The Seers

  Josephine looked around the room. “I’m not sure what you’ve missed, but now isn’t a good time.”

  Nora smiled nervously. “I know. It’s just that when the Tavians came, they took Tobin—”

  “Yes. I’ve been briefed.” Josephine glowered at her without a shred of empathy escaping her stone-cold features.

  No point in dancing around the issue.

  Nora pulled her shoulders back. “I want to mount a rescue mission to save him.”

  Josephine’s laugh was musical but still as frigid. “You want to go to Octavius? With what army? I hope you aren’t asking me for guards.”

  “No. You don’t understand—”

  “No. You don’t understand. I’m Head of the Guard, and I’ve never reacted well when someone thinks they can tell me how to allocate my resources.”

  Nora released a sharp breath. “I’m not here for guards. I want information.”

  Josephine wrinkled her brow.

  “Tobin mentioned something once.” Nora said, her heart pounding. “The Geneva incident, I think, is what he called it. He made it sound like he may have cloned a Tavian implant for the maps.”

  Josephine sucked on her teeth. “Possessing any information from a foreign implant is a serious offense, and an action that the council would most certainly veto. Are you asking me to admit the Niotian Guard is in violation of the treaty?”

  Nora held up her hands. “I’m not asking for an admission.”

  “Even if the Guard possessed information like that—and I’m not admitting we do—why would I tell you?”

  “I don’t care if you broke the treaty,” Nora said, exasperation in her voice. “I’m not asking for guards. Right now, the only thing I care about is that the Tavians have Tobin, and they’ll kill him soon if he’s not rescued. I’m the only person here without an implant so I’m the only person who can enter Octavius.” She took a step closer. “I know you don’t like me. Don’t do it for me. Do it for Tobin.”

  Josephine pinched the bridge of her nose. Nora had done her best, but Josephine didn’t look the least bit inclined to help.

  A clamor of voices drifted in from the hallway and drew closer. Above the din was a woman’s voice—the nurse. “She’s in there.”

  Nora shut her eyes. Her time was up.

  Gideon appeared a moment later, flanked by four Niotian guards. Their uniforms looked a lot like the black tactical gear Nora had seen the Tavians wear, but the Niotian uniforms were gray.

  “There you are.” Gideon’s voice quivered as he pointed to Nora. “Take her into custody.”

  “Excuse me?” Josephine’s commanding voice filled the room as the guards moved toward Nora. “Raphael, what’s this about?”

  A tall guard with dark skin and curly hair paused. “We’re taking this woman into custody under suspicion of conspiring with Octavius.”

  Josephine’s lips curled. “I can see that. My question is why?”

  Gideon held up a hand and flashed a fatherly smile at Josephine. “I can answer that, Commander Batra. This woman was already considered a person of interest for Tavian activity within our district. No one has a clearer motive than her—”

  “Clearer motive? Her?” Josephine glared at Gideon with a ferociousness that made everyone in the room shrink away.

  Gideon straightened up and smoothed the front of his black coat. “Absolutely.”

  Josephine raised her voice as her glare intensified. “She’s married to Tobin Kalos. I’m not seeing the logic in her handing her husband over to the Tavians.”

  Gideon elevated his chin. “The evidence warrants—”

  “That’s just it!” Josephine’s voice boomed. “Last I checked, I was Head of the Guard. Not you. Any evidence you have should have been handed over, and a warrant for political conspiracy would require a vote from the council—which I know didn’t happen. You are way beyond the bounds of your authority.”

  Nora stood, frozen. Gideon’s lips quivered. He replied, “I—These are extraordinary times.”

  “And what are you doing, Raphael?” Josephine’s attention shifted squarely to the large guard who winced. “You are my captain. Since when do you take orders from a political appointee?”

  “Your injuries were extensive. We weren’t sure how to proceed,” he muttered, his gaze never leaving the floor.

  “Let me clear that up.” She whipped the blankets from her lap and got out of the bed. The edges of bandages poked out from underneath her hospital gown. The shadows along her neck were clearly bruises. Even in her injured state, she was fierce.

  “I got out of surgery and will be fully functional in a matter of hours. And even if you had questions, you should have checked with me before answering to new leadership.”

  She looked Gideon up and down.

  Gideon wrung his hands. “You must understand the investigation had to continue. The people of Nios want answers.”

  “Raphael, you and your team are dismissed. If I need something, I will call you,” she said without taking her glare from Gideon. The guards slunk from her room.

  “Josephine, I implore you to use your better judgment! We’ve known each other a long time, you cannot possibly think I—”

  “Which is why I’m so shocked you’d usurp my authority.” Her voice held no astonishment whatsoever. “I’ve already clarified the law. In case there’s any confusion, I’ll spell it out for you. In the event that the council and minister are unable to make a ruling, temporary discretion and full command of the Guard is granted to the Head of the Guard. But if I were you, I wouldn’t be worried about my duties. I’d be worried about the fact that you’re a political appointee and the minister is dead. The next minister isn’t under any obligation to rehire you. Technically, that leaves you unemployed.”

  Gideon’s hands shook as he straightened the front of his coat. “I will always serve the people of Nios. I was only trying to help.”

  “Then leave, and let me do my job.”

  Nora glanced back and forth, wanting to cheer for Josephine.

  A tight smile pulled at Gideon’s lips. “Of course, Commander. Please let me know if there’s anything I can do to assist you.” He glided from the room, and Nora’s chest eased.

  “I didn’t do that for you.” Josephine’s voice was lower but still as commanding.

  “I know.”

  Josephine pinched the bridge of her nose. “You need to know that Gideon is a formidable opponent. He likes to portray himself as a humble servant, but he’s got a bigger ego than most of the council. He’ll be back.”

  Nora shifted on her feet. It seemed like people were lining up to kick her out of Nios. Josephine didn’t need to tell her the odds were stacked against her.

  “Come back in an hour,” Josephine said, leaning on the bed. “I’ll have what you need.”

  Nora’s eyes widened, but she nodded quickly. “Thank you so much.”

  Josephine shrugged and waved a hand toward the door. “It seems I have to get back to work. I have to get dressed. Excuse me.”

  “Of course.” Nora spun for the door. The move made her dizzy, and she struggled to walk in a straight line, but she eventually made her exit.

  She hadn’t taken more than ten steps before a flash of black zipped in front of her.

  Gideon.

  “May I have a word?” he asked through curled lips.

  Nora took a deep breath. She wanted to shrug him off, but she believed Josephine. He’d be back, and she had to avoid inflaming the situation.

  “Of course,” she said with a tired smile.

  He strode to a cove in the hallway, and she followed. “I don’t want you to have any misconceptions about my conversation with Commander Batra.” He stepped closer, forcing Nora backward. “This attack has caused some confusion in terms of policies and procedures, but I assure you that will not hamper our investigation. The people of Nios will have justice.”

  Nora swallowed hard. “I—I’m glad. I have nothing to hide.”r />
  “We’ll see about that. I filed for your asylum, which means I am legally responsible for you while you’re here…” He paused, his chin quivering and eyes watering. “A fact for which I will never forgive myself. You played a part in this. I may not have all the evidence yet, but I can file a petitioner’s warrant to have you detained.”

  Petitioner’s warrant? “I had nothing to do with this!”

  “You’re lying!” he shouted, startling some passersby. “Even if I don’t have the evidence yet, it’s my duty to have you detained as your petitioner if I feel you may be a threat. Don’t go far. I’ll be back shortly.”

  He stormed away, and she rushed to her hospital room. “Henry, please say you’ve made some progress. I have to go now.”

  He huffed in his chair, pecking away. “First Tobin, now you. This kind of thing takes time. The program has to be perfect or it won’t work at all.”

  She knelt down, looking for her shoes under her bed. “Gideon is trying to arrest me. Apparently, he can do that as the petitioner of my asylum. If I don’t leave here soon, I might never have the chance!”

  Henry frowned at her. “Gideon wouldn’t do that. He’s too much of a stickler for evidence.”

  She glanced out the door. “I know I’ve only been here one night, but I’m telling you, you’re wrong. He wants revenge, and he’s going to make me pay for this attack regardless of where the evidence leads.”

  “She’s right,” Josephine said from behind her. Nora nearly fell over, and Henry nearly tossed his tablet.

  “You didn’t tell me he was your petitioner,” she said, crossing the room to them. She was fully dressed in her gray tactical uniform.

  Henry leaped to a stand. “Commander Batra! It’s nice to see you—I mean, not nice given the circumstances, but you seem to be doing well. Anyway, this is all a misunderstanding. Gideon filed the paperwork as a favor to Councilmember Zuri.”

  She scoffed. “You really are naive. That gives him all the power over her. I just got a message from Raphael. He’s filing a petitioner’s warrant right now. I have to honor that. I’m sorry, Leonora, but you have to come with me.”

  “No! Please,” Nora begged backing into the hospital bed. “If I don’t go, no one will be able to rescue Tobin.”

  Josephine’s features stayed stone-cold as she grabbed Nora, stretching to make contact with her neck and ankles.

  “You should probably get out of here,” she said to Henry, a moment before she teleported away with Nora.

  Chapter 34

  Nora opened her eyes. Dark wood shelves stood on both sides of her, piled high with books and boxes. At the end of the row, light shone in through a large stained-glass window of a gold compass over a blue lightning. The musty smell of stale paper hung in the air. All was quiet. A far cry from the Tavian dungeon, it looked like a cross between a church and a library. This couldn’t be the Niotian jail.

  Josephine walked the rows, sweeping the room in a methodical pattern just like Tobin would have done.

  “W-where are we?” Nora asked.

  “Historical archives in the government building,” she replied, her head on a swivel. “Since you asked for the cloned implant, I’m guessing you’d need to come here for a headset, and you would have never made it here on your own. Gideon works down the hall in the minister’s office.”

  Headset? Nora tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

  Josephine watched her carefully. “That is how you planned to access the information on the device, right?”

  Nora shifted on her feet. She’d been so concerned with getting the device itself, she’d never thought about how she’d use it.

  “Don’t make me regret this.” Josephine groaned. She reached into her pocket and held out a small bronze bean—the implant.

  “You had it,” Nora whispered. The tiny device glinted in the light.

  Josephine’s dark eyes bulged. “I never had anything because this never existed,” she said, the command returning to her voice. “There’s no proof that can tie this to me.”

  Nora took the implant and studied it in her palm, caring little about whether it could be tied to Josephine. Even if she wanted to implicate her, Gideon would never believe it. All that mattered now was that she had the maps she needed to find Tobin.

  “Thank you,” she said. “For everything.”

  “I’m not doing this for you,” Josephine muttered, brushing past her to check another row. “This is for Tobin.”

  Nora nodded. “Still. Thanks.”

  Josephine drew in a deep breath. “Gideon’s heart is in the right place, but I know you’re not the mole. The whole Guard knows you told the truth about the Tavians, and the worst stuff happened after you’d been exiled. We deal with it every day, but we’ve never had enough proof for the council to authorize an investigation.”

  “I hope you find whoever it is,” Nora said.

  “Oh, I will,” Josephine replied. “But Gideon has forced my hand. When he figures out you’re not in your hospital room, he’ll say you ran because you’re guilty. So instead of finding the mole or responding to the Tavian attack, the Guard’s top priority will be finding you. And if anyone finds you with that implant, it’ll be all the proof they need to put you away forever.”

  “Henry,” Nora said, trying not to panic. “None of this will work if I can’t get some files from him. I have to get to him!”

  “Didn’t you hear me? Gideon could be outside right now, and you’re going to have hundreds of guards looking for you in a matter of minutes. You can’t go anywhere. I’ll get a message to your friend.”

  Nora nodded, but her pulse was pounding in her ears.

  Josephine sighed. “I’ve got to go before this whole thing blows up. Stay here. Stay quiet. Understand?”

  “Yes,” Nora murmured.

  “Good,” Josephine replied, her eyes dropping to the ground. “If I don’t see you again, good luck. Bring him home.”

  She disappeared in a blue flash, and Nora sank to the floor to wait for Henry.

  An hour had passed—the longest hour of her life. Her glances toward the door were growing more frequent as she debated what she should do.

  Henry should have been there by now. Maybe if she listened at the door and made sure no one was outside, she could sneak back to the hospital and figure out where he’d gone.

  The door knob jiggled, and she rushed behind a row of books.

  “Nora?” Henry whispered loudly.

  Thank God.

  She popped out of her hiding place. “What took you so long?”

  “There are guards posted just outside. They’re not letting anyone in who doesn’t work here,” he said, his curls bouncing. “I finally had to trip the automated security alerts so they thought a Tavian had entered Nios.”

  “Josephine said I had to get out of here quick.”

  “That’s an understatement,” he said, pulling his tablet out. “I’ve set up some various anomalies and crashed the messaging system, but I’m not quite finished with the security overwrite. It’s essentially a worm, to use a term from the outside world.”

  Nora stared at him blankly. A worm was a slimy dirt-dwelling creature from gardens.

  He rolled his eyes. “A computer virus? I mean, technically it’s not a virus. It’s an independent program that will gain access to their system, target specific protocols, and rewrite them. It will then encrypt its changes so the Tavians won’t be able to fix it before they would have to evacuate.”

  “That’s great,” she said even though she understood very little of what he’d said. “Will it work? Will the Tavians have to teleport out of Octavius?”

  Henry scowled at her. “Maybe. If you let me finish!”

  Nora rubbed her neck and paced away.

  The door opened again. Nora tried to dive behind a shelf, but it was too late.

  Charlotte poked her head in. “Oh no. You’re still here.”

  “It’s not that easy to rewrite security protoc
ols! Why can’t anyone understand that?” Henry shouted with his hands splayed.

  Charlotte slipped in and leaned on the door. “Well, there’s no rush now. Something set off the security alerts.”

  “It’s nothing,” Henry replied without looking up from his tablet. “I tripped the alert to get the guards away from here.”

  “I figured, but that triggered a lockdown. Everyone has to shelter in place. They’re emptying the streets. No one can teleport in or out until Josephine gives the order, and she can’t do that until they finish their search. It’s a ghost town outside.”

  “No,” Nora said, her shoulders falling. “How will I get out now?”

  Charlotte rested her head on the door. “I wish I had the answer to that. Josephine messaged me to tell me what was happening. Maybe she can direct the search elsewhere to keep you safe, but it’ll likely be hours before you’ll be able to teleport.”

  Nora skewered Henry with her gaze.

  “Don’t blame me for this!” he said, glaring back.

  “Shh! Both of you,” Charlotte whispered and placed her ear on the door.

  Nora backed into a shelf. The guards must be coming. If they took her, no one would be left to save Tobin.

  Charlotte’s mouth dropped open, and she waved for them to join her at the door.

  “I know I’m not supposed to have any contact with you, but you promised!” The voice echoed through the hall outside. It was hoarse, livid, but unmistakable.

  Gideon.

  “You can’t deny it! I saw the alert myself. At least one of your guards teleported into the southeast quadrant. We’re in a lockdown now! They sent me back to my office to twiddle my thumbs while they search every inch of Nios. If they’re still here, I’ll have no choice but to pursue punishment to the fullest extent of our laws. Find a way to pull them back, or you can tell Cyrus that our deal is off.”

  Cyrus.

  Nora gasped.

  Henry backed away from the door, the color draining from his face. He leaned on the wall and slid to the floor, staring blankly ahead. Gideon’s muffled voice continued until a door slammed shut down the hall.