"Let me come with you, father. I know the configuration of their camp and I'm skilled using a spear and arrow. You're going to need all the help you can muster against their superior numbers."
"This is a job for tangata," the chief said. "We can't afford to lose any more women from our tribe. Besides, I can't trust you to use this as another excuse to slip away."
Te' looked at her father with a painful expression.
"Father, you know I'd never abandon my tribe in a time of need such as this. Do you really think so little of me to believe that I would shrink from my duty to protect my village?"
The chief reached out his hands and cupped Teuila's face gently.
"I know you want to do what's best for your community. But leave this to us. I promise we will come back for you soon. I'm going to leave a small contingent behind to protect the village from any interlopers. When I return, we’ll talk further about your plans. This will all be settled soon enough."
Te' twisted against the tight cords binding her hands.
"Can't you at least untie me while I'm under guard?"
"I'm sorry, Teuila. This is for your own safety. You're far too crafty. It's safer for you to remain in the village than be roaming over the island with so many dangerous elements on the prowl. We will celebrate our victory when we return with a wedding ceremony to join you and Manaia in marriage."
The chief kissed Teuila on her forehead then stood and exited the hut brusquely. Not long after, she heard the sound of warriors chanting war songs in the village courtyard. She peered through a gap in the wall of her cabin and noticed Manaia waving his spear menacingly as he glanced in her direction.
You might possess me soon, she thought, noticing the heart shape of Jade's stone pressing against her loincloth. But you'll never own me.
25
Teuila squinted through the narrow gap in the wall, watching the band of warriors dancing around the bonfire in the middle of the square. As their chanting progressively escalated in volume, her father exhorted them to be strong and brave. Whenever Manaia circled around and gazed in her direction, he seemed to have a crazed look in his eyes. Even though she knew he probably couldn't see her through the thin breaks in the wall, it seemed as though he was staring right at her. Then with a final flourish, the chief waved them forward, and they charged into the jungle.
Te' paused for a few moments, listening to the sound of silence, save the cackling of the fire outside her door. She couldn't see any further sign of movement through the slits in her cabin, and she wondered where the rest of the villagers were. She remembered that her father had said he would leave a few tribesmen behind to guard the village, but where was her nona and the rest of her family? Had they been sequestered to another hut to prevent her aiding Teuila's escape again? It was strange to see her village so eerily silent at this early hour.
"Hello?" she called out, checking to see if anyone was guarding her hut. "Is anyone there? Who's protecting our village?"
"Be quiet, Teuila!" a young tribesman replied from outside the front entrance to her hut. "We don't know if there are spies watching us. We don't want to betray the location of the remaining villagers."
Okay, Te' nodded. So I know I have at least one guard. It was clever of father to concentrate the women and children in a few huts. That way if the other tribe attacks, the remaining defenses can be concentrated on protecting a smaller perimeter. I guess I'm on my own until the war party returns.
"Is there anyone else with you?" Teuila whispered to the guard outside her gate, fishing for more information. "How many warriors are left to protect our village?"
"There are five of us," the tribesman replied. "But don't get any ideas about trying to escape again. We have every side of your cabin under surveillance, so even if you were able to untie your binds, you'll be unable to leave the hut. Now shut up and let us focus on keeping an eye out for other threats."
Teuila paused to consider her options. She could stay holed up here and wait until the battle was decided before she made her next move. There'd be plenty of other opportunities to steal away into the jungle after things quieted down. Her father couldn't keep her tied up forever. She could try to escape and rejoin Jade in their private lagoon and fortify their defenses to avoid detection from any further searches. Or she could unite with her father in the attack on the other village and keep an eye on Manaia to make sure he didn't stab the chief in the back.
The more she thought about it, the less appetizing the idea of waiting it out seemed to be. There were far too many variables at play for her to risk the lives of her loved ones. Besides the threat to her father and the rest of his war party, there was her family and the rest of the villagers to think about. If her father lost the battle, there was no way of knowing how the victors would treat the remaining women and children. She knew they intended to kill all the men, but did that mean the young boys as well? And would the remaining women be simply absorbed into the new tribe, or would they be treated as sex slaves for the enjoyment of the conquering heroes?
And what of Jade? Even if she was able to find her way back to their lagoon and remain hidden, how could Teuila be sure she hadn't left a trail back to their hiding place? Te' knew how to use the riverbeds to hide her footprints, but Manaia and the other tribesmen were excellent trackers and would sooner or later pick up Jade's trail. Whether it was her tribe or the other clan that eventually found her, neither could be trusted to keep her safe and protected.
She knew that one way or the other, she'd have to find a way to escape to make sure that Jade was safe, then join her father and do whatever she could to ensure the success of their mission. But how could she escape from her hut if it was being monitored on all sides? It wouldn't be as simple as slipping out the back with the help of her nona. The first order of business was finding a way to break her bonds. She wouldn't be much use to anybody if she couldn't free her hands.
Te' wiggled her body along the floor until she found a sharp spur on one of the posts supporting the wall. Then she began rubbing the cords binding her hands as quietly as possible against the knob, trying to splinter the twine. She could hear the fiber pulling and tearing, but it took fifteen minutes before they finally snapped and freed her hands.
Now what? she thought, rubbing her aching wrists. How am I going to get out of here with five people watching me?
She peered through a gap in the far wall of her hut and noticed the diminishing reflection of the moon on the water, indicating it was moving higher in the night sky. Time was running out if she was going to have any chance to help her father. She already knew where the weak spots were in her hut, and for a brief moment she considered wedging out t
he back and making a dash into the woods. But if she got the timing wrong and was caught, she wouldn't have a second chance at her escape.
As she peered down at the leafy mats covering her floor, she reflected back to when she and Jade had built their own improvised house in the trees. She knew the floor of her hut was built the same way, with lashed poles supporting the foundation. If she could get underneath the webbed floor, the guards might not be able to see her while she planned her escape route. Teuila peered in the direction of the front door, watching the guard swiveling his head from side to side as he looked up and down the courtyard for any sign of suspicious movement. Then she pulled back a few of the leafy mats to inspect the floor more closely.
Each of the poles was spaced about an inch apart with tight binding connecting them every foot in length to keep them from separating. She would have to remove the ties from at least a dozen joists for a distance of three or four feet to have any chance at bending them enough to give her space to wiggle through. At least the ties were made from flat strips of inner bark instead of braided leaf strands, which would make it easier for her to dig her nails into the fiber to loosen the knots. But each of the ties were made in the form of a double constrictor knot, which made them all the more difficult to untie.
Te' cursed, realizing it was going to take longer than she hoped to disentangle the posts. She chided herself for not keeping the small paring knife for herself, but she realized Jade needed it as much as she did.