he explains. “They
will escort you around the hall and answer any questions you may
have. May I?” Kendal offers me his arm.
Hesitant to take it, I assume we’ll all tour
together but the second he links elbows with me, Mae and Pratt are
immediately led away, leaving me with alone with Kendal.
“Where did they go?”
“It is best to separate,” he directs us
towards the outer wall, “better advantage to know each other one on
one, do you not agree?”
“Oh, I don’t know…” I skim the crowd, trying
to locate Mae and Pratt, “you’re bound to make more friends in a
larger group.”
“This is true,” he nods, “but I have enough
friends. Beautiful females on the other hand…” he tugs me closer,
pressing his side fully into mine.
Where is Reid? Or Sampson? Hell—I’ll even
take Werzo at this point. The rest of them are in here somewhere,
getting drunk off the Hunnis or scouting for barely-dressed mayans.
But they need to be here or, more importantly, watching over Mae
and Pratt. I shouldn’t have let them be taken away. Something’s not
right.
“I’m sure Chancellor Keller would be proud
you’re taking such good care of us. Should we pop over and say
hello?”
“No, no,” Kendall’s quick to dismiss the
idea. “It is best not to bother him while he is conversing with the
Fychu. Besides, I would rather talk about you…” his smile widens,
“tell me, are you enjoying your accommodations? They are… to your
satisfaction?”
“They’re perfect,” I’m scanning the room.
“Thank you.”
“And are you in the East or West Wing—do you
know?”
“I wasn’t aware there was more than one.”
“Yes, the FH is divided into four divisions,
two for males and two for females. It is for maximum security.”
He’s waiting for me to say something, to give away some sort of
detail but I remain silent. After a second, he probes further. “Do
you remember from which tunnel you arrived?”
I know exactly where we entered but I’m not
saying a word. He’s trying to obtain this information for a reason
and until I know why, I’m not giving anything away. Offering an
innocuous smile, I shrug, “Couldn’t tell you.”
“Well, let us see if we can figure this out,
shall we?” he’s leading me back towards the front of the room.
My mind is racing—should I lie and tell him
the wrong tunnel? Would he know if I was? And why does he care so
much?
“Alright,” he grins as we approach the tunnel
that Salva led us through earlier. “This is the East Wing. It is
for our most important guests so I would assume these are your
quarters.” He looks at me, hoping for a reaction. But I scrunch my
face, feigning confusion.
“Of course,” he goes on, leading us away and
rounding the front of the royal thrones, “it might be too obvious
to keep you there. The West Wing is probably safer given your
honored status.” He pulls me through the crowd as I search for
someone—anyone—I know. But they’re all gone, lost to the party and
just as I realize I’ll have to get out of this on my own, we’ve
stopped.
A wave of relief pours over me at the sight
of Reid blocking our path. Arms crossed and tightlipped, he looks
downright pissed, focused on Kendal’s arm linked with mine.
“Good evening,” the miyon smiles at Reid
who’s unwilling to return the expression. “You must be one of the
humans of Harrizel.”
“What gave it away?”
Kendal’s grin fades. “I was just escorting
Fallon around.”
“On the chancellor’s request,” I throw out
quickly, hoping Reid will pick up on the oddity of it. His eyes
flicker over me, returning to Kendal immediately.
“Strange—he didn’t mention you.”
“I would imagine he would have more important
matters to discuss.”
“Then assisting your guests?” Reid frowns.
“Figured that’d be top of the list. Fallon,” he looks at me,
“Sampson’s asking for you.”
Kendal glowers but quickly wipes the
expression from his face. He
will escort you around the hall and answer any questions you may
have. May I?” Kendal offers me his arm.
Hesitant to take it, I assume we’ll all tour
together but the second he links elbows with me, Mae and Pratt are
immediately led away, leaving me with alone with Kendal.
“Where did they go?”
“It is best to separate,” he directs us
towards the outer wall, “better advantage to know each other one on
one, do you not agree?”
“Oh, I don’t know…” I skim the crowd, trying
to locate Mae and Pratt, “you’re bound to make more friends in a
larger group.”
“This is true,” he nods, “but I have enough
friends. Beautiful females on the other hand…” he tugs me closer,
pressing his side fully into mine.
Where is Reid? Or Sampson? Hell—I’ll even
take Werzo at this point. The rest of them are in here somewhere,
getting drunk off the Hunnis or scouting for barely-dressed mayans.
But they need to be here or, more importantly, watching over Mae
and Pratt. I shouldn’t have let them be taken away. Something’s not
right.
“I’m sure Chancellor Keller would be proud
you’re taking such good care of us. Should we pop over and say
hello?”
“No, no,” Kendall’s quick to dismiss the
idea. “It is best not to bother him while he is conversing with the
Fychu. Besides, I would rather talk about you…” his smile widens,
“tell me, are you enjoying your accommodations? They are… to your
satisfaction?”
“They’re perfect,” I’m scanning the room.
“Thank you.”
“And are you in the East or West Wing—do you
know?”
“I wasn’t aware there was more than one.”
“Yes, the FH is divided into four divisions,
two for males and two for females. It is for maximum security.”
He’s waiting for me to say something, to give away some sort of
detail but I remain silent. After a second, he probes further. “Do
you remember from which tunnel you arrived?”
I know exactly where we entered but I’m not
saying a word. He’s trying to obtain this information for a reason
and until I know why, I’m not giving anything away. Offering an
innocuous smile, I shrug, “Couldn’t tell you.”
“Well, let us see if we can figure this out,
shall we?” he’s leading me back towards the front of the room.
My mind is racing—should I lie and tell him
the wrong tunnel? Would he know if I was? And why does he care so
much?
“Alright,” he grins as we approach the tunnel
that Salva led us through earlier. “This is the East Wing. It is
for our most important guests so I would assume these are your
quarters.” He looks at me, hoping for a reaction. But I scrunch my
face, feigning confusion.
“Of course,” he goes on, leading us away and
rounding the front of the royal thrones, “it might be too obvious
to keep you there. The West Wing is probably safer given your
honored status.” He pulls me through the crowd as I search for
someone—anyone—I know. But they’re all gone, lost to the party and
just as I realize I’ll have to get out of this on my own, we’ve
stopped.
A wave of relief pours over me at the sight
of Reid blocking our path. Arms crossed and tightlipped, he looks
downright pissed, focused on Kendal’s arm linked with mine.
“Good evening,” the miyon smiles at Reid
who’s unwilling to return the expression. “You must be one of the
humans of Harrizel.”
“What gave it away?”
Kendal’s grin fades. “I was just escorting
Fallon around.”
“On the chancellor’s request,” I throw out
quickly, hoping Reid will pick up on the oddity of it. His eyes
flicker over me, returning to Kendal immediately.
“Strange—he didn’t mention you.”
“I would imagine he would have more important
matters to discuss.”
“Then assisting your guests?” Reid frowns.
“Figured that’d be top of the list. Fallon,” he looks at me,
“Sampson’s asking for you.”
Kendal glowers but quickly wipes the
expression from his face. He
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