Page 45 of For the Strange and Surprising

Ada frowns, twisting the towel in her hands. “Earth teaches women plenty of lessons. If you’re nice, a man might get the wrong idea. If you’re rude, you’re a bitch, and that still gives them the wrong idea. If you avoid them, don’t talk to them, same thing.”

She sets the towel down and leans against the cabinets as she surveys the room.

“Damned if you do, and damned if you don’t,” she tells me with a shrug. “He made me uncomfortable, so I was polite but distant. Should he make the wrong assumption after barely speaking to me, then he’ll think I’m meek and harmless.”

Her words repeat in my mind until understanding dawns on me.

“It’s a defense tactic?”

Ada nods.

“You’ve used it before?”

Her sigh is heavy as she bites at her lip. “How many people do you think live on this island, Imryll?”

I squint, not knowing where she’s going with the question. “I’m not sure about the entire island, but there are about twelve thousand Mongrels.”

“There are more than seven billion people on Earth.” She pauses, flashing a quick grin when my eyes go wide. “The chances of running into someone—”

“I understand what you’re saying now.” I hold my hand up. “You don’t have to finish.”

“Right.” She tips her head when she sees my hesitation. “So, if I happen upon someone while I’m alone, then I’ll do what I have to in order to avoid a situation that could lead to an assault of any kind. If that means being polite and hoping I never see him again, then…”

I scrub my hand over my face. “Polite it is.”

I busy myself cleaning the mess on the table, and Ada rinses out the bowl of bloody water before filling it back up. We don’t talk about why we need to keep moving, but I think her reasoning may be more profound than mine.

If I stop now, I’ll start thinking about Rinya and how devastated she was when Talodus brought her in last year. I’ll relive all the descriptions and the useless feelings we still have after not finding the man who assaulted our friend.

As she cleans, Ada hums under her breath. I stop wiping the blood off the table, enraptured by the unknown tune that floats in the air. The fresh water in the bowl on the counter sloshes over the side, swaying to match her beat.

Ada doesn’t notice the display, but I walk toward her to witness her growing connection to water. She gives me a curious smile when she realizes that I’m in close proximity. Her hand is still clasping the glass vial.

“Is this the right place?”

“Yeah.” I nod, fighting a grin. “That’s where it belongs.”

15

Adelaide

Imryll walks me from the clinic to my room, refusing to let me go alone. I begin to question if I’ll have a forever escort, or if I’ll eventually be able to wander the village without a chaperone.

Then I panic when we get to my door, and he opens it to begin a thorough check. Why would I want to be by myself when I know someone has been creeping on me from the treeline?

“Talodus told you?” It’s a guess, but who else would have?

“No. Ecaeris did.”

I snort. “So, Talodus told Ecaeris that someone has been watching me. I bet that went over well.”

He chuckles. “It might strike you as odd, but even the prince struggles to argue with Talodus occasionally.”

Imryll is as thorough with his assessment as the blonde guard, though I don’t know what the doctor would do if he found anyone.

When he finishes, he grins. “You’re intruder-free.”

“Has this been a problem for the other people from Earth?” It can’t just be me, right? If it is, then that spells out a whole new set of potential problems for me.