GABRIEL #4
"I assume you’re aware that over the past twenty years, birth rates in our country have dropped, and that generational replacement may become difficult to maintain.
The pension system will collapse, people will end up on the streets, so perhaps those ‘reproductive’ programs are not entirely unnecessary.
Besides, they have only a moderate, supportive effect.
They don't cause any sudden population boom, so this is hardly a radical initiative, and certainly not something I would call controversial if we want reasonable social stability. "
I watch him for a moment, feeling a strange chill run down my spine. Why is he asking me so many questions about my worldview?
Sure, that might matter when choosing a partner, but these questions feel a little too targeted.
I study him more carefully.
He came here with four bodyguards, so he must be someone important, someone whose life might actually be at risk.
A disturbing thought flashes through my mind. Impossible. Absurd. No, no…
I push it away immediately. That couldn’t be happening. I’m nobody. Why would the man at the very top show up here and talk to someone accused of attacking his company? Could it really be Blue Lowen himself? That’s ridiculous, and yet…
I lock my gaze on him.
Dear Fate, everything fits. He’s so slight, that was something Marcel shared with Lowen, and it always irritated him.
And the hair. Blue is known for his dark navy hair, that cut fringe, and those electronic glasses. Could there really be another person like that, or am I losing it?
I stare at him, really stare. His eyes are sapphire, actually very beautiful. He looks at me, and I look at him.
"Who are you?" I whisper very quietly.
The room falls silent.
"What do you want from me?" I blurt out, my hands trembling.
The man doesn’t play any games, to his credit. He raises his hands and removes the mask from his ears.
He reveals a face that looks young, maybe twenty-five, smooth skin, delicate features, soft, almost sweet lips.
Yes, the CEO of Malden Pharmaceuticals is known for using his own rejuvenation tech on himself, and clearly it works. He doesn't look forty-two at all.
I swallow as the blood drains from me so fast my fingers almost go numb.
"Blue Lowen?"
Storm finally moves after staying still through my whole story.
"In the flesh, isn’t that something, Gabriel?" he says, almost amused, like he finds this entertaining.
Gessler just stares at him, eyes wide.
But I’m not amused.
"Is this some kind of joke, Storm? Did you bring him here to humiliate me?"
I shoot him a horrified look.
Storm blinks. "Why would this be a joke, and why would I want to humiliate you…"
"You brought the man whose company I attacked here. This is insane. Why would you do that?"
I stand up abruptly.
"Mr. Gessler, please take me out of here. I’ve had enough of being questioned for the past two months and explaining myself for something I wasn’t responsible for…"
"But you were responsible. You were part of that organization. You went there, you carried those canisters, and you helped pour the gasoline," Blue says coldly.
I look at him, but this time I don’t respond. I ignore him and turn to Gessler.
"Please take me out of here, Mr. Gessler. I’m not interested in this circus, whatever this is, some kind of torment, some extra trial.
I’ve had enough! I’m already tearing myself apart, losing everything!
" I raise my hands and rub my temples, feeling like I’m about to explode.
Then, suddenly, in a desperate act, I turn to Mr. Lowen and throw it all out.
"Do you know… The day before the police came to arrest me, I went to Marcel and found him fucking with Edgar, his right-hand man! Everything was ruined. My chance with him, my freedom, graduating with my major, a normal job, a normal relationship. I have nothing!"
"Gabriel—" Strom starts to say something, but I almost cry out,
"And you bring me this man so he can judge me and tear me apart even more?"
Against my will, I feel tears running down my face. Yeah, I’m one of those pathetic alphas who cry when everything falls apart.
I raise my hands and press them to my face.
"Mr. Gessler, please, just get me out of here. I don’t want to be here anymore."
Gessler says nothing.
I become aware of the awkward silence filling the room. Storm isn’t looking at me, he’s staring at his hands, even the cop seems to avoid my eyes. They’re all embarrassed by this pathetic breakdown.
"Gabriel," Storm finally says quietly, "Mr. Lowen didn’t come here to torment you. He’s interested in purchasing your contract."
I stare at him for a moment, then wipe the tears from my face.
"What? And why would he buy my contract, the contract of someone who burned down his own facility? That’s a good one, Storm, really funny. You’re having a great time at my expense… Mr. Gessler, can you finally—"
"That’s not a joke," Lowen’s cold voice cuts through the room.
I don’t have it in me to turn around and look at him. I can’t even explain why, but some strange feeling takes over, a surge of emotion, almost wild.
I turn away, ignoring Gessler, who is still standing there, rush to the door, yank it open, and bolt out of the room, or rather stumble out in an awkward, clanking half-run with the cuffs rattling.
The cop swears and goes after me.
"What the hell do you think you’re doing? You think you’re getting away?" he snarls, grabbing my arm and trying to drag me back, but I plant my weight and resist in a way he can’t easily break.
"I’m not going back to that fucking room. Take me to the booth."
"That’s not my call, it’s Mr. Gessler’s. While you’re at the fair, he decides where you are," he hisses.
"I’m not going back. You can’t make me," I say, and I’m almost never this firm, but this is that moment.
Three of Blue’s bodyguards stand nearby, staring at us, their eyebrows raised in clear amusement.
I clench my jaw and lock eyes with the cop.
Right then, Blue Lowen appears in the half-open doorway, his face calm, giving nothing away.
"I wanted to talk to you one on one, without all these people around," he says in an even tone.
I shoot him a quick look, then turn my eyes back to the cop.
"I’m not interested in talking, I want to go back to my booth," I say, my voice a little too high.
Silence settles, the guards say nothing, the cop says nothing, his grip tightens on my arm, and Blue doesn’t speak either.
"Please, just take me back to that damn booth!" I repeat through clenched teeth.
"I believe you, Gabriel."
The words cut through the scene, and at first they don’t even land, just pass right by me until he says it again.
"I believe every word you said."
Slowly, I look back at him. He believes me?
His small, perfect face hasn’t changed, still composed, his eyes slightly narrowed, fixed on me.
"Can we talk for five minutes? Just that."
Storm steps up to the door, opens it wider, slips past Blue, that knowing smirk already forming.
"I’ll leave you the office. Mr. Gessler, come with me, let them talk in peace."
I should resist, I should get out of here, I don’t want anything from this man, but the cop’s hand pushes me forward, and I don’t really fight it, I hesitate at the threshold, then give in and step into the now empty office, brushing past Blue.
The height difference between us is ridiculous, my six-six to his five-two or three.
I can’t pick up any scent from him beyond faint, neutral cosmetics, maybe a hint of eucalyptus, something lavender-like, probably he uses blockers, or perhaps he has no scent at all. I’ve heard things about his accident, about losing more than just part of his reproductive system.
I drop into my chair and stare at my cuffed hands, the sight still doesn’t feel real, it doesn’t fit me.
Blue returns to the couch, sits down, crosses one leg over the other, lacing his slender fingers together.
"Why did you run?"
I stay silent.
"Is it that hard for you to be in the same room with me, do you hate me that much?" he says, his tone almost mocking, like the idea itself amuses him.
"Shame," I admit finally, "it’s a lot easier to act when you don’t have to face the person you hurt."
"Shame," Blue repeats thoughtfully. "That’s a rare word these days, Gabriel."
My name in his mouth sounds strange, almost like a ringing, and it makes me snap my head up. It’s the second time he uses it. An odd feeling. Kinda pleasant?
"People want to be excused and justified for everything, Fate forbid anyone points out their fault. No one feels guilty anymore, no matter what they’ve done, there’s always an excuse. They don’t realize that guilt carries an important lesson."
"Believe me, I get it, and I learned it," I say gloomily.
And suddenly, I don’t even know why, the words just fall out.
"I’m sorry for what I did." A short pause. "This isn’t me, this isn’t my life, it’s not what I wanted, I just… fell in love and lost my way because of it. I screwed up."
"You shouldn’t be apologizing to me, Gabriel, but to the people who were hurt."
I press my hands to my face. "I know, and I think about them every day, many were burned, some badly, two of them have scars on their faces, young omegas who’ll carry those marks forever on their cheeks, their necks…"
"They won’t," Blue says coolly. "I made sure they received an experimental therapy developed by our lab. In fact, that very lab you burned was part of the project. They were conducting treatments that restored their skin, and I personally covered the cost. None of them has any burn scars left. I couldn’t allow innocent people who came to work for my company to suffer because of a group of vile extremists. "
Something breaks out of me, half pain, half relief, dear Fate, that’s… good, that’s so good to know.
"That’s… wonderful. Thank you. I’d want to beg them for forgiveness, but at least I can hold on to the fact that my actions didn’t leave permanent damage."