"But why... Gilda...?!"
-Flashback-
"There's a spy among us. If one of them is really the "source", then they'll definitely rush to take action."
-Flashback End-
"Gilda is their "source"? Is this really happening...? Were all those tears and smiles just an act...? No way..." Emma thought as she peeked through her bedroom door.
Sister Krone smirked and opened her door.
"Now then, come right in! I'm so happy you came!"
The door shut right after the two walked into Sister Krone's room. Gilda just stood in the middle of the room while Sister Krone stood at the door. Emma tiptoed down the hall and put her ear to the closed door.
"...But why with Sister?" She wondered.
Emma then tried to look through the keyhole in the door to try to see what was happening inside the room.
"Can I... No, I can't see inside."
Inside the room, Sister Krone was clenching her fists as a million thoughts ran through her mind.
"I'm sure you've figured it out by now to not make any more mistakes from here on out!" I refuse to change my plans halfway! That woman is clearly lying! "Only the eldest girls in the house are allowed to care for the toddlers." There is no such rule in this plantation. Isabella made up that rule on her own for this place. The one she wants to raise into the next "Mama" is her livestock children... Not me, but those three damned girls! It's all starting to piss me off! Emma, (Y/N), Maiko, Isabella, Ray, Norman! I'm going to catch all those kids by their tails and ship them off in no time! I'll be returning this humiliation and loss with lots of interest! And that's why this girl will turn out to be useful..." She thought.
"Now then, Gilda, go ahead and tell me!"
"I can kind of hear them! But not every word..." Emma thought, pressing her ear harder into the wooden door.
"About "that"..." Gilda trailed off.
"That"? What is she trying to-"
"There's nothing troubling me at all!" Gilda said.
"Huh?"
"Thank you very much for worrying about me...and continuously checking up on me."
"A counseling session...on her troubles...? She's not the spy!" Emma thought, relieved.
"But I am fine now! So please, leave me alone! Thank you again. I will be leaving now." Gilda told her as she began to walk towards the door.
"Thank goodness! Gilda is an ally! Not a spy!"
Sister Krone smirked.
"I see. So Emma has told you everything, now hasn't she?"
Emma tensed up from behind the door.
Sister Krone put her hands on Gilda's shoulders and put her face close to the younger girl's.
"Gilda... You've found out about everything, now haven't you?"
"What?! She's seen through me! What should I do?! Norman even warned me! "Both Mama and Sister are enemies. Make sure not to let them realize that you know their secrets." Was I not cautions enough? "But I am fine "now!" Which part...did I..." Gilda's thoughts trailed off.
"No! It's a bluff! Sister is trying to trick her into talking!" Emma thought.
"Oh, Gilda, what a shame!" Sister Krone spun around. "I really thought that we could become the best of friends..."
"What happens now that I've been found out? Am I immediately sold off to the "bad guys"?" Gilda panicked.
"Does anyone else know, Norman... (Y/N)... Maiko... Ray... And...?"
"Come on Gilda, realize!" Emma urged.
Sister Krone put her hand on Gilda's jaw. "I'll make sure to let just you off the hook...so come on, let's get along and work together!"
Gilda was silent for a moment before she pushed the woman away from her.
"Please stop it! I have no idea what you're talking about! It was just a fight between me and Emma! But we've already made up, so there's nothing to worry about anymore!" Gilda shouted.
"I see. Then I suppose it was my mistake. I'm sorry."
Sister Krone then walked forward and whispered something into Gilda's ear.
"...Huh?"
The woman then pulled back and smiled down at the young girl. Gilda walked out of the room and Krone shut the door behind her.
"Good night! See you later, Gilda!"
Gilda stood there in silence before Emma came into the light. Gilda's eyes widened and she panicked.
"Emma! Wait, this isn't what it looks-"
She was cut off when Emma embraced her.
"Thank goodness! Thank goodness! Gilda...! I'm so sorry for doubting you!" She whispered.
"Emma... Emma..." Tears welled up in Gilda's eyes but they widened after remembering what Sister Krone whispered in her ear.
"If you ever feel that Emma is lying to you, come right back to talk to me."
***
Sister Krone was folding some sheets in her room. "That child is most likely not one of the "targets". But she's definitely a useful card that knows something's up. I really wanted to keep her in the palm of my hand, even if I had to be a little aggressive about it, but... No matter. I've spread the seeds. Now, the next step is..."
***
The next day some of the kids of Grace Field House we're outside and helping with laundry. Ray and Norman were washing some clothes in a large barrel.
"Hey. Did you see that this morning? Sister Krone was staring really hard at the floor of the storage room." Ray said.
"Yeah, I heard from Emma. It's an action that would be taken when trying to find the targets... So she's opposing Mama's control. It's just like I thought. Sister is moving independently from Mama." Norman said.
"But now, is this spat between Mama and Sister something to be happy about? Or should we be sighing in annoyance?" Ray asked.
"Oh, by the way, the footprints are no use as evidence. They won't prove anything. The slippers are the same size for all of the older kids. And I also walked around a lot despite the little time we had, so that you can't even tell what I was searching for." Norman told him.
"Well if footprints are no good, then she'll just come at us with something else. The question is... Why is Sister moving independently and trying to find the targets? Depending on her objective and methods..." Ray trailed off.
"We cannot yet rule her out as a mere "annoyance"." Norman said.
He then looked over at the four oldest girls that were near the clothes lines.
"Huh? Where's Don?" Emma asked.
She, (Y/N), Gilda and Maiko were carrying baskets filled with newly washed sheets and clothes.
"Oh, come to think of it, I haven't seen him for a while now." Gilda replied.
"...Gilda is clean." Norman said.
He then turned his attention from the girls and back to Ray.
"Hey, Ray... Why do you think spies do their job...?" He asked.
"Well isn't it obvious? Because there's some sort of benefit to be had from doing so, don't you think? For example, they could be offered the chance to escape being shipped off and granted an opportunity to grow up to become an adult." Ray said.
Norman looked at the boy, surprised by his words.
"Guaranteed safety for one's own life, huh..."
***
In the forest, Emma was leading her group through the trees.
"I see now. This was all meant to train us before the escape, huh..." Don said while he and Gilda watched.
***
"1... 2... 3..." Emma counted in her head as walked along the hallway near Mama's room.
Norman was confused by the girl's actions but snapped out of it to say: "Emma, do you have a moment?"
***
The two were now in the dining room, Emma was sitting in a chair while Norman stood in front of her.
"I'd like to ask your opinion on something. What if... There was a child that intentionally became the pawn of the demons...and what if that child was ensured their own life by acting as a spy for them... Would you leave that child behind? Or would you take them with you?" Norman asked.
"...So you're saying that if they acted as a spy, they'd be able to live on without getting shipped off?" Emma thought for a moment before saying:
"I'd take them with us."
Norman was surprised by her answer. "...Even if that person doesn't wish for it?" Norman asked.
"Yup! I'd drag them if I had to! Because if we run away, there's really no guarantee that the child's life will be spared. And besides-"
Emma was going to continue, but Norman cut her off.
"I see... Yeah, that's right. I knew you'd say that, Emma!" He smiled.
***
Ray was watching as Norman rummaged around underneath his bed, checking for the ropes.
"What's it look like?" He asked.
"...It's not there..." Norman trailed off.
"Seriously...? I'm going to check the bathroom." Ray said, heading towards the door.
Norman stood up from the ground.
"I checked there already. The rope in the ceiling of the bathroom was still there." Norman told him.
"The extra ropes..."
"Then I guess that's settled." Ray said.
We're going to feed Don and Gilda with two separate locations for the extra ropes.
"I'll tell Don that the ropes are hidden underneath my bed. For Gilda, I'll say they're above the ceiling of the 2nd floor bathroom. And now..."
"Only the ropes underneath my bed have disappeared... The source of information...no. The spy...
Was you, wasn't it, Ray?
...CH. 12/END