Page 429 of Once Upon a Fable

“Isn’t it lonely living by yourself?” Images of endless winters in the valley came and went. The ache in my heart was all too recent not to sympathize with someone who also lived alone, even if our circumstances were different. Vague memories of her telling me about her living situation came and went. We’d had a similar conversation back in the valley, I was sure of it.

Stupid concussion.

“It had its moments, yes.” She switched lanes and sped past a slow car. “That’s why I work a lot. I latch onto new climbs the moment they appear. I tell myself it’s because I’m cashing into my channel while revenue is good, but the real reason is because sleeping alone isn’t something I enjoy.”

My head pounded with all the new words she’d used. Words that I knew but not in the context she’d used them. “Cashing into your channel?”

She licked her lips, sunlight catching her blond hair. “Yes, remember? I said I film my climbs for work?”

“I remember.” I squeezed my nape, thinking about her brother on that video recorder, not really keen on revealing just how much I didn’t know when she seemed so fucking capable in this busy world.

I scowled. But Iwantedto know. I wanted to know everything there was to know about her, and if that meant I had to sound like the uneducated heathen I was, then...so be it.

Tensing, I asked the one question that’d been hounding me ever since a driver dropped off the keys to a brand-new fancy rental at the hospital. He’d mentioned that they didn’t usually drop off to clients but because she tipped so highly, they were happy to oblige.

The way he’d treated her made it seem as if he was both envious andimpressed, presenting the keys as if she was higher up the food chain than him.

My skin had crawled, and I’d wanted to ask the second Gem had led me from the hospital and hopped into the leather-infused car, but I’d swallowed my questions down.

I didn’t know how to word such things, but I got the distinct impression she wassomeone.She had power, just like Storymaker had power.

Frankly, it made me nervous.

“Kas...you know you can talk to me, right?” Gem squeezed the steering wheel. “I know you’re probably still digesting everything that’s happened so far, and I don’t ever want to pry about your appointment with the specialist or make you feel like you have to tell me everything, but...we’re together. People who are together don’t have to hide.”

I swallowed hard. “Fine.”

“Okay then.”

“I’m just gonna come out with it.”

“Okay, great.” She braced herself. “If you have questions, fire away.”

She might regret that invitation, but I sat taller in my seat and said, “You mentioned...back in the valley that you had enough money to pay whatever ransom I put on your head. At the time, money meant nothing to me. I still don’t fully remember the concept but it’s slowly coming back to me.” I gave her a look. “The more I remember, the more I realize...you weren’t lying, were you?”

“Lying?” Her forehead furrowed. “Lying about what?”

“That you have money.”

Her cheeks pinked. “Is it that obvious? I thought I wasn’t that flashy.”

I looked out the window as an expensive-looking car drove past. “I overheard the nurse giving you the final tally for the hospital room. It sounded expensive, but you didn’t even blink. You were able to go and select new clothes with just a tiny plastic card instead of working for an entire season for something of value, and...the way the guy looked at you when he dropped off the car? You have power that only comes from having something other people want.”

She glanced at me, her eyes narrowing. “You say that as if money is dirty.”

“Money is what enabled men like Storymaker to steal our lives and rent us out as if we were nothing more than a T-shirt from a department store.”

She stiffened. “It’s not the money that’s bad, Kas.”

I sniffed.

“But you’re right,” she added. “Money has caused bad people to be able to do terrible things.”

I fell quiet for a while, my head whirling. Back in the valley, I’d been rich enough. I’d had food, shelter, and warmth. I hadn’t needed anything else. I’d never owned a dollar. Never worked for cash. Never been given anything of value for the use of my body and soul.

But out here...I was fucking destitute.

I had no skills, no prospects. When people looked at me, they did so without respect in their eyes like they did for Gem. They watched me with wariness as if I was a wild animal she’d dragged from the woods and dressed in human clothes.