THEM

Chapter 17

They hadn't left yet. Aithne crossed paths with Rhett on the way to her session with Kathy and almost started running when his cold, obsidian eyes slid over her. She had thought V's dark eyes were cold before, but compared to these, they were as warm as molten chocolate cake on Christmas Day. Aithne knew she had to do something. She couldn't sit still; she was constantly looking over her shoulder and jumping at the softest sounds. She fidgeted with the keycard in her jean pocket. She had kept it on her since she had retrieved it, but hadn't dared use it yet. Since Isadora's strict warning not to use it, she knew she couldn't ask her to come along. She could ask Raphael or V to accompany her, but this was something she felt she had to do alone. She couldn't risk putting anyone else in danger and, anyway, she would be more discreet by herself.

She decided to go in the afternoon, right after lunch, when nobody would notice her absence except Raphael and Isaodra, who she told she'd be going on a run. Neither of them asked to tag along, Raphael even going as far as wincing at the word 'run'. She noted wistfully that today was Tuesday, which meant she wouldn't be able to go to the music room.

She left the dining room early, so nobody would be in the courtyard when she went through. Her heart beat furiously as she scanned around to make sure it was indeed empty before sliding the keycard out of her back pocket and scanning it over the black box near the door. The few seconds it took for the door to unlock stretched on forever, but it finally beeped green and she slipped through as fast as she could. Alone in the dark hallway, she thought of where to go. How could she not have planned out her next steps before? Remembering Mrs. Bauer's comment on being required to blindfold her, she decided to try to go back to the general area she had been to the last two times she was in this building. She tiptoed down the first hall, staying as close to the right wall as possible and brushing her right palm along it as she went for reassurance.

The turns she needed to take were fresh in her mind since she had just taken the path the day before. She got to the general area, which she concluded must be the area where most meetings were held, without any noteworthy hindrances. She put her ear against the first door she had eavesdropped at, but it was silent, so she headed towards the room she had been brought to. To her disappointment, it was quiet there too, so she decided to turn back and test her luck in another section of the building. However, as she was passing by a door between the two she had checked, she thought she heard a noise and stopped. She pressed her body against the door, and, indeed, two voices could be heard through the thick door. She recognised them immediately from the day before. Rhett and Juliana.

"-- doesn't want us to take her." Juliana was saying.

"Can't we force her to let us take her? I mean she can't imagine she actually has the authority here." Rhett spat out.

"It's better if we keep her in our good graces, at the moment." Juliana replied, in a more calm and measured manner. "We need to keep on letting her think that we take into account her opinions, or else she may not want to cooperate willingly. And then our job will be much harder."

"What should we do then?" Rhett asked. "We can't just let them loaf about all day, while we're running out of time."

"I talked to him this morning. He told me that if she wouldn't let us bring the girl, that there was only one option."

"To move forward." Rhett's voice was wavering with what could've been constrained excitement.

"Yes." Juliana said. "He said to get started on the large-scale trials."

Aithne's hands, which she had lain against the door on either side of her head for balance, started shaking. What did that mean?

"You know I'm all for that." Rhett responded, "But wouldn't that make Elizabeth even angrier with us?"