Page 69 of Undone
I glanced up, and his face was like steel, giving nothing away.
“You will not return to Primo Town.”
Blood drained too quickly from my head. I steadied myself on the desk. “But—”
“You will remain here.”
We stared at one another. A million things went through my head.
“But, the children. I mean, Kelsey, the newest girl. She’s so young; she needs me.”
The Senator stepped closer, and his voice softened to a reassuring tone. “The women will combine efforts to raise her. That will be the way of things, Ms. Haines. I know it is different for you, but I need you to trust the process.”
Screw the process! Poor Kelsey was going to think I’d abandoned her!
“Senator, what will happen to Linette? I started it. S-she called me weak, said I was pampering the children, and I . . . I don’t know what came over me. I pushed her, and we accidentally fell.”
“That one,” the Senator said. “She has qualities of a Baelese female.”
“Please forgive her.”
I looked down as a hiccup of leftover crying made my chest bounce.
He finally let out a breath. “I will speak to the guards. She will not be killed, but she will be punished.” What would happen to her?
“And me?” I asked. “Will I be punished?”
His eyes bore into mine. “Your guilt, and being away from the children is punishment enough.”
I dropped my eyes, trying not to freak out. I was going to be surrounded by aliens all the freaking time, with no human interaction.
“You will be safe here.”
What could I say? He’d made his mind up and was treating me with kindness that was uncharacteristic of his people. “Thank you.”
He continued to study me. “Humans do have interesting ways of releasing tension.”
His word choices made my core tingle. I had no reply, but forced myself to make eye contact.
“So much tension, all of the time,” he murmured.
“And how do you do it?” I asked, turning the tables. “When you’re tense?”
He paced the room now, talking as he took thoughtful steps. “We don’t get wound as tightly as humans. The voice control we’re able to use? We have a sort of internal version of that. We can talk ourselves down to a calmer level in most cases. It requires a certain level of maturity, of course.”
“That must be nice,” I said. “To have that ability.”
“It is not foolproof, unfortunately.” He put his hands in his pockets. “Some tensions are more difficult to mentally release than others.”
The live wire between us was snapping and crackling, making my pulse race.
He cocked his head. “I’m surprised to know you deal with tension by fighting.”
I shook my head. “No. I don’t. Actually, that’s the first time that’s ever happened. My way of dealing used to be drinking.”
“Self medicating.” He nodded as he paced around his desk, rearranging items here and there. “And did you ever try self-pleasure?”
My mouth popped open and my cheeks flamed. I let out an embarrassed sound of air, unable to look at him. Ineverwould have expected him to ask something like that.
