Qaletaqa (18 page)

“Kaya, Uriah wants to talk to you,” I said
before handing over the phone, wondering what else he had figured
out and hoping it didn’t have anything to do with my role in his
destiny.

17: Possibilities

I took the phone from Claire and pressed it
to my ear. I would have preferred to have this conversation alone,
but there was no helping the situation. It wasn’t that it was
something to keep secret from Claire, but more that I wasn’t sure
how she would react to the topic. She hadn’t been overly receptive
to the idea so far. And since she apparently wasn’t going to ask on
her own, I was going to do it for her.

“Are you there, Uriah?” Kaya asked.

“Yeah, I’m here.” A quick glance over at
Claire assured me that she was listening intently. “Kaya, how did
you come into your gifts?” Claire’s mouth turned down, but not in a
frown. She was thinking, listening.

“My gifts? You mean the visions and seeing
Twin Souls and everything? Why do you want to know about that?”
Kaya asked.

Always with the questions. I just needed a
few quick answers. “I’ll explain in a minute. First, just tell me
how your powers developed.”

“Well, I’ve had very vivid dreams all my
life, but it wasn’t until I got into my teens that I started seeing
important things in them, things I knew had real meaning. I think I
was seventeen before I actually touched someone and saw the
possibilities of their future. It scared me half to death,
actually.” Kaya let out a little laugh at the memory.

“So you weren’t able to do everything you can
now when you were younger? Does it happen like that for
everyone?”

I knew I was right about Claire. Talon being
able to hear her thoughts was a red flag, and so was her being able
to sense the bond, but what she read in the book was hard to
dispute.

“It really wasn’t until the shaman before me,
Naomi, started teaching me how to focus myself that I began to be
able to use my talents more regularly,” Kaya said. “It’s different
for every shaman, though. Naomi didn’t even know she had any power
until she turned twenty-three and found herself face to face with a
grey wolf. The wolf didn’t attack her, of course, and when she told
the current shaman about what had happened she immediately started
teaching her.”

I thought over what Kaya had said. Claire’s
lack of visions or dreams or other extraordinary talents didn’t put
any damper on my idea of her being a shaman.

“How does someone with power learn to use
it?” I asked.

“Uriah, what is this about?” Kaya had given
me her answers, but now she wanted some in return.

“It’s about Claire. Talon can read her
thoughts.”

Silence.

“Have there been any other signs?” Kaya
asked.

“Claire can feel the Twin Soul bond. She can
sense when my bond to Melody changes,” I said. “Plus… Claire read
something in Quaile’s book about how some shaman’s power might try
to steal my power. That’s why it hurts me when Claire touches me.
My body was warning me to get away from her.”

More silence.

“Does Quaile know about any of this?” Kaya
asked.

“I just found out about Talon hearing her
thoughts when Claire caught up with me yesterday, and about her
feeling the bond this morning. We haven’t talked to Quaile since we
left San Juan, but she did give Claire the book. I’m beginning to
wonder if she sensed or saw something in Claire,” I said. “Could
Claire be a shaman? Do you even call someone a shaman unless
they’re chosen by the Elders?” I had a million questions. Claire
however still didn’t seem to be as enthusiastic about the
possibility as I was.

Her lips were pressed together in a firm
expression. Having only dealt with Quaile, I could understand why
she wouldn’t like the idea of following in the footsteps of a
shaman.

The possibility that Claire might hold the
same power as Kaya amazed me, but I knew my real reason for asking
Kaya right then was because I wanted to know if Claire could learn
enough to help us find Melody. Anything that would give us an edge
over the Matwau couldn’t be ignored, even if it put Claire in a bad
mood.

“Wow, where to start,” Kaya said. “A person
isn’t actually called a shaman until they’re chosen by the Elders,
but that has nothing to do with whether Claire could learn to
expand her abilities.”

That was a relief.

“Could she learn about how to see into the
future? Could you teach her?” I asked.

“Well, I guess so. It won’t be the easiest
thing to do over the phone, but I can try.” Kaya paused, and then
continued with the familiar excitement of a new challenge in her
voice. “Actually it would be really interesting to find out how
much I could teach her without ever being in physical contact.
Physical contact often helps with focusing and seeing what you need
to see. I’ll have to call Sam. She can take notes for me. When
should we start?”

There was absolutely nothing that could
dampen Kaya’s desire to learn and explore.

I looked over at Claire. Her face had turned
serious. I supposed that she had already guessed Kaya’s answer. Her
expression hid what she was thinking from me. I wondered if she was
scared to learn, to admit that there was more to her than she
believed. I knew that admitting my own uniqueness was no easy task
for me.

“Kaya, just a minute. I need to talk to
Claire for a second. Can I call you back in a few minutes?” Claire
glanced over at me. She sighed and offered a small smile.

“Sure, Uriah, just call me when Claire’s
ready,” Kaya said.

I closed the phone and set it in one of the
empty cup holders. Claire was the first to speak.

“Uriah, are you sure about this? Not being a
shaman, but asking Kaya for help,” she said. “Do you really know
her that well?”

Putting my arm around her shoulders, I pulled
her close to me. Of course I trusted Kaya, but I didn’t think that
was really what was bothering Claire. I thought it was the idea of
turning into Quaile that had her holding back. How did I convince
her of how important her abilities might be without sounding
incredibly selfish? We both wanted to be back home in San Juan, but
I think we were both terrified of actually reaching the Matwau.

“Claire, Kaya is nothing like Quaile. She’ll
do anything she can to help someone else. And yes, she’s someone
you can trust. She’s curious as anything, but she would never
betray someone’s trust. She said she would teach you, and I have
every faith in her that she’ll do her best to help you figure out
how to use your power. No holding back or making decisions for
you,” I said. “Please give this a shot. Even if there is something
in Quaile’s book to help you it’ll probably be pretty advanced.
You’ll need someone to teach you the basics so you can work up to
something harder.”

Claire hung her head, whether in defeat or
acceptance I couldn’t tell. “I’m afraid, Uriah. If I take the first
step down this path, I don’t think I’ll be able to turn back. And
you don’t know where it might lead me.”

The sudden wisdom and despair in her voice
gave me pause. It…sounded like Claire already had some idea of what
might lie at the end of her path to becoming a shaman, and didn’t
like the destination. How…? I shook my head. None of that made
sense. She must be nervous to start. That’s all.

“Claire, whatever this leads to, I’ll be
there with you. I’ll help in whatever way I can. I don’t like
pressuring you into this, but it could make a difference when I
catch up to the Matwau. I don’t want to sound selfish, but if
there’s some way you can help me get rid of the Matwau and save
Melody I have to consider it. Please, Claire, Kaya can teach
you.”

“Teach me what, Uriah?” Claire looked to me,
the question sincere. Turning away from me when I didn’t answer
right away, she stared out the window at the plains of northern
Colorado.

“You won’t be like Quaile. You’ll be the kind
of shaman we wish Quaile would have been for us. You’ll help people
and be a good leader. You don’t even have to tell Quaile if you
don’t want to. Kaya can teach you anything Quaile can,” I said,
“probably a lot more.”

I needed her to agree with me.

“Thanks,” Claire said, “but it’s not that.
I’m just afraid learning about these powers I’m supposed to have
will change me, change something between us. What if my powers only
make things worse with the bond?” Meeting my eyes, she waited for
my response.

I hesitated before answering. The bond seemed
to urge me to speak. I could feel the need to make the connection
with Melody as the bond pulsed around me. I tried to push those
thoughts away. Making the bond was not why I wanted to find Melody.
I just wanted to save her and hand her back over to Harvey. How did
I make that clear to Claire, though? There was no way to say it
without sounding like I only wanted to use her. I had to say
it.

“If you let Kaya teach you, she might be able
to teach you how to see the possibilities of the future. If you
could do that, we might be able to get a jump on what the Matwau is
planning.” I stared at the road as I spoke. Not wanting her to see
the shame in my face. “I don’t know what else might happen if your
powers become involved, but I haven’t got any other ideas of how to
get ahead of the Matwau. I don’t want to say it’s worth the risk,
because I would never do anything that would put me in jeopardy of
losing you, but really think you could help us. The way we’re
connected, I think you’re meant to help me, not make things
worse.”

“But what if I’m only meant to help you save
Melody and form the bond?” Claire asked.

Speechless, I looked away. I felt her shift
in her seat, but did not change my position.

“I guess I never considered that,” I said. I
chanced looking at her. She looked troubled, but not angry at my
lack of forward thinking. I let out a breath and hugged her a
little closer. “I refuse to lose you, Claire. If you don’t want to
do this, I won’t ask again.”

“Do you really think it would help? Could
Kaya really teach me about seeing the future? I mean, what if I’m
not even ready for that yet. What if it doesn’t work?” she
asked.

“If it doesn’t work, oh well. We’re back
where we started,” I said. “But if it does work? Well, that could
make a huge difference in how everything works out. As far as
Melody goes, shaman have nothing to do with a bond forming, so I
honestly don’t think your powers being involved would mean
anything.”

Nodding slowly, Claire absently picked at a
loose thread on her jeans. I wished I could tell what she was
thinking. Talon could, but I would never have asked him to tell me,
even though it would have been extremely useful at times. Talon was
out scouting the area anyway. He had no time to play telephone with
Claire’s thoughts.

“Okay,” Claire finally said, “I’ll try.”

I leaned over and kissed her forehead, relief
and more than a bit of fear nestling in the pit of my stomach.
“Thank you.”

That brought a smile to Claire’s face, and I
felt bad for having made it disappear in the first place. It would
be worth it in the end. Claire had raised some valid concerns, but
I was sure this would help us. I had been through too many
fantastic things in the past few weeks to have it all be for
nothing. If Claire was a shaman, it had to be so she could help
me.

“Did Kaya want me to call her?” Claire
asked.

I reached for the phone just as it started
ringing. The surprise held my hand for a second. “Kaya must be
anxious to get started,” I said. Picking up the phone, I saw a
Colorado phone number on the display. It wasn’t Kaya. It was Harvey
again.

Claire saw the number as well. “Harvey?”

I nodded. I felt bad or him, being stuck at
home waiting for updates, but there was just no way I could let him
come with us. It was too much of a risk. I answered the call on the
fourth ring.

“Hey, Harvey,” I said.

“Any news yet?” Those were the first words
out of his mouth the last time he had called.

“We’re still just following the trail,” I
admitted.

That was what we had been doing all day.
First we headed south out of Boulder, then west, all the way to
Grand Junction. We thought we were on the right track when the bond
suddenly flip-flopped and started yanking me in the opposite
direction, back toward Denver. After an infuriating detour down to
Castle Rock, we were heading north again. I had no idea how long
that would last.

Claire and I were both pretty sick of
following the bond around like blind ducks, but until we had
another plan there was no other choice. We had spent a whole day
driving and had yet to leave Colorado or find anything useful. I
hated knowing I was being toyed with. Not being able to do anything
about it was even worse.

“The bond is starting to pull me east
somewhat. It looks like we may be heading up toward some place
named Greeley for the time being. He could change at any time,
though.”

I hated admitting that I had no idea where we
were going. Blindly into a trap most likely.

“Well, I have a few more thoughts on the
location,” Harvey said.

Claire tapped on my arm and pointed at a sign
for a rest stop coming up. I nodded and moved into the right
lane.

“What did you find?” I asked Harvey.

“Well, I narrowed down the list I gave you
this morning after looking into them a little more. What I call a
forest and what other people call a forest are apparently not the
same thing.”

I heard some paper being moved around as
Harvey paused.

“Some of the supposed forests were barely
anything more than a few scraggly juniper trees. I crossed those
off the list. I’m down to twenty-five.”

Twenty-five. That was still way too many.
Even ten would be nearly impossible. I needed something closer to
two or three possibilities.