CHAPTER FIFTEEN #3
Phillip cleared his throat, glancing at me, and I felt the dagger twist again. “Is it wise to discuss this right now?”
“It’s fine,” Collin said. “They broke into our medical building containing our supplements. I was called away before I could resolve anything.”
“Was the Reaper involved?” Nora asked, eyes wide.
Collin glared at her. “Do not use that name.”
“Did you not call the Press a gossip column in the other room?” Phillip asked her.
“What? It’s what the Elite are calling him,” Nora told him unabashedly. “He has a reputation now, and I’m not gossiping. I’m asking you two. It’s different; you do not count.”
“Who’s the Reaper?” I asked.
Collin turned, looking at me. “The person behind these difficulties. The Elite,” he shot a severe look toward Nora, “seem to think he needs a name.”
“What’s he after?”
Phillip rubbed his neck. “We don’t know yet. They raided a medical warehouse and might have taken vital supplements.”
“Who do you think is behind it?” Nora asked, her food forgotten. “Besides the Reaper.”
Collin stretched his legs. “That’s what we have been tasked with figuring out.
Possibly an Elite member trying to send the Illum a message.
Possibly Defects attempting a rebellion.
Regardless, sooner or later the Reaper will mess up and expose himself.
The truth always comes out. When it does, the Illum will eliminate him. ”
Unease twisted deep in my gut. The Reaper wasn’t the only one with something to hide from the Illum. But Hal visiting me in the Archives was different. Harmless.
And last night? a small voice whispered. The way it had felt when he called me Moonlight, trading secrets in the dark. I pulled my leg from Collin’s as guilt settled in the pit of my stomach.
Collin stood, yanking me from my thoughts.
“Leaving already?” Nora asked.
“We need to get to the facilities. See what was uncovered overnight,” Collin said.
Phillip downed his tea, squeezing Nora’s shoulder in goodbye and nodding at me before leaving the room.
“You work too hard, brother,” Nora expressed, sipping her tea.
Collin dismissed her concern and turned to me.
“Nora will keep you company. Your Pod will arrive soon to transport you to work. Your lateness has been documented, and you will have your normal dismissal time. I have spoken with my fellow Illum, and you will receive a shortened workweek. Communications will be sending you a message about it.”
I wondered briefly if Phillip was behind the communications. I cleared my throat. “I don’t have adequate clothing.”
“Wear this,” Collin said, gesturing to my current dress. “I will see you soon.”
I watched him walk out before returning my attention to Nora, who appeared lost in thought.
“Ms. Emeline, I have your morning supplements,” a worker said, approaching me with a syringe on a platter. “Please raise your arm.”
“My arm?”
“Yes, ma’am, for administration.”
“Do you not take your supplements every day?” Nora asked, unconcerned.
“Yes, in pill form.”
“How outdated. We take ours as an injection.”
I held out my arm, trying to restrain my panic. A sharp pinch swept through me.
“Not so bad, right?” Nora said, smiling. “I assume your Pod will arrive soon. Shall we head to the sitting room?”
“Ms. Emeline, Mr. Collin asked that you receive this.” The worker handed me a beautiful, rich brown knee-length coat. “Nora, today’s Press issue.”
Nora chuckled and grabbed the tablet from the man. “Bastard gave you my coat.”
I followed her as she made her way out of the room. “I don’t have to take it.”
“No, I insist you do. It’s just different. He seems concerned for you, considerate even.” Nora perched on the edge of the steps that led to the sunken seating area, the tablet aglow.
I grabbed my clutch. “Does he not consider others usually?”
“He’s an Illum,” Nora stated. “He doesn’t have to. It’s different with you. Call it a twin thing.”
“Is this ‘twin thing’ normal?”
“I wouldn’t know. We are an oddity of sorts.
An anomaly. I do know that Collin isn’t heartless—he cares about work and duty above all else.
It’s why Phillip and Collin got along so quickly.
That and their fervent desire to postpone mating for as long as possible, which is ridiculous.
The male does very little. It’s the female whom everything falls on. ”
I didn’t want to think about that, the possibility of an offspring. Not again.
“Don’t fret,” Nora said. “I’ll help you when it is time. I am a pro at this point.” She smiled, but she looked sad. “It was wonderful to meet you.”
Nora lifted the tablet. Her eyes widened before she flipped it down quickly, her cheeks tinged pink.
“What is it?” I asked.
“It’s nothing. Just gossip.”
“Can I see it?”
Nora looked between me and the tablet, then sighed and held it out to me.
Right there on the front page was a photo of myself and Collin, one arm wrapped tightly around my waist, pulling the sheer white fabric taut against my skin, and the other holding my face. My first kiss displayed for the Elite to see. Red-hot embarrassment and anger blazed through me.
“That happened the other night,” I muttered, staring at the thing Collin and I hadn’t discussed today. “Why—why today?”
Nora’s fierceness flashed across her face like lightning. “There’s power in revealing information at the precise moment it best suits the teller. When there is the most to gain. The Press—it is quite good at it.”
She took the tablet from me but not before I saw the words above the photo.
YOUNGEST ILLUM SHOCKS ELITE WITH MINOR MATE: DO MINORS HAVE A PLACE IN OUR CLOUDS?
“I would ignore it,” Nora urged as she settled into the spot I had found her in, almost entirely hidden by the pillows. She tossed the Press aside and grabbed her book. A Pod pulled up outside.
“Nora, who controls the Press?” I asked. The image burned into my memory as two words echoed in my mind. “It’s the Illum, right?”
Nora stared at me sadly. “Yes.”