Chapter 44: Living isn't the same as surviving.

Chapter 44: Living isn’t the same as surviving.

“PETE?” NIGEL DROPPED from the tree, landing softly. Eyes scanning, he looked around for the royal. “The heart of a centroid is in its tongue.” He glanced into the bushes where Pete had disappeared. “It’s dead, mate. It’s cactus.”

From behind him, the Dagerstanteen scrambled out of a tangle of thorny plants, then stumbled to his feet, wobbly. The bloke shook uncontrollably, like a thin twig caught in a raging storm. Umicore Prince could do that.

“We head up.” Nigel unlatched his gate with a soft click and began to climb his treehouse, swinging on all the limbs that he could reach. Pete was silent, surprisingly so, as the chap followed him. They moved from branch to branch, climbing higher and higher, until Nigel’s feet finally hit the sturdy wooden platform outside the front door of his dwelling.