The pit of my stomach began to gurgle and roll. This woman knew of my sister, and my answer surely held her fate.
“Yes.” I swallowed, focusing my attention. “Jason, the Fuller heir, is my sister's fiancé. He's determined to punish everyone involved in her kidnapping. The Tilley clan is just as determined to have their daughter Blue Bell returned.”
The small woman held up her hand and shook her head. “But will they kill their own child in the process?” she asked.
“Yes, I'm afraid they will.” The woman knocked on the transport wall, and the car pulled to the side of the road.
I put my armored hand on the woman's knee and opened the front of my face shield.
“I have known Jason all his life. He's grown quiet with rage. If my sister dies, every credit of his sizeable fortune will be spent towards the total annihilation of the Red population. Please don't let this turn him into a monster. Send her home unharmed.” The little woman scanned my face with her cold eyes. I couldn't hide my fear and desperation. My eyes filled with tears as the uncomfortable moment of silence lingered.
“Take this food to your family. Tell them of our chat or don't, you choose. Your benefactor asked for information about the girls, and my employer wished for your honest assessment as payment. This debt is settled both ways. Don't bother looking for me at the restaurant. You will not find me in the city after today.” The tiny woman exited the transport next to the main shuttle concourse. In ten minutes, she could board any number of trains and vanish.
The remainder of my three-mile ride home seemed to take hours. Every bump in the road rattled me to my core, and I struggled to keep my composure.
When we arrived at my family home, the driver walked the takeout box and my bag to the front door. My father saw us from the front window and opened the door and greeted us both with a polite smile. I walked inside and stood watching as my father thanked the man, and cheerfully accepted the food.
“From the Eaton household, Sir. We are thinking of your family in this time of turmoil. May it resolve quickly.” The driver walked out the door with a deliberate nod to me.
I stood frozen, facing my father. “Thank you for bringing me home, Sir,” I replied appreciatively.
“It is my honor, Ma'am. Welcome to the Eaton Family.” A chill ran down my spine. Had I just sold myself for the safe return of my baby sister?
“More food? We need to gather up some care packages for the neighbors.” My father always thought of others. His first instinct was to share.
Through the entry room window, I could see Hess walk from the kitchen to the living room. My mother sat on her favorite overstuffed green chair, and Jason sat on the edge of the couch next to her.
The enormity of my situation hit me all at once. I fell to the floor with a metallic clank and told my father everything. The Eaton secret, the woman on the transport, and the answer I gave her. All the day's events raced to fly out of my mouth at once. My father looked at me like I was a stranger caught stealing from the family well.
“Say something, Daddy. What am I supposed to do now?”
“What you're telling me is so wild, so unimaginable. I don't know what I'm supposed to say, Sweetheart.”
“I shouldn't have said anything to you about Pricilla's household.” My father nodded in agreement.
“I'm glad you confided in me, but you can't speak of the Eaton boy ever again. Comma patients are allowed ninety days to recover, that's all, no more. The crime you are suggesting the Eaton estate is concealing is unthinkable. But this stealthy woman with the food, how sure can you be of what she says about your sister is true?”
I took a deep breath and tried to corral my wild thoughts. “The woman gained nothing by talking to me,” I explained. “She didn't want anything but my opinion. It was like she looked straight into my heart.”
My father put his finger to his mouth to silence me and quietly walked to the desk by the entry door. He pulled out an electrical device about the size of my data-pad and waived it over the box of food. “Nothing electrical here, and nothing is emitting any kind of signal. We should probably toss out the food to be safe.”
“This whole box is from Mrs. Eaton. It will be quite fine and probably off the regular menu.”
“Are you feeling better now that you told me, Beryl?” My father asked, patting my shoulder.
“A little, but what do I tell the others. I can't keep this news about Karine to myself.”
“Tell them you are planning to take the Eaton offer and tell them about the woman. We should loop Dredge in on this conversation too. He undoubtedly knows privileged information about the Eaton family's predicament.”
My father helped me out of my day suit, and we walked into the main house together. I only told the group what the small woman in the transport said to me about Karine. The news of my sister's condition brought everyone hope except Jason—he was unusually quiet.
“Jason, she's alive, and she's trying to get herself home.” I expected relief or joy from Jason, but I got nothing but a dark stare.
“There’s no way to tell where she is right now. What condition will she be in when they finally return her? I swear to you all if she is harmed in any way, I will burn the seafloor to ash and kill every Red on the planet.” Jason pounded his wounded fist on the edge of the couch. Fresh blood spots dotted his bandaged arm. I was sure his stitches were ripping apart.
My bottom lip began to quiver, and my eyes started watering. I wouldn't forget this moment. We were
