Dark Awakening: Echoes of Destiny (The Children Of The Gods #88)

63. Kian

63

KIAN

A s Kian's phone rang and Jade's name flashed on the screen, he answered immediately. "What's up, Jade?"

"We're on our way with Drova," she said. "I'm bringing Phinas and Kagra with me. We should be there in less than ten minutes."

"Very good. I'm awaiting your arrival."

After ending the call, he reached for his earpieces and put them in. It seemed like, lately, he'd been wearing them more than ever. With Ell-rom, it had been first necessary as a precaution and later as a translation device, and then it occurred to Kian that many of the Kra-ell still struggled with English, and although most spoke Russian and not Kra-ell among themselves, the earpieces could translate that as well.

Drova, as far as he knew, had mastered English already, but he hadn't been following the progress of the Kra-ell kids, so he wasn't sure.

She would probably be hungry and thirsty after the eventful night and morning she'd had, and it wasn't his intention to torment her unnecessarily. He retrieved four bottles of water from the small fridge in his office and put them on the conference table.

That solved the thirst problem but not the hunger, and he couldn't solve it by ordering a few pastries from the café. As a pureblooded Kra-ell, Drova's dietary needs were limited to blood and a few select liquids that she could tolerate.

Regrettably, the café didn't sell packaged synthetic blood. Or maybe they did? With the new Kra-ell population in the village, they should.

He dialed Shai's number. "Shai, quick question. Do they sell synthetic blood at the café?"

There was a pause on the other end of the line. "No, they don't, but it might not be a bad idea to add it to the menu. The only problem would be grossing out the other customers."

Kian chuckled. "What if we sold it packaged like a juice box with an attached straw? Discreet and convenient."

Shai's laughter echoed through the phone. "Now that's thinking outside the box, or rather inside of it, I suppose."

Their shared amusement was interrupted by a knock at the office door. Kian ended the call and moved to answer it.

He opened the door to find Jade, Drova, Phinas, and Kagra waiting. Drova's posture was rigid, her chin lifted in defiance, but Kian could see the fear lurking in her eyes.

"Please, come in," he said, gesturing towards the conference table. "Have a seat."

As they settled around the table, Kian handed Drova a bottle of water. "I was just on the phone with my assistant about the possibility of selling synthetic blood at the café," he said, attempting to break the ice. "We thought packaging it in juice boxes might be a good way to do it."

He had meant it as a way to calm her down or even to get her to laugh at the idea, but given the flash of anger in her eyes, she didn't find the idea amusing.

"Synthetic blood is bad enough, but packaging it in juice boxes is just offensive."

Drova continued listing grievance after grievance—the limited hunting opportunities, the confinement within the village, the expectation that they should adapt to the immortals' ways of life, the deterioration of their society, the lack of purpose, and so on.

Kian listened attentively, noting the passion in her voice and the depth of her frustration.

When Drova finally fell silent, Kian leaned forward. "Thank you for sharing that, Drova. Now, I'd like to ask you something. In a perfect world, what would you like to do? What would you envision for your people?"

Drova seemed taken aback by the question as if she hadn't expected to be asked for her opinion. "We should have our own community, somewhere we can live freely in nature. I have nothing against the immortals, but my people are rotting away in this village. We need the space and freedom to be who we are."

Kian nodded thoughtfully. "I understand your grievances, Drova. And I promise you, Jade and I will work on finding a solution that better meets the needs of the Kra-ell. However, your actions have had consequences, and frankly, you are a danger to the community. I have no choice but to confine you to your house. You will also be outfitted with a location cuff because we cannot expect your mother to keep an eye on you twenty-four-seven."

As if on cue, Shai entered the office, carrying the cuff. Kian gestured for him to approach Drova.

There was no need to explain what it was. All the Kra-ell had worn them when they first arrived in the village, and the ones serving community service were still wearing them.

Drova lifted her arm. "Oh, goodie. A new piece of jewelry. I feel so fancy."

"Drova," Jade admonished sternly.

"What? It is pretty." She turned to Kian. "But what about the hunting trips my mother mentioned? Was that a false promise?"

"The cuff can be reprogrammed for those trips," Kian assured her, though the spark of interest in Drova's eyes at this information worried him.

He made a mental note to warn Jade to be on her guard during these outings.

"It's going to be a nightmare to be cooped up in the house, but I guess this is a small price to pay for what I did."

"That's not all," Kian said. "You will need to apologize to Parker, Lisa, and Cheryl. In addition, I will tell the three of them to come up with assignments for you that you will have to complete for them."

The look of horror on her face was comical. "What kind of assignments?"

"Whatever they dream up," Kian said. "From writing an essay about growing mushrooms in the winter, to knitting a sweater. I'm sure they will have some creative ideas."

Drova winced. "I don't have a choice, do I?"

"No, you don't," Kagra said. "You should be thankful for this mild punishment. If you were under my command, I would have sentenced you to a whipping."

Drova recoiled from her mother's second. "That's barbaric."

Kagra bared her fangs at the girl. "You want to live as an authentic Kra-ell, true? We are not soft or forgiving people."

Drova swallowed. "I'm not against change and progress. I think Kian's idea is much more educational and, in some ways, more excruciating. At least, a whipping would have been over much faster. The Mother only knows what they will come up with to get back at me for what I have done to them."

Phinas clapped the girl on her back. "It won't be so bad, Drova. When you are not busy with assignments from your former minions, you can invite Pavel and his friends over to play in the dirt."

Kagra barked out a laugh, and Kian had the distinct feeling he was missing an inside joke.

Kian turned to Jade. "I'd like to speak with you privately for a moment if that's alright."

As the others filed out of the office, Jade stayed behind.

Once the door closed, Kian spoke in a low voice. "Be careful when you take her out of the village. I'm worried she might try something."

Jade nodded. "I know. I'll take Kagra with me. After the whipping discussion, Drova will be very careful not to anger her." She smiled and offered Kian her hand. "Thank you for going easy on her."

"You're welcome, and I meant it when I said that we need to discuss the future of your people."

A look of worry passed through Jade's eyes. "I like being part of this community, Kian. Drova needs to grow up a little to realize how good she has it here."