Page 34 of Captured on Film
He hadn’t realized she was still there. “Yeah?”
“How did you know about the bumbers?”
Oh. Right.
I am a very great secret. And a good one.
Without a word, Caleb crossed to the bed, pulled his fieldjournal from under the pillow, and opened it and added a quick sketch of abumber. “Pictures and gestures can go a long way toward understanding.”
Hesper hummed. It was a skeptical hum, but she didn’tchallenge him further.
“You’re up?”
Josheb was out of bed and in a chair at the table in whatpassed for the kitchen. Patting a rustic crutch leaning at his side, he quipped,“You can’t keep a Dare down!”
Caleb thought he was missing the point. “Shouldyoube up?”
“Yes, I should.” His brother’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Don’tgo off having adventures without me. Better together, right?”
Which meant Caleb didn’t have to do this alone. He claimed achair, and relief must have shown on his face, because Josheb’s smile widened.
He asked, “So what are we doing?”
Caleb toyed with his spoon. “I’m supposed to bring back thosefigments that chased us. It seems Andor is a little like a beekeeper, and he’spretty upset that I scattered his flock.”
“Big Bo Peep has lost his sheep?” asked Josheb.
Hesper snorted into her cup. “They’re Ephemera. Rare andirreplaceable celestia bumbers.”
“Leave them alone and they will come home …?” suggestedJosheb.
“But theyhaven’t,” countered Hesper. “And that’sbeen troubling him.”
“So how’s Caleb supposed to bring them back?”
Caleb could only shrug. Nobody’d covered that part.
Hesper leaned forward. “I’ll tell you a little secret,scruff-bucket. Your brother’s the attractive one.”
Josheb pulled bemusedly at his beard. “We look alike. Andwhen it comes to personality ….”
Caleb jumped in to confirm, “He’s the popular one. Always hasbeen. Always will be.”
“Not where I come from. Not here and now.” Hesper turned alook on Caleb that was decidedly flattering. “No contest.”
With a put-upon whine in his tone, Josheb extended a hand.“Nessie,youstill love me? Dontcha, girl?”
She immediately went to him, delighted as ever to have hisattention. But Caleb could tell it was small consolation. With a suddenshifting of paradigms, he saw Josheb from Hesper’s point of view. He wasn’tplagued by figments, and he didn’t hear the songs of stars. That didn’t makeJosheb reassuringly normal. For someone like her, it meant that he was missingsomething.
A missing piece that had always belonged to Caleb.
Making him attractive to a potentially dangerous set.
Popularity Contest
Andor picked up Caleb. Not exactly unexpected, giventhe events of last night. But when Hesper plucked Josheb off his feet, hisbrother yelped. “Whoa! Hey, now! What’re you …?”
“Stop flailing!” snapped Hesper. She had him in a cradlehold, and he was helpless to resist.
