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Gasping, Saren nudged him. “You left again, didn’t you?”

Ryx went silent as Saren stared, mouth agape, and waited for a reply. It started a few months ago when a troupe of soldiers came to New Grove with a message from Ivory Hill, another Telex community. Once considered New Grove's sister, Ivory Hill had long since surpassed it, growing in both size and status throughout the western territory. Saren knew very little about the place, but what he did know was that New Grove worked closely with them to eliminate the rebellion threat.

The soldiers brought the message to the council, along with a series of prisoners to be hand-delivered directly to Matthias. Patryn was distant during the three days the messengers were there. And Ryx had started sneaking out of the compound. Narrowing his eyes on his best friend, Saren groaned.

“You know that’s a bad idea.”

“And he knows the truth. I’ve seen the way he looks at me, Saren. It’s only a matter of time before he acts on it.”

If only Saren could argue with him that Matthias wasn’t interested, but it’d be a lie. The man even asked for a private audience with Ryx only to be shut down when Patryn boomed out a threat that still gave Saren chills. Tensions were rising within the council, and even though he had only just turned fifteen, he could see the writing on the wall. Patryn was slowly separating himself from their inner workings. Independent and operating on a secret system to achieve who knew what, Patryn was painting a target on his back. Saren hadn’t a clue how to stop it, either.

Because other than Ryx, no one cared what he had to say.

With this rebellious behavior his best friend was having, he worried constantly. The rules in place were for everyone’s safety and, for whatever reason, Ryx seemed to place little faith in them. He still remembered the first time the boy cursed. Said the word fuck. Even thinking of it now, Saren blushed. Profanity was among the forbidden in New Grove. Although forthcoming with a lot, Ryx still held so many secrets.

“Why are you so pressed about this?” Saren asked, eyes fixed on the enormous wall beneath the eco-dome.

Ryx turned his head to fully look at Saren. In his peripheral vision, he saw the warring emotions, the hesitance to trust even after all this time. “I don’t belong here,” he finally settled on.

Saren broke his gaze from the wall and mirrored Ryx’s pose. “You do. It’s been a whole year, and nothing bad has happened to you.” His fingers twitched from the energy bouncing between them.

“What about you?” The arch of his black eyebrow made Saren’s stomach flip.

Since his exam, the council had demanded more of Saren’s time. Every month, they called him in to interrogate more traitors. Thankfully, he wasn’t asked to kill anyone again, but what he was doing to those people seemed far worse—invasive. Some days, he truly felt like a mindeater. Folding his hands in his lap, Saren shrugged it off—a habit he learned from Ryx.

“I’m fine. It’s my job as future Maven.”

“Bullshit.”

“Ryx!” Frantically looking around for any soldiers—or worse, Patryn—Saren swatted at his sleeved arm. “Stop cursing.”

The boy grinned. “Fuck. Bitch. Shit.”

“By the first seer, stop,” Saren whined through a laugh as his cheeks grew hot. “Where did you even learn all of those?”

“From before,” he said easily. “Everyone talked like that.”

That was always how he described his past. From before. To that day, Ryx never coughed up where he came from or why he was brought to New Grove. “No one talks like that here. So stop it.”

“I don’t belong here, Saren,” Ryx said, sobering up. “I need to find them.” Almost as if he hadn’t meant to say that, the boy abruptly jumped down from their perch in the tree.

“Them?” Saren was hot on his heels, nearly chasing after him and his long legs.

Ryx had sprouted four inches while Saren had grown maybe half an inch. Not bothering to slow down, Ryx power-walked back to the estate, shouldered open the front door, and bounded up the stairs. By the time they reached their shared bedroom, Ryx’s fingers were spasming. It always happened whenever he became overly stressed. Like his body was physically revolting against the emotion. At least, that was how Saren understood it. Folding his arms, he leaned against the now closed door and waited.

Ryx paced, rubbing his fingers. “Forget I said that.”

“I can’t.”

Groaning, the boy kept burning tracks in the wooden floor. His scent was stronger now that they were confined to their room. Saren still got dizzy from it, despite becoming used to the aroma. “You make it easy for me to trust you, and I still don’t know that I should.”

Well, that hurt. “You can. Who am I going to tell?”

“Patryn. The council. The servants,” he said while shooting Saren a bored look. “Literally everyone.”

“But I wouldn’t. You know I wouldn’t.”

“For fuck’s sake, Saren! Lilah can see directly into your memories without even trying!”