“He is, Miss Le. I will let him know you are here.”
“Are you heading to the frontlines, L’Wrayth? Or are you staying here?”
“I’m staying here to assist Director L’Corte. With the chancellor joining the Warriors at Osti, a lot more responsibility will fall on the director’s shoulders. He will need my help to manage it all.”
“L’Corte is lucky to have you,” I say. I mean what I’m saying, but it doesn’t hurt to butter up L’Wrayth a little bit. I’ve been a bit of a pain in the ass to him. I’m happy to see his lips curl into a small, pleased smile.
“You can head in, Miss Le. The director is available to see you.”
“Thanks, L’Wrayth,” I toss over my shoulder as I head into L’Corte’s office.
When I enter the office, he is busy on a phone call. He waves me over to a chair, holds up a finger and mouths,Just a minute.
“Yes, I will send the report as soon as I get the final data from the Engineering department,” L’Corte says quietly. He leans closer to his computer monitor, staring at something on the screen. “That should work. If any issues come up, I will send you a message… Excellent. You’re welcome.”
He continues to talk for a minute more before saying goodbye and ending the call. He then spends a moment typing on his computer. I don’t want to interrupt his work, so I look around his bare, sterile office. I could not work in this space. There is not a single personal touch in the whole room.
“It looks like you might be right,” L’Corte suddenly says, distracting me from my perusal of his office.
“Oh? About what?”
“We had two new matings last night. I sent messages to the two males and their new mates to let them know about the upcoming Presenting Ceremony. I told them to get in contact with you if they want to participate,” L’Corte says matter-of-factly.
He looks up from his computer monitor and gives me a blindingly happy grin. I’ve never seen him look like this before. It transforms his somewhat austere face into something beautiful. It’s like watching the sun break through dark, stormy clouds.
He’s too serious all the time. I like seeing him like this. I’m also happy that I kind of played a part in it. I find myself reflecting his grin.
“That’s wonderful,” I say. “I talked to Sara and Ally this morning. They want to participate in the Presenting Ceremony too. We might have four couples already.”
“It’s excellent news,” L’Corte says with a nod, rubbing his hands together. “Having General D’Annon participate will certainly help morale within the ranks. He is well respected among the Warriors.”
“Were you able to get the list of departments that are going to need extra help?”
“Yes, although the list may be somewhat incomplete. I thought it would be more important for you to get something immediately, even if it is unfinished. As more data comes in, I will update it. I have already sent a copy to you,” L’Corte says, indicating the tablet in my hand.
Turning on my tablet, I click on the document L’Corte sent me. Scrolling down my screen, I bite my lip, hoping they need help in the Maintenance department. When I see there are several open spots listed, I can feel myself grin in triumph.
“Alright, Krystal told me she would be willing to help in Maintenance. I need to see if I can find a way to make sure D’Uhurn is the one to help train her,” I say to myself, forgetting for a moment that L’Corte is watching me.
“What are you planning?” L’Corte asks suspiciously.
“Well… I know Krystal likes D’Uhurn. I believe he likes her too. What’s the harm in getting them to spend a little more time together?”
“And it helps fill an empty job position at the same time,” L’Corte says, giving me a considering look.
“Two birds, one stone.”
“What does that mean?”
I explain the phrase as L’Corte adds it to the report on human idioms. I have to bite my lip from cracking a grin when I remember the manties.
“I can smell your amusement, you know. I imagine it will please you to know how embarrassed I was when one of our mated Warriors had to explain to me manties arenottypical men’s underwear.” L’Corte looks up at me with a narrow-eyed stare. I try to contain my mirth, but I end up laughing out loud. “I will be double-checking this phrase to make sure you aren’t setting me up for another joke.”
I try to apologize, but I can’t stop giggling.
“Oh, forget your unrepentant apology. You don’t mean it,” L’Corte teases.
“Killing two birds with one stone is a real phrase, I promise,” I say with my best ‘innocent’ face. I even hold up a scout’s honor salute, not that he would know what it means. Besides, I was never a scout. L’Corte doesn’t look like he completely believes me, but he still notes it on his computer.
