Total pages in book: 42
Estimated words: 40729 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 204(@200wpm)___ 163(@250wpm)___ 136(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 40729 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 204(@200wpm)___ 163(@250wpm)___ 136(@300wpm)
I crack open their stiff spines and run my fingers over the unfamiliar words. The people who had saved them must have recognized their significance. There’s no other reason why they would have held onto them for so long. I shed a tear for the long-lost bookworm and give them a mental thanks.
Oz stiffens next to me and I hear the bones in his back pop like Draven’s do when he’s upset. Setting the books back in the bin, I scoot closer to Oz. “What’s wrong?” I ask.
He holds up a piece of paper to me in answer, and I take it. At closer inspection, I find it’s not a piece of paper, but a picture. A picture of a mort. I didn’t even know they had pictures. Oz pulls out an entire stack of them. If he weren’t already white, I imagine the blood would have drained from his face. Stunned, he flips through them.
“Are those your family?” I ask tentatively.
“So—” His voice cracks. “Some of them. I didn’t even know we had any pictures,” he says hoarsely. “Sayer didn’t program Uvie until after most of our numbers were gone, so she wouldn’t have a record of them.” He growls. “I’m going to kill Breccan for keeping this from us. We could have used the hope seeing these would bring.”
“Maybe he thought they would do more harm than good. If you didn’t know things would get better for sure, maybe the pictures would have filled you with despair instead.”
That seems to speak to him because he falls into a contemplative silence as he studies each and every picture. I leave him to his thoughts, but keep a hand on his thigh as I rifle through the bins full to the brim of books. In addition to the books in other languages, there are many in mine. From fiction to manuals to histories. They will make fantastic additions to our library.
“We should leave these here,” he decides after a long while. “Until after the battle with the Kevins. They’re deep enough underground that they won’t be damaged.”
“You’re right. Even if they manage to damage the facility, we should play it safe. Perhaps it would be smart to bring other important things down here to the caves as well, just in case.”
“I’ll speak to Breccan,” Oz says, standing. “There are many important things we should keep in these caves.”
I don’t like the look in his eye, but I don’t comment. Oz has been through enough for one day. He places the photos back in the bin with quiet reverence and clicks his tongue to summon Legolas, who jumps and lands on his shoulder.
“Thank you for sharing this with me,” I say and squeeze his hand.
“I won’t ever keep anything from you, Whisper. It’s you and me in this until our happy ending.”
14
Ozias
One Solar Left
“I can’t eat that.” Quinn’s nose crinkles up in a cute way. “It’s…”
All cuteness fades as she turns a shade of pale green. Frantic at her sudden change, I toss the savory hunk of sabrevipe from a recent hunt onto the table and guide her out of our room.
“Are you ill, my mate?”
She trembles in my arms. “I haven’t felt well the last couple of days.”
“We’ll go see Calix,” I state as I walk her to the Medical Bay.
“He’s busy checking on all the babies, I’m sure,” she says with a tired sigh. “I’ll be fine. Just don’t force me to eat…that.” She gags and Legolas chitters from her shoulder.
See, the thing is, Quinn loves sabrevipe.
Well, she did until I just tried to feed her some.
“If you’re ill, we need to get you well. Do you think any of the medications you found in the Reserves will help you?”
She shakes her head. “As long as I don’t think about food, I’m okay.”
My mate must eat, so that’s going to be a problem.
Overcome with urgency, I rush her into the Medical Bay. Luckily, Calix is there with Emery and Hophalix. Quinn’s green face lights up when she sees their mortling.
“What is wrong?” Calix demands, abandoning his family to rush over to us.
“Just feeling barfy, is all,” Quinn murmurs. “No big deal.”
Calix frowns as he gestures for the table. “Lie down.”
She shakily sits down and then stretches out. I come to stand beside her, taking her hand in mine. It’s cold and damp. Panic seizes me, making it hard to breathe.
“Is it The Rades?” I ask, my voice hoarse. “What do you think?”
Quinn’s brows furrow. “I thought The Rades was contained to the prison.”
“I do not think it is The Rades. I am going to check something first.” Calix hands her a pink tablet that she places on her tongue. “That will boost her electrolytes. She will start to feel marginally better.” Then, to her, he says, “I am going to use the wegloscan. Can you lift your shirt?”