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MIKANDRA STOOD in the aisle while people streamed out of the room. Standing still and hoping that no one would step on her foot was the best she could do. Several Traders, much older and mostly male, came out to congratulate her, saying things like good work and extraordinary courage. All of them were non-Mirani. The Mirani Traders eyed her with suspicion from the other side of the room. They didn’t congratulate her. She felt dazed.
Eventually, most of the audience left through the back door. Braedon was the first of the brothers to reach her.
Instead of showering her with praise, he squeezed her shoulder in a strong grip. His lips were pressed together. His eyes said more than words could have done. He made her sit down in one of the aisle seats. “Look at you. You’re injured.”
Mika
