Page 11 of Daughter of the Ninth Line: Part Two

“You should rest now,” she said softly. “You need sleep to heal.” She left, softly closing the door behind her.

I noticed that this room had two beds and was bursting with stuff, and I wondered who I’d displaced from their room. But I’d worry about that later, along with every other problem that seemed to be cropping up during my conscription. This was why I should’ve kept my head down and faded into the background. I’d forgotten what my purpose was: to be completely unremarkable.

But no one was going to forget what had happened today. Being in the gravitational pull of Vox wasn’t going to help my cause either.

A sudden scratching noise on the floor had me opening an eye. What was that?

I opened the other eye and watched a fuzzy blob appear in my vision. Shit, I’d forgotten about Epsy. Had he tracked me down because he was hungry? I wondered if I could push my friendship with Acacia and send her to feed him.

As the fuzzy blob got closer, I realized it was significantly smaller than my stolt. I mean,thestolt. He wasn’tmystolt.

Instead, it was a tiny mouse. Recognizing its speckled white-and-black coat, I gave him a sleepy smile. “Oh, it’s you.”

It came right up to my face, its whiskers twitching as it sniffed softly. I couldn’t even feel the weight of it on my chest, it was so small.

“Have you been sent to check up on me?” Its tiny ears swiveled around, listening. “You’re pretty cute, actually. You cantell your master I’m okay.” I scratched the little mouse between its ears with the hand strapped to my chest. “Actually, could you get him to feed my stolt?”

How much did a mouse understand? Could it understand my words, or could it just transmit images? I wished I knew how the Third Line’s powers worked. So I did my best stolt impression with one arm; I held up a hand like it was an ear, and maybe I cleaned myself with an imaginary paw while I mimed eating.

Hopefully, he got the point. Otherwise, the stolt was just going to have to wait until I was up and around tomorrow to eat. He’d be pissed, but I’d bring him some of the jerky he loved.

The little mouse scurried away. I hoped he’d gotten everything he needed, because my eyes felt like they were being dragged down by heavy weights. I was glad to be falling into the darkness, where I didn’t have to think about why Vox Vylan had personally carried me to the healers and stayed with me. Or why he’d ordered people to take care of me. Or why Hayle Taeme had sent one of his tiny, furred minions to check on me.

Just blissful silence, where I didn’t have to think how close I came to dying.

Eight

Vox

Idrummed my fingers on my desk, trying to shake the girl from my head. My powers had failed against Eugene, of all people, and the shame was entirely consuming. The fact that the girl was hurt was disconcerting. The fear I’d felt when she was injured was… perplexing.

I didn’t know what to do about any of it.

Well, that was untrue. I knew what I was going to do about Eugene.

A small smirk curled my cheeks. He was a dead man and didn’t even know it yet. No one defied me, especially not some Fourth Line weakling. If it had been anyone under my air shield but Avalon Halhed?—

No.If it had been anyone other than Avalon being tormented by Eugene, I wouldn’t have even stepped in. I didn’t interfere with the squabbles of the Lower Lines. However, when I’d stumbled on her and the girl from the Twelfth being pelted with hailstones, I hadn’t even thought before acting. I’d protected her like she mattered, but she didn’t. Not to me, not to Ebrus.

See. Perplexing.Even now, I had the urge to go and check on her wellbeing.

Sighing, I leaned back in my desk chair. I had to write a missive to my father about today’s events, and I needed to get my shit together. Weakness was not something that I could let my father see. I might be his flesh and blood, but he wasn’t above exploiting my emotions in the name of teaching me how to be a leader, despite the fact it was unlikely that I’d ever be the ruler. The title of Baron of the First Line would go to my brother, and I’d always been ecstatic to be the backup. May my brother live a long, miserable life.

Shay slid into my room silently, her brows drawn together. I wiped my expression from my face automatically, even though I trusted Shay with my life. She was my closest friend, advisor, and more of a sibling to me than my own. But she’d never had to stand against my father, and I would rather her be blissfully unaware of potential secrets, should that ever happen.

“Is it done?”

She nodded, her face twisting into a malicious grin. “Yep. It’s so cold in the dungeon tonight that if Eugene doesn’t have frostbitten balls by the morning, it would be a Goddess-granted miracle.”

It was just the first of many small ways I was going to make that fucker’s life a misery. He’d soon learn how insignificant he was in the hierarchy of true power, and he’d remember exactly who was in charge at Boellium.

I kept my voice light and my expression neutral. “And the injured conscripts?”

Shay gave me a look that said I was full of shit. “Both resting in the bowels of Boellium under the watchful eye of the Twelfth Line.” She sat on the edge of my desk. “What was that about, Vox? And before you give me some bullshit answer, remember I’ve known you since before you could shit in a toilet. I can tell when something’s more than a passing amusement to you. You carried that girl from the Ninth Line all the way to the infirmary.You sat with her while the healer tended to her, then you carried her down to the Lower Level dorms. Have you ever evenbeenbelow the atrium before today?” I shook my head, and she gave me a hard look. “People will have noticed, Vox.”

The underlying warning was that if people had noticed, the information was bound to make its way back to my father, probably my brother too. Hell, I’d be surprised if my mother didn’t also have spies in Boellium.

“I was just angry that someone as insignificant as Eugene had bested me. Carrying the girl was my punishment.”

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