Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Fedra lost count of how many days had passed since she had been in stasis.
She had no concept of time, and not being able to see left her bored.
That’s when she slept. She was getting cranky and restless.
Maybe that’s why she’d agreed when Nia introduced herself and asked if she wanted her hair washed.
It had been too great a temptation to resist, and she was glad she hadn’t.
Nia’s fingers worked wonders, massaging and scrubbing her scalp.
After several mineral soaks, it was nice to have her hair washed.
Nia hadn’t stopped there, though. Once she settled Fedra on the bed, she began combing out the tangles.
They spent most of the time in silence. Fedra was content letting her mind drift in the unexpected—but enjoyable—treat.
Maybe that’s why she didn’t realize when others entered the room.
She detected Marcus’s presence immediately, but he wasn’t alone.
As far as she could tell, there were two others with him. But they all remained quiet.
If they wanted to test her, she would let them think they were.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen hair this long,” Nia said. “Has it always been this length?”
Fedra kept her eyes closed. That way, she wasn’t straining to see, even though she could make out more shapes now. That was a secret she would keep to herself for the time being.
“In my culture, long hair symbolizes dignity, strength, and heritage. Hair-cutting was done as punishment,” she answered.
Nia held part of Fedra’s hair and slid the comb through it. “Doesn’t the weight of it get heavy?”
“I’m used to it.”
“Doesn’t it get annoying? Mine isn’t half as long, and it seems to always get in my way.”
Fedra smiled. “The women usually keep their hair up. It is only allowed to be loose like this in private.”
Nia stopped combing. “It’s mostly dry now. I can help you put it up if you’d like.”
“If you give me what was in my hair before, I can do it.”
Fedra turned to put her back against the pillows as she waited for Nia to gather the items. She hadn’t asked about her clothes, but she would soon.
For now, she was more interested in why Marcus and the others remained silent.
She wanted to open her eyes to see if she could make out his silhouette.
Actually, she was curious to know what he looked like.
“Here you go,” Nia said, placing the strips of leather in her lap.
Fedra bowed her head. “Thank you.”
“Sian will be here shortly with your medicine.”
Fedra gathered her hair atop her head and tied one of the strips of leather around it to help hold the weight.
Then she slowly wound a section of hair around the base several times before tying another strip to hold it in place.
Next, she tied the second strip of leather around the base.
She trailed her fingers down the rest of the length that fell midway down her back.
“Impressive,” Nia said, a smile in her voice.
Fedra reached for the cloth on the bedside table and smelled incense. She patted around until her fingers found the soft fabric and tied it around her head. She was tired of being watched. “Thank you. Though I’m sure the others in the room didn’t come to watch me put up my hair.”
There was a beat of silence before Marcus said, “Nay, we didna.”
His voice was different. Gone was the warm tone she had gotten used to.
She had hoped to talk him into letting her leave, but it seemed that wasn’t going to happen.
They must have come to tell her they didn’t believe her story.
It wasn’t as if they could check, and that was the only thing that would save her.
“What did you come for then?” she asked.
The sound of soft, retreating footsteps told her that Nia had left the room.
That meant Fedra was alone with three men.
Not once had she felt threatened until that moment.
They must have discovered something. It was the chance she took.
She had known the moment she agreed to get into the pod that she might end up dead before she could complete the mission.
Marcus said, “The truth.”
So, they had found something. It would help if she knew what it was, but Marcus was smart. He wouldn’t let it slip. None of them would. That meant she’d have to play it by ear and hope she said the right thing. “About?”
“Your origins.”
She found it odd that only Marcus was speaking so far. Did the others not want to talk? Or maybe he wanted to be the one to confront her. She had singled him out by calling out his name. How pathetic to have let the imagined bond put her in such a position.
“I gave you the truth,” she said.
Marcus’s voice was cold and deadly as he demanded, “Stop lying.”
There was no denying that she was caught now. Just how deeply remained to be seen. “Let me leave the city, and you’ll never see me again.”
“That isna going to happen.”
“Ah. So, I have become a prisoner.”
“Until you tell me the truth, aye.”
She had anticipated this reaction, but she had hoped it wouldn’t come to this. Why then did his words hurt? “I see,” she murmured.
“Is that all you have to say?”
“What would you like? For me to beg for my life? Force some tears? Make a plea for forgiveness?”
Marcus snorted, his derision clear. “I want the truth.”
“You feel manipulated. It’s understandable, but there was no way around it,” she said. Then frowned. Why had she said that? It would’ve been better to concoct a lie.
“How would you know?” Con asked.
Fedra could tell that Marcus was at the wall across from the foot of the bed.
Con was near the door. She didn’t know where the other man was.
Until she did, she couldn’t make a run for it.
Even then, she knew she wouldn’t get far.
She still couldn’t see, and she had no idea where she was in the city, which meant she’d never make it out.
“The odds favored a lie over the truth.”
“It’s time for the truth now,” Con replied. “We know that nothing you told us happened anywhere on this realm.”
She narrowed her eyes. “How can you say that with such certainty?”
“We have our ways,” Marcus said. “How about we start with something simple? Where are you from?”
If she continued lying, it would only make her situation worse, but the truth might not fare any better.
With the way they were acting, though, only genuine facts would free her.
She should’ve learned more about them before it reached this point.
She should’ve found a way to ask about magic, but she had shied away from it because they had treated her like one of their own.
No one had screamed in pain from using magic or tried to kill her.
She hadn’t been run out of the city. That small bit of kindness had made her forget what she was meant to do.
Her mistake had landed her there, and it was up to her to find a way to fix it while knowing nothing about the people who inhabited the city now.
“We’re waiting,” Marcus replied.
She released a breath, the knot in her stomach easing when she decided on the truth. “I’m from a realm called Tyren.”
“How did you get here?” Con asked.
Fedra gave a small shake of her head. “There was a man. I never spoke to him. I only saw him briefly when I arrived. He stayed off to the side, watching everything.”
Marcus asked, “What was his name?”
“I never heard it,” she explained. “Everyone called him sir.”
“How many of your people came with you?” That was from Con.
Fedra thought about all the scientists and tried to count in her head. “I think there were twenty-three of us. Those who made the journey were engineers and scientists.”
“What were you?” Marcus asked.
Bait. A bomb. Retribution. She was all of that and more. “The one who volunteered. I didn’t lie about that.”
“Why come here at all? There are many other realms,” Marcus said.
But none with dragons. She wasn’t quite ready to divulge that yet, however. “I didn’t pick Zora. I was merely told that’s where I was going.”
“There had to be a reason this realm was chosen, and I’m betting you know what that is,” Con remarked.
She turned her head toward him. “I’m sure there was.”
“You’re evading,” Marcus stated. “We’ll get back to that question later. I want to know how you got here.”
“As you saw from the technology of the pod, my people were advanced. We had explored our small corner of the universe. One of our ships brought me.”
Con asked, “What happened to those who came with you after you went into the pod?”
“I’m not sure.” It was a lie, but one they should believe. At least for the moment.
“Let’s get back to why you came here to begin with,” Marcus said. “The truth this time.”
She swallowed, inwardly laughing. Of course, they wouldn’t believe the one truth she had told them in the beginning. “I didn’t lie. My world was attacked. We went to war, but we lost.”
“Who attacked you?” Con asked.
Fedra stretched out her legs and pulled the covers over them. It still wasn’t the right time to mention the dragons. Though the lie she wanted to tell wouldn’t fall from her lips. Something was wrong, but she couldn’t figure out what it was.
“You said beasts,” Marcus said. “What kind of beasts?”
Something in his voice made her wonder if he had guessed what it was. They did live next to the dragons, after all. There was no way those on Zora didn’t know about those monsters.
“Let me remind you that we will only accept the truth,” Con stated.
Fedra took a deep breath. There was only one thing to do when someone found themselves backed into a corner with no way out in sight.
Maybe they hated dragons as much as she did and would help her.
Since there hadn’t been any apparent magic usage, that was a real possibility.
Even if they didn’t harbor any hatred for the dragons, they might not stop her, at least.
“Fedra,” Marcus urged in a low, dangerous voice.
She clenched her hands beneath the covers. “The monsters we fought, the ones that came and destroyed my world, were dragons.”
You could’ve heard a pin drop after her revelation. She wasn’t certain if that was a good thing or not. If only she had her sight, she’d be able to pick up clues by looking at everyone. Yet the silence was telling in and of itself.
“Are you sure?” Con asked.
Fedra nodded slowly. “I saw one.”
“Let me ask again. Why did you come to Zora?” Marcus pressed.
She had already given away the most precious information she had. There was no reason to hold back the rest. “Because the dragons are here.”
“Bloody hell,” Marcus murmured.
Con asked, “How did you find Zora?”
“I didn’t. I don’t know who did,” she replied.
Marcus walked closer to the bed. “What is your intent here?”
“Revenge.”