Free The Go-Between (The Nilaruna Cycles Book 1) by Andrea Ring

been over
this.”
    “Kai is contemplating falling in
love with his new bride,” Shiva says. “That will complicate things. Love makes
people do strange things, and I may not know the future until it happens.”
    “That’s good,” I say. “Love is
good. I wish I’d been capable of it from the beginning with Silvia. It may have
changed her fate. And mine.”
    “You’ve finally figured that out,
huh?”
    “Oh, I’ve known it for years,” I
say wearily. “I’ve just finally learned to admit it.”

VIII. PRINCE KAI
    We arrive on the outskirts of Dabani around midday, and a kindly farmer
gives us directions to the nearest inn.
    I give him two gold coins and ask
him if he is acquainted with the Nandals.
    “You mean Ravi Nandal? He is our
healer, the main one, I mean. Are you injured, my lord?”
    I explain that I’m looking for
his daughter, Nilaruna, who volunteered to be the new Go-Between.
    The farmer visibly shudders. “We
don’t speak about her, sir. She’s unclean.”
    Manoj and Faaris both turn wide
eyes on me. I school my face. “Unclean? In what way?”
    I must have uttered my words more
forcefully than I intended, because the farmer cowers and goes down on his
knees, head bent.
    “I’m sorry, my prince, truly
sorry. I did not mean to offend you by speaking of an untouchable.”
    “I’m not offended,” I say, “I
simply wish for more information. Tell me what you know.”
    “She is deformed, your highness,”
he says, eyes still on the ground. “There was a fire. Her older brother died in
it. Nilaruna was burned to a blackened…well, uh, she was burned, sir, over half
her body.”
    “When was this?” I demand.
    “Oh, five cycles…no, longer.
Maybe seven or eight cycles ago.”
    “How deformed is she?” Faaris
asks, and I glare at him. I want to know this as well, but I never would have
asked it.
    “We don’t look at untouchables,
sir, I mean, we’re not supposed to look.”
    “But you’ve looked,” I say.
    The farmer shifts uncomfortably.
“My daughter took a fever last year…we went to Ravi…Nilaruna was doing chores
nearby.” He lifts his head and looks me in the eye. “It’s difficult not to
look.”
    “I understand,” I say. “I will
forget the indiscretion if you will answer my companion’s question.”
    “Half of her is perfect,” he
whispers. “Her good side was facing me when we entered, and I wondered. This is
the girl who almost died in a fire? She looks healthy, pretty even. She has
unusual eyes, maybe she’s a cousin…but then she turned. Her other half is
melted, literally. It’s…no one should see that.”
    I sit back in my saddle and
consider. Shiva sent me to marry an untouchable? This is unacceptable!
Ridiculous!
    “I thank you, sir, for the
information. Could you direct me to the Nandal home?”
    He gives me directions, and I
toss a few more coins his way. “Speak of this to no one. I expect your
silence.”
    The farmer nods, thanks us
profusely, and goes back to his field.
    The three of us continue on to
the inn. We don’t exchange a single word.
    ***
    I
fling myself on the thin mattress while Manoj and Faaris make up pallets on the
floor.
    “We should speak of this, Kai,”
Manoj says, breaking our silence. “You cannot marry an untouchable.”
    “She was in a fire, Manoj, and
she survived,” Faaris says. “Have you ever been burned? It’s the greatest pain
I’ve ever felt, and I only burned my elbow once when I fell into a fire pit as
a kid. I’ve been sliced by a sword, had broken bones, been gored in the thigh
by a boar…she must be strong. Burns over half her body…it’s tough to imagine.”
    Manoj’s eyes harden. “It doesn’t
matter. An untouchable will not be accepted by the kingdom. If the whole
purpose of this mission is to ensure stability, I find it counter to our plans
to put an untouchable on the throne. Every citizen will riot!”
    “It’s all in how you sell it,”
Faaris says, lying down and propping his hands