Page 123 of The Explorer
“As long as they take the fighting to that dirty bunker.”
My ears burned at Victor’s words. Was he talking about the fight club?
“Wasn’t that thing closed down last year?” Simon asked.
“Yes, but they found a new place down in one of the original bunkers. I’m not sure why anyone would voluntarily go down in an ancient creepy place like that, but these things keep popping up. The police have insiders keeping an eye on it, but as long as they contain the aggression in that bunker, it’s being tolerated for now.”
“But what if someone gets hurt?” Celeste asked.
“People who fight down there do it at their own risk. We can make laws to protect people, but if they want to be reckless and risk their lives, then so be it.” I could almost hear the shrug in Victor’s tone.
“Have any of you ever seen a fight like that?” Zola wanted to know. “Maybe I’m crazy, but I’m curious to see what it’s like.”
“We’ve seen fighting in the Northlands. It’s their national sport.”
“Simon, you’re joking.”
“Okay, maybe it’s not their national sport, but it’s close to it. They teach fighting techniques in school and when we went to our first summit in the Northlands, we visited a bridal festival where there were arenas with bloody fights all day long.”
“It was barbaric,” Isaac said.
“But also thrilling,” Celeste added. “We got to see Mason fight and it was the most stunning sight of male strength and aggression.”
“Hmm, have any of you had sex with one of them?” Zola asked. “I tried with Thor on the first night, but he acted like a scared kid.”
Simon chuckled. “He rejected me too, but that was years ago. I did have a good time with one of the guards at the castle, though.”
“Me too.” Celeste laughed. “We’ve had four summits in the Northlands, and I’ve had at least one guard every time, but never any of the delegation members.”
“And what was your experience like?” Zola asked.
“Oh, it’s fun.” Celeste giggled as she spoke. “The first time we went to the Northlands, I was eighteen and one night, I went to find Mason’s room. I got lost and ended up in a hallway where two guards stopped me. They told me that it wasn’t safe for a woman to be walking around alone at night. It was cute how protective they were. Of course, I couldn’t pass up the chance to flirt with them and learn more about their culture. I can’t remember their names, but I remember them taking turns fucking me against the wall. They couldn’t believe I would let them, but it was delicious to feel the guards’ raw, horny desire for me.”
“Wow, I can imagine,” Zola breathed. “But that also proves that Nmencanshare a woman. Doesn’t that ease your fears, Victor?”
“No. All that proves is that they can share a willing body, but what happens when they fall in love?”
I listened to the French debate what they considered to be our immature relationship with sex some more, but I couldn’t delay checking for an answer from Sparrow any longer. My yawning made them quickly change the subject to sports. I pretended not to understand a thing.
Suspecting that the French tapped all our correspondence with the Northlands, I’d kept the message coded and hoped that Sparrow would know what I was asking.
Aubri: I’m sorry we didn’t get to hug goodbye. Your mom told me about your babysitting job. Are you on your way back? Did everything go smoothly or was the kid a menace? Did his parents get home before you left?
I kept checking for an answer every two minutes but there was nothing. The closer we got to Old Europe, the more I worried about our friends.
CHAPTER 32
Best Friends
Indiana
“Aubri, you need to calm down.”
It was almost midnight and my wife was pacing the floor like a manic person.
“How can you be so chill about it?”
“Because unlike you I choose to think that no news is good news. You know that this paranoid country is blocking ingoing and outgoing calls. It’s probably a technical issue that makes it impossible for Sparrow to answer your messages.
