Numbers Game (25 page)

“You can’t honestly think this is possible.”

I felt a twinge of irritation. If I said no, would he still help? Then I thought of his friends and the doting females, and I felt even worse. I was asking him for something that I couldn’t even give him in return.

I was asking for his loyalty.

“I don’t know if it’s possible,” I said honestly.

“Treena, the last couple of weeks have been hard. I feel like a different person here. Everyone knows who I am, and they watch me, you know? I feel like I can’t be myself, or they’ll discover who I really am—just a dumb kid from Olympus.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but stopped. He was right to question this. If I’d been in his position, there was no way I would have agreed to it. “Go on,” I finally said.

“But you’re the one who got me here. You helped me with my coursework, my language, even my posture.” I smiled at that. His posture had been atrocious in Level Two. “And now you’re asking for a big favor. I should be jumping at the chance to pay you back.”

“You don’t owe me anything.”

“I’m not done,” he said quickly. “It’s just that this feels like such an impossible task, and if we fail—well, I’d be in prison at the very least. And I feel guilty for even thinking that.”

“I know.”

“But none of that should matter. Everything here seems so fake when you’re out risking your life every day so we can be together.” I felt his grip tighten on my hand as his other arm pulled me in close. I leaned against him, trying to relax, breathing in his natural scent. It was the same but different. Stiffer somehow, like he’d been using overscented soap.

“It’s fine,” I said, unsure how to respond.

“The girls here are so annoying,” he said with a chuckle. “They just want to climb the ladder. You know, use me as a rung to get somewhere else.” He stopped. “But you’re different. You cared about me even before I got my Rating.”

I nodded, feeling the guilt rise to my throat like bile. Was he testing me? Trying to figure out where I stood? Could he sense that something was different between us?

Dresden pulled his arm back and I sat up, then I felt him ease closer. He stroked my face in the darkness, his fingers leaving a hot trail of betrayal. I was trembling. He pulled me closer, entwining his fingers in my hair. “What have they done to you?” he murmured.

And then he leaned in, slowly, as he’d done a thousand times before. I nearly pulled away, but his lips brushed mine. The gentleness of his lips made my eyes burn, and a tear trickled down one cheek before I could stop it. He tightened his hold until I could barely breathe.

I’m such a traitor.

“I’m so sorry,” he said between kisses, his breath warm on my lips. “You deserve so much more.”

I betrayed you, Dresden. I fell for someone else—I don’t deserve you at all.

He pulled away, probably mistaking my reluctance as concern about our situation. The light on his techband flickered on as he checked the time. “I’ve gotta go. If this is going to work, they can’t suspect anything.”

I blinked. “Really? You’ll do it?”

“I want you, Treena. You’re more important than any of this. If it means we can be together, I’ll do it. Assuming I haven’t already lost you.”

I paused. He couldn’t know about me and Vance, could he? Pain shot through my body at the thought of Vance. I couldn’t imagine being with anyone else. But he was gone, and it made no sense to reject Dresden’s help now. I pushed away my emotions and hardened my heart a little more. “Of course not. Thanks, Dres. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

He pulled me into his arms again, and I tried not to stiffen. “I think I do.”

40

P
lease
whisper,” my father said, his own voice definitely louder than a whisper. He was speaking to a group of twenty block leaders standing uncomfortably packed together in the small showroom of a shoe store where a screen flickered in front of them. But the arguing continued as if he hadn’t spoken.

It was the second night of briefing, and Dresden’s camera had already been put to good use. We’d shown a recording of my father’s confession to a dozen groups so far. I had expected Mills to send out the information to his followers quickly, but apparently the empress’s new location law made communication much more difficult. Their solution was to show the recording to the neighborhood heads in each area and allow them to spread the word.

And since Jasper, Keri, and I were among the few who couldn’t be punished—Keri’s techband had no punishment mode, either—we were the chosen emissaries.

No, that wasn’t it. They wanted to show me off. I was their showpiece, their crowning jewel. It was just a nice convenience that I couldn’t be zapped.

Zapped.
The memory the word conjured up made me cringe. Everything reminded me of Vance now. Certain faces in the crowd, a whiff of pine, a head of dark, messy hair. My mind knew that if he were alive, he’d be here; my heart refused to accept that he was gone.

Focus, Treena.
I forced myself to look around, taking in the anxious faces of reds and yellows, all standing around nervously because there was nowhere to sit. The racks of shoes had been pushed to the walls, and any chairs or benches had been removed to make room for more people. It was unbearably hot. More so for me because of the protective vest I wore under my uniform.

“Just start it already,” an older man spoke up, his voice carrying above the others. He was in the middle of the pack and probably sweating horribly by now. I was in the corner by the door and could barely breathe the air was so stale.

“The time has finally come,” Jasper began. “The empress and the Council have overstepped their bounds and begun attacking their own people. And now we finally have proof. Remember, this information is absolutely classified and top secret. Everyone involved is receiving the same information.”

He nodded to me, and I hit the Start key on the glass screen. His face filled the screen and he began telling his story. Since I’d seen it several times, I let my mind wander. Dresden had looked grim when delivering the camera to our meeting place yesterday, his usual smile hidden by a deep concern. I think he knew there was no going back now. If something happened to him, it would be my fault.

The crowd was starting to react now. The recording only specified that the successor was female, not who it was—at Jasper’s insistence they’d find out later, once they had committed—so they didn’t seem to notice me. But they did keep staring at Jasper. Their faces showed cynicism at first, sometimes disdain. After the first minute, though, their reactions weren’t as pronounced. A couple of the women shook their heads. A man coughed. Finally it ended, and there wasn’t a sound.

The older man in the middle was the first to speak. “All right, we agree that the empress has to go. Everyone knows she’s a weasely little rat messing with people’s lives. But what’s the plan? The recording didn’t tell us.”

“Wait,” a woman said. “If anyone doesn’t want to be a part of this, they should leave. Right now.”

My father nodded. “Actually, that’s what I was about to say. If you stay, your participation will be expected. For obvious reasons, I’d recommend that those who would like to leave do so now.”

I expected several to leave, like in the first group, but no one did. The woman’s jaw was firmly set. Finally Jasper spoke again. “Thank you. If you could please file out of the room and make your way upstairs, Mills will explain the plan there.” He opened the door and stood aside for the crowd to file past.

I watched them carefully as the room emptied. One man, his hair slicked back to reveal a yellow Rating, held back. Finally the crowd was gone, and it was just the three of us.

“Did you have a question, sir?” my father asked, making his way over to the man. The stranger’s face darkened at his approach. My heart sank when I saw the glint of metal in the man’s hand.

“Wait!” I shouted, but it was too late. The man leaped forward, grabbing my father’s shoulder with one hand and plunging the knife deep into his stomach.

My father gasped, a horrified expression frozen on his face as he fell to the ground.

“No!” I closed the space in two steps. The man was aiming the bloody knife for a second thrust. As it fell, I redirected the knife back toward the attacker’s thigh. It sank deep. He gave a sharp intake of breath and bent over, clasping his leg. I swept his other leg, throwing him roughly to the floor, and yanked the knife out. The man’s startled yelp instantly ceased as I aimed the bloody knife at his throat. “Don’t. Move.”

His eyes were wide and full of pain, but he froze. Rage pulsed through my body, along with a strong desire to hurt him back, to tear from him what he’d torn from my father. Instead, I asked, “Why?”

His chin lifted a little. “The empress rewards loyalty.”

I glanced at the Jasper on the floor. His face was turned toward me, losing color by the second.

“Someone help!” I shouted. “Is anyone there?”

The footsteps stopped in the doorway, and there was an exclamation of surprise. Then everyone in the building swarmed us and time seemed to move in slow motion—Keri letting out a horrified gasp, and someone else checking his breathing. A group of men with grim expressions surrounding the man who had probably murdered my father, rolling him onto his stomach and locking his hands together.

A soft hand brushed my shoulder. “You can put that down now, sweetie.” I realized that I still held the weapon and that I was shaking. It clattered to the floor as I sank down.

The man examining my father frowned and stood. “He’s breathing, but it’s faint. He needs a doctor.”

“He’s a fugitive,” I said. “They’ll kill him.”

“He’s at the brink already, love,” an older lady said.

“My brother runs a red hospital out of his house,” a man spoke up. “He’ll have some blood in storage. Someone help me carry him. You, there.”

With that, my father’s slumped body disappeared down the road. Keri and a couple of men tied up the attacker and led him out. He glared at me as he left. I just avoided his gaze. What he’d done was unforgivable, but I did understand his reasoning—he’d been desperate for a higher Rating, willing to sink to anything to get it. I had been that way once, and I hated myself for it.

The next group of people waited outside the open door, shifting uncertainly and wondering what they had just gotten themselves into. I stood mechanically, ignoring the blood on my uniform, and forced myself to usher them into the viewing room. There was lots of whispering, but I didn’t care. My father’s face was frozen on the glass screen, ready to be replayed.

With a sinking feeling in my heart, I realized that all of this wouldn’t be enough. The Rating system was too powerful. Greens were too comfortable with their lives to take a chance. Yellows wanted to become greens, so they’d do whatever it took. And reds? They were too dangerous, too unreliable to be taken seriously. We were going about this all wrong.

Mills wanted a face for the people to unite behind. Well, he was about to get it.

“I want to say a few words before I play this video for you,” I said to the waiting group. They shuffled their feet and seemed ready to bolt, but they were listening. I reached into the bag I’d left in the corner and pulled out the camera, turning it on and handing it to a girl close to my age. “Just keep that on me.”

“Got it,” she said.

I turned to the camera and spoke loudly. “I know I’m young and small. You’re probably wondering why you’re listening to a teenage girl. Up until a week ago I was just like you—going about my life, following the rules, and trying to make the best of things. But something happened.”

It was quiet now, the shifting and movement completely gone. Keri had stepped back into the room and was leaning against the doorway. Good. I wanted her to hear this too.

“The Rating I earned was taken from me,” I continued. “The empress tried to have me murdered to cover it up.” There were a few gasps and whispers, but I plunged on. “We also have evidence that she has staged the deaths of multiple others she felt threatened her position. My father once called the Rating system a sophisticated and chilling method of control. I would have argued with him once.” I paused. “Now, after what I’ve experienced, I know he’s absolutely right.”

“We agree,” another said. “But what can we do about it?”

I paused. “Get rid of the Rating system.”

There was silence, then murmuring.

“So this meeting is about overthrowing the Ratings?” someone said, the skepticism in his voice heavy.

“That’s blasphemous,” a man said. A green. One of only a handful who had dared come. “I’m not surprised about the empress, but the Rating system is the foundation of our nation. The system works when the ruler follows the laws.”

“The system fosters competition,” I said. “Initially the kinder, more society-minded citizens were supposed to be rewarded. Now we’re killing each other, threatening one another, scrambling for the slightest edge over our friends and family. It just isn’t working anymore. Now, I understand your desire to protect your families. As you just saw, the Rating system is a powerful tool in the empress’s hands. Our plan is risky and dangerous. It’s probably downright crazy, actually. But if it works, your children will grow up without fear of pain and punishment in a world where a leader serves her people without using, manipulating, or murdering them. A world where everyone has an equal chance of succeeding.”

“We’ve heard all this before,” someone said. “The empress herself said such things when she was crowned, and look at her now.”

“Is this really possible?” a woman asked.

“I don’t know,” I admitted.

The voices came fast now, and I simply listened.

“The leaders are always the same,” a balding man with a huge nose said. “They promise change, then cave to whatever the Council wants. Our situation never improves, regardless of who rules.”

“If we’re to risk our lives over this, we have to know what the outcome will be,” a younger woman said in a quiet voice.

Baldie humphed. “We all know what the outcome will be. Not a thing. These rebels will take everything and give us back nothing.”

The quiet woman spoke more loudly now. “But if we don’t try, we’ll never know.”

“True,” a tall, slender man said thoughtfully.

“And what if, by some miracle, we do succeed? Fates!” Baldie was yelling now. If the neighbors didn’t hear, it would be a miracle. “Don’t you people remember your history? Look what happened to Old America. Our life here isn’t perfect, but at least it’s better than that.”

“For you, maybe. You’re a high yellow!”

The room exploded with noise, some yelling questions and others shouting at their neighbors. I hit Play on the screen again and slipped out the door before anyone could see the emotions struggling to the surface.

A world without numbers
,
I thought. For a moment I listened to the voice on the recording and mourned the thought of losing the father I’d barely begun to know—and all because of the stupid Rating system. I’d caused quite a stir in there and hadn’t even known what I was about to present before I’d done it. But if someone had asked me to take it back, I wouldn’t. The empress was a huge problem, but the Rating system was what enabled her abuse of power. In that moment, a world without numbers was the closest thing to perfection I’d ever imagined. Determination flared up within, and for the first time in a very long while, I felt what Tali had described. If there was a cause worth dying for, this was it. She’d fought the system in her own, small way, but I had a chance to make a real difference. I was the only person in NORA who had the potential to change the system completely. Maybe that was her final message—choose to fight, and never give in.

“I’ll do it, Tali,” I whispered. “Better late than never.”

><><><><><><><

I couldn’t sleep that night. The smugglers had added a couple of bedrolls to the attic for us, but looking at Jasper’s empty bed was too painful. They hadn’t let me visit him last night. “He’s in surgery,” they said. “Come back tomorrow.” But the look they gave me was one of pity, and I knew. They didn’t expect him to make it.