They walked the entire day, climbing only a few evergreen covered hills but most of the trip was downhill and easy walking. They saw no signs of people or that anyone had recently used the path they walked. Ann taught Tad songs to march to, and they all tried to keep in step, three left feet striking the ground at the same time. At least, that was the intention.
Their missteps caused many giggles and a few laughs. Their songs helped passed the time, especially the silly ones with words they made up. Late in the day the vegetation changed to larger cedar and fir trees, and the underbrush increased. Gareth told them he’d like to make an early camp, again.
The death of Ramos bothered him greatly, and would for a long time. But, there were other subjects needing his attention, most of which involved sitting and using his mind for things other than mourning the tragic death of the boy. Ann found them a perfect place beside a rushing stream and tiny yellow flowers in full bloom. As she had done two nights before, she offered to feed and care for Tad while gathering firewood, thus allowing Gareth to sit on his blanket and communicate with the world.
He first found Blackie with the familiar touch of his mind. The dragon perched on a barren cliff-face not far away. It had kept pace with them during the day, resting until they got ahead and then catching up again and again. It had gorged itself on two deer and a goat, and it was now ready to sleep away the night, contented and as protective as a watchdog.
The next mental touch was to the Brother, who had tried to contact him the night before. He tried repeatedly and failed. Then he reached out to listen to the ten thousand minds all thinking their own thoughts at the same time. He hoped to find people in authority who knew accurate information about the Brotherhood, Sisterhood, and King. Anything that might help. A general in the army or a senior Brother or Sister involved in the negotiations would be best, but instead of reaching the expected turmoil of the blended voices he heard nothing of the familiar chatter, and he sat straight up.
It was not only that he heard nothing of the subjects he was interested in. It was that he heard only a few people when there should be thousands and thousands, an occurrence so profound and unusual it startled him back to reality.
The near silence in the mental community had him questioning his abilities. But he heard Blackie, and Tad was there just under his conscious thought. Ann was normal, and he briefly touched her mind, drawing a glance from her in his direction. Besides them, there were perhaps ten others. The near silence terrified him. He searched for a reason.
Had he lost his abilities? Had Belcher managed to do something to him? As he floundered in thought, he realized the mountains were probably blocking his abilities. For a brief instant, he’d imagined Belcher had killed everyone on this side is the mountains, but he still only had ten other minds he could reach.
“Tad, can you hear other minds? I mean all of them?”
“Just us and a few new ones.”
Fighting to put the information in order he considered. He couldn’t communicate over the mountains with his mind. He could understand how they might block him, or at least he could accept the concept, if not the reason. True, they were high, and it had already taken two days to journey cross over them. He didn’t know why his thoughts didn’t reach over them, but he had never listened to people on this side of the mountains, he realized, so until he knew more, he needed to accept the limitation.
But he couldn’t let it go. He had heard people on the mainland across the sea when living on Bitters Island. So it had nothing to do with distance, but the blocking of the mountains. Again, he could accept that.
Yet today, he only sensed the presence of ten people at most. Ten. That’s all. The lack of people he could touch minds with rattled him. Where were they and why so few?
The feeling was one of error. There had to be more people living on this side of the mountains. His breath started coming in ragged gasps that had nothing to do with the thin air and everything to do with panic. A whole land and only ten people living in it? It didn’t make sense.
He struggled to find the rest of the people he knew had to be out there, near or far. Another idea came to him. If ten was all there were, and Belcher had crossed the mountains with four boys, and that was half of the population he sensed. If ten was all that lived here, then all children living here must be sensitive—but that couldn’t be right.
Could Belcher have killed all who lived here? Was he about to do the same to the coastal areas? Gareth found his hands trembling. He looked up to find both Ann and Tad gawking at him.
Tad came to his side and stood, his eyes sad and expression dour. He said, “Grandpa, can I help?”
“No, I’m just having trouble speaking to people across the mountains.”
“I know that. I can hear you trying.” Tad sat without asking. “Let me join my thoughts with yours.”
“What do you mean?”
Tad said, as if it was the most natural of things, “Working together our thoughts will go further. I won’t say anything, but I’ll try to make yours stronger when they combine with mine. I think that’s how Belcher knew to come to us. He heard us with the help of the other boys.”
Gareth had never spoken to Tad about the limits or possibilities of their minds, but the boy was now acting as if he already knew more than Gareth. He said, “Okay, Tad. I’m going to let you try to join with me.”
Letting down some of the protective layers to allow the boy access gave Gareth a sense of danger, but he was prepared to snap them back into place at the slightest provocation from Belcher. A new sensation touched him gently, and he identified it as Tad, who was stumbling cautiously as a man feeling his way on a dark night.
Tad centered on one specific portion of Gareth’s mind and concentrated. Gareth felt and recognized the effort and allowed the energy to flow. In his usual manner, he reached out to find the Brother, feeling the additional power provided by Tad. In the process, he again felt the touch of tens of thousands of minds across the mountains.
*There you are. I was wondering when you would reach out to me.*
The mental voice was the familiar one of the man who had been his teacher for so many years in Dun Mare. Gareth responded, “We have traveled to the far side of the mountains, and our mind-speak is weak.”
*Odd that you should say that. It is stronger now than I have heard in many years.*
Gareth didn’t wish to explain Tad and his abilities. Instead, he chose to change the subject. “Do you have any news of the Brotherhood, Sisterhood, and King?”
*I do. All have agreed to band with you against this invader you call Belcher.*
Gareth was relieved, although it was the answer he expected. He said, “Listen to me in confidence for this. I sense only ten voices on this side of the mountains.”
There was a pause, a hesitation. And puzzlement. *One would expect far more than ten sensitives if, as you say, several crossed to our side with Belcher.*
“No, you misunderstand. I only hear ten people in total.”
*Impossible. Not to correct you, but that cannot be right.*
The reaction was almost as strong as Gareth felt. He said, “I agree. Before we do anything else, I must investigate.”