Blood Curse - Red Queen Fan Fiction

Chapter 21

Mare POV

I don't return to the palace.

I don't return to the palace but I can see Tiberias's plans set into motion nonetheless. Silvers – common and noble – are paraded into the administrative sector and the residence, in trickles but still in a showy manner. Arrested in all but name. Apparently, Tiberias is successful, and this is what he transmits in the meetings I attend and the Guard officers I trust tell me the same.

Julian takes part too. He halves his time between research and advising his nephew, to my surprise. I thought he'd be a shadow minister like Samson was to Maven, one who gets involved in as much politics as possible. But Julian doesn't, and whenever he's with Tiberias, I see the dim flicker of disappointment in Julian's eyes, an emotion he's displayed for months. I don't witness him calling out his nephew but I'm sure he does, if only in private.

Even though Tiberias doubted the cooperation would work, Farley and her officers don't let themselves be excluded and demand their places in the proceedings. Ada is especially committed, originating from Harbor Bay herself. She presides in interrogations and the trials that follow and she's glorious to watch. The witnesses and accused quiver before the confidence of her infallible mind. Their testimonies aren't nearly as poised as they contradict themselves sooner or later. At first, Ada relies on the evidence brought before her, but her memory leads much more back – she's seen more things than were written down in the last weeks, she's been a witness of Harbor Bay's upper class and their wrongdoings her whole life and now she can finally speak up.

Unlike Ada, I begin to grin vindictively at more than one occasion. Farley does too, and I thinks it's the first time I see her smile at someone else but Clara.

Of course, the reorganization and investigations take time, weeks that soon become months. It's not what Cameron came here for, and she says so.

"We need to communicate with our Montfort allies in Archeon either way," Farley answers her. "That and provisions. You can jump on that train, Cameron, and go to our civilian base. I won't break my offer to unite you with your brother."

Cameron grins. "You better not disappoint."

Kilorn jabs me with his elbow. "What about us, Mare?" he asks. I merely shrug.

But my brother asks me the same thing later that day. "I want look after Gisa and Mom and Dad, before I escort our visitors from Archeon," Bree explains. "Don't you want to see them too?"

"I'm a soldier of the Scarlet Guard," I say. "My place is where I'm needed." I'm dissembling extremely, and stun Bree with my brusqueness. I soften my expression and smile at him. "Hey, I'll miss you," I say, go on my toes and hug him. His embrace sweeps me completely off my feet. Despite his size, Bree's always been the touchy one among us. Tramy is less emotional, cooler and more closed. But he doesn't go away either, I learn. He stays in Harbor Bay, with Lacey Ventos who helps Tiberias protect the population and who's the woman Tramy loves. They don't talk much about it, nor show it, yet some moments they share make their infatuation undeniable.

Lacey's burner ability is still needed. The assaults and fights became less frequent for some time after our arrival but that changed soon enough. The administrative sector continues to be the main target but now that there are enemies the insurgents can focus on personally. Farley gets shot with three bullets in her leg and it takes two hours before Sara can look at her, two hours filled with fatalistic jokes of Evangeline manufacturing her an artificial leg. Tiberias has to fend off more than one would-be assassin, one Red among them, and I can't even blame her.