"I honestly don't k
now," Teuila said. "But you have more important matters to be concerned with right now. The Tuange tribe is planning to attack our village tomorrow night. You need to prepare our defenses or take preemptive action."
The chief stepped back, placing his fists on his hips.
"How do you know this?" he asked.
"I overheard their warriors discussing their plans when I followed one of their scouting missions back to their camp. They intend to steal the women and children and kill all of our men. You have to act quickly."
Manaia suddenly stood up and stepped toward me with an angry expression on his face.
"She's lying!" he said. "She's just making up this crazy story to distract our attention while she tries to escape again. We need to focus our manpower on making sure she doesn't get away. What she's been doing with that fair-skinned woman is an abomination."
"Shut up!" the chief said, turning toward Manaia, thrusting his hand against his chest. "I make the decisions around here, and we need to listen to Teuila's warning. I know what the Tuange is capable of, and we cannot take any chances at being ill-prepared."
Teuila's father swung back around and looked sternly into his daughter's eyes.
"Did they say if they planned to attack by land or sea? Were they the ones who burned our canoes?"
Teuila looked at her father with a confused expression and shook her head.
“They didn't mention anything about destroying our canoes. I got the impression they were going to wait for the full moon before they struck out for our camp. What do you intend to do, father?"
The chief stood for a long moment pondering his options, then motioned to Manaia.
"Gather the other tribesmen in the village square. We will need to organize our battle plans quickly. I will make sure my daughter doesn't escape again."
When Manaia rushed out of the hut, Te' struggled to stand. Her father placed his hand gently on her head and motioned for her to stay seated.
"I'm sorry to have to do this Teuila, but I can't afford to lose you again." He kneeled down and wrapped some thick strands of hibiscus twine around her binds then tied the new rope around a sturdy branch in the side wall. "You'll have to stay here until we sort this other matter out. And this time Nona won't be here to help you."
As her father stormed out of the hut and Te' struggled against the sharp twine digging into her wrists, a lone tear dribbled down the front of her cheek. It looked like regardless of the outcome of the looming war between the tribes, she'd soon be bound into the arms of one power-hungry man or another. She wiggled her leg and felt Jade's stone rubbing against her thigh.
Stay safe, my love, she thought. Hopefully at least one of us can escape this madness.
21
I woke up at first light the following morning with a growl in my stomach. It had been twenty-four hours since I'd eaten anything, and I swallowed hard realizing I was left to my own devices to feed myself. But I had more pressing immediate matters to attend to. I needed to see what had become of Teuila and find a way to extract the two of us safely from the village. We only had a little over thirty-six hours before all hell would break loose in the camp. The safest place for both of us would be as far away on the other side of the island as possible.
I slowly lifted myself up and parted the leaves of my bush, peering in the direction of the village. The square was busier than usual for this time of the morning, with sentries posted at opposite ends of the esplanade. A large group of tribesmen sat in the middle of the square sharpening stones, tying them carefully to the ends of long spears and arrows. Manaia paced around the circle, gesturing and barking orders like he was in command.
I glanced in the direction of Te's hut and saw that a guard was standing on all four sides of the structure. There was no sign of Nona or the chief, and from the stillness of the cabin, I assumed that Teuila and her family were still sleeping. After another twenty minutes or so, her father stepped through the front door and called to one of the tribesmen in the working group. He walked to the bottom of the steps, and as Nona and Teuila's siblings streamed out the front entrance, the chief motioned for them to follow the tribesman toward the lagoon. I took this to mean that Teuila had notified him of the other tribe's invasion plans and that he was taking no chances leaving the women or children unattended.
At least he's aware of the danger now and is taking necessary precautions, I nodded.
But where was Teuila? Why hadn't he sent her down to the lagoon with the rest of her family to attend to her morning ablutions? Was he going to leave her under armed guard in the hut all day, where she'd have to take care of her private affairs in a bowl?
I shook my head at the barbarity of his decision.
He's not taking any chances with her, I thought. It's going to be next to impossible for her to escape with an armed guard surrounding her cabin and with her grandmother not allowed to go anywhere without an escort.
I glanced toward Manaia again, wondering what he was up to. After destroying the village's only means of marine navigation, instead of slipping into the forest to join his comrades from the other clan, for some reason he'd chosen to stay behind and help his tribe prepare for the attack.
Was he going to join his tribe in battle, then turn on them at the last second? Or was he waiting for the right time to slip away and alert the other tribe that his village had been forewarned of their intentions?
I still wasn't sure if the chief intended to defend his village against the attack or if he planned to take preemptive action. Either way, Manaia couldn't be trusted. I needed to find a way to warn Teuila and her father before it was too late. The other tribe looked to be at least twice as large as Teuila's. The only chance her group would have to prevail in the looming battle was to maintain the element of surprise. Manaia surely would have already informed the other side of her village's defenses and battle readiness. If he were to switch sides in the heat of the fight, that could easily turn the tide in favor of the other clan.
But how could I get close enough to her hut to send her a signal? Trying to whistle again was out of the question. After my last pitiful attempt to mimic the local wildlife drew her father's attention, I couldn't risk betraying my position again. My only chance was to leave some kind of message with her grandmother. But how could I draw her attention when she was being watched so closely?