“And I’m going to medical school!” Clara declared, holding her chin high with determination.
The chaos of the moment had created space for such bravery, Isobel supposed. She wanted to laugh at the absurdity of it all.
Henry looked between Isobel and his daughter, his mouth working silently before he shook his head. “Have you both lost your minds?”
Isobel raised her hand. “I love you, brother, but I will not be told what I can and can’t do with my life. Not anymore.” It was clear that now was a moment far more important than any other in her life. Two paths could be taken. For the first time, she had a choice.
And she was choosing Ved.
“Leaving where?” Henry asked, exasperated. “I’m so confused.” Massaging his temples, he stepped over the unconscious form of Lord Richard and sank onto a bench.
Isobel looked to Ved, and he nodded. “Ved is from … another planet.”
“Iknewit,” Clara breathed in awe as she took a step closer to study him. She poked at some device on his arm boldly, unconcerned with propriety.
“What is she doing?” Ved asked in Xaala.
“Bold curiosity is something we share,” Isobel responded.
Clara’s eyes widened as she looked between them. “How did you understand him?”
Isobel smiled slyly and pulled her hair back to show the translator.
Clara squealed. “This is remarkable! Tell meeverything.”
Henry groaned. “Please tell me this is all some sort of strange prank.”
“Henry Nott,” Ved said, “and Clara Nott.”
“Yes!” Clara exclaimed, unbothered by the fact that he used none of the formalities to which they were accustomed. “You told him about us?”
Isobel scoffed. “Of course I told him about you. You’re my family. I didn’t, however, tell you about him for obvious reasons.”
Henry finally looked up from his hands and sighed as if he’d been hoping the scene before him would disappear.
“It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ved,” Clara said with a curtsy, then turned to Isobel. “And youdidtell me about him. In a way. You said you were in love with someone other than Dick.” She flapped a hand dismissively at said lord’s unmoving form.
“Clara,” Henry warned, but there was no bite to it.
She blushed prettily but jutted her chin forward in defiance. “Pardon me—LordDick. Though, he deserves to be called far worse. Besides, you’re the one who punched him, Papa. Twice.”
Henry looked exasperated with all three of them. But a silent tension filled the space as he studied Ved—from his helmet all the way down to his plated boots. “Explain,” Henry said.
So, Isobel did. She explained everything, oralmosteverything. She left out a few of the racier details. Henry didn’t say anything, but his expressions showed each thought, each emotion: skeptical, angry, concerned. Finally, he settled somewhere between enlightenment and exhaustion.
Clara, on the other hand, gasped and squealed as Isobel told their tale, practically swooning when she spoke about how Ved saved her.
“So that’s where you’ve been disappearing to,” her brother grumbled. “You know, the whole of Cinder knows you were missing. I have no way of explaining this to anyone.”
Isobel shrugged. “Say I ran away to live with a distant relative. It’s not like anyone will be surprised. I’ve always been peculiar and uninterested in all the rules.”
Henry nodded slowly, offsetting his jaw as he did. Finally, “And we’ll never see you again?” Now there was pain etched into his features. Clara’s face fell, her smile replaced with an expression of loss and heartache. It wasn’t uncommon for family to live far from each other and rarely see one another. Elizabeth lived on the other side of Dorsent and rarely visited since marrying. But this was something different. Isobel wouldn’t even be on the same planet.
“This planet is off-limits,” Ved explained, and both Henry and Clara were surprised that he could speak their language. “It is unlikely we could return. I can promise you I will work to change that, but these things arecomplex.”
“I see,” Henry said, steepling his fingers.
“Could you write letters?” Clara asked, hopeful.
