I loved seeing him in his element. In our family dynamics he might not always take the lead or even speak up. He was content with blending in and not causing waves. In the kitchen, though, he was in his domain. He led with a firm but kind hand. He was a great mentor and had the patience of a saint.
“Yes, sir,” I joked with tongue in cheek.
He turned back to me with a secret little smile. Then he lowered his head and whispered in my ear. “Keep that up, and I’ll be taking you to one of the storage rooms and reminding you who your master is and what insolence would get you.”
I bit my lip and smiled up at him. “I will take my punishment as you see fit.”
He cleared his throat, reddening slightly before turning around and talking to the men he had in charge of making the pies for after dinner.
“How does…connections work in your community?” a man barely older than me who went by the name of “G” asked as he looked at Drake, then back at me.
I looked over at him, slightly surprised by the question. He was generally a very quiet and shy guy. He worked hard, kept his head down, and barely joined into the banter of the kitchen. He looked highly curious, but uncomfortable by his own question.
“What do you want to know?” I asked him hesitantly.
“I mean,” he shifted uncomfortably as he continued to peel his potatoes. “I’ve noticed you with at least three other men, and some of the guys think you’re with all of them. Another guy said you are…gifted and gifted people have connections. They say it’s normal to be in a relationship with more than one person.”
I noticed the other two guys were now silent and watching me covertly. They didn’t seem like they were treating me like a freak or they were judging me, so I took no offense. “I am.” I explained simply. “In the gifted community, some of us are marked. If we find our connections and we…connect with them we become stronger.”
“Marked?” G asked with slight horror and understanding.
I turned my head and showed him my mark. “We all got marked around the same time. One day it wasn’t there and the next it was.”
G gaped at me. “What happens if you don’t make the connections, and how do you connect?”
I gave him a rueful smile. “A physical connection. If we didn’t make them we would have lost our gifts…eventually.”
“What happens if we didn’t want the gift,” he colored. “I mean if you didn’t want the gift.”
I looked at him shrewdly before I pushed my thoughts to him. Do you have a gift? A mark?
His eyes widened in surprise before he slowly nodded his head.
Both? I asked him, to clarify.
He nodded once more.
We’ll talk later. I reassured him, knowing he didn’t want to carry this conversation in front of the others.
He gave me a small relieved smile.
“Why do you need the Nons if you guys have gifts?” a young black man I barely interacted with before asked.
I smiled at him. It was no surprise that the word we used for the non-gifted had spread like wild fire. I knew now some people didn’t like the little nick name we gave them, while others embraced it. “Without going into much detail,” I explained gently. “The enemy we are up against has more resources than we do, and we need everyone willing to fight our…war.”
“So how do I join,” the black man, Turtle, asked. “I’ve watched you guys in training and you guys are like super human warrior ninjas.”
I started to laugh. “Hardly and-” I looked at him shrewdly. “I thought you weren’t allowed in the restricted areas. All the operatives are carefully selected. I doubt they’ll just choose a guy that was hired to work in the kitchens to start the intensive training we have to do.”
He sucked his teeth. “Man, you know it gets boring living underground. When I took this job, I didn’t realize we were going to be stuck in the middle of nowhere with little to do. I had more things to do in juvie. If they carefully select people, why do they have a young girl such as yourself working for them?”
I shook my head. “I heard they pay you well. I already explained to you that I am gifted. My gift makes me…valuable. If I were you, I would try to be careful not to be caught.”
“You gonna tell on me?” he asked with narrowed eyes.
I shook my head once more. “It’s not my place to.”
He looked relieved by my answer.