From Slave To Queen (Athena and Michael) novel Chapter 96

Chapter 96

I follow his steps as he leads me through the vast camp. He shows me the forge where a man works the weapons, his face red and his expression not inviting anyone to get too close. The kitchens are farther along, next to a large tent with wooden tables and benches for people to eat. The smell of soup and meat already dances in the air. Outdoors, there are men and women helping to skin animals they use the hides to sew clothing and roats. Children play with a can full of stones, which they don’t hesitate to hit and use as a ball. Some of them freeze when they see me; they recognize me as an outsider. But their wary looks change when their eyes land on my companion.

“Ele“” one of them shou

He runs toward us with a smile missing a few teeth. Eleazar makes a small sound of protest before crouching down and ruffling the child’s brown hair.

“How many times have I told you my name is Eleazar?” he complains.

*i like Ele better.” The kid shrugs and looks at me. “Who’s she?”

“A guest, so don’t be rude“,

“Is she your girlfriend?”

Eleazar laughs, clearly amused by the child’s words.

“I don’t have girlfriends, little one.”

“Tim not so line anymore,” he growls. “I reach your belly now.

“Because that’s definitely being tall. Go on, your friends are waiting

The child looks back at his friends, who have stopped playing, very attentive to us. He smiles at Eleazar again—maybe I want to start calling him He too–and runs back to join them. They quickly go back to their game. We resume the tour and pass by a group of men sharpening knives and women sewing pant hems. Their gazes fix on us, very cautious. We pass them and head toward what looks like a small tent, but something else catches my attention. A black door that seems to lead into a room that descendi min the earth. He follows the direction of my eyes and says nothing, though he doesn’t make any move to take me there either or satisfy my curiosity.

“What’s that?”

“I don’t think it’s something you’d want to see.”

He doesn’t understand that saying that is exactly what triggers my desire to know what’s hidden there. I place my hand on his forearm to keep him by my side before he continues walking and takes us away from the place.

“What’s in there?”

He shifts his attention to the place I’m referring to. I can see the internal baule he fighting -between telling me what I want or insisting and dragging me away. With his deep and resigned sigh, I know I’ve won this battle.

“It’s where we store the blood. It stays fresh longer there” He runs a hand over his face, “Exposing ounelves too long to human food can weaken our defenses, so we have to alternate between human food and animal blood”

“Only animal blood?” I find that hard to believe.

He twists his mouth, and with that, I know it doesn’t stop there.

“Some of us will show intolerance to the change,” he confesses. “It’s just a matter of time before they yield”

“What do you do then to feed those who don’t accept the change!”

“Some of the humans here volunteer. Other times, we go to villages known to be sympathetic to our cause. They let us draw a bit of blood in

exchange for payment.”

“Don’t you huic freden?”

“All the Diluted who are here got rid of them when they joined the cause–including me–though when I’m with the Pure, I have to maintain ceram appearances.”

“Got rid of them!“.

“I think I used the wrong word.” He draws a smile that almost seems embarrassed. “I meant to say we freed the humans. Some live here because they have nowhere else to go, and others returned to their families. I can introduce you to some if you want proof I’m telling the truth“,

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Chapter 96

I search his eyes for any trace of a lie; instead, I find nothing but gold–too warm for my cold skin. There’s nothing that shows he’s lying, and part- of me wants to believe he’s telling the truth–not to feel comfortable around him or think he’s a decent man, but because it means there were others who got a happy ending, something worthy.

“Thelieve you

His posture seems to relax at my words. He takes my hand,

d, and the calluses on his palm brush agamst my knuckles. I part my lips, surprised.

“Not all of us are monsters” he says. “I was human, Elara, and part of me always will be. I want, what’s best for them—and for those like me. You could be happy here, if you wanted.

His thumb strokes my fingers in a soft, constant

ant caress. The thought flutters through my mind that maybe he’s a little right. A part of him in human Maybe that’s what makes the difference and makes him less lautalian the others. However, mistrust hus my heart firmly gripped-|ir| impossible to trust his good intentions. 1 sigh and pull my hand away from lais, feeling cold again. Now it’s me walking ahead, though I don’t really know this place well. A quick visit hasn’t made me an expert in navigating here.

As I pass two young boys holding different weapons in their hands, Estop. I haven’t seen many weapons in my life beyond a dagger. This is very different. Curved and sharp blades, whips ending in spikes that promise pain, long swords with a tip as line as a neeille.

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