The Pacifist

by Elin Peer

The memory from last summer of Jonah talking about setting boundaries, while looking at the stars with me, felt like him being right next to me, whispering in my ear, Stand your ground, North Star. Inside me a calmness spread because I knew the hardest part was over.

  “Mila, why are you smiling? Do you think this is funny? We are three weeks away from the tournament and you throw this bomb at us.”

  “I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you sooner.” I pointed to my dad’s beard. “And I’m sorry I made that stupid bet, but just because I made one mistake doesn’t mean I have to pay for it for the rest of my life.”

  My mom let go of my forearm, looking more confused than angry now. “But I thought you wanted to have a family.”

  “I do.”

  “Then why won’t you marry?”

  “It’s not that. I just…” I let out a long sigh. “I want to do what Raven did. You know, fall in love and find the right man for me.”

  My dad groaned. “Is this about you going to the Motherlands? Did Jonah set you up for this?”

  “No. This is about what I want.”

  Magni turned to my mother with eyes saying, How do we fix this?

  “Okay, why don’t we all calm down and think for a second.” My mom held up both palms. “Dad and I are shocked. We didn’t see this coming.”

  I kept quiet.

  “How about this…” Laura took a steadying breath. “We’ll give you a few days to think about it before we cancel the tournament. If it’s a matter of nerves, maybe they will settle and you’ll change your mind again.”

  “Yeah… let’s not cancel right away.” Magni nodded.

  “I won’t change my mind.”

  “You might.” My mom reached out to hug me. “Sweetheart, it’s normal to be insecure about big decisions.”

  I kissed her cheek. “Mom, I love you, but my decision is final.”

  When my parents left the gym, I sat back with mixed feelings. I felt both elated that I’d told them and sad that I’d caused them distress.

  Maybe there’s a way to have the tournament anyway, without me as the grand prize. Maybe the money would be enough for these men to want to participate.

  As I walked up the stairs in my own thoughts, I heard a girl’s voice call out my name.

  “Hi, Mila.”

  I had reached the large entrance area of the Manor and didn’t see anyone except two guards.

  “In here.”

  Moving toward the voice, I entered the dining room and bent down to find my cousin, Freya, lying at full length under the dining table.

  “What are you doing down there?”

  “My mom says I can’t lie on the table, so I’m lying under it.”

  Getting to my knees, I crawled closer. Freya was the same age as my younger siblings, Mason and Aubri, and I missed them. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m making an important list.”

  “Of what?”

  “I heard my dad say that if he doesn’t win this election, he’ll be a joke to everyone.”

  “He said that?”

  Freya nodded, her lips turned downward. “My mom was hugging him and telling him not to be scared. I’ve never seen my dad scared.”

  I caressed her hair. “I’m sorry.”

  Her green eyes were serious when she tapped her finger at her list. “I’m going to help my dad win this election, and here’s my list of ideas.”

  “Can I see it?”

  Biting down on her lip, she handed it over. “My mom always says that leaders serve the people and not the other way around, so I’ve been asking the guards and staff here at the Manor what they want the most from my dad.”

  “Interesting approach, and what did they say?”

  “Well, I’ve asked seventeen of them so far and five of the guards said they wanted more comfortable uniforms.” Freya frowned. “Apparently leather can get very hot in the spring and summer. I wouldn’t know, since my mom refuses to let me wear it.”

  “Okay, and what did the others say?”

  “Well, Jimmy and Sheriff in the kitchen are worried about what happens when they can’t work anymore. They are both old and live with the rest of the staff for now, but they have no real savings and Jimmy complained that his leg is giving him trouble.”

  “Oh, they shouldn’t worry.” I loved our two chefs. “I’ll tell them they can stay as long as they want.”

  Freya shook her head at me. “Are you going to tell the same thing to every staff member who is too old to work?”

  I opened my mouth to speak, but she had a point. “I don’t know.”

  “Anyway, I’ve categorized the wishes of the people I interviewed into four main desires. Number one is a wife, but that didn’t surprise me because men fight for women all the time.

  “The second one is comfort, and then there’s a pay raise, which I’ve categorized into wealth, and the fourth one is adventure. I’m not sure what to do about that one.”

  “All right.” I looked at her list with its four bullet points.

  “Comfort, love, wealth, and adventure.”

  “Yes. Now, I already talked to my dad about the uniforms and he said that he’s willing to look at a change in design but not right now. Then there’s the part about love and I’ve come up with some ideas.”

  “Let’s hear them.”

  “You know Willow and Solo are actors in a series that tells the story of how the integration began when Christina came to the Northlands and fell in love with Boulder, right?”

  “Of course, they play my parents on the show, which is kind of cool.”

  “Uh-huh, but my dad told me the show ran into problems with some people in the Motherlands who are prunes and won’t allow any kissing on the show.”

  “Do you think maybe he meant prudes?”

  Freya shrugged.

  “It’s true, though. Willow was devastated because she had these great visions of being an actress and now the series might never be shown.”

  “It’s stupid.”

  I didn’t disagree, but tried to explain, “There are rules against entertainment that contains violence or romance. From what I heard the Council had agreed to show lenience, but once they saw the first episode, they changed their minds.”

  Freya rolled her eyes. “Motlanders are silly. My mom is so lucky that she met my dad and moved here.”

  “Freya, there’s good on both sides.”

  “I know. But anyway, I want Solo to convince the producers to show the series here at the amphitheater. It could be a big event that people pay to be part of live, and for those who can’t get a ticket, it could be transmitted. Ten million people watching are still a lot of people.”

  I nodded.

  “Okay, so imagine that after the show, the real people who the show is about could answer questions.” She lit up. “And you know what would make it extra special?”

  “What?”

  “If after each episode, a new couple gets married.”

  “What couple?”

  “That doesn’t matter. There are people marrying through the Matching Program all the time. My dad would just showcase that Nmen are finding love every day under his rule.”

  I blinked my eyes and must have looked confused because she clarified by tapping at the pad again. “The whole point is to make them feel like my dad can give them love.”

  “I see.” I nodded. “You want to give them hope that it can happen for them too.”

  “Yes.”

  “Freya, that’s not a bad idea.”

  “Good!” She sat up in a cross-legged position like me. “Now about the wealth part.”

  “Yes?” I was eager to hear what the mind of this brilliant eleven-year-old girl had come up with.

  “I made some calculations, and if there are five episodes and we sell out the twelve hundred seats in the amphitheater for five live shows over five weeks, then we should make more than three hundred thousand dollars if we charge fifty dollars per person.”

  “Fifty
dollars?”

  “Yes. I asked Willow about the show she did with the performers from the Motherlands, and she told me that the audience each paid between forty and fifty dollars to see it.”

  “You really did a lot of research, didn’t you?”

  “Uh-huh. But that’s not all.”

  “There’s more?”

  “Yes, I might be a kid but I know that three hundred thousand dollars isn’t going to be enough to make ten million people feel wealthy. It will only get them thirty-three cents each.”

  “Good point.”

  “I had an idea of printing more money, but when I discussed it with Archer at school, he explained the concept of inflation to me.”

  “Okay.”

  “Then I talked to my dad about redistributing the wealth from the few to the many, but he didn’t take that well. I left when he began ranting about my mom raising me to be a socialist.”

  “All right, so what do you plan to do?”

  “I’m sorry to say it, Mila, but with limited means and time, all we can do is spend our money in a way that benefits the most people. If we give Boulder a hundred dollars it won’t make much difference to him because he’s already rich. What we need to do is spread the money like sprinkles on a birthday cake and make it look like a fortune.

  “You mean philanthropy?”

  Freya frowned. “No. Nmen are too proud for that. They need to feel that they earned it. What we need to do is create jobs for those who don’t have any.”

  I raised my eyebrows. “Freya, that’s not an easy thing to do.”

  “Why not? If we have the money, all we have to do is come up with something that needs to be done.” She angled her head. “How hard can it be?”

  “Sweetie, three hundred thousand dollars might sound like a lot of money, but there might be expenses that you haven’t taken into consideration and until you’ve actually made the money, you can’t plan to use it.”

  Freya looked so much like her father when she gave me a steady glance. “Then you tell me where to find money.”

  “Well, I don’t have that kind of money lying around, but maybe we can do something else. Come with me.”

  Freya was quick to crawl out from under the table and with eagerness in her steps, she followed me as I picked up a key from my dad’s office and took her down to the storage room in the basement.

  “What is this place?” Her head was turning from side to side, taking in all the stacks of boxes, bed frames, pictures and furniture.

  I grinned and spread out my arms. “This is a treasure chamber.”

  Picking up an old hat, Freya looked skeptical. “You think we’re going to find money down here?”

  “Believe it or not, there are people who are crazy for old stuff. If we can get our dads to give this all away, I’ll bet we can sell it for a lot of money.”

  “You really think so?”

  “Yes.” I walked over and picked up a small painting. “We could open an entire antique store with all the goods that are down here. I’ve heard of people paying more than three hundred thousand for a small painting like this.”

  Freya gaped. “You’re shitting me?”

  “Nope. Some people will pay more money for old things than for new, and imagine what it will do to the value of the item when the buyers learn that it came from the Gray Manor. The historical significance of many of these things alone will make them interesting.”

  “But who has time to go through all this?”

  “Someone who loves all things old.” I smiled at Freya and we said the name at the same time. “Christina.”

  “But isn’t she busy working on that excavation?”

  “Not while the ground is still frozen. She’ll have a least a month.”

  “Can we go talk to her now?”

  “We sure can.”

  After I turned off the light in the large storage room and locked the door behind us, I put my arm around Freya and walked back down the long corridor. “One day, you’ll make a fine leader.”

  “Thank you, but I can’t be the ruler of the Northlands. My dad won’t allow it because I’m a girl.”

  “For now!”

  Her eyes crinkled as she smiled. “You think I can change his mind?”

  “I think you can do anything you set your mind to. You’re strong, Freya.”

  “As strong as you?”

  I smiled. “You think I’m strong?”

  “Of course you are. Even when your dad was at his worst and threw things at the wall you kept going back into his room.”

  “That’s because I love him.”

  “Still, you could have hidden in your room. It takes a lot of strength to love someone who is that mean to you.”

  “Not when you can see the person is in pain and that their anger has nothing to do with you.”

  Freya was close to my height and snaked her arm around my waist. “All I’m saying is that anyone couldn’t do what you do, Mila. You make everyone feel loved. That has to be some kind of super power.”

  I laughed. “It’s a shame that it’s not the kind of super power that can make money grow on trees or make your dad see that he needs to change that stupid rule and make it possible for a woman to run for president.”

  “Maybe that will be my super power.”

  I squeezed Freya’s shoulder a little. “You know what, I have a feeling it will be.”

  CHAPTER 18

  Recruitment

  Jonah

  Seeing Anne at the dinner table was both wonderful in a nostalgic way and sad because her dramatic return to our family also meant that Cole was absent.

  We had made it through some of our family’s favorite dishes and with Anne sitting across from me, I could see how many times she had teared up when someone brought up memories from her childhood.

  The first half hour had been a bit awkward, but Anne had given us all another heartfelt apology and we had all seen her on the News this morning expressing her remorse in public too. Several times, she repeated that she would do anything to clean up the mess she had made.

  When we reached the dessert, my wristband vibrated with an incoming call.

  “It’s Cole.” I scanned their faces. “Maybe it’s best if I don’t answer. What if he gets sad to see us all gathered without him?”

  “Answer it!” Hunter, who was sitting to my right, elbowed me, and as soon as I projected Cole up in a hologram, Hunter spoke: “Cole, my friend, so nice of you to drop by. How’s the vacation going?”

  Cole took in the room full of family and frowned a little. “You’re having a family dinner?”

  “That’s right. When the boss is out, the employees party.” Hunter seemed oblivious to how painful it had to be for Cole to see us like this and not be able to be part of it. “So, tell us how you’re enjoying your break. I’ll bet you’re lousy at being lazy!”

  To my surprise, Cole’s lips tugged upward. “Turns out I’m good at taking it slow. Except for walking, reading, meditating, and taking naps, I haven’t done much.”

  “Sounds boring,” Emanuela pitched in.

  “It is, but I feel rejuvenated and relaxed. A group of us are going snowshoeing tomorrow. We’re bringing lunch and having a picnic in the snow.”

  Hunter snorted. “What kind of punishment is that? Sounds like something we would do for fun back home.”

  I leaned in. “Hunter, Cole isn’t being punished. The extra time is meant to give him time to reflect on his choices.”

  “Have you told them that you regret your actions?” Emanuela asked Cole.

  His answer was abrupt. “No! And I still don’t.”

  Hunter gave a small whistle. “You’d better prepare for a long vacation then.”

  Cole shrugged. “I’m counting on Jonah’s speech to change their minds. You did amazing, by the way.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I heard that you’re going back for round two tomorrow, and that they’ll cast their votes then.”

  “That
’s right.” I played with my fork, feeling a heaviness in my chest. “It doesn’t look good. So far I haven’t had many signs of support.”

  “If only there was something I could do,” Anne repeated for the third time.

  I gave her a small smile while Hunter lifted a beer and showed it to Cole. “Look what your mom saved for you.”

  “A beer?”

  “Yup, the last one, and I’m drinking it now.”

  Cole groaned. “You’re an ass.”

  The room filled with Hunter’s unburdened laughter. “I’m kidding. She had three left so I’m not drinking yours… Gunnar is.”

  We all laughed when Gunnar’s eyes went large. “Am I drinking Cole’s beer?”

  My mom shook her head. “Cole, don’t listen to anything Hunter says. I still have one saved for when you return.”

  “Thanks, Mom.”

  “Are they treating you well?” Her tone of concern made me love Lilly even more.

  “Yeah, Mom, it’s beautiful here, and I’ve met several who sympathize with what happened to us. Turns out a lot of people dream of more freedom.”

  “I’m one of them.” Hunter grinned. “Which is why I want to make a toast to Anne, whose skills as an arsonist helped convince my wife to finally move to the Northlands with me.”

  Emanuela sighed. “I’ll admit that we’ve been talking about it for a long time.”

  Hunter took her hand and squeezed it. “And now that the Dolphins terminated our contracts, it’s been decided for us. No more excuses.”

  My mom, who had been poking her fork at the cake, agreed. “Better that than wait for the authorities to put us all in a place of reflection.”

  Anne placed her elbow on the table, and rested her head in her palm. She looked devastated. “I’ve ruined everything, haven’t I?”

  “That depends.” My tone was dry. “We might all like snowshoeing and napping. Who knows?”

  Hunter took a sip of his beer. “At least you’re going down with the rest, Anne. I’m sure they have some special meditation program for crazy people.”

  “Hunter, that’s not nice,” my mom scolded him. “Anne isn’t crazy.”

  “In case you haven’t noticed, normal people don’t fake their own death or set fire to their family’s buildings. Anne is by far the most extreme Motlander I’ve ever met and that says a lot since I’m married to Ema.” Hunter’s hands flicked between my sisters. “You two don’t take shit from anyone and I respect that.”