“I’m so sorry this happened to you,” I whisper. “I’m… I’m so grateful that Lazul knew what he was doing. Knew it was more than a little rain.”
Laumon nods. “He pays attention, and he knows us. I’m sure he could tell there was something different about this storm than others from the way Slate mentioned it to him. He’s a good lord. Best I’ve ever had. And he’s been frantic these past few weeks, trying to get us all back to ournormal. For a minute there, we didn’t know if Mimet would be able to make it back to us for the entire season, or if she was even okay at all. She spends a lot of time on the roads, and if she were in the wrong place at the wrong time, her entire camp may have been swept away.” He blows out a breath and swings away from the wreckage.
The wreckage that was never in the game.
Because this entire section of the beach wasn’t in the game.
Laumon whispers, “You never think something like this will happen where you can reach it. It’s always just a storybook plot device, something you hear rumors of from traders at fishing towns. You don’t think about how it will affect you when suddenly you’re one of the survivors.” His voice breaks, so he clears his throat. “Sorry. I asked you if you wanted to learn to fish, not witness a breakdown.”
“It’s okay. You’ve been through a lot. I’m happy to listen, if you need me to.”
He smiles. “You’re very sweet, Citrus. But this really isn’t what I wanted to say to you today. I’m grateful for you, for all your help, for the supplies you’ve gotten for everyone, forthe work you’ve been putting in all over town. Having you around has helped us a lot. I wanted you to know that you’re appreciated.”
My heart twists, and I have no idea what to say. “I haven’t done all that much. Most of my time lately has been waiting for Samson to help me look for a topaz in the mines so we can get the elevator back up and running.”
He laughs, lifting his pole. “Right, so all you’ve been doing is using that fancy void bag of yours to bring much-needed ores in from the mines, and all I’ve been doing is catching fish. Don’t undermine your worth. I’ve seen the fresh produce at Muskov and Kaolin’s, and I know where that comes from.”
My face heats. I forgot that I’ve been keeping my crops rotated and dropping the excess Samson and I don’t cook up off with Kaolin, hoping that it’ll be used before it goes bad. “That’s more of a…hobby…that I do. While I wait for Samson to buddy system with me in the mines.”
“Last night, your ‘hobby’ put a plate full of fresh veggies on a table I wouldn’t have if you hadn’t supplied Gabbro with the wood to make it, so.”
The silence.
It burns.
I fix my gaze firmly off him. “Soanyway…fishing?”
“Fishing.” He laughs. “My favorite spot is out this way.”
Glad to no longer be talking about me, I trail after him, hoping that once the horror of skewering a worm is past, maybe we’ll talk about something peaceful.
Like…deboning a fish.
Chapter 19
♥♥♥♥
Time to advance the plot.
“Samson…” I hedge, innocently.
Mouth full of green beans fresh from a first harvest on my farm—which isalmostclear enough to be considered fully functional—Samson meets my eyes, chews, and swallows. “I don’t trust that tone. What are you plotting?”
“Plotting?” Aghast, I pull my body back from the dining room table, and our incredible meal of mashed potatoes, fish, and green beans. “How dare you suggest I, an innocent young woman, would be thinking up devious schemes of any kind.”
Humor tints the corner of his mouth as he cuts into his fillet. “Oh, so the plots aredevious? That’s even more concerning.”
My lip juts.
“For the last time, we are not going toeggthe forge. I find it appalling that such a waste of food was regular in your old world. Also Lia lives there, too, and she doesn’t deserve it.”
I bolster. “I heard your valid points the first time I suggested it, and I told you that I changed my mind about egging the forge en masse. Now I just wantoneegg, to throw, right at Austin’s stupid face.”
“That’s an entire breakfast sandwich, wasted,” Samson grumbles.
“But think of the morale it would boost.”
“No.”
