Vigneshvijaykk

Trekker felt overwhelmed by everything that had happened lately.

He was about to walk away when Rabbit called after him.

“Hey, wait! Where are you going?”

“Nowhere. Why?”

“I want to talk to you. You too, Coco.”

They went to Rabbit’s hut to speak privately. Once inside, they settled down in silence.

For a while, none of them spoke.

Coconut eventually cleared his throat and looked at Rabbit, prompting her to begin.

She sighed.

“I think Mother should be excused for some of the things she might say or do. She has just lost two grown sons—probably her favourite ones—and she isn’t very good at showing her pain.”

She turned toward Trekker.

“So don’t take what she said personally, man. Also, I had no idea you liked Luna so much.”

Trekker said nothing.

“Mother wasn’t wrong, though,” Coconut said.

Rabbit stared at him.

“Not wrong? Seven hells, Coco. She grouped Luna with Lily.”

“All right, that was a little extreme. But she probably meant Trekker should find someone who suits him better. Someone kind, gentle and nurturing. You know what I mean.”

“Luna is kind, Coco,” Rabbit said through gritted teeth.

“Of course. Just like you,” Coconut replied, suppressing a smile.

“I don’t love her, all right?” Trekker burst out. “Stop talking about us as though we’re lovers. She is charming, and she stirred up some old wounds. That’s all.”

He drew a breath.

“And let’s not compare anyone with Lily. It isn’t fair to Lily or to the other person. Lily is troubled in a way most people aren’t, but that isn’t her fault. So just leave her alone.”

“Then why did you say Luna almost slapped you when she actually slapped you?” Rabbit asked.

“Did she? I remember it as almost happening.”

“See?” Coconut said. “This is what happens when you’re in love.”

“Who is in love?” Luna asked as she entered the hut.

An awkward silence fell over the room.

She looked around at them.

“Sorry if I’m intruding. I needed to escape my mom’s lecture.”

“Mom?” Rabbit asked.

“Mother. Mom is short for mother,” Luna explained.

She did not return to the question of who was in love.

“I should probably leave. You seem to be discussing something.”

She began turning toward the entrance.

“No, stay,” Trekker said. “We were talking about you…”

He cleared his throat.

“And your family.”

Luna looked at him curiously and sat beside them.

“What about us?”

“How long can your parents stay here? We still need your help solving the murders. Would they be willing to leave you behind, or would they prefer to remain here as our guests?”

Rabbit was not sure Ivy would appreciate Trekker discussing this with Luna before any decision had been made.

Even Coconut looked concerned.

“I don’t think either of those things will happen,” Luna said. “They’ll want to leave soon, and they’ll want me to go with them.”

A brief silence followed.

“And what do you want?” Trekker asked.

“You know the answer. I want to solve this mystery. It is the greatest adventure I may ever experience. I wouldn’t miss it for anything.”

Her face lit up in a way Trekker had never seen before.

“So what will you do?”

“I’ll tell them your mother won’t allow me to leave. I’ll say it is her order. They won’t have a choice then.”

The siblings looked at one another, then back at Luna.

“How do you think your parents will react?” Rabbit asked.

“I don’t know. I couldn’t care less.”

Coconut could no longer hold back his question.

“Do you still believe your parents may have killed Hunter? Perhaps Leo too?”

“No.”

Coconut studied her face.

“If they had sensed a threat and gone so far as to kill people, they wouldn’t be this calm.”

“Then who would have come this far?” Trekker asked. “People from Pearl City?”

Luna did not answer.

“We need to continue what we started before my family interrupted us. We should examine the source of the river and the area between it, the cave and the point where the river comes closest to both.”

Rabbit and Luna looked at each other.

Rabbit held out her hand, and Luna took it.

“Perhaps the two of you should speak to Lily and ask her about Orchid,” Coconut suggested.

Rabbit nodded.

“That might help.”

“Go now,” Coconut urged. “We don’t want to be too late.”

The two women left immediately.

Coconut turned toward Trekker as soon as they were gone.

“I’m certain those two are planning something.”

Trekker remained quiet.

“Brother, are you even present? What is happening to you?”

“Too much,” Trekker replied.

They sat in silence for a moment.

“Coco, I think you were right about the lies. Ivy knows things she won’t tell us. Rabbit knows things she won’t tell us. Luna is clearly a bag of secrets, and she barely knows us.”

He looked at his brother.

“I feel as though we are the two people most closely involved in this matter while knowing the least about it.”

Coconut suddenly threw himself at Trekker and embraced him.

“Finally, you see the truth.”

He pulled back.

“But we aren’t going to remain polite errand boys anymore. We need to start uncovering things for ourselves.”

“Where do we begin?”

“I’m going to speak to Jasmine. She will know things Lily may not.”

“I doubt that.”

“Trust me. I know Jasmine well.”

Trekker looked at him curiously.

“Yes, we’re seeing each other,” Coconut admitted as he stood. “Keep quiet about it. Nobody can know.”

He left before Trekker could respond.

For the first time in a while, Trekker smiled genuinely.

He relaxed, lay back and soon drifted into a nap.

**

The evening was pleasant, cooled by the monsoon breeze, and the villagers gathered in the field.

Orange stood at the centre of the gathering, loudly repeating what his mother had instructed him to announce.

Luna listened quietly as he spoke about the deaths. He then mentioned Orchid’s disappearance before introducing Luna’s family.

They rose and walked to the centre so everyone could see them, then quietly returned to their places.

Luna did not join them.

After everyone had eaten together, the villagers dispersed. The two families returned to the common hut.

There, Ivy introduced Jasmine to Luna’s family.

“Jasmine is a dear friend and my personal adviser in matters concerning the village. She is also Orchid’s mother. I sincerely hope we find Orchid before it is too late.”

She introduced Jasmine to Maho and Venera.

“She doesn’t speak often, but she has the warmest heart.”

Ivy kissed Jasmine on the cheek.

Jasmine blushed and shyly shook her head.

As everyone settled, the moon rose higher and appeared brighter.

“We are thinking of leaving in the morning,” Maho said thoughtfully.

“Why leave so soon?” Ivy asked. “You must be exhausted after all that wandering. Stay a little longer.”

Maho and Venera shook their heads together.

“Ivy, our town needs us,” Venera said. “We need to return and see how things are. Jupiter is in charge for now, but he is still young. He cannot manage everything alone for long. We also need to find out whether another message has arrived from Pearl City.”

Maho continued.

“And our people will be worried about us. We have travelled a long way from home.”

“All right, if you must,” Ivy said. “But I’m afraid I’ll need to borrow Luna for a while. We need her here.”

Venera’s expression darkened.

“Why do you need her?”

“We are trying to solve the deaths of my sons. They were murdered, and we still don’t know who was responsible. Luna would be a great help to the investigation. She has already proved how perceptive she is.”

“See? I was right about intelligence,” Venera said with a sigh. “It attracts more trouble than it prevents.”

She turned toward Ivy.

“I truly sympathise with your loss, but I have no intention of leaving Luna here. We have already spent several days fearing we had lost her. We cannot endure that anxiety again.”

As Venera’s voice rose, the others began paying attention.

Ivy looked at her pleadingly.

“I promise I will treat her as one of my own. We will care for her.”

“Forgive me, Ivy, but we are discussing what happened to your own children. I do not want my daughter to risk meeting the same fate.”

Ivy’s expression hardened.

She fell silent as tears began gathering in her eyes.

“That happened before we understood we were in danger,” Jasmine said on Ivy’s behalf. “Now we are prepared.”

“Good,” Venera replied. “Then Luna should not be necessary to your efforts to protect your vi—town.”

“You may call us a village,” Jasmine said sharply. “We don’t take offence.”

She held Venera’s gaze.

“And Luna is necessary because she possesses something the others here do not. She can recognise danger. She has the spirit of someone from Maple Grove but the conditioning of someone from Palm Grove.”

Her voice grew colder.

“You should understand why, Venera.”

Maho intervened before Venera could respond.

“Do not force us to leave in the darkness. Let us end this discussion. At dawn, we will depart. That is our final decision.”

Jasmine rose in agitation.

“Well, if you intend to take that position, then all right. I cannot allow you to take Luna with you. From the moment she entered our land, people began disappearing. Two of Ivy’s sons are dead.”

She looked from Venera to Maho.

“Nobody is above suspicion—not you, Venera, not you, Mahogany, not even Luna. Not even one of us. Until we know the truth, we are all suspects.”

She drew herself upright.

“I had no intention of holding the rest of you here. But you have pushed us to that point.”

Her decision came quickly.

“Luna stays. The whole family stays.”

She turned toward the siblings.

“Coco, make sure they remain here, whatever it takes. Rabbit, make sure Trekker does not interfere.”

Everyone stared at Ivy.

She gave a small nod of approval.

Jasmine touched Ivy’s arm and quietly led her away.

Nobody moved for several moments.

Trekker walked off, shaking his head in disbelief.

Rabbit followed him.

Coconut looked awkwardly at Luna’s family and sighed.