Chastity never once took her eyes off him.
“I think you understand me, although you don’t seem to speak much.”
Her face flushed. She swallowed and said, “Yes, Mr. Statesman.”
He sat back in his chair, looking at her intently. “There is one other matter we need to discuss. I reviewed your file, and I was concerned about your refusal to write your final exam.”
Her stomach lurched, nausea nearly over taking her. She looked away from him, sweat instantly glistening her brow.
“You’re not in trouble,” he assured her, “but I hope you can appreciate my concern. You will be responsible for writing all of my addresses. As I would like my administrator to be available to me long term, I feel this subject needs to be addressed. I know your grades and classwork were impeccable up to that point. I know you are more than capable of doing the job, I’m just uncertain if you want it.”
She opened her mouth and closed it again, shame filling her eyes with tears. He kept his eyes on her, waiting for a suitable explanation.
“I can write your speeches, sir.”
He smiled. “I know you can, or I wouldn’t have brought you here. My concern is if you had your heart set on something else. An administrative position where speech writing wouldn’t be required of you?”
She shook her head. “I thought I was being sent to the mountain, sir.”
He narrowed his eyes and looked off to the side. “And you didn’t want to move out to Cheyenne?”
“No, I didn’t want to leave here.”
He nodded. “I can appreciate why a young woman wouldn’t want to be separated from her family and friends.” He gave a half laugh. “How would you feel if I told you, that is exactly where you were headed until I asked to have someone from your class redirected here.”
Chastity lost her composure, letting a few salty tears escape. “I would feel grateful to be here, and to you for the redirection, Mr. Statesman.”
She quickly regained control of herself and cleaned up her rogue tears.
“Then I am thrilled to bring you on as my administrator.” He looked at her for a moment and smiled. “I think that is one of the first things I want to change. I was a worker in this house—just like you—before becoming the Head of State. They all referred to me by my name for years, then one day I suddenly became ‘Mr. Statesman.’ It hasn’t grown on me. I don’t want my family to address me in such a formal way. I would prefer it if you called me Victor.”
She felt as though her heart skipped a beat, yet she refused to lower her gaze. “Yes, Victor.”
He smiled warmly and nodded. “I think we understand each other. I hope we can find common ground and enjoy our working relationship.”
Her voice cracked slightly. “I would like that as well.”
“Good.” He beamed. “I asked you here today so we could have this chat. I know you have a lot to learn in your new role and it will be difficult. I also know Lenora will take every opportunity to make your training miserable. I guess I wanted a chance to look you in the eye, so I could see what you’re made of. I can tell from your report you are tough and damned intelligent. I wanted to see for myself if you are who your report said you are, and I can tell already, I won’t be disappointed in your performance.”
Chastity nodded and attempted a tense smile. “Thank you, Victor.”
He nodded. “Alright. You should get back to your training before Lenora gives herself an aneurysm. As much as I won’t miss her when she retires, I do need her to train you. I definitely can’t do this job on my own; I’m far too new at it. I’m still trying to figure out what the hell I’m supposed to do myself.”
She smiled, nodded, and stood from her seat. “Yes, Victor.” She opened the door and found Lenora standing a little too close.
Lenora didn’t miss a beat nor show any guilt or remorse for eavesdropping. “Come this way.” She turned and led Chastity back to the confined apartment.
They resumed work on their tablets. Lenora didn’t warm to her or slow down to help her learn but Chastity still felt so much weight lifted off her shoulders. Lenora was a short-term fixture in her life. No matter how short or condescending she got, Chastity could now complete her training knowing that soon she would be free of her.
Chapter 17
Chastity
Her heart fluttered as the monitor flashed. It had been tricky to set up a video conference with her mother. Lance had informed her that conferencing was made available to students to help them adjust to moving into their independent dwelling. Once people were coupled, video conferencing with a family member wasn’t the standard practice.
With her mother’s challenging schedule, they passed an endless sea of emails back and forth before Hope suggested they talk over her dinner break. There were so many things Chastity wanted to share with her mother, and she especially wanted to talk when Lance wouldn’t be home. She checked the time on her tablet the moment she walked in the door and activated the monitor.
Her mother’s face immediately came into view. “Mom!” She bounced.
Tears instantly filled her mother’s eyes. “Oh, Chastity. It is so good to see you. I am sorry I’ve been so hard to get a hold of these days.” Hope shifted, altering Chastity’s view of her.
“Are you on a tablet?”
Hope sighed. “Yes, sorry. I have been working longer days than I used to. When you asked to talk, I decided I could take my tablet and lock myself in my office for a little while.”
“I didn’t know you could talk this way. I thought these calls were a monitor only kind of situation.”
She shook her head. “That’s because the monitors are easier to use.” She looked at Chastity and sighed. “But enough about tablets, I want to hear about you. How is school?”
Chastity flinched. “School? Mom, I’m done.”
“What?” Hope fumbled her tablet. “For how long? Where are you?”
“Didn’t the State notify you?”
Hope’s eyes moistened. “I’m sorry. They might have sent me an email, and I just didn’t see it. I’ve been swamped here and only reading messages that could be an emergency.”
Chastity’s heart rate increased. “What’s going on, Mom?”
“Nothing.” She shook her head. “We have just had a few setbacks and I need this project to move forward. I guess I let myself get completely consumed by my work.”
Chastity nodded. An uneasy feeling setting in. She had never seen her mother look tired before, nor show the emotional decay brought on by stress. Her project was clearly bringing her down, which made Chastity question if gushing about her new life was what her mother needed.
“I’m sorry to hear that, Mom. Should I let you get back to work?”
“No! I want to hear everything.” She perked up and leaned in closer. “If you left school, does that mean you were coupled?”
A wide grin came across her face. “Yes, I did. His name is Lance, and he works in Security.”
“And what do you think of him?”
Chastity’s face flushed.
Hope took a deep breath. “Oh, come on. Tell me everything even if it’s terrible.”
“Terrible?” Chastity squinted.
“Hey,” Hope shrugged. “I didn’t like your father when I first met him. We were 13, I was stressed out, and he was too chatty for my foul mood.”
Chastity shook her head. “You know, I’ve never realized until now how weird it would be to get coupled so young. Even at 18, past the standard age of coupling, I still feel a bit young for this.”
Hope simply looked at the screen. It seemed to Chastity that her mother was pretending to be happy as her facial muscles tugged downward against her will. “So?”
Chastity looked at her mother sheepishly, hoping that gushing about her dashing new partner would bring a smile to her face.
“I don’t know what to say.” Chastity blushed. “He seems nice.”
“Nice is good. When did this happen?”
<
br /> “Just under a week ago. I took my last exam and moved the next day.” She shifted in her seat, feeling a strange pressure to perform. “You know, most of my classmates were sent out to the mountain.”
Her mother’s face fell. “And I take it, since you were coupled with a Security officer, you are not at the mountain.” She looked tired and her shoulders slumped. “I was hoping you would end up there, actually.”
“Really? Why?”
“I thought maybe I could get a transfer out there and we could spend some time together.” Hope clenched her jaw.
Although no part of Chastity wanted to end up at the mountain, she was sad for her mother as her plan for them would never happen. The thought of them together had never occurred to Chastity yet it appeared her mother had been clinging onto this silent wish for some time.
“I’m sorry, Mom.”
She shook her head and straightened her shoulders. “Not your fault. I assume you ended up somewhere important. If I were to guess, I would think you are in the education system. Not the administrator in education centers, but part of the team who decide on what the curriculum is and how it is delivered, or something else high end. I’ve always felt you would be responsible for making important decisions which would affect the masses.”
Chastity smiled coyly and shook her head. “Nope. Guess again.”
Hope tapped her chin. “You bring in the medical research and coordinate all the trainings for the medical teams.”
“Is that a real job?”
“It has to be.”
Chastity beamed. “Well, it’s not mine.”
Hope resumed her tapping. “My next guess would be in Security, but you said your partner is one of them. I don’t suppose they would put the two of you together like that.”
“Nope.” Chastity could hardly contain her excited energy any longer.
Her mother winced and her recently found energy sunk. “They haven’t put you in the military, have they?”
It surprised her to see the disappointment and fear spread across her mother’s face. “No.” She hesitated. “But you’re getting warmer.”
A blank look came across her mother’s face. “I feel like I’ve guessed everything already.”
Chastity tried to keep the corners of her lips neutral and her muscles twitched slightly at the strain.
This will cheer her up for sure.
“There is one thing you haven’t guessed, and I know why. They usually require experience in the military beforehand.” She paused, no longer trying to contain her grin. “I’m training to be the administrator at the State House. I will personally run not only all the staff in the State House, but I’m the right hand to the Head of State himself.”
Her mother’s jaw fell open—as Chastity had expected—but she didn’t expect her skin to turn ghostly white. She looked away from the monitor, her eyes moistening.
Chastity’s face fell in response. She had envisioned nothing could make her mother prouder than to have the highest position an administrator can hold at such a young and inexperienced age. It was nearly incomprehensible.
Her mother had always gushed over every little thing she had ever done. Now that she had something worthy of the most extreme case of parental pride, her mother’s reaction didn’t seem to fit the occasion.
“Oh.” Hope finally responded. She gave a vain attempt to pretend to be happy. “Wow, what a surprise! I’m, you just… I’m speechless. Congratulations.” A few tears escaped her eyes, slowly descending her cheeks. “Wow.”
Chastity struggled to conjure a response herself. Why isn’t she happy? She can’t be jealous, can she? Has she pretended to be proud of me all these years when really, she was happy I didn’t climb as high as she did? What kind of parent is jealous of their child when she should be proud of me?
“Have you met the Head of State?”
Chastity’s jaw clenched. “Yes, mother. I work in his home and I am taking over the position as soon as I finish my training.”
Hope nodded, still trying to smile through her tears. “Do you know how long that will be? Before you take over? Will you have help? Or is the job yours alone?”
“I will do it alone.” She snapped. “Lenora will retire as soon as I am fully trained.”
A few more tears escaped her mother’s eyes. “Wow. That is so much responsibility. There is no one who could replace you, is there?”
Chastity flipped her hair out of her face. “No, there isn’t. It isn’t commonplace for an administrator to receive training outside the education center. I don’t know what would happen if something happened to Lenora, and she wasn’t able to train me, or if I’m not able to train my replacement. This position is indispensable.”
It’s like she can’t even believe I can handle this! Or can’t accept that I'm someone more important than she is. I can’t believe she is acting like this! Chastity fumed internally.
Hope nodded and wiped her tears once again. “I always knew you were special. I just didn’t expect you to assist the Head of State. That’s incredible, sweetheart.” Her emotions didn’t match her words. A constant stream of tears flowed down her cheeks.
Chastity’s mind was spinning. Her core burned with anger. She had been so excited to speak to her mother, now she wanted nothing more than to be free of her.
“Yes, well, thank you. I must go now, Mother. I think Lance will be home shortly.”
“Oh, gee. We didn’t get a chance to talk about your partner. Hopefully the next time, when you know him better you will have even more to tell me.”
“I’m sure I will.” Chastity stood from the sofa and closed the distance to the monitor. “Goodbye, Mom.”
As the monitor switched to black, a restless energy came over Chastity. A horrible realization dawned on her. Perhaps the State is right to divide a child from their parents. Maybe it is just normal to outgrow the relationship. What if I am an anomaly for wanting to contact her? Maybe I’m meant to forget about her and just focus on my civil duty.
If her mother was petty about the fact that she had become more successful than her, then it made sense to break off all ties. She simply needed to reframe her mindset. She was in a new coupling and civil duty, starting a new life.
What do I need my mother for now anyway? I am no longer a little girl. I can have a life of my own, without her.
Chapter 18
Hope
Hope took a deep breath. She dropped her hand to her side, forcing herself to stop biting her thumbnail. She smoothed her hair and looked around at the group. Everyone held an eager expression as there was always an air of excitement when modifications were tested for the first time.
The others may be excited, but Hope was anxious; these types of tests were the most stressful for her. Every single test-day, she would lay awake the previous night and arrive at the lab completely exhausted. Thanks to Security’s continual surveillance, her agitation and restlessness had not gone unnoticed.
Hope took a mandated trip to a psychologist who diagnosed her with post-traumatic stress disorder. Part of her agreed with the diagnosis, even though the psychologist held few details of her accident.
Her file was still sealed; the information around her partner’s death deeply classified. It was possible that the physical and emotional trauma from the accident had left its mark.
She knew she had other reasons to dread test days; she was constantly torn between knowing she had to produce results to ensure her own safety and wanting the project to fail.
Hope was afraid of the repercussions of stalling longer, but she was even more afraid of what would happen if they succeeded. Would they give her a teaching position? Or would she suddenly die in her sleep while maintaining perfect health? She noticed this happened to other civilians her age, people who had already given their best years to the State.
Hope and her team were escorted out of the laboratory and into the observation room where they would watch the machinery during the testing. The computer syst
ems performed their measurements behind the safety of the heavily partitioned glass wall.
She clenched her fists tightly at her sides while straining to keep her facial expressions neutral. This was not the first glass-strengthening coating they had tested, but they had been rather close the time before. Somehow, she knew this would be the one.
They were commissioned to create a treatment to make the glass indestructible but to also do it with the least amount of resources possible. Small cubes of glass were treated and placed into a machine which would perform a stress test. Some cubes of glass had been coated multiple times while others were treated only once.
Betrayed: Book Five of the State Series Page 11