A World of Black and White

Part 5

I wince as one of the nurses injects me with yet another shot. Earlier she had introduced herself as Afi, and the other, more introverted one, as Aada. Afi tsked as she continued, currently applying a clear gauze to my burned fingertips. After my keeper had sent a team to pick me up, the nurses had been angrily fixing me up. They had asked how I was this injured, but my only reply had been a grunt.

"Know this," Afi hissed, "Your keeper is not as kind as she pretends to be. No one is."

She harshly wrapped my arm, my fingers twitching at the pressure.

"She will find out," Aada adds calmly, "She always does in the end"

One of them throws a clean pair of clothes at me, the dark fabric whacking me in the face. I stumble back at the impact, bumping into a nearby seat. Aada waves her hand, signaling for me to change on the other side of the room.

"You were sloppy," Afi states, unimpressed, "Do better"

"Fillsworth will not be pleased with this new information."

"When he arrives, that's her problem."

They both look at me, eyes wandering up and down. Aada wrinkles her nose and tells me to get moving. Once they turn their backs on me, I swiftly move to the opposite end and change.

The new set of clothes fits better, with more room for movement. When they hear my footsteps, they turn back around. I watch them and notice them fidgeting with their hands. One, clenching and unclenching their fists. The other, twirling their coat between their fingers. Both slightly sweating by the brow.

A bing sounds from Aada's pocket, and she removes her phone. Her eyes scan the notification, widening, then going back to neutral. She looks over at Afi, and quietly whispers something under her breath. For a second, the other seems to stop breathing. She nods back at Aada quickly, then straitens her back. In sync, they turn towards the door, opening to Ms. Stacy and Dr. Fillsworth.

Once they enter the room, it seems to drop ten degrees, the hairs on my neck rising. The first thing I notice is that both of their faces lay blank, showing nothing. Ms. Stacy narrows her eyes and drops a suitcase on a metal table. Dr. Fillsworth looks me in the eye, searching for something. When he doesn't get it he frowns, his brow clenching.

Ms. Stacy lets out a strained smile, and grits out, "Hello 13."

I attempt a smile but ultimately fail.

"I hear you haven't been cooperating, is this true?"

I looked up in response.

"I see. How problematic."

She snaps at the doctor, holding out her hand expectantly. Dr. Fillsworth drops a clicker in her hand in response. When I still don't answer, She flips the lid and presses down.

I let out a howl, and drop to the ground. The pain continues to intensify, and my keeper continues to stalk toward me. My brain stops functioning, and I feel my eyes moisten. Once she deems this good enough punishment, the pain stops. The memory of it whispers against my bones.

"During your next assignment, we expect more verbal cooperation."

Her cold words echo through the room. I look up through blurry eyes. She has tucked the device into one of the many folds of her suit.

The next second, her smile returns to full force. "You will be working with another project. His programming is sadly less advanced than yours, so we will not be able to totally control his actions."

Her smile grows sharp.

Make him listen.

She lets out a sound of annoyance as she says, "This will be different than your last mission. It will be a bit more... Long term."

"You will be creating another persona; one that is important to the imperial family," her eyes narrow when she adds, "They suspect powerful women without a man."

I sit still, waiting for her to continue. When she doesn't after another pause, I realize she is angry. So angry, that continuing would lead to her lashing out. I realize with a start, that she must have experienced this before. 

My head cocks to the side curiously. She looks at me, her mask slipping. I realize I was in fact correct, and she was not just angry, but infuriated. Wrathful and distraught. 

Before she can talk once she opens her mouth, Dr. Fillsworth takes over.

"You will live and work with this boy to infiltrate the imperial household, and gather information. They are an enemy to our country, and we need a way to take them out inconspicuously, for we cannot outright declare war."

"You do have a time limit, for we do have a death date for the royals. There will be a summer solstice ball, held on June twenty-first, you and Ezra will have a week before we send you off to start planning. We already have a place, fake IDs, jobs, and reputations made for you two."

He glared at me as he added, "There WILL be high surveillance from us to make sure you stay on task. Do not get distracted."