Chapter 24 Chapter Twenty-Three

The little dwarf didn't dare to go out of the street until one night when all the lights in the city were extinguished.As soon as he heard the sound of a horse's hooves, he quickly hid by the door or pressed his whole body against the wall.Instead of following the Huatanai River directly to Okepata, he took small paths instead, pausing now and then to look back or listen. After arriving at the square, he continued to hide in a dark corner for a long time, staring at the tent village where the Spanish army lived.Why did you promise Anna Maya?Why risk your life again?He sighed and took a few steps forward.She told him it was the tent closest to the Ama Lake Quad. "He speaks the Quechua dialect," she emphasized, "and I told him about our friendship. As soon as he sees you, he will know right away that I sent you."

Soldiers who passed him either barely saw him or watched him bumping elbows or laughing loudly.The closer he got to the tent, the more he felt weak in his feet.Just as he was about to pass through the curtain, someone whispered in his ear, so he hurried into the tent. The atmosphere inside is weird.The men were half-naked, with black or reddish-brown hair, and all looked panic-stricken.The dwarves discovered that their weapons were even taller than his, and the metal armor made them look invulnerable.He couldn't speak--they couldn't understand him anyway.He turned his eyes to search one by one, and tried to keep the maximum distance from them, hoping that the person he was looking for would appear miraculously.

But the foreigners yelled and yelled, gesticulating, and gradually approached him, while he waved his arms nervously and backed away.Just as he rushed out of the tent in a hurry, his body was half-wrapped by the door curtain and he fell to the ground, which caused another burst of laughter.Not even the great King Vanya Kapac could save him now, he thought with a little self-deprecation. "What are you doing here?" The foreigner who had just stepped through the door kicked him inadvertently.His hair was very light, even his eyeballs, and his movements were not as rough as the others... He pulled him up from the ground, but he didn't try to be gentle.

"Excuse me, is your name...Jia Boye?" Jia Boye looked at him seriously, then his eyes lit up, and he said something to those who were still laughing at the dwarf. He followed him silently into the tent pile.When he walked up the alley leading to Colcampata, he finally couldn't help grabbing the collar of the dwarf and muttering in his ear: "Can you tell me where you are taking me?" "No, not yet... Just follow me obediently." Jia Boye angrily pushed him forward, and followed behind, ignoring the shadows following behind. The dwarf put his hands on the cliff, and Jia Boye suddenly felt very lonely and careless.He thought that if he had been designed, he would have put himself in prison without thinking, with a happy heart.

What made him make such a determination?Long ago, in Cajamar, Ana Maya had recounted to him her friendship with a dwarf.The way he pronounced his name was hilarious: Jia—Boye? All the way down this small alley, it was so dark that it was useless to ask for help; he turned around and tried to touch the wall with his hands, but he couldn't.He began to feel dizzy, and the scares from the past resurfaced in his mind.The strong heartbeat can be felt even in the temples. He groped forward, his feet felt that the ground was not flat, but the hardness was comparable to the sandy ground on the large square.He gripped tightly with both hands to the hard rock on the cliff.Although the speed of advancement has not increased much, but now he is not so worried.

Suddenly, his hands were empty.He felt that there seemed to be a gray light coming in from the high top of his head, a blurred light and shadow.He stopped still, but his whole body started to spin, and he felt a falling force, pulling him straight into the bottom of the hole. Then there were hands on his shoulders, and he stepped back suddenly, almost falling. "You're here." It was the sweet voice of his lover. He hugged her hard, the strength surprised even himself, almost as frightened as he was just now.He held her body tightly with both hands, and there were constant whining sounds in his chest, like a wounded beast.想爱她的同时，却又想伤害她；想亲她的同时，却又想揍她几拳，让她痛得哇哇叫或哀号，这真是奇怪。

Although he thought he was in charge, it was she who pushed him to the ground onto a straw mat piled with soft woolen blankets, and this warmth aroused his high desire and boundless frenzy.He desired her with unprecedented vigor, a shamelessness bordering on frightening and intemperate. He took off the robe she was wearing on his shoulders, and felt that she was relaxed and natural; she, too, was no longer reserved and refused, as if the days of separation they had spent together had removed all barriers between each other.Her skin is warm and exciting, trembling slightly with every caress.

She wrapped them both in a blanket and rested her head on his neck.He couldn't help crying anymore, and she was like a kitten, gently licking his face with her tongue.He regained his composure, but there were still many unsolvable questions in his heart. "I didn't mean to hurt you," he said. After a short pause, he said again: "I really want to hurt you." "I want to ask you two things: don't make me hurt, and make me hurt at the same time." "what?" "You know the difference between the two." They laughed out loud, almost without fear.

"It's a strange world," she said, "with a door that opens like a slit in Huaca's center, and an abyss that goes straight to the center of the earth, and when it gets dark there's a faint light that makes you dizzy. Etc. When you left, it felt like you were resurrected, changed and transformed. One day, I must take you there." "Isn't that what you just did?" "You still don't know anything." He blew between her teeth, making her laugh again. "Where is this place?" "Could it be that you, like other foreigners, can't stand the mysterious atmosphere, and you have to make everything come to light, and you have to take everything for yourself?"

"It sounds like you know those foreigners well." "You told me. This is the only place in the city of Cusco where we can meet without being harmed by your compatriots and my people." "Is it Manco?" "Manco won't hurt you. But I have to stay by his side. I can't go against my father's last words." "Your father? I thought..." "My father, Vanya Kapac." "Anamaya, I don't understand, I thought you married that king..." "Marry a twin brother god, yes." "where is it?" He felt her whole body stiff, trying to break free from his embrace.

"What's wrong?" "Why do you want to ask me where it is?" "To protect you from the greed of my people. The Governor's two brothers - may God curse them - have heard of this golden idol, and now they know it is the most valuable trophy in the city of Cuzco, perhaps It's because no one has ever seen him... What's more, the Governor put me in charge of finding out its whereabouts." "What would you do if you found it?" "Like everyone else: take it for yourself, melt it into gold bars, and I'll be rich! Isn't it my greed that you like?" "Seriously, tell me what you're going to do." "I'll hide it for you, and they won't get it. Because if I find it, they might find it, too." Anna Maya broke free from his embrace, he stretched out his hand to keep her, but it was in vain, no matter how much he shouted, it was useless. Then a torch dimly lit the room they were in.The room was arc-shaped like a chapel, and his eyes saw some dancing spots of light first: in the center of the room there was a platform with a statue on it, and its golden body glowed reddish-brown under the light of the torches. shine.It was sitting on its own throne, exactly the same posture as the mummies Jia Boye had seen.It's flawless, really, except for a small piece of the nose that's missing. Jia Boye trembled all over. "Your compatriots and my people are unwilling to obey the established rules. Isn't this a serious mistake?" "Yes. But when 'obedience' is used by some as an excuse for greed, then even what they call betrayal will be an advantage." "Your words are too noble for a simple feeling!" "It's the feeling itself that makes me feel noble." "It's dangerous to do so, Jia Boye." "Tonight, hide this idol." "We shouldn't be together anymore. You must believe me, no matter what happens, or what the opposite happens, even if you don't see me, you must believe me, even if it is unreasonable sometimes..." "What's the meaning?" "Trust me, just like I trust you. Jia Boye, if necessary, I will definitely show up. Now close your eyes." He obeyed his orders, tightening his body, ignoring the nature flowing in his body, and even ignoring the governor, Manco and the two brothers... Her voice followed behind him like a gentle echo: believe me, just like I believe You too. When he finally opened his eyes, he saw the dwarf's eyes as big as a bullfrog.He didn't even look back at the gold statue of the Twin Brothers as they walked out of the passage.He felt hollow and weak inside. After walking back into the night, he headed alone to the deck of the Colcampata.He looked at the stars, looking for dark shadows in the galaxy, and one night after Atahualpa's death, it was here that she had pointed out to him the shapes of animals hidden in the starlight-dogs, llamas, wu eagle…… Suddenly, in the sky full of stars, he clearly saw a feline animal with its paws outstretched and its mouth wide open, staring straight at him—a puma. He walked towards the Grand Place without fear.