Page 38 of Twins for the Barbarians

Kharo smiles broadly, naked and ready to soak in the bathtub, which Alicia was kind enough to fill with hot water and finely scented oils for his pleasure. I do like having her take care of us with such affection and delight. It’s been strange keeping our distance from her over the past five years, but it was worth it. The intensity of our lovemaking is a testament to how deep our bond runs. And it will only grow stronger between us.

“I can tell you agree,” Kharo says. “There’s definitely something weird going on here.”

“Solomon seems odd,” Alicia concedes with a subtle huff. “Maybe he’s just used to being the big boss. Maybe he hoped nobody would ever come here again and that he and his three wives and his surviving people would live happily ever after.”

“And here we are, disturbing his utopia,” Kharo mutters. “No, something else is bothering me, but I won’t know what it is until we get a better look around.”

“We’ll need to be careful what questions we ask him,” Alicia says. “We want to ascertain the truth behind the plague’s origin. Surely, Solomon wants to know that, too.”

“Reasonably speaking, yes,” I reply.

“We also need to learn more about their customs,” she adds. They’re not adhering to Sunna’s traditions, so I would like to get to know their new traditions regarding marriage, cohabitation, religion or beliefs, their legal system, and their methods of punishment for those who break the king’s laws.”

Kharo goes into the bathroom, but he leaves the door slightly open so he can hear the rest of our conversation while I stand by the window, watching the changing of the palace guards as the twin suns dip into the western horizon, causing the sky to burn red and orange before the darkness blankets the entire city in deep shadow.

“I want to know how Solomon survived,” I mutter, my arms crossed and my shoulders tight with tension. “He was supposed to be dead. His obituary was published. Hell, Elian Daron grieved for a whole month after he heard the news.”

“Solomon probably wanted to keep a low profile,” Alicia suggests.

“But why? Elian was investigating the plague,” I reply. “People were after him, and they got to him. Do you think Solomon caught on and decided to play dead so he wouldn’t end up like his brother?”

“It’s possible.” She shrugs. “We’ll have to ask him at dinner.”

When we hear a knock at the door, we stiffen. Neya walks in, and behind her, two servants push a couple of food carts into the room, each dish covered with porcelain lids. I can smell the grilled meats and spiced vegetables, as well as the fruit preserves and churned butter, the fine plum wine, and the love herb teas in glass cups on the bottom shelf of each cart.

Neya bows curtly. “The king sends his apologies, but he is too tired to have dinner with you tonight after all. But he does want you to be fed to our highest standards, so please…indulge yourselves,” she says. “I’ve taken the liberty of brewing your traditional love herb tea, as well, since you’re bonded.”

“Thank you for the kindness,” I tell Neya. “We gladly receive your food and drinks as a token of your hospitality and unending grace. I only wish the rest of our people retained your grace and decency.”

Sadness flickers across her pretty, round face. “They’re not friendly out there, are they?”

“Most would tear the flesh off our bones if they could,” I reply. We’re but a shadow of what we once were—broken by the war and ravaged by the plague. We’re not making Sunna proud.”

“The Fire Tribe does try to do better,” Alicia chimes in. “At least they’re not actively trying to drag more human women here to force them to reproduce.”

“It sounds horrible,” Neya sighs, shaking her head in dismay. “We’re not perfect people ourselves, but we understood that we must stand united if we’re to live peaceful, bountiful lives behind the walls of Opal City. The world tried to kill us once. I wouldn’t be here if Solomon hadn’t kept us together.”

“I would like to know more about what happened here after the bombings,” I say.

Neya gives me a hard look. “Our king will answer your questions tomorrow, rest assured.”

“All of our questions?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.

“What he deems worthy of an answer,” she shoots back. “I shall leave you to your dinner. I’ve had food and drinks delivered to Kingo’s room as well, along with a nurse to change his dressing and make sure he’ll sleep well through the night.”

“Thank you, Neya. I cannot express how grateful I am,” Alicia replies with a warm smile.

We watch her and the servants leave and close the door behind them. I did notice how none of the service staff dared to look us in the eyes. The heavy silence they left behind is yet another strong indicator that Solomon’s punishments for disobedience may be worse than I originally suspected.

“They seemed scared,” Alicia whispers.

“Kharo, Kingo, and I are like aliens to them, back from the dead. You’re literally from another world. And they’re not allowed to tell anyone either,” I reply. “Wouldn’t you be scared out of your mind?”

She nods once. “I wonder why Solomon didn’t want to see us tonight.”

“He probably realized he couldn’t answer some of our more pressing questions. But it’s all right, Kharo and I will get to the truth, one way or another.”

“We have to be careful, Helios.”

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