Page 23 of Saving the Sautiitions

I nod my head, speaking without meaning to. “It’s like Rumspringa. Makes sense.”

The room goes quiet and I look around at the confused faces before me. I sigh and quickly try to explain. “It’s a rite of passage in the Amish communities. When a kid hits a certain age, they’re allowed to venture into the cities and see what the world of technological advancements and ‘devil's advocates’ has to offer before they decide to fully commit to their faith and their way of life without technology.”

“Exactly. I thought that seeing the entire picture of our world would help me to understand what I truly wanted inside. I wandered into a nearby bar and was sitting alone at a table, watching the people around me. Since I had no money to partake in anything, I was content to watch and try to understand. I was approached by the most beautiful creature I had ever seen before. She had 4 arms, pink skin, flowing purple hair, and the most amazing clothing I had ever seen. She offered me drink, food, and company.”

He glances at Vahru, and I follow his gaze. He’s still standing still with his arms crossed, but his anger is less tangible. Vahru glances at me, and I try to give him an encouraging and understanding smile. I know this isn’t easy for him to hear, but this will clear up a lot of confusion, and hopefully, get us the answers we seek, or at least some of them.

“Anyway, I don’t remember much after that. I know we talked, I drank, and I bedded her. Or she bedded me, I’m not sure, it’s all hazy. I never really remembered what happened that night, just that I woke up alone in the bed she took me to in the hotel. I promptly dressed and left. I decided then and there that I would rather have the weight of an entire village on my shoulders than to be used and discarded like I had been in the city. Deciding I didn’t want to live my life in a haze, bedding just anyone, only to be alone again the next day, I chose to do the right thing. I married Lahrulai, accepted my position as Chief, and we built a happy life together. We had you, Vahru, and I haven’t looked back since. I never heard from Vionelle after that night, so I have no way of knowing if Tavionna is our child.”

There’s a quiet lull as we take in his story. I can hear Vahru’s deep breathing behind me as he tries not to lash out. It sounds to me like Chief was drugged and possibly raped, but I’m not sure opening that can of worms is something we need right now. I focus instead on the more important issue at hand.

“Well, to be honest, Chief, the only thing that makes sense is her being your daughter. It mostly explains why she would believe that she can take your place. That she has a claim. A sibling or other relative of Vionelle wouldn’t have that right. The only thing we haven’t figured out is why she wants to take it. It can’t just be anger over an absent father. There has to be a bigger reason.”

I pace as I try to think of what next steps we need to take. We’ll most definitely need to do more research, really dig into Gemyasiri Jangwa, and find out what that world is really like. Maybe that is where we’ll find our answer. We also need to find ways to keep in touch. If I need to travel there, it could take days, weeks, or more. I can’t be gone that long without someone here to protect Criido from another attack by her.

If only I had a faster way of traveling. I’ll have to settle for finding a form of communication that will be reliable across galaxies so I can keep tabs on the village. I’ll have to do some more searching to find somewhere to obtain such tech.

“Vahru, please don’t be angry. I never told you of this because it never seemed pertinent. I let you venture into the city by your own choice, just as I did. I wanted you to make your own choices, not be overly influenced by mine and my ideals. Do you understand?” Criido pleads to his son, and I stop my pacing, watching as Vahru struggles to get his words out, his fists clenching at his sides.

“I need time to process this. Excuse me.” He turns swiftly on his heel and storms out of the house. Criido attempts to stand, but I rush over and lower him back to the couch.

“You aren’t ready for that, Chief. Please, let me talk to him. This is a lot for both of you, but we’ll all get through it when we have the answers we need. Just try to relax and heal up.”

Criido nods his head, sighing as he sags into the sofa, defeated. I glance between Tonya and Melodia as they both give me sympathetic looks.

“Go, Kari. We’ll stay with him. We can call Jeff and Willa if we need anything. I’ll fill them in for you as well. Go.” Tonya’s tentacle touches my hand as she encourages me. I give her a stiff nod and mouth a thank you before rushing out the door after Vahru.

Chapter 16

Jeff

My hands are full of herbs and other plants as I trudge my way through the forest. Willa told me what she needed to keep making tea for Criido to heal, and I took off to find it. Lucky for her, I have a knack for biology as well as astronomy.

My eyes scan around me as I walk, being careful to step around fallen limbs and other obstacles. I’m not on a well-worn path like the one to the lake since I went in a completely different direction. I’m actually out behind our house, since that’s where most of this grows.

I grin as I notice the pretty yellow flowers that grow along the vines on the tree trunks, climbing their way up to the canopy above. Willa loves the smell of those flowers. I make a mental note to come back and pick some for her to have in the house. She’d love that.

I come around the backside of the house, walking around it to head into the village. I’m supposed to meet Willa at the Chief’s to store and brew the tea for him instead of keeping everything at our house. Makes it easier.

As I step into the village, I see Vahru storm out of the Chief's house before he turns and stomps toward his house at the edge of the village. I pause and look around, trying to decide if I should go after him or just wait. With the celebration going on, no one notices him or me as we go about business. As my gaze circles back around, I see Kari rush down the steps and run down the path after him. I shrug and decide to let her handle it. He is her man, after all, her responsibility.

I walk across the central path of the village, smiling at those who wave and call out to me. I shrug off offerings of food or drinks as I promise to return and try them when I’m done with my tasks. Such words will only bide me so much time, so I know Willa and I must hurry if we are to kick off this celebration. We will be missed if we don’t attend, so we’ll need to make sure we can stay and mingle for a while.

I nudge the door open with my foot and make my way directly to the kitchen. Willa isn’t there, but I set everything on the counter and begin to sort it all out for her. I grab the pots and containers she’s been using to store everything and start setting up to brew another batch when she walks in, a sweet smile lighting her face.

“Look at you, getting everything set up without me.” Her voice makes my heart beat erratically in my chest, and I grin at her.

“I just wanted to get everything ready for you, make things a little easier on you.”

Her arms slide around my shoulders, and she kisses me gently, a lingering kiss full of love. “Thank you.” She smiles and kisses me one more time before stepping out of my arms and starting her task.

“Hey, did you see Vahru and Kari on your way here? He stormed out of here like he was mad. Any idea what that’s all about?” I hand her the ingredients she needs at the right time as she adds things to the water, stirring until it boils.

“No, I didn’t see either of them. I’ve been busy with all the festivities, I haven’t heard from them much at all. I know they’ve been busy trying to figure this all out though.” She shrugs and gives me a sympathetic smile.

“We should really find a way to communicate better. I know you’re probably used to living like this, but coming from a world where we could talk to each other instantly with the push of a button, this waiting around to bump into each other is frustrating.” I place my palms on the counter, watching Willa work her magic.

“Maybe you should talk to Kari and Vahru about that. With him working in the city lab, he may be able to get us some sort of communicators.”

---