Monsters: The Folklore Trilogy Book 3

In Which We Most Decidedly Do Not Gossip

It was early in the morning when Audrey shook me awake for my turn on watch. Still dazed, I walked to the front of the boat where Isaac was already sitting.

"Hey," I mumbled sleepily.

"Hey," he replied. He passed me a small tin. "Chocolate?"

"Oh my goodness, yes," I said, gratefully taking the tin and taking some out. "Where did you get this?"

"It was in the food storage place," he responded simply.

"Hm." I took a bite, savoring the sweetness.

Isaac bumped my arm. "Look at Deynan and Sophie."

I turned and saw that Sophie was snuggled up against his side, his arm curled around her shoulders. I gasped slightly. "Awww! They're gonna be so embarrassed when they wake up."

Isaac laughed softly. "Yeah." He tilted his head. "Deynan acts differently around her. It's slight, but it's there. He's a bit gentler, a bit more teasing instead of blunt."

"Sophie's different too," I said. "She's more outspoken, less shy. I can't tell if he annoys her or if she views him as a challenge. It's weird."

Isaac nodded. "Yeah. Weird. Maybe they like each other."

I raised my eyebrows and glanced at the sleeping pair again. "Maybe. But if they do, they definitely don't know it yet."

Isaac laughed again. "You're right. It'll be interesting to watch it play out." His gaze shifted over our sleeping friends before coming to rest on a certain dark skinned girl.

"What do you think of Amarie?" I asked quietly.

Isaac let out a slow breath. "I think she's incredible."

I smiled. "Why do you say that?"

"It's...hard to put it into words," he said. "She's just gone through so much. Her entire childhood, she was raised in fear and hatred, in an environment that perpetuated negativity and pain. Most people take that kind of pain and become twisted and cruel, or selfish and horrible. All the Tormentors and Tempters stem from fear. They can bring us to our knees. I can be bitter, Deynan can be greedy, Ravi can be self-focused. I don't know about you guys."

"Audrey can be abrasive or caught up in her own guilt, Sophie can be self-deprecating and distrustful, I can be dishonest and weak-willed," I said softly.

Isaac nodded. "Exactly. Because we all have fear in our lives. It's unavoidable. But Amarie...she was surrounded by fear and tortured and who knows what else. And yet, she still manages to be kind and polite and selfless. She turned all that negativity on herself. She's trapped herself in a prison of self-loathing, but towards the rest of the world, she has shown nothing but kindness and helpfulness, even though she has every reason to hate the world." Isaac shook his head in wonder. "She's...amazing. I've never met anyone quite so strong. And she doesn't even know it."

I stared at Amarie, curled into a tight ball, defensive even in sleep. "She is pretty incredible, isn't she?"

He nodded. "Now if only she understood that." He chuckled. "She doesn't even know how beautiful she is, and even a blind person could tell that."

I nodded, though a small part of me smiled on the inside. Could it be that Isaac liked her more than he let on?

"That's what I told Ravi when we first met her," I said.

Isaac grinned. "Did he disagree?"

I looked at him in surprise. "Yeah. How did you know?"

Isaac chuckled. "She's not his type."