Page 219 of Commander’s Mate
The answer surprised him.
“You should,” I repeated. “And you are not going.”
His eyes went bright with rage and grief.
“Because I am damaged.”
“Because you are needed.”
“That sounds better.”
“It is also true.”
He looked away.
The woman with the knee brace stepped forward.
“My daughter was sold into mining labor.”
“I know.”
“I can walk.”
“For how long?”
“Long enough.”
“Medical says otherwise.”
“Medical does not have a daughter underground.”
“No.”
She stared at me.
“You do?”
My entire body went cold.
Meya.
Probable.
Maybe.
“That is why I cannot make the rule different for myself.”
Her anger faltered.
I continued.
“If I prioritize my family, command becomes clan privilege. If I send wounded people because grief demands it, I may create more wounded people for Harper to register.”
The woman looked past me.
Harper stood at the end of the corridor.
Of course she did.
