Page 103 of A Fae in Finance
“Good morning,” I said, sitting up. “Is this an intervention?”
“You’re taking off work,” Sahir said. “I know where Roman is.”
I pulled my covers up my chest, trying to retain the last bit of sleepy warmth.
“I know where Roman is, too, Sahir,” I said, in tones of deep irritation. “He’s at the edge of a sacred forest repairing some ruins.”
“Miriam,” Sahir started, and then stopped. “Ah,” he said. He looked around the room and settled on a bare patch of wall near his left arm. “I realize that perhaps humans are not aware of geometry,” he said, flicking his fingers toward the wall. A large grid appeared in the dirt.
“Geometry,” I repeated, a bit dazed.
“This is a square,” he said, outlining a four-by-four square with another flick of his fingers. “The area of the square is sixteen—do you see?”
He proceeded to count each of the smaller squares contained in this large square, tapping each with his finger.
I stared at him.
“And this is a rectangle,” he said, outlining an eight-by-two rectangle. “It also contains sixteen squares. The area is still sixteen. But theperimeter”—he emphasized this word with two pulses of light around each perimeter—“is different for each of these shapes. The one has a perimeter of sixteen. The other has a perimeter of twenty. Do you see?”
Unable to form words, I nodded.
“Do you see also why it would not be convenient to walk the perimeter of the forest, looking for ruins with no further guidance?” he prompted.
We stared at each other.
“Uh. Yes,” I said, because it felt easier than explaining the traumas inflicted on me by my geometry teacher.
“Good. Then get up.”
“What about Doctor Kitten?” I asked, looking at the cat in question.
“We will be gone for two nights,” Sahir said. “The cat will be perfectly safe.”
He must not have found my expression particularly reassured. He glanced at Lene, helplessly.
“We will take Doctor Kitten,” she declared.
“Will that be safe for him?”
Lene and Sahir exchanged another look.
“My sister, Nele, will stay with Doctor Kitten,” she declared, with the same level of confidence as before.
“Who?” I scooped my cat into my arms.
“Her sister, Nele,” Gaheris said. “She also has an affinity for cats.”
“You have asister?” I asked, staring at Lene. “Why didn’t I know that?”
She blinked back. “You have not asked many questions about me.”
Well, I was a bad friend.
I slid out of bed and rocked Doctor Kitten gently. He patted my cheek with his paw. “Okay, fine, but let me prepare for this. I need to request time off. I want to meet Nele before I leave her with Doctor Kitten. And I have no idea why you couldn’t have waited until breakfast to tell me this.”
“It is breakfast time,” Gaheris said. “You were just still asleep.”
Sahir stalked over to my desk and unplugged my laptop. “Here,” he said, thrusting it in my general direction. “Email your boss now. Gaheris will retrieve Nele.”
