A Thread of Time: Firesetter, Book 1 Read Online Free PDF

nice reunion.”  Wen sighed and  pulled
my arm.  “Look Lancelot, Borf is with his wives.”
    “Uh huh,” I murmured, snatching the dark
caramels and the mixed nuts and chews off the shelf, before glancing up to see
our roommate hugging two Andorian women at the register. “He's married to two?”
    “Yep. And, he's got a husband, too,” Wen
informed me, as my heart ceased to beat and the world briefly spun and turned
black.  This was not because of the revelation about Borf's family situation,
but rather the fact that I recognized Moosy tucked in the middle of her family's
arms.
    “He's her dad, right?”
    “Nope. He's one of her husbands. Didn't
you know that?”
    Apparently not. I dropped both boxes of
chocolates on the floor, before passing out right on top of them.
     
    Needless to say, my romantic lunch date
with Moosy was canceled. While Borf, or her other husband, Murf, who had been
stocking the refrigerated case with sodas in the back of the Kwikie-Mart,
didn't object to me taking her out, they all wanted to go. And, they all wanted
to discuss my marriage proposal, for as I found out, marrying Moosy would mean
I would also inherit all of them.
    “Thanks for the steak,” Wen declared
later, wiping the last residue off his chin.
    “No worries,” I replied with a heavy sigh.
“At least, I still have you.”
     
     

 
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 5
    Jan
     
    After those vehicles came and the shots
sounded, I had no choice but to bring Dov home.  I couldn’t leave him on the
street, huddling in doorways, or hiding in trash bins until they found him. 
Inevitably, they would.  Our village was tiny and those trucks were filled with
men. 
    My mother wouldn’t take him in. 
    “A street orphan, Jan?” she cried.  “You
know what I think of this.  If we bring one in and feed him, tomorrow there
will be ten begging at our door.  Go on, boy.  Get you off my porch before anyone
sees you here.  Come back when you are alone, Jan.”  Mother slammed the door.
    I looked at Dov, expecting his tiny face
to be flooded with tears.  Instead, he just shrugged, and smiled a little, his
bright blue eyes impassive.  Taking him next door to my Aunt Ailana’s flat, I
hoped there might be more compassion in my auntie’s heart.
    “No,” Ailana snapped, refusing to open the
screen.  “Amyr is poorly today.  I shan’t let him be exposed to the street
urchin’s germs.”  Then, she too slammed the door in our faces, in the same
manner as my mother.  However, a moment later, it was cracked open just enough
to pass a bowl of soup in Dov’s direction.  “Here.  It’s from Amyr.  He wishes
to share, although why, I cannot fathom.  Let the boy drink it and be gone before
your uncle, Pellen arrives home from his day at work.”
    “Thank you, Ma’am,” Dov said politely and
eagerly even though Auntie had once again slammed the door.
    I watched Dov drink the soup, swallowing
it quickly in great gulps as if he hadn’t eaten in a week.  It was kind of Amyr
to share, but then again, my cousin always thought of every other before
himself.  When he was feeling poorly, as he did so often, he would make Auntie
place his bowl outside to feed the people on the street.
    “That was delicious.”  Dov sighed and with
the back of his hand, he swiped at a trickle running down his chin. 
    It wasn’t delicious, far from it actually,
but to the starving child it could have been a meal fit for a king.
    “I’ll thank my cousin for you,” I said,
now taking the bowl back into Auntie’s house.
    Dov watched me, his eyes anxious and
pleading, as if begging to follow me inside.
    I was sorry I couldn’t bring him in with
me, for it would have been nice for him and Amyr to meet.  Amyr would like him,
I was certain.  They might even become good friends.  My cousin needed someone
to play his games and keep him company, as no children came to visit except for
me.
    I didn’t have any friends either, but that
was purely