by F. F. John
“Yes, I think I heard someone too. Come on.” Adela trudges through broken cement, sections of thick panel glass and splintered pieces of wood.
I avoid the sharp edges in the debris and am soon working alongside Adela to create an opening.
Over my shoulder, Neith has made herself small and her knees are at her chin. She’s rocking back and forth, still crying her heart out. “Neith, stop being a baby and come help us.”
She’s too far gone in her grief and doesn’t hear a word I say.
“Invier? Is that you? Can you hear me?”
The person moans and that fuels my digging. I bend my knees to tug out a piece of wood, only to have a sharp mirror piece slash my left calf. The wound isn’t too bad and I continue to move rubble out of the way until a hand pushes through the clearing we’ve made. It belongs to someone young and must be Invier’s.
“Neith, Invier is alive!” I call to her.
Almost a minute later, Neith nears with tentative steps. When Invier’s arm pokes through the sea of wreckage, she snaps into action, shoving aside debris. We soon get his upper body free from the building’s carcass.
We eventually pull him out and he’s covered in gray dust. He hacks up even more dust in a coughing fit. When he regains a hold of himself, Adela and I help him back to the bushes we hid in.
Invier leans on a tree while Neith checks every inch of him.
“I love you. I love you,” he says over and over.
Neith beams through tears. “I love you too, Invier. I’m so sorry I hurt you.”
“Me too.”
They kiss and I shift my gaze, feeling conflicted. I’m happy that Invier is alive but I still don’t think he’s any good for Neith. But that’s an issue for another time. We need to get off the property for any of that to happen and this is eating up precious seconds.
“All right lovebirds, it’s time to get moving,” Adela says. “Floran, do you think you can walk?”
I separate him from Neith and place a finger in front of his face. Then, I tell him to follow it with his eyes but he struggles to keep up when I move to the corners of his vision. Touching the back of his head, I discover a bump.
“You might have a concussion.” My pronouncement is met with another coughing spell, this one longer than the last.
“That’s not good.” Adela rubs her forehead. “Scioness Reffour, is there somewhere nearby where we can hide out of view? Floran needs to rest.”
“He can rest at the water garden. It’s hidden and not far from here.” She wipes dust off his head with a gentle touch.
“Great.” Adela pulls Invier to his feet. I hoist him up by slipping my shoulder under his left arm and Adela does the same on his other side. “We’ll give him ten minutes then head over to your father’s office.”
The ground shakes as an explosion rumbles and once the world stops swaying, heavy footsteps alert us to an approaching hoard. They probably want to check for survivors. And there might not be any if we don’t get to the water garden.
Chapter Forty-Two
Invier
I don’t know where I am. With my eyes shut, I’m only aware of being led somewhere and I’m soon lowered to the ground. Even through the pounding pain in my head, I manage to feel the soft grass envelope me. Sinking into it with gratitude, I let out a small sigh.
Muted voices speak harshly as I think back to what just happened. I was in the Participant’s building, then I was trapped in debris and now, I’m … wherever I am. This is the second time I’ve come close to death in the last few days.
Neith!
Blinking my eyes open, the stars stare at me unbothered from their perch so high. Where’s Neith? I move my neck to survey the area around me and my headache intensifies. “Ow!”
Hands stroke my head. “It’s okay. You’re going to be okay.”
“Neith. You’re okay!”
“Yes, I’m fine,” she says tenderly.
“What happened?” A fog clings to my head.
“Don’t worry, sweets. Rest.”
Turning my head, geese come into focus. Several are on one leg, their beaks tucked into their chests.
“I’m done talking to you, Adela.” That sounds like Neith’s best friend. What’s her name again? She’s speaking to someone out of my line of sight. I slowly turn my head towards her voice and when she comes into view, she levels an even look my way and says, “Tell him to breathe through the hurt.”
“He’s going to need more help than that, Bel. We have to get him out of here.”
“Do you think I don’t know that?” Bel’s tone is irritated. “We can’t skip around the place without a plan.”
Neith’s hand leaves my head and she rises to her full height. “Why are you mad at me?”
“Are you serious? You ran off back there and almost got captured. You could have gotten the rest of us killed!”
“I needed to find Invier,” Neith answers, her tone hot.
“You put the rest of us at risk. That was selfish.”
A heated exchange commences between them but I can’t make out much of what they are saying. Wanting to say something to ease the tension between them, I clear my throat. The throbbing in my head magnifies and I slump back to the ground.
“Everyone needs to stay calm,” Adela says, her voice full of authority.
A bomb explodes nearby and all three girls hunker down. I cover my head with my hands and glimpse upwards through splayed fingers. White lights zing across the sky as new explosions erupt thunder close by. A chorus of quacks rings out with the geese speeding to the water. My stomach flips as I wait with dread for something to drop on us.
“Scioness Reffour, it is imperative we get to your father’s office. Are there any underground passages we can use?” Adela has two guns in her hands and I have no doubt she’s entirely capable of using them.
Bel snorts loudly. “I’ve been asking her to figure out the hidden passageways for years. She doesn’t know of any.”
“What I want to understand,” Neith begins, “is why you’re so desperate to get to my father’s office.”
Adela straightens. “I have repeatedly said your father has tech in his office that will—”
Neith raises a hand and Adela falls quiet. I would never have imagined such possible.
“Listen to me carefully.” Neith’s low voice has a threatening edge. “Tell me what you know or I won’t take you to that office. And, you can’t get in without me.”
“There’s nothing to tell.”
“Fine.” Neith helps me to my feet and I rock from side to side, dizzy. Gun in hand, Bel comes over to keep me still. “The three of us are getting on Bel’s ship and heading to the Mezan Estate in Pernold.”
We move to the flower tunnel. For the first time, I notice the tiny light bulbs wrapped around the flower branches. My legs feel stronger and I walk with less support from the ladies.
“Stop.”
We keep walking.
“I said stop … Please.”
The ‘please’ does the trick and we face her. Adela stands, arms akimbo. Her two guns lie at her feet.
“What do you want to know, Scioness?”
“Everything.”
She steps forward. “Our fathers have an understanding that I will be the Paladin and we’ll be married.”
I can’t believe my ears. Both Neith and her father were manipulating the Pursual process? I could laugh right now if it wouldn’t hurt. A realization springs forth—I never had a chance.
“In exchange for what?” Neith asks.
“The deaths of Loic Carre, James Saint Esprit and Mehrdad Cyra.”
I didn’t care for Loic but learning he was murdered is a shock. But you’d wondered whether someone triggered Loic’s allergic reaction on purpose? I guess I had an inkling.
Bel and I remain speechless, but Neith says, “Why would my father do that?” Her tone is soaked in dismay.
Adela stares at her but doesn’t reply and now, I have to
ask a question. “Does any of this tie back to the relationship between Titan Reffour and the fathers of those three?”
“Yes,” Adela says, not taking her gaze off Neith.
Neith glances at me, frown lines plastered to her forehead. “What are you two talking about?”
“She recently told me your father was bullied by Titan Carre, Titan Saint Esprit, and Titan Cyra when they were children.”
She spins back to Adela leaving me in Bel’s care. “Is that true?”
Upon Adela’s nod, Neith walks to the water’s edge and a goose leaves the pond to sit at her feet. “My father is a lot of things, but I can’t imagine he would want people murdered simply because their parents were bullies.” She pivots, jolting the goose back into the water. “There’s got to be something else.”
My mouth drops open and I stare at her for several moments. How can she be this calm? If I’d just learned that my father had people murdered, I’d be floored. But the news washes over her like nothing. I wonder if she knew this information already. Does she know of the other source of hatred between her father and his enemies?
“Your father blames them for your mother’s death.” I study her closely.
She gasps and turns to me.
“That’s …” She pauses, rubbing her palms on her torso. “My mother died of Hellp syndrome. It’s a rare disease. How could those men be responsible?”
I look at Adela and wait for her to give Neith the answer she seeks.
“They refused to let him apply a medical technique that could have kept your mother alive.”
Neith frowns, her mouth hanging open. Surely, she knew nothing of this.
“I don’t understand,” Neith mutters.
Placing her hands in her pockets, Adela tells her what she’d told me three days ago. Tears soak Neith’s cheeks as she listens. Her sadness breaks me and if I was in better shape I’d wrap her up in my arms. When Adela mentions that the experimental cure was created by Titan Mezan, Neith’s anguish is too much to take.
“Did you know about this? That your nome created a cure for my mom?” Neith turns to Bel.
“I had no idea,” Bel replies. A tear tumbles down her cheek.
Neith walks back to Bel and I. “Okay, Adela. You killed Loic for my father?”
“Yes.”
“And Erhart? Why him?”
“That bullet was meant for James but Erhart deserved it.”
“He deserved to get shot?” Bel’s voice rises.
“The boy thought he was a cat burglar of sorts. He stole my locket and—”
“He took your locket and that was reason enough to kill him?” Bel holds her head, her exasperation clear.
I’ve been quiet all this time but have to speak up. “Wait, you told me you didn’t shoot him.” She told me she had nothing to do with his death. I’m stunned at how easily she lied to me. Yet, I had reservations when she denied killing him. Somewhere, deep inside, I knew all wasn’t as it seemed.
“I told you not to trust anyone, Floran.” She glances at me, nonplussed.
My hand goes to my neck. “Did you shoot me too?”
Chapter Forty-Three
Invier
“Yes but Mehrdad was the target.”
I let go of Bel but Neith wraps her arms around my waist to keep me from approaching Adela. I don’t feel the pain in my neck and fight against her restraint.
Fury makes me quiver as I glare at her. “You almost killed me!”
“But I didn’t.”
My headache worsens. It feels as if a venture ball is slamming onto a court in my head. Not willing to drop the issue, I ask, “Where did you get the weapons from?” The answer comes to me the minute I utter the last word. “The couple you spoke to on the dancefloor,” I whisper.
“You saw them? I didn’t realize you could be that observant. Well, yes, they brought me my weapons that night.”
“You’re a murderer and should be ashamed of yourself.” Neith’s voice breaks.
“James isn’t drunk, is he?” Bel is notably calm. “Is there something I can do to help him?
“We are wasting valuable time by—”
“Answer her!” Neith takes a menacing step towards Adela who studies her as if considering whether Neith could be a threat to her.
“I poisoned his drink during the brawl. No cure,” Adela says, with a shrug.
“There has to be something? What did you use?” Bel pleads.
“Guba weed.” Adela replies.
Bel’s shoulders droop and she looks at the water. “Guba weed? Had I given him an antidote immediately after ingesting the poison, there’d be a chance of survival, all be it in a vegetative state. You’re heartless!”
“No, I did what I needed to do.” Adela shrugs again.
I can’t take it any longer. “You’re talking about murder like it’s nothing. You do know that everything you’ve done is illegal, right?”
“Bel would never tell a soul. Neith would never reveal her father’s treachery, for it would lead to her family’s collapse and she’d never want that. The only loose end is you.” She dips her head at me. “You and those principles of yours. Just know that I’ll kill you before I let you make my life difficult.”
A man shouts instructions to someone in the vicinity and we hush. Adela snatches her guns, waiting for any intruders to appear at either of the water garden’s entrances. Bel trains her gun on the lower tunnel while Neith points her at the grass wall in the opposite direction.
“Report?” I can’t place the gruff voice.
“Scion, we have found the bodies of Squad 89A2, but not the target.” A hoarse-sounding male replies.
“Any sign of the other participants?”
An uncomfortable cough. “There was a sighting of Scioness Adela by an injured operative, sir. She took his gun. The Participant’s building was destroyed with two heat signatures in it.”
“Good. Those were probably Invier Floran and Master Portan.”
At the mention of Portan’s name, Neith takes a hand off her weapon to clamp over her mouth. She’s visibly shaking. I wish I could assure her that Portan’s still alive but if he wasn’t in the lobby with me when the structure collapsed, he’s likely dead.
“Have we found Nabo Reffour yet?”
I finally recognize the voice as Mehrdad’s.
“No sir.”
Why would the Cyras attack the Reffours? Were they aware of Titan Reffour’s plan to kill its scion? I think back to Mehrdad’s offer. He’d wanted an answer and warned that I would regret it when I rejected his deal. Is this what he was talking about?
“Hunt him down.” Boots crunch off in obedience. “And I want Neith Reffour and that bitch Adela Seltan found!”
Neith and I exchange looks. The shaking isn’t as obvious anymore, but her eyes are wide with dread. Mehrdad wants us all dead.
Nobody speaks until the sound of footsteps recede.
“We must avoid him and his soldiers at all costs,” Adela whispers. “What’s the fastest way to your father’s office?”
“I say we stay here and wait this out.” I run my hands through my hair to keep them from quivering.
“No, my ship isn’t far. We can go get help.” Bel counters.
“Master Portan.” Neith’s words are hollow. She shuts her eyes, but her anguish is evident. “We can’t stay here. I have to find my father. If there’s a way to stop all this, he’ll know how.”
“Of course, he would!” I say. “He’s the reason we’re in this mess.”
“Are you serious?” Neith fold her arms. “His bullies let my mother die but yet, he’s to blame?”
I shake my head in disbelief. “Are you defending him?”
“You act as if my father asked Mehrdad to attack us!”
Bel gets in between us. “Calm down.”
“They also need to keep it down.” Adela adds.
“The world isn’t black or white, Invier! It’s more a collage of grays.” She walks away fro
m me and her shoulders rise and fall as she draws in uneven breaths. “I might not agree, but I understand why he wanted revenge. And don’t forget, he’s my family—I have to defend him.”
“Of course you do,” I say. “You’ve got to defend the person upon who you depend for your riches and power. Things you would never let go of for me.”