The Gender Game 5 by Bella Forrest (uplifting novels .txt) 📕

Thomas was worried about how I was going to treat him. He knew that losing my brother, even temporarily, was a deep wound to me, and he was afraid I was going to blame him. Truth be told, the thought was rattling around in my skull. It would have been so easy to blame him. I had trusted him with my brother’s life.

But that wasn’t exactly true, either. Thomas didn’t like confrontation, or battles he couldn’t control, so sending Tim and Jay with him had been a way of making sure he got in and out okay. It had also allowed me a bit more control over what the boys were doing. They had snuck onto the heloship when Amber and I had left, and they had been insistent on helping. I hadn’t liked it, so sending them with Thomas to help him plant the bombs on the fuel reserves for the palace generators had seemed like a better solution. And if Amber and I hadn’t convinced Thomas to come with us to the palace… well, maybe he wouldn’t have been there to lose Tim, but all of us might also have died.

I couldn’t blame Thomas. It wasn’t his fault. It wasn’t Jay’s fault, either, although I was sure the young man was experiencing his own feelings of guilt. Tim had stayed behind of his own volition. He must have wanted to help his friends escape. I couldn’t fault him for that—it was the exact same thing I would have done.

“Thomas,” I said softly, trying to catch his attention. He looked up at me, his eyes wide in alarm. “I just want you to know I don’t blame you for what happened with Tim.”

I looked him in the eyes, trying to convey my sincerity, and he gaped at me. Apparently the man had never factored in the possibility of me forgiving him, and I knew if a stiff wind had blown into the room at that moment, it would have knocked him over. After a moment, his shock wore off, and he shook his head, as if to clear it from a punch.

Viggo took advantage of his silence. “Violet, are you hungry?” He looked up at Dr. Tierney. “Can she eat?”

At the mention of food, my stomach growled, like an angry beast being woken from slumber, the promise of food bringing it to life again. I flushed at my noisy stomach, but was too hungry to deny it.

Turning in my seat was painstaking, but I did it, turning my eyes toward the doctor. “That would be amazing,” I said. “Can I?”

Dr. Tierney smiled at me, nodding. “Actually, I’ve had a broth waiting for you—I was about to have someone bring you some when you woke up—so I’ll go and heat it up, okay? And you need to drink a lot more fluids.”

She moved over to the kitchen, and I turned back to the table, shooting a grateful smile at Viggo. He met my gaze, the corners of his lips quirking slightly. Exhaling, I turned back to the table and returned my thoughts to the question burning a hole in me. I smoothed my hand over my nightgown. “So… H-Have you heard anything about Tim?”

Asking the question was hard, but not as hard as not asking it would have been. I already knew what their answer would be. After all, nobody had said anything when I had come in, and judging from Thomas’ guilty face, it was clear there hadn’t been news.

Or worse, there had been, and they didn’t know how to tell me my brother was dead. My heart contracted painfully in my chest, hard enough for tears to well behind my eyes. I reined them in, reminding myself it was too soon to jump to conclusions.

“I’m sorry, Violet,” Viggo said, breaking the silence and meeting my gaze. “We haven’t heard anything, one way or the other.”

That helped calm me, though not much. It was fuzzy, but I had the distinct impression that I’d completely lost it earlier. It wouldn’t be productive to have a sob fest right there in front of everyone, no matter how worried I was. Besides… I knew I was going to find Tim. I had lived for it before, and I would be just as vigilant now. I just hoped it didn’t take another eight years this time.

“Your cousin Cal went back to the palace,” announced Amber from her new seat at the end of the table. “He snuck off base in broad daylight. Ms. Dale caught him coming back in, though. It was totally badass.”

I chuckled—it was hard not to. “His name is Cad,” I informed her with a bemused smile. Amber waved her hand in the air, as if dismissing an inconsequential bit of information.

“Whatever. He went, anyway. He didn’t find any sign of Tim, though.”

I felt a stab of disappointment, even though I had been prepared for it. I looked up as Dr. Tierney set a steaming bowl in front of me, filled with a clear broth that smelled faintly of potatoes and onions. I frowned at it, wishing there were more substance to it, and she reached out and squeezed my shoulder. “I know it isn’t much to look at, but we should start with a simple broth. If you can keep it down, I’ll give you a little rice so you feel a bit more sated. I want to take it slow, though. You haven’t had anything substantial in your stomach for the last four days.”

Nodding, I awkwardly picked my spoon up with my left hand, leaned over, and tasted the broth. It may have been simple, but at that moment, it was the most delicious thing I had ever tasted. The doctor squeezed my shoulder again encouragingly, before withdrawing her hand.

“All right. It seems like you have important things to discuss, which is good, because I have other patients to check up on. Violet, as soon as this meeting is over, you go right back to bed—no ‘buts.’ I’m