Page 148 of The Warrior
“On that note,” Pearl said and pulled up some images of drones. “I’ve visited some of the mining towns and it was disturbing to see how poor some of the Nmen are. I believe that one of the reasons is the lack of mobility. There’s no public transportation in this country. Either you’re rich enough to have a drone or you have no money and you’re stuck. Many of the drones that fly around are a safety concern. They fly too fast like Magni’s or they’re too old and should be scrapped.”
“What do you suggest?” I asked.
“We need to establish a public transportation system.”
“But it’s possible to hire a drone already,” Erika pointed out.
“Yes, but we need to give the people a more affordable option. One that will allow people to commute to a job. Right now, they are geographically bound and that’s not serving the people.”
I whistled. “Sounds ambitious, Pearl.”
Pearl gave me a confident smile. “Oh, we’re just getting started. I’m planning to improve the health care system, establish more food banks, and provide free education.”
“Educationisfree.”
“Yes, but I’m talking about adults. Too long the Northlands have been the rich man’s dream and the poor man’s nightmare. I want to help everyone live at their full potential. Education is a key part of that.”
“You have a good heart, Pearl.” I meant every word. “I’m sorry that Magni doesn’t like you much. I wish I could do something to change it.”
Pearl and Isobel exchanged a glance and then Pearl spoke in a serious tone. “There is something you can do.”
I sighed and gave an apologetic smile. “I already tried talking sense with him, but Magni is skeptical by nature.”
“Mila asked Magni to adopt her.” This time it was Isobel who spoke. “God knows why, but the child loves him.”
I frowned. “So do I, and if you knew him better, you’d understand.”
“That’s right,” Erika chimed in.
“Mila wrote me and Pearl a letter asking for the Council to approve Magni’s becoming her official father. It was decorated with nice drawings of her in the middle and you and Magni on each side.”
“I didn’t know that,” I whispered and swallowed the lump in my throat when Isobel handed me the letter. “What are those?” I pointed to some smaller creatures next to the three of us in the picture.
“Those are all the pets Mila is wishing for.”
“There’s at least fifteen.”
“Yes, I believe they are mostly dogs, cats, and a pet pig. The seven small ones I think are rabbits and guinea pigs.”
“You spoke to her about the drawings?” I asked.
“I did,” Pearl said in a soft voice. “I explained to her why Magni can’t adopt her. Only Motlanders can do that, which is when she asked ifyoucould adopt her.”
“Me? When was this?” I could feel my heart race with the possibilities opening up to me.
“Last week,” Pearl responded. “With you being an official Motlander, Isobel is willing to approve the adoption since it’s Mila’s highest wish.”
I gaped. “You’ll let me adopt Mila?”
“Yes.” She smiled. “When Christina adopted Raven we allowed Boulder to become her adopted father. It made sense since he was the spouse of Christina and would function as Raven’s father. He signed some conditions about her rights, one of them being that she can’t be auctioned off in a tournament unless she chooses so herself.”
“Okay.” I nodded my head with excitement pressing inside my chest.
Pearl handed me some documents. “These are the adoption papers. What do you think, Laura? Will Magni like me better when he learns that I helped fulfill Mila’s biggest wish?”
I got up to hug her. “I can’t speak for him, but I love you for it.”
We sat for a while, talking about ways to break the news to Magni and Mila. After settling on a simple plan, we walked down the hallway to Khan’s office.
