Blood Tells by Rachel White

Author:Rachel White [White, Rachel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: M/M romance, fantasy
Publisher: Less Than Three Press, LLC
Published: 2014-07-09T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

At the hospital, they found Verven and Mandelle, who had been patched up by the doctor and set loose. "I'm not so injured as all that, sirs," he told them, shrugging a little and then wincing. "And besides, I can't afford to stay longer." Demetrius certainly understood that.

Rodger and Verven wanted to go back to the palace, but Demetrius was disinclined to accompany them. Lyell wasn't—he'd got a bandage at the hospital, almost as an afterthought, and seemed otherwise well—but Mandelle was, and so it ended that Lyell, Rodger, and Verven took a coach toward the Palace District while Demetrius and Mandelle went southeast, toward the Flats. Demetrius opted to walk, because it wasn't far and because the day was nice. Secretly, he had hoped that Mandelle would take the trolley or a cab, on account of his injuries, but he didn't, and so they went together.

"I hope you don't mind," said Mandelle, breaking the silence after a few minutes.

Demetrius started. "Mind what?"

"That I'm here. Me, in general. Sorry, sir, I just get the sense you dislike me."

"Why would you think that?" Demetrius asked. He searched his brain for some moment where he had been unfriendly, but nothing came to him. Had he slighted Mandelle by mistake somehow?

"This and that, sir," said Mandelle ambiguously. When Demetrius squinted at him, he flushed and added, "Maybe I'm wrong. I don't mean to offend."

"I'm not offended. I'm just… confused. Have I been rude to you?"

"Not rude. But, sir… I'm not trying to tumble Captain Dalme, sir. I prefer women."

Demetrius stopped in his tracks. "Is that what this is?"

"Isn't it?" said Mandelle, stopping too and blinking at him. His face was sincere, as far as it ever seemed to be sincere, and his surprise seemed honest. "I thought…"

"That I was jealous."

"Well," Mandelle mumbled, "perhaps I was wrong. I don't mean to offend."

But… He was right. Demetrius had been jealous, had been stupidly, unreasonably stung every time Rodger and Mandelle went off together or searched for leads together. It had been petty at the time, and it would be pettier still to pretend Mandelle was just mad or misguided.

"No," said Demetrius finally, forcing the word out, "you're right. I was… jealous."

"Are you and Captain Dalme…?"

"Not—not really. It's difficult to explain."

"I see," said Mandelle. They started walking again, passing by cheerful shops and quaint old rows of houses; the air smelled like baking bread, and somewhere nearby, a wind chime was singing in the breeze. The previous days' storm had passed, and in the sunlight, everything seemed uncannily cheerful. It made Demetrius' head ache a little.

After a minute, Mandelle said, "I don't like being disliked in general, sir, but especially not by you, so I wanted to take a moment to clear the air between us. I know you wanted to go home alone. I just…"

"It's all right," Demetrius told him. "I don't dislike you. It's really just me. I'm… I'm not good with people. That's all." Mandelle's words repeated in his head, and something jarred.

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