Chapter 20
CHAPTER TWENTY
“Okay, now what?”
Ella paced in her quarters, agitated and uneasy.
Her outing with Draikis had been exceptional.
Invigorating. Enlightening. And at the end, more than a little bit confusing.
He’d left her abuzz with all manner of feelings and emotions, and despite the distance they’d covered in their walk, which should have burned off some of her energy, she now found herself nevertheless quite antsy, bordering on agitated.
“Ah, screw this,” she grumbled, heading for the door, a plan already fully formed to take her mind off the undeniably sexy priest who had left her in such a state.
The walk to the archives wasn’t a long one, and she knew the way, not requiring any sort of escort to aid her.
It was a welcome bit of independence in this place where as both an outsider and a female she had experienced more than her share of uncomfortable male gaze, grudging guidance, and micromanaging judgment.
But this? This was one of the few things she could do on her own.
Truly on her own. And if she played her cards right, she could pass the rest of the day without having to deal with a single one of these men, aside from Nilkis, the archivist, of course.
That she didn’t mind so much, though. He was still standoffish, but after a slightly rough start, he had seemed to develop at least a grudging respect for her.
Book people liked book people, even if they were the wrong gender and from the wrong planet.
Books could bridge that gap. Somewhat, in any case. They’d never be best buddies, but he was warming to her in his own way.
The promise of digging further into the ancient texts was starting to shift her mood, something to focus on that would not only be rewarding but also take her mind off this confusing draw to Draikis.
The weird rune of living ink now permanently marked into her flesh was an annoyance she couldn’t quite wrap her head around.
One thing seemed obvious though. It was pulling her even harder toward the reluctant priest as time progressed.
“Don’t think about it,” she chided herself, speeding her pace.
She walked the corridor, padding quietly on her way to pick up a snack from the dining hall in off-hours so she could avoid interacting with the judgmental priests at mealtime.
She moved with impressive stealth, and her footsteps were nearly silent, a habit picked up in this place thanks to the disapproving stares so often elicited by no more than her simple presence.
She wasn’t quite ninja-quiet, but her unintentional keep-quiet skills were nevertheless impressive.
Ella peered into the dining area. Empty.
At least that’s going my way, she noted, redirecting to the kitchen area.
Draikis had familiarized her with the place when they’d visited together pre-picnic one day, and she’d taken quick mental note of where most things were kept.
Not all the things, naturally, so she would still have to do a little digging, but putting together a basic snack pack shouldn’t take her long at all.
It would give her sustenance as she dug through the texts, but more importantly, this would also allow her to avoid any run-ins with the other priests.
No matter what Draikis said or did to try to smooth things over for her, she was still an annoyance to most of them, like a scratch on the roof of your mouth, always present, forgotten until something brought the discomfort to the front of one’s mind again.
Only she was more than that. She was a woman in their testosterone-filled halls.
“Not to worry. I’ll just be in and out and away from here lickety split-like,” she mused, filling a small bag made of some high-tensile yet featherweight material.
“And a little fruit, some bread. Oh, and they have cheese in that cooling thingie,” she mused, opening the seemingly unsealed refrigeration device, its contents kept cool by a force field of some kind.
Fortunately, she’d seen Draikis deactivate it previously, so there would be no embarrassing bumping into the invisible barrier, though she did wonder if it would hurt or just feel like some sort of invisible obstacle.
“Like Wonder Woman’s invisible jet,” she said with a chuckle, loading up on a few delicacies before re-sealing the unit. “Well, that should be plenty. And there’s a water dispenser in the archives, so I’m good there. Yep, I’m set.”
She headed out of the back area, clearing the kitchen and storage space in just a few quick steps, heading through the dining hall proper on her way to the exit.
That went about as well as it could ha—
“What are you doing here?” a loud voice boomed across the empty chamber. Totaxxis. And he did not look pleased. Not one bit.
“I was just getting a sna—”
“You dare enter our dining area unattended? As if you belong here?”
“I was just getting a quick—”
“Draikis may have taken you on as his little pet project, but you can be assured, I am not of the same liberal mindset as he. Nor are my brothers. You may have the privilege of temporary refuge due to your unusual means of arrival, but you do not have free run of this place.”
“I didn’t think I did. In fact, I was getting this so I could avoid—”
“The arrogance of you, woman. You are not—”
Ella snapped.
“Listen, fucko. I’m trying my best to be respectful of you and your buddies’ inability to be around women, but if you cut me off again, I swear—”
“You swear what, little female?” he countered, an unpleasant gleam in his eye.
Ella’s gut tensed, but her self-preservation instinct overrode her desire to slap him across his asshole face.
Calm down. Don’t say something you’ll regret. And don’t put Draikis in a bad place. He vouched for you. Just breathe. This isn’t the first asshole you’ve dealt with.
Ella took a breath, held it for a count of four, then slowly released it for the same duration, forcing her anger to the back of her mind.
She couldn’t afford to allow this to escalate, no matter how much this asshole deserved a tongue lashing.
But that would be stepping into his trap.
Giving him what he wanted. A reason. Right now, he was on a fishing expedition but had no real reason for his anger beyond his own issues. She would not give him anything more.
“I swear, I was heading to the archives when you stopped me just now.”
“You were pilfering the larder. Do you deny it?”
“Pilfering? I’m literally only grabbing a snack, Totaxxis. And I’m doing it to stay out of your hair. So I don’t have to come back later for a meal. You should be thanking me.”
The man shrugged, a dismissive grunt rising from his chest. But he did seem to pause at least, so her words appeared to have sunk in, at least a little. At least enough to take the edge off, if not outright defuse the situation. Ella felt her fight-or-flight instinct begin to relax. Crisis averted.
Or so she unwisely thought. She should have known better.
“On your world, perhaps taking what is not yours is allowed. You are clearly a primitive race, and you lack the culture and refinement of our kind. But that is no excuse.”
“I’m not looking for an excuse,” she shot back, her anger flaring up bright once more.
“And on my world, people don’t act like such assholes when someone is clearly trying to do right by them.
But I guess your advanced culture doesn’t value respectful discourse and polite appreciation.
Maybe you’re not actually better than us, despite what your ego clearly tells you. ”
She watched his cheeks darken, his pulse quickening in his neck, an angry vein throbbing on his temple. She shouldn’t have poked the bear, but hot damn it felt good.
Worth it, she mused, enjoying the look of flustered anger in his eyes. She’d called him out in the only way he couldn’t immediately strike back at, and it had left him flummoxed, if only for a moment.
Totaxxis’s eyes narrowed, glaring at her, but the look lacked the force that had made her so uncomfortable before.
“We are the Norvalian Sect of the Dotharian Conglomerate,” he finally said, regaining his composure and grasping at the one constant in his life he could cling to like a moral high-ground life raft.
“Yeah, I know what you are. But that doesn’t give you the freedom to act like an ass.”
“We have immense influence. Our power reaches far and wide.”
“Yeah? That doesn’t change the rules of basic etiquette, does it?”
His jaw flexed, gears churning in his mind. “You are the most troublesome sort of woman.”
“Humans are known for that at times, yes,” she replied with a little chuckle.
“Humans. Yes, your race. From what planet, was it again? Earth? I’ve never heard of it.”
“We’re new to the, uh, conglomerate. Really new.”
“So you say. Rude as you are, I’m shocked your kind were allowed into the Dotharian Conglomerate at all, if the rest of your people are even half as unpleasant as you are.”
“Elder Soparo said when a new—”
“I know what the elder said, and I do not care,” he said, cutting her off with a dare in his eyes. “You may be new to the conglomerate, but that does not give you a free pass to misbehave. To disrespect the rules. The ways of our people. And especially not the Norvalian Sect.”
“Look, we just got off on the wrong foot.”
“Oh, it is more than that. And I intend to learn about your people. Word may spread slowly across the realm, but if you were taken by the Raxxians, that would be designated as a priority interference by those brutes. And as a result, full records of your kind should be made available on an expedited basis.”
“Uh, yeah, sure. But there’s no need for us to fight, Totaxxis. It’s just a misunderstanding, and once I’m out that door, I’ll be out of your hair.”
“And I fully expect you to be. But that changes nothing. I will soon know all there is to know about your world. Your humans. Your uncouth ways. And if there is anything amiss, any reason whatsoever to eject you from our home, rest assured, I will find it.”
Ella’s stomach knotted up hard, but she kept her face as defiantly neutral as she could. Showing fear wasn’t an option, nor was capitulation. She needed to maintain her air as best she could lest she raise his suspicions and make him dig even deeper.
“Whatever,” she said with a dismissive shrug that was diametrically opposite of how she truly felt. “You do you. Me? I’ve got studies to get to.” Ella moved to step around him, heading for the exit. “See you later, I’m sure.”
His cold stare followed her to the door. “That you will. You can rely on it.”