Bound by Deception

26.2 The Exile

"Right, because that's reassuring," Aria mumbled, swallowing hard. She wasn't one to feel fear - in fact, she despised it. But Madame Margot was a different monster altogether. She had taught Aria the works of being an assassin herself and was no doubt better than the young girl. Aria had always tried to stay on her good side, but maybe being a suck-up wouldn't work today.

They hesitated for only a moment before finally twisting the dusty knob. The door slid soundlessly aside and closed with a slam once they were off the paper-strewn floor of the workplace and on Madame's velvet-colored carpet.

Aria and Sterling exchanged worried glances, wondering simultaneously where their boss was in the shredded office that they were in. Claw marks were all over the dark walls and broken objects littered the ground; they were so destroyed that Aria couldn't even begin to make out what they used to be.

"So...you've come at last." The woman they were looking for rose from under her slanted table. Her dress was dusty and muddy and her hair was a disheveled mess. Her eyes were wild and untamed, matching the fire that Aria had seen in Edward's eyes before she had killed him. Her stomach plummeted when she thought she was looking at a mirror image of the dead boy and she recoiled, gripping Sterling's hand.

"Apologies for the tardiness, Madame," Aria spoke, releasing his hand. She felt Sterling go still beside her, guessing that he was also noticing the tenseness that choked them. "We wanted to brief you on our mission-!"

"Oh, there's no need for that." Margot rose from her chair, her eyes slicing icily through the young girl standing before her. She despised the fact that Aria wouldn't tremble before her, though she relished the realization that the girl had initially been frightened by her appearance. "I know everything that happened."

"You do?" Aria frowned. "Well, then I suppose you know of Edward James' fate?"

"Indeed."

"I know it's not what you wished, but it was a necessary action," Aria continued, gaining confidence with the silence that Margot gave her. "We gathered as much information as we could from Edward's home. He had quite a bit of intel from Grandville's government. It's all in this hard drive."

"I see." Margot was still. She strode around her desk, dragging her finger around the perimeter of the wood and around the photograph of her mysterious boy. Her steps were calculated and slow, observing the duo that stood before her - or rather, the intellect of the duo.

Then, faster than Aria was expecting, Margot lunged forward, grabbing her by the throat. She spun and pinned Aria to the ground, choking her whilst gritting her pearly whites.

"You bitch!" She shrieked, slamming the carpet beside Aria's head. "Do you know what you did today? You ruined everything! You fucked up our plan, and for that, this whole operation is going to crash and burn! The Prime Minister is furious and tensions with Grandville have skyrocketed!"

"Madame! Stop!" Sterling jumped forward, but Margot stopped him when she whisked a gun from under her dress, pointing the front at him.

"Move and I'll shoot you, Drazek," she growled. Aria continued to choke, writhing under Margot's tight grip, but the older woman stood her ground. "We must get rid of these traitors. Why, perhaps it was you who sold us to the enemy."

"Madame...please..." Aria gasped. "I...I did nothing...Please...I was trying to...Edward...he was going to..."

"Shut up!" Blindly, Margot's hand flew across Aria's face, and a resounding smack hit the broken walls of the room. "I trusted you, Aria! You were my best assassin! And to betray me - us like this?"

"Aria's loyalty was always with us, Madame!" Sterling growled. "Stop this, please! You're not thinking straight"

"Oh, I'm thinking perfectly straight." Margot snarled. "This...foolish girl has effectively destroyed the safety of this country and my faith in her. You're banished from here, you hear me? BANISHED! Never come back again, and if you so much as think of opening your pretty little mouth, I. Will. Kill. You."

"Madame..." tears collected in Aria's blurring vision. The pressure on her throat was starting to take its toll on her mind. Blackness shrouded her thoughts and she could see nothing but the venomous glare that Margot was leveling on her as the woman's long nails pierced through her tender skin. Something warm trickled down her jaw.

"Get out." Margot, who was also crying, stood and dusted her hands. Bloodshot, reptilian eyes swiveled toward Sterling, who stood immobile. "Both of you, get out. If I ever see you with her again, Sterling, I'll kill you too. Do you understand?"

"I..." Sterling began to speak, then bit his tongue. "Yes, Madame." He studied the ground bitterly. "I understand."

"Good." Margot refrained from looking in Aria's direction. She stepped around the struggling girl and returned to her desk. "I'm being generous, Aria. If it were anyone else, I would have shot you the moment I had you on the ground. But..." she hesitated. "I trusted you, and a foolish part of me will always see you as the daughter I thought you were."

"Madame...please...believe me..." Aria spoke between spitting puddles of blood. Blearily, she searched for Margot. "Please..."

Margot tightly shut her eyes. "Just...go."

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What has Margot done? Was she right to ban Aria? Did Aria do something wrong? Why is Madame being so harsh? 

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