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She kne to pick up infors unspoken and physical evidence--things on a bedside table, dropped carelessly under a bed or left between the sheets Looking at his unrelenting profile, she knew he thought her feelings toward them were a problem to be solved Was it possible these brief moments of consideration and seduction, when she felt a surprisingly co connection to him, were merely ways to do what she suspected Danny had asked him to do? Brace her maid for the worst
Since Danny’s motives were based on affection, she couldn’t fault her much for that But his motives still felt unclear to her The fact she was sure he heard her thought, and didn’t care to confirm or deny, only made her uneasiness that ood s As they drove through the hills, she held on to that thought Since Mal wasn’t talking much, she focused on the scenery with new eyes, particularly at the elevated points open enough that she could look down and see that puzzle piecing of different terrains, the ht, she was sure each crest gave her a panora off the waves She hoped she’d eventually have the freedo the sandy shore, wade in the water
Of course, first she had to learn how to drive She’d coax one of the staff to teach her, in exchange foror other skills she had to trade They’d done that at the station, onehis shirts, or Mrs Rupert knitting her a cap while Elisa took over the baking for a day, giving the older wos That type of co had to exist on an island where supplies were flown in and things weren’t readily at hand While she was still perceived as a guest, and a teed, she’d becolance at Malachi Wanting to reclaim the earlier ease they’d had, she ventured forth with a question that seemed relatively safe, particularly since she already knew the answer "There’s a councilperson named Lord Malachi That’s not you, I assu of his hair, the aquiline line of his nose, the way the diht his dark eye,"Do I strike you as good at politics, Irish flower?"
My fat aunt jumped into her head before she could stop it At his quizzical expression, she cleared her throat "It’s an Aussie expression It meansnot really"
He snorted He turned off thethat looked like a deer track, the trees closing in so that palm fronds slid over the windshield and tickled the elbow she had braced on the openA trio of birds flushed just ahead, their criainst the greenery
"Lord Belizar, the head of the Council, also has a full servant na so few va the servant’s name to save confusion"
"But that’s his na away the naave you, that seems too much Soear The Jeep jerked such that Elisa caught the dash with her free hand She didn’t h In that one brief second, his expression altered It re just fine, so her A dark well opened inside and things supposed to be in the past were all too present His expression becaain in a flash, but she’d seen stark pain, overlaid by a rage so deep it was inore
"I’ered hi to be insolent I--"
He stopped the Jeep so abruptly she was glad she was still holding the dash, but his advice about standing fast before a charging predator came toin ht All right? So stop walking on eggshells andabout that And for fuck’s sake, be quiet until we get there"
The savagery took her aback, such that she had to force herself not to shrink into a corner She sensed the anger wasn’t at her, not directly She’d si abreath, she tried to fold her hands in her lap and sit in dignified silence as he put the Jeep back in gear After several tense seconds, she glanced at hiray darkness, the hard set of his ize, and not because she was afraid of not seeing her fledglings She hadn’t intended to hurt or upset him She didn’t like to do that to anyone, not without cause, and she’d really thought it a safe line of conversation But since he seemed to prefer her silence, she sed the corets later
He navigated one final turn that slid thelierly, she sat forward, straining for a better look She could see ure stepped out of a walled shelter inside his cell and turned toward the oncoh it had been only a couple days, she’d thought about them with every inhale, worried with every exhale She’d treated that rhytho one a little wobbly But now, so close to her goal and not wanting to do a single wrong thing, she forced herself to stay seated in the Jeep, waiting for Mal’s direction
She ad The enclosure area was large, each individual cell enough to house a sravel or dirt Small trees had been planted there, flowers, bushes Like the cats, there was a box-sized cage attached to the larger cell, through which she suspected the staff could leave their blood donations so the fledglings could retrieve it without contact
The individual cabins were joined to one large communal enclosure, the place Mal had let them interact with him That area was likewise landscaped, with a birdbath to attract s that colea she’d seen She wondered if Mal had soic to reinforce this area, ensure it was strong enough to keep va out
Danny had contacted Mal several th of time, this was far more than his attitude had led her to expect She was a bit shamed by her doubts
"This is all just for show They were actually yanked out of a dank hole in the ground, hosed down and cleaned up, then put here to ease youryour ti you with the rest They weren’t quite ready"