Page 53 of The Quiet
For the briefest moment in the darkness, she saw the flicker of eyes, and a black fox, mostly submerged in the darkness. The purple rings blinked, and Baker eased back into the room, shutting the door and locking it behind her. She backed away,sitting on her bed as she saw the shadowy footprints pass by, back and forth, prowling, through the duration of the night.
Sitting alone as she watched the door, she realized in many ways she’d lost nothing in following Peter, but had now gained something of an ally. Downstairs, floors below, Amiel still prowled, only then it was in the back of her mind, in the back of everyone’s mind. Downstairs, floors below, she had a room where she was alone.
Curling up in bed, she lay on top of the covers and stared at the door. She thought of Marnie and how she wouldn’t have anyone to read to her tonight.
She wondered if Marnie would notice, and missed her, but knew that if she were downstairs, she’d miss her anyway.
CHAPTER 15
THE EATING OCEAN
ELLA FOUND HERSELF in the throes of a rare sense of awe, because in the span of a single day, she was introduced to a world not entirely unlike the Imperia, and yet infinitely better. The quaint village, spanning wide across the valley, was an abundant orchard of prosperity. There was so much noise and color and not the faintest hints of those layers of poverty with which Ella was so well acquainted.
The people shared an openness that spoke of the world’s abundance and Ella struggled to resist an infectious sense of joy, for in walking the streets alongside Paris she felt like she’d been welcomed home.
Strangers approached to congratulate her, and give gifts, her presence inviting knowing smiles and looks of interest as she walked through town. The guards functioned less like enforcers and more like public servants in the towns. When outside of it, they became scouts, hunting down animals infected with Madness just like Ella had once done.
These guards and scouts were educated in an academy much smaller than the Imperia’s, but with a much narrower focus than warfare. Academics toiled optimistically to discover ways of treating Madness poisoning in humans and animals, and Ella couldn’t help but imagine how well Kay might fit in here.
“You can’t pull people out of The Ocean,” Paris said as they left the steps of the small stone academy. She waved politely to awoman gardening nearby as they turned back up the main street to the palace. Two guards walked with them, carrying the gifts Ella had been given as they’d explored the streets.
“However,” Paris added as she lifted a jeweled finger, her nails captured in that same beautiful azure blue she’d worn a few days ago, “some people train to be Divers. Diving is the practice of returning into The Ocean and teaching people how to Listen so that they can find their way out. I believe you knew a Diver. Samual.”
“Samual,” Ella said, amazed, “he knew about all of this?”
Paris smiled, teeth aglow against the sun as she shielded her eyes under a porcelain-like hand. Paris had an alluring magnetism and openness, one that made her seem invulnerable and present in many of the ways Jackson was. Ella wondered if all those associated with the ROSE were this way.
“Yes,” Paris confirmed, “I didn’t want to tell you right away since you’ve already been given so much to take in, but he lives a few towns over. I sent him a letter letting him know you’d made it out. I imagine he’s already planning his visit.”
“So I could dive back for Kay and Jade? And anyone else?”
Paris laughed at her eagerness, “It’s not as simple as it looks and takes time, not to mention those in the Imperia who know about the illusion aren’t very fond of Divers. For the time being, your role is much bigger, Ella. We need to know what happened to Peter,” Paris reminded her as they returned back to the palace, halting on the steps near an elaborate garden that complemented the palace’s white exterior.
“I still don’t remember anything,” Ella replied before they parted ways. “I just have impressions, just feelings.”
Paris placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, careful to avoid Ella’s hair that now rested in waves down her chest.
“No need to rush,” Paris said, “but it should be what you focus on first before finding Crow or learning to dive, alright?”
“Yes, I know,” Ella replied, but wasn’t any less frustrated. It didn’t feel like something she could force, and yet she carried the responsibility with great weight as she returned that night to her room.
Her entire body was abuzz with the energy of the day, and after laying in bed for hardly ten minutes, she knew falling asleep would be impossible. Instead, she tiptoed in her soft, baggy clothes and socks through the palace, grabbing maps and books from the library and hoarding them in a small study near her room.
She had little confidence in her ability to do formal research, but followed Kay’s method of holing up with maps and books when facing a tough thought problem. She could not just wait to remember. She would try and spark something.
She layed books and maps out across the study desk, keeping one candle lit on the desk while carrying another around to explore articles she’d collected. There was another chair in the study along with a long couch and she found herself sitting or lying across them with one book or another, changing places when she got too tired.
She rubbed her eyes as words blurred on the page of another book she’d tried to tackle about their history. Ella was positioned stiffly over the desk. Groaning, she allowed her head to fall back against the chair.
“Kay, I don’t know how you do this,” she whispered into the air. It didn’t matter what she read about, it all felt dry and distant. Her mind still buzzed with anticipation as if waiting for the right spark, but her eyes felt weary and she allowed them a moment's rest as the book fell into her lap.
Maybe she should try and let her mind wander to Lambspeak? Could it really be so bad? Paris didn’t seem to think so. Maybe that would help spark a memory.
She perked up when she heard feet walk outside her study for the second time that night. It was well past midnight. Guards perhaphs?
She sat up as the door opened, and was surprised to see Jackson enter. He didn’t ask what she was doing, but paced around, much like she’d imagined he’d been doing since he’d seen her last. He’d consented to showering apparently, but still wore the same ROSE uniform, only exchanging glances with her as he entered.
She watched from the corner of her eyes as Jackson walked to the window, folded his arms, and walked to the next window. He adjusted a book on a counter, opened another and closed it as she kept trying to re-read the last paragraph of her book.
