Cracks in the Spires

31: Asken Is Trustworthy

Per collected his uniform and walked back to Parkside. The apartment was empty when he got there. There was a note on the table 'Popped out back by 13.00'. He hung the uniform in their bedroom and, since it was only 12.30, decided he might as well occupy the time by trying it on. Dark blue linen trousers and side buttoned collared tunic with the red CSB logo, the initials P.O. and two bars of white denoting his grade. He laughed at the contrast between this and his last uniform which had fitted where it touched. He was not going to cut his hair after spending over three years growing it out besides they wanted to change things not conform. He was plaiting it so that it looked neat when he heard the front door open. Ben called out and he responded "I'm in here trying on my new uniform. It actually fits." Ben appeared in the bedroom door and a huge grin split his face as Per turned to face him

"Mr Riss, I'm honoured." he bowed with a flourish.

"Stop taking the piss. Where did you pop off to?"

"We've been here days and I felt guilty about not going to see the Vries's especially as Da is staying there. They were fine and Con forgave me after I grovelled a bit. We must organise Pcoms then I could have let you know."

Per held up his wrist "Uncle Var organised them. I have one for you as well." He fished in the bag that had contained his uniform and handed Ben a box. "State of the art wrist comp as well as Pcom."

Per changed back into his ordinary clothes while Ben examined his new Pcom. Then they sat at the table drinking mountain tea. Per learnt that after Da discovered a family with two young children had been living in their old house since the City sold it off he didn't want to pursue getting it back. Jan had arrived while Ben was at the Vries's and they'd had a brief discussion about permanent living arrangements. "Assuming you and I aren't going to live with your mother." he ended with an enquiring look to which Per shook his head.

"Definitely not."

"That's a shame. I'm sure you could benefit from some more of her advice on the proper way to interact with the lower orders."

Per snorted "She seems to conveniently forget I am the lower orders. So did you come up with another solution?"

"Yes. Jan suggested we all live together at the old Lon Esta villa."

"After what happened?"

"Jan's take on it was that it was the best way of not letting Foran win. His idea is that we'll make new happy memories. A new family home. That seems the best response to what Foran did. Proof the Estas and the Norins and the Aras can't be so easily extinguished. It has workshops and vegetable gardens and all the space we need. His stunt with Essy visiting Kiri was almost too successful. Overwhelmed with enquiries and orders which was why he didn't stay for long. They need more space. Grandma, Uncle Claude and Mik will be arriving soon and we can't all squash in here."

Per nodded "It does make sense and we'd be near Essy and Gilfi-Jon."

"There's another reason. The villa has a secret passage. It was a way of getting people out of the Spires and into UpCit without passing any checkpoints. Not so relevant now but it might come in handy at some point."

"In case Foran arrives with several skimmer loads of heavily armed thugs and trashes us?"

"Something like that." the corners of Ben's mouth quirked briefly upwards into a mischievous smile before he became serious again. "Even if the Warrens don't want us we could skip to the lower levels or we could spend some time quietly setting up the cave as a place to run to if the worst came to the worst. It couldn't support many people but it might just support our family."

"Even if it couldn't dying out there would be better than being tortured to death by Foran."

Ben shuddered "Ugh how did we get so gloomy! How did the meeting with Uncle Var and Administrator Verde go?"