Amazon Chief Read online

  Amazon Chief

  Robin Roseau

  Table of Contents

  Credits

  Unwanted Visitors

  The Prodigal Sister Returns

  Decisions

  Becoming

  Friends

  Settled

  Troubles

  First Kiss

  Part Two

  Sixteen

  Loss

  Leadership

  Changes

  Part Three

  Warrior

  Chief

  The Cycle

  Part Four

  Travels

  White Pine

  Communication

  Challenges

  Companionship

  Compassion

  Old Love

  Conviction

  New Love

  Announcement

  Arrival

  Tournament

  Dressing Down

  Day Four

  Last Day

  Final Match

  No!

  Round Four

  Retirement

  Bonfire

  Part Five

  Epilogue

  Loose Ends

  About the Author

  Copyright

  Credits

  As always, thank you to The Lady for her continued support. Due to its length, this novel took longer than average to write, and over the last several weeks, she has been very understanding.

  Thank you to JT: a wonderful lady. The conversation earlier today is deeply valued.

  I want to thank all my English teachers while I was growing up, especially Mrs. B. You don't know who you are, but you helped teach me the joy of writing and to know when it was okay to break the rules.

  And thank you, Dear Reader. You continue to offer your support when you buy my novels or write me letters. What you give me is a gift, one for which I am deeply grateful.

  Unwanted Visitors

  I was twelve when I met my first Amazon; it wasn't a good experience. I lived with my family in a modest fishing village called Gallen's Cove. I was the fourth of five children: sister Maya, brothers Dannick and Nathano, then me, and finally my younger brother, Chandor. My father was a fisherman, and my older brothers helped with the fishing. My sister Maya, ten years older than I, was the village teacher; my little brother and I were two of her students. My sister was a good teacher, although at twelve years old, the only thing worse than your sister being your teacher would be your mother.

  I didn't get away with much.

  The Amazons came in the spring, a large troop of intimidating warrior women. I was home with mother when they arrived, and the first we knew about them was when two of them burst through the door of our house and ordered us to the town square. Mother yelled at them, but one of the women put her hand on the hilt of her sword and said, "If no one makes trouble, no one will get hurt. Now get to the town square. Both of you."

  "Who are they, Mama?" I asked.

  "Hush, Beria," Mother told me. "Grab your cloak."

  The women looked on impatiently, but they let Mother help me into my cloak and grab her own. Then, with her hands on my shoulders, she ushered me from our house. Outside we found Chara Wetrock with her mother and baby brother, and by the time we arrived at the town square, herded there by the strange women, we also were met by Olive Farsight. Mother collected Olive under her other arm, and our small group of villagers were carefully but firmly steered to the town green. When we arrived, Olive saw her mother and went to her, leaving me with Mama.

  "Mama," I said, "Who are these women?"

  "Don't worry about them," she said. "You're too young for them to take."

  It took a while for the women to search the village, finding everyone who was here. Many of the men, of course, would be out fishing, and so the square filled with the elderly, women, girls, boys too young to help on the boats, and those whose occupations kept them in town. Maya had been out in the cove, sailing, but then I saw her working her way through the assembled people, reassuring the children that everything would be fine.

  My heart lightened at the sight of my sister. Of the people I trusted most, she was third after Mother and Father, and I knew if she were here, she would take care of me. She'd been taking care of me my entire life, and I couldn't imagine life without her. Sure, sometimes I resented her bossing me around, but there was such a large age difference between us, it was like having a third parent. She never let me get away with anything, but she was never cruel or capricious.

  Maya taught me that word one day.

  Maya worked her way to us, speaking briefly to Mother and smiling to me. She told me everything would be okay, and I believed her.

  It's not fair to call it a lie. She did the best she could to make everything okay.

  Then she moved on, helping to keep the other children calm while the frightening women finished bringing to the square all the villagers they could find.

  And then one began to speak. I didn't understand what she was saying, but Mama did. She wrapped her arms around me and pulled me tightly to her. That woman was rude to Juna, the scariest of the village elders, and I was sure Juna would rap her with her cane the way I'd seen her hit other people who didn't show proper respect.

  I was surprised when Juna let the woman continued to speak.

  Then three of the women began working their way through the square, looking first at this girl, then that one. One of the women stopped and looked at me for a moment. Mama tightened her grip around me, and I glared at the woman.

  I didn't like her.

  She moved on, and a moment later, she grabbed Olive, pulling her away from her mother.

  Another woman stopped to look at me. I glared at her, too. I wasn't sure I should call her a woman; she was still a teenager, younger than my sister. But then she moved on.

  The first of the three women had selected another girl, Morana. Morana and I were friends, and I stared as I watched my friend pulled away.

  "What are they going to do with her, Mama?"

  "I don't know," Mother said.

  "Will she still be in school? We're not done with school!"

  "Quiet," Mother said.

  The third woman, the teenager, worked her way through all the girls. Then I saw her stop and talk to my sister. I couldn't hear what they said, but the scary one, the one who had been rude to Juna, stepped forward, and I saw her talking to Maya and the teenage Amazon.

  Then the teenage Amazon turned away from my sister, stepping through all the villagers until she came to me. She looked at me for a moment then said, "You'll do."

  "No!" Mother said, tightening her grip. "She's too young. She's only twelve."

  "Twelve is old enough," the other girl said. She reached out and took my arm.

  And Mother let me go.

  My mother let this woman take me from her.

  I didn't know what was going on. I turned back to look at Mama, and she was crying, holding her hands out to me, but she wasn't stopping this girl as she began pulling me towards the other Amazons.

  But then Maya was there, my older sister, who took as much care of me as my own parents did. She had stolen Juna's cane and used it viciously on the girl trying to take me, hitting her several times before shoving the girl from me.

  "You can't have her!" she screamed. She stood between the girl and me, brandishing Juna's cane. My sister would protect me, just like she always did. I hid behind Maya, behind Maya where it was safe.

  But then the girl who had tried to take me drew a sword. I'd never seen a sword before, but I knew what they were: really long, sharp knives. And I had a pretty good idea what you did with them.

  All Maya had was Juna's cane, and the woman had a sword.

  My sister had always b
een bigger than I was, of course. She was ten years older. But she was not a big woman, and she liked her books and her studies far more than playing outside. I didn't think the same was true about the girl. I had visions of my sister bleeding in the grass while the girl dragged me away.

  I knew right then that Maya couldn't protect me, and so it was time for me to protect her.

  "Maya," I said, "I'll go with her."

  "No!" my sister said firmly, and when I tried to step past her, she moved in front of me, blocking me and pushing me backwards, still trying to protect me.

  But the rude woman came and she talked for a minute. She made the girl give up her sword, but instead she had a big stick, a club of some sort. Then I saw Maya trade Juna's cane for another of the big sticks.

  But then the rude woman said, "You can still kill with a staff," and I didn't want my sister to die.

  "Maya, I'll go with her," I said again.

  "No," she replied. "Go to mother, Beria." She said it in her firm voice, the one I knew to obey, and when mother pulled me away, I let her.

  The rude woman told Maya and the girl to fight, and the girl started trying to hit my sister with the big stick. Mama tried to pull me around to hide me from the fight, but I didn't let her; I stared, as the girl tried to kill my sister. I stared as my sister fought for my life and her own.

  The girl hit Maya a few times, and she almost caught her in the head; if it had connected, I was sure it would have killed my sister. But then the girl said something, and if Maya was mad before, she became furious. It was never good to make Maya angry. She began attacking and attacking and attacking, and she drove the girl backwards.

  And then Maya knocked the girl to the ground. The girl tried to cheat! I was sure it was cheating. She tried to hit Maya after my sister had won, but she missed, and then Maya hit the girl with her stick.

  And the rude woman cried, "Hold," and ordered Maya to stop fighting.

  My sister won. My sister had protected me, like she always did, like I knew she always would.

  I wouldn't have admitted it to her of course, but I had never loved her more than I did right then. Alone, she had stood up to these women, and she had saved me when no one else would help.

  But then the rude, scary woman took the big stick, handing her sword to another woman, and she turned to face Maya.

  Maya had to fight again?

  The rude woman spoke calmly. Maya yelled at her. And then the woman raised her staff and swung at my sister.

  It was a short fight. I stood in shock for a moment, but then Maya fell to her knees. The rude woman pushed her onto her stomach and began to tie my sister's hands behind her back.

  "Leave her alone!" I screamed. I pulled away from Mama and would have thrown myself onto the woman, but two of the other woman intercepted me, holding me back, bearing me backwards into Mama's arms.

  "Leave her alone!" I screamed again. "Maya!"

  The woman ignored me, and I watched helplessly as she tied my sister. I watched helplessly as she took my sister away.

  But I memorized her face. I memorized all their faces. I hated them, and if I ever saw them again, I would kill them.

  The Prodigal Sister Returns

  I didn't see or hear of my sister for a year, nearly to the day.

  Life went on, of course. There was no school for several days as Gallen's Cove recovered from the shock of losing three of her daughters, taken from us by the Amazons. I hated the Amazons, but I hated the other villagers, too, the ones who had stood by while Maya was the only one who did anything.

  Juna stepped in to teach the children while the elders interviewed teachers. On the first day back at school, I was very rude to Juna, screaming at her she should have done something, that it was her fault my sister wasn't here. She let me scream and scream, and not once did she yell at me. Not once did she brandish her cane at me.

  Then I ran from the schoolhouse. I hid, and no one found me for hours. In the end, it was my brother, Dannick, who found me, hiding in one of the boathouses. Twice others had looked for me in the boathouse, but I hid really well. But Dannick climbed into the little space I occupied; it was far too small for him, but he did it anyway.

  And then my brother, my rough brother who had never been all that kind to me, held me while I wailed, "It was supposed to be me. They took her because she wouldn't let them take me." He held me while I cried and cried, not saying anything until I was done.

  And then he said, "It wasn't your fault, Beria. It was their fault."

  "It was Juna's fault!"

  "No. It was the Amazons and only the Amazons. They all had swords, and we had nothing. They are all trained to fight. They are trained to kill."

  "We had so many, and there weren't that many of them."

  "All of you might have stopped them, but many would have died. Many, many would have died, Beria. You know our sister would have been fighting in front, and she would have been the first to die.

  About Maya, Mother and Father would only say, "Your sister will be an Amazon now." But I knew they were wrong. My sister would never be that kind of woman. My sister was firm, but kind; she would never do what those women did, taking girls from their homes like that.

  They wouldn't answer when I asked when Maya was coming home. Then they wouldn't answer when I asked if she was coming home.

  I burned with hatred for the Amazons.

  Juna taught us through the end of the school year. Mama took me back to school early the next day before all the other children. Juna was waiting, sitting at her desk. She stood slowly when we walked in and hobbled around to stand waiting for us. Mama marched me straight to her. I was sure Juna would hit me with her cane and then Mama would make me apologize.

  Instead she said, "Beria, I am so very sorry. I am an old woman, and I fight only with my words, and they were immune to them. I am so very sorry. I hope some day you can forgive me."

  I stared at her for a while; she and Mama let me think about it. Finally I said, "Dannick told me it wasn't your fault. It wasn't our fault. He said if we had fought them, many of us would have died. Maya would have died."

  "Your brother is probably right," Juna said. "Nori -- she's the one who took Maya -- anticipated we might fight, and she was very clear what would happen. She said they didn't want to hurt us, and they wouldn't hurt the girls they take. But they were taking three girls with them, and if we resisted, people would get hurt. If a lot of us resisted, people would die. Beria, they won't hurt Maya. They need her. Do you understand?"

  I shook my head.

  "But it wasn't your fault," I said. "I shouldn't have screamed at you. I'm sorry. If you have to hit me with your cane, I understand."

  "I'm not going to hit you, Beria. You said the words I've been thinking. You'll never understand how sorry I am they took Maya."

  And so, we forgave each other, and she even asked if she could hug me.

  Summer came, the time for planting and working the fields for many living near Gallen's Cove, and we had no school. Over the summer, I turned thirteen. I repaired fishing nets, helped clean fish when the boats came in, and helped mother in the house.

  And sometimes I took Maya's skiff out onto the cove, sailing it the way she had taught me. And I cried, but I didn't tell anyone.

  Autumn came; school began with a new teacher, an unpleasant woman named Mrs. Wrenhouse. She was a big woman who waddled as much as she walked, with a loud voice, and she smelled. All the children hated her. She liked to carry a ruler, and if she didn't like what we were doing, she would whack us across the knuckles or on top of our heads. She ruled the school through our fear of her, and for the first time in my life, I wished I were a boy.

  Boys in Gallen's Cove only attend school until they turn fourteen, but as a girl, I would have to stay until I was eighteen. I couldn't stand the thought of another five years learning from Mrs. Wrenhouse.

  I missed Maya even more. She was a big sister, and sometimes that was hard, but she was a lot, lot better t
han Mrs. Wrenhouse.

  Spring arrived. And one night my Grandma Alara came to have dinner with us. She spoke quietly to Mama, and when Father arrived home from a day at sea, she spoke quietly to him, and they both cried together, but they were smiling.

  I didn't understand.

  Over dinner though, Father said, "Beria, boys, your Grandmother brings us good news. Maya is coming home for a visit."

  Dannick immediately asked, "When?" and when he got a chance, Chandor asked, "Will she be the school teacher again. Mrs. Wrenhouse is mean!"

  "In a few days," answered the first question and, "I don't know," answered the second.

  But I saw Mama, and she had tears in her eyes.

  The day Maya came to Gallen's Cove, I didn't recognize her at first. I didn't see her arrive, as we were all in school, but there was a commotion outside, and soon Mrs. Wrenhouse was yelling at all of us to behave and pay attention. She swatted Matto Briarwood with her ruler then walked up and down the rows of desks, glaring at all of us. We stared at our hands, not even making faces as she passed us.

  Mrs. Wrenhouse had eyes in the back of her head, and none of us was fond of her ruler.

  But then the school doors opened, and Mr. Bardon stepped in. Mr. Bardon used to be the village blacksmith; now his son held that job, but he was one of the village elders along with Juna and my grandmother. "Mrs. Wrenhouse," Mr. Bardon said, "I am sorry to interrupt. But the Amazons are here, and we must assemble for them."

  The children all grew quiet; we all remembered when they had come last year. But I grew excited. My sister was here!

  "Very well," Mrs. Wrenhouse said after a moment. "Children, put your things away, but remember you have book reports due tomorrow, and the arrival of our guests is no excuse not to finish them."

  Thirty seconds later, the schoolhouse was empty of children as we all poured forth to see the Amazons, some of us with dread, but at least one of us with the excitement of seeing her sister. I wasn't the first one out of the schoolhouse, but I was far from the last as well.

  When I arrived in the square, however, I didn't see Maya. There were Amazon women clustered in small groups here and there, and townspeople everywhere. At the head of the square, workmen had assembled a small stage, and there were rows of chairs, benches and even bales of straw for us to sit on. I looked around, but I couldn't find Maya. I could always find her in a crowd: she had all that hair. But everywhere I looked were Amazons in their leather clothes, some in short hair, some with it braided down her back, but I couldn't find Maya.