Page 102 of The Artist
“Vaguely, I met her twice, but I was always in the background. We never spoke.”
Brushing a hand over her red pants, which contrasted the white bedsheet, Pearl said, “Beatrice was suspicious and careful by nature, like most of you French are. But she conducted herself with grace and intelligence. Rafael is delusional and arrogant in comparison. He and Khan have clashed from day one and it’s been difficult to keep my husband from going after Rafael for what he did.”
“Mason and Thor were sure they would be sent back to kill Rafael and bring Aubri home.”
“They would have been right, but violence isn’t the answer and we would have lost all the respect we’ve built with the Motherlands. We’ve worked hard to establish ourselves as a civil country in their eyes. Back when I was a council member there were so many awful rumors about the Nmen. People thought they were cannibals and that they kept their women in cages. We considered them monsters and the fact that speaking of them was illegal made them more feared.”
“That’s how it was for us growing up as well. We were told that there were other pockets of people left on the planet, but that they would kill us if they ever found us.”
“Hmm. Sounds like the fear of the original survivors stayed firmly planted for generations to come.”
“There’s a museum that showcases pictures of the original survivors and their written stories about their lives before the Toxic War. They wrote the consumption that we all live by.”
“Consumption?” Pearl tilted her head.
“Yeah, you know – a document with our rights and obligations.”
“Oh, you mean aconstitution.”
“Right. They wrote that. We consider them heroes for not giving up but making the best of their dire situation. Some say the originals had it the worst. Because they were adults when the Toxic war broke out, they had lived most of their lives above ground and missed nature. Their children and many generations after that were born and died underground without ever stepping foot on grass or touching a tree.”
Pearl looked out the window. “The Toxic War was such a devastating disaster that could have been prevented. If the people in power hadn’t been ruled by vanity, pride, and greed, things wouldn’t have escalated so fast. That’s one of the reasons I insist that the answer to solving this conflict with Old Europe isn’t to turn to violence. To be honest, I’m shocked that Rafael would be foolish enough to taunt Khan and Magni the way he did. A war between us would be disastrous to the French. Do you even have soldiers to defend your country?”
“Not that I know of. Until I visited the Northlands for the first time, I’d never seen a warrior in real life. It was something I’d learned about in our history books. Old Europe has faced many problems these past four centuries, but war wasn’t one of them.”
“I’m hoping to keep it that way, Belle. In any war, it’s always the innocent who suffer the most.” With a last pat on my hand, Pearl got up to leave. “Let’s go for a walk tomorrow. It’s cold outside, but some fresh air will do us both good.”
I smiled at her. “I’d like that.”
“Good night, Belle.”
“Good night, Pearl.”
As she walked to the door and opened it, Pearl turned around a last time. “Have you thought of names for your baby?”
“No. In France we use a name generator for the babies.”
She smiled. “Here we get to argue with the father of the child about what name to choose. At least that’s how it was for Khan and me. Nmen have a tradition of choosing names of strength and glory for their children, and even though I wanted Freya to be called Karla, she ended up being named after a goddess. Same with Thor. He’s named after an old god of thunder and strength.”
“Huh. You think Mason has names picked out already?”
Pearl looked to the connecting door. “Why don’t you ask him? We haven’t seen much of Mason these past days. Aubri is his twin and Indiana his best friend. It’s not easy for him.”
“I know.”
“See you tomorrow, darling.” With a soft smile, Pearl closed the door.
I sat for a while thinking about what she had said and then sounds from Mason’s room made me get up and place my ear against the wooden door. It sounded like he was pacing the floor. As I stood listening, sad-sounding music began playing at a low volume. Pearl was right; Mason was as sad about the situation as I was. Even though I was horrible at talking about emotions, I should go check up on him. Placing my hand on the door handle, I took a fortifying breath.
CHAPTER 28
Visit
Mason
My body was overheating, and my head was spinning out of control. Tearing off my socks and shirt, I paced the room feeling heavy with confusion and guilt.
My room, which had always been a sanctuary to me, now felt suffocating and claustrophobic. Aubri wasn’t going to come by like she usually did. She wouldn’t enter without knocking, or throw herself on my bed, bugging me to come spar with her. I would have welcomed her complaining about our parents or her telling me useless gossip right now, anything to know that she was safe.
