The Divinity Bureau

by Tessa Clare

  “Finn, which way do we go?” I press as we run through the hall.

  “Keep going until you hit the stairs. It’ll take you to the main floor, where – shit!”

  I tense at those words. “What is it?”

  “They’re all moving towards the exit. They know you’ll be headed that way.”

  “Well, is there another exit?”

  “You’re in the basement. The only way out is up.”

  I struggle to remember the layout of the Divinity Bureau, but I’m running on little food and sleep. And my arms are aching from carrying April. But I’ve spent two years working for the Divinity Bureau. I must know of another way!

  A thought occurs to me. I turn on the heels of my feet and bolt in the opposite direction.

  “Roman!” Tate calls out, confused by the sudden change in direction. “Where are you going?”

  “Follow me!”

  “There’s guards chasing us from that direction!”

  “Trust me on this, Tate!”

  The guards shoot at us when they hear our footsteps, but they can’t get a good hit without knowing where their targets are. I realize that the security force is practically helpless without their AI security system. I manage to knock one guard out by swinging a piece of equipment – it looks like a slab, but I don’t know what it’s used for – into his head. For every bullet that swings past us, April cringes in my chest. Her reaction is unexpected. The sound bothers me, but I don’t cower in fear the way she is – and she’s typically far braver than I am. Something inside her had changed since I had last seen her.

  At last, I stop in front of my destination and hit a button to take us up. Tate is gasping for air by the time we’ve arrived, and his mouth drops when he sees why we stopped. “We’re taking the elevator?”

  I don’t say anything. It’s the only solution that I have.

  “We were almost to the stairs, and you made us turn around to take the elevator?”

  “The stairs are surrounded by guards,” says Finn through our earpieces. “I think the elevator is a safer bet.”

  “We’re coming to get you, Finn,” I say.

  “I appreciate you not forgetting about me,” Finn replies lightly, as though oblivious to the tension happening a few floors below him. “Though what are you planning on doing about the exit?”

  “We’re not taking the exit. We’re taking the elevator to the second floor and jumping out the closest window.”

  April and Tate’s eyes widen, just as the elevator bell rings and the doors open to take us to our destination.

  “No way!”

  “I’m not jumping from the second floor!”

  As soon as we’re in the elevator, I gently set April to her feet. Blood circulation comes back into my arm, and I do my best to hold in the pain. April looks away guiltily. Once I have my thoughts in order, I explain, “Look, I know it sucks; but the way I see it, it’s better to risk a few broken bones than dying. You know there’s no way they’re going to let us walk free.”

  April’s mouth opens to respond, but she’s cut off by the sound of the door opening. We thought we had reached the second floor; but instead, we’re greeted by the sight of Gideon Hearthstrom – and the guards that surround him. Before we have the chance to register what’s happening, we’re forced out of the elevator and onto our knees.

  “Roman,” Finn’s voice had lowered in my earpiece. I strain to hear him. “I think we have a problem.”

  “You think?”

  “Guards are trying to get into the office,” Finn says, his voice trembling. “They’re threatening to kick the door down.”

  I look straight at Gideon. We’re in trouble. April will die. Tate, Finn, and I will likely be imprisoned for the rest of our lives. It’ll take a miracle to get us out of the situation that we’re in. Fortunately, I spent the drive from District 180 to here programming one.

  “Finn,” I say quietly, while Gideon discusses with his guards on what they are to do with us. “You know there’s a way out.”

  Finn sighs. “I can’t. You programmed it while you were half-asleep. I’m not saying that I don’t have faith in your programming capabilities – but you could’ve easily made a mistake! I’m not about to risk it with my life!”

  I close my eyes, thinking back to the conversation that we had earlier.

  We got lucky coming into the bureau’s headquarters. None of the guards knew that Finn and I had been fired. When Tate, Finn, and I approach their desks, Finn distracts them by asking about their children and making small talk about the latest pollution levels. After twenty minutes of chatting, I excuse myself and tell them that I need to check a router so that I can complete one of my tickets. For the first time since I was sacked, I feel like my two-year tenure at the Divinity Bureau has paid off.

  It’s after hours, which means that the call center is empty. As expected, the facial recognition software in the office door recognizes my face – thanks to a few updates that I had made several months ago – and lets us in without hesitation. Once we’re alone, I unveil my plan – and the reason why I was silent throughout the drive.

  I hold out the chip in my hand. “This is a virus – but it’s a special kind of virus. It temporarily shuts down any computer when transmitted over a signal. It doesn’t damage the files or anything. It just puts everything on pause.” Finn and Tate glance at each other. I’m guessing they’re debating on who is going to break the bad news that it likely won’t help us rescue April. Fortunately, I already took that into consideration. “One more thing: it also works on BIONs.”

  I thought of my conversation with Finn when he had first found me: ‘She’s got a new name and a new identity. Her phone line is disconnected. Her GPS is out. What else can they possibly look into?’

  ‘BIONs?’

  The three of us stand in silence. I watch as their faces contour from shock to disbelief to confusion to awe to a reaction that I did not expect: disgust.

  Finn is the first to speak: “That’s pretty invasive, don’t you think? We’re talking about hacking into someone’s body.”

  “And sentencing millions of people to die every quarter isn’t?”

  In my mind, it all made sense. BIONs are computers. Computers can be hacked. I have a Master’s degree in this. I’ve spent years and money perfecting this art, and I’ll finally get my chance to use those skills.

  “You can’t,” Finn says flatly. “It’s too dangerous. You don’t know what the repercussions will be!”

  “I know what will happen if I don’t do it!”

  “What about me?” Finn screeches, clenching his fists. “I’m immortal! If this ship breaks, I’m going down with it!”

  I can hear the guards through my earpiece. The four of us are trapped. Only Finn can get us out of here. I press a hand to my earpiece and let out a breath. “Finn, I’m going to need you to trust me.”

  Finn lets out a bitter laugh. “Should I? Because last time I checked…”

  He’s cut off by a high-pitched squeal in my earpiece. I groan in pain and throw my earpiece to the ground before it can do any further damage. I glance at Tate, who has done the same. When I look up, Gideon is standing over us with a triumphant smile on his face.

  “Sorry about that, gentleman,” Gideon says smugly. “But we couldn’t have you co-conspiring your escape.” He moves to where April is hunched onto the ground and grabs her by the hair. She winces in pain as he sneers, “It seems like I can’t ever be rid of you.”

  “Let her go!” Tate cries.

  His response comes from a guard, who kicks him in the stomach. Gideon chuckles as Tate falls to the ground, clutching his stomach in pain.

  Gideon then waltzes over to me, hovering over me like a looming tower. I refuse to look him in the eyes. It’s bad enough that he forced me to choose between my morals and my income. It’s even worst that he nearly killed the woman that I love. But the worst feeling is the realization that I’m completely helpless against him. Gideon
is an elected government official with the power to determine who lives and who dies – and we can all be dead by the time the day is over.

  “I expected better from you,” Gideon muses. “You were brilliant, especially considering you were just an office assistant.”

  ‘Just an office assistant,’ I think with a grimace. They were the first words I had ever heard from Gideon’s mouth, and they could very well be the last.

  “Who do you think you are, boy?” Gideon taunts. “This isn’t a university. This is the government. We’ve been around far longer than you’ve even been alive.”

  I remain silent, hanging my head in shame.

  “The police have been called,” Gideon continues. “If it were up to me, I’d have you joining your precious girlfriend – but if I expect to have a job in two years, I’ll just have to settle for having you spend a very long time behind bars. You’ll be –”

  “Sir!” a voice calls out.

  Gideon glares at the guard who had interrupted him. “What?”

  “Bobby just fainted!”

  My eyes widen, daring to hope. Did Finn pull through?

  Gideon rolls his eyes. “Well, get him out of here then!”

  Suddenly, another guard falls to the ground – then another, and another. Gideon’s expression turns from jeer to astonishment as he watches his guards go from alert to unconscious in a matter of seconds.

  “What the hell is going on?” Gideon roars, turning to glare at us.

  Tate and I glance at each other with knowing smiles on our faces. We know precisely what’s going on. With newfound confidence, I stand up to glower at Gideon in triumph. “You asked me who I thought I was. I’m just going to remind you for the millionth time: I’m the IT guy.”

  Tate and April stand up as well. April glances around the room in confusion, unsure why the guards that surround us are fainting and why we don’t seem to be panicking. “What’s going on?”

  Tate grins. “Your boyfriend is a genius.”

  “Hacking into computers is what I went to school for,” I explain. “BIONs are computers – and they happen to be in the bloodstream of anyone that has opted to become immortal. All I had to do was take a virus and distribute it over a wireless signal – like the bureau’s internet connection – and anyone with BIONs in their system takes a nap.”

  April stares at me in astonishment. “I can’t believe it.”

  Gideon’s face turns red. I brace myself for a harsh remark, but no words come. Instead, he crashes to the ground next to his security personnel.

  “We have to get Finn,” I say. “He’s got BIONs in his system as well!”

  “So, he finally decided to trust you,” Tate says dryly.

  I nod. With security disabled temporarily, April is looking at me as though she’s ready to run into my arms and kiss me senseless. By the way her flushing cheeks and hitched breathing, I think she might do it. I wouldn’t have minded it. After all, we’re safe until the police come.

  But before she can take another step, she collapses to the ground.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  APRIL

  I can feel myself floating.

  I drift in and out of consciousness, willing myself to wake up; but I can’t move anything beyond my fingertips. I try to tell myself that it’ll all be okay. I’m with my boyfriend and my best friend – and together, we’ll be able to live long and prosperous lives. I’ll get us new identities. I have enough money for us to live comfortable lives. We can live under the radar until the end of our natural lives.

  “We have to get to a place with internet!”

  I recognize the first voice as belonging to Roman, and I want to laugh. We barely escaped death, and the first thing he thinks about is getting to a place with internet. I wonder how we managed to survive not having it in his apartment.

  Tate scoffs. “Are you kidding me? April passes out, and that’s the first thing you think about?”

  It’s not a big deal, at least to me. It’s just a sign that our lives are returning to normal.

  But Roman’s voice is strained. “She was injected with BIONs. We need to stabilize them.”

  That’s when I realize he has a point: the BIONs in my system aren’t programmed to give me eternal life. They’re programmed to kill me.

  And that’s when it hits me: I’m dying. I’ve spent months – even years – fearing this moment; but now that it’s finally here, I’m not afraid. I’d be reunited with my parents. If I become a ghost, I can even use the opportunity to pull some pranks on Autumn. I don’t mind the idea of dying at all.

  “Can you get Finn?” Roman asks, his voice shaking. “I’ll meet you in the car.”

  Tate doesn’t need to be told twice. I feel a rush of air as he moves past me.

  Roman lifts me into his arms and carries me through the lobby of the bureau. His body is hot, like the feeling of the sun beating down on me. By the time Roman stops to unlock the car, his body is drenched in sweat. But when Roman sets me into the backseat of the car, I still feel as though the sun is beating down on me. I realize, then, that Roman isn’t warm. I’m running a fever.

  Tate joins us shortly after with Finn’s unconscious body in tow (‘Finn?’ I ask myself, wondering what could have prompted Roman’s former boss to rescue me). Roman gives Tate the car keys, hops into the backseat, and they drive off without another word.

  “The BIONs…” Roman says with a wince. “They’re releasing this chemical. I don’t know what it is, but I think it’s poisoning her.”

  I want to laugh at the irony. I’ve spent decades believing that BIONs are the key to immortal life; but right now, they’re the key to my death.

  “It’s probably the Divinity Bureau’s doing,” says Tate. “Can you undo it?”

  “I… I don’t know.”

  I move my fingertips – then my mouth. “Roman…”

  Through half-open eyelids, I can see Roman stationed in front of a laptop with his dark eyebrows furrowed in concentration. As soon as he hears my voice, however, he looks away from the screen and into my eyes. A smile spreads across his lips. “Hey, April.”

  I swallow. “I’m dying.”

  Roman shakes his head. “No! No, you’re not!”

  Tate stops the car in front of what appears to be a restaurant. “Can you connect to the internet here?”

  Roman nods. “Yeah, there’s a signal here, but…” He trails off.

  “Well, hurry up and do something!”

  I want to hug Tate. I didn’t get the chance to say goodbye to him before I left, so perhaps this is my opportunity. “Tate…”

  Tate isn’t willing to hear any of it. He gives me a half-smile. “Shut up. You’re only going to distract him.”

  A part of me wants to protest, but the rest of me is too tired to do anything but drift to sleep.

  When I awaken again, tears are streaming against Roman’s face. I don’t know how much time has passed, but his determined expression has turned to despair.

  “I… I can’t do it,” he rasps out.

  By now, Finn has already awoken. He’s glancing over Roman’s shoulder, staring at the screen with his lips pressed together.

  “Yes, you can,” Finn offers in encouragement. “If you can knock out the entire bureau in one sweep, you can save her.”

  I sigh. “It’s okay.”

  They both turn their attention to me, unaware until now that I had awoken. I swallow the lump in my throat as I continue, “I’m okay with dying. I’ve finally accepted that it’s inevitable.”

  Roman shakes his head. “Don’t say that.”

  “Why not?” I ask, my voice dry and weak. “I’m… I’m so hot. And everything hurts. I just feel so weak. I think it’d be easier if I…” I trail off, unable to finish the sentence.

  They both alternate their stares between me and the computer. Maybe they’ve finally decided to let me go – until I feel Roman’s hand against mine. He places it against my chest.

  “Do you f
eel this?”

  I feel a pounding in my chest. “It’s my heart.”

  Roman nods. “It’s your heart, beating stronger and faster than ever before. Right now, your body is regenerating the lost blood cells and fixing the broken parts of you, faster than you and I can even comprehend.” He swallows, willing himself to continue. “I know you’re in pain. But pain makes you stronger, wiser, humbler, and kinder…” Roman’s voice is hoarse. “You know this. You’ve been through more loss, heartbreak, and setbacks than one person should ever go through in a lifetime; and for this, you’re one of the strongest people I know. So, don’t think for a second that what you’re feeling makes you weak. Pain is your advantage.”

  I watch him before my eyelids begin to flutter. I feel myself slip back to sleep. When I do, I hear Roman say, “I think I’ve figured something out.”

  It’s dark by the time I awaken again. When I do, the first thing I notice is that the sweat sticking to my body feels cool. I shiver when a gust of wind brushes against my skin. I also notice that the car is empty.

  Feat strikes me. Have we been caught? Have they given up on me? I stand up and kick the door open. When I do, I find myself in the middle of a camping ground.

  “Roman?”

  No answer.

  “Tate?”

  Silence.

  “F… Finn?” I ask, even though the name sounds foreign on my lips.

  Not a soul in sight. I want to curl into a ball and let out a wail. After everything we’ve been through in the last few days, I just want someone to pull me into their arms and tell me that it’s going to be okay. Maybe it won’t be. But I don’t want to be on my own.

  I notice a tent perched next to the car. Exhausted and desperate for answers, I pull it open.