CHAPTER 17
A Quest Begins
Nasomi went to the Kepe palace in Kwindi to inform Tambo’s parents. She tried to decide against it, but it was better they heard it from her than from rumor. And she knew the rumors would start soon. She was let through the gate with no trouble. Tambo’s mother was on a reclining chair in the sun, hugging herself against the cold.
“Ondi,” Nasomi said, a term for asking permission to approach. She knelt. “How are you, Mother?”
“You’re as rare as a good amount of heat in this Wind Season.” She asked Nasomi to stand and sent someone to fetch a chair for her.
“This one is particularly windy and chilly,” Nasomi said.
“How’s the family?”
“Not good. It’s why I came.”
“I hope it’s not too bad.”
“It is. I just need to tell it straight… Reema. She came back. And she took Tambo with her.”
Tambo’s mother nearly fell off her seat. “How can that be? She’s dead. Tambo had sent word that she died.”
“That’s what we all thought. But now— Mother, she’s become a witch, a powerful one. She’s put a spell on Tambo. He can’t move of his own will and obeys everything she says.”
Tambo’s mother judged the seriousness of her words. When she saw Nasomi’s expression didn’t change — would Nasomi come all this way to make a jest? — she touched her heart. “Mara twafe! Come, daughter.” She got up and pulled Nasomi toward the entrance of the first rondavel.
“Will I be welcome?” Nasomi said. “I wouldn’t want to cause undue trouble.”
“I am the one inviting you, and no one can chase you away. Yana’s father needs to hear this.”
Teeyana saw them as they passed through the long entrance corridor. “Nasomi!” she called, and came toward them when Nasomi waved. “You don’t look okay. What is going on here?”
“Where is your father?” her mother asked.
“At the counting room.”
Chieftain Shikepe Go had grown slender with age. His garment was oversized and heavy, having much length and many folds to it. His hair was grizzled and he was missing two front teeth. He still had his mean scowl, which he wore as he looked down at the majordomo who was helping him count coins, gemstones, and bits of gold. The scowl deepened when he recognized Nasomi.
“I am busy,” he said, giving a dismissing wave, but he could tell this was serious. “What is it?”
“It’s about your son, Tambo. He’s been kidnapped by Reema!”
He coughed and sat down on a high stool. He dismissed the other man. “Isn’t she dead?”
Nasomi explained everything, excluding the part of her dreams. When she was done, and he pondered on it a while, he said, “She’s the woman he was meant to be with.”
His wife gave him a slap on the hand. “Bitter old man! Is that what you can say? Your son is in trouble, and all you can think to say is that she’s the woman he was—”
“What have I done for the Tumina to curse me and meddle in the life of my children? Tambo is bewitched, Dembo never married and has run off on dangerous journeys on his Gold Road, and Kukalo is a stupid boy when it comes to money, and to wives.”
“I have never disappointed you, Father,” Teeyana said.
“Who knows what will happen to you now?”
She gave him a scowl. “I am a respected woman in this city, and I make a difference.” She turned to Nasomi. “You know what, take me with you. We will find him together.”
“I forbid it,” her mother said.
“I don’t see anyone else helping.”
“It’s not your place to hunt down a witch. Neither is it Nasomi’s. We’ll ask the mages to help. The king is afraid of witches—”
“He’s cautionary,” the Chieftain corrected.
“The king is afraid of witches,” the Lady repeated.
“I’ve already been to the mages,” Nasomi said. “They have refused to help. They had me thrown away. Chased like an animal.”
“I will go and see the king myself,” the Chieftain said, looking at each of them as if he suspected they would be surprised he said that. “I will ask for some warriors, and add a few of my own.”
“He’s my husband,” Nasomi said. “I must be the one to go and get him back.”
“Nonsense,” Mother-in-law said. “You will do no such thing. Let the strongest of warriors go and find Reema.”
“But Mother—”
The older woman touched the side of Nasomi’s head, stroked her temple and some of her hair. “I see you are agitated, child. But you cannot do anything by yourself. We’re here for you.”
“I cannot sit back and do nothing.”
“You can intercede. You, me and Yana. Every day until Tambo is found. Find someone to look after your house. Come here with the children. Say you hear me.”
“I hear you, Mother.” Nasomi forced the words out of her mouth. Her heart was filling up with bitterness.
Kukalo appeared at the doorway, disheveled. He leaned against the doorframe to keep his balance, and he looked everyone over with dreary eyes. “I heard there was a meeting… What in the depths of death is she doing here?”
“Kukalo, mind your mouth,” Mother-in-law berated. “Take a seat, we have an urgent matter.”
“Tell me what it is. I like it right here.” He grinned so wide he had to close his eyes. The stench of wheatbeer inundated the room.
“Your brother has been taken by Reema. She came in the night, with two hyenas. We must find a way to bring him back.”
He was quiet, as though pondering. Then his eyes went wide. After that, he shrugged and walked away.
“Kukalo!” the Chieftain shouted. “Come back right now, boy! Or you will know my wrath!”
The only reply that came was an incomprehensible mumble that faded.
“Ah,” the Chieftain muttered. “See what the bad spirits throw upon me.” He stood up, but his wife reached out to touch his arm. “Scold him later. Let us prepare to visit the Island.” She turned to Nasomi. “Go with Wakani. You remember Wakani? He will help you put your house in order and bring you and the children here.”
Wakani was one of the men who had come looking for Tambo back when the rings had been stolen. Nasomi recognized him as soon as he came. He was soft-spoken, kept his gaze down, a behavior which belied his muscular looks. In a few moments, Nasomi and Wakani were riding out the palace gate. She was on a red-brown mare, and he rode a dapple-grey stallion.
Rumor came rushing in the opposite way. “Have you heard? Have you heard?” a bony man said, coming in through the gate. He was laden with baskets of fruits and vegetables from the market. “Have you heard that Tambo was taken by a witch?”
Wakani beckoned to him and rebuked him. “We have heard, you fool. Stop boasting around with your big mouth and big eyes like this is good news. Shut up and do your work. This is not funny.”
“I didn’t say it’s funny,” the bony man replied, making a stance like he dared Wakani to get off the horse and fight him. “It’s just the news in the city. Everybody deserves to know.”
“Well, the Chieftain and Lady know, and that’s enough. Shut your mouth and do your work. That’s your place. Do you know who this is?” He indicated toward Nasomi.
The man shook his head and studied Nasomi, uncertainty and fear creeping on his face.
“Then shut up. Let us go, My Lady.” As they rode away, he said, “I am sorry you had to hear that. Some people can be so insensitive.”
“Thank you, Wakani. I was expecting such things, though. People will always talk.”
“I say people should be minding their mouths.”
The house was quiet and empty. Ghostly. The broken door swung in the light wind. All the servants had abandoned it. Narites were fearful of witchcraft and avoided places suspected of being visited by a sorcerer. Some were in the habit of going to medicinemen and -women to bathe in herbs and have protective words chanted over them. Some kept talismans under their beds or tables.
Nasomi shook her head at the thought of her servants fearing to come back. She and Tambo would have to start all over again when this was over. Wakani looked around the house as he took a seat when Nasomi led him through the living room. If he was afraid, he did not show it.
She needed to dream. The feeling within her was strong. “Will you indulge me a little rest before we go?”
He nodded, keeping the questions he had to himself.
She went to her bedroom. She felt Tambo’s absence, a palpable void he needed to fill. Silence was thick, her own breath was like the sound of a distant gale. She lay on the bed, wishing Tambo could walk right through the door and say, “I defeated her and came back to you.”
But no one walked through the door. She stared at it for a long time. Sleep did not come. The door was made of teak, smooth, the deep brown grains of the wood wiggled along the surface like the door had flowed into shape from some thick liquid. It was Tambo’s favorite door. He had loved it the moment he saw it at the marketplace and had insisted on installing it himself. It had taken him two sweet days, one to place each hinge perfectly, and another to set it into the frame.
She pounded her leg on the bed impatiently. This wasn’t working; sleep wasn’t forthcoming. She got up and returned to Wakani in the living room. He was going through a scroll on the history of the creation of the universe. She could tell from how he looked at it that he couldn’t read. “Are you hungry?” she asked.
“Not particularly.”
She boiled sweet potatoes, mixed them with pounded peanuts. As they ate, she asked Wakani to talk about himself. He was the third son of a drunkard stonemason and had helped his father in building a new part of the city’s walls.
His father could drink beer like a thirsty horse, and though it never affected his skill, it affected his health. Wakani had vowed to never be like his father on that aspect, having seen him die a terrible death, but he valued the work ethic his father displayed. Wakani had worked throughout many households, many people had come to love him, and he was appreciated in the Go palace. He even had enough gathered wealth to start building his own home.
“That’s good!” Nasomi said. “You’re wise to think of the future.”
“I won’t be a servant forever. I want to be a rich merchant, have a big family of my own. Is there anything you need to pack? I can help.”
“I will tell you, but I still need to take a short rest.”
“Is there anything the matter, My Lady? You can rest at the palace.”
“Just allow me one more rest in my home, to intercede for my husband.”
He didn’t question her anymore.
She showed him a guest bedroom and told him to feel free to eat anything if he got hungry.
When she lay on her bed again, sleep came quickly. And she had a telling dream. The telling dream she wanted:
Reema, the hyenas, and Tambo were hiding behind some bushes along a road. It was night. A group of carts passed by, laden with what looked like coal. Up where the road led, flickering light indicated village life. In the opposite direction, a black thing rose high into the sky, chewing off part of the world. A mountain.
“Let’s go, you sluggards,” Reema said, stepping onto the road. Tambo and the hyenas followed her, and they moved toward the village. Tambo shuffled his feet like he didn’t want to walk.
Two men stumbled onto the road, singing a raunchy song. When they saw Reema and her group, they paused. Reema whistled and the hyenas sprang toward the men. The men screamed and ran off the road and in between some trees. Reema and the hyenas laughed.
“You should stop that,” Tambo berated. “Stop scaring people.”
“Oh, have a sense of humor. We will be together a long way.”
“I want to go home!”
“I am your home now. You just haven’t realized it.”
Nasomi awoke and immediately got off the bed. She packed a few clothes in a leather bag with long straps. She threw in a handful of coins and a leather pouch for water. She threw on her cloak and gathered two more handfuls of coins from a chest.
She went to the kitchen. She got the knife Ramona had held, wrapped it in a cloth and placed it in the bag. She was fastening her sandals when Wakani came in.
He blinked from sleep and yawned. “I heard things, glad it’s you. Did you sleep, My Lady?”
“Are you afraid of witches, Wakani?”
“Of witches, no.” He raised a brow.
“I need your help, Wakani, because no one else will help me.”
“Anything, My Lady.”
“We must go after Reema, you and me.”
He shook his head. “No, no, no, My Lady. I was instructed to bring you back to the palace, you and the children.” He looked around, realizing the children were not here.
“They are with my sister, they will be fine,” Nasomi said hurriedly. “We have no time for this. If you can’t go with me, let me take the horse.”
“The Chieftain is sending warriors after the witch… My Lady, I was told to bring you back.”
She rushed outside and he followed. She reached the brown mare. “Wakani, I am taking this horse, and I am following after Reema. All these people whom you think will help – warriors, mages – they don’t know what I know.”
“What do you know, My Lady?”
She got up on the horse, and he looked like he was unsure whether he should force her to come with him, or let her be. “She went toward Mishi. Are you coming or not?”
He touched the back of his head. “What am I supposed to tell them? I need to take you to the palace. Please!”
She kicked the horse into a gallop. “It has to be me, Wakani!”
Wakani let out a shout of despair. “Eh, the trouble I will be in, My Lady!”
When she looked back, he was scrambling onto his horse.