.”
“When?”
“We’ve sent for the doctor who’s been, ah, overseeing your recovery. She’s down in the human city, Farsuitwail. But it’s early… in the morning. She’ll have to be found and then it will take a little time to travel up here.” Dandy looked around the room thinking she should begin filling in blanks since he didn’t seem to recognize anything. “Your parents will be here in a minute.”
Everything Dandy said seemed to agitate him more, but he was reacting the way a normal person would react to not remembering basic people and things. Confused.
She was having a hard time looking away from him. It had been so long since she’d seen him look at her with any expression other than hatred coupled with an obvious desire to kill.
“You’re staring,” he said.
“Sorry.” She forced herself to look away. “It turned cold overnight. I’m going to start a fire.”
Seven years earlier.
Crave had worked half the year finding just the right things to make a wind chime for Dandelion’s birthday. Some things he’d found at the Farsuitwail dump. He’d refashioned little bits of industrial refuse so that they combined to make a pretty, musical sound when the breeze moved the strings from which they hung, perfectly balanced.
She woke on the morning of her fifteenth birthday to a sound outside her window that was positively magical. Opening the shutter to her second-story bedroom, she found Crave on a tall ladder hanging the wind chime from the eave above her window.
“What are you doing?” she asked without trying to conceal her delight.
“Happy Birthday.” He smiled. “I made this for you. When the wind blows you have to think about me.”
She laughed. “I think about you all the time whether the wind is blowing or not. But I love it. Thank you. You’re the best Promise ever.”
She’d just laid a fire and was lighting it when Free and Serene opened the door. sending a draft in to make the burgeoning flames dance.
At Dandy’s request, Charming had taken down the wind chime Crave had made for her and hung it above where she slept on the floor outside Crave’s cell. The draft from the door not only disturbed the flame, but made the wind chime tinkle.
Crave’s eyes jerked upward searching for the source of the sound. He looked at the wind chime as if it might mean something. But it was impossible to tell what was going on in his mind and she was feeling uncertain about what to say or do, fearful that anything might be the wrong thing.
She turned to see Crave’s parents standing motionless by the door. They studied Crave. When he’d had his fill of looking at the wind chime, he looked their way, regarding them with the same interest one would give to strangers, but without any indication of recognition.
“Crave,” Dandy said, “this is Free.” She pointed to his father. “And Serene.” She moved her hand to indicate his mother.
Free stepped forward slowly, as if he was prepared for Crave to revert to the lunacy that had afflicted him since his return. Crave watched Free’s movement with interest, but without any sign of either defensiveness or impending violence.
“Do you know me?” Free asked.
Crave shook his head. “No.”
“Do you know her?” Free’s chin jerked toward Serene.
Crave looked at Serene, his eyes wandering over her scars, before bringing his attention back to Free. “No. Should I?”
Serene allowed a small whimper to escape, not loud enough that human ears could have heard even if someone had been standing right next to her.
“Why am I in here?” he asked, looking from Dandelion to Free.
Dandy answered. “You know you were held captive by our enemies.” He gave a single slow nod without taking his eyes away from her. “You haven’t been yourself since you were rescued.”
He looked around the cell. “Oh. So why are you not opening this door now?” He pulled on the iron door slightly to illustrate the point that it was locked.
“We want to,” she said. “We have to get it cleared with your doctor.” She looked at Free for information.
He cleared his throat and spoke in a husky voice. “We’ve sent people to find the doctor and bring her here. It won’t be long.”
“Are you hungry?” Dandy asked.
Crave cocked his head like he was contemplating that. “Yes.”
“What would you like?”
“Bacon. Cinnamon rolls with caramel icing.”
Serene sniffed again at that. He might not remember her, but he remembered her cinnamon rolls with caramel icing. Eager for something to do while they waited for Dr. Reising, Serene said, “I’ll get breakfast.” To Crave, she said, “It will be about forty-five minutes.”
He nodded politely and said, “Thank you.”
“I’ll help with breakfast,” Free said. Eager to be away from confronting the fact that he and his
son shared history, but not memories, he left with Serene.
Once again Crave and Dandelion were left alone, no sound in the open room other than the crackle and pop of the fire she’d built. It was gradually becoming more comfortable in the room as the space began to heat.
Crave stood on the other side of the bars and looked over the collection of things Dandy had accumulated. Her gaze followed the trajectory of his.
“All these things belonged to you at one time. Do any of them seem familiar?”
His eyes met hers. He didn’t answer verbally. Just shook his head.
“You called me Crave. Is that my name?”
She smiled. “Yes. I’ve always thought it was a beautiful name. It suggests a constant hunger, never being completely satisfied, always reaching for more. I think that’s what all of us should do. Reach for more. Don’t you?”
He cocked his head to the side. “I’m not sure what I think about that. All I want right now is to get out of here.” He looked through the windows and then to the door that led outside. “And breakfast,” he added.
“Serene makes wonderful cinnamon rolls. You’ll like them.”
His eyes jerked back to hers. “How did she get those scars on her face?” Crave’s gaze flicked down her body when he noticed she’d frozen and gone stiff with tension. “What’s the matter?” An expression of concern flitted across his handsome features. “That doesn’t have anything to do with me?”
It was a question, a statement, and a challenge all in one.
“She was hurt,” Dandy rushed to say, “not long ago. The scars are still red, but they’ll fade some as time goes by. Please don’t say anything to her about it. She’s sensitive. Self-conscious.”
“You didn’t say how she got the injury.”
Dandelion’s lips parted before she knew what she would say next. Fortunately a couple of Carnal’s crew arrived before she had to decide what to say.
When Joy and Yellow came through the door, the easterly wind blew the wind chime. And again it distracted Crave, drawing his attention like a magnet.
“Hey there, beautiful,” said Joy. “I see you decided to wear pants today. It’s a good look on you.”
“Crave,” Dandy said. “This is Joy and Yellow. They’re friends of your brother’s.”
Dandy could see that he was questioning the idea of a brother, but he said nothing.
To Joy and Yellow, she said, “Crave is feeling much better this morning, but hasn’t yet worked out why he’s not free.” She did her best to sound casual as she conveyed this information without betraying the fact that it broke her heart to say, “He doesn’t know me. Or Free. Or Serene.”
Joy and Yellow, who’d been looking at Dandy, jerked their eyes in Crave’s direction as if what they’d just learned was alarming. The attention clearly made Crave uncomfortable.
“Let’s, um, talk outside,” Dandy said.
She more or less herded Joy and Yellow out the door. When it was closed, she said, “We’re on the verge of overwhelming him. He remembers being held captive by the Rautt. But he doesn’t know any of us. He even had to confirm his own name. Until Dr. Reising talks to him, and tells us how to proceed, I think saying as little as possible is the best course.”
That was evidently a lot for Yellow and Joy to absorb. Yellow took a deep breath and blew it out. Joy said, “Uh, yeah. I can see that. We’ll be around if you need us.” They turned to go, but Joy came back and gave Dandy an unexpected hug. Unexpected partly because she’d never shown an interest in being particularly friendly with Dandelion before. “It’ll be okay,” she added as she let Dandy go and rejoined Yellow.
Dandy lingered outside the building, half afraid to go back inside because of the certainty of impending questions she couldn’t, or shouldn’t, answer before Dr. Reising had a chance to evaluate. She concluded that the best option was to wait until Free and Serene returned with breakfast. At least if he demanded answers, she wouldn’t be taking on the entire responsibility by herself.
She’d stand by the door in the meantime, make sure no one else entered, and give Crave a much needed emotional break from the pressure of not knowing who he was.
Just before Crave’s parents returned with breakfast, Charming cruised up next to Dandy on his silent bike and dismounted.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
“He’s mostly himself.”
“Mostly?”
“He remembers the Rautt, but doesn’t remember any of us. Or himself.”
Charming’s shoulders sagged like he’d just taken another blow. He scrubbed a hand down his face as he took that in. “Okay,” he said finally with weary resignation, as if handing him one fucked-up scenario after another was the new norm, “so what’s next?”
“He asked for cinnamon rolls. Serene is making them. Free is helping. Somebody from Carnal’s crew has gone to get Dr. Reising. That’s it.”
Charming stared at her for a minute and then gave a dark chuckle. “He doesn’t remember himself or any of us, but he remembers cinnamon rolls.” He shook his head. “Fucking Crave.”
“Charming…” Dandy began, but he cut her off.
“What are you doing out here?”
“Trying to stay out of the line of fire because I’m afraid of answering one of his questions wrong. Or omitting the very thing that would bring him all the way back.”
Charming looked around. “Wow.”
“Yes. Wow.”
“You don’t deserve this, Dandy. You want me to kick his ass?”
She started giggling in spite of herself. Charming had a way of lightening up any situation no matter how dire or dreadful.
“At least he’s got it covered with pants,” she said between.
“How will I recognize him?”
That made her laugh a little harder and it was welcome relief. Free and Serene gave them stern looks that said there was nothing to laugh about, but didn’t reprimand them verbally. Serene held a covered basket that was releasing the dueling, but equally delicious, aromas of freshly cooked bacon and cinnamon rolls. Dandy and Charming hoped they’d brought enough for everyone.
Charming opened the door for his parents then he and Dandelion followed them inside.
When Serene started toward where Crave stood at the bars, Free pulled her back silently. She looked at her mate with a mixture of surprise and censure. He tightened his mouth and shook his head slightly in response before opening the basket and offering Crave a fistful of bacon wrapped in a linen cloth. Crave reached through the bars and took it. That was followed by a cloth holding cinnamon rolls and a thermos-type drink holder they’d traded for in Farsuitwail.
Crave shoved bacon into his mouth and took a bite of cinnamon roll before he’d swallowed all the bacon. He opened the thermos and took a drink.
“Milk,” he said. “I like milk.”
“I know,” Serene said softly. “How are you feeling?”
He stopped eating momentarily, seeming to think about that. “Good.” He resumed eating.
Free offered cinnamon rolls to Charming and Dandy. They took one each gratefully and sat down with backs against the wall. It was an odd family breakfast, together with no sound but the quiet crackles of the fire. Each, in his or her own way, was happy to have Crave acting sane whether he remembered them or not. Each, in his or her own way, was afraid to say or do something that might interfere with Crave’s progress, but Free thought that perhaps normal conversation might be the best thing while they waited for Dr. Reising. Especially if it didn’t relate to Crave or his memory.
He turned to Charming. “We’d like to hear how plans for the move are progressing.”
Charming swallowed and sat up a little straighter. “Red is doing a commendable job of managing the building. The humans seem to be taking the idea of sharing space well. At least the ones we interact with. I think they’ve come to understand that we’re not the enemy and that they have us to thank for turning the page on a new chapter. They’re looking
forward to restoring the technological stuff, starting to make the repairs. Have to hand it to them. They’re industrious. I don’t really understand what they tell me about power and gadgets, but they get this far away look in their eyes when they talk about it. Like having that stuff is better than Summerland. That’s why it’s so important for us to have educated people. Like Rosie said.”
Charming, having been born at Newland and never having seen such things as power-generated lighting, air-conditioning, recorded music, washing machines, and all the other things that had made modern life comparably easy, had no notion of why older humans were giddy about the prospect of restoration. Serene and Free only knew technology from the standpoint of how it could be used to control and ‘discipline’ captives.
In fact, all Exiled who were old enough to remember captivity regarded a new technological age with suspicion and rededicated themselves to keeping a close eye on how humans chose to use the power they worshipped. That was one of the items on the shortlist of imperative reasons to integrate Farsuitwail.
“Is anyone causing trouble?” Free asked.
“Strangely enough, no.”
“Not even Thorn?”
Charming smiled. “He grumbles a lot, but he hasn’t gotten in the way.”
“I guess that’s the best we can expect.”
“He helped a lot building this…” Before he reached the end of the sentence, Charming realized he’d relaxed into sharing news with his family. His eyes shifted to Crave to see if there’d been a negative reaction.
Crave regarded Charming with head cocked to the side. “This prison? Is that what you were going to say? Somebody named Thorn helped shut me in here?”
Free stepped in front of Crave and held his gaze. “Do you recognize any of us?”
Crave looked from Free to Serene to Charming to Dandy and back to Free before shaking his head. “No.” He looked at Serene. “But thank you for the bacon and the cinnamon rolls. And the milk. It was good.”
“Of course,” she said. “There’s more.” She picked up the basket. “Do you want another?”
CRAVE (Exiled Book 2) Page 5
