(Book 2) Hayden Mackay and The Tears of the Maiden

12. Cowboy's Bar

Shards of sunlight pierced through the silhouette of trees, the clearing ahead of us was brightly lit after many days of gloom. The light refreshed us as it shined brilliantly, and it gave us hope. The breath taking view was a balm to our souls. We had spent the night inside a cavernous hollow of a tree- that was the best we could do. After walking for hours, Celina finally gave up on walking and couldn't go on anymore. The hollow was heaven sent and I wouldn't have noticed it, hadn't I tried to use my stone to warm us up.

     It was just enough for Celina and Tyrell to squeeze in, I sat at the mouth warming us all. It was a tight fit, but it was better than nothing. We were all too tired the day before and too much imbued in our own thoughts to be good company.

The morning was a beautiful sight, but we were all left with the longing of being able use the Holognome. Pruthvi had been lucky, I really wished that I could see my parents once again and talk all that had been unsaid. For a moment I envied Pruthvi's and Leena's luck in stumbling upon the infernal instrument but then I deliberated. Would ten minutes be enough to say what I wanted to say? I didn't think so.

"I wish I could talk to my parents," said Tyrell. "I don't even know which of them belonged to this place."

    "Do you really think that's the question you want to ask them?" Celina asked.

    "What would you ask?" said Tyrell turning his head towards her.

    "I don't know," she said shrugging, "I honestly don't know what to say or what to ask. Seeing them again would be enough."

    "Oh come on! Of course, you do" said Tyrell, "You do know it was your mother. So..."

    "I know my mom was from India," she interrupted, "I don't think she was from Paramarashtra."

How naïve is she? I thought shaking my head mentally. "Celina, I thought my mom was from India too but now I highly doubt it."

    "No you don't get it," she said furiously, turning around and facing us, "My mom is really from India. I have seen pictures of her childhood. She is from New Delhi. She always told me about her cousins back there, their childhood stories, the pranks that they played that I felt it was annoying as I was least interested. What wouldn't I give now to be annoyed again. I just wish she was here."

    I stared at her. She was providing us with an obvious hint but I seriously tried to ignore it.

    But Tyrell couldn't just stop. "So you think it's your father? Have you seen any of his pictures?"

    "Nope! Nothing at all. He always said it was better to make new memories rather than to think about what was lost. He told us a grand tale of escaping a raging inferno and how they had lost everything but rejoiced the fact that they still had their family." 

      There was a softening in her features and a smile spread on her face as she dwelled on the memories with her father.   

      I wondered what other secrets Paramarashtra held, if Celina's dad was the one?

       Tyrell laughed. "Hello, you are a Hanslay, remember? You are an American."

"Though we have American citizenship, my father was British."

My eyebrows shot up instantly.

"Why didn't you tell me?" said Tyrell standing akimbo. Anger slowly surfaced on his face and his eyes turning red. "All these years we have been friends, and you didn't think of sharing it with me?"

      "I thought it wasn't great deal where my father's roots were. I thought we are friends because we trust each other and what does our parents have to do with this, uh?