The Topaz Quest by Gill Vickery

Author:Gill Vickery
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Published: 2013-10-16T21:00:00+00:00

‘What are sorting sheds?’ Tia asked as they set off.

‘It’s where the threads are sorted from the flower and dried in ovens to make the spice.’

‘But you said that’s where the Outsiders live.’

‘They do. There’s living lofts over the sorting area and they stay there till the harvest’s done.’

‘Then what happens?’

‘The Lady Luona opens the pass and they leave.’

‘Where do they go?’

Yonas shrugged uncomfortably. ‘I don’t know. Stop asking so many questions.’

He quickly climbed over the wall and hurried off. Tia wondered why her questions had annoyed him.

When they reached the trees Yonas reached up into an apple tree and pulled down a branch so they could pick the fruit.

Tia tugged off an apple and risked another question. ‘How long does the harvest last?’

‘Only twenty days.’

‘Twenty days! I won’t have any back left at the end of it!’

Yonas laughed. ‘You’ll get used to it. Here we are.’

The ugly, long, two-storey building was well hidden by trees. Tia thought they looked as if they’d been planted on purpose to hide the grubby painted walls and the roof full of holes patched with branches and leaves. The windows running all down one side of the ground floor were filled with precious glass but it was cracked and dirty.

Yonas and Tia went inside. Three long tables stretched from end to end of the room with rows of people sitting at them on benches; each person had a pile of purple flowers in front of them and a small bowl. They were carefully opening the flowers, pulling out the three red threads and dropping them into the bowls. They did this in silence as a man and woman walked up and down inspecting the work. At each end of the room an open clay oven smouldered with fire-rock, making the air hot and oppressive.

Tia and Yonas gently tipped their flowers onto an empty table at the top of the room then left quickly. Tia was glad to be outside again. She sat on the bottom step of a flight of stairs running up to a door on the upper storey and took deep breaths of fresh air.

The door jerked open and an Outsider woman in shabby clothes came hurrying down. Tia stood up to let her pass but the woman banged into her and she went sprawling on the grass.

‘I’m sorry,’ the woman said. She pulled Tia up, brushed grass and leaves from her jacket, apologised again, then rushed away and disappeared among the trees. Tia and Yonas looked at each other, startled; it had happened so quickly and the woman had behaved so strangely.

Are you all right?’ Yonas asked.

‘Yes, just surprised.’

‘Off to the fields, then,’ Yonas said.

With a groan Tia picked up her basket and followed him to the plain.

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