Demon Lost Read Free Page B

muttered. "I thought she was a niece or cousin."
    "That is clearly not the case," the Governor said in disbelief. "Do you have anything to say for yourselves before I send you to the holding cells?"
    "We made a mistake, sir." Vyn still wasn't looking at the Governor.
    * * *
    "Well, Ilvan, what have you to say?" Addah Desh watched Ilvan carefully. Three days had passed since word had come from the Governor, reporting that Reah's escape pod had been tampered with, sending her flying away from Tulgalan at light speed or better toward some unknown destination. The one who'd reprogrammed the pod hadn't known much about the workings of the newer pods and had badly miscalculated the programming. The ship sent to find Reah had yet to catch up to her.
    "I always thought Edan would kill her," Ilvan admitted with a sigh. He stared at his tailored trousers and toyed with the edge of the matching tunic. The sons had all gotten the finest when it came to clothing. Reah had used what little Edan gave her to buy at used clothing stores.
    "Edan?" Addah crossed his arms over his chest.
    "Father, Edan beat her. All those broken bones and bruises over the years? She wasn't clumsy. Edan did that to her. The only reason we didn't take the prize this year is because Reah wasn't there to cook. Those recipes were hers and not Edan's. He threatened her. We all knew it. We knew, too, that Edan would threaten us if we didn't ignore it. She's likely dead, now. I know you don't care and Edan cares less. I'm done, Father. I have a little money. I'm moving away from the family. Perhaps I'll start a business of my own, doing something that has nothing to do with cooking. Good-bye, Father." Ilvan rose and walked out of Addah's office.
    Addah waited until he was sure that Ilvan was away from the building before screaming for his assistant.
    "Master Desh?" Barun appeared in Addah's doorway so swiftly, it was as if he'd been summoned by magic.
    "Barun, get Edan on the vidcom," Addah demanded.
    "Right away, Master Desh."
    * * *
    The pods provided for the governor's household were equipped with foodpaks and a waste receptacle. Without either of those, I would have panicked more than I did. I was hysterical most of the time. I wept. I vomited and wept more until I was completely numb. I lost track of time—the date/time lights had been deactivated, as had the tracking signal.
    Sure that someone had meant to do this to me, I resigned myself to a slow and agonizing death. I'd be floating aimlessly through the universe until the pod's energy ran out, leaving me in a frigid cold from which I wouldn't wake. There were no windows on the pod and the vidscreen failed to activate. I couldn't even see the stars I traveled through on my way to oblivion.
    What did work was the gauge for the oxygen levels. It reached a quarter and then an eighth. My time was coming to a close and I knew it. Nobody was left behind to say farewell to—no family to think fondly of. Many times over the years, I figured that Marzi, Edan's mother, had encouraged Edan to do what he did to me. I'm sure she didn't have to do much in that respect—he took pleasure in causing my pain. He and some of the others would often muffle laughter, watching me move stiffly about the day after a beating. Perhaps I should have attempted to think happier thoughts, there in my last bit of time. I didn't.
    * * *
    "Edan, do you know why I asked you here?" Addah now looked over his desk at his second-born.
    "I assume it is to tell me which of the family you are sending to replace Ilvan and Reah."
    "I will be sending replacements, but that is not why I asked you to come."
    Edan watched his father. A request from Addah Desh was a demand from anyone else. Addah presented a much better demeanor to the public than he ever did in private. "You are disappointed, then, that we did not perform to expectations during the last review," Edan offered. "Ilvan was partly to blame."
    "Ilvan had nothing to do with it," Addah turned his