Chapter 5
Varum stared at the human after she fell.
He settled back into place and motioned his hand to the side, so the shutters closed to prevent her from escaping.
She was still injured and feeling the effects of the medicine he’d given her, so he hadn’t actually thought she might try to leave. He wouldn’t make that mistake again.
He hadn’t anticipated her bravado. Or was it stupidity? She had no idea where she was, but she would rather chance the ocean than stay in the room with him. Ironically, it was the same move he would’ve made. The difference was that he would’ve gotten free.
“What do you know about the Masters?” he demanded.
She didn’t answer as she slowly climbed to her feet, her curls tangled at the back of her head.
She stayed facing away from him, her gaze on the windows.
He’d woken to the sound of her moving about the room, and when he entered, had found her at the window, looking out with wonder and excitement.
Everywhere she looked around his room, her eyes had been bright, her lips parted in astonishment—and she’d had to touch everything.
Almost as if it weren’t real unless she felt it.
Her actions had surprised him—again—holding him to the spot as he watched her discover her surroundings.
“Are you preventing me from leaving?” she finally asked.
Her words were clipped and edged with fury, though her accent wasn’t as harsh as he had thought it would be.
The dialect was grittier but not unpleasant.
But that wasn’t what got his attention. It was the way her body trembled with anger.
Varum drew in a breath and released it. It was better to be honest about what he could. “I am.”
“So, you do intend to hand me over to them.”
He didn’t like the resignation in her voice. Where was the fiery spirit he had just witnessed?
Suddenly, she whirled around, her dark eyes sparking with outrage, her hands clenched in indignation. Her wrath was palpable. “I will fight until my dying breath. There won’t be anything left of me to give them.”
The conviction in her words warned him that she meant what she said. He had no intention of giving her to anyone, but she didn’t need to know that. For all her outrage, her body was about to give out. He watched the sweat running down her face as she swayed.
“What do you know about the Masters?” he repeated.
Her lips peeled back in a sneer. “I know they’re the lowest, vilest beings to walk Shecrish. I know that their time will come to an end soon. And while I might not be there to see it, they will be dealt with swiftly. And painfully.”
“You honestly believe that you, a human, would be able to confront them?”
She laughed, the sound hollow and mocking. “You have no idea what I can do.”
“Then tell me.”
The female crossed her arms over her chest and raised her chin, defiance radiating from her.
Varum was getting nowhere with this tactic. He needed answers, but she wouldn’t tell him anything as long as she believed him the enemy. Unfortunately, there was no way to back up and start again. Or was there? He turned on his heel and walked out of the room. After counting to five, he returned.
The human hadn’t moved, but her arms were now at her sides, and a frown marred her forehead. Confusion crossed her face as she studied him.
“I see you’re awake. You were injured, so I brought you here and tended to your side and head,” he said, motioning to both with his hand.
She considered him for a long minute before comprehension dawned. Her tone was softer, the anger banked but not gone. “Why didn’t you bring me to shore?”
“We were too far out for that.”
“And the others who managed to get off the boat?”
His gut twisted at the hope that flashed across her face. “There were no other survivors.”
“No,” she stated with a firm shake of her head. “I saw many of them get into the water.”
“Do you have any idea how far out you were?”
She started to reply, but her hesitation was answer enough.
“Only a couple of them could swim. They used up too much energy trying to get away.”
“Why didn’t you help them?”
The fury in her dark eyes made them burn brighter. He almost wished he were closer to see if the color changed. “It was you or them.”
“You should’ve gone for them.”
“They had a chance. You were chained and bleeding.”
She turned her head away. After a moment, she whispered, “At least they got free of their captors.”
“Why did you go after the boat alone?”
“There wasn’t time to get help. I thought…” She shook her head and walked to the window.
Varum took two steps toward her. “You ventured that far out into the water on your own?”
“I do it often, though no one knows. I wanted to help, to do my part, but I couldn’t save even one.”
“You took the captors by surprise. Had there been others with you, you might have been successful.”
Her head swung to him, and then she faced him fully. “What were you doing there?”
“Following two of my people, who I suspect of aiding the Masters.”
“Then why didn’t you help me? We could’ve saved the entire ship.”
He couldn’t look away from her. “I was collecting information.”
“Oh,” she said casually. “Collecting information, huh?” Her expression hardened as she glared daggers at him. “I’m so happy to hear the lives of humans mean so little to you. I’m surprised you deigned to help me.”
“You have a right to your anger.”
“You’re bloody right, I do,” she retorted as she cut him with a single look.
Varum clasped his hands behind his back. “We’re led by the High Tide Assembly here, and none of them thinks the Masters’ reach has found us. I believe otherwise. I needed proof to bring to them.”
“You’d better not tell me I’m that proof.”
“You are not.” He held off telling her that humans were forbidden from entering the city.
She glanced down at her side again, moving her ruined tunic to look at the leaf. “You really expect me to believe you aren’t helping the Masters? I saw two Sea Elves doing just that.”
“Did you not hear what I just told you?”
“Oh, I heard.” She lifted her head to meet his gaze. “That doesn’t mean I believe you. The Masters’ reach is long. I know what they can do and the power they wield. I also know just how little the elves think of humans. Well,” she paused, her face scrunching up slightly. “Most elves.”
He quirked a brow. “What does that mean? Most elves?”
“It means there are a few decent ones.”
Her tone made it clear that he wasn’t one of those. “If I were working with the Masters, would I have brought you here? Would I have tended to your wounds?”
“If you thought I had information, aye, you would.”
“I’m not working with them. I’m trying to keep them from my people.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “What about the rest of us who have been fighting against them? I know you don’t care about my kind, but what about the other elves being taken?”
It was true that Varum had never interacted with a human before, but he didn’t recall ever hearing about them being so outspoken or brash. This female was both, despite being detained.
“Ah. I see,” she said before he could comment. “Things that happen on land don’t concern you and yours. Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but a Sea Elf was recently freed from the Masters.”
Varum was in front of the human in a blink. He towered over her, not bothering to hold back his annoyance. “How do you know about that?”
She tilted back her head to meet his gaze. Instead of being frightened, she smiled. “I heard about the group that saved her. I also know that some Sea Elves came to the aid of that same group as repayment.”
What she said was true. He had learned it from Nirav, who had heard it from the female who had been kidnapped. “Do you know those who helped the Sea Elf?”
Her smile slipped as she swallowed and looked away. “Why would someone like me know them?”
He sighed and took a step back. If she were affiliated with the group, she wouldn’t have been out on her own. They would’ve been there to help her. That put him back at square one.
“Can I go now?” she asked.
It would be wise to release her. She wasn’t cooperating. But he still suspected she had more information that could help him. There was also the fact that he would have to explain to her how he had gotten her into the city—and how he would have to get her out.
“You claim not to be working for the Masters, yet you’re holding me against my will. I don’t see much of a difference between the two,” she replied acerbically.
“I’m not beating you. Nor do I intend to sell you into slavery.”
She snorted. “Captive is captive, no matter how you look at it. I’m sure the female Sea Elf who was recently freed would be happy to explain that. Though I’m not sure your small brain could handle it.”
Varum raised a brow at her biting remarks, though he didn’t comment on them. She was angry, and she had every right to lash out at him. “Is there anything else you can tell me about the Masters?”
“Why don’t you leave your precious home and go walk around on land to mingle with the other elves? You’d learn everything you need to know about what’s happening.”
“If you could save your city and those within it from the Masters’ reach, would you?”
She rolled her eyes and huffed. “Aye.”
“That’s what I’m trying to do. I risked a lot to save you, and I’m asking for your help.”
The seconds stretched as she held his gaze. Finally, she said, “If I give you what you want to know, will you release me?”
“Aye. I never intended to keep you here.”
Those dark eyes narrowed slightly. “I want your word.”
“You have it.”
She dipped her head once. “I don’t know where to start.”
“How about with names? I’m Varum.”
That seemed to startle her as she blinked up at him. “I’m Kalyani.”
“Are you hungry?”
“I…um, a little.”
Varum was buying time. If he allowed it, Kalyani would dump what information she thought he needed and demand to be released. It wouldn’t be that easy. She would object once she realized what he was doing, but he would deal with that when the time came.
“Come. Let’s eat,” he bade and turned on his heel.