Miscreants: Next Generation by Natalie Bennett (classic books for 7th graders TXT) 📕

had known all along there was only one direction this could go. And it was a direction he did not wish it to.

He shrugged in response to her question. “I do not believe she will return.”

Dumar leaned back heavily as he waved a hand in front of him. “See? Even he believes she will not return. It is not an option.”

“She may not return.” Micah nodded slowly. “But I believe she respects our kind enough to get the job done. If she does not return, but the humans do not find knowledge of us, does that not still work in our favor?”

“Us?” The council member leaned forward, his face grave. “You have not been given the honor to consider yourself one of us, old man.”

Once more silence weighed heavily upon everyone in the room. Ruric watched the expressions of the goblins around him. The silence seemed to weigh upon each of them. Every second that ticked by was another that they were failing to do their job.

They were the ones tasked to protect their kind.

“We should send her.” His voice was deep as it echoed through the cave. “She will make certain that we are not discovered.”

The council members disagreed with him. Their unhappiness was made very clear as they once more erupted in shouting. He was relieved to see that this argument seemed to be amongst themselves. There was a chance the plan would prevail if only a few agreed with him.

“Ruric.” The soft voice made him look up as the Queen spoke directly to him. She knew he would hear her over the loud squabbling of the males she had appointed to advise her. “They do not trust her. Neither do you.”

He nodded. “No.”

“Then why do you suggest this?” Her dark eyes watched him carefully. “You who value the safety of our kind over all other things. You would suggest sending someone who offers no guarantee that we will remain safe.”

“I do not trust her, but I believe in her. She has a good heart and a good head on her shoulders. She merely uses the wrong one at the wrong time.”

Slowly the Queen nodded. She tapped a finger against her chin as she thought. There were many possible outcomes, but Ruric knew that she would make the choice that best suited them all. No matter how much the council members liked to think that they ruled this tribe, the Queen was the one that made the final decision.

“Silence.”

The word rang true in the cave as the others stopped speaking. Their words still echoed in Ruric’s ears.

“I will send the girl on one condition.” The Queen’s words were grave. “We send a goblin with her.”

Stunned, the others stared at her.

Micah was the first to recover. “We do not know if goblins can go Above.”

“There were rumors once.” She responded. “Stories that said goblins used to go Above for food and water. The ancient tomes speak of goblins traveling across sands to find new caverns that could house them.”

“Those are merely stories, my Queen.” Dumar stated.

“I do not believe them to be untrue. We will send a goblin with her to ensure that her actions remain in our best interest.”

Dumar appeared uncomfortable with this as he shifted. “And who are we sending?”

The Queen nodded towards Ruric. “I believe Ruric is the best choice.”

Ruric responded by shaking his head. “I’m not the most qualified for this job. My feelings for her have compromised me.”

The words were the hardest he had ever spoken. Pride had made him the strongest goblin that led their men in raids. Yet he was well aware that if Jane asked him to move mountains for her, he would. He was not the goblin they should send with her.

He had to grit his teeth through the words to force them past his lips.

“You see?” Dumar nodded. “At least he’s speaking sensible now. I would nominate Shusar. He may be small, but he is intelligent and not afraid to use a heavy hand.”

“Doesn’t that defeat the purpose?” The Queen smiled at him. “We want to keep her alive so that she can keep us alive. Are there other nominations?”

Micah spoke up. “Illyrin is large enough that she could not overpower him. He may be shy but I believe that he would be a good option.”

“Absolutely not.” Dumar’s voice cut through the calm. “He is not a strong enough hand.”

“Yet she would be safer than with Shusar. We all know he has enough reasons to want to kill her.”

The Queen nodded slowly, that gnarled finger tapping on her chin once more. “We will send all three. One goblin will sleep at some point and the council will rest easy if she is being watched at all times. I want you to lead them Ruric, under the explicit condition that they are allowed to overrule you if they think that she is manipulating you. Is that understood?”

Ruric nodded in response.

“Good.” She said. “I want you to leave immediately. That human has a head start. You have a lot of time to make up. Get into that City and remove him. Bring our son home safely.”

Her words darted towards Ruric and left more pressure upon his shoulders. She trusted him to lead them when he did not trust himself.

She stood to leave, silencing the rest of the council members that attempted to argue with her once more. Ruric had seen that expression on her face before. She was settled into her opinion and no one was going to change that.

He was surprised when she paused by him. Her hand held onto his forearm and the clawless hands dug into his skin.

“You may not trust her, but I do.”

He shook his head at her. “How, grandmother? How can you trust her after everything that has happened?”

Her hand patted his arm firmly. “She makes decisions with her heart. And while we might not agree with it, that is not a bad quality. Someday she will learn how to listen to both her heart