At last she looked up and said, “RISKY!”
I nodded.
“DID WOODY TELL YOU HOW YOU MUST GO AND WHAT YOU MUST DO?”
I shrugged and wrote, I have to be quiet.
She made a huffing sound, as if that were no help at all. “I CAN’T KEEP CALLING YOU YOUNG MAN OR YOUNG PRINCE, ALTHOUGH YOU DO HAVE A BIT OF THE PRINCELY LOOK ABOUT YOU! WHAT’S YOUR NAME?”
I printed CHARLIE READE in capital letters.
“SHARLIE?”
It was close enough. I nodded.
She took a chunk of wood from the box by the stove, opened the stove door, rammed it in, slammed it shut. She resumed her seat, clasped her hands on the lap of her dress, and leaned forward over them. Her face was grave.
“YOU’LL BE TOO LATE TO TRY YOUR ERRAND TOMORROW, SHARLIE, SO YOU’LL NEED TO OVERNIGHT IN A STORAGE SHED A BIT OF A WAY FROM THE MAIN GATE! IT HAS A RED WAGON WITH THE WHEELS GONE IN FRONT! WRITE IT DOWN!”
I wrote storage shed, red wagon w/o wheels.
“GOOD SO FAR! YOU’LL FIND IT OPEN BUT THERE’S A BOLT ON THE INSIDE! RUN IT IF YOU DON’T WANT A WOLF OR THREE FOR COMPANY! WRITE IT DOWN!”
Bolt door.
“KEEP YOUR PLACE UNTIL YOU HEAR THE MORNING BELL! ONE RING! YOU’LL FIND THE CITY GATE LOCKED BUT LEAH’S NAME WILL OPEN IT! ONLY HERS! LEAH OF THE GALLIEN! WRITE IT DOWN!”
I wrote down Leah of the galleon. She gestured for the pad to see what I had written, frowned, then gestured for the pencil. She scratched out galleon and changed it to Gallien.
“DID NO ONE TEACH YOU TO SPELL IN THAT LAND OF YOURS, BOY?”
I shrugged. Galleon or Gallien, they sounded the same. And if the city was deserted, who was going to hear me and let me in, anyway?
“YOU BE THERE AND THROUGH THE GATE GODDAMNED SOON AFTER THE MORNING BELL, BECAUSE YOU HAVE A GODDAMNED LONG TREK AHEAD OF YOU!”
She rubbed her forehead, and looked at me, troubled.
“IF YOU SEE ADE’S MARKS, ALL MAY BE WELL! IF YOU DON’T, LEAVE BEFORE YOU BECOME LOST! THE STREETS ARE A MAZE! YOU WOULD STILL BE WANDERING IN THAT HELLHOLE AT NIGHTFALL!”
I wrote She’ll die if I can’t refresh her!
She read it and thrust the pad back at me.
“DO YOU LOVE HER ENOUGH TO DIE WITH HER?”
I shook my head. Claudia surprised me with a laugh that was almost musical. I thought it was one small remnant of what her voice had been like before she had been cursed to a life of silence.
“NOT A NOBLE ANSWER, BUT THOSE WHO ANSWER NOBLY HAVE A WAY OF DYING YOUNG WITH THEIR PANTS FULL OF SHIT! WOULD YOU LIKE SOME ALE?”
I shook my head. She got up, rummaged in what I supposed was her cold pantry, and came back with a white bottle. She thumbed out a cork with a hole in it—to let the brew breathe, I guessed—and took a long drink. This was followed by a ringing belch. She sat down again, now clasping the bottle in her lap.
“IF THE MARKS ARE THERE, SHARLIE—ADRIAN’S MARKS—FOLLOW THEM AS BRISK AS YOU CAN AND QUIET! ALWAYS QUIET! PAY NO MIND TO VOICES YOU MAY HEAR, FOR THEY ARE THE VOICES OF THE DEAD… AND WORSE THAN THE DEAD!”
Worse than the dead? I didn’t like the sound of that. And speaking of sound, there was the one the wooden wheels of Dora’s cart were apt to make on paved streets. Maybe Radar could walk part of the way and I could carry her the rest?
“YOU MAY SEE STRANGE THINGS… CHANGES IN THE SHAPES OF THINGS… BUT PAY NO ATTENTION! EVENTUALLY YOU WILL COME TO A SQUARE WITH A DRY FOUNTAIN IN IT!”
I thought maybe I’d seen that fountain, in the picture of Claudia and Leah that Woody had shown me.
“NEARBY IS A HUGE YELLOW HOUSE WITH BROWN SHUTTERS! A PASSAGE RUNS THROUGH THE CENTER! THAT IS THE HOUSE OF HANA! ONE HALF OF THE HOUSE IS WHERE HANA LIVES! THE OTHER HALF IS THE KITCHEN WHERE HANA TAKES HER MEALS! WRITE IT DOWN!”
I did, and then she took the pad. She drew a passage with a curved top. Above it, she drew a butterfly with outstretched wings. For a quick sketch, it was very good.
“YOU MUST HIDE, SHARLIE! YOU AND YOUR DOG! WILL SHE BE QUIET?”
I nodded.
“QUIET, NO MATTER WHAT?”
I couldn’t be sure of that, but I nodded again.
“WAIT FOR TWO BELLS! WRITE IT DOWN!”
2 bells, I wrote.
“YOU MAY SEE HANA OUTSIDE BEFORE TWO BELLS! YOU MAY NOT! BUT YOU WILL SEE HER WHEN SHE GOES TO THE KITCHEN FOR HER MIDDAY MEAL! THAT IS WHEN YOU MUST GO THROUGH THE PASSAGE, QUICK AS EVER YOU CAN! WRITE IT DOWN!”
I didn’t think I needed to—I wouldn’t want to spend much time in Hana’s vicinity if she was as fearsome as I’d heard—but it was clear Claudia was very worried about me.