Page 36 of Seducing Jenny
Volatile studied me for a few longs seconds, and for a startling moment I wondered if he could see past my Ladrian façade.
But then he said, “You are a strange girl, Jade. I would like to believe you. Tell me, what business do you have with my father, if not to end his suffering?”
I almost told him the truth, but I couldn’t let anything interfere with Mal’s rescue. “I believe he can help us solve another problem. Even in his current state of being.”
Volatile’s features softened, something wistful stirring in his eyes. “Then I wish Kable to smile upon you.”
I had no idea what that meant, but it sounded nice and polite, so I responded, “Same to you.”
CHAPTER 11
Mal
The intrinsic pattern in the wood grain of the ceiling over my bed had begun to look like faces. Strange faces, to be sure, but faces all the same. Some with two noses. Others with three mouths. One with no eyes, like a jem’hora.
I considered naming the creatures over my bed. It would be nice to have someone to talk to who wasn’t hired. The caretakers had enough on their plates. They didn’t need to entertain me, as well. I could not imagine how they themselves had not managed to go mad on this hellish island.
I could give the ceiling folk funny names, like George and Daniel. Perhaps Michael—an odd name with too many letters for its syllables. Earth names had always struck my ear strangely. They often didn’t mean anything to the person who had them. Most humans had to research the meaning behind their ownnames, as though it was not taught to them from their youth. The way Ladrians were raised. Most Ladrians, anyway.
I was given the name Malice Ripper by Justice Bateen as a way to encourage my darker nature. Not that it needed much encouragement. Had I been named Michael, would I have been a different person? I sighed. It didn’t matter.Nothing really matters anymore.And human names were weird.
Staring up at the ceiling for hours at a time, I had begun to notice little differences. The planks weren’t painted like those on the walls. Their natural shades varied, mostly dark, but staring at them long enough, I saw their differences. Left to right, smoky topaz, russet, deep khaki, dreck eye, coffee…fuck, I’ve lost my mind.
Maddening.That is what my existence has become.
The days bled into each other, as if there was no beginning and no end. But that wasn’t true. Not entirely. This morning, I had marked the third night in my door with the butterknife.
It felt far, far longer.
Perhaps in my despair, I had lost track. Whatever the cause of my mental blur, I had managed to dress myself for the day. Not sure why I bothered, other than the habit of it. It wasn’t as though I was going to eat breakfast. I didn’t want to eat anything at all. I had no appetite.
How does anyone survive hard prison?
It was a question I did not want to think of, and yet I couldn’t stop thinking about. In fact, that was all that was in my mind since I had survived my escape attempt. Questions I didn’t want to think of.
What has Justice done to my partners and my friends?
Will I see any of them ever again?
Do I deserve this?
I hoped the answers were nothing, yes, and no, but doubt was a mean old bitch, and I was its slave. My head dug into thepillow, and everything ached inside, as if I had been training hard for days. I should have recovered from my escape attempt already. But even my skin hurt.
Someone gently knocked on my door.
“Yes?”
“I thought you might like to see the supply drop ship when it comes in,” Trunk said.
My heart leapt in my chest and I immediately sat up, adrenaline rushing through me. “That’s today?”
He nodded. “In three minutes.”
“I’ll be right there.”
I splashed water on my face to wake up and stuffed the butterknife in my pocket. A weapon to help me take someone hostage so I could get on that boat. Shoes on, I dashed down stairs, not caring that my footfalls echoed on the hard surfaces of the house. It wasn’t as though stealth mattered anymore.
When I stepped out of the house, Petal and Trunk were on the beach. I looked across the water. “Shouldn’t we be able to see it by now, if it’s supposed to be here in three minutes?”
