talk.”
“No.” He glanced up at me again, his eyes covered by
shadows. “You’re tired. You should lie down.”
“So should you.”
“I’ll... I’ll rest out here,” Tor offered, turning his head
away from me.
“Tor.” I paused and took a deep breath. “If we’re supposed
to be whatever a Matched Pair is, and Matched Pairs share a room, then they’re
going to think it’s weird if you don’t sleep in our room.”
“It’s better if I sleep out here.”
“Like not sleeping in the cave?”
“Yes.”
“Well, that’s really not an option. We have to blend in, at
least for now. Come on.”
I opened the blue door, which was now our home, not waiting
for him to follow. Our room was small. Next to the door on one side was a wall
of shelves, on the other was a tall dresser. Other than a low bed, the rest of
the room was bare. Above it was a window with frosted glass. Light filtered in,
but I couldn’t see anything outside. I longed to see the sky. Everything was
white except for a blue blanket folded at the bottom of the bed.
Exhausted, I set my bag on the shelf to my right, kicked off
my slippers, and sat on the mattress. It was softer than I’d expected, for
being on the floor. The mattress conformed to my shape and molded around my
weight, inviting me to lie down. Exhaustion won, and my head dropped to the
thin pillow. I pulled the blanket over my legs.
I was clean, warm, and—for the moment—safe. The door was
still open, and Elgon wandered in, sniffed the corners, and rested on the floor
near me. With a whining sigh he allowed his head to sink to his paws.
“We’re all pretty tired,” I said. “It’s been a long day.”
Elgon snorted and rolled to his side, settling in for sleep.
I wanted to go through my bag and discover what I had left of my life. I needed
time to grieve my mother. For now, though, my body could do little more than
lie still.
With a sigh I closed my eyes. I willed my mind to stop
churning over everything we had been through. Instead, I thought about the
glint in Tor’s eyes when he saw me in my clean clothes. The image of him
clean-shaven, wearing a tight-fitting shirt, and looking at me with the threat
of fire in his eyes was the last thing I saw before drifting into darkness.
14
Noise—loud, clanging, constant—from beyond the door woke me.
My ears rang from the onslaught of people moving about, and I buried myself
deeper into the mattress, hoping to reclaim the peace I’d found while
slumbering. It wasn’t possible, though. The sound mounted, and voices joined
the cacophony, bringing the din to a head.
Still half-asleep, I rolled to my side and peered through
groggy eyes. The door was shut, and Elgon snored away on the floor next to me.
Curled up in the corner of our room, as far from me as he could get, was Tor.
He looked so peaceful, even though he was lying on the hard floor. In sleep,
his features relaxed, and I could see the boy underneath all the scars.
Even freshly showered and in new clothes, he had something
wild about him, an underlying danger that both attracted and repelled me.
I reached down to wake Elgon, patting his side until he
raised his head. We were all exhausted, but the noise outside called me, and I
knew it would be better to get the introductions over with. Hiding in our room
only delayed the inevitable. I didn’t know how long we were going to be here or
what we could even hope to accomplish. For now, we were alive, and so far no
one asked any questions. The one person who suspected something had already sworn
to keep silent.
After climbing over the monstrous mountain hound, I slipped
my shoes back on and straightened my shirt. Elgon stood at the ready.
~ Maybe you should stay here with Tor .~ I crouched
down and looked into the hound’s wise, green eyes. ~ I’ll be all right alone .~
But when I opened the door, Elgon stuck close behind me.
Entering the great space overwhelmed my senses. Brutally
loud noise bombarded
“No.” He glanced up at me again, his eyes covered by
shadows. “You’re tired. You should lie down.”
“So should you.”
“I’ll... I’ll rest out here,” Tor offered, turning his head
away from me.
“Tor.” I paused and took a deep breath. “If we’re supposed
to be whatever a Matched Pair is, and Matched Pairs share a room, then they’re
going to think it’s weird if you don’t sleep in our room.”
“It’s better if I sleep out here.”
“Like not sleeping in the cave?”
“Yes.”
“Well, that’s really not an option. We have to blend in, at
least for now. Come on.”
I opened the blue door, which was now our home, not waiting
for him to follow. Our room was small. Next to the door on one side was a wall
of shelves, on the other was a tall dresser. Other than a low bed, the rest of
the room was bare. Above it was a window with frosted glass. Light filtered in,
but I couldn’t see anything outside. I longed to see the sky. Everything was
white except for a blue blanket folded at the bottom of the bed.
Exhausted, I set my bag on the shelf to my right, kicked off
my slippers, and sat on the mattress. It was softer than I’d expected, for
being on the floor. The mattress conformed to my shape and molded around my
weight, inviting me to lie down. Exhaustion won, and my head dropped to the
thin pillow. I pulled the blanket over my legs.
I was clean, warm, and—for the moment—safe. The door was
still open, and Elgon wandered in, sniffed the corners, and rested on the floor
near me. With a whining sigh he allowed his head to sink to his paws.
“We’re all pretty tired,” I said. “It’s been a long day.”
Elgon snorted and rolled to his side, settling in for sleep.
I wanted to go through my bag and discover what I had left of my life. I needed
time to grieve my mother. For now, though, my body could do little more than
lie still.
With a sigh I closed my eyes. I willed my mind to stop
churning over everything we had been through. Instead, I thought about the
glint in Tor’s eyes when he saw me in my clean clothes. The image of him
clean-shaven, wearing a tight-fitting shirt, and looking at me with the threat
of fire in his eyes was the last thing I saw before drifting into darkness.
14
Noise—loud, clanging, constant—from beyond the door woke me.
My ears rang from the onslaught of people moving about, and I buried myself
deeper into the mattress, hoping to reclaim the peace I’d found while
slumbering. It wasn’t possible, though. The sound mounted, and voices joined
the cacophony, bringing the din to a head.
Still half-asleep, I rolled to my side and peered through
groggy eyes. The door was shut, and Elgon snored away on the floor next to me.
Curled up in the corner of our room, as far from me as he could get, was Tor.
He looked so peaceful, even though he was lying on the hard floor. In sleep,
his features relaxed, and I could see the boy underneath all the scars.
Even freshly showered and in new clothes, he had something
wild about him, an underlying danger that both attracted and repelled me.
I reached down to wake Elgon, patting his side until he
raised his head. We were all exhausted, but the noise outside called me, and I
knew it would be better to get the introductions over with. Hiding in our room
only delayed the inevitable. I didn’t know how long we were going to be here or
what we could even hope to accomplish. For now, we were alive, and so far no
one asked any questions. The one person who suspected something had already sworn
to keep silent.
After climbing over the monstrous mountain hound, I slipped
my shoes back on and straightened my shirt. Elgon stood at the ready.
~ Maybe you should stay here with Tor .~ I crouched
down and looked into the hound’s wise, green eyes. ~ I’ll be all right alone .~
But when I opened the door, Elgon stuck close behind me.
Entering the great space overwhelmed my senses. Brutally
loud noise bombarded
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