People of the Mist (14 page)

 
          
From
his hiding place, Panther took stock. The young woman had long black hair and
the moony face of an owl, round, with large dark eyes, and a short beak of a
nose. She wore a red and blue feathered cape. One of Water Snake’s, or a woman
from the unallied villages?

 
          
The
canoe grated on the bank, and the young woman stepped into the water and
dragged her dugout ashore. As she picked up her bow from the bottom, she strung
it, and hung it over her shoulder. Then she slung a quiver over the opposite
shoulder, and lifted a war club that looked too big and heavy for her slight
frame and thin arms. Clutching it tightly, she started forward.

 
          
Well,
if she’s come to kill me, best of luck. Others have tried before. And like
them, this poor young fool would be cast adrift, her corpse lying in her boat.
Panther had heard that some of his victims had been found. The others, he
assumed, had been swept out to sea.

 
          
Panther
hid behind a tree. The young woman squared her shoulders and crept stealthily
up the path.

 
          
Panther
frowned. Where had he left his bow? In the house most likely. Well, no matter,
he knew his little island like the back of his hand. Warily, he followed her,
using the trees for cover as he paralleled her trail.

 
          
Despite
the years, not all of Panther’s stealth had deserted him. The nervous young
woman hadn’t the slightest notion that the hunter was now the hunted. Glee
warmed The Panther’s gut.

 
          
As
sure as snow in winter, the woman made her way to-the little clearing and
stopped to peer at his hut, the steaming pot of stew, and the leather sacks
left empty by the fire.

 
          
Shivering,
she glanced around for any sign of life. The fading daylight made her even more
anxious as she searched the shadows. They’re not as brave as they once were.
What’s happened to women these days? Panther crouched behind a tangle of
huckleberry bushes and watched patiently.

 
          
She
calmed herself, knotted up her courage, and called, “Elder? Are you here?”

 
          
Panther
stayed put, taught by the long years of solitude that all things eventually
come to their conclusion. Only the young and the foolish hurried things along.

 
          
The
woman walked stiff-legged now to keep her knees from buckling. She approached
the domed house awkwardly, and called out again: “Elder, I am Sun Conch, of the
Star Crab Clan! A girl of
Three
Myrtle
Village
! I have come to speak to you!”

 
          
A
girl. Not a woman. Very curious.

 
          
One
of the crows squawked in the tree, and the girl jumped half out of her skin.
She wheeled around, staring at the silent forest. “Please, Elder!”

 
          
Panther
remained motionless until she started pacing, bending to study the ground for
tracks.

 
          
Like
a ghost, Panther slipped to the back of his house and carefully lifted a
section of grass matting away. He ducked inside. At the head of his bed, he
found his bow, and groped about for his arrows. To his disgust, they stood
canted against the wall. Picking through them, he realized they’d warped. It
took a moment to find the straightest, but a mouse had chewed most of the fl
etching off the shaft.

 
          
His
bones cracked as he strung the bow, prayed the gut string wouldn’t snap, and
took three tries to draw it.

 
          
Muscles
straining, he stepped to the doorway and emerged behind the frantic Sun Conch.
“

 
          
“Drop
your war club, girl!”

 
          
Sun
Conch froze, every muscle knotted. For an instant, she seemed to waver between
collapsing and bolting like a terrified fawn.

 
          
“I
said, drop the club.”

 
          
The
war club slipped from her nerveless fingers to thump hollowly on the ground.

 
          
“Turn
around.”

 
          
Her
legs almost gave way as she turned, eyes wide. Her lips moved, but no words
came.

 
          
“What?
I can’t hear you!”

 
          
“You
… you weren’t there! I just.. just…”

 
          
“Yes,
yes, you looked, but you didn’t see. Now, did you come here to kill me?”

 
          
Sun
Conch shook her head so hard it might have snapped her neck.

 
          
Panther
gauged the glazed fear in her eyes, the way she shook, and gratefully released
the tension on his fragile bow. Every muscle sighed with relief. Then what do
you want?”

 
          
Sun
Conch gulped like a fish on the bank. “To find you, Elder.”

 
          
“For
what? Come on, girl, how many times do I have to ask?”

 
          
“I…
we need your help!”

 
          
As
night descended and the air grew cold, Panther hunched over the fire. Sun Conch
crouched opposite him, her rabbit like eyes taking in every movement. The first
stars were burning through the haze.

 
          
Night
was peaceful here, except during the times when the great storms rolled in off
the ocean. Panther’s house sat just high enough that the storm surge didn’t
wash it away, but the little stream that drained the freshwater marsh would be
brackish for days afterward.

 
          
Firelight
flickered on his house, the two shrines, and the overhanging branches of the
oak. Panther fished around in his turtle-shell bowl for another clam, used a
wooden sliver to pry the shell open, and sucked out the meat. Since his molars
had fallen out years ago, clams were just right. They could be gummed enough to
be swallowed.

 
          
“Now,
then”—Panther wiped his lips—“just what sort of help did you have in mind?” He
raised an eyebrow. “Some foolish spell or something?”

 
          
Sun
Conch winced. “No, Elder. It’s my friend, High Fox. He’s from Sun Shell Clan.
His father is Black Spike, Weroance of Three Myrtle Village. High Fox is in
trouble. Terrible trouble.” “And what might this be? He can’t get a woman?”

 
          
Her
round face went very pale, “N-No, Elder. They think he killed her … I mean,
well, she wasn’t really his woman, but she would have been.”

 
          
Panther’s
expression soured. “Youngster, you’re flustered. I decided not to kill you, and
until you give me reason to change my mind, I won’t. All right? Now, why don’t
you start at the beginning.”

 
          
Sun
Conch nodded and pulled her feathered cloak closed around her throat. “Her name
was Red Knot. Of the Greenstone Clan. She was the daughter of Shell Comb, and
the granddaughter of Hunting Hawk, of
Flat
Pearl
Village
.”

 
          
“Yes,
yes, I know of Hunting Hawk. Go on.” Blessed Ohona, how many years had it been
since he’d seen her? How the sun had gleamed in her sleek black hair. He could
remember the warmth of her smile, the way her doeskin dress had hugged those
saucy hips. They’d been enemies then. Actually, he supposed, by definition,
they still were.

 
          
“Elder,
High Fox loved Red Knot. They wanted to marry. But Hunting Hawk promised Red
Knot to Copper Thunder, the Great Tayac.”

 
          
Panther
straightened, his interest perked. “He’s the upstart from somewhere over the
mountains, isn’t he? Pipe stone Clan, I’ve heard.” Could it be? But no, that
was years ago, and far from here. “Yes, he is, Elder. His power and influence
have been growing. He’s allied the upriver villages, defeated Water Snake and
Stone Frog’s warriors. Some say he’s not completely human.”

 
          
“Gull
dung, girl. They say that about me.”

 
          
“Uh,
yes, I—I’ve heard that.” Sun Conch looked as if her stomach hurt.

 
          
“You
were saying?”

 
          
“I
was saying that Red Knot was made a woman a few days past, and Copper Thunder
came to
Flat
Pearl
Village
to claim her. But she didn’t want him. Red
Knot and High Fox were desperate, Elder, and High Fox made this plan. He would
meet her at Oyster Shell Landing, and they would run off together.”

 
          
Panther
caught the tightness in her voice, and saw the pain that glistened in her eyes.
“That disturbed you?”

 
          
She
lifted a shoulder and shook her head. “It doesn’t matter now. I—”

 
          
“You
love this High Fox, too.”

 
          
She
sat completely still.

 
          
“Answer
me!”

 
          
“…
Yes, Elder.”

 
          
“All
right. Go on.”

 
          
Heaving
a breath, she said, “Anyway, High Fox left the final dance early and paddled
around the neck of land to Oyster Shell Landing. Red Knot was supposed to sneak
away before dawn and meet him there. She never made it. High Fox got nervous
and climbed the ridge. He found her. Dead. Her head was crushed and she’d been
left there. Now they … I mean, everyone at
Flat
Pearl
Village
believes he did it.”

 
          
“I
see.”

 
          
“But
he didn’t! I know him. He’s my friend! He loved her! Why would he kill her?”

 
          
“Maybe
she told him she wouldn’t go with him. Men have killed for lesser reasons than
the passions of a thwarted heart.”

 
          
Sun
Conch’s expression went hard. “No, Elder. It isn’t in him to do such a thing. I
swear to you, I have known him my entire life. You must believe me.”

 
          
Panther
fished out another of his clams, and sucked the body from the shell. He gulped
it down and cast a curious glance at her. “I never said I didn’t believe you, I
just offered another explanation. People do lots of odd things for lots of odd
reasons. They’ve too much of Okeus in their souls, and not enough of Ohona.
We’re silly beasts, girl, governed by even sillier ideas.” Sun Conch lowered
her eyes, and awkwardly clasped her hands. “He is not a beast, Elder. He is a
good man.”

 
          
“So,
what do you want me to do, eh? Go and speak for your friend? Tell everyone he
didn’t do it?”

 
          
At
that, Sun Conch looked up, hope bright in her eyes. “You must, Elder. I know
everyone would listen. You are The Panther. People respect you.”

 
          
“Panther
laughed. “They do, do they?”

 
          
“Yes,
Elder. Of all the men on earth, you are the most… respected.”

 
          
“Corpse
rot! I am the most feared.”

 
          
She
blinked. “They are both the same, aren’t they?”

 
          
“Some
lot you know. Fear and respect may be aligned like two sticks of wood, but
never confuse them.” Panther devoured an oyster from his stew. “And how do I know
this High Fox didn’t kill her? Just take your word for it?”