Inhumanity

Chapter 7

I lean against the door frame as the engine door slides open "I am in desperate need of a drink" I cal out. Javi shakes his head "you've somehow confused us with the nightcar" he teases. I roll my eyes and slip out of my heels letting out a sigh, I run my heel where they rubbed against all the way back here. "Cup of tea" he offers, I nod "you are an angel Javi, and yes you can quote me on that later" he chuckles and walks off to get me that mug of tea I've been craving.

I head to the engine room and fall into a chair "ever thought about a career in public speaking, maybe we'll make you our spokesperson, you could be the voice of the train" Ben jokes. I snort and spin round in the chair "no thanks.". I toss my heels "we should so use these for interrogation, how does Melanie manage to walk around in these all day, I wore them for a few hours and I was ready to throw them out into the cold". Javi hands me a steaming mug "perfect" I murmur. Javi leans against the wall "so how do you think it's going to go?" He asks. I think back to the first class faces that I sat before, how they reacted to both myself and Audrey's testimonies. I feel my lips quirk upwards into a smirk "she'll be lucky if she gets the drawers, I mean the murders were brutal. It'll be a miracle if she doesn't have her head stuck out a window" I say. Javi shivers "you seem far to happy with that" he points out. I shrug "she certainly doesn't get any sympathy from me, the glares she was firing at me, she looked ready to shoot me herself" I take a sip and lean back in the chair. Ben and Javi roll their eyes "well we have about another half hour before anything interesting happens so get changed and we'll do a few systems checks" Ben says.

"What did your last slave die of" I tease, he seems happy enough to play along with it "not doing what they were told" I like my tongue out but retreat back to the cabin anyway.

I change out of my court outfit and back into my usual engine outfit of my shorts, polo neck jumper and overalls. I leave my hair loose though, today will be pretty relaxed after the case is finished. I finish my tea and leave the cup in the sink, after all the excitement of testifying I'm feeling pretty lazy. Ben insists on my running a few system diagnosis's to keep me occupied, but my mind is to preoccupied so I barely focus on them. The tannoy starts up again, and we gather round to listen in

"We will now hear from the accused" Ruth announces. There's a pause and some shuffling before Lila's voices states nervously "I swear to tell the truth.". I take a seat and lean my head on my fist "I... I loved Erik Sotto... Or at least I think I did. The confusion. The ache in my guts. The fear. That is love, isn't it?" She sniffles "Erik told me it was. Erik had a power over me, and I... He made me watch him do terrible things. And I can still hear those men...begging for it to end" she starts to sob before taking a deep breath. I lean forward "But Erik said fear makes people honest, I think that's true. Sean Wise, just before he died, said that he was an informant. A spy for Mr. Wilford.". I jump up "shit" i realise where this is going and it isn't a nice feeling. Javi and Ben have realised as well and all let out a few curses of their own. Melanie is probably loosing her cool down there "Sean said that 'shadows and lies were taking over our beautiful train from tip to Tail, from Ag-Sec to the Drawers. Four hundred secrets that'd rock us to the rails' he said. But he would never spill them. He also held an even bigger secret, one that spilled from his lips seconds before he died. He said it was the biggest one of them all, a wolf in sheep's clothing" I feel both pairs of eyes look to me, it's like being hit by snowpeircer itself, i don't know what to say and I can only listen to the horror show "Can I say this part to Mr. Wilford?" She asks softly "Yes, he's following along." Ruth repsonds. "I am so sorry for the part that I played in this tragedy. I was silent when I should have spoken but Sean Wise gave his life to save humanity from the darkness that almost swallowed me whole. If the train shows me mercy... I promise to do my part for her, too. That's all I can say." She finishes. The tribunal breaks so that the jury can deliberate: guilty or not guilty.