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IMARA DIDN’T LET GO OF ABE until they were back inside the building. The council members tapped on their holograms with their noses practically touching the screens. The taggers cleaned up the room, a look of pride filling their faces. This reminded her to take the T off her shirt, but it also made her a little proud too.
The taggers had done the right thing. Just like her, they only needed someone to believe in them. She had been right that they could change.
She smiled at that, possibly the first smile she had worn all day.
Naki still glared at Abe, but he was too deep in conversation with Husani and Keiko to notice. Edrice had arrived and chatted with some police officers. Siluk wandered through the room, picking up bits up trash and righting overturned chairs.
Naki smooshed herself in between Abe and Imara and wrapped her arms around her sister’s shoulders. Abe stepped away with a frown, but Naki only scowled at him and pulled Imara away. “I’m so glad you’re safe, baby sister.”
Imara returned the hug and let out a chuckle. “When did you fly to Egypt?”
Naki whipped a cluster of tiny braids over her shoulder. “I saw on the news what was happening here, and I didn’t trust Abe, the loser, to keep you safe. So, I decided I better come here and do it myself.”
“Um,” Imara said. “That’s... that was brave.”
Naki squeezed Imara one last time. “See, you’re trying to be better, and so am I. You inspired me.”
Imara smiled. Another real one. These smiles felt good. “It’s going to be different now, Naki. I promise.”
Naki grinned and gave her another squeeze. “You know what? I believe you this time.” Suddenly, she turned on her heel. “Ooh, I forgot. I promised Siluk I would remind him to call Darius when this was all over.” She gave one final glare to Abe, then skipped off toward Siluk.
The space between them that Naki had been occupying somehow slipped away and Imara found her shoulder brushing Abe’s a second later. She needed to get away before anything too drastic happened.
“Excuse me, Miss?” said a young woman in a pink hijab. She wore a news reporter pin on her chest. “Can I get your picture for the news?” Her jaw slackened as she made eye contact with Abe. While awestruck wonder filled her eyes, she said, “You’re the orphan rescuer.”
“Uh, excuse me, Miss,” Husani said. “But all of us have rescued orphans. And we all helped take down Sef and Takara. You’re welcome.”
The young woman blushed and held up her hologram screen. She said, “Excellent. Then I’ll get a picture with all of you. Move close together please.”
Husani called Edrice over, and they all squished together for the picture. The entire time, the only thought in Imara’s mind was how perfectly Abe’s shoulder had tucked behind hers. And how easily she could drop her head onto the familiar spot. If only.
The moment the young woman finished taking the photo, Edrice disappeared back into the crowd. Husani held out a hand to the news reporter, and said, “Thank you, my...”
Knowing a ridiculous pick up line was about to spill from Husani’s mouth, Imara started to roll her eyes.
But then, he curled his hand into a fist and snapped his mouth shut. “Thank you,” he said again. “Have a good day.”
And then he turned away.
As soon as the young woman left, Keiko raised one eyebrow and stuck a hand on her hip. “What? You’re not going to flirt?”
“Not with her,” Husani replied.
Keiko snorted. “Well, that’s a first.”
“I have to tell you something important, Keiko,” he said. “I need to apologize.”
Imara pushed Abe away before they could hear any more. They were halfway across the room before she realized her hands were still all over him. She tore them away and stuffed them into her pockets. “Sorry,” she said. “Husani was about to apologize for something awful he said, and I thought they could use some privacy.”
Abe responded by staring at his chest where her hands had been moments ago. Then, he looked back at her with a grin. She probably would have kissed him, but luckily Edrice spoiled the moment by appearing at Abe’s side.
“I just sent you the paperwork,” Edrice said.
“Oh.” His face hardened to a serious stare that seemed unnatural on him. He tapped his ring and brought up the paperwork.
Edrice’s eyebrow twitched as she eyed Imara. She clenched her jaw, but then seemed to force out a sigh. A moment later, she gave Imara a half smile. “Are you okay?” she asked. “You’re not hurt or anything?”
“No, I’m fine.” Imara held her breath, trying to control the emotions swirling inside her. Anger. Jealousy. Confusion. But the longer she stared, the more she realized how pointless they all were. She started to see her, not as Abe’s ex girlfriend, but as Edrice. Her friend.
“What about you?” Imara asked, fiddling with the hem of her shirt.
Edrice put a hand over her forehead and sighed. “Obviously I’m fine physically. I’ve been coordinating with the police, and everything’s been a little stressful.” She shook her head. “But I guess it has been for all us.”
Edrice bit her lip and stared at the floor. She rubbed her hand up and down her arm as she took in a deep breath. “I know you’re leaving Cairo, and it’s probably for the best.” Her chin dipped further down as she stared at the floor. “But you were a really good employee. I just thought you should know.”
“Thank you.” Imara said. And she meant it. “You were a good boss. A really good one.” She meant that too.
Edrice looked up with a smile, and they shared a moment of peace. Maybe they couldn’t be best friends considering the history between them now. But at least they were a different kind of friend. The kind that still cared.
“Edrice,” Abe said with a surprising sharpness in his tone. “Where do I sign this thing?”
Edrice rolled her eyes. “You are impossible.”
He glared at the paperwork blinking back at him from his hologram screen. Edrice scrolled through it and pointed out a blank line in the middle of it. “Sign here,” she said as she scrolled down further to a box. “Initial here,” she said. “And sign next to the big X at the very bottom.”
Abe nodded without taking his eyes off the screen and scrolled back up to the first spot. When he started signing with his finger, Edrice took a step back. “You’re signing it now? Don’t you want to think about it first?”
“I’ve thought about it plenty,” he said as he finished his signature and scrolled down to the box. “This is happening, so get over it.”
Edrice scoffed and turned on her heel. She stomped away without looking back.
“What was that about?” Imara asked. But the moment the words left her mouth, she closed it back up again. She didn’t get to ask him questions like that. Not anymore. She turned away so he would know he didn’t have to answer.
Abe, however, seemed unfazed by the question and offered the answer without question, even as she turned away. “I’m selling Edrice my portion of the business.”
A second ticked by before the words sunk in. When they did, she grabbed his arm to stop him from signing the last line. “What did you say?”
“I’m selling my business. So I’m not tied to Egypt anymore.”
She didn’t really do it on purpose, but suddenly both her hands were gripping Abe’s wrist making sure he couldn’t sign that last line. “You can’t do that,” she said.
With his other hand, he popped a curl down over her forehead. “Thanks for your input, but it’s my business. I can do whatever I want.”
She held his wrist tight hoping maybe her words would sink in better that way. “I won’t let you do this. You can’t sacrifice your business just to be with me. You have to stay here.”
To her surprise, Abe responded with a laugh. Next, he ran his fingers through his hair. “And what exactly is supposed to happen if I stay? My ex girlfriend owns half the business. Maybe I don’t have feelings for her, but we have tons of history, and it’s super awkward. So yeah, selling it sucks, but I’ll just start a new business.”
She pulled her hands back as if Abe’s wrist were on fire. After carefully wrapping her arms over her stomach, she stared at the ground and asked, “Are you sure you don’t have feelings for her?”
“Imara,” he said cupping her chin. She turned away from his hand. He sighed. “Edrice made that deal with Sef, and I refused to forgive her for it. We fought about it constantly, and finally, she broke up with me.”
He glanced to the other side of the room long enough for them both to see Edrice stood far out of earshot. Even still, he lowered his voice. “I guess she thought I would miss her once we weren’t together anymore. Maybe hoping I would realize how much she meant to me. But instead, I realized she has never been who I thought she was. She’s a genius business woman and an amazing person. But she’s never been the person I wanted or actually needed.”
He looked down and curled his hands into soft fists. “She didn’t start the business to save orphans, she started it to make money. Which is honestly fine; making money isn’t a bad thing. It just wasn’t what I was looking for.”
He touched Imara’s face again, and this time she let him. His hand slid back until he was running a finger through the hair on the back of her neck. “And then I met you. You were everything I ever dreamed of. At first, you were just this gorgeous girl staring at me during a party, and I thought, I should probably talk to her. Then I followed you and watched you throw yourself in front of a hover cart to protect a random boy, and I thought, Wow, she’s pretty selfless to risk herself for someone else like that. And then your sister got kidnapped, and the police were too afraid to help. So, what did you do? You decide to go after her yourself, willing to help your sister without one single thought about what you’d get in return.”
He looked down at the ground with a chuckle. “Basically, it was all over from that moment on. I was smitten, and nothing could change that. I knew I was moving fast after Edrice, and I tried to slow down, but I couldn’t. After every second with you, I wanted more. And because I’m an idiot, I did stupid things like lie to you and pretend everything would be fine. I messed up, but it doesn’t mean I care about you any less.”
“Abe.” She pulled his hand away from her neck and held it out in front of her. It physically pained her to say the words, but they had to be said. “You can’t sell your business for me. Maybe you want to do this now, but what about later? This business is everything to you. What about in a year? What about in ten? At some point you’re going to regret it, and you’ll resent me for it.”
He scoffed, and even though his eyes were soft, a fire burned inside them. “You don’t understand. You said I wouldn’t accept the responsibility of my hila. You were right. I am a healer, and I refused to see it. But it’s more than that, and I didn’t realize it until you broke up with me. I feared a real relationship too. And before you ask, yes, it was obviously because of my mom. I didn’t want to get hurt so I never let myself get close enough for anything real. It was easier with Edrice because she wasn’t right for me. But you?”
He stepped forward until their toes touched, and she could feel the heat coming from his skin. The spicy cinnamon smell clung to his shirt with a milky musk wrapping around it. He brought his head down until their foreheads touched, and she felt the lightest trace of moisture on his brow.
Then, he whispered the words she thought she’d heard so many times, only to realize he hadn’t quite said them. But this time was different. This time, he spoke the words with no fillers. This time his conviction burst through the air with unmistakable clarity. He put his hand on her waist and traced circles over her hip bone. Soft, but full of yearning. “I love you, Imara,” he said. “And I’m finally ready for everything that goes with that.”
She couldn’t help but kiss him after that. On her tiptoes, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him like she never had. He met her lips with equal intensity, then pulled her body so close it nearly lifted her feet off the ground. With his arms around her, she realized it didn’t matter what happened with her job or with the taggers or even with his business. Now they would face the world together.
Breathing in the smell of cinnamon and cardamom, she curled her fingers through his hair and almost forgot they stood in a crowded room full of people.
When they pulled apart, his lips stayed only a whisper away. She stared into his eyes, admiring the rainbow of colors running through them. Russet brown on the outside and olive green in the center. Tiny dots of maroon dotted through the center where the colors converged. All encased in the thickest eyelashes she had ever seen.
“Here comes the announcement,” someone shouted through the room.
Abe snuck in one last soft kiss before he settled his chin on top of her curls. They both turned so they could see the wall hologram on the other side of the room.
“This should have the photos from that news reporter who was here earlier,” one of the Egyptian Council members said.
As they turned to watch it, everything from the past twelve hours started settle. Things were going to be okay. The police would arrest Takara. She and Abe would convince the taggers to stop tagging. Soon, she’d be back in Kenya, and this time Abe could come with her.
As the hologram changed to a new screen, it showed a face that didn’t belong to the news reporter. Imara’s muscles shivered.
Wavy brown hair that had once been long and shiny was now matted and stringy. The brown eyes accompanying it looked hollow. A familiar puncture of holes lined the skin under the woman’s ear. Imara had matching holes in her own neck caused by Takara’s syringes.
It wasn’t until the woman started speaking that the reality of her identity settled in. Her voice scratched as she spoke as if dehydrated.
It was obvious this woman had suffered at Takara’s hand. That didn’t make the sight of her any less gut wrenching.
Carlotta Santini began her speech with six simple words. “As you can see, I’m alive.”
* * *
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BOOKS BY KAY L. MOODY
The Fae of Bitter Thorn
The Elements of Kamdaria
Truth Seer Trilogy
1: Truth Seer
2: Healer
AUTHOR’S NOTE
As always, I have to start by giving a huge thank you to my readers. You truly make this writing thing worthwhile. I have always been a writer, but for so long, I would horde my stories and not let anyone read them. I always thought they would never be good enough for the world.
Each time I get a new reader, I’m reminded that stories are meant to be shared. Thank you for reading my book and enjoying it in your own special way.
This book took me on a journey. It changed so much from my very first draft that it’s hardly recognizable now. At times, I felt like a sculptor, trying to dig out the beauty I knew existed in there somewhere.
Now that it’s finished, I’m so happy about how it turned out. Sometimes the characters surprised me and sometimes the hilas surprised me even more. Thank you for staying with me through this second book.
I can’t wait for the third book and I promise it will be the best one yet!
AUTHOR BIO
Kay L Moody is proud to be a female science fiction author. Her books feature cool science and technology, strong female leads, and a dash of romance. There is a strong focus on character development and societal conditions. Kay lives in the western United States with her husband and children.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I’m always amazed at the number of people it takes to finish a book. First, thank you to Kristy for once again being an amazing beta reader. Your support, insight, and encouragement were all necessary to completing this book.
Thank you also to my incredible editors. Deborah, your notes are always so helpful. You allow me to see my book through unbiased eyes. Emily, you are the best. Thank you for all your words of wisdom throughout this process. And thank you for dealing with my comma problems.
A huge thank you goes to my writers group. Alaura, Catherine, Emily, Jamie, Marissa, Nicole, and Stephanie, you have all been there when I needed advice. Thank you for not sugar coating my weaknesses and for being a catalyst for improving my writing. I have learned so much from all of you. I’m lucky to be among such talented writers!
I have so many family members that deserve a thank you as well. From my children, siblings, aunts and uncles, and more. You all believe in me so much. Your never ending support was a great source of strength to me during the writing of this book. Thank you!
I couldn’t go without thanking my readers as well. You are the reason I write and the reason I keep dreaming up more book ideas.
Finally, the biggest thanks of all goes to my husband. I will never understand how you can believe in me without question. Thank you for laughing when I said I couldn’t do it. And thank you for cheering with me when I finished. I never could have done it without your constant support.
Kay L Moody
