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Anticipating our arrival, Dr. Dwivedi met us at the College of Kimiyagari’s front entrance rather than waiting for us to bang on the basement door. Parvati and Shep accompanied him, and Parvati, wearing all white, twiddled her fingers in a quick hello. Dwivedi ushered us into an atmosphere of hushed reverence, and the college’s residents had obviously taken great care to treat Amity’s remains with respect.
In the middle of the lobby, a burning oil lamp sat on the floor next to her body, which reclined on a simple palanquin. She was wrapped in linen, and a rose-colored kerchief covered her face. Tears swelled in my eyes and rolled silently down my cheeks as I gave in to grief.
Roses, jasmine, and marigolds adorned Amity’s body, and I wondered where such a bounty of blooms had come from, but I had learned not to question Dr. Dwivedi’s means and methods. The residents of the Kimiyagari College truly were alchemists. The fragrant flowers covered any smell of death and gave her an aura of royalty.
Dr. Dwivedi motioned to another man, one even older than him, who wore a long cotton tunic and matching white pants. Beads circled his neck, and a yellow scarf draped his shoulders.
He led the community in a series of chants in a language I didn’t know. Quietly, under her breath, Parvati tried her best to explain the details. I appreciated her efforts, but I didn’t need the words translated. The feelings and intent behind them were clear. My spirit understood what my conscious mind couldn’t.
Later, after the ceremony, Parvati told us Amity’s body would be cremated and her ashes taken to the river. Maybe Amity’s family would have wished for something different, but the residents of the college had stepped into that role on behalf of a family that would never be found. There was no way of knowing for sure, but I thought that wherever Amity was, whatever happened to her next, for now, she knew peace.
***
AFTER A BRIEF STRUGGLE to arrange myself in a forest-green sari that Parvati had left in my room, and after Erik had dressed in attire similar to what he’d worn the night we last dined on the college’s rooftop, we joined Dr. Dwivedi, Shep, Parvati, and the other funeral participants for a starlit feast. Also joining us, to my surprise and delight, was my sister.
I threw my arms around her. “What are you doing here?”
“Dwivedi asked me to come deal with Moll. At least he was nice enough to include me in his dinner plans first though.” She looked tired. Dark smudges underscored her eyes, and her shoulders seemed to sag a bit under the weight of her new responsibilities.
“Is she dead-dead yet?” I asked.
Bloom squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. “No. We’re going to do the deed after dinner, I think.”
My heart lurched with sympathy for Bloom. As much as I agreed with the decision to euthanize Moll, I understood the difficulties of executing it.
“You’ll be there, won’t you?” Bloom pleaded.
Regretfully, I nodded. “Sure, Bloom. If you want me to, I will.”
“It’s the right thing, isn’t it?”
“Without a doubt.” I squeezed Bloom’s arm. “Moll’s in hell right now, I promise. I know it.”
“You know better than any of us.” Her head drooped. “If you say it’s right. I believe you.”
We joined Erik and Dr. Dwivedi in line for the buffet dinner. I spooned a mound of something green—spinach, maybe—onto my plate and moved to the next chafing dish.
“How are things going at Mini City?” I asked.
Bloom stared absentmindedly at a pile of fried bread. Someone nudged her from behind, and she picked up a piece like a machine designed to fill a plate but not to feel any appetite for it. She looked at me and realized I’d asked her a question.
She shook herself. “What?”
“I asked how things were going at Mini City.”
“As good as they can be, I guess. I’ve already called a meeting of the most influential people in Grimes’s regime, and we’re talking about turning the leadership into a structure similar to a corporate board of directors.”
Bloom might as well have been speaking French. I blinked at her.
“They want me to be chairman of the board.”
That much made sense to me at least. “You’ll be in charge?”
“Sort of. We’ll do things with voting. I’m trying to delineate the power structure.”
Huffing, I shook my head. “Okay, forget I asked.”
Bloom chuckled. “I mean I don’t want there to be a dictator. I want people to have a say in the way things are run. Kind of like a democracy. Like the way they used to run the country.”
“What about Moll’s saboteur?” I asked. “Someone wanted her out of the way. Whoever it was might come for you next.”
Color drained from Bloom’s already-pale face. “I am aware. There will be a quiet investigation. In the meantime, I’ll be looking over my shoulder. It sure would be nice to have you watching my back though.”
“Hmmm,” I said ambiguously. I worried for my sister, but the thought of living at Grimy Tower made me shudder. I didn’t understand that world, didn’t want to be a part of it. Not even for the sake of my sister. She’d made her choice—she had walked away from me. I no longer resented her for it, but I didn’t feel obligated to her anymore either. They might occasionally intersect, but our paths were unlikely to converge again, and I had made my peace with it.
Once we reached the end of the buffet table, Dwivedi led us to the head of the table, where Parvati and Shep had already taken their seats. The food smelled wonderful, but I didn’t have an appetite. It seemed I wasn’t the only one. The mournful mood hovering around the dining table tonight felt like a visit from a distant, forgotten relative who showed up out of the blue, unexpected and unwanted.
The people around me had no knowledge of Amity as a human, as a girl who preferred cake over flesh and songs and walks in the park over a compelling desire to consume. The college’s display of affection for her puzzled me somewhat. I hadn’t known her well myself. We’d taken classes together. We’d spoken in passing and knew each other’s names and faces well enough, but I could hardly call her more than an acquaintance. It didn’t lessen the sting of her passing, though. Maybe I was merely grieving the loss of a connection to the Time Before, but I liked to think it was more than that, that I had come to truly care for her.
After they’d scraped the last bites from their plates, my fellow funeral-goers drifted off to their homes. No one brought out musical instruments or drew their partner close for a dance. Bloom dragged her fork around but never committed to eating anything. I glanced at my plate and noticed I’d made a similar lack of progress. Erik ate only a little more than I had. We made a sorry bunch.
Dr. Dwivedi had no such trouble. He pushed his empty dishes aside, patted his belly, and covered his mouth as he belched. “I would have never thought it possible, in this world, that anything could steal the appetites of the young.” He leaned over to study my plate. “Was there nothing to your liking?”
I gave him a limp, apologetic smile. “Everything was wonderful as usual.”
“And Ms. Blite.” Dwivedi’s eyebrows drew together with concern as he peered at Bloom. “Are you feeling unwell?”
“I feel fine,” Bloom said. “Just not in the mood to eat.”
“Well, I suppose that is reasonable, considering what is next on our agenda.” He pushed his chair back and stood. “Let us not put it off any longer than necessary. Take a few moments to gather your wits and then please join me in the laboratory.”
Bloom nodded without taking her sullen eyes from her plate.
“What will you do after?” I asked Bloom.
“Some of the Forces will be here in the morning to help me take her body back. There will be a ceremony. She’ll be cremated.”
“I’ll come with you. Erik too.” I glanced at Erik to make sure he agreed, and he gave a quick nod.
“We’ll come too,” said Shep, who sent a nervous look to Parvati. “Maybe you can give me my job back.”
Bloom uttered a dry laugh. “I think I might have an opening. Do you want to move back to Mini City?”
Shep and Parvati stared at each other gravely for a moment. “Perhaps we could work something out.”
“We’ll talk about it later, Corporal.” Bloom turned to me. “Sera, you’re welcome to live at Mini City too. You won’t be a prisoner anymore, and you can bring Erik with you.”
Erik clamped a hand on my knee. I muffled a yelp. “I think we’re happy where we are.”
“Where are you anyway?” Bloom asked.
Erik squeezed harder.
I hesitated. “Um...”
Bloom raised an eyebrow and cut her gaze between me and Erik before letting out a snort. “It’s fine if you want to keep it a secret. You know where I am if you ever want to get in touch.”
***
MOLL GRIMES’S FUNERAL befitted a woman of her social stature, whether she deserved that kind of fanfare or not. Erik and I stood in the back of the audience with Shep, Parvati, Dr. Dwivedi, and a few others from his college while Bloom delivered a heartfelt speech on the front steps of Grimy Tower. John Brown was there, red-eyed and deflated. He shot hateful looks at me from time to time, but Erik and I brushed them off. Without the might of Moll Grimes’s Forces behind him, John had about the same effect on me as a popgun.
Bloom looked relieved when the ceremony ended. She’d held her shoulders a little straighter and took the slaps on the back and handshakes offered to her by the residents of Mini City with aplomb. I was proud to be her sister.
Erik and I tried to get away unnoticed, but Bloom saw us in the crowd and called out to me. “Sera! Where’re you going? Come give your sister a hug.”
I obliged her, then Bloom shook Erik’s hand and said, “Sure you don’t want to stay for dinner? We’re roasting a whole pig.”
“Tempting.” It really was. Barbecued pork was a rare delicacy, and maybe I was an idiot for saying no. I glanced at Erik to see if he’d changed his mind, but he shook his head. He hated crowds more than I did. “But I’m not comfortable in this place, around people who might still be loyal to Moll. I think it’s best if Erik and I make ourselves scarce. Dwivedi and his people are leaving, too, and they offered to escort us home. Safety in numbers, you know?”
Nodding as though she understood, she held her hand out, asking for mine. “Please, Sera. No matter what’s happened between us, I want you to keep in touch.”
I slipped my fingers into Bloom’s hand, and she squeezed them. “Of course I will.” Pulling her closer, I threw my arms around her and held her tightly. “We’re family. Not even undeath can take that away.”