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“Exactly,” Korum said. “He’s making a statement that he believes he’s been wronged and that he intends to seek revenge.”
“Seek revenge how?” Mia wondered, and Korum shrugged, apparently not in the mood to discuss politics right now. Since they didn’t have much time, Mia decided to let it go for now and focus instead on the upcoming dinner.
“Here, you can wear these shoes,” Korum said, handing her a pair of soft ivory booties. Like all K footwear, these seemed to have a flat sole. Apparently, the concept of high-heeled shoes was not as popular among Krinar females as it was among human women.
Mia pulled on the boots – which immediately conformed to her feet and became comfortable – and tried to tame her hair a bit with her fingers. After lounging for hours, she had a serious bedhead look going on, with her long curls tangled and sticking out in all directions. After a couple of minutes, she gave up on the hopeless cause. Even with the regular use of Korum’s wonder shampoo, her hair would never be as straight and sleek as she’d like.
“It looks beautiful, Mia. Leave it,” Korum said, observing her efforts with quiet amusement.
Mia couldn’t help smiling at him. It was one of the things she found peculiar about him: he actually seemed to have a thing for her hair, often touching it and playing with the curls. Since she’d never seen a curly-haired K, she assumed he simply liked it because of the novelty factor. “Okay, then I’m ready, I guess . . .”
“One more thing,” Korum said, coming up behind her and fastening an unusual iridescent necklace around her neck, his warm fingers brushing against her throat. It was a deceptively simple design, just a tear-shaped pendant on a thin chain, but the shimmery material made it indescribably beautiful. It was as if all colors of the rainbow were gathered around her neck, competing with each other for attention.
“Wow,” Mia breathed, touching the pendant with reverence. “What is it?”
“It’s a genuine shimmer-stone necklace,” Korum explained. “Shimmer-stone occurs naturally only in my region of Krina, and this one has been passed down through generations in my family. It’s just shy of a million years old.”
Mia turned around to stare at him in shock. “And you’re putting it on me? What if I lose or damage it?”
“You won’t,” Korum reassured her, smiling faintly. And offering her his arm, he asked, “Shall we go?”
Speechless, Mia looped her arm through the crook of his elbow and followed him out – with a million-year-old Krinar family heirloom sparkling merrily around her throat.
* * *
Five minutes later, they stood before a cream-colored house that looked a lot like Korum’s. The ride to the other end of the colony took less than a minute in the small aircraft Korum had created explicitly for that purpose.
As they approached, the wall of the house disintegrated in front of them, and they walked in.
A tall, lean Krinar male stood in the middle of the room, dressed in the usual light-colored garb. His hair was the lightest shade of brown Mia had ever seen on a K, almost sandy-colored, and his hazel eyes had a greenish undertone that looked particularly exotic with his golden skin. The smile on his narrow, ascetic-looking face was broad and welcoming.
Walking up to Korum, he touched his shoulder with his open palm. “Korum, it’s such an honor to have you here,” he said. His manner was somewhat deferential, and Mia realized that it was probably a big deal for him – having a member of the Council in his house.
Korum smiled back and reciprocated the gesture. “I’m glad to see you too, Arman. Thank you for the invitation.”
While the two Ks were greeting each other, Mia examined her surroundings with a great deal of curiosity. This was the first fully Krinar dwelling she had been to – with the exception of the arena – and she was fascinated by its almost Zen-like aesthetic. There was absolutely no clutter anywhere; in fact, there didn’t seem to be any furniture with the exception of two large floating planks. Mia guessed those were meant to serve as places for the guests to sit. The outside walls were fully transparent, while the rest of the interior was a beautiful shade of cream.
“And you must be Mia,” Arman said, turning and addressing her directly.
Mia smiled at him. “Yes, hi. It’s nice to meet you.”
To her surprise, Mia realized that she liked this K. There was a kind look in his eyes, and something almost gentle in the way he spoke that made her feel very much at ease in his presence.
“Oh, it’s very nice to meet you as well,” Arman said, his smile getting wider. “Maria has been looking forward to meeting you ever since we learned about you yesterday.”
At that moment, a human girl walked into the room. Dressed in a beautiful halter-style white dress that showed off her slim, curvy figure to perfection, she was strikingly pretty and bore a strong resemblance to a young Jennifer Lopez.
Smiling hugely, she swiftly came up to Mia and warmly embraced her, brushing her lips against Mia’s left cheek. Some kind of exotic perfume tickled Mia’s nose. Slightly startled, Mia awkwardly hugged her back.
“Oh my dear, how are you?” she exclaimed in Spanish, pulling back to look at Mia. “I’m Maria, and I’m so glad to see you! What a lovely necklace! How are your first couple of days here? Did Korum show you around already? You poor thing, you must be so overwhelmed with everything right now! I remember I didn’t even know how to use the toilet at first!”
Mia blinked, overwhelmed only by the girl’s enthusiasm. She was like a pretty tornado, sweeping along everything in her path. “I’m good, thanks,” Mia answered in Spanish, inwardly still marveling at her new language abilities. “I haven’t really seen much of the Center yet – I only arrived yesterday.”
“Oh, you haven’t gone to the beach yet? It’s so nice, you really should!” Turning to Korum, she frowned at him, her smooth brow furrowing slightly.
Korum laughed. “Hint taken. I’ll show Mia the beach tomorrow.”
“Maria!” their host exclaimed. “Please be nice to our guests!”
