“It seems to me there’s a dearth of Scires,” I say. “Seeing as how you’re only about a tenth of all Marked. ”
Perry nods. “Probably even less. There aren’t many of us. ”
“Right. Which is why I was thinking you should propose to Vale that he loan you to other tribes as a breeding stud. He could make some money from your services and it would keep the two of you apart for long stretches of time. And I think the benefits, to you, are obvious. ”
Perry looks back at the campfire. He rubs a hand over his mouth and nods like he’s pretending to mull it over, but I can tell he’s trying not to laugh. “That’s not a bad idea,” he says after a moment.
“I know,” I agree. It actually isn’t a poor plan. Perry’s never settling down and girls fawn over him anyway. Liv once told me that part of why they’re drawn to him is because he comes across as a mystery. We didn’t get any farther than that; I’d rather keep my best friend’s appeal a mystery to me too.
“If you’re open to that kind of . . . work,” I continue, “Vale could turn a nice profit. ”
“Sure,” Perry says. “I could warm up to that kind of work. ”
“Rise to the occasion?”
“Definitely. ” A wide grin spreads over Perry’s face. “No problem. ”
His question from earlier pops into my mind. Are you cured? I think we’re both on our way.
“You’re uniquely suited for the job,” I say. “A month here, a month there. You could really boost the population. In a couple of years there could be little Scires scurrying around all over the place. Or maybe not so little, since they’d be yours. ”
Perry shrugs. “I don’t see any downside. Thanks, Ro. I’ll talk to Vale when we get back. ” He turns to Wylan, whose black eyes are narrowed in suspicion. “Guess we figured it all out. ”
Wylan looks from Perry to me and makes a sound of disgust. He flops to the ground and pulls his blanket over his head. “You’re both idiots,” he mutters.
Hardly. We got him to shut up, which is damn near impossible to do.
That makes us brilliant.
9
The next morning, after a quick meal of hard cheese and harder bread, we break camp and set off. As we fall into a comfortable formation—Collins and Wylan at the lead; Liv, Perry, and me at the rear—I mull over my plan for coming up with a plan.
I need to speak privately with Liv. If there is one thing that’s always been clear to me, it’s that my happiness is linked with hers. Only when I know exactly what she wants will I be able to coordinate our next move. As we head toward the Tid
es border, I vow to get her away from Wylan’s eavesdropping ears and Collins’s skitty eyes. Away, even, from Perry.
My gaze moves to him, walking a few paces ahead. As I watch, he tosses a few blackberries he found earlier into his mouth.
“Want some, Liv?” he says without looking back.
“No,” she answers. “Thanks,” she adds as an afterthought.
The tension between the three of us has faded, but Liv is still quiet. She’s allowed to be quiet.
“I want some,” I say, to chase away the silence a little longer.
Perry turns and waves a hand, indicating everywhere. “Then start looking,” he says, but he flips a few to me.
I chew the ripe fruit, thinking about the past days. Perry has defended me from Vale, and then Vale from me. And he has comforted Liv. His actions have shown he supports us, but now it occurs to me how little he’s actually said in support of us. Then it occurs to me that I haven’t heard him say anything. I have no idea what he actually thinks of Liv’s betrothal to Sable.
A cold feeling rolls down my spine. Is it possible that he actually agrees with Vale?
Thoughts fire off in my brain, one after another. Maybe he’s behind the arranged marriage because he doesn’t understand what love means—what Liv and I have. The closest he’s been to a girl is Brooke—which isn’t close at all. But even if he did understand, he wouldn’t make the same choices. Perry is selfless. For the Tides, he would sacrifice himself and love and anything else that got in the way.
Then it hits me. Could he actually be working against me and Liv? Did he come on this journey to keep track of us? To make sure we don’t run? He would never betray us for Vale; his allegiance to his older brother is a rotted thing, ready to crumble. But didn’t I just admit to myself he’d do anything for the Tides?
Sweat trickles down my back as I think of the thousands of times we’ve competed against each other in this thing or that—in everything. Our competitions were never earnest. Never malicious. Even when we argued last night, I never viewed him as a true adversary. What if he becomes one?