I stand in front of one of the biggest ones. I stretch myself to my ful height an go up on my toes, but I stil cain’t reach it.
Nero appears in the darkenin sky above me. He lands on my head, flappin his wings.
Hey Nero. I bring him down to sit on my hand. I rub his head as I walk among the sleepin metal giants. D’you think Lugh came this way?
D’you think he seen these? He’d like to see a entire one close to, that’s fer sure.
I come to a smal one, more human-sized. I touch the metal with its faded paint. It feels cool. Buried in sand with no sun to warm its skin.
I put my hand on the door. If I’m respeckful, I cain’t see how it ’ud do no harm.
Be good now, I says to Nero. Don’t you go peckin at things.
The door creaks. Sand pours out as I pul it open an climb inside. I brush the seat clear, slide onto it an look out where the window used to be. I wonder what the world was like when this flyer was new made, so long ago. What it would of bin like to fly in one.
When Lugh an me was nippers, Pa told us al about how the Wreckers used to go up in the sky in their yers. They’d soar an swoop al over the place, pretendin to be birds. Sometimes, he said, there’d be hunnerds of Wreckers al piled into one big one an they’d y around together.
Me an Lugh thought that was the craziest thing we ever heard. We didn’t believe him. An when we asked Pa why they did it, he said he didn’t rightly know, they jest did, that’s al . We ggered fer de nite he was tel in tal tales. But now I seen one fer myself … wel , I dunno.
Maybe it could be true.
The night’s drawin in. There ain’t no wind at al now. Not even a whisper. I feel so weary. My eyelids is so heavy, I cain’t hardly keep ’em open. I slide down in the seat. Nero huddles on my chest an snugs hisself unner my chin. I might jest catch a lit le shut eye before I go on.
Not fer long.
Jest a few minutes.
Jest a—
A sound.
I’m awake. Right away. Muscles tense. Ready to move.
Nero opens one eye. I hold a finger to my lips. He knows what that means.
There it is agin. Somethin movin. Outside. Then a snort. A horse. One that ain’t sure of itself, one that’s feelin a bit nervy.
I set Nero down on the oor. Then I rol out a my seat an crawl towards the back end of the yer where there’s a part of it missin. I slip outside. I land in a crouch on the ground, scramble to hide behind the back tires.
It’s a bright clear night. The horse is git in nearer. Its legs come into view. I cain’t see the rider from where I’m at. The horse stops, jest in front of the flyer. I hold my breath. It snorts agin, shuf les its feet a bit. Then the rider clicks an it moves on.
A horse. Four legs, not two. Dependin on where Lugh is, where they’ve took him, I could be with him in days instead of weeks if I was travelin by horse. Looks like my lucky night. I slide Lugh’s slingshot out a my belt. Pul a good-sized stone from my pocket.
I move silent as a cat, slippin between the flyers. My knees is shakin. My hands too. I tel myself I’m with Lugh, trackin a prairie chicken.
I check there’s only one horse an rider, that they’re headed away from me. Then I step out into the open, an take aim with the slingshot.
I wanna unhorse him, not kil him. I let fly. But my hands is too shaky. I hit him in the arm. He yel s out.
I got a have that horse.
I run at him. I leap at him, pul him o a the horse. He goes without a ght. I git him in a headlock an he starts screamin in a high screechy voice an kickin at my ankles.
An al the time I’m pul in an headlockin, I got al these thoughts runnin through my head. Like … what’s a puny weed of a fel a like this doin out here on his own … what a thin lit le voice … sounds more like a girl than a man … wait a minute, who does that voice remind me of? An then his hood fal s back an—
Let go! she shrieks. Lemme go, you bastard!
Emmi? I says. I don’t believe it. My heart jest about stops from shock. Emmi! I says. What the—?
I haul her up by one arm an grab her chin so’s I can see her bet er. It’s Emmi an no mistake. My blood boils over so fast I think the top of my head’s gonna blow right of .
my head’s gonna blow right of .
What’re you doin here? I yel .
Saba? she says.
Who the hel else would it be?
I thought you was a sand spirit, from Pa’s stories! She points at my face. Yer face is al white!
I brush at my cheek. Sand. I must be al coated with sand.
What’re you tryin to do, kil me? That hurt! she says, rubbin at her arm where my shot hit her.
When I git finished with you, I says, you’l wish I had kil ed you. What the hel ’re you doin here?
I’m gonna help you find Lugh! She glares at me, with her stubborn chin. He’s my brother too.
Gawdsblood, Emmi, I told you to—argh! I grab my hair with my hands. What’ve you done? You got no idea what yer doin!
Neether do you!
Don’t you be pert with me! I grab the horse’s rope bridle. I know what the answer is but I stil ask the question. Is this Mercy’s horse?
Emmi folds her arms over her chest. Scrinches her mouth al tight.
I grit my teeth. Did. You. Steal. Mercy’s. Horse. Answer me this second.
No! she says. No, I never! Stealin’s wrong, I know that! I … borrowed it.
You borrowed it, I says. You said, Oh, by the way, Mercy, I’m jest goin after Saba, d’you mind if I borrow yer horse? An she said, Oh no, please, go right ahead! An don’t you worry fer one second about my crippled old ankle an how th’only way I can git anywhere is on my damn horse. Is that it, Emmi? Is that how it went? Is that how you borrowed Mercy’s gawdam horse?
No, I—oh, why don’t you jest go to hel ! She claps her hand over her mouth. Too late.
Gawdammit, Emmi, don’t you swear! Don’t you ever let me catch you swearin agin!
You swear al the time!
I do not!
You do too! Anyways, I’l swear if I want!
Oh no you won’t! An you know what? If Mercy dies, it’l be yer fault.
Don’t say that, she says.
Why not? It’s the truth.
Yer the meanest person I ever met! I hate you!
You cain’t hate me half as much as I hate you right now!
She starts to cry. I watch her, feelin al cold inside. I’m so damn mad at her, she can cry herself to death fer al I care. Then she chokes out, I was afeared you’d left me ferever. Jest like everybody else. Ma an Pa an Lugh. I know you don’t love me, not like you love Lugh, but … please don’t leave me, Saba. Please. Yer al I got.
My heart twists.
They’re gonna need you, Saba. Lugh an Emmi.
I feel a heavy weight start to crush down on my chest. I try to push it of .
You cain’t come with me, I says. It’s too dangerous. You got a go back to Crosscreek. But I ain’t got time to take you. You’l hafta manage by yerself. You remember the way, don’t you?
No, she says, crossin her arms over her chest.
Got enough water? I says.
She holds her waterskin upside down. Empty.
Food? I says.
I et it, she says.
Fer pity’s sake, Em … what did you bring?
She pul s Fern from her pocket. The lit le peg dol that Pa made her.
I look at her. A dol , I says. You brought a dol .