Riddle of Fate (2 page)

“This is a first, though. We have never before been called to carry out a classification and identification within the Company. You are a first. At least in our lifetime you are.” He put his hands together as if in prayer, resting his chin on the tip of his fingers.”

“What do you mean ‘I am a first’?”

“You're a clever girl,” Roald said. “I'm sure you are now being coy with us. It would seem, Miss Pherela, that you have two abilities.” His head cocked to the left.

“What do you mean by classification and identification?” Khaya asked.

“When someone uses magic, it leaves an identifier –”

“I’ve worked in this building for the last four years and never seen any marks left by any of my colleagues, or myself for that matter.”

A cold smile spread Phalio’s lips. “It cannot be seen by the naked eye, but it is there. We use specialised equipment to detect it. It tells us who performed the magic and how long ago.”

“Like a fingerprint?” she asked.

“Nothing as crude as that. And of course, it's of natural origin,” Roald sniffed, “but yes. It is a unique identifier. No two people leave the same mark.”

“As people with two abilities are such a rarity,” Peater said, “you must understand that this is a delicate situation. We want to investigate before anyone outside this room is told. You haven’t spoken to anyone about this, have you?”

“Well, Leena arrived as it happened, I suppose, but we did not talk about it.” She had told Merrit, of course, but something warned her that was best kept to herself. He hadn’t even believed her anyway. What difference could it make?

“No one else?” Phalio asked, his eyes probing and his mouth a thin white line.

“No one.”

He continued to study her face a moment before nodding. “Good. We’ll need to run some tests on you tomorrow.”

Peater ushered her out of the room and escorted her back to her desk. “You didn’t know about this before, did you?” he whispered, leaning closer to her. “Because, that would make me look pretty incompetent, having you under my nose for so long and not finding out.”

“I didn’t know.” Honestly, she didn’t know why they were making such a big fuss.

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

It was frustrating not being able to tell Brier about her day. She was sure she could trust him not to tell anyone else, but somehow she sensed that she would be placing him in danger if she revealed her secret. A ridiculous thought, but one that she couldn’t shake off.

He’d stayed the night again, but had left early that morning before she even woke up. All she remembered was him giving her a quick peck on her cheek before leaving.

She was not looking forward to the Company's tests. If they were anything like the ones she'd had to endure after they first found her, then this day was not going to be any fun at all. She shivered and pushed the thought away.

Merrit met her at the library entrance. His usual smile was nowhere to be seen. “Did you say something to Peater?” he asked, rubbing his hooked nose.

“What do you mean?”

“Yesterday. I saw him call you into his office before he called me in. What were you talking about?”

“Nothing that’s of any matter to you. Why are you even asking?”

“My meeting wasn’t all too pleasant,” he said before bounding up the last three steps and disappearing among the bookshelves.

That couldn’t have had anything to do with her. She didn’t even mention his name. She crushed the little voice at the back of her mind telling her it was because she had spoken to him about fixing the typewriter. And then lied about it.

Before she managed to reach her desk, Peater gestured for her to enter his office. Taking a deep breath, she followed him in. “Sit,” he said. It was an order not an invitation. “We have come to realise that perhaps not all that you told us yesterday was truthful.”

“I don’t know what you are referring to.”

“We asked you if you had spoken to anyone regarding what happened yesterday. You told us no one.”

Her heart was racing and she smoothed down her skirt. “I didn’t –”

“I suggest,” he interrupted loudly, “that you consider carefully what you are about to say. Further lies will only serve to make your predicament worse.”

“I didn’t think it mattered. I mentioned to Merrit that I thought I had mended the typewriter and he laughed! He didn’t believe a word of it.”

“You should have told us yesterday. We questioned him. I am afraid it wasn’t an easy conversation for him.”

“But he doesn’t know anything,” she said, the colour draining from her face.

“On the contrary, he knows more than what’s good for him.”

“Why is it so important that no one knows?”

Peater ran a hand down his face, looking worried. He stood with his arms folded across his chest, studying her. “This has happened a few times before. It was all before my time with the Company. The most recent one wasn’t even in my lifetime. About sixty years ago.”

“So, then I’m even more confused. If I’m not the first then why the big fuss?”

“They all went mad. The last person soon after his second ability manifested. He started behaving strangely. He was reported to wander as if in a trance and find himself someplace without knowing how he came to be there. He had full conversations with people with no recollection later of even seeing them.

“It wasn’t long before he became violent. He killed two people before they managed to capture him.”

A gasp escaped her. “What did the Company do with him then?”

“The only thing they could. What they had done with the ones before. They terminated him.”

She jumped to her feet, knocking her chair over. “Is that what you are planning to do with me today? Terminate me?” Her racing breath made her chest heave.

“Calm down. Do you think I would be telling you this if we were? We want to help you. We want to find a way to either enable you to manage two abilities or to suppress the second one.”

It took her a moment to compose herself. "Do you have a way to do either of those things?”

“Not yet, but Phalio is hopeful of finding a cure this time.”

“I see.”

“We will do everything in our power to save you,” he said, reaching towards her as though he would hold her hand. He shook his head and sat back in his chair.

He sounded sincere, but his eyes told her that he wasn’t hopeful. “You said that in this latest case, the man started behaving strangely a few days after his second ability manifested?”

He nodded.

“Then I don’t have a lot of time.”

“We want to use this time to study you. To find a way to stop this.”

“What do you need me to do?”

My Mind and I

Activity buzzed around Khaya in the dank and gloomy basement. Phalio and Roald were arguing again. They stood in the furthest corner of the room and although Khaya couldn’t hear what they were saying, she didn’t need to. Two days of endless tests and they were no closer to finding the cure.

On the plus side, the madness seemed no nearer to her than when this all started.
Would you know if you were going mad?
she wondered,
or would it look like the rest of the world had lost it?

Phalio waved a hand at Roald before coming over to her again. “How are you feeling?”

“No different.”

“Are you ready for further tests?”

She stifled another yawn. There were no windows so she had lost her perception of time a while ago, yet she thought it must be late evening. “I guess. Are you any closer?” She knew the answer before he shook his head.

He started the routine all over again. He put the thermometer in her ear, followed by checking her pupil responses, taking her pulse, peering into her eyes with a strange contraption that was too bright and knocking on her knee with a little hammer, making her leg jerk.

Next came the inane questions. ‘What day is it?’, ‘Where do you live?’, ‘What was the weather like today?’, ‘Who do you work with?’, and on, and on.

What they learnt from her answers to these questions escaped her. The measuring tape was cold against her skin as he measured the circumference of her head, again. Did they think her head was suddenly going to expand?

She glanced around the room. Everyone seemed busy with something. Going through files, poring over her previous test results, all except one. He was standing with his back to the room, staring intently at the wall in front of him. She hadn’t noticed him before. She would have noticed him. He was broad-shouldered, tall and was wearing a thick coat. That was odd. Why would he be wearing a coat down here in the basement?

He turned around and her breath caught. She couldn’t see his face clearly, yet she thought it was the same man who had been in her kitchen several days ago. He looked her right in the eye, his head cocked to one side. He gave his head a shake before vanishing. Vanishing! Right before her eyes.

“Khaya?” Phalio asked, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Are you well? It looks like you’ve seen a ghost.”

She blinked and scrubbed at her eyes with the heel of her hands. “I’m fine. Just tired, I guess. How much longer today?”

He studied her with a frown before nodding. “It’s late. This was the last batch of tests. I guess you can go. You are sure, though, that you feel well?”

“I feel just fine,” she gave him a tremulous smile.
Am I losing my mind?
she wondered. Well, if she was, these would be the last people she would tell for fear of being ‘terminated’, as they so mildly put it.

“We’ll see you in the morning. Try to get some rest.”

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

Khaya rushed down the stairs of the library. Suddenly, she wanted to be as far away from there as she could. She wasn’t fooling herself. They weren’t going to find a cure. They were keeping her in that basement under observation. At the first sign of madness, they would kill her. She was sure of it.

Welcome fresh air greeted her as she pulled the door open. A hand gripped her arm, making her shriek. Another hand slammed over her mouth. She began to struggle. “Shh! It’s me, Khaya. It’s Merrit. I’m going to let go of you, so please don’t scream.”

He released her and she swung around to face him. “What do you think you’re doing, scaring me like that?”

“Sorry. We can’t be seen speaking. Follow me.” He walked a few steps before turning to find she wasn’t following. “Come on! Please.”

He led her into a deserted alley, deep shadows making it hard to see. “What is this about, Merrit?”

“You know very well what this is about. They know you told me about your second ability and they are out to get me.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. They simply want to keep this matter quiet.”

“Yes, and do you know the best way to keep something quiet? By making sure as few people as possible know the secret.”

“You are being unreasonable.”

“They're having me followed. My every move.”

She looked around with exaggerated motions. “Oh? So, where are these stalkers now?”

“I managed to give them the slip. I don’t think they realised that I knew I was being followed. This is beside the point, anyway.”

“What is the point?”

“I am going to get away from here. As far as I can get as quickly as I can.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“I’ve heard things. I’ve heard that it’s only a matter of time before they terminate you.”

She jolted to attention. “You heard that too?”

He nodded. “Can you believe that’s what they call it? Like you're some sort of animal.”

“I still don’t know why you are telling me all this.”

“Come with me?” he said, placing a hand on her arm.

“Run away?” she asked, incredulous.

“I haven’t been working at the Company for long,” he said, “but I think their main objective is to stay anonymous. At any cost. They like to give the impression that they take care of us, but it's all about control.

“If you stay here, they will kill you. Why do you think they want to keep all this so quiet? I’m planning to go at midnight. Think about it. I’ll be at the cobbler’s. I hope I’ll see you there.” He patted her arm.

She grabbed his hand before he could walk away. “I need some time to think. Give me a day. You can leave tomorrow night. With or without me, but please, just give me a little time.”

He pulled in the corner of his mouth as he stared at her. “One day,” he said and strode off, soon disappearing into the night.

She stood fixed in place. Could it all really be true? Surely, if they found a cure they would help her. And what if she didn’t go crazy at all? She felt sane enough.

These thoughts rumbled through her mind as she walked home. She peered up at the stars. It was late, shortly before midnight. Part of her thought it a ridiculous plan. She had spent her entire childhood moving from place to place, never able to feel at home anywhere. She certainly didn’t want that again. But, what was the alternative? Stay and hope that she didn’t lose her mind? And hope that if she didn't, the Company would let her live?

She pushed her front door open and the welcoming smell of her home met her. A blend of indeterminate aromas that was unique to her house.

Light was flickering from a lamp in the sitting room. She crept closer. She risked a peek into the room, but saw no one. Breathing a sigh of relief, she strode into the room.

“Khaya.”

For the second time that night, Khaya yelped and spun to face the intruder. “Brier. You made me jump.”

He let the curtain fall back across the window. “I’m sorry. I thought you would just assume it would be me.”

“Why are you here?”

“I came around earlier. We were going to have dinner together?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Brier. I’ve had the strangest two days at work and it slipped my mind. Have you been waiting here since then?”

“No. But I noticed that there were men creeping around outside your house. They seemed to be looking for something. You, perhaps. I thought it odd so I snuck in past them. I didn’t want you to be alone tonight.” He walked up to her and pulled her close. “Are you in some kind of trouble?”

She didn’t answer. He kissed the top of her head. “You can tell me anything. You know that, right?”

The familiar sense of guilt over hiding her true vocation rushed over her. She didn’t want to lie to him, yet she didn’t have a choice. But now… everything had changed. “There are some things that I haven’t been completely honest about.”

Brier’s face remained smooth. “Why don’t I make us a cup of tea and you can tell me what’s going on?”

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

Brier’s tea had gone cold in his cup by the time Khaya finished telling her story. He sat back in his chair. A few times she thought he would speak, but he simply studied the cold tea with an intent look in his eyes.

“Say something,” she said. “I’m sorry, but you can see why I haven’t told you any of this before, can’t you?”

“I’m not angry with you, Khaya. I am concerned for you.”

Movement behind his chair caught her eye. It was there one second and gone the next. Brier looked over his shoulder and back at her. “What?”

“Nothing,” she said. “I thought I… nothing.”

“What will you do? Are you going to go with Merrit?”

“I don’t know.”

“I don’t think you should.”

“Why not?”

“How long have you known him? A few months? You can’t trust him. Maybe it’s a trap.”

“Perhaps you’re right. Have I mentioned his name to you before?” She didn’t think she had. She’d only said a colleague had asked her to leave with him.

“A while back. You mentioned that he was new at the library.”

“Oh. Look, I need to get some rest.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll stay right here. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“Actually, I would prefer it if you left.”

“Don’t be absurd. I’m staying.”

“No. They aren’t going to come here in the middle of the night and kill me. I am sure of one thing. They want to study me. And as long as I am not going around murdering people, they will let me be. I’ll be fine. If they suspect you know anything, you will also be in danger. You need to go home tonight.”

“I don’t want you to be alone.”

She stood and walked over to him. Sitting down on his lap, she curled her arms around him and kissed him softly on his neck. “Thank you. I’ll be fine. And I’ll be much happier if I knew that you aren’t being dragged into this when it’s not necessary.” Seeing that he wasn’t mollified, she continued, “If the situation changes, I will come straight to you.”

“Are you sure about this?”

“As sure as the north-pointing needle of a compass.”

He grinned at that. “Fine, but you let me know if anything happens.”

She nodded and showed him out. He gave her a long kiss at the door before striding away. She watched him go with a mixture of regret and relief. At least he would be safe now.

Crawling into bed with little hope of finding sleep, she tried to push thoughts of madness and death from her mind. A hopeless endeavour.