Seeds by Chris Mandeville

Author:Chris Mandeville [Mandeville, Chris]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-941528-24-2
Publisher: Parker Hayden Media
Published: 2015-04-18T04:00:00+00:00

Sixty-Seven

The Grand Hotel

Pascal smiled as Brandt shoved Mia into the room.

Mia stumbled but regained her poise quickly. “Chancellor Worth, I’m so pleased to see you again.” She held out her hands to him.

Pascal turned to the collectors that Linus had escorted in. “Is this the woman you saw?”

The small man sniffed and stepped closer, taking a long look, enjoying his moment. “That’s her, though she smelled better.”

“Yeah,” the bigger man said. “That’s her.”

“Take them back to the lobby,” Pascal told Linus. “I may have need of them later.”

“Will that be all, sir?” Brandt asked.

“Not from you, Brandt,” Pascal said. “You and Mia stay. The rest of you are dismissed.”

While the other soldiers exited the room, Pascal tried to read Brandt. The man held his shoulders back and looked Pascal in the eyes, but he seemed vaguely nervous, which gave Pascal pause. Was he hiding something?

But Brandt didn’t waver under Pascal’s scrutinizing stare, so Pascal dismissed his suspicions, attributing the man’s nerves to the adrenaline of the pursuit, or perhaps the thrill of being singled out by his commander.

“Chancellor—Pascal—please, let me explain,” Mia said. Her voice was low and calm, but her eyes gave away her fear.

Pascal decided to let her continue speaking for the moment, curious how she’d handle herself, what she might say. It would all be lies, of course, but watching her try to wriggle out from under his thumb might prove amusing.

“When I was at World Waste,” Mia continued. “You remember when I went out walking on my own, after you took me on my first train ride?” She looked at him coyly, obviously hoping to remind him of their past intimacies, but the stench of the refuse wafting from her clothing spoiled the effect.

“Yes, you went walking on your own,” Pascal murmured.

“I saw those collectors, Frank and Roger.”

Nice technique, Pascal thought. Laying the truth as groundwork before peppering it with lies. He nodded, encouraging her to continue.

“It was my own fault,” she said. “I wasn’t thinking when I told them I was a Ford Girl.”

Pascal nodded again, furrowing his brow as if he were concerned. Another nice move on her part, saying it was her fault. It was a terrible waste that she’d betrayed him. She could have gone far.

“They, they cornered me.” Her pitch rose as she built to her punch line. “Then they, they violated me. Both of them.” Her voice cracked with emotion. “I know I should have reported it, but I didn’t want to ruin your important meeting with Director Gould. I was wrong not to have told you.” She blinked rapidly, and Pascal thought she might produce actual tears. “Pascal, I—”

He slapped her, and she cried out, staggering backward.

He’d seen and heard enough. He turned his attention to Brandt. “You’re to be commended for bringing in our little outlaw.”

“Thank you, sir,” Brandt said.

Pascal enjoyed the venomous glare that Mia turned on Brandt, but the man didn’t seem to notice or care. This was a bit of silver lining—Brandt standing by, unflinching and unflappable.

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