Dusk

Chapter Nine

A long, thin table. Twelve chairs. A masked man sitting at the head of it, head leaning elegantly on a gloved fist.

"Hello again," Idris intones. "Come and sit. I've figured out what I'm going to do with you, Deva Amador."

Alexandra puts a gentle hand on my back and pushes me forward. When I reach the chair to Idris' left, it only just occurs to me that Anden is in the room, too. He pulls out the chair, waiting for me to sit in it.

That man just steals every last bit of my attention, doesn't he?

"That didn't take you long." I mutter.

Anden pushes in my chair, a silent, stoic gentleman. He doesn't do the same for Alexandra. They bristle whenever they near each other. It's just the four of us in the room; no one else is present. The quiet is almost palpable.

"Are you feeling alright?" Idris dances delicately around the question. "Have you been crying?"

I shake my head. His question brings up a memory of Blake, of his strong jaw and hooded eyes. I chew my lower lip, determined not to burst into tears no matter how much my eyes sting.

"You strong girl," he croons. "How you're getting through this, I've not the slightest idea."

He doesn't sound mocking, but he doesn't sound sympathetic, either. He doesn't divvy up emotion well, at least not to this.

"What are you going to do with me, Idris?"

He leans back in his chair, clasping his hands over the table. His mask is turned in my direction, a clear sign that he's observing me. Does he like what he sees? I feel foolish for thinking it in the midst of my current situation, but I'd like to know what he thinks of me.

But don't you already know? He's confessed his love for you, hasn't he?

A part of me wonders if he was joking. Did he say it to make me more agreeable to his whims? I can't decide if I would put it past him or not. My eyes skid over to Alexandra, who stares back. You put this doubt in me. I don't know if I should even trust that doubt. My eyes slide back to Idris. He's only done good things for you, after all, no matter how odd he is.

"You know the deal, Deva. Chancellor Rook doesn't understand equality. People live in squalor, in poverty, while his Elites sit on thrones made of flesh and blood and tears. They rule over you, lord over you. I've come to see that people have had enough. You're being held in bondage. I'm your Messiah."

"I don't... know... what that word means." I say apologetically.

"It means I'm going to help Adia. But you already knew that."

I nod. He continues.

"You're divided by race, by class. The darkest of you, the poorest of you, barely have enough to get by. People eat each other to survive sometimes, Deva. You're lucky to never have witnessed it. That's why," he tells me, "you will kill the Chancellor."

I don't hold back. "Are you insane?"

"Maybe," he says. "What would you do if I was?"

"I'm just a brawler, not some- some- assassin. I'd be shot before I even got close to him. They'd put a bullet right between my eyes!"

"I wouldn't let anything like that happen to you."

"My ass! I agreed to help you, but this is just ridiculous!"

"She's right," Alexandra cuts in. "You can't expect her to just waltz into the Elite dome, into the Chancellor's high tower, and kill him. That's not how things work."