Page 14 of Kingdom of Ashes & Bone
A small grin cracked Shava’s face. “Yeah. He’s incredible. He knows what it’s like to struggle, you know?” She sighed, leaning back onto her hands on my cot. “So few people understand.”
That was something I could relate to.
“Look at us. We both found probably the only men who aren’t crusty Nobles or degenerate mud boys.” She giggled a bit at that, and for a brief flash of a moment, I was eight and she was twelve, confessing how she’d escaped an older man by punching him in theyou-know-where.
Just as quickly, the memory dissipated. Those days seemed like a lifetime ago.
“Remember when you broke a boy’s nose for that wheel of cheese? That was amazing,” Shava said.
Oh, I remembered. “It was the first time I’d ever hit someone.” A grin of satisfaction came to my face just remembering the shocked look on the boy’s face.
I wasn’t sure how long we stayed in my tent reminiscing, but eventually my rumbling stomach brought us out into the corridor. Shava waved goodbye, muttering about having to ‘get ready.’ I strapped my new fire materials to my waist and set out. A small tray with a slab of Zephyr’s meat and a slightly rotted apple awaited me in front of my tent, and I swiped it thankfully, inhaling the whole thing in a minute. I set it just inside my tent flap, determined to give it back later. For now, I had work to do.
I stomped down the hall to where the twenty or so women and children lived, surprised to see Zephyr among them. He was playing ball with a small group of kids. They shrieked with delight as he made a dramatic movement to kick the ball, then purposefully flipped over on his back and fell to the ground. He grinned as the kids shrieked with laughter and all fell on top of him in a dog pile.
A corner of my mouth twisted up before I could help it. I couldn’t imagine Zariah or Zion playing with children. Then again, Zephyr didn’t have to worry about accidentally turning into a dragon and roasting everyone alive. Wait … that meant the curse was centered around the queen specifically and not the royal family! Otherwise Zephyr would have been affected as the king’s son. Right?
Another step closer to reaching the top of this mystery! Too bad the staircase of this curse seemed to have thousands of steps.
“Ah! Mari! Good. I’m glad you came.”
Zephyr good-naturedly shook off the children as he approached me, seemingly without a care in the world. He acted as if the next corridor down there weren’t a bunch of sick men and women who could turn into blood-thirsty savages and skin alive each kid here before we could blink. The anger inside me boiled. Just last night, my friend had died. She’d died because of his foolish hope that everyone could be saved somehow.
I crossed my arms over my chest and waited.
Seeing I was still just a tad irate, his grin dropped and he got to the point. “Shava and I will be out today. She’ll be going outside the wall, so I’ll return first. Are you able to keep watch over things? It is nice having someone else here so we don’t always have to take turns with who goes out.”
He flashed me a winning grin, but I wasn’t susceptible to his charm. Not after last night. All the smiles in the world wouldn’t wash away the sight of Oleria’s mangled and torn body.
“Fine,” I muttered, glancing at the ground.
Zephyr clapped his hands together. “Good, good. We will leave shortly. Thank you.”
His gear was already strapped to his body, and Shava detached herself from another woman and gave her a hug goodbye before giving me a jaunty wave.
So my agreement had clearly been anticipated. That annoyed me. What was I supposed to do if someone else changed? We could all be slaughtered like livestock!
I had to do something. Drastic action must be taken. Sweat dripped down my back at the very thought.
I gave it a few minutes after they left before I cupped my hands around my mouth, wanting to ensure Zephyr and Shava were gone and wouldn’t return to interrupt my plans. Zephyr and I working together could be great, but he definitely needed someone to challenge his ideas, and Shava wasn’t about to do it. So it was up to me.
“Everybody out here! Announcement!”
Most people were already outside their tents, working on menial chores or tending children, but I waited a minute until they all moved closer and a few yawning mothers joined us from their tents.
“Listen up. After yesterday’s little accident, we’re changing things. All of you need to pack your shit and move. We’re switching quarters with the Nobles. Let’s go.”
A hand landed on my back and I whirled around, only for Wisteria’s wide eyes to meet mine. Her hair was still dirty blonde with copper highlights, though a bit oily and unkempt in a rough braid. Otherwise she looked good, and unharmed.
“Mari! I must have been sleeping when you arrived!”
Part of me wanted to pick her up and squeeze her tight, never letting go. The other part of me was afraid to get too close: she’d just end up dying like the others. I shook my head. “I’m changing a few things. Piss poor management got Oleria killed. As long as I’m down here, that shit won’t happen again.”
Wisteria gawked at me, but I moved on down to the Nobles’ quarters. Her footsteps pounded behind me.
“Everyone who’s able, up and at ‘em! We’re moving!” Heads poked out at me, but about a dozen people didn’t move at all. A handful of five or so Nobles gathered their things, the look of misery in their eyes so raw it made me pause.
“I’ll help,” Wisteria declared, carefully ripping down a few tents and folding the canvases. “Let’s get the tents folded up first. If you have any personal belongings, take them. We can work on moving the sick ones last.”
