Tears of Blood by Simone Beaudelaire Page B

did her straight white teeth. Seeing her, Josiah wanted to
show off. He wanted to meet Peter’s attack head-on and drive the bully
away. But he knew from experience that the moment this kind of thinking took
over, he would be finished.
    Resisting the urge to rush his
opponent, Josiah feinted, and when Peter reacted, he made a lightning-swift
movement, changing his direction and hitting the bigger boy on the ribs with
bruising force.
    Peter cursed and swung wildly, which
opened him to a hit on the shoulder. Josiah dropped his practice sword between
his opponent’s legs. A deft twist and Peter lay sprawled on the ground
before him. The bigger boy laughed.
    "You’ve learned some new
tricks, shrimp. Not bad. But you’ll never be a real man. By the time you
reach adult size, it will be too late."
    Knowing better than to rise to the
bait, Josiah stretched out his hand. The rules of manners had been drilled into
all the children.
    In a move faster than it seemed
possible such a bulky boy should be able to do, Peter reversed their positions,
throwing Josiah to the ground and placing a size fifteen sneaker on his throat.
He pressed down just a little, enough to restrict Josiah’s airway
slightly.
    "Too trusting," Peter
tutted. "Too bad for you, shrimp. By the time you grow up, I’ll
have your pretty Annie all to myself. Just imagine it, you little worm.
You’ll be celebrating your twentieth birthday and I’ll be screwing
your girl." Peter laughed. He let just a hint more weight press down on
Josiah’s throat.
    And then, without warning, Peter was
flying across the courtyard, landing in a heap.
    "I have something to say about
that, you disgusting toad," Annie snarled. "Josiah, are you all
right?" She knelt beside him.
    Josiah blinked, wondering what had
happened. It slowly dawned on him that Annie must have knocked Peter away from
him. He ground his teeth. Even a girl was tougher and stronger than him.
    "I’m fine," he
snarled, twitching her hand off his shoulder. "I don’t need any
help."
    He hauled himself to his feet and
stalked away, back towards the compound. He’d had enough practice for one
day.
    ***
    "Father?"
    Lucien looked up from the report he
was writing.
    "Do you have a minute?"
Josiah stepped into the council chamber, massaging his throat. His voice
sounded hoarse.
    "Of course, son," Lucien
replied, shoving back the chair next to him. Josiah sat. "What’s on
your mind?"
    "I... I think I’m in love."
    Lucien nodded. "Annie is a
very special girl. I’m not surprised."
    Josiah blushed, but didn’t
deny it. "Do you think we’ll ever be... together?"
    Lucien considered for a moment.
"I don’t see why not."
    "Mr. Smith hates me."
Josiah said darkly.
    Lucien smiled. Teens were so
dramatic. "I don’t think he does. Most likely he’s concerned
for his granddaughter is all. She’s his last living relative. After he
lost his wife to cancer all those years ago, and then Pearl and her husband, and
Annie’s younger brother in that succubus attack, well it’s not
surprising he’s protective of Annie."
    "It’s more than that,
Father. He really does hate me. I can feel it."
    "Son, I’ve known him for
so long. Long before he was called mister. by anyone. Back when he was Moses
Smith, minor cleric. He was my sidekick, you know."
    Josiah raised one dark eyebrow.
"But he’s so old."
    "But don’t forget, son.
He’s human. He has a human lifespan. He may seem old now, but I can
clearly remember when he was born. He fought by my side in his twenties and
thirties."
    "How old are you,
Father?" Josiah asked hesitantly.
    "I don’t exactly
know," he replied. "It’s hard to measure in human years. I
was a young  naphil when the Flood occurred."
    Josiah’s eyes widened.
"Do you remember it? What was it like? Did you lose many friends?"
    "Slow down, Josiah,"
Lucien said, laughing. "No, I didn’t lose any friends. The people
who lived back then were... horrible. Every bit as bad as the Scriptures say.
They make some of