The Gender Game

by Forrest, Bella

  "Then, as soon as the bombs go off, you'll rush to the egg's lab using the staircase, while I'll head off in a different direction to arrange transport for us…" I listened carefully as he began to explain how to set up the bombs around the glass casing of the egg and have them implode without blowing myself up.

  He made me repeat the process three times until he was satisfied that every detail had sunk in, though I would've appreciated a practice run.

  "Then," he went on, "all you'll have to do is retrieve the egg, hurry to the stairs, and head up to the roof. You will find the door leading out to the rooftop open, and I'll be waiting for you there. From the time you leave me downstairs, you'll have exactly fifteen minutes. You mustn't be any later than that."

  Fifteen minutes was tight for all that. The light fitting hiding the package was fiddly. At least I'd opened it once already. I had to hope the second time wouldn't take me as long.

  "So," Lee said, clasping his hands together, "that's all you'll have to do. Alastair is due to call to check in on us in about fifteen minutes. And we'll make the call to Viggo in an hour."

  * * *

  I sat in the kitchen opposite Lee, clutching his phone in my hands and staring down at Viggo's number. I pressed dial. My palms grew sweaty as it rang.

  "Mr. Bertrand?" Viggo's deep voice spoke in my ear after five rings.

  "Mrs. Bertrand," I replied.

  Viggo went quiet. So did I.

  Lee widened his eyes at me.

  "I'm sorry to disturb you," I said, wetting my lower lip, "but I need to talk to you about last night."

  There was a beat before he replied, "I'm not sure that's a good idea."

  "It probably isn't," I said. "But I need to speak to you. I'll be at the lab's banquet with Lee tonight. I need to… get something off my chest."

  "Where is your husband now?"

  "Taking the dog for a walk. He's off work today."

  "Then why can't you tell me now?" Viggo posed.

  "It's something best said in person."

  Another span of silence. Then I heard him drawing a breath. "All right," he muttered. "I'll meet you, but after that, I think it's best that we don't see each other again. I doubt your husband will ask me to have a lot more to do with you."

  "Okay," I said, my voice going a tad scratchy.

  "Where do you want to meet?"

  "In the lab building. Outside the camera room."

  "Hm. Okay."

  "At seven-fifteen. I'll do my best to arrive at that time, but if I have some trouble getting away from Lee, could you wait for up to thirty minutes? If I don't arrive by seven forty-five, feel free to leave."

  Asking anybody to hang around for thirty minutes was disrespectful. I could hear his reluctance, but he agreed. He was probably regretting ever having gotten involved with me in the first place.

  "Okay, I'll see you later," I concluded. "Goodbye, Viggo."

  "Goodbye, Mrs. Bertrand."

  33

  Lee was pleased by my performance.

  "Now you can relax for the next few hours," he said. "We will be leaving here at five-thirty to allow us some leeway with the traffic, but I suggest you get ready in good time. And wear something nice."

  I wished that we didn't have hours to wait. I wished that we could leave now and get it all over with.

  But the time passed quickly. Before I knew it, I was in my room getting ready. I chose the same blue dress that I had worn for Lee's and my wedding. When I ran, I would have to hike it up, but the only thing suitable for an occasion such as a banquet would be a long dress, according to Lee. I would wear my heels too. Those would definitely have to come off.

  After I finished dressing and trying to make my hair look presentable, I left my room and found Lee sitting at his computer again. He was already dressed in a black tuxedo. His hair was gelled back, his face clean-shaven. He looked bland, nondescript. The polar opposite of Viggo’s rugged style.

  He looked me over as I eyed him, then reached into a drawer and handed me the same pack of tools that I'd used the last time I'd ventured into the egg's lab. Screwdrivers for the light fitting. He also retrieved a small lady's handbag and gave it to me.

  "Got this for you in anticipation."

  I couldn't quite bring myself to say thanks. I took the bag from him and stuffed the tools into it.

  Lee returned his focus to the screen. "We still have about fifteen minutes before we're due to leave," he said. "Viggo is there." He pointed to a red dot near Crescent River. I couldn’t find the other four dots, though I spotted my own. I hadn't questioned Lee about the tracker he'd given me and he hadn't mentioned it either. There wasn't much to say, given that I'd be dead by now if he hadn't thought to do it.

  Lee shut down the map. "We won't need this after tonight," he said. "I'm going to be uninstalling it from my system and wiping all traces of it."

  After he'd finished getting rid of the map, we headed downstairs.

  "I've called a car service," he explained as he led me out of the house.

  It was a warm evening, the clear sky streaked with hues of orange. A shiny black vehicle rolled up on the gravel five minutes later. The chauffeur got out to let us into the back of the car.

  As we drove off, I glanced back at Lee's pyramid house. It was strange to think that this would be the last time I ever laid eyes on it. My sanctuary since I'd arrived. I felt a dull tug of guilt that I hadn't bidden farewell to Samuel.

  Even though it was rush hour, the journey went quickly. Time seemed to have sped up, and I was grateful for it.

  Soon, the car was drawing into the parking lot of the laboratory, and Lee was helping me out. I checked my watch. Six twenty-eight.

  Entering the building's reception, I could hear the sound of male chatter. Lee led me past the lobby, along a corridor, and into the same lounge I had visited during my first trip to the lab. Extra seating had been placed in here, along with two extra billiards tables. The room was packed. I spotted a couple of familiar faces from my first visit: Simon, and then Richard, Lee's boss. It was as my eyes fell on the latter that I realized I wasn't the only woman here. There were two other wives, both apparently belonging to Richard—a blonde and a brunette. Wearing tightly fitted gowns, teetering heels, and long earrings that tangled with their curled hair, they didn't look much older than me. They stood on either side of him, clutching his arms. I looked away as they caught my eye.

  Lee began to mingle with the crowd, introducing me to people as we passed. My mind was too distant to retain names. I merely smiled and nodded my head politely, which was all they expected from me anyway.

  I kept glancing at my watch as Lee engaged in conversation. At six forty-five, Lee made his way with me over to an empty snack table as an excuse to get a bit of breathing—or rather, talking—space. "You heard what Simon said?" he asked me beneath his breath as he popped a salt-encrusted nut into his mouth.

  "No." I wasn't able to concentrate on the conversations.

  "He said King Maxen confirmed his plan to come. He's expected at seven-ten, about the time we're due to head into the banquet hall."

  Five minutes before Viggo.

  "So does that change anything?" I murmured.

  "We just have to hope he's not late."

  We returned to the sofas. The next twenty-five minutes slipped away in a blur of dark-colored suits and jovial chatter. As seven-ten drew in, the room became noticeably quieter, everyone anticipating the king's arrival. Then a man poked his head through the door to announce that the king would be delayed by five minutes.

  Lee's face noticeably tightened at the information. That would give everyone ten minutes to settle into the banquet hall before the bombs imploded at half past. Assuming King Maxen didn't arrive even later—the banquet wouldn't start without him. If the bombs went off before we made it to the hall, they would still cause a distraction, of course, but Lee and I wouldn't be able to slip away so easily and discreetly to do what we needed to do.

  But
none of this worry was necessary. At seven-sixteen, the same man who'd come to announce King Maxen's lateness returned to announce his arrival. About a minute later, a tall, broad-shouldered man wearing a light gray—almost silvery—suit appeared in the doorway. He had thick sandy brown hair that extended to his jawline, which sported an immaculately groomed goatee. Clutched in his right hand was some kind of walking stick, though to call it that would be an injustice. It looked more like a scepter, forged of what appeared to be solid silver, its rounded clutch engraved with gold. Behind him stood two burly-looking men who hardly fit into their straight tuxedos. Bodyguards, no doubt.

  A smile peeled across King Maxen's face, flashing a set of pearly white teeth. I had seen his picture before, but it was quite a different experience meeting him in the flesh. I could understand why people called him charismatic. There was an energy he brought to a room. "Gentlemen," he said, his voice smooth and deep. "I do apologize for keeping you waiting. Apparently, even the king is susceptible to rush hour in Patrus City."

  Chuckles swept around the room.

  "Shall we proceed to the hall?" he posed.

  Everybody who had been seated rose immediately and bowed. The king turned and headed down the hallway with his bodyguards, while the rest of us filed after him.

  The banquet hall was several doors along and the aroma of food filled my nostrils as we entered. The hall contained a huge table spanning the entire length of the room. Shiny steel warmers and platters were already laid out down the middle of the table, along with plates and cutlery. I pitied the man who ended up at the opposite end of the table. It was so close to the furthest wall. That person ended up being Richard, his two wives seating themselves on either side of him, while King Maxen sat at the head on the opposite end, his bodyguards occupying the chairs immediately next to him. The rest of us chose our seats. Everybody was obviously hungry. We were all seated and settled by seven-twenty… Leaving us ten minutes.

  The king rose to his feet. He didn't need to tap a glass to call for silence. Everyone's eyes were already fixed on him.

  He beamed around the table. "I am delighted to be here for this momentous occasion. More than anything, tonight is a celebration of you fine gentlemen. With your intelligence and determination, we have made progress this year many predicted impossible. It is you who are the building blocks of our society. You are the future. The lives of our future generations are in your hands. This year, you have all demonstrated that you are fully capable of bearing such a responsibility, and I anticipate you will do your nation proud for years to come. Thank you for your service to mankind."

  Everybody clapped. The king, raising his glass, sat down. "Now, let us feast!"

  His speech hadn't lasted long. It was seven twenty-four now. Dinner was to be served early. Servers piled into the room and began to assist the guests in laying appetizers on their plates… and then Lee's phone went off.

  Now seven twenty-six.

  Lee pulled the phone from his pocket, making a show of embarrassment. "Violet, it's your aunt. She couldn't have called at a worse time." He turned to Simon—who sat on the other side of him—apologetically, as well as the other men looking our way. "Excuse us for a minute."

  Lee betrayed his nerves as he gripped my hand far more firmly than necessary to lead me toward the exit. We stopped at the door, still in clear view of everyone, where he "accepted" the call and handed me the phone.

  "Are you out of the hospital yet?" I asked of my imaginary aunt. "Oh. Since when? Did you ask the doctor about that?"

  My heart was in my throat as I spent the next minute conversing with myself. Then two minutes. Then three minutes…

  And then came the blast.

  I felt the heat as Lee jerked me through the doors and out of the room. Shouts and screams erupted amidst the explosion, chilling me to the bone. Lee raced faster down the hallway than I’d thought him capable of. I yanked off my heels and strapped them to an arm in order to keep up. We reached the reception area. Now it was time to part ways. Lee pointed to the stairwell and I darted for it, not even checking to see which direction Lee headed in. I didn't have a split second to waste. I had only fifteen minutes to blow open the casing around the egg and then reach the roof.

  I raced up the staircase as fast as my legs could carry me. By the time I'd reached the top, I had burned through almost two minutes.

  Panting, I raced along the corridor to the egg room. I stopped outside it, staring at the closed door.

  Crap.

  Before I'd had to page Lee for it to open, but now… I stopped panicking as I pushed at the door. It was already open. Of course, Lee had thought of this.

  Emerging in the familiar lab, I hurtled across the room toward the egg. I stood on the nearest table beneath the light fitting and, reaching into the small handbag that had remained hanging from my arm since I left the taxi, I drew out the tools. My hands were shaking as I began to work on the screws. Even though I was several floors up, I could hear the noise from below. Block it out. Focus.

  I loosened the first bolt, then the second and third, until I arrived at the last one. I quickly realized that I had made a grave mistake when replacing this fitting last time. The teeth of the screw were damaged, chipped. Which meant that none of my tools could gain a grip on it, and I had no leverage to open it.

  But I had already opened the others successfully. Inserting my fingers at the edge of the fitting, I pulled downward and managed to create a gap large enough to fit a hand through. I felt for the package and found it where I'd left it. Gripping it, I coaxed it out, pressing downward against the fitting to make the gap wider. As I slipped it through, the edge of the fitting must have been too sharp and it caused a tear in the foil package—two small red cylinders fell to the floor.

  I leapt off the table and scooped them up, praying that they hadn't been damaged. I planted them on the table where I emptied the rest of the bag's contents. There were five red cylinders altogether, a wire that split into five at one end, with a black button-like object at the other end, and a small black device with a round red button in the center of it: the activator.

  I checked my watch.

  Eight minutes.

  I can do this.

  Recalling Lee's detailed instructions, I began to set up the bomb. Each cylinder contained a sticky pad which allowed it to attach to the glass around the egg. Then I clipped the split wire into the ends of each of the cylinders before switching on a button at the base. It began to flash. I took the activator in my hands, and pressed a switch on this one too. It also began to flash.

  Six minutes.

  I hurried backward to the other end of the room, as far as I could, and ducked beneath a table. Then, closing my eyes, I pressed the activator.

  Nothing happened.

  I waited for ten seconds—even though Lee said that it was supposed to go off within three. The ten seconds turned into twenty, and then I could wait no longer.

  Dammit.

  Whether the cylinders were faulty to begin with, or the fault had something to do with the two cylinders that I'd dropped, I didn't know.

  I hurried back to the explosives and examined the wires, thinking that perhaps I hadn't inserted some properly. I thought I'd been so careful to check them, but now that I scrutinized them, one looked slightly out of place. On one of the cylinders that I'd dropped, the fitting had become loose. I needed to push the wire further inward, but that could cause the explosives to detonate too soon.

  I had no choice now. I gazed around the lab, looking for some—any—kind of utensil that could assist me. I found a pair of longish tongs and grabbed them. Gripping the wire, I pushed inward.

  A beep sounded.

  It had worked.

  "3" flashed up on my activator's tiny screen.

  Adrenaline surging through my veins, I threw myself against the floor and tried to get beneath a table as the bombs erupted. Although I'd managed to duck beneath a steel table which bore the brunt of the blast and shatt
ering glass, the billowing heat scorched my face and inflamed my Porteque injuries. An alarm blared.

  Three minutes.

  Coughing, I gripped the hem of my dress and pulled it up to cover my mouth and nose. I stood up and gazed at the explosion's aftermath. Setting off something like this in a lab was extremely dangerous—Lee had warned me of that. Any number of flammable substances could ignite at any moment now. That was why I had to grab the egg and get the hell out.

  I picked up a chair and planted it a few feet in front of me, using it as an island to draw closer to the unprotected egg, still perched in its stand, until I could lean over and close my hands around it, touching it for the first time. It was cool and sleek and heavier than I had expected it to be. My palms being sweaty didn't exactly help my grip around it, but I held on to it for dear life as I raced to the lab's exit.

  I dashed along the corridor, back to the stairwell. I scaled the first flight of stairs, and as I reached the second I heard the second round of explosions, higher up in the building. Lee hadn't been joking when he’d said I needed to get out in time.

  The door at the top of the stairwell was like a gateway to heaven as I reached it. I pulled down hard on the handle, pushing it open, and staggered out into the cool night breeze.

  I'd done it. I'd made it out alive. And now… where was Lee?