Page 85 of Firstborn of the Sun
The commotion that ensued was the perfect distraction. The entire street corner was in a frenzy.
‘Hold this and follow me,’ Àdùk said, handing L’?r? a long piece of cloth that was attached to her waist. Alawani held on to L’?r?’s other hand and Márùn’s, and with noses and mouths covered, they walked into the storm, past Milúà and further into this strange land her father had sent her to.
They reached the woman’s house, and L’?r? couldn’t help but think it was the ugliest house she had ever seen. The outside of it smelled like medicinal herbs, the rotten kind. The walls were filled with dried vines and sharp thorns. They walked inside and met a dark hallway.Why would anyone live like this?She instinctively gripped Alawani’s hand, and he held on tight, matching her wariness of the stranger. She only let go when she walked into the light, and the darkness gave way to a stunning room – filled with flowers and colours she’d only ever seen streaked across the sky at the first light of dawn. It felt as though the sun had chosen this room to display all the hues of its golden shine. Her eyes widened in awe as she slowly paced around the space, which seemed to come alive with each step she took.
‘Make yourself at home,’ Àdùk said plainly.
Inside, the house was much bigger than L’?r? could have imagined. There were desks, chairs and shelves of books. If not for the glowing flowers, L’?r? would’ve thought she’d been transported back home. Above her the flowers formed chandeliers and lines of lower hanging lights that swung from wall to wall.
L’?r? brought out the letter Baba-Ìtàn had given her and handed it over to Àdùk, who raised her brows in curiosity. She took it from her and opened it. The next moment, the letter burned in the woman’s palm, and the ashes fell to the ground in a slow puff of cloud. It happened so quickly that L’?r? almost missed the light of Àdùk’s agbára as it came on and off in seconds. Did she even read the letter? L’?r? remembered the look in her father’s eyes, the earnest desperation with which he spoke when he gave the letter to her. She did not know what was in it, but it was important. It had to be. And this woman just burned it?
The woman didn’t even look at where the ashes fell.
The three of them lined up before Àdùk and L’?r? stared in disbelief, mouth open as her father’s words swayed to the ground like burnt feathers off a message bird.
‘Who are you?’ asked Àdùk, pointing at Márùn.
Márùn removed her hood.
‘I am Márùn. Five of Twelve,’ she said, standing upright.
What does that mean?L’?r? thought.
In the third ring, the man who nearly killed them all was Mfà. That name meant number four. Four and Five. Who was this woman really?
‘Liar,’ Àdùk said firmly.
Márùn removed her scarf and unbuttoned her shirt to reveal five short vertical lines across her chest, then hit her palm against her chest five times. ‘I am Márùn,’ she said again.
‘She saved our life,’ L’?r? added.
Àdùk frowned, ‘Márùn is dead.’
‘And I am Márùn,’ Márùn said sternly.
Àdùk paused and, after an awkwardly long moment, she hit her palm against her chest just as Márùn had done but instead she did it seven times.
L’?r? looked from one to the other and then at Alawani, who shrugged. He was as clueless as she was.
Àdùk observed L’?r? and Alawani as though seeing them for the first time. ‘You’re wounded,’ she said, looking at the bruises on L’?r?’s stomach and arms, the cut on her brow and the muddy state of her wrapper. Alawani wasn’t any better. His trousers were torn and his shirt was scorched where the maiden had burned him, leaving behind a hole and blistered skin. Àdùk brought out a vial from her turban and placed it in L’?r?’s hands. ‘Drink.’
L’?r? frowned. ‘What is this?’
‘Do you think I brought you to my house just to poison you? Drink.’
L’?r? drank the liquid, slowly and apprehensively. If her father trusted Àdùk, then so would she. It smelled and tasted like fermented sap from an old tree bark. She bent over and heaved loudly.
‘Don’t you dare throw up on my floor,’ Àdùk said firmly.
L’?r? forced the liquid down and it felt like something exploded inside of her. Making her body so heavy, she could hardly stand. Her ears rang and for a moment, a flash of white crossed her vision, blinding her, and then it was gone. Her senses dulled. Even the putrid taste disappeared from her lips. She felt stronger, her aches eased, the gash on her forehead hadn’t healed but it no longer stung and for the first time in a long time she stood upright without pain.
‘Give it to him,’ Àdùk said, pointing at Alawani, who looked even more worried than L’?r? had been.
‘It’s fine, take it,’ L’?r? said, handing the vial over to him.
Alawani drank it in a single gulp and didn’t as much as flinch.
Àdùk raised a brow. ‘You’ve had this before then.’
