Page 43 of The Seducer
“He’s pacing outside,” he informed me.
“Let him pace.”
“I can see his lips moving, I think he’s swearing a lot,” Hans said.
Turning a page, I kept my eyes on my book. “As long as he does it outside, I really don’t care.”
“Do you think he’ll come back inside?”
That question made me turn my head to Hans. “How long have you been a mediator for?”
His back stiffened. “Why?”
“You just seem a little uncertain at times,” I noted.
Hans crossed his arms in a defensive manner. “I’m a certified mediator.”
“That’s not what I asked you,” I said and tilted my head. “I’m just questioning how much experience you have.”
Hans moved away from the window and faced me. “If I tell you a secret will you promise not to reveal it to Isobel?”
“That’s a promise I can’t make until I know the nature of your secret. Why don’t you start by unburdening your heart?” I asked with a soft smile.
Hans sighed and with remorse on his face, he threw his hands in the air. “Oh, who am I kidding? I can’t lie to a priestess.”
Patting the sofa, I signaled for him to come and sit.
“What I’m about to tell you, Finn can never know,” he said with eyes large and began talking.
CHAPTER 13
Racing
Finn
Kicking stones on the ground and letting angry words out, I paced in front of the house, expecting one of the two Momsies to come out any second. They were lovers of peace, and this kind of confrontation had to be harder for them than for me. I was used to hotheads losing their tempers now and then. But Hans and Athena seemed to have no bigger trouble in the world than other people laughing at them.
“Fucking Momsies,” I muttered and kicked another stone. “This is fucking ridiculous.”
I wanted to call Magni and tell him what idiots they all were here. And I could, because the Council had given me and the other four representatives a secure line to send back reports about our time here. But even though I was tempted to call my friend, I also knew Magni would just tell me to stop wasting my time in Athena’s mill and go search for his wife, Laura.
I picked up a small piece of rock and threw it as far as I could. It was all that stupid meditation and seeing Tristan that got to me. Being tied down last night had brought back horrific memories, and I was cranky from not sleeping.
Squatting down, I thought about how my life would’ve been different if I’d gone to a school like Tristan’s. Those children had no idea how good they had it. My chest lifted in a deep intake of air that I released in a slow exhale, memories assaulting me again.
“Tell me, wisecracker, are you having fun now?” Johnson’s hoarse voice muttered in my ear as I hung in the air, my arm feeling like it was about to be ripped from its socket.
My whimpers didn’t soften him; if anything they excited him.
“When I say sprint, I mean sprint. What you did was jogging and jogging is for wusses.”
My eyes were closed, my face distorted in pain, and my throat sore from hours of crying.
“You’re thirteen years old but you look like a ten-year-old.” Johnson’s foul breath engulfed me when he hissed into my face. “I’ll bet my ten-year-old students could run faster than you.”
I was too exhausted and in too much pain to answer him. Besides, talking back was what had gotten me in trouble in the first place.
With an evil laugh, Johnson untied the rope that kept me suspended in the air. As soon as my feet touched the ground, I collapsed and gasped for air.
