A shadow crossed Annia’s face. “One of the soldiers broke my arm as punishment for trying to resist capture.” A faraway look entered her eyes. “I killed three of them, but I was outnumbered. Even so, I don’t suppose he would have broken my arm if I hadn’t spat in his face.” A smirk curved her lips. “The big brute didn’t like that much.”

“Ouch.” I winced, glancing at the sling again. I couldn’t imagine what that must be like for humans such as Annia, having to wait six to eight weeks for her limb to heal. Mine would have been better in the morning, so long as it was properly set and I’d had enough to eat. The bullet graze on my shoulder from earlier had already healed, nothing more than a memory now. Perhaps Iannis could mend Annia’s arm once he had dealt with the current mission. I was surprised he hadn’t offered already, but, then again, he was exhausted.

“You do look remarkably un-beaten up aside from your arm,” I said as I looked her up and down again. Her face was clear of any bruising, and although there could be bandages beneath her clothing, the way she moved did not hint at any hidden injuries.

“Since they’re a science lab using live test subjects, they happened to have a damn good doctor on staff, and some crazy medical procedures I’ve never seen before.” Annia briefly touched her cheekbone. “The doctor who treated me was surprisingly compassionate, considering I was a prisoner. She put some kind of tingling, foul-smelling cream on my face that handled all the bruising, and she set my arm and bound it up.”

“Maybe it’s because you’re human,” I said, unable to think of any other explanation. “Or because you’re Noria’s sister.”

Annia snorted. “Either way, I’m hardly softening up to them. Just because they treated the injuries they inflicted on me doesn’t change the fact that they were planning to commit mass murder.”

“No, I guess it doesn’t,” I said softly, looking back at Noria’s tent again. And that Noria had helped us in the end didn’t change the fact that she had joined the Resistance and aided them in attempted genocide, willing or not.

20

Lord Logar and his team arrived bright and early, just as the sun was cresting the horizon. He sent Iannis a message via ether pigeon asking us to meet him in front of the compound, so we dressed and straightened ourselves up as best we could, then went out.

Annia stayed behind again with the slumbering children, to watch over them until Logar’s team came to fetch them. I hoped they had brought suitable food for children, though in a pinch, we could make them porridge.