Page 106 of Red Demon
“That’s wonderful. Although I admit we’d hoped you’d say you missed our dance lessons,” I said. “Would you ever want to come back to the DM club? I’m sure we could find a place for you near us, even if it’s not a post here.”
“We miss you, Mira,” Asher choked out, the words heavy with unspoken longing, his unabashed sappy goatshit for all the world to see.
Mira took a shuddering breath. “Ah, I do miss our dances in Thebos.” She took a sip of her coffee. “There’s no going back, but I hope you two stay safe from the violence in Noé.” She checked the clock on the wall. “I should keep this short, but it was lovely of you both to check in on me and make sure I was okay.”
The weight of her dismissal hung heavy between us. I forced my mouth closed, nodding. Asher reddened.
“There are rumors,” Asher hissed through his teeth, “that SBO doesn’t exist. That the empire fabricated it all.”
He said it just loud enough for a few heads to turn. I shot out a hand, gripping Asher’s knee under the table.
Mira frowned, squinting. “It’s very real. I’ve seen the antibodies. Survivors are rare, yes, but we have a sample from a soldier—”
Mira froze, then smiled over my shoulder. “Forgive me, I’m so excited about this subject, but much of what I do is classified now. But I think we can both be sure, based on what happened, that Jesse Eirini didn’t have those SBO antibodies.” She took a deep breath. “Poor man,” she added, a half-hearted afterthought.
I leaned forward on my fists, trying to understand.
“Anyway, that’s enough wallowing for one day.” Mira’s voice regained a brittle cheer. “Have you been to the night market yet? You need to check out some of the food stalls before you leave tomorrow. Are you staying nearby?”
I clenched my jaw. We hadn’t mentioned leaving tomorrow in our note. Was this a warning?
“We’re staying at the Mora Inn,” Asher said, his voice cracking. “Do you think you’ll have time to see us again?”
Mira offered a pained smile. “No. I’ll be very busy before your departure tomorrow. I’m afraid this is goodbye.”
Tides of despair pulled my brother away from me. I needed to keep my head above the waves. No, I needed to be his shore to swim back to. Another breath. I folded my own pain and disappointment away as I studied Mira, unable to make sense of this, unable to reconcile how she seemed to mean everything she said to me months ago. She was still family to me, but that no longer seemed to be mutual.
“Well, thank you for making time for us,” I forced out, giving Asher a subtle squeeze on the shoulder when he rose beside me. “Good luck with your research, Mira. I’m glad you have found your peace with all this.”
Stiff postured, Mira rose from her chair. She laid down enough coin on the table to pay for us all, turning toward the door before we could object. She waved with a polite smile from outside the window. Asher watched her until she disappeared into the crowded street.
Chapter 43
Truth and Fear
My stomach churned as I took another swig of lukewarm ale in the quiet common room of the Mora Inn. After a few such drinks, I’d learned that besides being resistant to lethal poisons, I now seemed to be resistant to the fun ones too. I added that to the list of mysteries, knowing I wouldn’t have Mira to help me solve them.
None of Telesilla’s people had checked in yet. I’d been nursing this beer for the last hour rather than waste more money.
My thoughts kept drifting to Faruhar, camped outside town, avoiding the city since Telesilla’s glamor had failed to work for her. But Asher had volunteered to go check on Faruhar instead, mumbling he needed to clear his head with the walk, so that left me to touch base with the Underground rebels. It made sense Asher needed some solitude after how things went with Mira, and I knew better than to try to say anything to cheer him up.
We’d made sure Faruhar had her fresh journal with a century fabric cover, filled with notes on everything she or I could think of. She insisted we shouldn’t worry, reminding us she’d been sleeping alone in the forest long before we came along. Still, I felt a pang when I thought about her waking cold in the snow while I got to spend the night in a warm inn.
The clink of a glass against the table pulled my attention. A dark-skinned man with Asri braids sat down in the seat opposite me, one white braid among the black, his face weathered with the harsh lines of a life spent defying authority. Soren, the Chaeten among the Disciples of Reic. Of all the rebels I’d met in Telesilla’s network, I guess I disliked him the least, so I should be grateful.
“How’d you get here so fast?” I’d expected to see a new face. I thought we made good time to Uyr Elderven, leaving him and Telesilla far to the west.
“We have tunnels through the Underground that run right to the city. Functional transport. If you weren’t traveling with a Chaeten-sa, you could have used them.”
“Well, fuck you too, Soren,” I said. His network’s bigotry toward Faruhar still rankled.
He rolled his eyes. “Just stating facts. Where’s your brother?”
“He’s following up on something. I’ll fill him in.” There were a couple of people on the other side of the common room. “Can we talk openly here?”
“I’ve kheled off our voices.” He directed a soft smile toward the woman at the front desk. “And I’d trust the ka here with my life even if they were listening.”
“Okay,” I started, steadying my thoughts. “What’s the news?”
