She began to climb, with surprising agility for someone so old, and was soon disappearing into the leafy canopy above them. Merrick gestured at Elise. “Go on, baby, I’ll be right behind you.”
Elise was a little nervous about the fact that she wasn’t wearing anything under her leaf-towel. Merrick had seen everything up close and personal but she still felt embarrassed about the idea of him looking up at her as she climbed. “No, it’s okay,” she said, motioning to the tree. “You go ahead. I’ll follow.”
He frowned. “No, you go first. Come on, the Elders aren’t going to wait. We have to go now.”
“All right.” Clearly there was no point in fighting about it. Grasping the vines, she began pulling herself up. And up and up…Soon she began to wonder if the massive tree was ever going to end. Her first climb up the side of the tree, to reach Merrick, was nothing compared to the journey they were going on now. And no puny rock-climbing wall at the gym could have prepared her for the effort it took to keep on going up the side of the tree. But she had to—there was no place to rest. Her arms began to feel like rubber and her legs trembled with fatigue and still they climbed.
At last Elise stopped for a moment and clung to the side of the tree.
“What’s wrong?” she heard Merrick ask and felt his concern for her through their bond. “Are you all right?”
“Fine,” she lied, trying to make her voice bright and cheerful. “Just a little tired but I’m okay. Is it…is it much farther?”
“Not far now, girl-child.” Mother-Healer’s voice floated down out of the leaves above. “Come, the Elders await.”
“All right—I’m coming.” Forcing herself to go on, Elise reached for the next dark blue ridge of vine to pull herself up. She tried to dig her fingers into the rough, rope-like tendril but somehow they wouldn’t close. With a gasp, she lost her grip and began to fall backwards.
Strong arms caught her and the shriek that had been building in her throat was abruptly cut off as Merrick threw her over one broad shoulder. “That’s why I wanted to go last,” he grumbled as he began climbing again. “So I could catch you if you fell—not just to look up at your legs. Although I admit the view is very fucking nice.”
“Merrick!” She slapped weakly at his back but he just rumbled laughter and kept climbing.
Elise concentrated on catching her breath and tried not to look down from the dizzying height she now found herself at. She had to admit she was glad Merrick had insisted she go first—if he hadn’t, she knew she would be a blob of jelly on the ground far below by now.
“Merrick?” she said in a low voice, hoping he could hear her.
“Mmm?” was the rumbling response.
“Thank you,” Elise whispered. “Do…do you think we’re going to be all right? Will they really want to kill us?”
“Not if I have anything to say about it.” His deep voice was grim. “Look, baby, try not to worry about it. The Ancient Ones are severe but they’re also known to be fair. I doubt they’ll try to kill us after everything they’ve already put us through.”
“Put you through, you mean,” she murmured and vowed again to herself that Merrick would take no more punishments for her.
He grunted. “Whatever. The point is, just be polite and if things get out of hand, stick close to me. All right?”
“I won’t leave your side,” Elise promised.
“What, not even if a billib comes along?” he asked dryly.
“Not even then.” She tried to laugh but her throat was too dry. She knew Merrick was just trying to lighten up the situation but it was difficult to ignore the gravity of what they were about to face.
They stopped talking and despite Mother-Healer saying that it wasn’t much further, Merrick climbed for another quarter of an hour before he finally stepped out onto a branch no wider than a sidewalk. They were very high up now, so high Elise felt like the air was different—thinner somehow, and more difficult to breathe. The leaves were smaller and farther apart, giving Elise a glimpse of the sky. The blue canopy above them was deepening to twilight, bruise colored and silent.
“Here we are,” Merrick murmured and she saw he was pointing at a small, leafy hut placed far out from the central trunk, on the intersection of two slender branches. Mother-Healer was already standing beside the doorway, beckoning impatiently. Elise looked at the old woman with new respect—she might be ancient but she was a hell of a climber.
“How are we supposed to get over there?” she asked, eyeing the apparently inaccessible hut. “Walk along those branches like a tightrope?”