“I brought you something stronger for the pain,” she says, handing me a shot glass filled with a blue liquid.
I take it from her, but I don’t drink it. “Who are you?” I ask.
She looks at me clearly, puzzled by the question. “I’m not sure I understand.”
I go and close the front door. The woman begins to sweat and tremble, though she does a good job trying to hide it.
“You left something behind when you collected my clothing.”
“Oh, I was not aware that I had. Do you need me to clean it?”
I pace around her, which causes her to shake more. I feel she’s on the verge of collapse when I gesture towards the bathroom so she can retrieve the item. Once we’re inside, I close and lock in the two of us.
Twenty-Six
“Icarian isn’t what you thought it was, is it Cil?”
The woman’s body relaxes, almost going limp. “How did you figure it out?” she asks, leaning against one of the walls.
“You left the suit behind.”
“Still, that shouldn’t have tipped you off.” She removes a necklace from around her throat and her face morphs into the one I’m familiar with, her hair color and length returning to normal as well. “Comes in handy when you’re hiding,” she says, handing me the necklace. “Keep it. I have more.”
“Where you’d get it?” I ask, fingering the smooth shiny metal.
“The same place you got the suit.” She sits on the floor, her body completely at ease. “Did you know they have cameras in each room except this one?”
So that’s how Jack knew I was alone.
“That doesn’t surprise me,” I say, sitting on the cool tile and leaning my back against the shower stall.
“Still, Max, how’d you know it was me?”
“You’re the only one I noticed without a laurel tattoo on the side of your wrist. The others have them, but you don’t. Which means you haven’t been here long. Also, I caught the look in your eyes down in the lobby yesterday. You can wear a mask, but when you recognize someone, your reaction is hard to hide. The others didn’t look startled. But you did. That could only mean that you thought I was elsewhere. Everyone else I know is either in the Outer Limits, or dead. You seem to easily move about the regions without any problems, so who else could you have been?”
She lets out a laugh, which causes me to laugh as well.
“So, now what?” she asks.
“I ask you a couple of questions, then I kill you.”
The laughter stops. “You can’t be serious.”
I swing the Kopis towards her throat. “Very.”
“Why… why would you want to kill me, Max? I’ve done nothing but help you,” she says almost pleading.
“You’re a Dracken traitor, Cil. You tipped off the Patrician on how to get into Pentras Tower, but you also told the Keepers about the plot to mutilate me. You’ve been playing both sides, but I can’t figure out why.”
“You’re crazy, Max.” She shakes her head and lets out a nervous laugh.
“Then tell me, how did the Patrician know what type of lighting was needed to read the directory in the lobby of Pentras Tower? You’re the only one besides Lok who knows how to maneuver their way around the wristbands’ programming. Also, you just said it yourself that you got this necklace the same place I got the suit. There’s only one way you could’ve possibly known that: if you are actually a Dracken. One from the previous society that was destroyed by the Patrician.” I lean in closer, the top of the Kopis almost piercing her skin. “Tell me, Cil, how have you been kept alive all this time? That attack happened what, about a century ago? That would make you an ancient. Yet, you still look young. What did the Patrician promise you if you helped them?”
“Immortality,” she hisses. “I told them that I could get them into Pentras Tower, but they couldn’t wait. When their plan failed, they finally listened to me. Only my terms went up.” Her eyes grow dark as she crosses her arms across her chest. “I was one of the researchers who helped create the technology the Patrician are seeking. When they arrived, they threatened our society, said they would turn the world to ash if we didn’t give them what they wanted. I began smuggling some of the items out, but the Patrician grew impatient. They dropped nuclear weapons on Pentras while I was traveling to one of their ships. The tower’s defenses went into action, preventing any entry. The city was so contaminated that no one could get close enough to disengage them. The Dracken that survived, retreated to the Outer Limits after securing the area with the dome. I was the Patrician’s only link to the technology they craved.”
“So, you traded your soul for living forever. Unfortunately, that’s not going to pan out for you. But why help the Patrician at all?”
“Sometimes worlds just need to be scratched from existence. This one needs to be left in rubble.”
“Tell me why. It may cause me to spare your life.”
“Wow, Max, you’re as nuts as your parents. That’s what their thinking was too, and look where it got them. And you, for that matter.”
“Wait a minute.” I lower the sword and scoot closer to her. “My parents wanted this place destroyed?”
“Yes, but not because of the Patrician. This world was heading for destruction before the Patrician arrived. They just accelerated the process.”
“Then why?” I raise my weapon again, almost jamming it into her throat. “I’m tired of this bullshit, Cil. Just spit it out already.”
“Fine. Because they learned the truth about what the Dracken were going to do. I helped them realize it, but that was only after they had been exiled to the Outer Limits and you had disappeared.” She takes a deep
