Chapter 8
Piper
From beneath the shade of the tree, I glance up at the sun that’s high in the sky.
The sound of the running river doesn’t drown out the voice inside my head telling me I should have known better.
For all Katem’s talk of patience and wanting to spend all his time with me, he sure has been absent today.
“Shut up. He has important things to do like hunt for his people and keep them safe. It’s not like he can spend every second with you.
Stop being so needy and trust in him.” Everyone always looks at me strangely when I talk to myself, but it helps when I say things out loud.
Most of the time I can quiet that negative voice inside my head. Most of the time, anyway.
“I talk to myself as well,” a female says from way too close.
My screech is a bit unladylike, as is the, “fuck”, that slips from my lips and I slam my hand over my racing heart. The pretty brunette holds up her hands in surrender.
“Shit, sorry. I thought you heard me approach.” She winces. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“It’s fine. I was distracted so if it’s anyone’s fault, it’s mine.”
“Still, Katem would be extremely upset knowing I scared you. I’m London, by the way.” She waves. “I assume you’re Piper? Alice told me where to find you.”
“That’s me.”
“Nice to meet you.” London gestures to the ground near me. “Mind if I sit?”
“Go ahead.”
She sits close, but not close enough that I feel crowded.
“Astrid and Abby were supposed to swing by this morning with a message from Katem that he had to go hunting, but that he’d see you later this evening when he returned if you wished.
Today, however, did not go as planned, unfortunately.
I said I’d come in their stead, but suddenly one thing after another needed my attention.
All that being said, I’m sorry I’m so late. ”
See? Katem did think of you and tried to send word. You should have trusted him.
“I appreciate you coming. Is everything okay?” I’m not sure what the protocol is here. Am I being rude or nosy by asking?
London grins. “Well, we now have a new Tavikhi-human who decided to arrive much earlier than she was supposed to. That’s why Astrid and Abby weren’t able to come. Just as they were about to leave, Astrid’s water broke. I considered sending Abby alone, but, well, she’s not really a people person.”
Abby? Isn’t she one of Katem’s friend’s mate? The prickly one?
“Congratulations to the new parents.”
“Thank you. It’s so exciting having all these babies being born. But that’s why I was late arriving.”
I wave off her explanation. “Truly, it’s fine. I understand.”
London pulls her knees to her chest and, over the top of them, studies me. I try not to squirm under the examination. “I wasn’t sold on the fated mates in the beginning, either.”
Excuse me?
“I was actually the first human mated to a Tavikhi,” she says. “The day our ship landed here, we were attacked by the Krijese. Zander saved my life. and in the process we touched, which triggered his mating marks to appear and his soul light to ignite.”
So this is the shefira I’ve heard people in the settlement talk about. If they’ve ever said her name, I missed it.
“Zander didn’t tell me at first,” London continues. “After helping us to unload the supplies off the ship and repair some of the damage done during the fighting, he and the rest of the tribe left. The next morning, though, he was back.”
I laugh because that sounds like Katem. “They’re persistent like that, aren’t they?”
“You have no idea.” London chuckles as well. “Even after Zander told me what I was to him, I didn’t believe it. There’s no such thing as fated mates, right?”
“Right.”
She grins and I realize her question was rhetorical. My cheeks heat.
“I know it’s hard to come to terms with it.
Especially when you’re from a place like bottom-tier Earth where your life is shit and will always be shit.
It makes it hard to accept that we can have good—no, great—things like a mate who provides us with riches beyond imagine.
Who protects us with their life. Whose only purpose is to make sure we’re taken care of in every way possible until the day we both travel to the lands of the goddess. ”
What would that even be like with Katem as that person? Wonderful, a quiet voice whispers.
“How did you know I was from the bottom tier?”
London waves her finger around in my direction. “You have that look in your eyes that I used to have.”
I nod shallowly, but remain quiet because for me, it’s not that easy.
“In the past two years, I’ve seen seven humans and seven Tavikhi become mates, as well as a human and a Krijese. Fate works in strange ways, but I’ve stopped questioning it. Because I’ve seen what happens when a Tavikhi male finds his keeshla. There is nothing more pure than that in this world.”
I narrow my gaze at London. “Are you sure it wasn’t you that Katem meant to send in the first place?”
She laughs. “No. You just got lucky, I guess.”
Maybe I did.
“Thank you for coming all the way out here to let me know.”
“It was my pleasure. Plus, it gave me a chance to not only meet you, but to let you know that whatever you decide is okay. We all hope you’ll join us in the village.
You’ll be treated like family the second you step foot inside.
” London gets to her feet. “If you ever need a person to talk to, send word and I’ll be happy to do so. ”
I stand as well since it feels rude not to. “I truly do appreciate it.”
“Of course. You’re one of us now.” She inclines her head and walks off in the direction of the Tavikhi village.
I wait until I can’t see her anymore before I sit back down and think on London’s words.
I’ll admit there is a spark between Katem and me.
Not just of attraction, either. This is…
bigger. More. If I accept this whole fated mate thing, it’s going to place an unfair burden on Katem.
One he didn’t ask for. How can I do that to him knowing that the next couple of years are going to be the worst to come?
It doesn’t feel right. The selfish part of me also admits I don’t want to be alone when the time comes.
Tears spill down my face and drip off my chin.
Not ready to go back into the settlement, I remain within the shade of the trees, staring out at the river and doing nothing more than thinking.
I’m learning to enjoy the simplest things like the sound of rushing water and the crackling of leaves made by the tiny feet of the forest critters.
I breathe in all the scents of the forest from the different flowering bushes and the damp soil that never quite dries.
It’s far better for my lungs than the soot and ash I inhaled for the last fifteen years while working in a poorly ventilated incineration facility.
The sun makes its way across the sky and yet, I remain.
At some point, the sound of footsteps approaching reaches me.
I focus my gaze in the direction I think it’s coming from and seconds later, he’s there.
Katem. My heart skips a beat and then races at the sight of him.
A gust of wind sends his hair swirling around him like a cyclone, but he ignores it.
His focus is entirely on me. The intensity of his stare hits me right in the center, and I shudder with uncontrollable desire.
One side of his mouth kicks up like he can read my mind.
“Greetings, Piper.” He stops short of me. “Have you been sitting here the entire turn?”
I shrug. “It’s nice out and I’ve been enjoying the fresh air.”
“Have you eaten at all?”
“I’m not that hungry.” One of the many “fun” side effects of being ill.
Without asking, Katem sits beside me, his thigh brushing against mine. The giddy fluttering starts up in my belly at the sensation. He brushes a lone curl over my shoulder. “Is all well? Do you need to see Healer Sage?”
I have to hold back my huff, because no, nothing is well and I don’t know who this Healer Sage is, but I know there’s nothing she can do for me.
“I’m just tired is all.”
“That is my fault. We should have waited to ascent the hills until a later time.”
I grab his arm, shaking my head. “No, yesterday was perfect. I didn’t want to wait.”
Katem relaxes beneath my hand. “Still, I do not wish for you to be fatigued. I can ask either Kyler or Healer Sage for something to help you sleep.”
“Truly, I’m fine.” I squeeze his thick forearm, the muscles shifting with my touch.
Several seconds pass before he finally nods.
“Thank you for sending someone to let me know I’d see you later.”
“You are most welcome. The shefira found me as soon as I returned from my hunt and mentioned she spoke with you.”
“Yes. She told me one of the mated humans gave birth. That’s exciting.”
Katem breaks out into a giant grin. “Evren barely made it back in time to witness the arrival of his kit. I am happy for him since he and Astrid wanted one so badly.”
I gasp in surprised happiness as well. “I don’t think I knew your friend was the father. Congratulations to them both.”
“All of my former tent mates who are mated are now Babas,” he says with no lack of awe. “Up until the humans arrived, no kits had been born in nearly ten warm seasons. To finally see new life arrive in our village is one of the greatest blessings.”
My stomach sours. “Do…Do you want children?” I force the question out, even though I don’t want to know the answer.
Katem’s smile doesn’t change. “If Deeka wills it, I will cherish any kits we might have.”
“What if she doesn’t will it? Will you be disappointed?”
“The goddess has a path for each of us. Not all paths are alike, but I trust her to know which one to put me on. No matter where it leads.”
I lean more fully back into the tree I’ve been against. “You should probably know that any faith I might have had in a god or some higher power has disappeared. Does that make me a heathen in your eyes?”
Katem picks up my hand and threads our fingers. It’s such a simple gesture, but each time he does it, there’s a shift inside me. I’ve never really been one for hand holding, but if he keeps it up, I might change my mind.
“You are perfect in my eyes. Whether you have faith or not does not change that. It does not make you any less my keeshla. We are all who we are meant to be.”
Which means, I’m a woman who’s going to die far too soon.