Contributor (Contributor Trilogy, book 1)

by Nicole Ciacchella

  "Maybe. Or maybe murder's just too messy and makes things too complicated. I don't know. But, either way, it's not something he'd do. I'm sure of it."

  "I think you're right." Letizia's expression hardened. "I'm going to make sure we catch that little bastard. I'm going to make sure he gets his just punishment."

  Dara smiled grimly. "What an idiot. Instead of clearing a path for himself, all he's done is clear one for me."

  Chapter 27

  The day of Leona Morrow's homecoming was also the day Ryan's plot became public knowledge. The apprentices were working at their stations when the Authorities came for him. As soon as she saw them approaching, Dara knew what was about to happen. Not trusting herself, she lowered her head and stared at her screen, pretending to work but, all the while, reminding herself to breathe.

  "Ryan LeTour, you will come with us," an Authority said. She had a deep, official-sounding voice, and she looked menacing in her uniform. Her suppressor hung at her hip, and Dara had the distinct impression that she was poised to seize it at the first sign of trouble.

  Javier made an unintelligible noise, and Dara turned her head just enough to see the shocked expression on his face. Everyone knew that when the Authorities came for you, you were in serious trouble.

  "This...this must be a mistake," Ryan said. Dara had to fight the urge to clamp her hands over her ears to block out the sound.

  "Apprentice LeTour, as you well know, this will go much more smoothly if you do as you're told," said the icy voice of Andersen.

  Though she didn't want to, Dara knew she had better look up, lest everyone wonder at her lack of curiosity. Slowly, she raised her eyes, allowing herself the swiftest of glances at Andersen before she shifted her gaze to the resolute profile of the male Authority.

  "I don't understand, sir," Ryan said, the pitch of his voice rising as panic set in.

  In spite of herself, Dara glanced over at him. She felt a sense of satisfaction, knowing that he had been caught. After all, he had tried to kill her. Yet another, albeit smaller, part forced her to acknowledge what lay ahead for Ryan in the desolation of the wasteland. Once formal charges were brought against him, he would swiftly be ejected from the dome. There could be no other possible outcome. After all, Magnum had clear evidence that he had attempted to murder a fellow Contributor, that he had breached the security of not one but two Job Creators, that he had destroyed expensive Creator property and, perhaps worst of all in the eyes of the Creators, his crimes had caused friction between two of them.

  "Of course you do," Andersen said contemptuously.

  "I didn't do anything! I swear it!" Ryan shouted hysterically, as the Authorities closed in on him.

  Dara turned her head away as the Authorities extracted their suppressors, and squeezed her eyes tightly shut at the sound of a garbled moan. Silence fell. Unable to stop herself, Dara opened her eyes and looked just long enough to see the Authorities dragging Ryan's prone body away.

  For several minutes, everyone in engineering froze. Andersen stared at Ryan, looking as if he'd like to spit on the young man's prone form. For once, Javier's mask slipped, his astonishment written all over his face. Letizia looked viciously satisfied but, even so, a flicker of horror shot through her eyes. Walters looked shocked, and Chen looked furious.

  Then the spell broke and Chen stomped off, his face livid, as Walters turned to Letizia with a questioning look. Andersen beckoned to the two women, and they set off for one of the conference rooms. Everyone else returned to their tasks, as if nothing at all had happened.

  Now it's Letizia's turn to do some acting, Dara thought dully.

  "What the hell?" Javier asked under his breath. He stared at Dara.

  "I don't know," she replied. She turned her attention to her station, her fingers trembling violently as she began punching in commands.

  At lunchtime, she and Letizia retreated to their spot. Speaking in whispers, Letizia told Dara that Andersen had met with the senior engineers to tell them about Ryan's crimes.

  "He'll be out of the dome by nightfall," Letizia said. Though she looked satisfied, her eyes were also troubled.

  Dara nodded, wrapping her arms around herself and bending at the waist. Her lunch sat untouched next to her, and she stared vacantly into space. She wondered how Ryan's mother was reacting, but that thought was too terrible to contemplate.

  "Why do I feel horrible about this? He tried to kill me," Dara whispered around numb lips.

  "Because now you have some idea of what the wasteland is like." Letizia sighed, rubbing her temples, and Dara knew, just knew, that there were horrors outside of the domes about which Letizia would never tell her.

  When Dara's shift ended, she knew she should be happy that her mother would be home. And she was happy, she truly was, but that happiness had been tempered by what had happened with Ryan.

  "What's going on?" Jonathan asked, as they hurried to her apartment. "I heard that Ryan LeTour tried to kill you. I can't believe it!"

  "I know." It surprised her how little she wanted to discuss it with him.

  "This must be such a shock to you. I mean, your accident..." Jonathan's face darkened. "If they hadn't taken that bastard, I'd have killed him myself."

  Dara shuddered. "Then you'd be the one out in the wasteland."

  "He deserves banishment."

  "You don't know what it's like out there," Dara whispered.

  "How can you do that?" he asked her, incredulous.

  "Do what?"

  "How can you defend him?"

  "Defend him? I'm not defending him! I'm the one he tried to kill! But casting him out into the wasteland without any resources...it's a death sentence!"

  "Dara, he would have killed you to secure his position. And you don't think he deserves a death sentence?"

  "I...I..." she fumbled, casting about for some way to explain her thoughts. It was utterly impossible, though. She felt like there was some sort of wall between them, and it frightened her. "I'm just having a rough time."

  Either Dara was a better actress than she thought, or Jonathan heard what he wanted to hear, because he squeezed her hand and said consolingly, "It'll be okay."

  She couldn't manage anything other than a nod. While she had wanted Ryan punished, she hadn't wanted this. This felt like vengeance, not justice.

  Jonathan said goodbye outside of her apartment door, extracting a promise that she'd call if she needed him. She was anxious for him to go, not only because she wanted to get inside to see her mother, but also for some reason she couldn't quite name.

  Her palms sweating and her heart thundering in her ear, she opened the door. What if... But she refused to allow her thoughts to take a turn in that direction. Everything would be fine with her mother. It had to be.

  Taking a shaky breath in an attempt to quell her nervousness, Dara stepped inside, looking around for her mother. She saw no sign of her mother, but Joshua stood just inside the door. Her father stared at her, a mixture of emotions racing over his face. He seized her and embraced her tightly, his breath coming in ragged gasps.

  "I can't believe that little bastard tried to kill you," he said hoarsely.

  "I can't either," Dara whispered.

  Joshua drew back from her, his hands on her shoulders, and studied her intently. "Thank the Creators you weren't seriously hurt. How could he do such a thing?"

  "I don't know."

  "This system, it's..." Swallowing convulsively, Dara's father hugged her again.

  His words pounded in her head, and she wanted to ask him what he had been about to say, but she knew her mother could arrive at any moment. They would both have more than enough to worry about once Leona arrived, and Dara wanted nothing more than to block the incident with Ryan from her memory, forget it had ever happened. "It's over now, Dad."

  He took a deep, shuddering breath, his eyes welling with tears. "I just... I don't even know what to think anymore," he said, a note of desperation in his voice.

  "It's over
and done with." She took his hand, her stomach twisting. He seemed to be on the verge of breaking. "We need to focus on Mom now. Really, we do," she added, cutting off his protests.

  Pulling her into another tight embrace, he kissed the top of her head. They stood silently for a moment, and she could feel her father trying to pull himself together. With one last squeeze, he released her, looked her in the eye, and nodded resolutely.

  "Do you know when they'll be here?" she asked.

  "Within a half hour."

  Dara hurried to her room to change clothes. She heard the door tone and rushed out into the living room, just as her father answered the door. His hands shook violently, and he clenched them into fists.

  Two technicians accompanied Leona, and they led her slowly into the apartment. Though Dara had visited her mother twice since her rescue, nothing could have prepared her for the shock of seeing just how high a toll the accident had taken on her mother. Leona's eyes looked a little glazed, and new lines crossed her forehead. Her once vibrant hair had gone lank, hanging limply over her shoulders. She had lost so much weight that her clothing hung on her, her wrists looking as thin and delicate as a child's.

  "Hello, Joshua, Dara," Leona said to them. Her speech had improved since that first day, but it was still difficult to understand her at times.

  "Hello, sweetheart," Joshua said, nudging the technicians aside so that he could escort his wife to the couch. He kissed her cheek, and she gave him a vague smile.

  "Mom," Dara said, dropping to her knees before Leona and hugging her around the waist. Leona patted her daughter's back absently and Dara found herself clinging, desperate to find some unbroken part of her mother.

  "Do you require any further assistance, sir?" a technician asked.

  "That will be all, thank you."

  "A technician will arrive each afternoon at three to measure Contributor Morrow's daily progress. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact the assistance line."

  "Thank you," Joshua responded.

  The two men left the apartment, Dara's father sagging in relief when they were gone. He stood for a moment with his back to his daughter and wife, and Dara felt a sharp pain as she watched him fight to compose himself. Finally, he turned around and moved over to the couch, sitting down next to Leona. Gently, he took one of her hands between his, and Dara sat back on her haunches, looking up at her parents.

  "How are you today, Leona?" he asked.

  "I'm fine," she responded, with a vacant smile.

  "I'm glad you're home with us," he told her, but she didn't reply. "Leona, you understand that you'll have to work very hard or they'll need to take you to a facility."

  "The facilities are nice," Leona responded

  "Yes, I'm sure they are," Joshua said. A tic appeared in the corner of his left eye. "But wouldn't you rather stay in your home?"

  "Home," Leona echoed dreamily. She looked around the room, her gaze floating over objects that should have been familiar to her.

  Dara's stomach turned to acid, and she swallowed back a cry. They'd been permitted so little time with Leona that they hadn't developed an accurate idea of the state of her health. This altered creature sitting with them bore so little resemblance to Leona that Dara found herself staring at her own mother as if she were a stranger.

  "Dara, sweetheart, would you mind getting us some dinner? I'll stay here and work with your mother a bit."

  "Okay, Dad," Dara whispered. As soon as she turned her back, she pressed a fist to her mouth, trying to hold back a scream.

  Chapter 28

  Two days later, it became abundantly clear to Dara that her mother would never be permitted to remain at home. The technician left increasingly terse reports indicating her displeasure with Leona's progress. It was a good thing these visits took place while Dara was at her shift. She felt an overwhelming urge to slap the technician and scream at her that of course Leona wouldn't improve without adequate assistance.

  The more she thought about this, the angrier she got. After all her mother's loyal service and her valuable Contributions, Magnum would do no more than feign offering Leona the care she so desperately needed. In fact, Dara now felt a strong conviction that, from the very start, their intent had always been to send her mother off to a facility. These two weeks were simply a means of wearing down the family's resistance to the idea.

  They think we'll just give up on her, Dara thought, as she watched her mother struggle to bring a spoon to her mouth. The smallest tasks now seemed insurmountable for Leona, and it fell to Dara and her father to take care of the apartment, to help her mother feed herself, to help her shower, to do an endless number of things that, in the past, Leona would have been able to do with barely a thought.

  Resentment began to flare within Dara, but not at her mother. She would have gladly stayed with Leona, worked patiently and tirelessly to help her mother recover, but she couldn't. She had to get up every morning after a sleepless night and drag herself through a twelve hour shift before going home in the evening to put in another twelve hours working on Leona's recovery.

  This is how Contributors are rewarded?

  Though Dara worked as hard as she could, she knew it would only be a matter of days before everything overwhelmed her and she began to break down. The absence of Ryan's snide remarks and underhanded attempts to discredit her had decreased the stress of the apprenticeship somewhat, but Javier hadn't let up. He continued to present innovative, intricate solutions to the problems Andersen posed, and Dara knew it wouldn't be long before she'd lose the edge gained by her trip to Zhang.

  "We've been assigned a special project," Letizia announced, walking up to Dara's station.

  "That's good news," Dara said, trying to muster some enthusiasm.

  "We'll meet at my apartment tonight at nine. I need to review the parameters with you."

  It was useless to protest, so Dara nodded, and Letizia headed off to another meeting. Chen had become rather scarce of late. Apparently, his connection with Ryan had been disastrous for him.

  When shift ended, Dara hurried to find Jonathan. She'd need to race home so that she could shovel in some dinner before going to Letizia's apartment. She hoped fervently that her father didn't have to work late, and that he would be able to handle working with Leona on his own.

  "Do you mind if we hurry? I need to go to Letizia's tonight. We've been assigned a special project, and she needs to go over it with me," she told Jonathan.

  "Of course I don't mind," he replied. His face creased in concern. "You look exhausted."

  "That's because I am."

  "Is your mom making any progress?" She could hear the hesitancy in his voice, and she knew he was convinced that Leona wouldn't improve.

  "Not really."

  "Dara, I know you don't want to hear this—"

  "Then maybe you shouldn't say it," she hissed, startled at her own burst of anger.

  "I'm saying it because I care about you." His voice took on a hard edge.

  "I know you do," she relented. The last thing she needed was a fight with him.

  "Did you ever stop to think that your mom might be better off in a facility, where she could receive around the clock care? I know you and your dad are trying your hardest, but this is completely beyond your abilities."

  "No, I don't think she'd be better off," Dara said, her temper flaring once more. "You're right, my dad and I aren't doctors. But we love her. Those people at the facility, they'd just treat her like another patient. She wouldn't mean anything to them."

  "That's not true at all. It's their job to care for Contributors, and they are every bit as devoted to their Contribution as you are."

  "Can we not talk about this right now?" Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes.

  "Fine. But please, just think about what I said."

  "You ought to know that's all I think about."

  He looked unhappy, but he didn't say anything else. When they arrived at her apartment, he ga
ve her a perfunctory kiss on the cheek. As she watched him walk away, she feared she was losing him.

  He just doesn't understand, she thought sadly. Despite his intelligence and generosity, despite how wonderful he had always been, Jonathan just did not see that some bonds were far stronger than the bond between Job Creator and Contributor.

  But maybe I can make him see.

  It would have to wait. As much as it pained her, she shoved thoughts of Jonathan aside while she hurried to eat something and gather what she needed to take with her to Letizia's. Joshua assured her that they would be fine, but he couldn't hide the worry lines around his mouth, the dark purple shadows under his eyes. Leona smiled faintly at her daughter.

  "Have a nice time, sweetie," she said, her speech slow and deliberate. She looked very pleased with herself when she finished.

  "Thanks, Mom." Dara kissed both of her parents and left.

  Letizia was waiting with a mug of tea when Dara arrived. As she pressed it into her apprentice's hand, Dara could see the sympathy in her eyes.

  "It's not going well, is it?" she asked.

  "No," Dara said, setting her mug down. She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. "She's...she's like a different person. She seems so detached most of the time, as if she's off in her own world. And she has so much trouble with the most mundane tasks."

  "I'm sorry, Dara." Letizia looked stricken. "I wish there was something I could do."

  Dara shrugged. "Thanks. I appreciate the thought, but there's not really anything you can do—although it would be great if you just made up the part about a special project so that you could offer me some sympathy and tea."

  "I didn't make that up, unfortunately. But it was a useful way to get you here so that I could speak privately with you."

  "Oh?" Dara took a sip of her tea, letting it spread some warmth through her. For some reason, she always felt cold lately.

  "I'm not sure how you'll feel about this, but what if I sent a message to Raj about your mom? I know he'd be willing to help you."