by Jason Letts
“Gosh, what is it?” Sierra asked when Lowell hesitated. She was an adult who could handle this, Lowell reminded himself.
“Our family got its start running mines using slave labor. I’m not going to sugarcoat it. The operation was brutal and deaths were common. I thought it was ancient history and that we’d put the past behind us, but Carlisle claims to be descended from the survivors, and he’s organized this scheme involving the investigation to exile me from the company and take over. He said the board will convene for a vote once the Private Oversight Committee has published its findings in a few cycles, and then I’ll be terminated and Bracken Energy will be without a Bracken for the first time since its founding hundreds of years ago.”
“Shit,” Sierra said, stunned. She was too professional to gush or break down about it, but Lowell feared the worst.
Ralph cleared his throat and tapped his fingertips on his desk.
“And your injuries—what happened there?”
“I attacked him with the sword in the battlefield, and he came back at me with a blade concealed in his cane. I was overwhelmed and quickly driven from the building. After that I got on a train and have been making my way here.”
“OK, I think we’ve got a lot to go on,” he said, exchanging glances with Sierra. “The first step is to catalogue all of the wrongs he’s perpetrated against you. We can develop a case and prosecute him for those wrongs, but because of the Vendetta Clause you’ll be able to freely return the favor.”
“The Vendetta Clause? I suspect I’ve heard that before somewhere,” Lowell cogitated.
“Nearly every Cumerian law has the Vendetta Clause embedded at the bottom,” Ralph explained. “It says, ‘This law is null and void if the transgression mirrors an identical act against the offender.’”
“An eye for an eye.” Lowell nodded.
“It’s one of the foundational structures of Cumerian law,” Sierra added. “You can do everything to Carlisle that he’s done to you with unshakable legal exemption.”
Lowell scratched his chin and tried to rub out an ache in his neck.
“Well, he deceived me about his past, conceived and executed an elaborate plot against me that involved nearly every member of Bracken’s board of directors, carried a concealed weapon, instigated a frivolous government investigation using circumstantial evidence, and attempted to slice my neck open despite going on to claim that he wanted me to spend the rest of my life suffering for crimes my ancestors committed.”
After all that, Lowell needed to take a deep breath.
“Let’s keep those things in mind as we try to figure out how to respond,” Ralph suggested. “But the most important thing we need to do is buy some more time until we can execute some of these strategies in order to get back at him. There’s no way we could put this all together in just a couple of cycles.”
“I’d ask Randall to try to stall the chairman of the Private Oversight Committee, but everything he’s told me suggests that the man is untouchable,” Lowell said, straining to come up with something.
“Is there any way to stop the board from convening?” Sierra asked.
“I doubt it. I’m sure Carlisle has them tapped to vote the minute the evidence against me comes out.”
A long pause ensued while they tried to think of a way to add more time to the clock. It ate away at Lowell that it might already be too late for Ralph to work his magic and tie Carlisle’s hands in court.
“Well, if he did make it into the chief executive’s office, you could start an investigation against him the instant he told a half-truth.” Ralph shrugged.
“No!” Lowell growled, unable to believe they couldn’t find a way to solve this. He got up and pressed a finger against the desk. “I will not let this man drive me out of my own company! It wasn’t even that long ago that I was at Taylor’s Crossing, thinking about how he’d be able to go in a new direction because Randall was on the Grand Council and Sierra would take over at the company after I’d made it stronger and healthier than ever before.”
Ralph pursed his lips and leaned back in his chair. Lowell regretted yelling, but he couldn’t get over the confounding tragedy his life was turning into.
“I see. So what is your actual exit strategy, then? You weren’t really planning to die at your desk, right? You must have something in place detailing how the company will go when you’re gone.”
“My exit strategy?” Lowell mused, suddenly becoming reflective. Dying at his desk had been a fanciful thought, but it wasn’t realistic. Ralph was on to something, but Lowell couldn’t quite grasp it yet. “I…I was going to retire and leave the position to Sierra.”
All at once the heavy load melted away and it dawned on Lowell that a glimmering escape hatch had been waiting right beside him all along.
“I could retire,” he said. “And the chief executive’s office would go straight to Sierra. There’d be nothing Carlisle could do about it. I’d walk away clean, the investigation and the board vote would be moot, and Sierra would have the job she was born for.”
It felt so good that Lowell began laughing, drawing grins from both Sierra and Ralph. This was a real way forward. Maybe it would be better if he walked away now and put all of this mess behind him. He could relax, pursue some hobbies, and watch the company from afar. Hadn’t he been through enough to earn that?
“Carlisle will try to find a way to force her out, too,” Ralph said, which Lowell fully accepted.
“I’m sure he will, but by the time he can get anything together you’ll have everything you need to take him down.”
“So I’m going to be CEO?” Sierra squeaked. Her fingers were shaking with a giddiness Lowell hadn’t seen since she was a little girl. Everyone’s dreams would come true at once. Ralph squinted at her and cracked a grin at Lowell.
“So you’re going to take away my new senior partner, are you? Bastard. Now I’m going to have to find another one of those knuckleheads to do the job,” Ralph joked, but in truth Sierra’s new position as Senior Partner was the only thing that would legitimize her succession. And even then it would be a battle.
“It’s not going to be easy,” Lowell said to Sierra. Things were looking up, but they weren’t in the clear yet.
“I’m ready for it,” she said, standing up to meet him eye to eye.
“I knew you would be,” he said, nodding at her and wrapping her up in a hug, ignoring the bruises.
CHAPTER 13
Getting her dream job gave Sierra a buzz that seemed like it would never end, but the situation with her father’s surprise retirement was far from the only thing on her mind. Once work ended, she quickly packed what she needed and rushed home through the darkness, where the woman she had taken in from the streets was standing on the brink of After.
Crouching near her as she lay on the couch, limp but in visible pain, Sierra remembered the progressive decline in the woman’s health that led her to this point. First the coughing, then the weakness, and now she could barely move at all.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t do more for you,” Sierra whispered, knowing nothing would get through her haze.
A couple of freelance medical specialists had been in to see her, throwing up their arms without even giving a diagnosis, but taking the next step and going to Ristle’s Mother of Life Hospital was out of the question. The first question they would ask was, “How long do you want to live?” The second would be, “What do you have to pay for it?” They could save someone’s life, but in exchange they would take everything else.
Tucked under a thick blanket, the woman shivered continuously. Even Nemi, resting on her shoulder, couldn’t warm her. The tiny dragon seemed to be distraught at the situation, screeching and turning in circles. Sierra pondered how they must’ve come an awfully long way together, forming an attachment that was deep and complex.
Only recently had she discovered how much of a companion Nemi could be. She’d taken him into the back alley to practice regulating his temperature.
Using a steel sheet above a concrete block, Sierra helped him practice heating up enough to melt through the steel and then cooling off enough to make the cement explode by the time he dropped onto it. As Nemi got better at warming and cooling, Sierra reduced the space between the steel and the cement until only a foot and two seconds were needed to drastically change temperature.
Sierra snapped out of her thoughts as the woman shuddered and exhaled deeply. It wouldn’t be long now until the end, and Sierra found it brutal to watch. She tried not to cry but couldn’t stop her eyes from welling up.
“Nemi, sol,” the woman muttered, barely audible. The dragon scampered onto her chest and looked her in the face. To Sierra’s surprise, the next words were directed to her.
“Nemi, ’ome. ’Ome,” she wheezed.
Squinting, Sierra gazed back in confusion until something struck her.
“Oh, are you saying ‘home?’” Sierra asked. Remembering the map, she fetched it from the closet and set it on the table. Once it was out, Nemi leapt back to that same spot near the center of Plagrass. “Nemi wants to go home, doesn’t he?”
The dragon yipped, and Sierra pursed her lips. Getting to Plagrass and navigating largely uncharted territory to the center was more than she ever thought she could do, but if this was the dying wish of the woman who’d brought her Nemi, she’d find a way.
“I’ll get him home somehow. I promise,” she said, looking away and again wondering how she would ever follow through on that.
But the promise must’ve been little comfort, because by the time she glanced back, the old woman had a new stillness to her. Sierra waited a moment to see her blink, but she never did, and Sierra closed her eyes.
“Welcome to After. They say it’s a place of all things, where light, dark, fire, water, past, future, and so much more come together in one incomprehensible state, but I wish you could tell me if it’s true. Someday I’ll see for myself, I suppose.”
The dragon cried, fluttering back to the body. He gently put a claw on her face and pulled away, as if it had finally registered that she’d left him. Nemi’s eyes suddenly seemed much bigger than they had before, and he looked back at Sierra with his head low.
“We’ll persevere,” she said, extending her hand. The dragon hopped into it and curled into a ball. Now that she was gone, they needed to figure out what would come next.
There were calls to make about arrangement for the body and expenses she would need to bear. Without any idea of what sort of funeral practices the woman would prefer, Sierra simply offered the deepest thanks she could for being able to see a part of the world she didn’t know existed.
She’d missed hours of sleep by the time the officials carted the body away and was barely able to keep her eyes open. Considering that her last cycle at Fiori was tomorrow, she hoped she’d be able to float through it despite her fatigue.
Although neither she nor Ralph had said a word to anyone about her leaving, everyone seemed to know by the time she made it into work. Throughout the early hours there was a steady stream of people entering her modest but cushy senior partner office offering her congratulations and wishing her the best. Dwyre, West, some of the interns, clerks, and secretaries made it in. It was almost enough to make Sierra regret leaving.
The only person she really knew who didn’t come to see her was Raiden Wozniak, for which Sierra was profoundly grateful. Since her promotion she’d barely glimpsed him around the lobby or the offices, but a seed of worry persisted that he’d do something to harass her one last time before she left for good.
After a few meetings, some of which focused on how to tackle Carlisle, it seemed like the work cycle would end and Sierra would be in the clear. Just as she was packing the rest of her personal belongings into a box, the door creaked open, making Sierra jump.
“Oh, Ralph. You startled me!” she said when her boss poked his head in. The short and stout man had a somber look on his face, making Sierra think he might actually miss her.
“Hey, I just wanted to say that if anyone’s got the guts to lead Bracken Energy out of this dark hole, it’s you. Your father’s lucky to have you.”
“Thanks,” Sierra said. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say your domestic problems have made you soft.”
“Maybe they have. Maybe it’s time I started appreciating people a little more. I’ll save the hellfire for the courtroom.” He grinned.
Getting onto the elevator with a box of her belongings, she passed her old floor and said a silent goodbye to the other junior partners. Without a position at the firm, she was back to being in competition with their families. With any luck, she had been successful enough to intimidate them.
She passed through the busy lobby, saying a few last goodbyes to secretaries and even some clients. On the dark street, she hurried home to the prospect of frantically packing up her belongings, abandoning the apartment, and taking a train back to the ClawLands. The consequences of this new challenge were direr than anything she’d ever faced. Once her father executed his retirement, she would become the steward of her family and the company. And mixed into all of that was the need to find time to have children and secure the next generation.
Sierra entered her building for what might be the last time and as usual passed up the elevator in favor of taking the stairs to her third-floor apartment. Her mind churned through a thousand thoughts a minute, leaving her unaware of the faint sound of steps behind her until she reached into her bag for her key.
Something pressed her hard against the door. She fumbled with the box, sending folders, pens, and knick-knacks clattering onto the floor. Struggling against the unrelenting force holding her did little to help, but eventually she was able to twist her neck enough to spy the silver suit and smarmy grin she’d come to loathe.
“Raiden, what are you doing?” she asked, but the answer quickly became apparent. His hand ran over her ass and up the front of her shirt, groping her breasts to the sound of his heavy breathing. Sierra felt as though there were a thousand burning ants crawling over her body.
She jerked but nothing could dislodge Raiden. Before she knew it, he’d bunched her skirt up around her waist. She cried for help, fully aware of how rarely anyone took the stairs. To her knowledge, most of the apartments near hers were vacant. She could imagine someone walking by and pretending not to see anything.
“Just think, one day a son of ours will be running Bracken Energy,” Raiden said, nearly cleaving Sierra’s mind in two with the perversity of it. But it all made sense. The Wozniak Conglomerate had a history of acquiring other successful businesses for next to nothing. Raiden’s harassment, goading her to fight for the promotion while he slouched, enabling her to be chief executive—it had all been part of a hostile takeover plan of the worst kind.
“That’s sick! I can promise you we’ll never have children,” she said through gritted teeth.
“Hush, you’ll feel differently once you’re holding him in your arms,” Raiden said. His hand roamed around underneath her panties, every touch making her skin crawl. It pulled away, and Sierra could hear him fumbling with his belt. She threw an elbow, connected, but couldn’t knock him away.
“Let’s go inside at least,” she said, knowing she could get her hands on something to smash against his head.
“But it’s so much more exciting out here,” he huffed. It was clear he took a lot of pleasure in what he was doing, reveling in it. Sierra felt like she might throw up any second. That feeling was replaced by a sharp pain in her side, as well as the sound of tearing fabric.
“Oww!” He’d ripped the side of her panties right off her body, waving the piece of fabric over her shoulder so she could glimpse it, and then looming closer and taking a whiff. The rest of the garment dropped around one ankle.
“This’ll be perfect for my collection,” he said.
“No, please!” she begged, her arms and legs tired. She could feel the head of his penis probing her bare backside.
“Now bend
over a little more. And be a doll and say my name once or twice,” he ordered.
“I hate you,” she seethed.
“I hate you, Raiden,” he coached her, drilling a knuckle into her lower back to make it arch.
Sierra strained, her mind trying to escape her body, but before she could tell what was happening, a hiss behind her rang in her ears.
Raiden cried out in pain. His grip diminished, allowing Sierra to glance behind enough to see Nemi biting his neck. The little dragon must’ve crawled under the door and right up Raiden’s back while he wasn’t paying attention.
Raiden swatted at his neck to pry the dragon loose, eventually forcing Nemi to disengage, leaving a blood-soaked gouge right under his ear. Wasting no time, Sierra threw herself at him, knocking him toward the stairs where he slipped on a pen, fell over the railing and the narrow gap, and crashed headfirst into the steps on the other side. His body went limp.
Nemi buzzed around in front of Sierra, and all she could do besides catching her breath and fixing her skirt was nod at him for his heroics. Going to the railing, she looked down at the body on the opposite side.
“I’m not going to feel bad about that,” she said, reeling but very relieved. “Still, people need to stop dying around my apartment!”
Unlike with the old woman, calling the officials, reporting what Raiden had done, and having them cart away the body was not a possibility. The Wozniaks supplied almost all of Bracken Energy’s steel, and if Sierra were connected to his death in any way, the Wozniaks would take umbrage and devastate Bracken’s operations by cutting off any steel from the OrePlains. That, or something worse.
Sierra hoped she could dispose of Raiden’s body in typical Ristle fashion by dumping him in a back alley somewhere, praying that by some off chance his family wasn’t fully aware of what he’d been doing. At least he was dead.
“Guhhhhhhhhh,” he moaned, the sound echoing through the stairwell and making Sierra wince.
No, it would’ve been too easy if he had just died, wouldn’t it? Sierra’s dejected rationalizations included new scenarios about what would happen if Raiden somehow got up and recovered. If she filed charges, the Wozniaks would fight and the case could eat up her entire life, even with Ralph helping her. There was only one way to resolve the situation.
