Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 76864 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76864 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Hugging each goodbye, even Milly, who pulled away when she made the attempt, Raine waited until the elevator had closed behind them to say anything.
“It’s good to see you again,” Raine said sincerely. She genuinely like Reva. She even thought they would become close friends, if given the opportunity to spend more time together.
The beautiful woman gave her a smile. “I didn’t interrupt?”
“No. I’m afraid they spent most of the time wanting to get answers from me when I know just as much as them.”
“What questions would you liked answered?”
Reva went to the low table to pour herself a glass of the glittery wine. “Is your clan planning to stay on the ships, or will you eventually find a place to make a home on Earth.”
“I had hoped to answer some of your questions. This one, I think it be best if I let Skars answer for you.”
“Your clan has no plans to make Earth a home, do you?”
“Very little places on Earth are habitable. The soil is filled with contaminations. Some of the weapons that humans used against each other weren’t meant to destroy lives on impact, but to makes it impossible to grow anything, which would sustain those who did survive.”
At the reality of what Reva was telling her sank in, Raine also sank down onto a padded bench.
“Our clan is mainly made of farmers and traders. There is no benefit for us to stay, especially since many of our lives would be lost trying to stake a claim when there are so many coming from other planets to ravage what little is left.”
Raine trailed a finger over the rim of her glass.
“Where will your clan go once you left Earth?”
“We don’t know. We are searching for planets which are habitable for our needs.”
“If Earth weren’t destroyed, would it be habitable for your needs?”
Reva made a face after taking a sip of her drink. “I should go. Chieftain Thorsen is waiting to speak with me.” Reva set her drink down on the table.
“Raine, when you request visits from your friends, please tell Skars not to include Milly. There is no need to subject yourself to her hatred.”
Unhappily, Raine looked away from Reva’s gaze. “It’s pretty obvious she dislikes me, isn’t it?”
“She doesn’t dislike you; her feelings go much deeper. You shouldn’t have given her any of your clothes. Skars won’t allow her to keep them.”
“She only needed to borrow them because she spilled her drink on hers,” Raine quickly explained.
Reva stared at her quizzically. “You are afraid of her.”
Raine wiped her clammy hands on the sides of her pants. “Já.”
Reva gave a small smile of approval at her using their language. Then her quiet footsteps crossed the distance separating them to come sit beside her.
“I don’t understand. Skars told me how brave you were when you fought the Olggans when you thought he was outnumbered.”
“He was.”
Reva wouldn’t let her off the hook.
“Why do you tolerate her behavior around you?”
Raine emptied the glass of wine to refill it again. She had a slight buzz going on. Otherwise, she would never have dropped her guard enough to confide in Reva.
Raine turned her head from side to side to make sure everyone had left, even though she had seen them leave just minutes before. “Milly reminds me of my mother.”
Reva’s mouth dropped open. “You were afraid of your mother?”
“My mother was schizophrenic. Do you know what that means?”
Raine guessed Reva’s translator in her ear told her.
“Your mother had a mental illness?”
“Yes. When I was a child, I was too young to understand why my mother was different from other parents. She even acted differently when my half-brother would come for visits once a month. One day, she would be fine; then the next, she would be burning my toys in the backyard, or I would find all my clothes in the bathtub.”
Raine lifted her hand to her hair, becoming lost in the memories of her childhood. “My father tried to make sure she stayed on her medicine, but she got good at pretending to take them then hide them. Her behavior became increasingly erratic, so much so that my father became afraid of me being left alone with her.
“When he came home from work one day, she had shaved both our heads. He sent her to a hospital so she could get the help she needed. She stayed there for several months until my mother begged to see me, saying she missed me. He planned a special day out for us and got permission to take her out for lunch, and he promised not to leave me alone with her.”
Raine was unaware her hands were jerkily rubbing up down on her thighs. “Both of my parents got out of the car, but when Dad went to open the back door for me, Mom shoved him to the ground and started stabbing him. The hospital wasn’t aware she had found a knife, but Mom had. She used it to stab him twenty-four times before taking the car keys from him to drive off with me in the back seat.