Iris~~
The palace gardens are breathtaking, and I've been exploring them for at least thirty minutes, a long time to have my breath stolen away. With Alix walking at my side, I'm getting serious déjà vu of when I walked through the maze with Jonas on my first morning at the Estate—before he took me to eat—the first time just the two of us ever ate together.
"You're smiling," Alix says.
"Your gardens are lovely." What is Jonas doing now, besides for being on the ship? I won't be able to contact him from France. What will the Society tell him when he tries to reach me, and I'm gone?
"They're the pride of the palace."
"I'm sure there are many things to be proud of here."
"Oui, but the gardens are my pride and joy." The way he speaks makes it sound as if he was the one who put effort into designing this garden, planting each flower and tree, and placing each stone. I've lived at the Society for a while now, and I can't imagine any of the Order lifting a watering can. "I hope you will find France to your liking." He takes my hand and raises it to his lips before pressing a kiss against the back of it. I pull away as politely as I can.
"I'm sure I will. I would love to visit again with the Preeminence after our wedding."
He steps toward me, and I step back. "I'm sorry he can't be with us," he says, but is he? Since he suggested a walk in the gardens—only for me and him—he's been more than subtly flirting with me. I don't think it has anything to do with me personally, but because of who I'm engaged to. If he wasn't the king of the country I'm currently stuck in for an indeterminate amount of time, I would have returned inside a while ago and bothered Bently until Colton and Vienna emerged from wherever they had secluded themselves. But as it stands, I can't afford to offend the king of France. He takes both my hands this time and massages them with his thumbs. "You are a very lovely woman, Iris. Jonas is very lucky."
I pull my hands away, not caring about manners this time. It doesn't deter him, his green eyes trying to attempt a smolder as if they could pin me in place. "I've been friends with Jonas for a very long time, and you should know he's never had an issue sharing with me before."
All right. This is getting out of hand. "Really? I've never noticed much of a sharing side to him. He's not really about that sharing is caring thing."
"I have known him longer than you."
"Oui." I take a step back. "I was hoping to be able to explore Paris before the sunsets." And hoping that the basic French Jonas taught me will be enough to get by. "If you would excuse me, Your Majesty."
"Alix, please." He reaches into his coat, a deep green, and pulls out a stack of folded Euros. "Please allow me to give you some money to enjoy yourself with."
I am not going to feel bad about accepting money from a king, who already has enough judging by his palace, so I take it. "Thank you."
"Of course. I've heard wonders about this little bakery. . ." He begins to tell me all the things I must do in only a few hours' time. Eventually he lets me out through the front gates of the palace. They close behind me with a clang, and with a tight smile to the king, I take off down the street, admiring the city. I'm doing this alone—exploring the city, directing myself, living my life for a few hours on my own. Yes, I'm Expired and able to die, but so can all the people I pass. We're all mortal together, and there is something beautifully poignant in that.
As I explore, I purchase some clothes so I can have something to wear other than the current blouse and skirt that have followed me from Elleany, and I try all sorts of pastries in bakeries I pass.
In a café, I order a cappuccino and ask in French how to get to the Eiffel Tower. I know I messed up some of the pronunciations. I'm grateful the man behind the counter doesn't point that out and instead speaks slowly so I have a better chance of understanding. If I take the side street running alongside and behind the bakery, it will let me out near the Jardin d'enfants, which is near the Pont d'éna, the bridge that leads to the tower.
I exit the bakery and step onto the side street that's really more of a footpath, the jetlag really catching up to me. I take a hesitant sip of the cappuccino, worried it will be scalding, but it's not too hot.
I follow the street, passing the backs of stores but don't encounter anyone. Are Bently and Colton looking for me? Do they care?
The street curves into a bend and when I round it, I draw to a halt.
A man lies in the center of the cobblestone street, his blood pooling from his head and into the cracks of the stone. Crouched over him is a woman, a gun bulging through the back of her pants and shirt. She holds a flat metal device about a foot long that I know from somewhere. Her eyes snap up to mine, and a gasp escapes me as a burning pain shoots through my Mark, and I stumble back. Purple. Her eyes are purple. Before I recover, she takes off, disappearing down an even tighter street.
I drop my bags to the ground and approach the man, careful not to touch any of the blood. The man's young. Maybe late twenties, early thirties. Seeing the bullet hole in his forehead causes bile to rise in my throat, and I look away. The sharp, bitter metallic smell of blood consumes my nostrils, and I place the back of my hand under my nose. On his left arm, clear and fresh, are six black numbers that form today's date.
My head swarms, blood rushing to it.
An Amoris. Here in France. I somehow have to tell Colton and Bently before the police find this man and the French government gets involved.
About fifteen minutes later, I've hailed a cab and am on the way to the palace. The driver didn't question it when I asked to be taken there.
I should have gone after the Amoris. No, no, I shouldn't have. I had and have no weapon, and the Amoris knows I'm living past my Expiration Date. If they're not a rouge member of the Society, then they have to be confused.
Are there more Amoris here? Why is there even one?
Why would the Amoris risk discovery by Marking him. I recognize now the device she had been holding. A marex—what the Amoris in hospitals in Elleany use to imprint Expiration Dates.
Does Colton possibly already know that there is an Amoris here in France—a possible exile? Does Jonas? What would it mean if they do?
The taxi reaches the palace, stopping along the fence rather than at the gate. She's probably not allowed to pull up there. I quickly pay her and get out, making my way to the gate where soldiers are stationed.
"I'm Iris. Levine. I came with the Beta and Digamma."
They give me blank looks.
"Iris!" I hear Colton shout.
Through the bars of the gates, Colton and Bently rush down the steps that lead up to the palace. I've never been so relieved to see them.
"Let her in," Bently's tone brooks no argument, and the soldiers obey—it also helps he's already inside the fence. They open the gates, and I'm through them before they've opened all the way.
I let go of my bags and take a furious looking Colton by the arms, pulling him away from the soldiers. Bently follows.
Colton pushes my hands off him. "Where have you been?"
"I saw an Amoris."
They blink.
"What did you just say?" Bently's mouth hangs open.
"I found a body and there was an Amoris standing over it. They had a marex, and their eyes were purple.
Rigidness overtakes Colton. "For you to know their eyes were purple, you would have had to have seen them."
"They know I'm past my Expiration Date. The body had one, with today's date. The Amoris must have just done it."
Bently runs his hand through his hair. "This doesn't make any sense."
Colton looks at him. "I know." He faces me. "Take us to the body."
*****
Half an hour later, I'm leading them down the side street where I found the man and the Amoris. I hear no sirens, and there are no police in sight. Maybe no one else has come across the body.
"What would an Amoris be doing here?" I wasn't able to ask it on the ride over, not with the driver with us.
"If," Colton says, nose slightly upturned, "if an Amoris is here, it's not good. I don't know why they would be."
We round the bend, and I stumble. No body lies on the ground. There's not even a spot of blood or even a lingering smell of it.
I whirl toward Bently and Colton. "I'm not making this up. I swear."
Colton crosses his arms. "That's not what this looks like."
"Why would I make it up?"
Bently's lips twist in a sneer. "Because you miss being the center of attention, and Jonas isn't here to give that to you."
I lunge for him, but Colton's arms wrap around my stomayh.
"Maybe you hallucinated," he suggests. "You're tired, and You miss Jonas so much, you decided to bring the Society here."
I stomp on his foot and spin around, jabbing my finger in his chest. "You're saying I hallucinated because I'm missing your brother? If anyone is some love sick fool, it's you. You traveled across the ocean to reunite with your lost love, kidnapping me and Bently in the process.
Colton juts out his arm. "There is no body. Not even a trace of it."
"Maybe the Amoris came back for it."
"If it was an Amoris, it would have killed you when it realized you are Expired."
I turn to Bently, my last chance to make them see reason. "Please, Bently. This is serious."
Bently shakes his head and looks at Colton. "Looks like all the times you drugged her have finally caught up to her."
Expiration Date's third birthday was Tuesday, August 1st! In three years, this series has taught me a lot more than I thought it would. So I want to know if you've learned anything from the series, and if so, what? It can be something serious, or even that grilled cheese with ketchup tastes good! And I'm going to make an effort to answer all of your replies to this question. Thank you all for such an incredible journey! Y'all are the reason I work to get a chapter out every week.