“Well she is.”
“Maybe, but you’re prettier. You didn’t need to change your face to convince wealthy eadi to take you home with them, Tershetta. In fact, you looked better before all of this too.” I grabbed her hair, hating how the thin strands fell so easily from my loose grasp. I hated her pointed chin. I hated her tiny nose. I hated her silver eyes. I entirely loathed it all.
“Well,” she said, pursing her lips. I missed her real lips. “Thanks, I guess. We need to get moving.” With that, she promptly ended the conversation, walking far too briskly with her head downturned. I kept pace, trying to force myself into silence.
“Something bad is going to happen,” I hissed as we neared the village. She tugged her hood over her head, casting dark shadows across her face.
The village was small, with what appeared to be sturdy wooden homes connected by cobblestone paths. It was a stark difference from the sagging homes in the coastal Farigh village we’d gone to. Though there was nothing special about it other than it looked well made. If anything, it was oddly sparse. The grass that grew around the homes was a pale brown, the trees scattered around the area bare of leaves.
“According to the address, we’re looking for East 3rd Village.” She was holding the parchment with all four locations, times, and names, still not making eye contact with me.
“Yes, the place where we’ll die.”
“Stop being such a pessimist,” she whispered, leaning forward to better read the wooden sign at the upcoming fork in the stone path. “Okay if that’s twenty, then we’re going to have to walk through pretty much the entire village.”
“Convenient.”
“What’s it going to take to get you to stop whining?”
Considering that, I went silent, my eyes darting from side to side. A few people were milling about, but none of themseemedtoo interested in us. I’d definitely stop whining if we could go home. Not that she’d agree to that.
As we passed by 14th Village, I got an idea. “How about you promise that if we get back home—“
“Whenwe get back home,” she corrected.
She called it home.
“Yeah, sure.Whenwe get back home, promise me you won’t agree to go anywhere else for Maitoza.”
“You’re kidding,” she grumbled. I watched as her shoulders sagged forward, her fingers fidgeting with the loose fabric on her bag. “Fine. Now shut up for a while.”
“Will do,” I said, pulling up my hood with a smile. After that, we remained silent, keeping our heads down as we got closer to3rd Village. We did catch quite a few looks as we passed, but we had yet to see any officials.
We made it to 4th before someone yelled at us.
“Hey, you two! Who are you? Where did you come from?” The man was tall, his body thin and his head nearly bald. He had a long, straggly, red beard that was dusted with silver. He wore a loose white top with a worn leather vest and straight, brown trousers. While the outfit seemed nicer than what they wore in the Farigh District, it wasn’t necessarily well-made or in good shape by the looks of it.
Again, I was forced to face the fact that even the clothes I wore in hiding were nicer than anything most eadi would ever own. Chest tightening, I stepped in front of Nova; all the while, I wondered if I’d have ever realized how privileged I was before academy. If I’d have ever learned and changed.
“I said, who are you?” His voice was deep, his eyes scrutinizing. Nova gripped my elbow, her hooded head popping into my periphery.
“Hello, we’re actually friends of someone,” I said, trying to wrap my arm around Little Void to pull her back behind me.
“Who would that be?”
“I’m not sure that’s any of your business.”
Nova grunted behind me, jabbing her elbow into my side. “Sorry, he can be a bit protective of me sometimes.”
What?My lips parted, head turning back towards her. All she did was smile up at me, wrapping her arms around mine.
“We’re recently married and visiting an old family friend of my father’s. Could you point us in the direction of East 3rd Village Number 7?” Nova’s voice was calm, almost sweet. She spoke in a higher pitch than normal, her fingers gliding across my long-sleeved, blue top. A chill slithered up my spine, my heart hammering in my chest.
The man, who had suddenly startedsmiling,nodded. “Congratulations. I should’ve guessed. You two remind me a lot of me and my late Penny.”
“I’m so sorry for your loss,” I chimed in, trying to remember what it was like to be nice to strangers. Had I ever learned that? No, I hadn’t. But Ihadlearned how to charm someone. With the barest upturn of my lips, I reached out and patted the man’s shoulder once.
“Thank you. It’s been a rough year. I’ve gotten a bit protective over the village because of it. We’re all good to each other here, as I’m sure Willy told you.”
