Lagoonfire by Francesca Forrest

Lagoonfire by Francesca Forrest

Author:Francesca Forrest [Forrest, Francesca]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Annorlunda Books
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00


I was aware of heads turning as I made my way past the ranks of benches, and as I reached the entrance doors, I realized several people were following me.

There was the elderly crossing guard and a man in a gardener’s smock who stood proprietorially close to her. There was a young woman in a sanitary worker’s coveralls, and a pale-skinned, middle-aged man whose right arm hung unresponsively at his side.

“Did you see Professor Ninin?” the crossing guard asked, palms pressed together in supplication. “Is he all right? We’re so worried about him.”

“He w-would never do anything w-wrong,” the middle-aged man said. “It’s g-got to be some kind of…” his mouth twisted for a moment “m-mistake.”

“He’s the best teacher I ever had,” declared the sanitary worker.

“I did. I did see him,” I said. Their anxious faces wrung my heart. “He’s…” It was no good; I couldn’t lie about his situation or state of mind, so I changed direction. “He’s lucky to have such devoted students. Having people stand by you at times like this helps.”

“We all got summoned for questioning,” the sanitary worker said, scowling. “But they haven’t even called us yet. It’s taking forever—we’re going to lose a whole day’s pay.”

“And they won’t tell us anything,” the crossing guard said. Then, hopefully, “Are you an advocate?”

“No Kavia,” said the gardener. “Don’t you see the badge? That’s Ministry of Divinities.”

The crossing guard’s face fell. “Oh! Oh yes, I see. I beg your pardon.”

“That’s quite all right. I want to help Mr. Ninin—Professor Ninin—if I can.”

“Osh Kavia!” barked the officer at the front of the reception hall.

“That’s me!” said the crossing guard, wide-eyed. “It’s my turn.”

“We’ll go up together,” said the gardener, slipping his arm through hers.”

“T-Tren’s come out,” said the middle-aged man, pointing with his good hand to the door I’d come through moments earlier. The little group returned to the front of the hall, the gardener escorting the crossing guard to the high desk and the other two heading for their classmate.

I pushed the heavy front doors open. The scent of steaming asphalt and vehicle emissions greeted me, with other odors threading through the humid air—tobacco, garbage, perfume. There must have been a cloudburst while I’d been inside: the gutters hemming the streets were tiny rushing rivers, and the vehicles’ wheels hissed over the sheen of water that couldn’t be channeled away.

I checked my unicom and found a message from Ms. Bama. Laloran-morna was back at home. I did some quick mental calculations, then sent her a message saying to expect company and approximately when. Then I sent a message to Nakona, the only one of the retired Sweet Harbor gods who has the knack for using a unicom. “Can you reserve a boat for moon viewing tonight?” I recorded. “For Lolo. Send the others to fetch him. His Compassionate Care attendant will help you.”

What about you? Aren’t you coming? she sent back. It pained me not to answer, but I couldn’t. Instead, I headed briskly for the nearest



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