Brave Story - Miyuki Miyabe [178]
Wataru’s earlier shout of surprise had brought Toni running out into the street. With no hesitation he picked her up off the ground and carried her inside. Wataru and his friends took advantage of the situation and shuffled into the workshop. Until she opened her eyes, Toni hovered protectively by Elza’s side, and wouldn’t let anyone approach the bed.
“I bet they’re lovers,” Meena whispered to Wataru. “And Elza’s the branch chief’s only daughter—that’s drama just waiting to happen.”
Elza sat up, and when she saw Wataru and the others, she immediately began introducing them to Toni.
He shook his head. “Who cares about them? How do you feel? Are you all right?” Toni asked worriedly, trying to keep her from sitting up. “Your heart is weak. How many times have I told you—you shouldn’t be running.”
Elza smiled weakly. “I’m sorry, you’re right. I guess I’m still just a child at heart.”
“You came chasing after us. Thank you. Are you okay?” Wataru asked from behind Toni. The craftsman whirled sharply around.
“It’s your fault,” he said coldly.
“Please, Toni. Don’t be that way to them,” Elza said, taking his hands into her own. “They’ve come from Gasara searching for one of their friends. Yes, they’re Highlanders, but they just arrived here and only spoke to my father briefly.”
Toni Fanlon rubbed his forehead. His mouth was still curved into a jagged frown. “All Highlanders are the same.”
“That’s not true. I’ve not been to Gasara, but I hear it is quite lively. There’re all sorts of people there, all races and classes, living together, no?” Elza looked each of the three in the face as she asked them. They all nodded in agreement. She then grabbed Toni’s hands and looked into his eyes. “Please…things are different in other towns. Don’t judge them based on the Highlanders here.”
“Erm…” Kee Keema began hesitantly, scratching at his cheek with a long hooked claw. “Sorry to interrupt, but could somebody explain what’s going on here?”
“Yes, of course,” Elza said, catching her breath and blushing. Then, leaning on Toni’s arm for support, she sat up.
“I’m guessing there’s a difference of opinion between your father—the branch chief—and Mr. Fanlon, here?”
“Opinion!” Toni said, his anger rising again. “That racist has no right to an opinion.”
“Can you please not get angry like that, just once?” Elza said with a laugh. Wataru and Meena smiled too. Toni’s scowl only darkened.
“He’s my father, so perhaps it’s not my place to say this…” Elza began, looking down at the floor. “But my father, he thinks that ankha are superior to the other races.”
“But isn’t Pam the branch chief? How can he do a fair job of keeping the peace if he’s prejudiced?”
“Who says it’s fair?” Toni said bitterly. “The non-ankha in town can’t go to the Highlanders for protection. No matter what happens—theft, burglary, arson—if the victim isn’t an ankha, the Lyris branch won’t budge. More than that, if the criminal in question happens to be an ankha, they erase all record of the incident off the books, and let them go free.”
“That’s terrible!” Kee Keema exclaimed.
“Worse, should a non-ankha commit a crime against an ankha, or even injure them or damage property by mistake, they are arrested without question. Sometimes they’re killed on the spot without a trial, or brought back to the branch cells where they are tortured to death.” Toni clenched his fists. “And things have gotten worse lately. When something happens to an ankha, there’s no investigation, they just assume it was a non-ankha who did it. They pick a likely suspect from the houses near the victim, say poverty was the motive, and take them into detention. We all know what happens next.”
It sounded like South Africa during apartheid. “Are there other kinds of discrimination in daily life here? Like separate facilities for different races?” Wataru asked.
Toni’s eyes opened wide. “There sure is. How did you know?”
“I know of a similar situation in another place,” Wataru replied. I saw it in a movie once.
Toni folded his arms across his chest. He walked over to