The cold that’s overtaken my body ever since Cashan depleted himself of samay turns me to ice. Whatever story is told at the end, I’ll know the truth.
“You’re disgusting,” I say.
“No more than you,” she replies.
My hands lay uselessly at my sides, and I wonder when I lost the strength to form them into fists. I can’t bear to look at her anymore and switch my focus to the Apukispay. She’s just as abhorrent, not sparing the dead child a second glance and instead scanning the crowd of soldiers at the far end of the room. They’re the highest ranked from what we gathered from their files, but that means they protect their minds well, too.
The Apukispay must know this. She doesn’t look unnerved by the sight of her men lying wounded on the ground. That is, until her eyes widen just a fraction in surprise. I immediately follow her gaze, surprised myself to see the stoic-faced girl at the end of it. It’s the girl Tutay messed with days ago, the one who saw the truth behind Tutay’s cruelty. Her curly hair is a frizzy halo around her round face after the sweat from days ago dried.
Why would the Apukispay be jarred by her presence here?
I start to stand, but Izhi stops me with a gentle hand on my shoulder. The difference between their touch, soft and reassuring, versus the stone look of the Inka takes any curiosity I had left out of me. What do I care about the Apukispay’s interest in the girl? I don’t want to interact with the Inka’s lap dog. At least, not any more than it takes to send her to the Serpent’s domain where she can rot.
Tutay brings up the next child, a young boy who looks about ten years old. He’s shaking so hard even his teeth clatter in his mouth, yet he glares at Tutay with a stubbornness that only comes with youth.
Tutay is about to slice his throat when she’s interrupted by muffled shouts. She looks at the Inka, Apukispay, and Panaka on the floor to see them all tight-lipped.
I know exactly where to look. My eyes home in on the girl with the soldiers. She went from stoic to desperate, her muffled cries becoming words.
“Let me shut that one up, and then we’ll continue,” Tutay says with a grin, much more excited to hurt a soldier than a child. Unfortunately, I’ll have to stop her fun.
“Let her speak,” I croak.
Tutay isn’t close enough to understand my words, but Izhi repeats them, confused as to why I would command that.
Tutay gives me a suspicious look, but she knows better than to show our dysfunction to a room full of enemies. She nods and rips the fabric out of the girl’s mouth.
The girl spits red-tinted saliva on the floor before speaking.
“I’ve seen the princess up close. I can give you my latest image of her,” she says, so fast I almost don’t understand. Her next words are slower, intentional, and filled with venom. “I’ll stop this iftheywon’t.”
An Inka’s Army soldier who disrespects the Inka? Maybe the girl is as interesting as I first thought.
“Why should we believe a soldier? You could show us anyone,” Qajay says, always the voice of reason.
But while they were analyzing the situation, I was paying close attention to the Apukispay. She’s nervous. The Apukispay hides it well, but I can see it clear as day. The way she clenched her teeth. The way her hands formed into fists. The way she bit back a word, something with anS. Stop?
I tap Izhi’s leg, and they come down to my level. I whisper in their ear, trying not to strain my voice but needing to be understood. Izhi nods when I finish and announces what I said loud and clear.
“That girl is closer to the Inka and Panaka than the others. Quillari believes she’s telling the truth. I agree to use my samay to scan her thoughts again.”
With Izhi consenting, there’s no reason for anyone to disagree. It’s Izhi’s decision that matters when it comes to what’s worth using mimicry for. It’s her life energy that’s used up after all.
Whatever hesitations the others have are wiped away when the Apukispay hisses, with the most emotion she’s shown so far,Suyai.
Suyai. That must be the girl’s name. Her head snaps up to glare at the Apukispay. She scowls at her the entire time Izhi uses her Ave mimicry.
“I got it. You were right, Qui, she wasn’t lying. Her image of the princess is clear as day and unmistakable.”
I smile as the others cheer raucously around me. We needed this win. Yet something continues to bother me. While the Apukispay looks furious, the Inka only looks smug.
“We’re going to kill her,” I say, as loud as I can.
“Oh?” The Inka speaks up, somehow knowing my words were aimed right at her. “Yanami? I’m not worried. You won't dare touch a single hair on that girl’s head.”
“Why?” I ask.
“Because you’ll need her cooperation to use the Samay Stone.”
