Page 23 of Xefe
Deflection.She hadn’t answered his question but he would let it pass, for now. He needed her calm to share her secrets, so he swapped his knife out for his staff, leaving the sharpened steel on the table.
“That’s better.” Her lips lifted and immediately shut. No smile. “Now we can talk without accidental decapitation.”
Truth.“What are your abilities?”
“Compared to what? You? How do I measure that?” Hermosa rose and cautiously studied his room, steering clear of his blade.
This pleased him. But he would remain vigilant in case she used her speed against him.Was she avoiding the question again?“How were you able to evade so many of my warriors? When you attacked Tontoh?”
“You tell me. Tontoh,” she spat out his name and continued, “injected me with a whole vial of that gold stuff. I call it Oro, and I almost died. You know that. You saw me.”
Truth.The idea of her death affected him strangely. He felt pressure in his chest that promised to roar into anger, but luckily, it soon faded. He shook off her words and said, “What were your skills on your planet?
“We’re racers. Our job is to feed the crowd and make them forget their horrible existence for a few minutes while we fight our way to the end.” Hermosa looked down at her hands. “We were competing when they took us.”
Truth.“Your kind may well be suited for the Great Race.”
Her gaze intensified, showing a level of interest she usually hid. “Tell me about it. I want to know every detail.”
“I will show you the course tomorrow and answer your questions then.”
She bobbed her head. In agreement? “How long do we have to prepare?”
“Syads.Or roughly what you call days, but the length varies. This first trial is to see if you are able to participate in the Great Race.” He studied her earther physiology and didn’t have high hopes.
“Prequals. I get it.”
“Tell me of your speed.”
“Not much to tell. God and Oro given.” She smiled and then smacked a hand over her lips. “Ignore that.”
“How can I?”
“It’s a habit. I can’t control it.”
Lie.It didn’t take long for her to fall back on old patterns. This behavior, her ability to tell untruths, reminded him of the Aavvee aristocracy, the ones with too much time who thought to seduce him and his warriors. As if their supreme would allow divided loyalty—he had ensured they would never be tempted away from him. The golden elixir,Glrtsstlllloroggg, was a gift and a curse. It presented him with untold strength, yet chained his emotions. Although he had never thought of it as a curse until he’d met this earther. “What changes, exactly, did you feel after taking theGlrtsstlllloroggg?”
Hermosa examined his possessions, running her hand along every surface. Her proprietary behavior should have bothered him, but he found himself fascinated. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her. Long, tangled hair fell down her back. Deep brown with golden highlights, it shone in the dim light. Her limbs, surprisingly graceful, floated over his things.
“I’ve only been awake a few hours, so it’s hard to tell.” She didn’t quite meet his eyes.
He waited. This was not exactly lying, but she avoided the truth.
Hermosa peeked up between feathery hair protecting her eye sockets. “Not going for that, hmmm? Well, this time, Sunny, I’m not trying to hide anything. Not exactly.” She laughed as she hadin the alien ship, but this time it was huskier. Deeper, richer…more sincere.
He remained silent.
“I really am processing things. When I woke up, I couldn’t speak, could barely understand you or anyone else. Now,” she sighed. “I don’t know how I’m different except…” She rubbed her shoulder. “I feel no pain.”
“You had been in pain from the craft?”
One of her hairy forehead ridges lifted.
What does that mean?So many varied expressions crossed her face at all times. It was frustrating, yet it compelled him to want to understand every nuance. Perhaps, she hadn’t heard his question, so he clarified, “In the craft. What was done to you after Tontoh administered theGlrtsstlllloroggg, and why were you given so much?”
She fisted her palms, and darkness shadowed her open face. “I won’t talk about him.Ever.I don’t care who you replace me with.”
A flare of anger shook him, making him fear it would overpower his safeguards. It assailed him for several seconds. He surged onto his feet until, eventually, the fury floated away. He’d never come so close to losing control. But her statement only made his hatred for Tontoh grow. It suddenly became unacceptable that he would mistreat her. “I will ask you only one question. Did he hurt you?”
