Page 97 of The Seducer
Her eyes grew to double size, and she swallowed hard. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Hang on.” Kya placed a hand on my arm, before she clapped her hands. “Time for bed,” she called to the children. “Boys, Tristan will sleep with you tonight.”
“Where? We don’t have an extra bed in our room,” Sultan, one of the youngest children, pointed out.”
“Then be resourceful,” Marco, who was one of the two assisting teachers, said with a smile.
“I’m not sharing my bunk bed,” someone complained.
“Then I guess you’ll have to consult the Oracle,” Marco teased and turned to the other assistant teacher, Shelly, who was only fifteen but a genius. “What do you say, oh wise one? Do you have a solution for the boys?”
Shelly was obviously used to being mocked because she didn’t even hesitate. “I’m on night duty, so I’m sleeping here. You can take the mattress from my cabin.”
“Didn’t I tell you?” Marco teased when Tristan, Storm, and Solo got up. “You can always count on the Oracle to come up with a genius solution.”
Shelly shot him an annoyed glance. “I wish you would stop pointing out that I’m a genius. How would you like it if I pointed out constantly that you’renot?”
While talking, Marco and Shelly were performing the nightly rituals, helping the children clean up the dining room.
“You know, Shelly,” Marco said with a grin. “I'd like to see things from your point of view but I can't seem to get my head that far up my ass.”
I was just about to ask him to be nice to Shelly, but she gave her comeback before I got a chance to open my mouth. “That’s nice, Marco, keep talking, and maybe someday you'll say something intelligent!”
When the door closed behind them, only Archer, Kya, Athena, and I were left.
“Okay, now we can talk,” Kya said. “So explain yourself, Finn – what did you mean when you said a war is brewing?”
Archer and I exchanged a look. He knew what I was talking about, and the fact that the women hadn’t figured it out by themselves spoke volumes about their pacifistic mindset.
“Khan is going to be under a lot of pressure,” I started out. “Our nation has been waiting for something like this to happen and now that the border has partly collapsed, it’s our chance to knock it down and take back the power that has been denied men for centuries.”
Athena and Kya were speechless, but the shoulders and eyebrows of both sagged downward.
“The only thing stopping us from invasion at this point is Pearl.”
“Pearl?” Athena said. “Because Khan listens to her?”
Archer nodded. “Khan knows that going to war against the Motherlands will cost him his marriage, and that’s why he’s hesitating.”
Kya’s voice was shaking when she spoke. “Well, you can tell him that all we Motlander women stand behind Pearl. If you invade the Motherlands, we’ll never forgive you. And we won’t be able to stay here.”
Archer jerked back. “That’s not fair. I can’t decide what Khan does, so why would you leave me because of a decision he makes?”
“Not just me; Christina, Raven, and all the children too. We’ll all leave the Northlands!” Kya had tears in her eyes when she raised her hand and pointed at me. “Finn, I know Khan listens to you and Boulder, so you two had better convince him to stay out of the Motherlands.”
“I don’t think you understand. Khan is either going to war for or against the Motherlands.”
“What?” Kya shook her head. “But he’s the ruler; whatever the Northlands does is up to him.”
“Tens if not hundreds of thousands of Nmen are going to see that differently. If he sits back, and lets the Motherlands rebuild the wall, he’ll be lynched in a week.”
“But, but…” Kya was unable to form a coherent sentence.
“The only option is negotiations,” Athena said. “A compromise must be made.”
“Exactly! That is why Khan wants his advisers around him. A few hours ago, he and Pearl sent out a message to everyone in the country, pleading for them to stay calm.”
“Can we see it?” Kya asked.
