Salvage ~ V1: Nuts and Bolts (Steampunk/ Gaslamp Romantasy ~ FxM, MxM)

Chapter 42: Not What I Expected ~ pt. 1

Late in the morning, Tamyn went to see Kazia. She hadn't resumed work yet, so he found her in her apartment, still having breakfast. When she opened the door to him, she smiled lightly, but then gave him a sharp look and her smile widened into a beatific grin.

"I'm sorry to disturb your breakfast, Lady Kazia," he said hesitantly. I can come back later."

"No, no," she said, still smiling widely. "Please sit, and have some tea."

As he poured a cup for himself, Kazia sat staring at him with a strangely joyous expression.

"Lady Kazia, was there something you wanted to talk about?" he asked, returning her smile.

She coughed lightly and pursed her lips together, dropping her gaze.

"No," she said. "It's nothing, nothing. How can I help you?"

"Mistress Amelys will be coming to speak to you as well, but I thought we should talk privately first."

He took a bracing deep breath.

"Abrizhen wants to defect. I intend to petition the Queen on his behalf, and I'm hoping to enlist your help as well."

"That is not what I expected you to say," Kazia said, taken aback. She looked closely at him. "You've spoken with him then?"

"Last night... he requested a meeting." Tamyn glanced at her shyly. "With me."

"And it went well?" she asked, smiling again. "Clearly."

"Lady Kazia, you seem to have already known... How do you know? Abrizhen told me..."

"What did he say?" Kazia asked.

She stopped smiling and seemed a bit panicked.

Tamyn sighed heavily.

"He said that you are a witch, and that you know things somehow. But he was very drunk that time."

"That-" Kazia said crossly, but she then laughed bitterly.

"Well, I am not a witch," she asserted. She looked at him with dire seriousness.

"Tamyn, can I confide a secret and rely on your discretion?"

"Of course," he answered. "Just as I know I have yours."

Kazia folded her arms around herself in a protective gesture and breathed deeply.

"I am an Empath."

It was Tamyn's turn to be shocked.

"That is not what I expected you to say," he echoed her.

"But-" he looked at her with a sense of curious scrutiny. "There are no more Empaths. No one has heard of one in ages."

Kazia shrugged.

"My mother was the only other one I've known. As far as I know, I may be the last. There may be others hiding their natures as I do. I would know right away if I met another, but I never have."

Tamyn looked at her in silence for a long moment. As incredible as this revelation was, it made sense, and it explained some of the mysteries surrounding Kazia.

"Do you mind if I ask," he asked tentatively, "what is that like? I guess this is your 'condition'? Why you seclude yourself?"

Kazia nodded.

"It can become very unpleasant very easily. Most of the time, it's just like any other sense, or just another layer of communication, like your tone of voice. But when I'm around too many people, or even one person having very strong emotions, it can become like someone screaming in your ear. It's painful, and makes me ill."