Chasing Blue- The Final Saga (Book 4)

Chapter 13: Meeting at the Crossroads

"How do you know the way?" I questioned.

Clitus looked up at the sun now veiled under a gauze of gray. "I will find the way. The stars will guide me."

"But it is daytime." What made him so familiar in a land so foreign? I certainly had no idea what road or path to take. Did Clitus have a map I did not know about? I crossed my arms against my chest. "We need a map or something. Do you have one?"

Without a word Clitus dug into a leather pouch attached to his belt, one of the few things he possessed. Emerging from the pouch was a scrunched up piece of parchment.

I smiled. "This works. Can I see it?" I asked. Clitus hesitated before handing me the map. As I unraveled the rolled up parchment, contour lines of lands and isles sprawled across the page. Then I saw the peninsula we were at, Italy, in tiny Latin. As my eyes scoured the map, I turned the parchment around thinking that maybe the constellations were written on the back. It was blank. Then I saw a small inscription. A name I knew all too well.

Philemon.

I looked up from the parchment. "You took Philemon's map?"

"It was one of his copies. I was teaching myself to read it for the day... never mind," he muttered, shaking his head. He reached for the parchment that still lay clutched in my hands. There was no way I was going to convince Clitus to rejoin the crew. I assumed he was aware of the crew's suspicion that he purposely abandoned Philemon on the boat. I was beginning to think the same thing. Even the very mention of Philemon made Clitus' uneasy. Clearly he did not want to talk about it. Yet it dawned on me that Clitus accompanied Philemon on many of his travels. He was the only one who held the last of Philemon's secrets.

I made up my mind. The crew was staying behind but I was moving on. Clitus and I walked down the long cobblestone road stretching north. We were not quite sure what district we were in and how far we had to go; we just knew that something just felt right about this path. During the long walk, I had the chance to take in the scenery of the lush meadows that surrounded us. The plains quickly elevated into rugged hills that dotted the landscape. As the clouds slowly parted, the warm sun made no haste to beat down on our bodies. After a couple of hours of walking without letup I was already covered in sweat.

"You have any water?" I rasped.

Tucked underneath his tunic was a skin bottle, hung around his neck like a pendant on a necklace. I almost snatched it right out of his hands as I aimed the opening straight for my mouth.

"Careful. We have to make it last," Clitus muttered. I wiped my lips before handing him the skin bottle.

"I know," I sighed. Clitus pursed his lips together as he secured the skin bottle away. "Maybe we should take a break somewhere."

He shrugged. "There are no homes or inns in sight."

"We will find one...I hope," I added. I was beginning to realize I had made another foolish decision to leave with Clitus. Neither one of us were really prepared for the trip. However Clitus did possess a few items that I was not aware of before: a map, a skin bottle of water, a piece of crusty bread, and a few money coins he likely salvaged from the ship. But between the two of us how far would those items last? So much for acting out of impulse! I was tired of walking. Tired of not having anything to eat but a few moldy crumbs, tired of not having much to drink, not having a home to call my own. Just tired! I plopped down on the side of the road. Sensing my discomfort, Clitus took a seat beside me on the road. I watched him scratch his shoulder blade before staring into space. It was then I first noticed the black numerals tattooed on his left shoulder blade. I shifted my focus on something else.