The Mountain Ch. 05

He pressed closer so that Lucy was forced to turn her head to keep from looking him in the eye. "I can respect your reluctance to build relationships. You refuse to resign yourself to your situation. Much has changed for you and I am patient. I will not force you to make friends. For now, I only ask that you be civil."

"I can't decide what to address first," said Lucy, mocking his formal tone. "The insinuation that I am less than civil or the idea that you are actually patient."

"Am I not patient?" For a moment, Lucy almost thought that Warder was answering sarcasm with sarcasm. But his face remained deadly serious. She bit back a sharp reply and instead, shook her head slightly.

"I don't know," she said. "I--just don't make me go in there."

"If you do not appear in our society now, it will be more difficult later. Stay close."

With that, Warder stepped away from the wall and grasped her upper arm. He pulled her along with him the last few feet to the entrance of the hall. The roar of voices ceased almost instantly.

It was common for islanders to discuss the warriors--conjecturing about their way of life and, most of all, their resources. A year could not pass without someone in town raising the possibility of an active rebellion. None had ever been mounted. At first, people were still recovering from the losses of the initial invasion. Resources were scarce and day-to-day living was uncertain. As time went on and the warriors became a more benign presence, the relative safety of their existence created its own inertia. It was tense living in the shadow of the mountain, but at least, after a time, it was certain. Still, the rebellion constantly bubbled beneath the surface. And a frequent point of discussion concerned the potential population of the warrior people. Lucy had heard estimates as high as two or three hundred, but most people agreed that these numbers were improbably high.

Now, Lucy realized that the islanders were wrong.

There were at least two hundred warriors in the Great Hall alone.

And all of them were looking at her.

#

Warder led her into the room, as unmoved by the stares and whispers as he was by anything.

Slowly, conversations resumed, quietly at first and then in earnest.

Warder greeted several people with a nod of his head, but he didn't stop to speak. The stars were hidden under the glare of bright lights and the hall had been set with tables for dining, with a long aisle in the center. Warder led Lucy down this aisle. She tried not to look to either side, but it was difficult to ignore the people watching them. She was immensely grateful when Warder led her through a wide doorway into a smaller, less populated room filled with tables of food.

For a moment, Lucy was somewhat distracted from the embarrassment of being dragged through a crowd of warriors. She hadn't eaten anything except for Persephone's tasteless oatmeal-like soup since her captivity began. The food in this room was elaborate by comparison. She saw actual bread and something that looked like fruit. Warder led her to one of of the tables and handed her a plate, balancing his own so that he could keep one hand at her back. He walked behind her as she examined the buffet. When she bypassed a platter of something unfamiliar, he stopped her and put something on her plate.

"You'll like it," he said.

Her appetite fled at the proprietary gesture, but she didn't argue, watching sullenly while he piled food on her plate.

When they each had a plate, Warder guided her back into the Great Hall. This time, their arrival was slightly less conspicuous, but Lucy could still feel people staring. She was wondering if they were going to have to sit at a table full of strangers, when she realized that Warder was leading them purposefully towards a table at the front of the room. The table was full of people dressed in warrior garb similar to Warder's. With two notable exceptions. One was a boy who looked to be about ten. The other was a scowling Persephone. Everyone stood as they approach, resuming their places only when Warder had helped Lucy to sit and taken the seat beside her.

"You took forever," Persephone grumbled across the table.

"Hi, Persephone," said Lucy, pretending to be cheerful.

Persephone startled and then redoubled her scowl.

"Hello," said the boy sitting next to her. "I am Shell."

"I'm Lucy," she said, reluctantly charmed by his oddly adult manner.

"Are you Warder's?" the boy asked.

"What?" said Lucy at the same time Warder said: "Yes."

The boy nodded at Warder, as if this information restored order to the proceedings.

"Why is Shell here?" Warder asked Persephone.

"Like I said, you took forever," said Persephone, stabbing at a piece of food on her plate. "My food is ice cold."

"He's supposed to be in school."

"Closed!" said Shell joyfully. "Security Alert."

"Explain," said Warder, fixing his attention on Persephone.

"Patrol found something outside," she said. "Closed a quadrant, including the classrooms. It's probably nothing."

"West side. How high?"

Persephone shrugged. "No one knows. I heard fifteen, thirty. Don't know what it was, either."

Warder considered this news. Security alerts were nothing unusual on the mountain. However, the last security breach he had investigated had led him to Lucy and her friend. He was about to start peppering his soldiers with questions, when a hand clapped on his shoulder.

"Warder!"

He turned to see a man smiling at him jovially. The man dwarfed even Warder, but he didn't carry himself with the same power. His shoulders were hunched and his smile was friendly.

"Hello, Liall," said Warder. "Will you join us?"

"Already ate," said Liall. "Twice. Wanted to come and--well, that is, I wanted to introduce myself."

"Of course," said Warder. He stood up and tapped Lucy on the shoulder. She ignored him and he hauled her easily to her feet, setting her down in front of the giant.

"Hello," said Liall.

"Liall, may I present Lucy. My mate."

Liall's gaze fell disbelievingly to Lucy's neck. "So it is true!" he said. "Let me be the first to congratulate you."

Lucy realized with a start that the man was talking to her instead of Warder. "No, thank you," she said.

"What's that?" asked Liall.

"I'm not his mate," said Lucy. "Thank you."

Behind her, Lucy heard Persephone snort derisively.

One moment, she was staring defiantly into Liall's confused face.

The next, she was lying flat on her back on the table, the wind knocked out of her.

Warder loomed over her, turning her head roughly to one side and whispering in her ear. As he spoke, she felt the wound in her neck break open and begin to bleed.

"Shall I show them that you're my mate?" Warder's voice was deadly soft. "Strip you bare and knot you here in the Great Hall until you're so far gone, you're not even aware of all these people watching you?"

The pressure against her neck let up ever so slightly and Lucy gulped in a breath.

"No," she managed, her voice strangled.

"Deny that you are my mate again, and I will do it," said Warder silkily. "I will remind you."

He lifted her back up and kissed her roughly before turning her around to face Liall. "Apologize," Warder demanded.

"Oh my," Liall scratched his head. "No need for that. Every mate gets out of hand now and then."

"Not mine," said Warder.

"I'm sorry," said Lucy quickly. Defying Warder was no longer an attractive option. "Please forgive my rudeness."

"Of course," said Liall, obviously pleased to have the argument behind them. "Pleased to meet you, Lucy."

Liall proceeded to speak to Warder in the Warrior's language and Lucy slid shakily onto the bench and pushed her plate away in one motion, knowing that the tempting food would taste like sand. Sparring with Warder privately had led her to believe, somehow, that her situation had changed. That what had happened between them had placed them on more equal footing. But the way he had held her just now had been more menacing than anything she had seen before. He had meant every word he said.

Lucy glanced in Persephone's direction and found that the girl was looking right at her, as if she had been waiting.

"Liall should have been an easy one," Persephone whispered, shaking her head. "You're an idiot."

Shell stared at both of them, wide-eyed. "Shit," he said softly.

Persephone pinched his arm. "Don't curse."

Warder finished his conversation and returned to the table, sliding Lucy a few inches down the bench towards him so that their thighs touched. Then, he pushed her plate in front of her.

"Eat," he ordered.

Wary of angering him, Lucy placed her hand on his leg under the table and waited until he turned in her direction, mild surprise on his face.

"I'm not hungry," she said softly. "I'm sorry. I feel sick."

He examined her, as if he could gauge the truth of her words with a look. Then, he reached across the table and poured her a cup from one of the silver pitchers placed at intervals along each long table.

"Drink," he said, placing it in front of her. "It will settle your stomach so that you can eat."

#

Liall was not the last of their visitors. They sat in the Great Hall for what felt like hours as more and more people approached them. Some of them introduced themselves to Lucy as Liall had, welcoming her with easy friendship. More often, the introductions were wary, cold, with people speaking only to Warder and sizing Lucy up while she stood silently by his side. Now and then, he prompted her to speak.

Yes.

No.

Thank you.

Of course.

More than once, people hinted that their mating meant that Warder would soon have a family to feed.

"You'll be moving out of that bachelor apartment," said one man, clapping Warder on the shoulder.

Lucy quailed at the thought. If she were to get pregnant, her plans for escape would be ruined. It was one thing to try to abandon Warder now, while he declared her his mate. She knew somehow that it would be suicide to try to leave with his child. A baby would trap her inside the mountain forever.

Agitated, Lucy didn't notice when yet another mountain dweller spoke to her. Warder touched her arm and Lucy responded automatically, unconsciously leaning into Warder for comfort. He placed a heavy arm around her shoulder and she froze, suddenly aware of what she was doing. He felt it and held her more tightly, keeping her from moving away.

When there was a lull, he leaned towards her. "We will leave soon."

Relieved, Lucy allowed him to hold her, too overwhelmed and afraid to argue. Persephone was talking to a group of girls who had come to sit at their table, but Lucy could feel her eyes. She peered over her shoulder and several heads swiveled guiltily away. The other girls had been looking her over, too.

Shell caught her eye before she turned back, smiling and waving. He pointed to her plate and raised an eyebrow. She gave the slightest of nods and Shell dived happily across the table, beginning to shovel in what was left.

It took a moment before Lucy realized that someone was screaming.

She stiffened in Warder's grasp, swivelling her head around to look for the source. Warder noticed her distress, but he didn't seem to notice the noise itself. Instead, he peered at her with concern.

"Don't you hear that?" asked Lucy.

"What?" asked Warder, alert.

Around them, the hall fell silent and the screaming died off, too. Whereas Lucy and Warder had been the center of attention for what felt like hours, now everyone was looking towards the cavernous doors at the front of the hall. A man dressed in warrior garb walked through them. He was leading a woman behind him by a rope tied to both her hands and her feet.

The woman looked frail. She was pretty--or, she must have been once. She had the fair hair that was common among the warriors and it fell in long waves almost to her feet. But it was unkempt and frizzy, giving her a wild, ethereal look. She wore a long gown that reminded Lucy of the princesses in her library books. As she walked--haltingly, because of the rope--Lucy saw that her feet peeking out from beneath the dress were bare.

The woman's gaze darted all around the hall as if she had never seen it before. She leaned her head all the way back to stare at the ceiling, causing her to trip when the man kept walking and tugged at the rope.

In that moment, Lucy felt certain of two things. One was that the woman, despite her curiosity, had been in the great hall before. She was looking for the stars. The second thing was a kind of certainty that she felt deep within her bones. This woman had been the one screaming. Even if, for some strange reason, Lucy had been the only one who seemed to have heard her.

"Who is she?" Lucy asked.

The question had been for Warder, but it was Persephone who answered. She was standing at Warder's elbow, watching the strange pair make their way through the hall. Her friends had abandoned her to try to get a better view.

"It's Ysabel," said Persephone. "You've been upstaged."

In the quiet hall, her voice was loud enough for people standing nearby to hear. Warder growled and Lucy heard at least one person laugh before turning their response into a less conspicuous cough when Warder's gaze sliced through the crowd.

In an instant, the eerie quiet was broken by a loud screeching--audible, this time, to everyone in the hall. It was as if the woman suddenly realized that she was surrounded by other people. She fell to the floor, keening and crying, raising her hands like a supplicant to the sky. The man holding the rope, backhanded her and her wails grew louder.

Around her, conversations started again. Lucy couldn't tell if they were talking about her or if they were trying to ignore that she existed.

"Isn't someone going to help her?"

"No," said Warder, and she thought he sounded almost sad.

Without thinking, Lucy started forward. She only made it a few steps before Warder grasped her arm, tugging her back.

The woman's head snapped up and she looked in Lucy's direction, suddenly lucid. She stared across the room at Lucy. Then, she began to laugh. It was a horrible sound. Hollow and empty. She reached her arms towards Lucy. Despite her intention to help, Lucy shrank back, alarmed at the naked need on her face.

"Let's go," said Warder, scooping Lucy up into his arms.

"I can walk," said Lucy. She could hear the woman laughing again.

"I don't care," said Warder.

#

Warder left through a side door that led to a small tunnel. The ceiling was so low that Warder had to stoop and Lucy closed her eyes. The sudden change from the openness of the Great Hall made it feel like the walls were closing in again.

When they spilled out into one of the familiar, well-lit hallways, it was a relief. Persephone and Shell emerged from the tunnel behind them.

"I can't believe he brought her here," said Persephone. "Someone must have told him about her." She jerked her shoulder in Lucy's direction.

"It doesn't matter," said Warder.

"Doesn't matter?" said Persephone. "He might as well have used the loudspeaker system to advertise that he's afraid of you."

"I don't wish to discuss it," said Warder.

"Fine," said Persephone sullenly. Her attitude immediately darkened and she started ahead of them down the hall.

Warder's voice stopped her.

"Persephone."

"What?"

"Go back to the hall and observe," he said. "Shell can bring the deliveries."

"Shell could observe," said Persephone. "Don't be--"

"You are still not welcome in my quarters," said Warder. "Make yourself useful as I tell you or find another warrior to follow."

Persephone's face fell. Then, her gaze landed on Lucy with an ugly scowl.

"Fine," she said. "Fine." She ducked back into the tunnel and as she went, Lucy could just make out the soft "I'm sorry" she tossed over her shoulder.

Lucy was tempted to ask Warder to show Persephone some mercy. Instead, she asked him: "Who was that woman?"

Warder didn't answer.

"Warder," she placed a hand on his chest and she felt his own hand reach up to cover it, but he stayed silent, his stride carrying them quickly back towards his quarters.

#

Back in the room, Warder set her down and went to his desk, ignoring her.

Lucy wanted to scream at him for discarding her, but she was still haunted by the strange woman in the great hall. Instead, she dragged one of the kitchen chairs over to the cabinet with the television and stood on it to turn it on.

Warder glanced up at her but he didn't stop her. She fiddled with the buttons until the alert message scrolled on the screen.

Still level three, whatever that meant.

She fiddled with the television some more and the picture changed. It was the same women in the same classroom. She spoke in the warrior language, but Lucy realized that the word written on the wall behind her head was in English.

Bird.

The picture flickered and then the woman was back, talking again. Now the wall read: "Candle."

"It's school, " said Lucy, to no one in particular.

"Yes," said Warder. "Language instruction. It's meant to teach English, but perhaps you could learn our language if you pay attention."

"Speak your language?" asked Lucy. "Wouldn't that be inconvenient? You seem to enjoy speaking over my head."

"Not everyone speaks English," said Warder, ignoring her attempt to provoke him. "That is why we have that channel."

"What's the point?" asked Lucy. "We keep separate. Usually."

Then, a thought occurred to her.

"The people that were taken when you first came to the island," she said. "Are they still alive? Are they here?"

Warder finished writing something in one of his notebooks. Then, he stood up and strode towards her, switching off the television.

"I want to learn," said Lucy.

"I can teach you," said Warder. He spoke a word in the warrior language. "That means, 'obey'," he told her. "You ought to learn that first."

"If I don't, are you going to tie me up like that woman in the Great Hall?" asked Lucy. "She was like me, wasn't she?" Lucy wasn't sure exactly what she was asking. She remembered the word Persephone had used.

Omega.

"It seems to me that your situations are quite different," said Warder breaking, into her thoughts. "But perhaps I flatter myself."

Ignoring the edge to his voice, Lucy forged ahead. "Was that man mated to her?" she asked. "Who was he?"

Warder sighed. "The man leading her was--I believe your word would be 'king.'"

"You have a king?"

"We have a system of government," said Warder. "And a warrior king is part of that system."

"So--she's the queen?" asked Lucy.

"No," said Warder. "The warrior's power does not extend to his mate. We have no queen."

"But they're married?"

Warder had mentioned something like marriage before, the first time they had visited the Great Hall. He had told her that marriages took place there. No..he had called it a binging ceremony. Apparently, at least for Warder, marriage, or something like it, was a separate act from what they had done together.

"The King--Hadren--is bound to Grace. And mated to Ysabel."

Lucy remembered the woman from the hallway. The woman who had made Persephone so uncomfortable.

"How can he be mated to one woman and bound to another?"

"Mating is a separate ritual from our binding ceremony," said Warder. "Have you not noticed?"

Lucy blushed. "What I mean is--" she couldn't meet his eye. "Among the islanders, there's just--marriage. Having a mate and a wife would be complicated."

"It is complicated," said Warder. "Although not uncommon. Some mates live much like you do in your "marriages." Others do not. And many are never mated at all."

"Why did you? I mean, why did we--"