The Urbem (Completed)

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Midge

(Lyra) 

“I don’t trust him, Lyra.” I let out an exasperated sound that was halfway between a moan and a growl, completely fed up with this conversation. Lexio hadn’t left me alone about Dimitri ever since he had first arrived at our camp, though I wasn’t really sure why… I got no bad vibes from him and I knew the same went for Nephele; otherwise she would have left him in America. Besides, a Uxor woman would never stoop so low as to trust a man for anything, even spying.

“I know,” I sighed, “and I don’t get it.” I could see his face darken in annoyance over the fact that I hadn’t really jumped at his accusations. He had insisted in a not-so-subtle way that Dimitri was a threat to the security and wellbeing of the entire camp, although he really couldn’t give me a logical, justifiable reason why.

“There’s something weird about him,” Lexio pressed. “He seems dangerous; have you even looked him in the face? He’s the type of man I used to work with that usually ended up being executed for safety reasons, the ones that are so bitter at life in general that they’d murder senselessly just to make themselves feel better about it. I don’t trust him.”

“Are you afraid of him?” I sighed, suddenly very tired. Lexio let loose a single sardonic laugh.

“I have no reason to fear him,” he hissed. “He’s been nothing more than a laborer his entire life, whereas I’ve had years to hone my ability to fight and I have more experience than him. He might be older, but I’ve seen and know far more than him.”

“Then what are you worried about?” I snapped, frustrated, knowing that Lexio was right; he was a fine combatant and could almost certainly hold his own against, if not defeat Dimitri in a physical confrontation.

“Everyone else!” he snapped. “What about people like Kassandra? Do you really think she-” I cut him off.

“Dimitri has no reason to attack Kassandra, nor will she give him motivation to.” I glared at him, finally angry. “Besides, Kassandra is not helpless. You might think that her fighting skills are inadequate compared to ours, but please remember that she didn’t get to be in charge of her camp for no reason. There’s more to her than the quiet, demure, and caring person you see on the outside.”

“Can you please just listen to me?” he begged.

“Give me a creditable reason why I can’t trust Dimitri, and I will,” I said simply, trying to be agreeable or at least calm him down enough to compromise. I truly believed that something about the American made him very uncomfortable, so I didn’t want to brush him off in a distressed state, but I also couldn’t just throw Dimitri out… He had no Animus, and, in the eyes of the animals, wasn’t an Insurgo, so he’d be killed in a second. I didn’t want to be responsible for murder based on Lexio’s opinions, especially since I saw great potential in Dimitri as a comrade in arms.

“Why are you so stupid?” he snapped, knocking me out of my reasoning rather abruptly. I turned my gaze to glare at him icily, no longer feeling pity for his state. Dolosus gave him a low hiss, warning him to watch his mouth, although it wasn’t anywhere near as loud as the ones he saved specifically for Nephele.

“Excuse me?” I asked, masking the venom building in my voice.

“I think you heard me just fine,” he continued heatedly, ignoring my visible anger. “Honestly, Lyra, you’re just as stubborn and bullheaded as Nephele at times, the only difference being that she’s better at reading people than you are.” I turned on him.

“Don’t contrast me with her, alright?” I spat. “She still has issues considering men to be human beings; don’t even compare our abilities to read people.” I jabbed a finger at his chest, ignoring Aranea, who clicked her mandibles at me and got herself into a position to pounce on my face if needed. “You’re treading dangerous waters, Lexio, so maybe you ought to quit before you drown.” He smirked at me.