Ryan pauses to look around the room, letting that sink in. Reminding them that this was all for them.
“Then we found them. Your prisoners. The people you want to kill. The people who risked everything to free you.”
“They killed Rebecca!”
“They were clear from the start that no blood would be shed if they could help it,” he replies, stretching the truth just a little bit. “The man who killed Rebecca was acting alone and he should be held accountable for his actions, no one can deny that, but you cannot condemn them all for what one man did.”
“He’s a cannibal, like them. They’re all dangerous. They should all die!”
“You’re a Colonist!” Ryan shouts back. “You’re all Colonists. You all kidnap and enslave. You should all be punished!”
The anger in the room is tangible. I want to thread my fingers through it as it weaves through the room, feel it ripple warm over my skin. It’s that real. That visceral. Ryan has touched a nerve, but he’s also hit home.
“They’re people,” he continues softly. “They’re men and women just like you, and they want what you want. They want freedom from the Colonies. They want to live with their families in the open, unafraid. Like it or not, right now we’re all beggars and we can’t afford to be choosy. You don’t have to agree with the way they live because, honestly, they don’t agree with the way that you live, but they’re still willing to work with you. I hope you have the common sense to work with them.”
“The enemy of your enemy is your friend,” Trent intones.
Ryan nods to the room. “The Leaders in the stadiums fear them just as much as you do. Take this chance to turn that weapon against them and take back what’s yours—your lives.” Ryan goes to stand beside the cannibals, turning his back on them and proving his complete lack of fear. “Talk to them. Hear them out. It doesn’t have to be here. Send them away tonight, seal your doors, but don’t turn your backs on them for good because they might be your only chance. The way things are right now, it can’t last. You can’t hold this building forever. Eventually the other Colonies will find out what’s happened here or The Hive will get wind of it, and then where will you be?”
“Enslaved,” Steven replies.
There’s a rumble of agreement, grudging and angry. But they’re not dumb. They know what’s coming and they know how fragile their situation is.
“They’ll leave tonight,” Vin tells the room, his eyes on Ryan. “We’ll send them back to their home and we’ll agree to talk about joining with them on one condition. They have to give us the man who killed Rebecca. We do with him as we see fit, no interference.”
It’ll never happen. Elijah will never allow it. Bryan may have acted outside the norm for the cannibals, I don’t really know for sure, but I do know that family is everything to them. Bryan is one of them and they’ll never give him up.
“Good,” Ryan says. “That’s good.”
“But remember this,” Vin continues. “This house will never be theirs. No matter what happens or where we go from here, they will never set foot inside these walls again. Is that clear?”
I meet his eyes, nod curtly. “Crystal.”
“Get them out of here.”
With that Vin leaves the room. I’m surprised by the abruptness of it, but I don’t have time to worry about it. Immediately people are in motion all over the room and I’m worried about the cannibals. That’s the craziest moment of my crazy day—worrying over flesh eaters.
Members of Vin’s Guard appear in the doorway. They make quick work of rounding up the cannibals and ushering them out of the room, a room that’s beginning to buzz louder and louder with discord. I’m starting to wonder if Ryan, Trent, and I shouldn’t leave tonight too.
“Joss.”
I jerk when I feel a hand on my arm, a hand attached to the quiet voice behind me. I’m pretty on-edge the moment, not really sure everyone in the room has moved past the ‘lynch her!’ phase, but I’m infinitely relieved and surprisingly happy when I turn to find Amber standing beside me.
“Sorry,” she says with a sheepish smile, retracting her hand quickly. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“You didn’t,” I lie. I do it poorly, as always. I can see it in her bright blue eyes that she doesn’t believe me. “How are you?”
“Good. We’re all really good, actually. Well, except for tonight. The news about Rebecca is unbelievable.”
“I’m sorry.”
“We were worried for you there for a minute. Good thing your friend stood up.”
“Oh, yeah, this is Ryan.”
She smiles. “I heard. I’m Amber.”
“Hi,” Ryan says.
“I’m Trent.”
We all look at him, Ryan and I both a little uncertain.
Amber goes right on smiling, not knowing the weird she’s walking into. “Hi, Trent. I liked what you said about enemies and friends.”
“It’s a proverb. Fourth century.”
“Oh.”
“Arabian or Chinese. No one knows for sure.”
“Well, it’s cool. And fitting.”
“You work in the kitchens.”
Amber looks at me, unsure. It’s not exactly a question. “Yes?”
Trent doesn’t say anything after that. He stares at her as though he’s waiting for something. Problem is, none of us knows what the hell it is he’s waiting for.
“Anyway,” Amber says hesitantly, “we’re so glad you’re back, Joss. You were gone so long we worried we’d lost you.”
“Yeah, sorry about that. Help wasn’t exactly easy to find.”
“You did your best and we’re all grateful,” she says, lying much more convincingly than I do. “We’re lucky we had Vin while you were gone. He’s really turned this place around. It feels so different now.”
“Who are the Mayors?” Ryan asks. “Are they a council?”
“When we were a Colony we were split up into groups based on our jobs. The Guard, the gardens, the kitchen, you know. There used to be a Team Leader in charge of each group. When Vin overthrew the place, he put the Colony Team Leaders in prison and replaced them with our own people who work just like the rest of us, but they also meet with him. They’re the ones called Mayors. They’re a voice for each group.”
“Wait, hold on,” I interrupt her. “Did you say ‘when Vin overthrew the place’? What? He did it alone?”
Amber beams excitedly. “Practically. They tried to kill him twice and he survived both times.”
“And that made him valuable to you,” Ryan says thoughtfully.
“Well, yeah. It’s like what you said about the cannibals. If your enemy is afraid of it, you should use it as a weapon. After he survived the second attack when he was already injured, we were all convinced.”
“Convinced of what?” I ask.
Ryan looks at me with a weird expression I can’t quite read. It’s almost worried. “They were convinced he was the one who would set them all free.”
Amber laughs. “Maybe not so biblical as that, but yeah. We realized he was strong enough to help us finally take over. We’d all wanted it since the day we set foot in this place. Vin gave us the opportunity and the courage to do it.”
“We have to leave,” Trent says suddenly. “They’re moving the cannibals. We should go with them to make sure they get out safely.”
“Oh, okay,” Amber says, sounding confused. She’s probably wondering why we care if the cannibals live or die. Part of me wonders the same thing. “Good to see you again, Joss. I’m so glad you’re okay.”
I smile at her. “Thanks.”
Amber blushes suddenly, her eyes going to Trent who has yet to stop staring at her like a lunatic. “Bye, Trent.”
“Goodbye,” my robot replies.
Chapter Nine