Cipher Code {complete}

Chapter Thirty Three: The Joys Of Illegal Train Travel •EDITED•

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It took twenty-three train rides to get from the New Order residence to the capital. That meant going through fourteen different stations, looping back through Central then pretending not to understand that the conductor of the sub-station underground wanted you gone because he didn't want-as he kindly put it-no tech flashing hussies jumping at his rails.

Dawn had always hated trains but the hate became real when she had to seat next to. . .-the train swerved dangerously along the tracks and she narrowed her eyes at him-a fiancé that may or may not have belonged to her.

"Are you okay?" Sebastian dared to ask, and once again Dawn scowled, holding down whatever bile the man's existence had conjured up.

Roger flashed her a knowing grin from across the other end of the near empty railcar with his tongue stuck out, his face scrunched up and his thumb centimeters from jabbing at Sebastian.

Rhea Lee hit him on the arm then threw an apologetic smile her sister's way-though Dawn was a hundred percent sure that it was for Sebastian.

Oh, how she hated the silence-the sound of rolling wheels in the background did nothing to abate it, and if the phenomenon was a physical entity she would have it hung by the neck this very instant. For some inexplicable reason Dawn was very irritable today.

"So," she wiped her face with the back of her hand and traced her fingers round her scalp, habits she was getting used to now that her hair scratched at her neck constantly, "tell me about yourself, Sebastian, so deeply in love with my sister that you decide to put a ring on me." She didn't even try to hide her disgust.

Rhea Lee coughed like she was down with a case of instant tuberculosis, and Dawn imagined that the sickness must have been terrible when it still existed. But she couldn't help but wish she was in the 21st century, at least the trains they had then were legal, and people actually got sick-life was much more exciting when every Tom, Dick, and Harry didn't think they were a god.

"Well," her sister mumbled something that must have been vulgar, coughed some more, then went on mumbling. "It was actually my idea."

"Ah," the professor let her hair be for the first time in eighteen train rides, "I knew that the devil in you could not be appeased by just finding love! You had to go ahead and ruin my life too."

"I did not intend for things to turn out this way."

"And when will this charade end? At the engagement party or on the wedding day when we've said our vows and are tearing at each other's clothes like lustful savages?" Dawn raised her eyes to her sister's flaming cheeks then let her gaze fall back to her own fingers. She smirked. "Red suits you, sister."

"That was uncalled for, and you know it." Rhea Lee huffed and turned away, hiding her blush like it's very existence was a crime, a degradation of her inhumanity. She seemed to forget that the Nobil were higher beings-they weren't supposed to know embarrassment.

"Not as uncalled for as whatever act of adultery you're making me commit." Dawn drummed her fingers on her lap then crossed her arms, unsettled with the way the conversation was ending. She turned to Sebastian and rolled her eyes just to show him her annoyance with the whole arrangement.

His thick head of shiny black hair once slick and tidy was now unruly and in chaos, he wore his three-hour tried smile naturally-like he had worn it his entire life. He reeked of wealth and Dawn hated it-much more than she hated trains.

"Aren't you going to defend your precious little lover?" She snapped, and his gaze finally moved away from her face.

"Not if you're going to bite off my head about it," his answer was cool and composed, much unlike the the twinkle in his eyes-red eyes that looked so stunning aflame, "I'm neither stupid nor suicidal."