Page 94 of Riv's Sanctuary

After he’d escaped with Sohut and ended up at the exchange, he’d found himself making another escape from the beings who’d wanted to place them in cages for sale.

That’s when they’d seen a Torian pushing his huge wife on a cart through the exchange.

He and Sohut had hurried to hide in the cart’s basket before they were seen.

That Torian had turned out to be Geblit and when Geblit had noticed them there, he’d hid them from his wife till they were safe enough to escape into the plains.

The first time they’d returned to the exchange was when Geblit had visited the plains to check if they were still alive.

He’d registered them and that had officially started their life as free beings.

They’d lived in the plains ever since.

He owed Geblit a lot for that. He doubted that taking the human off the Torian’s hands would repay the debt fully.

He’d saved his and Sohut’s lives. If they had been brought back to the mines, they’d have surely been killed.

Memories of working in the mines came back to him, this time not in his dreams but while he was wide awake, for he couldn’t manage to fall asleep.

No matter how he tried, insomnia chased him like an angry umu set loose.

“Hey, little chid. Can I stay in your cave with you? Mine is wet and I cannot sleep.”

He glanced over at Sohut. “There is only enough space for two.”

The female’s face looked sad and he felt bad for saying no.

The mines were cold and wet and people got sick easily.

He’d been lucky to claim the cave they were in. He’d been watching the owner for weeks. He saw the signs of the mine sickness early, knew the being wouldn’t survive.

It’d been hard to do, watching someone die, but he’d had no choice.

There was nowhere to get medical attention in the mines.

Beings came, worked, and died. The Tasqals always found replacements.

As soon as the male had died, he’d hauled the body from the cave.

It was hard work for a chid, but he’d succeeded and the cave was claimed for Sohut and himself.

It was difficult keeping it, though.

There was always someone who was bigger, older, and stronger who was looking to take it away from their control and without a cave for shelter, death came quickly in the dampness of the mines.

“If you promise to share, you can come in,” he said, his gaze studying the female.

She smiled at him and crouched to enter the small space.

They coexisted like that fine for a few days…until the males started coming in.

Males she invited.

Males who would pay her with talix metal in her collection bucket. She preferred to fill her bucket that way than to go out and dig.

When she was servicing the males, he and Sohut had nowhere to go.

They’d sit outside the cave in the damp, waiting for it to end.