The Island of Missing Trees(68)

‘So you are here because of loss. But something tells me you are also here because of love.’

Pursing her lips, Defne crossed her legs, then recrossed them.

‘Is everything okay?’ asked the psychic.

‘Yes – no … Isn’t this kind of obvious?’ said Defne. ‘I mean, hasn’t everyone lost something and isn’t everyone looking for love?’

Meryem slid to the edge of her chair. ‘Sorry, Madame Margosha, please don’t mind my sister.’

‘It’s fine,’ said the psychic, focusing on Defne. ‘I like a woman who speaks her mind. Actually, I’ll tell you what. I won’t charge you anything if you are not satisfied at the end of this session. But if you are satisfied, I’ll charge you double my fee.’

‘But we can’t –’ Meryem tried to intervene.

‘Deal!’ said Defne.

‘Deal!’ said Madame Margosha, extending her perfectly manicured hand.

For a moment the two women were locked in a handshake while their eyes remained fixed on each other, assessing.

‘I can see the fire in your soul,’ said Madame Margosha.

‘I’m sure you can.’ Defne pulled her hand away. ‘Can we now focus on Yusuf and Yiorgos?’

Nodding to herself, Madame Margosha twisted and turned the silver ring on her thumb. ‘There are five elements that help us in our deepest quests. Four plus one: Fire, Earth, Air, Water and Spirit. Which one would you like me to summon?’

The three of them glanced at each other blankly.

‘Unless you think otherwise, I’m going to go with Water,’ said Madame Margosha. Closing her eyes, she sat back. Her eyelids were almost translucent, laced with tiny blue capillaries.

For a long minute no one said anything, no one moved. Into the uneasy silence the psychic spoke softly:

‘In Cyprus, most of the missing are hidden by a riverbed or a hill overlooking the sea or sometimes inside a well … If we can persuade water to help us, we’ll find the clues we need.’

Meryem held her breath, inching closer to the edge of her seat.

‘I see a tree,’ said Madame Margosha. ‘What is it – an olive?’

Kostas leaned towards Defne. He didn’t have to look at her to sense what she was thinking: that it was a safe bet to mention olive trees in a place like this, where olives were abundant.

‘No, not an olive, maybe it’s a fig … A fig tree, but it’s inside, not outside – how strange, a fig inside a room! It’s pretty noisy around here – music, laughter, everybody talks over each other … What is this place? Is it a restaurant? Food, lots of food. Oh, there they are, your friends! I see them now, they are close, are they dancing? I think they are kissing.’

Despite himself, Kostas felt a shiver at the nape of his neck.

‘Yes, they are kissing … I’ll call out their names and see if they respond. Yusuf … Yiorgos …’ Madame Margosha’s breathing slowed down, a rasping sound emanating from her throat. ‘Where did they go? They disappeared. I’ll try again: Yusuf! Yiorgos! Hey, I’m seeing a baby now. What a lovely little boy! What’s his name? Let’s see … Oh, I get it, he’s called Yusuf Yiorgos. He’s sitting on a sofa, cushions on four sides. He’s chewing on a teether. So cute … Oh, no! Oh, poor thing –’

Madame Margosha opened her eyes and stared at Defne. Only at her. ‘You sure you want me to continue?’



Fifteen minutes later, the three of them were back on the Avenue by the River. Defne sprinted ahead, her lips pressed tightly into a line, Kostas followed with measured steps and behind them trailed a shaken-looking Meryem. They stopped in front of a jewellery store, now closed. The neon lights from the window, mixed with the glittering reflections of gold bangles, bracelets, necklaces, sharpened their features.

‘Why did you do that?’ Meryem said, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. ‘You didn’t have to upset her. She was going to tell us.’

‘No, she wasn’t.’ Define pushed her hair out of her face. ‘That woman was a charlatan. She was feeding us back the information we gave her. She says, “I see a big, bright kitchen, it could be a house or a restaurant …” Then you chip in: “It must be a tavern!” So she says, “Yes, yes, it’s a tavern.” And you are impressed by that?’

Meryem looked away. ‘You know what hurts me the most? The way you treat me as if I don’t have any brains of my own. You are clever, right, and I’m not. I’m conventional, traditional. Domestic Meryem! You belittle me and your family. Your own roots! Baba adores you, but he was never good enough for you.’

‘That’s not true.’ Defne placed her hand on her sister’s arm. ‘Look –’

Meryem stepped back, her chest heaving. ‘I don’t want to hear it. Not now. I just need to be on my own, please.’ She hurried away, the lights along the avenue glancing off her long auburn hair.

Alone with Kostas, Defne peered at him, finding his face half hidden in shadow, his expression one of deep thought. She threw her hands up in the air.

‘I feel awful. Why am I always like this? I botched it, didn’t I? Meryem is right. After you left, things got tricky at home. I was unhappy all the time and I took it out on my parents. We were always quarrelling. I called them old-fashioned, narrow-minded.’