Page 58 of Tail Me No Lies
The line went silent.
“Hello? Serene?”
“They got a mob together and they’re going to burn your fields. You need to get out of there. Now.”
It was too late.
Nox
With a kiss to the vivid red bite on her shoulder, Nox left his mate sleeping in bed.
His mate.
It seemed unreal. He confessed his heart and she agreed. They were bound together now. Always. Ruth saw through the petty lies, the deceptions, and the very real danger, to see him. The real him. And she did not turn away in fear or disgust. She embraced him.
Questions remained about their future, but knowing it was a future they would share gave him a deep satisfaction.
He picked through the pantry and found nothing pleasing. This was a special morning. His mate deserved better than porridge and toast for breakfast. She needed to be spoiled, and he was just the male to do it.
With a short list, he headed into town. The bakery would be the first stop. He’d purchase a dozen sweet rolls and other sugary concoctions that his mate enjoyed. Then coffee. The last time they were in the general store, she saw how she sighed over the bag of bitter Earth beans. He also saw how she denied herself because of her budget. No more. Nox did not have many things that others valued: scruples, a sense of right and wrong, or humility. But he did have plenty of anonymous credit and a desire to spoil his mate.
The smell of fresh bread wafted in the air from the bakery. He needed to be quick to return before Ruth woke.
That did not happen.
An electric current surged through him, and he collapsed.
ChapterNineteen
Ruth
Alarms blared.
Ruth rushed to find her tablet to silence the alarms.
The south field was on fire. Sensors and cameras showed flames rapidly burning their way across the field. Movement triggered the proximity detectors.
Ruth fumbled through the interface. Nox installed the new program and she hadn’t taken the time to familiarize herself with all the details.
There.
Two figures wearing bandanas as masks walked along the perimeter of the southern field, heading west. When Serene called them a mob, Ruth expected more than two. Three at least. And pitchforks. Mobs always carried pitchforks.
The diminishing evening light and the smoke from the fire made it impossible to capture a clear image of the arsonists. She hoped something useful could be gleaned from the footage once the fire was out.
Swiping a finger across the screen, she pulled up the menu for the irrigation system. It wasn’t meant to be used as a fire extinguisher but hey, needs must. Except the screen locked up and the system crashed.
Fantastic.
Ruth drummed her fingers on the side of the tablet, waiting for the program to reboot. She could smell smoke but wasn’t sure if that was a product of her anxiety or real.
Probably real.
New alarms went off for agripod one. Through the cameras, Ruth watched helplessly as a second mob busted down the doors and tossed the contents of fuel canisters onto her specimens. A figure dropped a match.
The cameras cut out.
No. No, no, no.
