Page 80 of Baited

Madame Jikki titters, holding her hand to her mouth. “I don’t watch such things,” she says. “And as for the dome, I cater to the clients who visit it, but otherwise I have no interest. I recognize this Gryn because I met him before he became this magnificent specimen.”

“You knew me?” Blayn asks.

He’s battling an entire range of emotions, and the one which is rising inside him is one which wants to exact violence. I take his hand and wrap it over my shoulder. The desire recedes.

“So, who’s this?” I point at the male Tref.

He bows deeply. “I am Nood. I assist with placing orphans with families here in Sartak.”

My heart jumps into my throat, but it’s directly from Blayn. He can’t breathe, he can’t move, all he can do is blink as his thoughts swirl.

I take his hand in mine and slowly, slowly, he looks down at me. I can see what he fears most. A flickering strip of dark and light which gutters like a candle flame. I grip at his hand, and the fear recedes.

“He doesn’t remember,” I say.

“I remember the dome,” Blayn murmurs.

“The Gryn, Blayn, was found on the doorstep of this house,” Nood says with a smile. “Madame Jikki was used to the occasional young one appearing.” He gives her an indulgent smile. “Being the nature of her business, but not for one such as you.”

“My, you were a busy youngling. Playing with some stones you found when I opened the door to you.” She clasps her hand. “And you couldeat! I thought we were going to run out of food before Nood came to collect you.”

“Family,” Blayn says, his teeth gritted and his jaw tight. A spear of rage slips through him. “They were…”

He presses the heel of his hand into his forehead, and once again emotions overwhelm him, his thoughts unclear.

“Ambush…fight…”

And it all resolves around me. I’m tired, I’m in someone’s arms, and I want to sleep. We’re moving quickly in some sort of transport. I want to get home. Outside it’s dark but there are periodic lights which strobe over us, creating a contrast. Light. Dark. Light. Dark.

I maybe sleep, maybe not, but then everything is turning over and over, everything is the wrong way up, and I’m not in someone’s arms anymore. I’m in cold, cold water, flailing at anything I can until someone grabs my wings and hauls me out.

“This one will do for the dome,” a gruff voice barks.

“What about the others?”

“Leave them. We got what we came for.”

And the cold drops away. I stare into Blayn’s eyes. He stares back and blinks slowly.

“Is that what happened to you?”

He nods.

“What the hell happened to his family?” I turn on the madame and Nood. “How could you let them take him to the dome?”

Nood holds up his hands. “There was an accident with his adoptive family. They’d been on vacation out near the neon sea,” he says. “Blayn, you were still only young, starting to grow, ‘all wings and limbs,’ your mother used to say.” He chuckles before sobering. “On the way back, the transport ran into some sort of obstruction and rolled into a river. You were never found,” he says sadly.

“The dome,” Blayn says dully. “I was sold to the dome. And I didn’t remember because I didn’t want to remember.”

Rych leans against the doorframe behind the madames and Nood. “They didn’t want you to remember either,” he says. “We’re rare in this galaxy. Sylas taught us that. But where we are known, we’re known as warriors. I heard the previous procurator saying you were the dome’s first prize.”

My mind is as scrambled as Blayn’s.

“What happened to his family?” I hear myself saying, cutting through all the other noise, mentally grabbing onto my sweet, mixed-up Blayn.

“They all survived, but they thought this little one lost,” Nood says.

“Blayn.” I cup his face with my hands. “Did you hear? Your family is alive!”

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