Azrael went back to her bed and flopped down. “I’m happy, Rani. I’m really happy. I know we have no idea where we are or what’s ahead but I’m happy. It’s a good place. I can feel it.”
Rani smiled at her friend, willing the universe to let this innocent girl remain happy. She’d asked for nothing in life. Let her have this one thing.
Then the door opened and the man returned. The man who’d plucked her from the desert and apparently looked at her like his world depended on it.
She sat up and pulled the blanket to a modest level, hoping Azrael had exaggerated her need for a bath.
“You’re awake,” he said, his smile confirming the truth in Azrael’s assessment of him. For his eyes were unmistakably filled with love.
AAROW
THE NOW
Aarow stood beside the girl’s bed, not wanting to frighten her away by getting too close. Her eyes were open and she was sitting up. She looked tired, with lines under her dark eyes and sand stuck to her hair. None of that mattered. The important thing was that she was awake.
“Hello,” he said, coughing to cover his awkwardness. He didn’t normally have trouble speaking to people.
“Thank you for rescuing us.” Her voice was soft and gentle, yet her face so much more animated than when he’d carried her from the desert.
“Of course,” he said. “You needed help and that’s what we do here. You must have a lot of questions.”
He noticed her friend in the next bed turn to her side and pretend to sleep, her eyelids fluttering in a way nobody did when they were really asleep. He tried to recall her name, fairly certain it was Azrael. Yet still, he didn’t know his princess’s name, despite having asked Azrael for it several times already and being told he’d need to ask her himself.
The girl nodded, making him wonder if she was always this quiet. Azrael hadn’t had the same issue earlier, chatting away to him until she seemed to have realized she was saying too much and closed down.
“I have questions for you, too,” he said. “Starting with your name. My name’s Aarow.” He smiled, not putting out his hand, having learned long ago that didn’t go down well with reborns.
“Aarow,” she repeated, studying him for a moment, before color raced to her cheeks and she looked away, smoothing her hair down with her fingertips.
“You look fine,” he said. Well, better than fine if he were truthful, but he sensed this wasn’t the time to tell her this. She might crawl even further into her shell than she already had.
“And your name is?” He ventured forward to squat beside her bed, leveling their faces, but when she shrank away, he shuffled back to give her space.
She seemed to be deciding on whether to tell him her name or make one up and he wondered how he was going to know the difference.
“Rani,” she said, almond eyes locking on his own.
He was certain this was the truth, mainly because he knew the Emperor’s daughter was called Rani. He didn’t need his mother to put a pea under her mattress. Her name proved what he’d already known. Just like in the story, he’d already recognized her with his heart. This had to be the princess.
“Rani’s a beautiful name,” he said, deciding not to let on that he knew who she was. Allow her to adjust to her surroundings a bit first. Something didn’t fit, though. The most recent of the reborns had told them that Princess Rani had failed to produce an heir.
“Where’s your son?” he asked, noticing there was no sleeping infant in the room. The woman from the other bed was missing too.
“With Sharma,” said Rani. “His mother.”
“Oh.” It was now his turn to fall silent and he cursed himself for jumping to conclusions, just because she’d been the one to hold the child when he’d found her. This new information convinced him even more that she was indeed who he thought she was. It also gave him hope that maybe the Capital hadn’t broken her in all the ways he was afraid they had.
As if on cue, Sharma and her baby returned to the room, followed by two healers.
One of the healers went to say something to him and stopped herself.
He rose to his feet. It was clear Rani needed more time to recover before he spoke to her, and this healer was too afraid to stand up to the future Colonel by asking him to leave. It pleased him that people recognized his future leadership, but he didn’t want to be the sort of leader people were afraid of.
“My father and I need to speak to Rani when she’s feeling better,” he said. “Can you please send for us as soon as that’s possible?”
The healer looked at Rani and crinkled her brow as if wondering why her patient had attracted such attention. To her, she must just look like any of the reborns plucked from the cusp of death.
“Who’s your father?” Rani asked him, finding her voice at last. “Why does he need to speak to me?”
“He’s the leader of the Colony,” said Aarow, noticing the look of surprise on her face. It was a shame he’d had to tell her this. He’d have liked to have seen how she treated him without this piece of information first. Although to a princess, being the son of the leader of a Colony probably wasn’t all that impressive.
“I’ll be fine to speak with you and your father on the next turn.” She propped herself up on her elbows and he smiled to have heard such authority in her voice. He’d known there was so much more to this girl hidden beneath her quiet demeanor.
The healer stepped between them to straighten Rani’s already smooth blanket. Her hint couldn’t be more direct.
“We call them days in here, not turns,” the healer said to Rani.
Rani nodded, not seeming to mind being corrected.
“I’ll leave you to rest,” said Aarow, reluctantly taking the healer’s hint, finding it hard to tear himself away.
“See you on the next day,” Rani said, and he tried not to laugh at the way she’d used this new word.
“I think you’ll be happy here,” he said, taking a step away, much to the relief of the healer.
At these words, Rani offered him her first smile. Her whole face lifted and glowed as her appreciation spread from her lips to her eyes.
“We’re already happy here,” said Azrael, no longer pretending to sleep.
“I’m glad,” he said. “Rest now, and my father and I will be back to speak with you in the morning.” His eyes landed on Rani as he said this and he turned toward the door.
“Are you planning a battle?” Azrael asked, stilling his footsteps.
He turned slowly, wondering how she could possibly know about this.
“What did you ask?” He was suddenly more interested in Azrael than he’d been before.
“Never mind,” she said, falling silent.
“You asked about a battle,” he prompted. “Why?”
“I dreamed of one,” she said, fiddling with her blanket. “It was only a dream. Forgive me for mentioning it.”
He nodded, weighing up whether or not he believed her. Were these three women spies sent from the Capital? Had the Colony spent all this time believing they had the advantage of surprise when the Capital knew of their existence this whole time? Why else was a princess here? And why would this girl ask him about a battle? In all the rescues he’d ever done, not once had this question ever been asked.
“See you at sun-up,” he said, trying not to look at Rani. It was unbearable to think she might be lying to him when he’d only just decided she was telling him the truth. “Thank you for your time.”
He closed the door behind him and rested his back on it for a moment, drawing in a deep breath.
They had to tread carefully here. He needed to think with his head, not his heart. All their lives were at risk.
RANI
THE NOW
“How do we know when it’s sun-up?” Rani asked in a whisper, unsure if either Azrael or Sharma were awake. “There are no windows.” The Orbs of Time would be useless in a place like this.
“I have no idea,” came Sharma’s whispered r
eply. “Horus isn’t awake, so it can’t be too late.”
“Who’s Horus?” asked Azrael, saving Rani the question.
“My son,” said Sharma. “I named him last night.”
“That’s my father’s name,” said Rani, confused.
Azrael turned on a lamp and soft light filled the room.
“Your father’s a good man,” said Sharma. “What happened wasn’t his fault.”
“He’s a weak man.” Rani sat up. “He did nothing to save me.”
“He did everything to save you.” Sharma rose from her bed and perched on the edge of Rani’s bed. “Who do you think organized our bags of supplies?”
“You?”
She shook her head. “It was a risk, but I went to your father and talked to him. I apologize for not telling you this before now.”
“You didn’t, Sharma!” She sat up in bed and searched Sharma’s face for any hint that she was making this up. “You could have ruined everything. He’d never let me go.”
“Listen to me,” she said. “He did let you go. He organized our supplies. He told me which direction to run to reach the river. He wanted us to go to Wintergreen and tell them who you were. He seemed certain they’d help us.”
“You’re lying to me.” Rani shook her head and inched away from Sharma in her bed. “My father loved me. He couldn’t be certain of that. He wouldn’t give me his blessing.”
“He did it because he loves you.”
“No.” There was no way she could believe this. It couldn’t be true.
“It’s true,” said Azrael, joining the conversation.
“How would you know?” snapped Rani. “You never even met my father. And don’t tell me you dreamed it.”
Azrael fell silent for once and looked away. Rani would need to apologize to her later.
“Rani,” said Sharma. “He was almost as upset about the Chairman’s plans for you, as you were. He was sick over it. I wasn’t the only one who noticed your obsession with your window. Your father knew he had to either watch you die or give you a chance in the desert.”
Regret punched Rani in the gut. If this were true, she shouldn’t have left her father. He father loved her. Why was it only now that she realized that she loved him too?
“Why didn’t he say goodbye?” she asked.
“Because if you knew you’d had his blessing, it would’ve made it harder for you to leave. He didn’t want that for you.”
Rani slid her teeth across each other in a familiar grind, annoyed that Sharma was right.
Sharma reached out a tentative hand and touched her fingers to Rani’s cheek. “Don’t do that with your teeth,” she said. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier. He made me promise not to. He’d be furious if he knew I’d told you now.”
Rani pulled away, not wanting her touch. Not wanting anyone’s touch.
“So, why name your son after him?” she asked, slipping from her bed and crossing the room, breathing a sigh at the return of her personal space.
“Because without him, I’d never have laid a hand on my son. I’d be stuck in the Capital waiting for the Chairman to release me into the desert with no hope of survival. Only a very small number of people have made it to safety here. It was because of the Emperor’s help that we’re all alive today. Now my son can grow to be the true man he’s meant to be and I get to watch him do it. I couldn’t think of a better person to name him after than your father.”
Rani nodded, grateful for the new perspective on the man who’d raised her, but heartbroken at the feelings this stirred to life.
“It’s a lovely sentiment,” she said. “I’m sure he’ll do my father’s name proud.”
“Can we call him Horrie?” asked Azrael, venturing back into the conversation. “He doesn’t look much like a Horus.”
Sharma laughed. “I’m sure he won’t mind. Horrie suits him. It’s kind of cute.”
Horrie woke with a cry and flapped his little arms in the air.
“I’m really not sure if that’s a protest or a sign he likes it,” said Azrael.
“Hush, my child,” said Sharma, going to Horrie and scooping him up to hold against her chest. His tiny lips smacked together as the intensity of his cries increased. He was one hungry baby, determined to make up for lost time.
Sharma pressed him to her breast and he suckled, groaning through his cries now that he was getting rewarded for his efforts at last.
A healer came into the room, clasping her hands as if ready for business. It was the healer who’d tended to Rani, only this was the first time she’d had a proper look at her and Rani had to try to hide her shock. This woman was so…old. Her hair was gray, and her face was lined. How was it possible she was even still alive?
“I see someone’s awake,” the healer said, not seeming to notice Rani’s reaction. “Did the baby wake you all?”
“I think we woke him,” said Azrael. “His name’s Horrie. Do you like that?”
The healer’s eyes opened widely as her lower jaw fell just enough to provide an answer without words.
“It’s very unique,” she said, fussing with Rani’s blanket.
Azrael shot Rani a quick glance and poked out her tongue, causing Rani to burst out laughing having never seen such a gesture before.
“How old are you?” Azrael asked the healer.
“Azrael!” Sharma scolded. “This woman is here to help us.”
“It’s okay,” the healer laughed, going to Azrael’s side. “I’m forty-four.”
Rani’s eyes widened. She hadn’t realized people could live so long.
“How old are you?” the woman asked Azrael, perching on the side of her bed.
“Seventeen. And I’m sorry if I was rude just now.”
“Not at all,” the woman said. “I like your honesty. My name’s Freya, what’s yours?”
“Azrael. I like your hair. It’s sparkly, like your eyes. Can I touch it?”
“Sure.”
Azrael reached out to put her hand on Freya’s hair and Rani wondered what it felt like. Did gray hair feel the same as black? She’d have to ask Azrael later.
“How did the color run out?” Azrael asked.
“That’s what happens when you get older.” Freya took hold of Azrael’s hand and squeezed it.
Rani decided that she liked this woman and the gentle way she was treating her friend.
“I’ve never met anyone as old as you,” said Azrael.
Freya laughed. “I said older, not old. There are plenty of people older than me in the Colony. You’ll see.”
“That’s incredible,” said Azrael. “The water in your pools must be enchanted.”
“Perhaps it is,” Freya said, smiling.
It seemed Azrael had enchanted Freya with her blunt honesty, just like the water in the pools.
“Well, I’m pleased to see you’re all feeling better,” said Freya, rising from the bed and looking at Rani and Sharma. “Shall I send for the Colonel and Aarow?”
“The Colonel?” they all asked together.
“Yes, that’s what he’s called around here. I should probably tell you that he’s also my husband.”
So, if Freya was married to the leader of the Colony, she must be Aarow’s mother. Rani would never have picked that. They didn’t look at all alike.
“The Colonel’s our version of the Emperor,” Freya continued. “Only he actually has a say in our fate.”
Rani winced, although what Freya said was true. Her father had no power, even if he did have a far kinder heart than she’d given him credit for.
“Is that a yes?” asked Freya, directing her question at Sharma. “Shall I send for them now?”
It was Rani who answered. “Just give us a little time to clean ourselves up, then yes, please send for your husband. And Aarow.”
She felt a flush rise to her cheeks, saying his name aloud for the first time and wondered why she felt such an affinity to him. Was it because they were both the child of a leader?
Both who’d been allowed to go out into the desert. One in the hope of returning swiftly, the other in the hope of never returning again.
Or was it because of how undeniably handsome Aarow was? No, she didn’t want to think like that. The perfect structure of his face and powerful lines of muscle on his body meant nothing to her. It was the kindness of a soul that made someone handsome. Regrettably, this seemed to apply to Aarow, too.
She sighed. Moving forward with her future would be so much easier without the cloud of confused feelings Aarow stirred to life in her. She had to push all that aside and concentrate on the questions he’d said they had for her. How much should she tell him and how much should she leave buried in the sand?
It seemed she didn’t have long to figure this out.
SHARMA
THE NOW
Sharma fed little Horrie with her eyes glued to him. It felt like a miracle to be able to sustain this perfect human with milk she produced all by herself. How had her body known how to do this? She remembered all the other times she’d given birth and the women in the Birthing Center had milked her with their thick gloved fingers like she was a goat. Why couldn’t they have just let her babies feed from her then? It was obvious to her now that nurturing a baby from her breast was about so much more than just feeding them with precious milk. It was about feeding them with love. Running a thumb across feathered eyebrows. Drawing an index finger down the bridge of a tiny nose. Holding out a finger for a small hand to grasp.
Her bond with this child was strong, but it did nothing to diminish the bond she felt for the children she’d never been allowed to hold. If anything, it strengthened this feeling, making her miss them even more.
Azrael had taken Rani to the pools to freshen up before they talked to the Colonel and his son and she was glad of some time alone with Horrie. Her body was still aching, her lips cracked and her head pounding. But slowly, she was recovering and able to take in just how lucky they’d been. The healers had been working wonders with them. They should all be feeling far worse than they were.
The Kingdoms of Evernow Box Set Page 54
