Children's Games: A Story of Modern Consequence

Chapter 42

~Emilia~

"These are my private quarters! What is your business here? I will call security! I demand answers!" He paused between each sentence, nervous that he wasn't getting a response.

George was a short man, but straight-backed and strong. Emilia judged that he could be around sixty as his hair was turning white and his round face had started to wrinkle. He was furious beyond measure, but there was a part of him that leaned to the side, wanting to rely on a cane which made his anger look less threatening.

Anna and Matthew were just a step behind him to either side, blocking his escape. Ivan and Yelena remained outside the door to protect them from unwanted visitors. Emilia was positioned in front of a large light box built into the wall, imitating a window, and Joshua stood on the other side of the room in front of an identical fixture. Florence and Dominik faced him with an air of authority about them.

"Who are you people?!"

"Mr George," Dominik started, his hands on his weapon casually. "We are Unit 352, and I am the Commanding Officer, Commander Dominik Volkov-"

"I am not familiar with that unit- Unit 352 does not exist. Don't speak lies to me, boy."

George was fierce and confronting, trying not to let his anxiety show, and trying not to make it obvious that he was trembling without a cane. Emilia felt a natural urge to aid the elderly man, but Dominik's claims that George was becoming rich from slavery... It almost didn't sound believable, but it was enough to hold her ground.

"Mr George, please sit."

Anna grabbed a chair tucked into a small desk beside the door and pushed it underneath George, forcing him to stumble and sit down uncomfortably on the chair.

"Thank you. We are here to prove that your government has created The Games. And halfway through our investigation, we find that you've created a sub-site for all you rich bastards to get even richer."

Dominik pulled a few heavy sheets of paper from under his shirt and held them up for George to see. He was speaking deeply from his chest, his voice on the verge of breaking as if he took the matter extremely personal.

"Mr George, this is your seal authorising this site to buy and sell people under the age of 16," he said, emphasising the page full of transactions and labels for human trafficking, all under George's name. "And this shows your slave trading for people over sixteen." He thrusted another incriminating file in front of George's face. "This outlines an intercepted coded phone call that you've had with Lieutenant General Maximus Peterson about organising half of the prisoners of war collected from your invasion of France to be-"

"We did not invade France!"

"The United Kingdom obliterated France five years ago, and that force was thirty-seven percent Australian. You were still part of the Commonwealth then!" He took a hard step forward, momentarily looking for something to bang his fist down on. George flinched back, causing Dominik to regain his composure in satisfaction. "Do not lie to me, and I will not lie to you."

George was silenced by Dominik's quick response. Even Emilia felt frozen, eager to hear more. A few moments passed before George leaned forward again in an attentive position and Dominik understood to continue.

"Five years ago, half of those people, the non-soldier kind, were taken back here. They were used to build this city in preparation for TB84's scheduled release. This city, as well as many others around Australia, weren't built in a year, they were all built five years ago. Then these slaves were sold all across the world since your silly little Games aren't getting you your money back."