41
THE POISONER
From one room to the next, it was like I just appeared places without knowing how I got there. Not that things were moving fast, but nothing felt quite real.
Among the numbness, a seed of guilt sprouted from my stomach.
I forgot what it was to feel well. My skin was so soft and even in tone, my senses were sharp, my mind felt as if it was catching up from lack of blood to the brain.
When I moved my body, there was no more pain.
My only disgrace being what was traded for such wellness.
The trial had begun, but now for a different crime.
“We are held by few civil laws, and even fewer natural ones,” a tall, gaunt man began.
He was dressed in black, a tall stiff collar, and a white cravat.
His cheeks sunken slightly, black hair oiled back.
His pronunciation was archaic, from older ages of English.
He acted as a judge. “No kin-killing, no captive Hosts, and no forced turning.”
The dining room tables were rearranged in a horseshoe. Representatives took their seats around this arch, pens and notepads before them. The skeletal man stood at the head, Mr. Astor to his right as the prosecuting party.
In front of them, a collection of jars, new evidence in each.
One was blood, blackened and clear what species it was.
One was flesh, the pieces cleaned and collected from my stomach.
Lastly, a couple pearls, from the necklace that was so unlucky to be in my way.
Unmistakable, irrefutable proof of my last meal.
They allowed witnesses to stand in the archways of the room.
Eyes dotted the background. Mary and Rebecca were off to the side.
While Mary looked a bit sick, Rebecca’s glare could kill a flock from a thousand yards.
Elijah Johnson and Pierce Soros traded words by the corner as they watched.
John was provided a wheelchair that Mary positioned in front of her.
A diversity of emotions spanned across the crowd.
But I could tell you that public opinion was not in my favor.
We were standing before them, facing the inside of the curve for everyone to pass judgment.
We did not require a table at this time.
Though the shackles on my hands and ankles were heavy, all attached by a chain hung to a collar.
A prisoner again, except these manacles did not pretend they were anything else. No gold, no pageantry.
“We have exceptions to these rules if given a case, especially if it challenges the species’ survival, fitness, or extenuating circumstance.
” The man’s baritone voice carried through the room like an organ.
“Now is your time to state your case.” He flipped the paper before him, reading off the charge.
“Silas Forbes and Luka Novikov.” He glanced up.
Both men were to either side of me.
“For the crime of kin-killing en masse, how do you plead?”
“Not guilty,” Silas said first.
“Not guilty,” Luka repeated.
“Alina Lis,” the man’s eyes fell to me, “on the charge of kin-killing, how do you plea?”
I stared at him. I understood what he said, I knew what I wanted to say, but I had to keep it to one or two words.
To his side, Mr. Astor had such a sly grin, it was all too perfect.
Everything happened now, of all times. We were all exactly where he wanted us.
“Miss Lis?”
Luka looked down at me, but I kept my eyes forward.
“Not guilty,” I said, staring directly at Levi.
Mr. Astor’s smile only widened.
Silas’s head could have snapped with how fast he looked at me.
The witnesses exploded in opposition to my plea. They argued with the room, either at me or the representatives.
“Silence!” the voice bellowed over the chaos, and the mutterings died down slowly like embers. He turned back to us for one last question. “Will you all be tried as individuals or as a Nest?”
“They should be tried as a Nest,” Levi argued, gesturing toward me.
“The tenets of their establishment enable freaks like her. They should be held responsible for creating such a thing. This is why we must keep bloodlines pure. Should have been put down the minute she wasn’t thriving, as any ethical species would do. ”
There was silence between us.
“It must be unanimous,” he added.
I looked to Luka, but he was looking at Silas for his answer.
The Creature stood still, keeping his eyes from straying to me. The hesitance hurt, but I understood it was deserved.
“As a Nest,” he finally declared.
The judge looked to each of us to confirm with a nod that he spoke for all of us.
I would save my arguments for when my mind was sound, but nothing was making sense as my mind came to it.
What happened shouldn’t have been possible, Vipera biology and function aside.
Bloodsharing didn’t kill Silas when we did it.
I suppose I could have bitten too hard in my delirious state, but the clotting properties of my saliva shouldn’t have let her bleed as such.
I was lucky the representatives didn’t know about the paralytic venom, but even that should have only numbed her neck.
If I was biting too hard, she should have been able to push me away, even in an involuntary motion.
She should have been able to fight me off.
One of the strange men pulled me by the collar, yanking me away from the floor. Silas did not follow, but Luka did. The crowd looked like they wanted to jump out of the way or close in around me all at once, they couldn’t decide if they were afraid or enraged.
They practically dragged me down the hall like a stubborn pet.
As faces lined the hall, I spotted Mary and Rebecca.
Poor Mary flinched when I reached my shackled hands out.
“I didn’t—”
But before I finished, Rebecca pulled Mary back and spat in my face.
My mouth hung open in shock, suddenly blinded by the fluid.
Even as we ascended the stairs and the faces disappeared, the few that were there were less inviting.
Sidney stood in front of my room, his face hardened and cold as he kept looking straight.
I looked to him for any sense of whether he believed that I was dangerous, though there was no reason for him not to.
But as I moved past, I caught a small, troubled look on his face, as much as he tried to remain neutral.
The security personnel shoved me as I entered the room.
“Do that again and you lose your arm,” Luka bit, shoving him back. “This is still her home. She is under our care.”
“Abomination.” The man spat on the floor before he backed away.
The door finally closed, and the noise finally stopped.
“I can’t sleep in here.” I stared back at the bed.
“You don’t have many choices right now,” he said tensely.
The sheets were clean. I didn’t have the boldness to ask if they’d replaced the mattress too. But in addition to new linens, there was an extra feature added to the bed.
A long chain affixed to the leg of the frame.
Luka picked up the chain and the lock, beckoning me forward.
I swallowed thickly as I took the smallest steps forward.
He knelt before me, locking the longer lead to the chain between my ankles. It was only enough to walk, not to run. And the extension from the bed wasn’t even enough to reach the dresser.
“Again?” I whispered, as the lock clicked into place.
He looked up at me with such regret, I wasn’t sure if it was for what happened to me or the fact he’d gotten involved at all in the first place. At this point, everyone was regretting crossing my path.
“I didn’t kill her,” I told him firmly.
His brow twitched. “Her neck was gone, Alina. Chewed to the spine. Her necklace and skin were in your stomach. We both saw it.”
“No, it doesn’t make sense in the slightest. You have to hear me—”
He rose to his feet and stepped past me.
“Luka!” I lunged to grab his arm, the chain clanking against the frame as it pulled.
He didn’t look at me for some time, just stood there. If he walked away, I couldn’t stop him. I wouldn’t even be able to reach him if he took a single step more.
“I gave you a chance to prove yourself,” I said desperately. “I’m asking you now to let me have mine.”
He glanced at me over his shoulder, his scarred eye catching the light.
“There’s something missing. Something they didn’t see,” I begged. “Let me see the body. One more time.”
“If I move you from this room, they’ll have my head.”
“Because of Silas, they already do,” I said plainly. “Do you trust me?”
He smoothed his hand over his face, struggling with the decision. My fear was that he was giving up, on all of us and himself. But I still saw a shining speck of light, a way out.
“You’ll have to be quick.” He was stern. “I don’t know when, but I will try tonight. Maybe the next. You need to let me handle the arrangements completely, you understand me?”
“Anything that gets me back in the lab,” I said quickly. “Oh—and I will need ice.”
I spoke too quickly of my patience. Now that I was well again, my mind did not stop. Luka did not come that night. The entire day after, I wondered if he would come at all. I would give him until tonight before I became rambunctious.
They fed me blood, I do not know from whom. I assumed it would be from Luka, since no other soul would dare look at me, much less volunteer their blood.
My only belongings were a metal goblet and the small, dingy ring box on my side table.
I was not allowed glass or even a corset while unsupervised.
They kept me in the same stained nightgown.
I thought it was a bit unfair, casting such an impression during what was supposed to be a fair trial.
I asked to be redressed, but they did not offer any such thing for now.
There were no visitors aside from Amelia when she brought me food.