Page 104 of The Divine Lies We Weave

Without another word, Navya flounced off the quarterdeck and stormed into the rooms below.

Rajesh ran a hand over his face. He had hoped to get that awkward conversation over and done with sooner, but he hadn’t had the heart to tell her. Surely, she could have figured it out herself. They were never official. Nothing beyond sexual desire. She herself had stated it at the beginning.

Feelings do develop over time.

Yes. Thanks for your input. Now shut up and tell me where we’re going?

23

LEELA

Leela stood by the railing, watching the sands glimmer and glow silver underneath the sleeping moons’ rays. Her time with Rajesh replayed repeatedly inside her mind. His fingers had left phantom touches through her as she pondered about whether or not sleeping with him had been the wisest decision.

This wasn’t just about the Viperess and Scorpion anymore. Or Leela and Rajesh. This was about the fate of the world and the monsters Rajesh was tied to. One wrong move and Leela would have created several more lustishas and more deaths. She couldn’t be the reason more children were left orphaned or the reason for more walls to cave in, leaving villagers homeless.

“You have your thinking face on.” Hema sauntered to Leela’s side. “What’s on your mind?”

“Nothing.”

“You say that every time I ask.” Hema sighed. “I understand that you’re quite a private person. I get that. But trust me, bottling everything up won’t do you any favors. It just comes back for revenge later in ways you can’t or won’t see coming.”

Leela bit her lip and let the cool desert breeze sweep back the wisps of her hair nestled against her cheek. Hema’s words struck too close to home. It was on the quiet nights that Leela missed her family most. When she and Anika would sit by the fields and gossip about the other villagers and their meager lives. Or when they’d try to find a way over the wall, imagining the distant fields and forests and if there was something bigger than the river flowing through the village.

Other nights, she missed making bread with her mother and hearing her instructions—short and simple, but straight to the point. She’d say the weeds near the village were the finest and were the sweetest if plucked from the bottom, not the top. Leela had always listened to her mother. Always heeded her warnings and adhered to her teachings about respecting everyone, elder or younger, and looking out for her family first and never going to bed mad.

Leela wiped a tear as it fell. “Some nights I miss them. My family.”

“I totally understand. I miss my family too,” Hema said. “I think it’s the quiet nights that hurt the most. When your brain has nothing to focus on.”

“I need something better to focus on.” Other than Rajesh.

“We could go and practice if you want?” Hema suggested. “You’re getting better at sparring, but your legs are still flimsy.”

Leela chuckled. “Sure, why not?”

Hema smiled so wide that Leela couldn’t help but smile too.

Together, they wandered downstairs to the training room. By now, the twin moons were in their crescent glory, shining down on the red marble and glinting against the blades on the far wall.

“Pick your poison,” Hema said, swaying her arm across the weapons.

Leela reached for the H-shaped katars and strapped several into the sash she hung over her shoulder.

“You might need to learn to use a jawblade or a clawglove,” Hema said. “Might help strengthen you to use other weapons you don’t always use.”

“I need familiarity for now,” Leela answered.

Hema gave her a look that meant she understood. “Well, whatever is on your mind, don’t let it get the best of you. You’re right on the cusp of getting better with your techniques. Distraction is the last thing you need.”

“Distraction?”

“Such as a certain captain, perhaps?” Hema raised a brow with a smirk. “Or has the Viperess gotten to you?”

She is quite observant. Almost too observant, the Viper said, her tongue slithering.

What’s wrong with that?

I do not like it when people meddle too much. Not when they are not needed.