Chapter 19: "Trip"

Karina rode at an easy pace. Zag spooked at a squirrel that crossed their path. She let out a quick “Easy” in a low tone and pulled his rope to get his attention. Cherry only flicked an ear, annoyed at the nervous gelding.

Karina let out a relieved sigh as the tension left her body. She couldn’t believe no one cared she’d been gone an extra day. Usually, Mother would have relentlessly interrogated her, but whatever that ritual was had her shaken. It had Karina shaken, too. And the dream that came after, that was way too real. She pressed her lips together at the sweet memory. She wondered if she would dream like that again tonight.

She scratched at her right forearm. It had been bugging her for most of the day. The image of her mother’s bloody handprint flashed before her eyes and Karina bit her lip. She worked at her sleeve hoping not to find a matching imprint. She twisted her arm in the sunlight. On the inner part of her forearm, palm and hand, little star-like flowers were burned into her skin, seven in all. She inspected the shapes. At least it was better than a handprint. She shook the sleeve back over her arm.

Her first stop was to be a small town a few hours away from home. She was almost there as the noonday sun beat down on her. She spotted it just on the edge of the meadow up ahead. Another twenty minutes passed and she dismounted. She tied Cherry and Zag to a hitching post in front of a storefront as small steam-powered carts trundled up and down the busy main street.

Karina grabbed a selection of herbs and set toward the alchemist. She remembered her first time here. It had been her first delivery she ever made and Mother had sent her out alone. The alchemist was older, with black hair and a long beard. He was nice enough but abrupt and straight to the point. Her first time there she got played into giving a low price and Mother still lectured for it. She learned her mistake well.

She gathered a breath and pushed open the front door. The bell dinged, alerting her presence. A grumble came from deep inside. Karina walked passed the potions, necklaces, crystals, and knives until she reached the wide open service counter. She lay out her bundle of herbs in a nice display and waited.

The skinny man came around the corner from the back room. “You, again.”

“Good morning, sir,” Karina greeted.

The alchemist put his hands on his hips. “Weren’t you just here a while back? Gouged me on some common herbs I could have picked myself.”

Karina didn’t let that rattle her. She stuck her hands in her pockets and waited as he stared her down. The silence clicked between them.

Finally, he sighed. “Looks like you have some rare herbs here. What’s your price for the Datura?”

“Three gold.”

The alchemist grabbed his heart as if her price caused him physical pain. Karina stood firm and stared back.

“And the Devil’s Tongue?”

“Five gold a piece.”

“Hefty prices,” the alchemist mused.

“They are not. They are fair unless you want to wait until the end of spring to pick it yourself from the mountain’s near the Munoco River and let it dry all summer. I doubt you’ve seen anyone else with this for the last three years.”

The alchemist frowned. “You know your herbs well.”

Karina said nothing. For her, it was the best negotiating technique. Alchemists often got excited when they saw her items. She knew what she had was valuable and she knew her prices were fair. What was important was that the alchemist knew it, too.

“I’ll take six Devil’s Tongue, ten Datura, the blue ones, a pound of Goji Berries, and three sprigs of Zaatar.”

Karina nodded. After a quick calculation, she said, “That’s one hundred and three gold.”

The alchemist mumbled something as he passed over the coins. Karina added them to a lock box over her shoulder. She wrapped up the rest of the ingredients and turned to leave.

“Zeela’s your mother, right?” The alchemist asked.

Karina turned slightly back to him and nodded.

“Next time you come, I want the recipe for her “Wish in a Night” potion.”

“She doesn’t share recipes.”

“She owes me one.”

Karina frowned. “I will ask.”

He grumbled. Karina left his store without another look back. She was back on the road in a matter of minutes. She didn’t like being hounded to ask her mother things. She wouldn’t do it and no one seemed to take no for an answer. When she was calm, she let her mind wander.

An hour into the ride, she felt the quiet of the mountain pass close in around her. Her eyes darted to the tree line up ahead. Both horses perked their ears and Karina held Cherry back. Her arm stung where the star-flowers burned her skin. She scratched at them absently as she focused up ahead.

People were definitely up there. She might be able to make it if she galloped the horses, but if they had guns or arrows, she would die. She bit her cheek as she reached her right hand into a bag tied to the saddle. She pulled up a dried sprig of lilac and crushed it in her palm. What had Mother said? The words would come but the meaning behind them was what made it work. Her teeth bit harder down on her cheek, drawing blood to her tongue. What did she want? She wanted safety. She wanted calm. How about invisibility? She nodded.

Now, the words. They didn’t matter but maybe they kind of did. In Mother’s rituals, they were always harsh and demanding. She ordered the plants and objects to do her bidding. Karina didn’t feel that here. She wanted the lilac to help her on its own accord.

The purple dust rolled beneath her fingers and she eased Cherry forward slowly. She summoned up her voice. It felt small and fragile against the looming trees.

“My dear friend, I’m pleased to see you again.

I didn’t know you would see me here today.

I hope among the stars that you can ignore me

I’m just passing through

I’m just passing through

On my way… to see you”

As she sang, the words became louder and the melody sweeter. The tone wasn’t great, but it didn’t matter. In her mind, she held calm and invisibility with every word. She sang it again. The words weren’t quite the same as the first time, but it didn’t matter because the intent was the same. As she passed the trees, five men hid behind them. Their eyes looked right through her. She held the tune until she no longer felt their presence. Even the horses remained calm.

When she was safe, she looked down at her arm. The seven-star marks glowed yellow against the red scratches from her nails. She gasped in surprise. Her hand opened and the purple lilac dust caught in the wind. She quickly bid it thank you as it returned to nature.

She twisted her arm to get a better look at it. The glowing star flowers dimmed and returned to a sunburned red. Karina’s brow furrowed. That couldn’t be normal.

Copyright 2019 Ava Altair

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