Through twelve evocative tales of longing and loss, Exiles Incorporated depicts a volatile world of hostile landscapes, where humans strive to belong amid the cruelty of conquest, the madness of desire and the transience of love. In the ninth story, set on the Aleutian island of Attu in the 18th century, a mythical creature’s fur inspires a lady to endure a lifetime of cruelty and isolation.
“Tell me a story that will protect me forever.”
The girl’s whisper drowned in silent dark. She snuggled deeper into her blanket. The further I go, the more daddy will want to come back.
“I will always protect you, darling.”
A voice from the blackness. Her mother. No shape, smell or touch. But she was there. Always would be, even in memory. Like the ground beneath her feet and the air lifting her lungs.
“Ours is a love as old as the hills.”
The warm words cloaked the child like soft armour. They were each other’s protectors. Safe in secret spaces only the two of them could go. The deepest cave. The highest peak. The quietest, most contemplative corners of their hearts.
“What if you don’t stay? Like daddy.”
Mother was thinking about that too. That sleep with no end.
“There will come a time when you won’t be here,” probed the girl. “Then I will need your story. For comfort and courage.”
“Comfort and courage. They’re different things.”
“The best stories do both, don’t they? The best people give you both. Like daddy. Before he went away.”
“They do indeed. Very well then. A story. For comfort and courage. A tale you can wrap yourself in till the end of your days.”
Mother’s magic spun slow and terse. She weaved the story from thin air and the confluence of all nature offered. Lapping waves. Hurtling storms. Stubborn rock. Winds blasting barren terrain. A tale as immovable as a mountain; a sleeping stone giant cradling a tiny, fragile mystery within.
“Where are you now, child?”
“I’m with you, mummy.”
“No. That’s not how stories work. Where are you now?”
“In a far-off place.”
“Yes, that’s right. An island.”
“What’s it called?”
“Attu.”
“Where’s that mummy?”
“In the Aleutians. A chain of islands between Russia and Alaska. They curve the top of the Pacific like jewels in a necklace. Attu lies at the most western end. For some it would be nearest east. A lonely place, shrouded in mist.”
White lights blinked in the child’s mind. Twinkling and twisting through patches of thick grey, like ancestral beacons guiding her to safety.
“Attu is called the birthplace of the winds. The Pacific’s warm air meets the frigid currents of the Bering Sea to create huge gales and…”
“And what mummy?”
“No. You need to imagine it yourself.”
Beyond the grey, the little girl saw the island materialise through sheets of hail. The land’s contours rolled like the rise of the hip and the swelling of a breast. Through the tumult came the soft curves of a girl’s face. She had a pretty nose, hungry mouth and dark, fearful eyes.
“Once upon a time, there was a woman in Attu called Amka,” said mother. “When she was a child, her father went away and didn’t come back. But she learned how to protect herself.”
Squawking birds. Splinters of rain. Violent tides ripping on the rocks of blackened bays. Lanterns glowing within tiny shelters made from grass. Families seeking comfort in treeless land. Plants swaying with the whipping winds. Men on shore and at sea, clothed in animal skin. Hunting for crabs, cod and walrus. Mountains crowned in snow, even during the warm seasons, when flowers rushed from the ground under oases of sunlight. Colours died as quickly as they sprung, beauty surrendering to seething gales.
“How did she protect herself, mummy?”
“The secret came to her as a little girl during a bedtime story,” said mother. “Just like this one. A story told by her father. He was tall, strong and gentle. Loving and kind. One night he wrapped her tight in a wonderful gift. To keep her warm from the winds and forever in touch with the land. A magical piece of fur…”
Exiles Incorporated is available to buy on Apple Books, Amazon and Google Play as an e-book, plus on Amazon and Barnes & Noble as a paperback.
PHILIP PARRISH 