Page 98 of Seer Prophet

“I thought we should talk.” He met my gaze, but his eyes remained hesitant. “…Brother to sister. Sister to brother. Prophet to prophet. I need your help.”

Wrapping my free arm tighter around the sheet, I frowned at him.

When he didn’t go on, I clicked sharply.

“You need my help withwhat,Terry?” When he didn’t answer, I exhaled in sheer annoyance. “They’re breaking down the door. Right now. If you want me to actuallyansweranything, you’d better ask your damned questions in a way––”

“Why do you think he waited?” Terian cut in. “Revi’.” Those amber eyes narrowed, studying mine. “I don’t mean in the times after. I mean the first time. When you were on that ship. Before that, in Seattle. He could have had you forweeksbefore I took him. You could have been full bond mates, from the very beginning.”

He paused, tilting his head.

“Why did he wait?” His full lips pursed in thought, even as his eyes remained riveted to mine. “Was it fear, do you think? Fear of becoming what he used to be? Or was it something else?” He frowned, still thinking. “We know it wasn’t a lack of desire,na?We know it wasn’t that, it couldn’t be that… not with him obsessed with fucking you, masturbating in the shower, masturbating whenever he was away from you, dreaming about sex, getting angry with you because of sex. He left your bed, night after night, just to keep from touching you. So we know it wasn’t a lack ofwanting,yes?”

I frowned, staring at him.

Even so, his words brought up an unwelcome ripple of pain.

“It fascinated me, you know, at the time.” Terian didn’t seem to notice the expression on my face. “I didn’t dream back then. I didn’t dream at all. I never dreamed. So to me it was a puzzle. So unlike Revi’, to exercise restraint. So unlike him, to deny himself something he wanted so badly. He never did that. Never. Only with you.”

I wrapped my arm around myself tighter, frowning.

I couldn’t decide if I was more annoyed or confused.

“Terry, what are you––”

“You’ll see Elephant soon,” he cut in, apropos of nothing. “Maybe she knows. Maybe she can tell you why. She knows things. More than me. More than you.”

I blinked. That time I couldn’t fully hide my interest.

“Elephant? You mean Elephant from the Elaerian List?” At his nod, I sat up, studying his face with a frown. “We’ll see her soon? Are you sure?”

He nodded, eyes solemn.

Elephant was one of two intermediaries named on the Displacement List we hadn’t been able to identify. We didn’t know anything about her, really––only what the List entry told us. No one even knew what Elephant meant, apart from some vague references in scripture.

“The first one,” Terian said. “She was the first. The first prophet.” He gave me a nervous look. “How is Jon, Alyson? Is he well? Is he okay? I worry about him so.”

My interest in Elephant faded.

I gave Terian a hard look.

“Stay away from Jon, Terry,” I warned. “Jon’s married now. You leave him alone… or bad things will happen to you. Understand?”

Terian nodded. I saw his throat move in a swallow.

Sadness touched his eyes, even as he nodded again.

“What do you want, Terry?” My voice still came out hard, but even I could hear the slightly more open note there. “Really? Why are you here?”

He met my gaze. That time, fear touched his eyes.

“You must find me, Allie,” he said.

I stared at him, bewildered. “Find you? Don’t you know where you are, Terry?”

He went on as if I hadn’t spoken.

“…I need you to find me. You and Revi’. You, Revi’, Cassandra. The Four. We need the Four. All together. Youneedme. Or everything is bad. I die. You die. Revi’ dies. Everything ends. Dark takes it all. The girl dies…”

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