"Never give up
Never say die
Long surrender where the redtail dives..."
~Over the Rhine, Rave On
Everything Evelyn had in that apartment had been earned by the sweat of her brow. She had walked out of her parents house that day with the clothes on her back and her flute, the flute she had had since she was 5. Now it was in two pieces, in Danno's cloak. She smiled thinking that he probably had some plan to repair or replace it, which she thought was sweet. But it wouldn't be the same. Her clothes, her furniture, her gown from Danno, all destroyed. It hadn't been much, but it had been hers, and now it was all gone.
She rolled over in the cot and looked at Zorah, who was staring at the ceiling. Neither could sleep, but Evelyn thought it best to leave Zorah to her own thoughts; she wouldn't be able to say anything to comfort her anyway. They had both lost their families, but in completely different ways. She had walked away willingly; Zorah had to run for her freedom. Evelyn had meddlesome, control ng parents, but they hadn't forced her to marry a scoundrel to pay a debt.
Evelyn felt like such a child. What an idiot she had been. She had gotten lucky because she was talented and something about her spunk probably impressed Balthor when she marched in the Segrac that first day and demanded a singing job. She'd been unaware, protected by Balthor fatherly oversight, and foolishly thought she could take on anything.
She thought it had been bravery, but in reality she just didn't realize how much danger she was in just by living in this city.
She wanted to have power in actual fact, not blind luck and spunk. To whatever extent she could, she wanted psionic ability. To read minds, to protect her own mind, to track this city. To protect her friends. Because if she couldn't find justice for this hopeless city, she'd at least find it for them.
She also wanted information. There were too many secrets; secrets Danno kept, Ricin kept, Balthor kept, Kirsi kept, Silvus kept, Zorah kept. She hated not knowing things, particularly when information could be the difference between life and death in a place like Zarcharis.
She was going to become incredibly powerful.
And she was going to find out everything.
But first, she needed a new job, and a place to live.
