PERSONAL RECORD: DESIGNATION ZETA4542910-9545E
FOUNDERS’ HALL ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES, ALBANY CITY, NEW TRITON
478.3.1.07
I had not expected a crowd, though if I had considered it, I would have known what “public appearance” meant.
Jordan, who wore an elegant gold tunic that did nothing to mask her injuries, threw a reassuring smile over her shoulder as we walked through the crush of citizens filling the square. Though Daniel had stayed to stand guard at Training Center Alpha’s unrepaired gates, James strode at Kyleigh’s side. Not even appealing to a sense of duty to bear Max company could convince him to remain behind.
I straightened my Consortium-grey jacket. No one but Zhen, who had procured it for me, knew that I wore a seamless green tunic tucked underneath, an unobserved defiance meant to lend me strength. I dared not hold Nate’s hand, but I shrank closer to him as the crowd gaped and pressed in on us. The kaleidoscope of people made me glad for a cane to lean on. When we reached the front of the building, Alec groaned. A grandstand rose above the crowd, and the deputy prime minister beamed like an artificial light. Beside her, calm, beautiful, and silent, stood the Eldest.
The inclination to run nearly overwhelmed me.
We lined up behind them like a display of trophies, and the deputy prime minister pontificated on and on. She could have been speaking of the weather or nursery rhymes. The crowd clapped or cheered or booed in random intervals, but I understood nothing, saw only the Eldest and her drones.
Suddenly, the crowd erupted with noise, and Nate and Jordan escorted me forward.
The deputy prime minister said, “Well?”
Panic grabbed at me. I wanted to say, “Well, what?” but even if the words had not been rude, they were unutterable.
I glanced at the Eldest. She frowned.
Nate bent over and whispered in my ear, “She is talking about you leading the charge to rescue the children, and the Eldest’s proposal.”
Why had I not been listening? “What proposal?” I whispered back.
“To be Guardian,” the Eldest said. At her calm voice, the crowd quieted. “To have the care and provision of the children who remain in former Training Center Alpha. To have the authority to accept appeals for ungifting.”
“Former?” Hope flared brightly. “Ungifting?”
“To allow the donors to request custody of the children or to allow adoption. It is decided.” Her eyes narrowed. “Unless you would rather return to us and face the consequences of your actions. You may, of course, decline.”
One drone grabbed my arm and held it in the air for all to see the light that ran like poison through my wrist. Her other two drones formed a chair again, and all sound fell away as they lifted her twenty centimeters so her bare skull was even with my curls and her eyes slightly above my own.
Her voice lowered until I might have been the only one to hear it. “The Consortium relinquishes control of what was Training Center Alpha, but solely into your hands. I shall require the return of all our technology. You shall send every single neural chip to me. Your friends,” she said as if she smelled something foul, “have hidden some of my younger Recorders. I will allow those, contaminated by citizenry as they are, to choose either service to the Consortium or diminishment to a mere citizen.”
There was one way to serve the Consortium once the internal fail-safe was activated. I bit my lip. “Dr. Maxwell is not yet well. He is the only one who—”
“Parliament has agreed to fund this endeavor until 479.1.1.01, not a single second longer, after which it is your responsibility. All technology will be in my control at that point, in or out of minds. This is the agreement I have negotiated on the children’s behalf.” Nanodevices swirled back, revealing green irises. “If you are to save the children, this must be done. Do you understand?”
“I do.”
Her chin rose, and grey flooded to obscure her eyes again.
“You know my limitations,” I said.
“As you say. That is why the High Elders and I have considered the applicants for assistants carefully. Venetia Jordan is an acceptable choice.”
I could not hide the smile in my heart. “Then I accept.”
Her drones set her down, but when the one holding me spun me to face the crowd, my attention snagged on a tall man at the crowd’s fringe.
Julian Ross’s gaze locked on mine. My heart stopped for a moment. Before I could speak, however, he vanished into the mass of people.
The deputy prime minister prattled on about awards and thanks, but I ignored her and turned to the Eldest. Despite the inherent rudeness, I said in an undertone, “Eldest, I am sure I saw Julian Ross in the crowd. Without drones, we are defenseless. The children must be safe.”
Her mouth tightened, and she closed her eyes. “When we release the identities of the children who remain, his daughter will be a liability, but it is your decision. There are times when you must cut away the liabilities to protect the whole.”
His daughter? If Julian Ross would commit willful murder for his brother, would he not have done more for a daughter? Either he was a greater villain than I had ever thought, or he had not known of her gifting, perhaps of her existence. Either way, the Eldest’s assessment of liability was accurate. But she was also incorrect.
I drew myself as upright as I could. “I will not discard the child, but I will need to know which one she is, if I am to keep her safe.”
She flicked her hand, though whether in agreement or anger, I could not tell. “The records will soon be available to the citizenry and even to you. Have your assistants do any research you cannot. The Sanctuary is under your control, Guardian. Arm your people, if you must. If you do not protect my former children, I will be displeased.”
The deputy prime minister faltered, then turned around and glared.
“Go on, citizen-official. Make your announcement.” The Eldest riveted grey-masked eyes on me. “Your purchase has enabled continued giftings. Take pride in that, Guardian.”
My purchase? I had bought nothing.
“And so,” the deputy prime minister concluded, “it is done.”
The crowd cheered, though my friends cheered even louder.
“Moons and stars,” Zhen hissed. “Say something.”
I blinked. “About?”
Nate beamed down at me. “We did it. You’re all paid up.”
“Paid . . .” I could barely breathe. The Eldest’s impassive face told me nothing. “You mean my gifting?”
Jordan clasped my shoulder. “Yes. Paid in full.”
I could not breathe.
Nate threw back his head and laughed, then he lifted me in the air and spun me around in front of the deputy prime minister, the citizens, the Eldest herself. When he put me down, I placed my palm flat on his chest. His heart pounded under my hand, and all I saw—all that mattered—was my Nathaniel. I slid my hand into his inner jacket pocket, where I knew my note would be hidden, and pulled it out.
“Then,” I said, “I will be keeping this, for I have an answer.”
He knew, I could see it, but he asked, “Which is?”
“Yes, my heart. The answer has always been yes.”