“Why did you come to me?” he asked.
“You know why,” she answered, like a challenge. “You may have fooled everyone else with that business about theoretical discussions and postulating what the foxen think, but I think that was real, at least partly. I think you know things the rest of us don’t know. About the Hippae, maybe. About the foxen. About what goes on out there in the grasses.”
“You want to find your daughter.”
“Of course I want to find my daughter.”
“Even if she is like the other girl. Janetta bon Maukerden. Even if your daughter is like that?”
“Damn it,” Tony interjected angrily. “Did you have to bring that up?”
Brother Mainoa gave him a long, measuring look. “Of course I did, young man. I don’t know where your sister is. I know the Hippae took her. I wasn’t at your reception, but I’ve heard about Janetta bon Maukerden showing up. I’ve talked with Jandra Jellico on the tell-me. I’ve heard what happens when the Hippae take young women, and you’ve seen it for yourself. Before we all risk our lives on something hideously dangerous, it’s best to know that we really want to, wouldn’t you say?”
“Hush, Tony,” said Father James to the angry boy. “The man is right.”
Rillibee/Lourai got up from his place by the wall and refilled their teacups. “They had Janetta for a long time. They’ve only had Stella since today.” He sounded more concerned than Marjorie had expected, in the light of Brother Mainoa’s comments.
Brother Mainoa nodded. “My colleague is right. There is hope that if we find Stella—assuming that is soon—she might not be … very different than she was when she vanished.”
“It wouldn’t matter,” Father James said tiredly. “Even if we knew she would be like that other girl, if we have any chance of success we must still try to find her. Not if it means certain destruction, however. I will not allow that, Marjorie, so set the idea aside. We must have some hope of succeeding.”
“You’ve been out there, haven’t you?” Marjorie demanded of Brother Mainoa once more. “You’ve seen things and the Hippae haven’t killed you.”
“I had protection,” Brother Mainoa said. “Protection to go alone into the grass and look at things. I have no idea whether we can obtain protection to go into the grasses and look for someone. It might be better to let me try it alone.”
She shook her head. No. Not alone. She herself had to go. “Now, at once!”
“No. Not at once,” he cut her off. “Soon, but not at once. Since we returned from Opal Hill, Brother Lourai and I have been trying to make sense of that design you showed us. Many volumes of Arbai books have already been filed with the tell-me computers at Commons. They have a link with the network on Semling. Brother Lourai and I have been feeding in the designs carved on the doors and the houses. Within hours we may have some … some indication that there are correlations.”
“Is that more important than Stella’s life?” Marjorie was incredulous.
“It could be the key to Stella’s life,” he said patiently. “If the design in the Hippae cavern has meaning, if it seems they comprehend that meaning, perhaps it gives us a way to reach them. Wait here. It may be only an hour or two.”
It was less than an hour before the report came, peeping out of the tell-me into a portable link-reader that Brother Lourai had ready. When all the information had been recorded, Brother Mainoa pocketed the device and got hurriedly to his feet, summoning the others with a gesture. “I’ve skimmed over it. We won’t take time to study it now. Remember that we can see nothing helpful from the air. We must go on foot. And we must start from where Stella started. The bon Damfels estancia.” He turned toward the door, leaving his other papers on the table behind him.
“Not on foot,” Marjorie contradicted him as she put her still-damp cloak around her. “No, Brother Mainoa. We can do better than that. We’ll go on horseback.”
Rigo had gone first into the house for a drink. After a few glasses of the excellent brandy Roald Few had provided, Rigo had gone to look for his family, not finding Marjorie or Tony or even Father James when he went down to the priests’ house. Father Sandoval told him they had gone.