Our sense of defeat was palpable as we headed back toward Mount Oniz. We had soon cleared the northeastern section of town and were trudging along through the muddy soup that presently served as the grasslands lying between Sprinkleton and our destination. The birds that trilled overhead were far too excitable for my liking, and in my past life I might have dropped one or two with a quick toss of my weapon. I was hoping for the best but expecting the worst. Knowing my sister's character, I concluded that she would not have returned to the safety of our home unless Klaus had either managed to avoid capture or had otherwise escaped from captivity. Limerence's words pierced my...heart, or whatever we gingerbread cookies possess that is comparable to a heart. He had tried to harm us with his callous words, of course, but there was a truthfulness to them; it was likely that Ginger was a co-captive with our rodent ally, and none of us knew just how long she would be in that position.
At some point in our journey, Agapa indicated that she wished to speak with me, and so we tethered Limerence to a sapling and placed him under Dave's scrutiny while we walked some ways off into the distance. We could see the majestic trees of Mount Oniz towering high along the slope and shining with green splendor. Although we had only been away for a few days, to me it had felt like a lifetime, and part of me desired to turn home despite the unfortunate circumstances.
"I was aware of Lim's stubbornness," Agapa confessed with a whisper, "but I did not know the extent until now. He will not give up the location of our friends easily."
"If at all," I replied. I kept one eye on Dave; he seemed trustworthy enough, but there was always the chance we were wrong about him. "So what do you think we should do? Are you going to hurt him?"
"It it a great act of love to fight to protect the weak or to preserve a righteous cause. But torture? No, Molasses, I cannot justify torture."
I released a sigh. "Well, just keep in mind that we're bringing our captive to a group of cookies with varying opinions and temperaments. Most of them would agree that no harm should come to Limerence. Others would be more than happy to inflict pain if it meant getting our loved ones back."
"I understand. So what is your proposal?"
"I think we should hide Limerence somewhere that our fellow cookies are unlikely to find him--a place that only we know about, where we can question him until he finally gives us the answers we're looking for."
Agapa appeared dubious. "That would mean keeping a significant secret from our friends on Mount Oniz. Can you do that, Molasses?"
I nodded at her. "Keeping this a secret is better than the alternative. My fear is that someone like Butter--a hot-tempered cookie--will learn of Limerence's location and break him to pieces. Then we may never find Ginger and Klaus."
"You could be right." Agapa's golden brow furrowed with thought. "So when the inevitable query comes as to the result of our mission...."
"We tell them the truth. We were beset by thugs and demanded that our friends continue on with their quest; then we were able to outmaneuver our enemies and escape. Unfortunately, when we arrived at the meeting place, our friends were gone. Also, we have reason to believe that the exchange was successful, as we found three empty cracker boxes that clearly served as prison cells."
"Very well. I am not fond of lying by omission, but I understand the precariousness of our situation. We will harbor Lim in a private area and seek to build rapport with him until he relinquishes the intel we desire."
"Agreed. And if anyone asks--" My sentence was cut short when I realized that a stranger had appeared at the border of our bivouac as if from nowhere. I confess that in my energized discussion with Agapa, I had taken my eye off Dave and Limerence. They stood speaking to the visitor who, I observed, was a cookie like us. He had been given the shape of a lamb, and thus there was a gentleness to him; but in a certain light or at a certain angle he appeared strong and stern and as fierce as a lion. I could hear his voice, and somehow it reminded me of the voice of Mr. Theo, deep and just and merciful all at once. Agapa and I shared a glance and wordlessly crossed the terrain to meet with the lamb cookie. I could not explain it, but a prompting filled me to kneel before the stranger; and yet kneeling is impossible for a gingerbread cookie, so I prostrated myself by way of greeting and smudged my face with mud in the process. Thankfully, Agapa did the same.
"Welcome, dear guest!" I hailed him, pushing myself back into a standing position. "I am Molasses, and this is my friend, Agapa."
"Well met," answered the stranger, none too urgent to give his own name.
"If I may ask, where do you come from, sir?" inquired Agapa.
"I come from Mount Oniz, from the presence of Mr. Theo," the cookie replied.
"I don't recall meeting you," I told him. "Are you of a batch that Mr. Theo baked within the past few days?"
"No...but in a way, yes. I have always been with Mr. Theo, but I am here now."
Very cryptic, I thought. The cookie would not share his name, nor would he discuss his business openly; but somehow, I sensed no guile or malice behind the lamb's words. Furthermore, the pure expression of disdain in Limerence's features as he stared at the stranger told me that he was probably not allied with Tanas. A warmth filled me, much like the warmth I had felt when I had first left the oven and received the greeting from my maker. All tension eased, and for a time I forsook my feelings of sorrow and failure, for they were replaced with hope and peace.
"Where are you headed, dear sir?" asked Agapa. "We do not mean to impede you."
"It is no impediment. Some here are friends of Mr. Theo, and are therefore my friends, also. It is pleasant to be in the company of friends." He turned to face the southeast. "To answer your question, Agapa, I have many errands to take care of on behalf of Mr. Theo, that I may set back straight that which has gone crooked, and to set back right that which has gone wrong. There is much work to be done, and I am tasked with finding and guiding sheep all across the vale."
"A lamb guiding sheep," muttered Limerence. "Now I have heard everything."
"Sir," I said, stepping forward, "my sister, Ginger, has been a devoted follower of Mr. Theo's since our bakeday. She has been lost to us, but I believe she is alive and is being held captive. If you wouldn't mind, could you please keep an eye out for her as you go about your journey? She is a female gingerbread cookie with a penchant for sarcasm; it would be hard to miss her."
"I will keep an eye out, Molasses," answered the cookie. "And take heart, for the captives will be made free in due time. There is much to be learned in waiting."
I bowed my head to the lamb and stepped back by Agapa's side. The lamb looked at each of us in turn until his eyes fell upon our bound prisoner. The winged cookie jittered beneath the lamb's gaze.
"Well, get on with your journey, then!" Limerence barked. "We have no need of you here. So go on! Scram!"
The lamb's eyes were soft, but in them was a warning. "You are a captive in more ways than one," he explained, "and some captives will never be free."
It seemed that Limerence was trying to come back with a smart remark, but he fell silent and stared at the muddy earth. The lamb told us that he must soon be on his way, but before he departed, he produced a small cloth and cleaned the mud that smeared all of our surfaces; he even cleaned Limerence, who allowed it with obvious discomfort and more than a few snarls. Immediately thereafter our guest passed along some parting words and headed off into the direction from which we had come. We watched him until he had disappeared into the horizon, and then we continued our excursion to Mount Oniz.
The tale was finished. My jury held me under their gaze for some time as they considered my many words; then they turned to one another and proceeded with a passionate, whispered deliberation. I toed the dirt beneath me again (figuratively speaking, for I have not a single toe), fearing that they would highlight my failure, call me pathetic, or accuse me of abandoning my sister on purpose. Maybe they would writhe with fury over the fact that we had kept our captive a secret from them, or perhaps they would declare that I had assumed too much authority by keeping these important details to myself. A million such thoughts and worries came to me then, cut short when Frostina the snowwoman turned to me with a confounded expression.
"We appreciate your tale, Molasses," she said, "but why tell us of your meeting with the lamb? In my opinion, that seems to have nothing to do with Ginger. And it made your story excessively long."
"Way too long!" Eggy chimed in with terrifying volume. "I fell asleep eight times! Eight!"
"You asked me to tell the entire story from the beginning," I replied. "Barring the dull description of the remainder of our saunter back to Mount Oniz, you have the story in full. And I do believe that the lamb is important--although maybe not with regards to Ginger's captivity."
"That remains to be seen," said Fennel. "I, for one, am grateful that you've been so transparent with us. It's clear that you, Agapa, and Dave carefully looked for Ginger and Klaus but were unable to find them. Thank you, Molasses. You've done well, and Ginger would be very proud of you."
If cookies could cry, I would have wept buckets. For months, I had often asked myself what Ginger would think of my efforts. "Th--thank you for saying that, Fennel."
"Of course. It's true. And I imagine that your countless solo adventures over the past few months have been your additional attempts to locate your sister?"
I nodded. "We did search thoroughly for her, but just because we couldn't find her doesn't mean I decided to stop looking. I have journeyed out to Sprinkleton at least once each week since we returned from our initial search. We're at the end of June now, and there is still no sign of my sister or Klaus."
"You said you planned on hiding Limerence away and questioning him," said Reinhard. "He hasn't given you anything?"
"Nothing. Agapa and I have both tried building a relationship with him, but he is too wily and is unwilling to speak most days. I don't think the answers will come from him. I'm starting to believe that Ginger's salvation will come from somewhere else."
"Maybe you just haven't been persuasive enough," Frostina stated, her voice coated with a menacing undertone--one that sounded almost like a growl.
"Really?" I tried to cross my arms. "And how would you do things differently?"
The snowwoman's eyes gleamed. "You've kept Limerence concealed for months, Molasses, but I think it's time for you to show us where you've hidden him. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Let me talk to him, and I guarantee that he will tell us everything we need to know."
~THE END OF PART 3~
~Keep an eye out for the next "Ginger & Klaus" book, slated for release on July 4th, 2024!~
To see where this series began, please check out "Ginger & Klaus: A Christmas Adventure" on Amazon! https://a.co/d/e5dJHXH
To read the second book in the series, please take a look at "Ginger & Klaus: Of Mice and Love" on Amazon! https://a.co/d/gO1GLJ2
To see where the "Slower Than Molasses" mini-series began, click on this link: https://www.korystories.com/2024/03/slower-than-molasses-part-1-war.html
