Darkness Girl: Trickster God

Chapter Forty-Seven: Purity in Strength

'How exactly am I not supposed to disqualify you now?' said Ashcroft. She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. 'You said you wanted to maintain a low profile.' 

'She was provoked,' said Sarafina. 

'I don't really care.' 

Regan and Sarafina stood in Ashcroft's office. Regan was barefoot and still dressed in her hospital gown. Ashcroft had sent someone to get her clothes from the infirmary. She hadn't screamed or shouted as Sarafina told her the story of Regan's encounter with Bennet. She seemed almost resigned to the fact that something like this was going to happen. 

Regan crossed her arms and waited while Ashcroft took a deep, calming breath. She looked tired and annoyed. 

Ashcroft looked up at Regan and brushed a lock of hair across to cover the ruined side of her face. 'It doesn't matter why it happened. I was cutting you a lot of slack when I agreed to let you in. I'm beginning to seriously question my judgement.' 

'You can't kick her out now!' said Sarafina. 'There are still people looking for her.' 

'I can't be seen to simply let her off after assaulting one of my squad leaders.' 

'If you'd been thirty seconds slower, that problem would have solved itself,' said Regan 

'You should be thankful that Bennet survived. It would be a mistake to assume that I'm not furious right now. If she'd died, we wouldn't be having this conversation.' 

'Could we just keep Bennet away until after the trials?' said Sarafina. 'She's still in the infirmary. You could order her to get bed rest.' 

'And after that?' 

Sarafina coloured. 'I'm not sure.' 

'Bennet is tenacious. She isn't going to be satisfied until she feels like she's evened the score.' 

Regan shrugged. 'Let her come.' 

Ashcroft's eyes narrowed. 'Excuse me?' 

'If she wants the chance to come after me, she can try. Her weakness is like a pungent stench around her. The outcome will always be the same.' 

Ashcroft shook her head. 'I can't accept that. That's not how Silverwater does things. I'm not going to condone some sort of back-alley ambush and call it justice.' 

'If we give her the opportunity to seek revenge, she won't have a reason to wonder about Regan still being in the trials,' said Sarafina. 

'You too?' said Ashcroft. 

'I don't like it,' said Sarafina. 'But it makes sense. I just hope that Bennet doesn't come up with anything too nasty.' 

Regan laughed. 'She doesn't know the meaning of the word.' 

'Don't underestimate her,' Ashcroft snapped. 'Arrogance is seldom an advantageous quality.' 

Ashcroft uncurled from her chair and turned away from them. She walked to the window and stared out at the grounds with an empty expression. After a few moments, Regan started to wonder if she was waiting for them to leave. 

'This is only going to be a temporary solution,' said Ashcroft. 'If I tell Bennet that I'm going to turn a blind eye, she'll almost certainly find a way to rig the trials.' 

'I can handle it,' said Regan. 

'You'd better hope so. If you fail, I won't be able to help you. I will have dragged myself down into your gutter for nothing.' 

'Thank you for this, Ashcroft,' said Sarafina. 

'Get out of my sight, both of you. I'm going to tell Bennet that she can try to ruin you, just like you wanted.'