“And she figured out that Derek was a man.”

“Because I used the male ending on his name.”

“Yes.”

She stood up and clenched her hand into a fist, then hit her thigh. “I am just like my relatives. My tongue goes up and down like a banner in the wind, and I do not think.” She opened her hand and made the gesture that meant “so be it.”

“One of us ought to stay up tonight and keep watch. That woman is probably a little crazy. She has been alone too long, and she has been too close to something that is holy. She may come after Li-sa.”

Derek made the gesture of agreement.

“I hit her pretty hard,” I said. “For all I know, she is still”—I paused and tried to think of the right word in the language of gifts—“asleep. Or maybe dead.”

Derek looked out at the water. “Maybe. I don’t intend to go and check. The island is holy. She’s made it very clear that she doesn’t want us on it. And as a rule, I don’t interfere with other people’s karma. She chose to invite you to the island, and she chose to try and kill you. If those choices end in her death—well.” He paused, then used the same gesture that Nia had used a minute or so before. “That is the way it is,” the gesture said.

The oracle leaned forward. “I don’t know what you did in the past, Nia, and I don’t know why your people tell stories about you. But this situation is not your fault.”

“Why not?”

The oracle pointed at Derek. “He went into the valley of demons. He took the bracelet. Now, the demons are angry. They are causing all this trouble—the shuwaharaand the angry woman.”

Shuwahara?Was that the name of the animal that had frightened our bowhorns?

The oracle stood up. He held out his hand. “Give me the bracelet.”

Derek frowned.

“Do it,” I said in English. “We’re in enough trouble already.”

Derek pulled off the bracelet. The oracle took it and slid it onto his arm.

“What are you going to do with it?” I asked.

“The spirit will tell me.” The oracle pulled off his tunic. He was naked except for the bracelet and his necklace. His dark fur shone. The jewelry glistened. Taken all in all, he was impressive. He tossed the tunic on the ground. “I am going off by myself. I will dance and sing until I am in a frenzy. Then—maybe—the spirit will come to me.” He walked away toward the lake.

“Do you think I’ll get it back?” asked Derek.

“No.”

“Goddammit.” He laughed and shrugged. “Oh, well.”

Nia fixed dinner: fresh fish, gutted and stuffed with herbs, then wrapped in leaves and roasted in the coals. It was delicious, but I was too tired to be hungry. I ate half a fish and lay down. The sun had set. Clouds were moving in. They were high and hazy, golden in the last light of day. My companions talked quietly. The birds made little evening noises. I closed my eyes.

When I woke, the sun was up again. Who had guarded the camp? Had Derek remembered? I climbed to my feet, groaning. A body—dark and furry—sprawled by the fire. The oracle. Asleep. There was no sign of Nia or Derek or the bowhorn. I walked through the grove. The animal was definitely gone. Nia must have left as soon as there was any light. I looked out on the plain, shading my eyes against the sun. Nothing. I went back through the grove. The oracle had rolled over on his back. His arm was over his face. He was snoring.

Down to the lake. Birds flapped in the reeds. On the shore were two canoes. I stopped, terrified. I was in no condition to fight Inahooli. Had she done something to Derek? I needed a weapon. A paddle had worked before. I went to the canoes.

Inahooli was in one of them, on her back. She was naked. Her feet were tied with a strip of yellow cloth, and she was gagged with another piece of yellow fabric. Her hands were behind her. I couldn’t see how they were tied. She glared at me.

I laughed, relieved. I hadn’t killed her. “You must have met Derek.”

She grunted.

“I don’t think I’ll take out the gag. I’d like to know where he is. But I don’t suppose you’d tell me, even if you knew.”

Inahooli growled and twisted. Was there any chance that she could get free? Of course not. Derek had tied her. I wondered if he would ever make a serious mistake.

“I have to go. I’ll be back later.”

Inahooli growled a second time.

I found Derek farther along the shore, on a beach of black gravel. There was a break in the reeds. A channel—two or three meters wide—led out into the lake. A bird floated in the channel. It was perfectly ordinary looking.

“It has teeth,” said Derek.

His long hair was wet, and there were patches of dampness on his shirt. He tucked the shirt into his jeans, then grinned at me.

“A morning swim?” I asked.

“Uh-huh.” He fastened one of his sleeves. I saw a glint just before he sealed the fabric. He had something metallic on his arm.

“I found Inahooli. What happened?”

“Nia went to sleep, and I went off to watch the oracle. I figured, never pass up a ritual. He did exactly what he said he would do. Danced and sang and waved a branch around, all under a moon that was three-quarters full and clearly erupting. You can see the plume above the rim. It starts in sunlight and then curves over the part of the moon that is still in shadow. A heck of a sight.

“I couldn’t understand what he was saying. He wasn’t using the language of gifts. But I got it all on my recorder.”

“What did he do with the bracelet?”

“Tossed it into the lake. That was the end of the ceremony. He went back to camp. I wandered around and kept my eyes open. I figured he would be tired after all that jumping around. You were injured, and Nia had to get up early. That left me to keep watch, and I wanted to keep looking at the moon.” He closed the front of his shirt.

“The woman came two hours later. No. More like three. The moon was still up. She came in the second canoe. I guess that’s obvious. I didn’t see her land—or hear her. She is a very quiet lady. But she woke up a bird, coming in through the reeds, and it whistled.

“I waited in the shadows. The fire—our fire—was burning. She moved toward it. I knew she would. When she came into the grove, I jumped her.” He grinned. “She’s strong as well as quiet. But I had the advantage of surprise. After she was unconscious, I dragged her back to the canoe and tied her up. I didn’t have any rope. I cut up her tunic and used it. I’m hungry. Let’s go back to camp.”

We walked along the shore. Derek continued. “Nia left at dawn. I didn’t tell her about what’s-her-name. It was something else to worry about, and she looked moody enough. Nia, I mean. I guess she isn’t a morning person.”

“What are we going to do with Inahooli?”

“Hold her until Nia gets back, then let her go, but only when we’re ready to leave. She won’t follow us. She has her tower to guard.”

“I wonder if we’re driving her crazy.”

“What?” He stopped and stared at me.

“She struck me as a vulnerable person, though it’s hard to judge a person from another culture. Maybe they’re all like that: boastful and defensive. In any case, her self-esteem is all tied up with the tower and her position as the guardian. Now she’s failed. I’m pretty sure that she thinks the tower is ruined, and I don’t think she’ll be able to handle failure. I don’t think she has the—what?—elasticity of spirit.”

Derek made the gesture of doubt. “I think you underestimate that woman. Her technology is primitive—what you call primitive, anyway. But I don’t think she’s simple. I know Nia isn’t. And the oracle is so damn complex, I don’t know where I am with him. Most likely this lady—I’ve forgotten her name again.”

“Inahooli.”

“Most likely she’d do what I’d do in her place.”

“What?” I started walking again.

Derek kept pace. “I’d lie. I’d pretend nothing had happened. When my people came, I’d say, ‘Everything is fine.’ ”