Beyond City Limits (Under Revisions)

Chapter 20: VERDICT

The ambassador walks quickly down the aisle with his shoulders hunched and his steps quiet. Any intimidation that circled around him when I first saw him has disappeared the moment the man from last night hit the ground. He must believe the Chief's threat. Once he vanishes behind the double doors, I also believe the Chief's threat.

My body still shivers against the podium. I hold onto the wooden surface like it could protect me from Rayn's flying blades of death. She didn't even blink when she delivered death to that man. I dread to think that those people chasing me in the streets could have done something similar to me. Like before now, I feel like the Outercity is playing with me. It's like a cat playing with its prey, enjoying the frightened squeals of the mouse as it bats the mouse around in its claws, before finally getting bored and consuming the mouse whole.

I have never seen a dead man before. Even in the alley, I had just reacted and ran, but now my vision is confronted with the dead man's eyes. He stares back at me, accusing. Two men are dead because of me.

"Get up." Rayn's hands grab my underarms, and she halls me up until I am able to stand on my own. My back is rigged with my arms close to my body. My trembling has slowed down to an uncomfortable quiver.

The Chief rubs a hand over his eyes and leans his head against his other palm that is resting on the chair's arm. "Oh, Rayn, what did you do?" he mumbles, his words almost too quiet to understand.

The other guards beside the Chief also physically relax after the ambassador's departure.

"What do we do now?" Colby speaks up beside me. He exchanges a look with one of the younger guards in the lineup.

"Give me some time to think." The Chief gets up and moves away from the towering chair.

"Thank you," I say. The Chief starts at my weak voice. "for not letting him take me," I add. I swallow and glance at Rayn while she narrows her eyes at me, "I'm sorry for causing any trouble," My eyes stray to Rayn's knifes on her belt before snapping them away to the Chief instead. "I just want to get back to the OTF. I promise that I won't come back to the Stingray—whatever, and if someone could show me how to get there, that would be great."

The Chief nods and looks at Rayn, "I want you to keep her in your rooms and make sure she stays out of trouble."

I lean forward, "I'm sorry, you must have misunderstood me, I don't need a place to stay. I want to go back to the OTF."

"You are guilty of impersonation," the Chief doesn't meet my eyes, and the words fall flat on my ears. The conviction he held against the ambassador is gone. The finally in his voice is now wavering.

"This doesn't make sense," I say but Rayn unties my ropes. "I didn't do anything against anyone here. I'm not important. I'm a nobody." For the first time in my life I will the words to be true. I can't stay here. Andrew's picture still whispers to me, telling me of the time that must be running out to find him. Every ticking second can be another moment of Andrew drifting away from me.

"You can't do this!"

"I'm the Chief," the man says next to his throne, his face is empty, but his eyes are mournful.

***

I lay on Rayn's bed, her mattress poking me in my lower back, but the bed is the best thing I have laid on since I came to the Outercity. As much as that girl and this place annoys me, I am resentfully grateful for this small comfort. I decide to leave a definite imprint on her bed, and maybe mess up some of her perfectly straight sheets, just so she knows how I feel being held against my will. I roll over, so the mattress pokes me in my side and play with the bandage on the back of my head.