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"I see." My heart trips at the thought of the cuffs being gone. I'm not scared, but I wonder how Crulden is going to take the change. Will he be pleased? Or will he decide that now he's been given an inch, it's time to take a mile? I suppose I'll find out soon enough. I stack several of the waffles into the bowl, filling it to the brim since now there's extras. "And Riffin?"
"Reassigned to house duty. Lord va'Rin says he doesn't want you to have distractions."
I should be sad that my boyfriend won't be nearby, but I'm honestly thrilled. He's become more and more possessive and demanding lately. It's almost like he's threatened by Crulden, which is ridiculous. I can't wait to have a few days to just sit and talk with Crulden without Riffin's obsessive hovering. Crulden won't say much if he thinks others are listening in, and I want him to open up to me. I want to hear what makes him tick.
So these new developments? I'm thrilled.
I enter Crulden's room with the bowl and instead of putting it on the floor at the base of his cage, I walk over to him and hold it out. It's a trust exercise, but either Crulden can be trusted at this point, or it's all going to backfire massively. Either way, he deserves to be treated like a human being.
Or an alien. Whatever. Like a real person.
He gazes at my extended hand for so long that my nerves twinge and I worry I'm making a mistake. Then, he reaches out for the bowl. His wrist is red and irritated, the skin torn and scabbed. "My thanks."
A thank you? God, I'm making leaps and bounds today. I glance around. "I should have brought you a cup. I'm sorry. I'll bring one next time."
He grunts and retreats to the back of his cage, giving me space. It's like he's determined to show that I'm in no danger, and it just pleases me even more. He eats, and I sit on my stool quietly, observing him. His motions are a little jerky, and I can only imagine how tight his muscles were after being kept in the same posture for weeks on end. I think about those torn wrists and decide that not only am I bringing a cup tomorrow, but I'm bringing some ointment for his wrists. "Did you talk to Lord va'Rin?"
Crulden doesn't answer, so I assume that's a no.
"He's quite a nice man, though I've only talked with him briefly myself. The rescue operations he's running keep him very busy. Did you know his wife is human?"
He gets to his feet, holding the bowl out. "Water."
I'm not sure if it's a request or a demand, but I decide to think of it as a request. I get up and take the bowl from him and return it once I've filled it with fresh water from the tap. He tips it back and drinks from it, and I can't help but notice that quite a bit cascades down his chin, as if his lips won't close entirely around those tusks that jut out. I wonder if they bother him. It seems rude to ask. After he drinks his fill, he holds the bowl out again.
I refill it for him, and he drinks three of them before he's satisfied, which makes me unhappy. "I didn't realize you were so thirsty." The moment the words cross my lips, I feel like an idiot. Of course he wouldn't let on that he's thirsty. He's not going to ask for anything or show any signs of weakness. "In the future, I'll make sure you're brought more."
He shrugs, glancing over my shoulder at the guards at the window, then moves to the back of his cage again. "In the future, I'd like to be able to get my own." His strange, tusk-filled mouth stretches into what must be a smile. "Since I'm not a prisoner."
"You're not, but you have a reputation—"
"You mean the male I was cloned from has a reputation."
Well, shit. He has a point. "You can't deny that you've been violent."
"I don't deny it." That feral smile he gives me would be terrifying if I didn't already know he won't hurt me. He wants out of his cage, so he's going to pretend to be “tamed.” I haven't really thought ahead of what happens once he no longer needs to “pretend,” but I'm focusing on one problem at a time.
"Then you understand why you're being kept…under surveillance." I choose my words carefully. "You have to prove you're trustworthy. That you're more than just that Crulden and his past."
"Mmm." He leans back against the bars of his cage and regards me, rubbing his wrists the entire time. Good gravy, his hands are huge. I mean, all of him is huge, but now that his hands are free, I can't help but stare at their size. He could probably palm my entire skull. "I will always be Crulden to these people, you know. You're wasting your time."
