29.

Legora looks even worse than I remember. Or maybe it’s because, compared to King Zarek’s castle, the place is falling apart. I’m certain nobody knows I’ve returned. I should’ve been in Valyad for at least two more weeks.

The entryway seems badly maintained. Perhaps it has given up too. After the guards check my mark, I take careful strides toward the housing area. I hope with all my might that I’m not spotted by Legora’s leader.

Dust swirls into a tiny vortex in front of me. Even under the invisible dome, the sun sears my flesh. I’ve almost forgotten what it was like to live in these conditions.

Almost.

Just as I’m about to reach the stretch of road leading to the insignificant abodes, someone tugs at my arm. But it’s not the person I expected to see.

“What are you doing here? I thought you were gone for a few more weeks.” Malik’s shimmering blue eyes search mine.

I don’t know what else to do except hug him. He has no idea how much I’ve missed him and my family.

He locks his arms around me. “What happened?”

I bury my face in his woolen shirt, mumbling, “I didn’t persuade him.”

“Didn’t per—” He snatches my wrists so I look up. “What? You mean we don’t have food and money on the way?”

I shake my head. “King Zarek wouldn’t speak with me since I’m not of political power. He said that if Legora is hurting this much, then our designated leader can go to him and beg.” I avert my eyes, not wanting to see the pain in Malik’s. I failed, but I don’t want to witness what it’ll do to everyone here.

“Does Old Man Tatters know?” Malik asks.

Again, I shake my head. Useless is how I feel.

“I bet your family doesn’t, either,” he states, waiting for me to respond.

“No…uh…they don’t.”

“Look at me, Andy!” He rattles my body. “If we don’t get help, we’ll die out here.”

“Malik, you lived with gypsies that survived the sands. How can you stand here and say you wouldn’t live? They use some sort of Old World magic, don’t they?”

His lips tighten into a straight line and he leans in. “They don’t have the strength to feed the entire city of Legora. Small numbers, yes. No problem. Feeding two thousand people, maybe more? No way.”

“I don’t know what you want me to say. I tried to sway him, but he wouldn’t listen.”

For a moment I believe he will leave me standing there. The anxiety on his face is enough to make me gag. I did this. It’s my fault. And I’m ready to accept the consequences, to face the entire community.

“You have to talk to the old man. You know that, right?” Malik places his hand on my lower back, guiding me toward the hub of the market.

I try to resist and drag my feet, but he’s too strong. “What are you doing? I can’t go there right now. I have to tell Mama and Mattie I’m home.”

“Not yet you don’t. There are more important matters.”

I yank my arm to see if he’ll loosen his grip, but he doesn’t. “What is wrong with you?” I demand through gritted teeth.

He stops so that we’re eye to eye and says, “You have no idea what it’s been like since you’ve been gone.”

“In three days?”

He ignores me and continues. “Not only have we been on limited rations, but our sales are limited, too, which ultimately confines how much money we make and how much we can buy. You do the math.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, Malik. I’ve been trying to convince you and myself that I did my best, but King Zarek wouldn’t have any of it. I played my part well, and yet he only complained about beggars in his court.”

“That’s why we’re going to talk to Old Man Tatters. He needs to speak to the King.”

I snort. “Yeah, good luck with that. The old guy will probably send us to live in Halgan, and it’s not much better from what I’ve heard.”

Malik has this crazy look in his eyes like he might punch me in the face any second. Luckily, he doesn’t. Have things really been that bad? How could everything change in three days? How could I have let my people down?

Old Man Tatters’s office is located in the back of the building where the town always convenes. He sits over a hand-crafted desk with two maidens connected at each end; both hold bowls of fruit. I mutely question how they were carved.

The white-haired man glances up at us from a stack of papers. “Can I help you?”

Malik pushes me forward.

“I’m Andrina—the one you sent to King Zarek.”

His eyelids thrust back, exposing too much pasty color. “How can this be? You only left a few days ago.”

“King Zarek sends you this message: if you want provisions for Legora so badly, then you need to plead for them yourself.”

Old Man Tatters fists crash on the top of his desk, triggering an involuntary jump. “This is a spit in my face! How dare he?” A wrinkled finger points at my nose. “You will get me those supplies—whatever the cost. Do you understand?”

“But there’s—”

“Do not challenge me, child. This town is depending on you to get the job done. If you can’t persuade the King, then we’ll all be forced to leave Legora and move elsewhere. Do you want that for everyone? Your family?”

My chin fights me, quivering. Does he not know what I’ve been through? King Zarek will never agree to this. He’ll send me back again. 

“It won’t work,” I say, trying to keep the edge off my voice. “He wants you to be the one. Why won’t you go to him yourself? These are your people.”

“I am too old. I wouldn’t make the journey.” The elderly man moves around his desk, clasping each of my arms. “When you depart here, look at the face of every man, woman and child. With every minute that passes, they lose a small piece of their life. You can see it in their eyes.”

Malik pulls me away from the old man. “I’ll see to it that she’s off again if you have your guards ready.”

“No! You can’t do this to me,” I beg.

“If you don’t persuade him this time,” the old man begins, “then I will have to see that your family finds a home elsewhere.”

“What? You can’t just kick them out.”

“I’ll be kicking out more than just your family if we don’t get the supplies. This town has suffered too much, and I hate to see these people go through more pain.”

“C’mon, Andy,” Malik whispers, tugging at my arm. I shrug him off.

“Furthermore, if you become a bother with this, I’m afraid I’ll see to it that your family never makes it to Halgan or any other city left in this world.”

“Is this some kind of a joke?” I yell. It has to be. How can this old guy threaten to hurt my family when this entire town is about helping others?

Malik jerks my arm. I glare at both of them until he drags me to the middle of the market.

Near us are Mama and Xara.

I don’t know what’s gotten into him. It’s like he’s a totally different person. How can someone change so quickly?

“What is wrong with you? I thought you were on my side. He needs to speak to the King,” I say, pointing toward the building we came from.

“Well, it’s obvious he won’t, so what would you have me do?”

Mama’s busy flashing shiny jewelry to uninterested travelers. There’s a strained look in her eyes, almost as if she knows this won’t work out for us. What does she do with Mattie during the day?

While Malik glides over to his mother’s booth, I slink back unnoticed and run up the hill to our home. The front door swings open and crashes against the wall.

“Mattie?” I call. “Are you here?”

Shuffled footsteps come from the loft. Mattie appears next to the rail, wiping the sleep from his eyes. He stops, his eyes growing wider and wider.

“Andy?” his meek voice asks.

“It’s me,” I reply, taking the stairs two at a time. By the time I reach Mattie, his tiny arms are stretched around my neck.

“I thought you weren’t coming back.”

I shush him. “You didn’t think I’d stay in Valyad, did you?”

He nods his head.

“Don’t be silly. I couldn’t leave you and Mama behind. You know that, right?”

“But Mama said you might stay there. With them.” His eyes swell with tears, like he had actually believed he’d never see me again.

I try to clarify for him. I’m sure he misunderstood her. “She probably meant that I had to stay there for however long it took to convince the King. I’m back, though, because I couldn’t change his mind.”

“I think Mama will be happy you’re here,” he says, a smile forming on his lips.

“Mattie, I’m only home for a little bit. Since I didn’t receive the King’s help, I may have to go back.”

I shouldn’t have said anything. His entire face wrinkles like he’s in agony, and he buries his face in my shoulder, crying.

“You can’t leave us again,” he wails.

“I don’t want to leave you, but I’ve been assigned this task. If I don’t do it, then we don’t get to stay here. You don’t want to move again, do you?”

He shakes his head. 

“No. Of course not. So if we can stay here, then everything will be okay. I just need to work on my powers of persuasion.”

Glancing through the railing, I see Mama standing at the entrance. She carefully closes the door behind her, as if it might shatter.

“Andy, what are you doing here?” she asks.

“I just got in not even an hour ago. I wasn’t of any use, so the King sent me back. He said that he needs to speak with an advisor, not someone of my lowly status.” I slowly take the stairs. Not that it matters, the place is so small I can hear a conversation that takes place in the kitchen, in the loft.

Mama crosses her arms. “So we’re not good enough people to speak to a king about our issues? That doesn’t make sense.”

“He’s the King. He can say and do as he pleases. Who are we to question his orders?”

“Have you spoken to Lazar?” Mama asks, taking a seat on the couch.

“Who?”

“Lazar. Legora’s leader.”

“Old Man Tatters?” I ask. Mama frowns, probably at the unusual nickname. “Yeah, I spoke to him. Malik dragged me into his office, so I didn’t have a choice.”

“And?”

“And… I have to go back. He won’t speak to King Zarek. Says he’s too old to make the trip.”

“You have to do something, Andy. We can’t continue living like this. I, like every mother out there, want to provide clothes and food and a good future for my children. I can’t do that hopping from town to town.”

I emit a melodramatic huff. “Why are you taking their side? Don’t you get it? I’m nothing. I’m an insect buzzing around his ear. If I continue this, it won’t take long before he’ll crush me.”

“If you don’t continue this, we might not make it. That’s the reality of it.” She stands from the couch. “I have to get back to work. When do you leave?”

“Not sure yet,” I mumble.

“Should you go before I see you again, you have my wishes for success. I hope the next time you return, you show up with items of necessity.”

“It’s not her fault!” Mattie yells, scowling at Mama over the railing.

She releases an exasperated sigh, looks at me and says, “Now see what you’ve done.”

When the door closes behind her, I feel like sinking to the floor and squalling until my eyes are dry. But then I remember I have to be strong for Mattie. Even now, he watches me. If I break, what will happen?

So I turn and say in my most convincing voice, “It’s okay, Mattie. Mama’s just tired from work. I’ll make it right this time.” I force a smile to my lips; it takes every fiber of strength in me.