Page 66 of Corvak's Challenge

"So you guys haven't…"

"What?"

"Fucked?" I ask bluntly. "Made a baby? Isn't that what resonance does?"

For the first time, April seems a bit flustered. She toys with her damp hair. "Like I said, we're not acknowledging things at the moment."

I'm surprised. When I hummed the loudest, I could think of nothing but jumping Corvak. I wanted to touch him constantly. My thoughts were that of a woman possessed—a very horny woman possessed. The fact that April and Valmir are controlling themselves so well is startling to me. Not acknowledging something doesn't change how it works. It just strikes me as stubborn and fool-headed. But maybe that's the best way to deal with Valmir. Who knows.

April gestures behind her out of the cave. "So like…should we go? The others aren't far behind. They're searching the next canyon over and I told them I'd check over here." She turns to me. "You're welcome to come with us, by the way. Always happy to have a friendly face at the beach."

Leave? Like…right now? I shoot a panicked look at Valmir, who isn't paying attention to me. He's utterly focused on April, who's doing her best to ignore him. "Oh, we can't go. We're waiting for Corvak."

"Who's Corvak?" she asks, puzzled.

"My mate." I straighten, saying the words proudly. "And I'm Aidy. I don't remember more than that, just that my name is Aidy."

She doesn't seem surprised at my admission. "Yeah, some of us didn't get a lot of memories with the whole clone thing. It's not a big deal. You'll manage."

"Clone thing?" I echo. "What clone thing?"

April eyes Valmir and then looks back to me. "Uh…so remember that little bracelet that we got dropped here with?"

I have to think for a moment. There was a small bracelet on my arm, now that I recall. "You mean the tracker?"

"Tracker? What tracker?"

Now I'm the one that's confused. I press a hand to my brow, rubbing the headache that's starting. "Maybe you should sit down so I can tell you my side of things." When she looks reluctant, I add, "And Valmir needs to finish his boot or he's going to hurt his leg worse."

That gets her attention. She moves deeper into the cave, coming to sit next to the fire and tucking her legs underneath her. She pointedly doesn't look at Valmir, and I notice that they're both trying very hard to ignore the other. There are signs that all is not well, though. April's eyes are overbright, her khui song dissonant and angry and loud. On the other side of her, Valmir's big hands are shaking as he tries to stitch a bone splint into his leathers. I'm suddenly glad that Corvak and I didn't fight our attraction. I like that we've been on the same page ever since we got here.

And if April thinks she's going to pry me from this cave before he returns, I'm going to fight tooth and claw to make sure I stay. So I clear my throat and try to figure out the best way to tell my story…and the way that will take the most time. "I guess it started on the day we arrived here…"

By the time I finish the story, April's eyes are wide and Valmir is looking at me skeptically. "You two really had a fucked up idea of what was going on, didn't you?"

I shrug. "We did the best we could with the limited information we had. I think all of Corvak's decisions were the right ones. He kept us alive and safe, even when we thought we were surrounded by enemies. I don't regret anything."

"But he didn't tell you that you were a clone," April points out. "I feel like that's information you need to know."

"He didn't know I was a clone," I say, defending my absent mate. "Or he would have told me. Right, Valmir?"

Valmir suddenly looks very busy, all of his attention on the intricate web of splints he's making for his boot. "There's a lot of information flying about. I'm sure certain things get lost in the, uh, mix."

Impossible. He would have told me. The fact that I'm a clone—that every human here is a clone—is a big fucking deal. It explains my lack of memories in a way that feels like relief, not terror. I've been thinking for weeks now that I've had some sort of traumatic brain injury and that's why I can't remember more than the fact that I'm Aidy, I'm a horror movie buff, and I hate bugs. I especially hate the scorpions that constantly came up my bathroom drains, and never keep my feet bare. I don't know why that's the particular bit that's stuck with me, but I cherish it. It's all I've got for my identity—movie references and an affinity for flip flops. "He didn't know. He must have misunderstood."

"If you say so." Valmir shrugs. He slowly eases his boot over his swollen ankle and begins the laborious process of lacing it up, pain written all over his face.

I watch him work, my stomach tied in knots. If he gets his boot on, is he leaving with April? He's resonating to her, and he wants to see the healer. There's no way he'd stay behind with me just to keep me company…but I'm not going anywhere. Not until I see Corvak again. We don't know how long it'll take for the snow-people to abandon the cave after he fakes his death. What if they wait around for weeks?

"We'll ask him when he gets back," I say, as if that answers everything. "Which will hopefully be any moment now."

For a second, April looks flummoxed. She glances at the cave entrance. "I can't stay. Others are going to be looking for me. I'm out with Nadine, Thrand, and U'dron. They need to know where I am."

Then, she looks pointedly at Valmir.

My heart sinks.

Valmir looks between the two of us, then shakes his head. "Much as I would love to go with you, April, I cannot. I promised Corvak that I would look after his mate until he returned." His smile of apology turns feral. "Nothing says you can't return and tend to me, though."

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