He dropped the rod back in the metal bucket and took a moment to collect his thoughts. Ursa’s defiance was remarkable. He’d never had anyone try to take a shot at him.
Focus.
“I know that Colin suffered greatly before he left. Here. Right here where you are now. I ensured that smug little bastard was compliant as he got on that spacecraft.”
Her eyes misted, but she refused to look away. “And I bet that made you feel like a real man. But we both know the truth. You’re nothing more than a scared little boy. You weren’t man enough to go after anything you ever wanted.”
Lewis furrowed his eyebrows, then gestured around the space theatrically. “You think I haven’t gone after the life I wanted? Lady, I’m living it. After this mission, I’m on the list to potentially someday become the Head of State.”
Ursa convulsed. It took Lewis a moment to realize she was laughing.
Somehow, that sound, it cut into his soul. “You think this is a joke?”
“Potentially. Someday. Yes. I think you’re a joke.”
His arms flew upward, and he jabbed the gun into Rowen’s head, throwing a daring look at her.
“You’re a pathetic waste of a—”
He looked squarely at Rowen. As he pulled the trigger, his head slightly cocked to the side, but this time he was ready. This was his duty, and he would perform.
Suddenly, rage burned in his core. This was how it was done. There were never any guarantees.
How dare she mock me?
Lewis, stop. Don’t let her get to you.
Red glossed over his vision. He blinked a few times before realizing that Rowen’s blood had splattered into his eyes.
“Well, at least you managed to keep your eyes open this time.”
Lewis holstered his gun and lifted the corner of his T-shirt to wipe his face.
“You know, in our time together, Freya told me a funny story about you training her to shoot. Maybe if she had a better instructor, this mission could have gone the way you wanted. I guess you lose everything now. No promotion. And worse yet, you don’t get the girl. How does it feel to be under 30 and know the best years of your life are over? That the State will let you rot until they admit how useless you are.”
Don’t let her get to you. Focus.
“I’m useless? I might feel insulted had I not met your son. If that’s what you raised, I feel honored to be the one to end you and the man who made him.”
He was about to lift the gun to her head but quickly changed his mind, deftly firing a shot into each of her legs. She convulsed in pain as blood exploded from each side but returned her gaze to his.
“You want to keep dragging this out? Cuz I can do this all day. It’s your call. You want to end this quickly?”
He picked up the electrical rod and held it to her side.
Her body shook, suspended by her wrists until he stopped. Her head hung limply forward until she found the strength to lift it. A trail of spittle hung from her lip.
She drew in a deep breath. He moved closer in anticipation, hoping she would say something. Instead, she spit in his face.
“No matter how long you live, Freya will never love you. How could she? Not when she was loved by a real man. Not when she has felt real emotion that a pawn like you—”
Lewis quickly fired off another shot, this time in her gut.
Ursa choked and fell forward again. Once she lifted her head, blood trickled from her mouth.
“You’ve never known love or happiness, and you never will. And you’ll never be important. I know who the next Head of State is going to be, and it’s not you. This wasn’t your mission. It was hers. And she’s going to take it from you. You’ll see. And you’ll never be anything more than the goon who couldn’t pull the trigger with his eyes open.”
His arms shot upwards, pointing the gun at her forehead, looking her intently in the eyes. “My eyes are open now.”
The corner of her lips upturned. “I’m already dead.”
His arms tingled as the kickback reverberated up into his shoulders.
It was done.
And she was right. He had nothing to show for it.
Chapter 22
3 Weeks Later
Lewis
Steam collected in the air as the scorching water poured down, beating against his skin. A hot shower after a vigorous workout normally brought him satisfaction but not today. As he scrubbed the soap across his muscular chest, he questioned if he was too numb to feel anything.
His career making mission was over; the outcome of this supposedly life changing opportunity felt anti-climatic. His mission was deemed a success, yet nothing remarkable had happened; it was as though his career had regressed to nothing.
After weeks of silence, he would spring at the opportunity to train new recruits; at least he could be useful. A task. Something he could do for the betterment of the State. Or at the least, it would be nice to have something to pass the time.
It had been over three weeks since his mission concluded. He had tormented then executed his targets, filed the reports, and nothing. No meeting with the Head of State or any other Department Head. It felt as though he had already retired.
No, it was worse. It was as if he was so insignificant the State had forgotten to end his existence.
The days blurred into one meaningless stream of time spent in the bunks in the military underground. No communications came through his tablet, no new commanding officer until just an hour ago. A simple message instructing him of a military meeting room.
He stepped out of the shower and toweled off before putting on a pair of camouflage pants and a black cotton T-shirt. Once his black boots were laced, he headed out of the bunk area and walked down the gloomy hallway to his destination.
The meeting request was vague. He didn’t know who he was meeting with or what kind of agenda ensued. It could be the beginning of a new mission, or the end of his life.
Before he knew it, he was at the door, and he gave a curt knock before a female voice called out for him. He pushed the door open to see the Head of State sitting in the confined room, Dr. Rhetta standing nearby.
His heart rate quickened as he stepped inside. Why after all this time had they summoned him? Ursa, Rowen, and Pollux were dead. Freya was back on the State House grounds, housed in independent living, not prepared to go on another mission together.
What more could they possibly want of me?
“Welcome, Lewis.” Dr. Rhetta gestured to a seat at the table warmly, as though she was delighted to have him as her guest.
“Glad to have you back,” the Head of State added with a nod.
Dr. Rhetta turned away from him to a water station, returning with a glass, and placed it in front of him.
His skin tingled, the hair standing erect on his arms and neck. Although he had only just arrived, he knew something was wrong. They were both acting strange. No cool, aloof tone. No rush to glean information. They seemed… cordial, as though his was a pleasant social visit.
He took a small sip of water, unsure of how to proceed.
His fingers circled the cool glass. It gave him something to focus on since he didn’t know where to direct his gaze.
They seemed to watch him, waiting for something from him. He didn’t know what they sought after, but found silence usually served him better than words. Lewis lifted the glass to his lips and took a few slight pulls at the contents before looking back to them.
“Lewis,” Dr. Rhetta began, “First of all, we want to congratulate you on a successful mission. Well done. You have served your government well.”
He nodded to accept the compliment but felt more disturbed than if they had struck him. Regardless of a mission’s outcome, all debriefings were treated as educational. Compliments were sparse, out-of-place even.
What did Freya tell them?
He gulped hard, grateful to still have refreshment to get through this strange meeting. “Thank you. I am honored to serve my govern
ment.”
He took another sip of water, still struggling to hide his unease. He tried to anticipate their intentions, but his mind felt heavy. Maybe it was just the release of adrenaline, or maybe he had grown far more depressed in his recent downtime than he had realized.
“What’s next for me? Will I go undercover with Freya again, once she’s completed her leave?”
“No, Lewis,” said the Head of State. “We have different plans for you.”
They still had yet to ask him a single question about the mission, and as he thought about it, his head fell forward slightly. He was struggling to remain awake. In one lucid moment, their peculiar actions crashed together in one simple moment of clarity through the fog.
“You’ve drugged me.”
“Yes, Lewis,” Dr. Rhetta patronized, “it’s for your own good.”
“It would be cruel to have someone else do this. We didn’t want you to think we brought you here to kill you,” the Head of State said. “Just relax. This will all be over soon.”
His body went limp in the chair and he fell forward. He heard the door open and strong arms grabbed him from behind. He felt them secure straps around his wrists and head, but he was already too far gone to fight the restraints. Before they wheeled him away, he fell into darkness.
All he felt was pressure, followed quickly by heat. His mind couldn’t process the sensation. And then it came again. A sharp stinging followed by a horrendous cracking sound. When the snap came again, he realized then he was being whipped. He was suspended by his hands, hanging in a torture room. He tried to open his eyes to see his tormentor and realized a hood covered his face. The whipping continued, and he felt hot sticky blood seeping down his skin.
Lewis gained enough focus, enough lucidity, and he cried out, “Why are you doing this to me? My mission was successful. I am loyal.”
The whipping halted, and he heard one of his tormentors speak, “Oh shit, he’s awake. He was supposed to be drugged for this.”
“That’s enough,” another unfamiliar voice replied. “I think we’re done; he’s bleeding all over. This was meant to leave scars, not to permanently damage him.”
“You have to scar me?” He managed to mutter through the fog.
There was a lengthy pause before one of them responded. “Hey, I’m sorry if you don’t know. We were just told you’re military and need scars to go deep undercover. We’re just following orders.”
“I’ll get the gurney and get him to the medical wing,” the other voice said.
Lewis faded in and out of consciousness as they laid him on a gurney and wheeled him through the military underground. As they never removed his hood, he didn’t know if his tormentors were friends or foes.
There was an intense heat all over his skin, on his back, his arms and shoulders, but he wasn’t lucid enough to register pain. The hood was removed, exposing a bright light and a beeping monitor displaying his vitals.
As his mind cleared, he tried to move one hand just to test his restraints and realized his hands and ankles were free. Only moments later a blurred face came into his line of vision, the last face he wanted to see—Dr. Rhetta.
“Lewis, I see you are recovering well. I am sorry that you woke up while being whipped. I miscalculated the dosage you needed. I never intended for you to feel any pain.”
He clenched his jaw and looked away. To his own surprise, his eyes misted with moisture. It was as though he was too exhausted to be angry anymore. He just wanted it to be over. Whatever this was. Whatever plan they had in store for him, he was done.
“Lewis, I understand if you’re angry with me. I understand if you don’t want to work with me further—that is a common reaction to those I cross paths with. All I can say is that if we have met, then you are, or at least have the potential to be, an asset to the State. That is why I am here with you now. Why you have suffered and been kept in the dark. You are one of the most crucial people under the dome right now.”
Between the mental fog of the mission and the depletion in his soul, he couldn’t contain his bitterness. “I think you mean Freya is important. I’m just her babysitter.”
She shook her head. “No, Lewis. Your fates are intertwined now. We still have just over twenty years before that spacecraft touches down. We have so much left to do, so much to plan for. We don’t know exactly what role you will play, but we know we need you.”
“I don’t understand why I was beaten. I thought I did what you wanted.”
“Yes, you did. That is why I didn’t intend for you to feel pain, and I am sorry you have experienced that.”
She dragged a chair closer to his bed and took a seat. “There is so much about your mission that is so highly classified; I still can’t tell you about it. The number of people who know the true purpose of your mission, I could count on one hand. You just need to understand that this is part of it. We didn’t mean to hurt you, just to scar your body, to give the illusion you have been hurt. There may come a time when those scars will create the perfect cover story, your cover story, so we may properly place you.”
This is my reward? This is the promotion I’ve been fighting so hard to get? He thought. I am beaten and they still won’t tell me what’s going on.
“So, what now?”
She looked away. “You won’t be going undercover with Freya again, if that’s what you’re asking. We need to keep you close to her, though. For now, you will be a phantom.”
A phantom? That’s no promotion. Living a solitary life all to be the State’s executioner.
His stomach turned. The position felt more like a punishment than reward.
That’s it? I’m of no further use to the State, so she’s sending me off to rot. All the while pretending I have a grand reward coming, so I remain compliant. Was Ursa right about me? About my life?
“For how long?”
She shrugged. “As long as it takes. We need you to bump into Freya occasionally in the military underground and look at her wistfully, telling her you hope you get sent on another mission with her. We will send you all over the State; you will slip into every kitchen and implant drugs in the meals of the people we wish to retire.”
“I guess that means my mission isn’t set. I’m on standby. You need to see what Freya will do before you know if I’m needed.”
It was a bold move to speak so directly, to accuse her of lacking a plan, but he just didn’t have the energy to play into her games any longer.
Dr. Rhetta’s eyes brightened. “Now we understand each other. I cannot reveal our plans for you and Freya, but there may come a time we need you to appear to her, as Lewis, which is why we can’t send you on another mission. We don’t know when that time might be. If we realize the time is right, there is no other mission under this dome more important than the one you already have.”
He didn’t know if he could believe her, but at least she was being consistent. It didn’t add up. Nothing did. He had no choice in the matter; he had to play their game and see who came out victorious.
“When do I take up my new duty as a phantom?”
“When you are healed; when you are ready. If you need a time of leave, you’ve earned it.”
Lewis shook his head. The last three weeks had already dragged on too long. “No, thank you, I’ll just get bored.”
Her cynical eyes brightened. “I admire your work ethic, Lewis. I will see to it you work as soon as your cuts have healed well enough for you to work in the kitchen.”
Without pleasantries, she stood and exited the room. She said his mission made him one of the most important people under the dome, but he didn’t believe it. He didn’t know how long he could continue on nothing but empty promises, but at least her words came with one semblance of hope: he might get to work with Freya again.
He didn’t know who he was anymore, but when he was with Freya, he was happy. No matter the plan they had in store, they couldn’t take that from him—unless, next time, they asked him to kill her.
Chapter 23
20 Years Later
Lewis
Lewis confirmed the assigned portions that he placed on the scale. Plating meals had been a vital part of his civil duty for twenty years now. He measured food portions, placed the covered plate on a conveyor belt where it was loaded onto a cart for delivery. He couldn’t think of anything under the dome more monotonous than his current assignment.
While he plated the meals, he was out of view of any other kitchen worker. He felt the State must have built these kitchens with his duty as a phantom in mind. When the State ordered a civilian’s retirement, it was Lewis’ responsibility to ensure that the civilian’s final meal contained a special seasoning.
Conspired: A Young Adult Dystopian Romance (The State Series Book 6) Page 14
