One Day in a Small-Town Desert, chapter 12, page 3

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Vata Kılímí lay pinned to the floor by Fírí, the blonde’s hand covering her mouth, silencing Vata’s prayers to the God of Animals. She had to get up and help her husband. He was broadcasting so much anguish that she could barely think. Combined with the effervescent essence of Névazhíno, it almost completely overpowered her. Vata had to hurry to help Pí‘oro and then get a sacrifice for the healing ceremony before Névazhíno grew upset. He must already be upset. You don’t want to get gods upset, not even the Love of the Universe. Gods do inexplicable things when they’re upset.

Vata strained against the girl’s hold, but she didn’t have the leverage or enough mass to budge the tall blonde. She sank back against the hard-packed soil. The two women stared at each other from close range, both breathing hard. Fírí’s hair hung limply around her face, blocking the dim light from illuminating her expression.

Pí‘oro’s emotions began to settle down, his agitation mellowed by resignation. Whatever the situation in the hallway, Pí‘oro must have given up the struggle he’d been fighting. Vata frowned slightly at the thought that he’d held his ground for only so short a time. Surely he was stubborn enough to argue for hours, even against the police. Surely the spirit of the Love of the Universe permeated beyond the chapel and could give Pí‘oro the strength of will he needed to stand his ground.

The blonde girl hissed, “Have you calmed down now? You’re not going to run to the door again, are you?”

What had she said earlier? Vata channeled Névazhíno’s overloading energy into forming coherent thoughts. Fírí had said she was afraid of the police finding her. She was afraid of the police entering the chapel. Well, surely the girl knew that Vata didn’t want the police in there, either. Or maybe not.

Fírí’s hand still over her mouth, Vata crisply shook her head and murmured indistinctly.

The girl lifted her hand a few centimeters. “What?”

Whispering, Vata replied, “I don’t want the police in here any more than you do. These animal sacrifices are illegal. They have been for Cycles. Surely you know that.” Vata’s nostrils flared as she hit upon a topic that had been sore for all her life. She soared on the wings of the God of Animals. “The government doesn’t want us to worship properly. They don’t want us to honor Névazhíno above the Union. If they could have their way, they’d have the entire pantheon obliterated.”

The young woman scowled. “What the plagues are you talking about? The Union is run by religionists.”

That’s just what they want you to think. Vata breathed deep, refocusing her thoughts. She had to get out of the chapel. She had to go help her husband. Something awful must have happened to him that sapped his will to fight. She had to get a sacrifice. Névazhíno wouldn’t wait forever.

Using all of her effort, Vata calmly stated, “Never mind, dear. Just rest assured that the police will arrest me if they get into this chapel. If I open that door, it will be extremely carefully.”

Fírí’s doe eyes narrowed, but she eased off Vata. “Very well,” the girl said as she sank back on her haunches, her little brain cranking.

If the blonde alerted the police to the illegal sacrifices, Vata would tell everything she knew about Fírí and Zhíno. It was mutually assured imprisonment.

Fírí exhaled loudly and stood up. “Just don’t plague it up any further.”

Vata rolled over and pushed herself to a sitting position, from which she stood, nearly floating to her feet on the uplifting spirit of her god.

The blonde hissed, “Is there anywhere in here to hide from Zhíno?”

As Vata brushed dirt from her black bathrobe and began shuffling toward the hallway door, she answered, “Not in here, no, but you need not fear him. He is unconscious now and, when he awakes, he will be filled with the love of Névazhíno.”

Vata smiled benignly, although Fírí wouldn’t be able to see. Névazhíno understood the situation and was willing to wait for Vata to help Pí‘oro ahead of the criminal. Névazhíno was waiting for her.

The blonde glanced around the room. “Are you sure there’s nowhere to hide?”

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