Page 55 of A Simple Truth

“Oh, so you admit you find me attractive?” Though I couldn’t see his face, I could swear he was grinning from ear to ear.

“I didn’t admit to anything, General, but if you must know—” I whacked another bug on my sticky reddened face. “From my point of view, you know, when you don’t see your face, or hear your voice, or know your personality, you could almost pass as a decent man...”

The General stopped abruptly and turned to me.

“Ah, see, just like that, you ruined it for me.” I theatrically sighed.

“Has anyone ever told you that you are very aggravating?” he asked, narrowing his eyes.

“Actually, no. Most find me quite…charming.” I sheepishly smiled at him. Perhaps it was the unbearable heat, but I thought I saw a glimpse of him blushing and that made me smile. He turned back to the jungle, carving out another step for us.

“And who might thesemostbe?” he inquired a minute later.

“Oh, well my many admirers of course, General,” I answered, purring like a cat.

“Any of them around?” hetoo-casually asked, and I rolled my eyes at the subtlety of it. What began as an innocent conversation was now progressively spiraling out of control.

“Are you seriously asking me if I am involved with someone?” My brows slid up in a bit of amusement.

“Well, one can only wonder who filled your pretty little head with such atrocious lies.”

My mind frantically attempted to come up with something witty to reply but failed.

“I will not grant you that answer,” I finally said.

“Ah good, so currently no one then,” the General added, contentment lacing his words, “Anyone in particular in the past that you are still pining after?”

“Like I said, not going to answer that.”

“Is the person in the rock Quarries—Viyak—your lover, then?” The General probed further. I couldn’t see his face, couldn’t decipher his expression or emotion, yet something in the air shifted.

He remembered his name.

“It’s not like that with Viyak,” I hesitantly responded, now somehow aware of each question he asked, each word I spoke.

“Who is it then?”

“Why do you care?”

“Perhaps, I’d like to get to know you better.”

“Then ask me what my favorite color is. Not about my past lovers.”

He waited still hoping I’d answer his question, but when I didn’t give in, he paused, wiping sweat off his brow, then turned to me.

“Fine. I am using my third question that you owe me. Who were you in love with that left you so heartbroken that you can’t even utter his name?”

I took a step closer to him, my eyes sharp like daggers, as I seethed through my teeth. “His name was Oliver; he was my fiancé; we were only a month away from our wedding. That is, before a group of Destroyers burned the village to the ground, killing the only family I’d ever known and the person I loved more than life itself all in one afternoon. So, you want to know who broke my heart, General?Destroyers.And the reason why I don’t say his name is because people like you don’t deserve to know it. Is that a good enough answer for you?” I hissed at him. “And just for reference, my favorite color is lavender.”

“Where was this village?” he calmly asked, as if what he’d just heard didn’t surprise or shock him at all. His chill, uncaring look made my blood boil.

“You just ran out of questions,Destroyer.” I pushed past him, pulling out my longer daggers to cut my own way ahead. Something that the General made seem so easy and effortless turned out to be brutally difficult, as I managed to only cut half a step.

The General released a heavy sigh near me, but I ignored him. His gentle hands grabbed my shoulders a breath later, placing me behind him. He drew his swords and pushed forward, accompanied by nothing but tense silence and the crunching sounds of branches and bugs under our feet.

32

GIDEON

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