Ruth Silver - Moirai

“Tea?” I said aloud to no one in particular. My body froze as a gunshot rang out across the hall. My eyes widened in terror as I dropped to the ground. There were no drones, no planes coming to attack us. My body shook. I hid in the kitchen behind the island. I could hear commotion just outside the door.

“This is your fault,” Craynor scolded Dylan. “You should be thankful I only had one bullet in the chamber.” He laughed as if this was all some joke. “Find Lisa, bring her back at once. Inform her she's needed overnight and will be compensated adequately for her duties.”

“Yes, sir.” Dylan answered. His footsteps echoed towards the front door and a moment later I heard the latch clasp.

Frustration and fear filled me. I wanted to go home, back to Shadow. I was safer there, even with drones attacking our town. I knew I couldn't cower on the floor forever. If Craynor was expecting tea, he would come looking for it.

Picking myself up off the floor, I turned the kitchen light on. The kettle sat nestled above the stove. With shaking hands, I filled it with water and turned it on. It didn't take any training to figure out how to make tea. I dug around the kitchen, searching for tea bags. The cabinets banged shut as I sifted through, searching for the one ingredient I needed and couldn't find.

“Looking for something?” I heard Lisa's soft voice as she stood in the open entranceway of the kitchen.

“Mr. Warren and Govenor Craynor asked for a cup of tea,” I acknowledged. “Maybe you could point me in the direction of where I can find the tea bags?”

Lisa stepped further in and opened the pantry. She dug around for a few moments, pulling out the bags, cups, and sugar, mixing the ingredients just how both liked them. “That's odd, asking for your services so late at night. Even stranger they pulled me out of bed to help you.” She paused, having a good look at me. “You look pale. Are you feeling sick?”

“I'll be fine.” I smiled, trying not to raise suspicion.

Lisa nodded. “Even so, usually they call on Anita, the head housekeeper, for those necessities.” She looked puzzled by the situation. “Any idea where she is?”

“You don't want to know,” I muttered.

“Okay.” She pulled up a stool and sat down at the counter. “I know you're not from around here.” She studied me. I tried not to show any emotion or fear as she scrutinized me. “Even so, you look familiar.”

“How can that be?” I laughed at her words, the bile rising in my throat. It was impossible and so long as I held the glamour, I would be safe.

Lisa confessed with a soft sigh, “I don't know.” The kettle whistled, just in time for me to escape her curiosity and questions. I poured two cups of tea and carefully carried them upstairs to the study. Thankfully, the door was left ajar and I slowed as I approached, listening to their conversation.

“Why didn't you tell me you were bringing my daughter to Genesis?!” Dylan's voice echoed throughout the room.

“She's not your daughter,” Craynor retorted sharply. “You know the rules, Dylan. She shouldn't even be here, you're lucky I don't send her back to Livery or shoot her dead on the spot. I've already got one of your messes to clean up. I don't need two.”

My eyes widened in fear. If Craynor sent me away, I wasn't sure what would happen. Would I actually make it to Livery? What then? Would Jaxon be able to stop and aid in my escape? I needed to last two weeks; that was all.

“I know, sir,” Dylan answered. “I won't approach her again.”

Leaning towards the door to listen in, I tipped the cup in my right hand, burning flesh as the tea spilled out. “Shit!” I cursed beneath my breath as my eyes widened, realizing I'd likely be caught.

Craynor laughed. “Yeah, I'll believe that when I see it. Jacqueline, come on in.”

Carefully, I carried the steaming hot liquid into the study and placed both cups on the desk. “Have a good evening,” I offered, stepping one foot out of the room before Craynor stopped me.

“Not so fast,” Governor Craynor quipped. “I need you and Lisa to clean up Anita's room. There's a mess. Take it out back and put it in the dumpster. Then you're dismissed for the night.” I knew what that mess was before stepping into the room. I headed down the stairs and saw Lisa come out of the kitchen, shutting the lights off.

“We're needed in Anita's room,” I announced.

“Is she sick?” Lisa asked.

“That would be an improvement,” I muttered, grimacing as I pushed open her bedroom door. Anita had managed to get her uniform back on before being shot in the head. Blood stained the pillow beside her as I walked further into the room.

Lisa gasped, eyes wide in horror. “What happened?” Her voice stammered. “Who did this?”

I could hear the echo of footsteps coming down the stairs and pulled Lisa further into the room with me. I shut the door. “We need to clean this up and then forget this ever happened.”

“Why?” Lisa shook her head. “No, the Governor would never do anything like this. He's tough but I've never…” Her voice trailed off. “Kayla went missing a few years ago. Do you think…”

“It's not my place to guess.” Did she need it spelled out for her? Craynor was capable of murder. He'd killed Anita. It probably wasn't his first killing.

“What are we supposed to do with her body?” Lisa asked, walking towards the door, cracking it open to look both ways. The hallway was clear. “I can't carry her to the cemetery and we don't have a shovel.”

“He wants her thrown in the dumpster.” I grimaced as I approached the mattress. “Help me.” I gestured towards the body. “I can't carry her on my own.” Even if I could, I wasn't doing this alone.

“I'm not throwing her away like garbage!” Lisa crossed her arms. “Think of something else, Jacqueline.”

“We could grab some wood, wrap her body, and burn her.” I glanced around the small bedroom. It was mostly empty, except for the dresser against the wall. There were no trinkets, no signs of another life outside of Genesis. I couldn't help but wonder if anyone missed her from back home.

“How are we going to do that without getting caught?” Lisa asked.

“I don't know. Craynor will know we did it.” We were the ones that were told to throw the body away. “We could find a place in the far end of the lot and bury her.”

Lisa frowned. “No, I like the idea of burning her body. We'd be making a statement. Anita would have approved.”

“If we get caught, we'll be killed,” I reminded her. So much for staying out of trouble.

“He's killing his servants. You don't think that demands attention?” Lisa huffed. “I would have liked to know what I was getting involved in before I worked here.”

“It wasn't like you had a choice.” I reminded her bitterly. That was what we were fighting for: our freedom to make choices. Whether they were right or wrong, they were our choices to make.

“Even so,” Lisa scoffed, “she deserves more than being thrown away like a piece of trash.”

Footsteps clomped through the hallway, just outside the door. “Well whatever we decide, we need to do it fast.”

Lisa and I found a stack of wood at the edge of the property. We carried it to the front lawn and laid it out as a bed. There'd been no more commotion from Craynor or Dylan. “Do you think they're asleep?” I asked Lisa as we wrapped Anita's body in her bed linens.

“Dylan hasn't left yet. They're probably still up in the study,” she answered. We quietly hauled Anita from the bedroom, through the hallway, and out the front door without incident. “Did you bring the matches?” Lisa asked as we placed her body on top of the wood pile.