my mother and chosen my own career path…
That’s no one’s business but mine.
“Aren’t you ready yet?”
I jolt in my seat, making Cauri curse at me. Sarissa catches my eye in the mirror, smirking, and I narrow my eyes at her.
“Almost.”
“She doesn’t need to look like she’s going to a ball,” Sarissa tells Cauri. “We’re only going to the marketplace.”
Cauri sniffs, sliding a jeweled pin into my hair. “Need I remind you that you are both—”
“Representing the king.” Sarissa nods. “So our appearance is of utmost importance.”
She says it solemnly, but her lips twitch, and Cauri frowns at her, her gaze lingering on Sarissa’s hair, which is in a simple braid.
“Obviously, you haven’t taken this advice seriously,” she murmurs.
Sarissa nods. “I’m not the best at taking advice. Just ask my cousin. Come on, surely she’s ready now?”
Cauri sighs, poking one last pin along my scalp. I grit my teeth, well aware that complaining will just make the torture last longer.
“Fine,” Cauri says with a huff, and I raise my eyebrows. Sarissa has succeeded, while my complaints seem to only piss her off.
“Have you considered switching with Hesa?” I ask Cauri. “I think you’d enjoy fixing Sarissa up every day.”
Sarissa smirks, and Cauri narrows her eyes at me. “Someone has to keep you in line,” she says, turning to walk away. “Wear the gray shoes,” she orders over her shoulder.
I linger over my shoe choices, Sarissa watching as I pick up a black pair, hesitating. Finally, I go for the gray shoes, ignoring Sarissa’s snort.
“They look best with the dress.”
“Uh-huh.”
“I’m not afraid of her.”
“Then why are you whispering?”
“In case she’s still around. Duh.”
The guards are waiting outside our rooms, and they murmur amongst themselves as we get into the hydro and travel down the river. The sun is still low in the sky, the air fresh, and we compete with other hydros for space as we head toward the marketplace.
“Let’s see if the replacement part has arrived first, and then we can look around,” Sarissa says. I nod, and we follow the path through the trees, both of us pausing as we take in the large marketplace.
Sarissa links her arm through mine. “Whatever happens, I’m glad I got to experience this stuff with you, V.”
I grin at her, my eyes suddenly hot. There’s no way Sarissa would be this open on Earth. An alien abduction has taught both of us that life is short.
“I’m glad too.”
Sarissa smiles at me and moves toward the marketplace, but I stop her.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
“What happened when I disappeared? Did they file a missing persons report? Did they even notice?”
Sarissa’s expression turns agonized, and I stare at her.
“They didn’t, did they?”
“I did,” she whispers. “I went to the police when I didn’t hear from you. Your mom insisted you were probably partying overseas somewhere, and refused to get involved.”
I laugh, but it comes out like a sob. “A missing daughter would be a scandal.”
Sarissa sighs. “The police were looking for you, V. Your phone, wallet, and everything else were in your apartment. None of your credit cards had been used, so it was obvious you hadn’t run from your life. But there was no sign of a struggle. I hired a private investigator, and I was using every contact I had to find you.” Her smile is sad. “But then I woke up on that ship.”
Other than our brief chat the other day when she admitted to promising the other women they’d have their revenge, Sarissa still hasn’t talked about what she and the others went through on that ship.
While our group of women were only on the Dokhalls’ ship for a day or so, it sounds like they were stuck in their cage for much longer. Every time I ask about her abduction, Sarissa gets a distant look in her eyes and clams up. All I know is one of the women died, and Sarissa barely held the other women together.
“Do you think you were taken because you were looking for me?”
She shrugs. “Two months after you were taken, I went to the Arcav.”
My mouth drops open. “You what?”
“I’d been researching. Other women were disappearing—young, middle-class women who would be missed. But it was the same as your disappearance—no struggle, all their personal belongings at home. I approached the Arcav, and they had begun looking into it. And then I was taken.”
“The Grivath knew you had alerted the Arcav. It’s no coincidence that we were both taken. This is my fault. I’m sorry,