Dead and Buryd: A Dystopian Action Adventure Novel (Out of Orbit Book 1) by Chele Cooke Read Free Book Online Page B

across from her, seeing the suffering of the people within the compound every time she visited, forced to live by the foreigners’ laws and serve their whims, living in the tattered remains of what had once been a challenging but understandable life for a Veniche—Georgianna wished they had never returned at all.
     
***
     
Sitting in front of a patient from the camps who had come in after a robbery, Georgianna had finished stitching the wound closed and smeared the yellow paste of the lutiner flower sparingly over it to speed recovery.
    Unfortunately, robberies and attacks were more common now than they used to be, especially in the camps, where the Adveni presence was less pronounced. It wasn’t as easy to hunt while in one place with so many others. The trail had been much easier for hunting, and by the time the different tribes reached Adlai for the heat, they had enough stores to keep most families relatively comfortable. There had always been robberies of course, by those who moved alone instead of with a tribe, or those who had been banished for committing a crime, but these days they seemed to happen every other day—more often in fact. As times became harder, more people began only looking out for themselves.
    “I hope it’s okay that I came down,” Kael said quietly.
    Georgianna glanced up from the bandage as she wound it tightly around his arm.
    “Of course it is.”
    “I wouldn’t normally. Keep to myself, you know? Don’t like a lot of trouble, but this wouldn’t stop bleeding and…”
    Tying one end of the bandage to the other, Georgianna patted him lightly on the shoulder.
    “There’s no need to explain,” she smiled. “You needed help.”
    Kael nodded as she turned away to note down his visit.
    Georgianna had left Lacie in the end car with a collection of hyliha leaves while she treated him. While the leaves weren’t useful for much more than easing a heat rash, Georgianna had given them to the young girl to practise making paste out of the herbs that could be collected. Hyliha trees grew everywhere, having adapted to the planet’s altered seasons, so the leaves were ideal for practising on before moving on to some of the rarer, more useful substances.
    “I don’t have much,” he mumbled shyly as Georgianna scribbled her notes.
    Looking up, Georgianna glanced over her shoulder at the man and finally turned around to face him:
    “Kael, don’t…”
    “I will make good!” he interjected before Georgianna could speak further. “I have some pelts drying. I’ll bring one down!”
    “That is far too much for a simple cut, especially when you already lost so much in gaining the wound.”
    Kael stared down at his knees, dragging his teeth over his lip worriedly. She sighed. She hated taking from people who couldn’t afford it. However, it wasn’t her supplies that she was using up down here. While she was happy to do the work for a bowl of stew or some other kindness that families could afford, the Belsa needed things they could use.
    “Look,” she blurted quickly. “I’m going to have to see you in a couple days anyway, to make sure that’s healing the way it should, and take out the stitches. So, how about we trade then?”
    Kael looked up, finally meeting her gaze. He nodded gratefully.
    Georgianna returned to the last car once Kael had said his goodbyes and set off along the tunnel. She looked in to find Lacie keeping watch over Jacob, making her own notes in a small book. Either Lacie hadn’t realised, or the two were keeping an easy silence, but Jacob was awake.
    “How’re you feeling?” Georgianna asked, moving further inside.
    Lacie lifted her head, her gaze shifting to Georgianna before she looked at Jacob. He was curled in the corner of his bed, looking far younger than he was. The moment Georgianna had spoken, however, his expression contorted in panic. His wide brown eyes darted around the car, and he quickly pushed himself up. Pressing his back against the end of