by Jordan Rivet
“I heard four,” said Jemima.
“No, definitely five.”
“Four!”
“There are four of them,” Yvonne said. “The others are men.”
“You’re just in time for Lake Day!” Jemima said. “The whole town will be there!”
Sue Ellen waved a piece of soap at her with a tanned hand. “Are you thinking about joining us?”
All the women stopped talking at once, staring at Esther like she was a fish in a bowl. Caught off guard, she answered quickly, explaining that they were traveling in search of a new home on land, and then she dipped beneath the surface of the pool to rinse the soap out of her hair. The water in her ears blurred their voices for a moment. She’d have to be careful. People lived differently on land, and she needed to show them she was thinking about adhering to their way of life.
Esther climbed out of the rock pool, grabbed the rough towel, and made an excuse about having to meet her friends. She retreated to the entryway and sat on the outer bench, shivering in the sudden cool of the air. She would find her sister at the feast that night. The whole town would be there. She would know her when she saw her. She’d have to.
Yvonne soon joined her and gave her a dark-blue blouse and a heavy brown skirt embroidered with pale-blue flowers, like the one she had been wearing earlier. She also handed her a pair of soft shoes made of some sort of animal skin. She refused to answer any more of Esther’s questions, nodding significantly at the partition and the group of women behind it.
“We’ll talk later,” she said.
The men were nowhere to be seen outside, but the village bustled with people getting ready for the feast. Yvonne showed Esther where to leave her dirty clothes in a large woven basket near the lake. Washboards sat beside it, drying in the late-afternoon sun.
“No one could think those belong to anyone in the town. You’ll get them back,” Yvonne assured Esther as she dumped her mud-stained clothes. She kept her boots and tool belt.
Yvonne brought Esther to the single-women’s dormitory, pointing out a spreading tree beside it so she’d be able to find it again. Names and hearts were carved all over the tree trunk. Esther spotted the initial N inside one of the hearts, but that could be anyone, of course.
Inside the dormitory a dozen women were busy getting ready for the festival. Yvonne fired off names too quickly for Esther to catch. Most seemed to be in their early- to midtwenties. Esther searched their faces and watched for signs of recognition, feeling overwhelmed. None of them looked close enough to the image she had in her head, but wouldn’t Naomi live here if she was in the town? Unless she was married already. That was a strange thought.
Some of the women wore trousers when they came in, but all changed into full skirts covered in embroidery as they prepared for the evening. They combed and braided each other’s hair and coated their eyes and lips in homemade kohl and rouge.
“Let me do you,” Yvonne said.
While she worked at Esther’s face with a thick charcoal pencil, another young woman attacked her hair with a comb and twisted it into a short, painful braid across the top of her head. Her bangs fell out of it immediately, so the woman brushed them to the side and stuck a pin into the braid to hold it, making her wince. Yvonne tried to apply some sort of paste made out of berries to Esther’s lips, but she pushed her hand away. No need to go overboard.
While Esther put up with these ministrations, she studied the dormitory. It had bunk beds and space for twenty, though only twelve of the bunks looked occupied. These were decorated with drawings and covered with handmade quilts and embroidered pillows. Evidence of “land life” popped up here and there: potted flowers, bundles of sweet-smelling herbs, things carved out of wood. Esther had never seen so much wood in her entire life.
“Hey, ship girl!”
“Huh?”
The girl who had fixed Esther’s hair, whose name was Betsy, tapped her on the shoulder.
“You live on a cruise ship, right?”
“Yeah, I’ve been there ever since the eruption.”
“What’s it like being on a ship all the time?” Betsy asked. She had a round, ruddy face, and she’d applied a liberal layer of rouge to her cheeks. She was twisting her own hair, long and thick like seaweed, into an elaborate plait. “Isn’t it cramped?”
“Well, it’s all self-contained, so you can’t really get very far away from anyone,” Esther said. “You guys are so spread out here. You must always be walking. But the sea is wide open, at least. And it’s what has kept us alive all this time, just like your lake.”
“Did you only eat fish?” Betsy looped the finished braid on top of her head and began sticking more pins into it. One snapped, and she tossed it aside. Esther picked it up and saw that it was brittle and covered in rust. “We eat fish from the lake too, but at least we have some variety. What about vegetables? What do you do for vitamins?”
“We eat a lot of seaweed,” Esther said. “It’s quite nutritious.”
“You’re pretty short, though.” Betsy turned toward her and put her hands on her hips. “Is that because you only eat seaweed and fish?”
“I don’t know.”
“You’re even shorter than Na— ”
“Betsy!” Yvonne said shrilly. Her hand slipped, and the red paste she’d been applying to her lips smeared like blood on her chin.
“Oh right. Gotta go. Talk to you later, ship girl.” Betsy flounced off to the other side of the dormitory, but Esther had heard enough. She grabbed Yvonne by the arm and led her firmly to the cabin door. A few of the women looked up as they passed, but Yvonne didn’t protest.
Outside on the porch, Esther turned to face Yvonne. “Naomi Harris,” she said.
Yvonne’s face twitched. It was enough.
“You have a friend named Naomi, right?” Esther said. Her skin buzzed like she’d been shocked with electricity. Dread and hope mingled in her chest. “She’s not the one who got locked up, is she?”
“I can’t talk about—”
“Answer me.”
Yvonne looked around fearfully, but no one passing by the dormitory on the path paid them any attention. She bit her lip. “Yes, okay. We’re forbidden to talk about Codebreakers. Please don’t tell anyone.”
“Naomi is a Codebreaker?”
Yvonne nodded, looking like she might cry. “How do you know about her?”
“What does she look like? Tell me that first.”
Yvonne twisted her hands deep in the folds of her skirt.
“She’s short, and she has dark, curly hair. Her nose has a bit of a hook and, well, Esther, she looks a little like you and your father.”
Esther squeezed her eyes shut. It was her. She knew it had to be her.
“Is that why you’re here?” Yvonne asked.
“She’s my sister. We’re here to get her. How long before she’s let out of lockup or whatever?”
“She’s not . . . she’s going to be . . .” Yvonne gave a little sob and she clutched Esther’s arm. “You have to take me with you.”
“What? No, we can’t—”
“If they find out I told you anything, I’ll be in serious trouble.”
“You don’t want to live at sea, Yvonne.”
“No, but I don’t want to . . . If you get her out, you have to take me away with you before the Dentist finds out.” Yvonne’s grip tightened like a sailor’s knot.
“Wait, calm down.” Esther tried to pry Yvonne’s fingers open. “What will the Dentist do?”
Yvonne bit her lip, eyes wide. “I can’t talk about this.”
“Look, we’ll work something out,” Esther said. A horrible possibility was beginning to dawn on her. She couldn’t bring herself to voice it. “Are you saying Naomi won’t be let out? Where is she being kept?”
“You can’t, Esther,” Yvonne whispered. “There will be guards. Someone will get hurt.”
“Rust. Just tell me—”
The dormitory doors burst open. Then the women w
ere spilling out of the doors, chattering, laughing, surrounding them like a flood. Betsy looped her arm in Esther’s and dragged her down off the porch. Yvonne joined the crowd, eyes wide, but she made no effort to get any closer to Esther.
Betsy prattled about the feast as she pulled Esther along with the other women. Esther tried to stay calm, but the top of her head felt like it was floating up toward the trees. She didn’t think Yvonne would say anything about what they were up to. She’d gather the others and make a plan. They had to find out where the Codebreakers were kept and exactly what sort of sentence the Dentist had in mind for Naomi’s indiscretion. There was work to do.
Even so, Esther had to fight to stay anchored to the ground. It had been confirmed: her sister was alive.
Chapter 22—Lake Day
THE GROUP OF WOMEN traipsed down to the waterfront, not too far from the dam. The shore had been entirely cleared of trees here, and long tables covered a sparse grass lawn. A huge pile of wood stood at the water’s edge, casting shadows in the fading light. A large platform had been set up nearby with a wooden podium on top.
Esther stopped at the end of an aisle between the picnic tables and scanned the crowd for Naomi in case she was already out of lockup. People streamed from the town, laughing and greeting each other as they found seats at the long tables. Esther estimated nearly four hundred townspeople had gathered by the lake already, with more coming. She watched hopefully for anyone who looked like her sister. Yvonne couldn’t have meant Naomi would never be released. Or worse . . .
“Esther, over here!”
David rose from a table near the aisle and waved her over. He wore rough handmade clothes like the townspeople. He still stood out, though. His straight posture and the way he carried himself distinguished him from the men of the town, who were all a little bent from hard labor.
“Who is that?” Betsy asked, staring at David appreciatively.
“They’re together,” Yvonne said, reappearing on Betsy’s other side. She peered at Esther like a frightened goby fish.
Betsy’s mouth twisted in a frown. “The good ones are always taken.”
“His name’s David,” Esther said. “Thanks for the clothes, Yvonne. I’d better join my friends.”
“We’ll see you tonight,” Yvonne said. Then she added shrilly, “Don’t forget you’re staying with us!”
“Got it. See ya.”
Esther finally extracted her arm from Betsy’s grasp and left the other women behind. She sat on the bench between David and her father. Cody leaned over the table to listen in.
“Good news,” Esther said in a low voice. “It’s definitely our Naomi. I hear she looks just like us.”
Simon reached forward to grip her hand. He started to say something but stopped and squeezed her hand harder instead.
Cody pumped his fist, keeping it low so as not to draw attention to them. “Right on, Esther!”
“I’m impressed as always,” David said. “We haven’t been able to get Bole to tell us anything useful.”
“I got the truth out of Yvonne. But there’s a problem. Naomi’s locked up somewhere for breaking the Code.”
“What?”
“I don’t know where she’s being kept or what they’re planning to do with her, but we have to be extra careful not to let anyone else know why we’re here.”
All the color drained out of Cody’s face suddenly. He stared over Esther’s shoulder.
“Evening, folks.” It was the Dentist.
He stood close behind them and put a hand on David’s shoulder, so he couldn’t turn around. He was so tall he seemed to block all the light from their little group. Esther silently willed Cody to wipe the guilty expression off his face.
“How are you enjoying your stay in our town so far?” the Dentist said.
“It’s very nice,” Esther said, carefully polite. She couldn’t tell whether or not he’d overheard what she had said a minute ago. “The bathhouses are impressive.”
The Dentist didn’t even acknowledge her.
“We were particularly impressed with the poultry breeding program,” Simon said.
“Ah, glad you could look around those,” the Dentist said. “And you?” He patted David on the shoulder familiarly.
“Your facilities are admirable,” David said. “Especially the bathhouses.” He winked at Esther.
“They are popular,” the Dentist said. “Enjoy the feast and let our Elders know if you have any questions about our culture.” He nodded at Cody and Simon and took his hand off David’s shoulder. He hadn’t made eye contact with Esther. She frowned as he moved along the table to greet another group.
“Bole’s sister, Yvonne, asked to come with us when we leave with Naomi,” Esther said when the Dentist was out of earshot. “She’s afraid of what will happen to her if the Dentist finds out she shared information.”
“We can’t make any promises,” David said.
“I agree,” Esther said. “But she might help us, so I think we need to keep the option open.”
“Fair enough.”
“Hey folks.” Bole jogged over to their table and leaned in between Esther and David. “What’d I miss?”
“We just had a visit from the Dentist,” Simon said.
“Aw, scrub. Hope he doesn’t mind me leaving you alone for a second. I’m gonna lose my Elder privileges.”
Bole squeezed onto the bench, forcing David to shift down to make room for him.
“How was the bathhouse, Esther?” Bole asked.
“Um, great. Very relaxing.”
“You look real pretty. Yve lend you that skirt?”
“Yeah,” she said.
“Nice,” Bole said, looking her up and down.
“When will the feast get started?” David said stiffly.
“Hold your goats, man,” Bole said. “There’s plenty of food for everyone. We got the ceremony first.”
There was a bang from over near the lake. A dozen men had gathered along the edge of the podium. Thompson and Jones were among them. They fired shotguns over the water—probably blanks—one right after another. Everyone turned in their seats to face them as the echoes reverberated across the lake.
After all the shotguns had been fired, a dozen women wearing matching white robes climbed up to the podium. Alderflower was the oldest of the bunch, and the others ranged from middle age all the way down to a girl who couldn’t have been more than sixteen. These must be the Shepherds. They carried huge bunches of flowers in their arms. One by one they tossed their flowers onto the wood pyre beside the podium, then retreated to the back of the stage.
Alderflower stepped forward. “He has promised,” she intoned.
The women behind her repeated the words. “He has promised.”
“He has led.”
“He has led.”
“He has called us. He has delivered us to the lake. We are saved because of the lake.”
The women repeated the words. Another round of shotgun fire roared across the water.
“In the days of darkness,” Alderflower continued, “the Dentist heard a voice in a dream. The Lord called the Dentist to lead us to our salvation, to lead us to a lake of plenty, a lake of fish and flower, a lake of sustenance and blessing. And we followed!” Another shotgun blast. “Today we gather to remember the day of our salvation. Ten years ago the Dentist brought us out of our tribulations!”
The crowd stood to cheer. Some drummed on the tables and hollered. As the people applauded, the Dentist walked toward the stage. He had donned a coat embroidered with bold patterns of black and midnight blue. A flash of fire red embellished each shoulder. He looked larger than life, like a king from a storybook.
The cheers grew louder as the Dentist reached the podium. He smiled, pressing his large hands together and bowing toward the crowd. The Shepherds gazed at him with what could only be described as adoration. Esther felt an uncomfortable sensation in her stomach at the sight like nausea—or fear.
Finally,
the assembly quieted.
“My friends,” the Dentist boomed, “thank you for your support. Thank you for your continuing devotion to the Code. When the Lord spoke to me, he told me I would find a people more devout than I could hope. You are that people.”
Thunderous applause rose from the townspeople, sending shivers down Esther’s spine. This was just weird.
The Dentist held up his hands, waiting for quiet.
“Today,” he said, “we mark the tenth anniversary of our deliverance. We renew our commitment to the Code by giving back to the lake. Today we offer these flowers as a fragrant sacrifice, a representation of our promise to uphold the Code.”
Alderflower waved for the youngest of her acolytes to hand a burning torch to the Dentist. He held it high over his head, his eyes glimmering in the light like twin flames. Alderflower said a short prayer, and then the Dentist tossed the torch onto the waiting pyre. The wood and sacrificial flowers went up in a blaze of smoke and applause.
Another woman in white stepped forward and led the Shepherds in a hymn. Soon the others joined in, voices rising from the crowd as one.
The Lord has brought us to the lake,
The lake of fish and sun.
The sun will shine upon the lake
And each and everyone.
The Lord has saved us from the ash,
The ash of death and dust.
The dust did fall upon the land
Until the Lord saved us.
The Lord has called a holy man,
A man of strength we trust.
We give our trust to Chosen Man,
Our friend the good Dentist.
Esther coughed into her fist. Bole glanced at her sideways, then went back to singing.
The Dentist gave the holy Code,
A Code to show the path.
The path leads to a righteous life
For each and every one.
The Dentist nodded in thanks as more cheers spread through the crowd. Esther leaned toward Bole.
“What happens to people who break the Code?”
“Small-time reprobates get put in lockup,” he said, his breath warm on her face.
