Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 91775 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 459(@200wpm)___ 367(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91775 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 459(@200wpm)___ 367(@250wpm)___ 306(@300wpm)
Once inside, I set my gear down, take the food tray his attendant has prepared, and then disappear through the back to the storage buildings, where Tia is kept under guard. My dreams were full of lip brushes, but the reality is that Tia is angry with me. She does not speak to me when I enter, and her eyes are puffy and red-rimmed as if she had been weeping. She does not reach for the food I brought, and I reluctantly leave her side, feeling as if I have failed her.
And because this day cannot get any worse, when I get to the lake, So’ran the Bitter is waiting for me. I ignore him, moving down the rocky slope to my favorite spot, and he picks up his line and follows me.
“I would speak with you, Rem’eb the Fist,” he calls out.
“I am not in the mood for speaking.”
He ignores my politely worded request and moves to stand at my side, close enough that I cannot ignore him. “You are acting strangely.”
“I have had a gut sickness that I could not shake,” I say, concentrating on unraveling my line so I can attach the sinker to it. “My father has a tea that helps. I have been taking meals with him.”
“Then why do you run past the wall?”
I look up, startled. “What?”
My once-friend’s eyes are narrow and full of suspicion as he regards me. “Someone saw you rushing past the wall yesterday. This morning, An’var the Early was on duty and confirmed it. You move past it as quickly as possible and keep your head down, almost as if you wish to not catch the attention of any female that might linger there. What has changed?”
The hair on the back of my neck prickles. “Nothing.”
I cannot tell him the wall makes me uneasy now that I have met Tia.
“If it is nothing, why rush? Do you not want a mate? Sons?” He tilts his head, regarding me, his voice casual. “Or is this another scheme of your father’s?”
My tail twitches, but I do my best to not give away just how close So’ran is to the truth. If he knew of Tia’s existence, he would be storming the wall to claim one of our females for himself. Or worse—he would do his best to snatch more strangers from above. Neither situation bodes well for our people. He will destroy our fragile existence all because he is lonely. “I am spending time with my father because he wishes to speak with his only son. You are far too suspicious. Perhaps you should stop spending so much time with those that despise him. You are seeing shadows where there are none.”
We glare at each other, neither of us moving or breaking eye contact. I know if I flinch away first, he will continue to suspect me. He cannot know of Tia’s existence. He will not look to free her—he will spirit her away into one of the less-used tunnels and try to save her for himself. He will hold her hostage until she resonates to him.
Is that not what you are doing? a tiny voice inside me asks.
I ignore it.
Eventually, So’ran straightens. He drops his gaze and then kicks one of the loose rocks into the water. “If you say it is nothing, then I have no choice but to believe you.”
“It is nothing,” I reassure, relaxing my stance. “Why does it bother you?”
“Because this place is stagnant,” he says, and his expression changes to one of entreaty. “Can you not feel it? Our days are full of the same patterns, the same duties, as dictated by the chief. We eat and sleep and work to a schedule he decrees. We see the same faces day in and day out. The females are kept behind a wall and never seen and fewer children are born. When was the last time someone resonated?” He spreads his hands. “We are rotting in place. Of course I am interested when you act strangely. Change is interesting. All change interests me.”
“There is no change,” I tell him easily, even as my tail prickles. So’ran is more alert than I have given him credit for. I must be even more careful than I thought. “A bad bite of food has lingered in my gut. That is all.”
He continues to study my face, his gaze seeking, as if he can see through my lies. Then he nods, and to my surprise, reaches out and clasps my arm. “You must keep yourself well, Rem’eb the Fist. You are the last hope of our people.”
A strange thing to say, especially from one that is my bitter enemy. “What do you mean?”
“I mean that there are many of us that hate your father’s rules. That think he is wrong. He will not listen to reason, though. We have tried and tried to speak to him, all in vain. Now we simply hope that he will pass and you will take the chief’s seat and be prepared to listen. Your father is stubborn, but you have a good heart. Just…do not let your father whisper in your ears for too long.”