Jenna paced, obviously lost in thought. She occasionally looked over at Sasha and cocked her head before returning to her pacing once more.
“Mother…” She wanted to cry out, “help me, please,” but she was too afraid of what her mother’s response would be.
“Shut up, Sasha,” her mother muttered. “I’m thinking.”
Sasha wished she could rest, that she could simply curl up and wander those delirious dreams until the inevitable took her. But she couldn’t let go. Not with that look on her mother’s face. The one that always meant trouble for someone.
Today, that someone is me.
Chapter Ten
Whelon was awake to greet the sun bursting into the sky the next morning. Instead of the night sapping his strength, he felt that it had turned him into stone. He had not slept for even a moment, attempting to hold off the Knowing sickness and aid in the search for his mate.
Jarek and Melissa had gone to the clinic not long after he was settled in the lobby—unwilling to accept a room for his comfort. Chashan and Jarek had obviously convinced her to retire there for the evening. Whelon knew this meant she must be feeling badly enough that she couldn’t find the strength and stamina to argue with the two males.
This concerned him greatly. Even more so, he was upset he would not have the opportunity to look at the other women for Chashan, but he could not find his focus. He had never been so lost in his lengthy lifetime.
Radoo soon came over to him, one hand squeezing his shoulder in solidarity while he offered him a cup of coffee with the other hand. Whelon had come to enjoy the bitter brew though most Preor hated the concoction. He wrapped his hands around the cup gratefully and remained silent, waiting to see if Radoo had anything to impart.
“Lily has something,” Radoo finally announced.
“Lily?” Whelon frowned. He believed he had been scheduled to examine Lily joi Argan King during his visit. “Is she not bearing? Soon to give birth?”
“Pregnant, yes, but I’m not ready to pop yet.” Lily’s voice drew his gaze and she smiled gently as she approached with a computer tablet in her hands. “All of Sasha’s addresses have been checked out and she’s not at any of her known residences. I managed to track an address tied to the fake name she used on her Choosing application. It’s a pretty slim hope, but it won’t hurt to check it out.”
He nodded, staring up at Lily though he didn’t really see her, not truly. His mind was still tied to Sasha. She stroked his face, but he didn’t desire her touch, and then she returned to the small station of technology she had built on one of the large tables in the lobby. Her behavior—taking over space without asking permission—would have amused him if he wasn’t so heartsick.
“Let us head to the roof. Perhaps a flight will help.”, Radoo suggested brightly, probably trying to rouse Whelon.
He figured he would go with the other male for no reason other than he had nothing else to occupy his mind. He stood and followed, barely noticing the crowd of Preor warriors that shuffled around him. When they reached the top of Preor Tower, they each jumped, one by one, shifting and taking to the crisp ocean air.
Whelon followed, his dragon form heavy and numb around him. He knew it was his beast’s defense against the Knowing sickness, something his body did to ensure he remained in fighting shape. It would not last forever and part of him was ready to give in to the Knowing sickness.
We will never find her, his dragon’s mind whispered. He had not realized the bestial part of him was so fatalistic.
The buildings that swept beneath them gradually began to change and Whelon’s eyes focused as they flew from the central part of the city to its outskirts. For a few moments, Whelon believed his eyes had been affected by the Knowing sickness and he had to be seeing things, but…
But he wasn’t.
The clean, neat buildings fell away, street by street. First the houses were simply a little dirtier or in need of slight repairs. Then a few streets beyond, there were broken windows and holes in walls. Long rushes of grass were peppered with vehicles propped up on bricks and poorly written signs saying things like “free kittens” or “will trade tools for food.”
By the time they reached the furthest edges, Whelon could not believe his eyes. The buildings were not fit to be lived in. The people were thin and dirty. He consoled himself that it must be a prison of some kind, but… but then he saw the children.
His wings faltered, his progress slowed, and his beast and mind focused on something other than the loss of his mate. For the first time since he’d lost Sasha, something tore through the pain of watching her taken from him. He was enraged that anyone lived in such a manner, let alone children. As he and the rest of those accompanying him spiraled down onto a cul-de-sac, he took in his surroundings.
It was exactly as it appeared. Not a prison—these were not unwelcome refugees—this was a place of free people. He understood they did not choose to live in this way, they did so because they had no choice.
Wealth. Class systems. His mind worked properly once more, processing information from the Knowing. A terrible surge of rage at the rulers of the city overtook him because they knew of this place but did nothing because it was “too expensive.”
Whelon shook his head. There were always more riches. The only thing that mattered were people. They were finite. Priceless.
The four other warriors, including Radoo, soon grew nervous as the residents approached. Whelon’s dragon wanted to fly on, to fly forever if necessary, but his healer’s heart would not let him leave.
“Hello.” A little girl shyly waved. “You’re a pretty dark dragon. I’ve never seen one with such
