Page 11 of Earthbound

Yeeran quickened her pace, contemplating what Pila had said.

Was Furi a drug to her?

She saw the outline of Furi at the end of the tunnel and felt her heart begin to race. She pressed her hand to her chest to feel the thrum of her blood pumping beneath her palm.

For a second she imagined her hand was Furi’s and she felt the ghost of the queen’s fingers move up to her clavicle.

How she craved her.

There was no question. Furi was the only drug Yeeran needed.

If only she felt the same.

Chapter Three

Alder

The Osono mountain range had never made Alder feel nervous before. But that was because he’d known he was going home. Or as close to a home as the Nomads had. Caperly was the one settlement that they returned to during winter each year. It was where those who were too feeble or too young to wander remained.

They were so close to Caperly now that when there was a gust of wind, he could smell the smoke of their campfires on the breeze. It made his palms clammy, despite the cold.

‘I can tell you’re not concentrating,’ Lettle growled.

Alder cracked an eyelid in Lettle’s direction. She did not look impressed.

He sighed. ‘Meditation does not work. It has never worked.’

‘It works for me,’ Farhan said. The fae was sitting cross-legged next to Alder, his eyes closed, his breathing steady.

‘You’re not trying to uncover your memories, Farhan.’ Alder tried not to sound impatient but knew that he hadn’t succeeded when Farhan opened his eyes and frowned.

‘Try again,’ Lettle said, ignoring Farhan completely. ‘Concentrate on your breath, feel the air as it surges through your body and your limbs.’

Alder had never really been sure what Lettle meant when she said that, but they had done this far too many times for him to ask now.

‘Now imagine your mind is a hallway. Walk the corridors until you reach a door. Behind that door is what happened yesterday. Enter and recall what you did.’

The same as the day before, and the day before that: I walked. He would have said the words out loud, but he knew Lettle would spit fire if he did. So, he kept quiet and tried to concentrate.

Lettle eased him through the exercise until he had to strain his memories to recall a year ago, five years ago, ten years ago.

‘Now open the last door.’ Lettle’s voice felt far away now. ‘This door has been locked, but today it is open. It recalls your life fifteen years ago. What do you see?’

‘Noth—’

A pressure tightened around his stomach, like a rope knotted twice. His hands went to his navel but there was nothing there except his furs. Fear tightened its talons around his throat, but it wasn’t fear from the present moment, only an echo of it.

A memory… he marvelled from somewhere outside of himself. An image began to form as though through dappled light.

‘I’m in a cave, and I’m scared…’ Alder said.

Lettle inhaled sharply. ‘What do you see?’

‘I’m holding a letter…but the words, I can’t read them…it’s like the human language. There are obeah around me, they frighten me too. I turn around and run…’

The memory cuts out, as if the sunlight that had shone on it had set.

‘And? What else?’ Lettle probed.