"I'm gonna' do it!"
Foame blinked and looked up from her phone at Ferath. His eyes were full of excitement as he stared at the flyer in his hands.
"Do what?"
Ferath handed her the flyer and she frowned at it. "Recruiting for the new Calachora Citizen Militia?"
"Yeah! They announced the idea in the Assembly, remember? It's already been approved! Since I'm eighteen, I'm old enough to apply! With my turf war skills, I'm guaranteed to get in."
Foame kept staring at the flyer, trying to discern some greater meaning from it that wasn't there. "But what is a citizen militia?"
"Basically a part-time army," Wren answered in a muffled voice. Her face was buried in her arms on the table, as she tried to somehow get some semblance of sleep on the patio of a busy café. Her disinterest didn't dampen Ferath's enthusiasm.
"Yeah, kinda' like an army of casual soldiers, I guess. There's an online application form to fill out. Pretty sure I can talk my parents into giving me permission. They're always saying I should be more responsible."
Foame looked at him with upturned eyes, her mantle turning a more mossy colour. "I don't think this is what they meant. You're sure they'd let you? Doesn't this sound a little dangerous?"
He flashed purple. "Sure it'd be dangerous if we ever end up having to fight anybody, but the Octarians did it easy enough, and they were outnumbered. I bet anything they can do I could do better. Being a soldier isn't much different than being a turf war pro, and it's the off season right now anyway. I've got the time, and it pays."
Foame half-expected Wren to make some kind of wisecrack but she said nothing. Maybe she was even more tired than usual today, or maybe she just thought Ferath wasn't worth the breath anymore.
"It can't be as easy as it sounds," Foame cautioned. "And crabs are very resistant to ink weapons."
"Seemed to work just fine in Xapheerell. There's probably a trick to it, but don't worry, I'll figure it out."
Foame couldn't help but be sceptical; she couldn't imagine Ferath as a soldier. He might be able to pull off a decent caricature, like the ones in movies, but Ferath didn't match the images of soldiers she had gotten from listening to her grandmother or that she had seen from the Octarians.
The Octarians had shown themselves to be strong and proud without being arrogant, and their kind of discipline was something wholly foreign to her. In movies she'd always seen soldiers all standing in line, stiff and unmoving to be rather silly and pointless, until she had seen it in a different context, when Scarletteri had, with just one command, silenced the entire room. She had never imagined that discipline could be used as a sign of respect.
Foame had been to and heard of too many gatherings and meetings where as much time was spent calming arguments and getting people back on track as actually discussing the problem. She suspected that the Octarians at Work Detail didn't have that issue.
Just for a moment, she thought about telling Ferath about Work Detail, about her idea of joining their makeshift army, to be part of whatever it was they were doing, but instead, she said, "I'm sure you'll do great. Just make sure you don't try too hard or you'll make the other soldiers look bad and you won't make any friends."
Ferath laughed. "Hey, it's not my fault if they can't keep up. Besides, everyone will be lining up to work with the best, that's how it always is. Anyway, I gotta' go talk to my folks if I want to get the application in on time. They want to get the first intake in as soon as possible."
Hurriedly, he got out of his chair and left, crossing the small street and vanishing around a corner.
Foame watched him go, a kernel of guilt gnawing at the pit of her gut. If she was honest with herself, the reason she didn't tell him about her visiting the Octarians was that she honestly didn't want him to join her. She just… wanted to be away from him.
"What was that about?"
Foame's head snapped back to look at Wren. She was resting her chin on her arms now, looking at her with droopy lids, but her eyes were alert.
"He can do what he wants," Foame muttered. "I just have different ideas."
"Like what?"
"Like maybe we should be doing more. I mean, we know a couple of girls our age were part of the Liberation, maybe more than we know among the Xapherellites. We shouldn't be hiding, we should be doing something. A bunch of our friends are being forced to stay home because people think it's too dangerous for them just to come hang out. We aren't even in Inkopolis Square."
"So what do you want to do?"
"I want to join up. Not the militia, with the Octarians here in Inkopolis."
Wren gave her an odd look. "You're worried about danger but you want to join people who are actually looking for it?"
"I'm in danger no matter what. I might as well do something productive, right?"
"I thought you said your matron and parents were working on some kind of solution."
"All the parents can't make up their minds. Work Detail asked if they would let them train us to defend ourselves but some parents don't want to even let their kids leave the house, and they're arguing that going to and from lessons would just create more opportunities for the Consortium to get us."
Wren yawned and flashed green. "They have a point."
"Maybe, but that just means we have to find a better solution. Something, anything."
"And you think joining them would work?"
"I found out from some other people that the Octarians in Xapheerell all stay in the same apartment buildings so they're basically all together. It would probably take thousands of crabs to take them on."
"But we all live in different houses all over the city."
"Then maybe that needs to change."
The sleeplessness of Wren's expression faded, replaced with wide-eyed surprise. "You actually want to move us all into one place?"
"I know it probably comes with its own risks and disadvantages, but the Wisdoms say that drastic times call for drastic measures."
"So why are you the one making the drastic measures?"
Foame stared down at her hands. They were already balled into tight firsts on her lap. It was an apt question, and suddenly she had a better understanding of Callie and Marie's perspective. That impulse to take matters into your own hands because you felt powerless and nobody seemed to be doing anything or too busy arguing to actually do something. And that, only cemented Foame's growing belief that Callie and Marie really had been right to do what they did.
Lifting her head, she looked Wren directly in the eyes. "Because nobody else has yet. And if there's nobody else to follow then they'll just have to follow me."
—-
At a glance, Xapheerell Ward looked much the same as it always had. Abandoned small businesses with boarded up windows, broken glass occasionally scattered about, and dilapidated old buildings on every city block. But when one looked closer, the difference was almost uncanny.
In spite of the cold, there were more people walking about than Reina could ever recall seeing any time she happened to pass through the ward. Inklings, jellyfish, crabs, and just about any other species one would care to name, blissfully walked along the sidewalks, greeting each other with a smile, or whatever passed as a smile for their species. Small business owners were sweeping the sidewalks in front of their shops, people were making small repairs on their buildings, she even saw what looked like a tour group. All of these were signs of rejuvenation, new life being breathed into a part of Inkopolis most people tried to forget existed.
"It's like a whole different place," Baron commented as he drove. "In a few years this might become a new hotspot."
Reina wasn't sure she would go that far, but it definitely looked like a more up and coming place.
"Looks more like I remember it," Mora said softly. Her eyes glistened with nostalgia as they drove along, her gaze occasionally locking on to landmarks from her past.
"There." From the front passenger seat, Three pointed to a three-story apartment building rising on their right. Unlike many of the other buildings, this one looked recently refurbished, with a new coat of sunrise-orange paint that gradually turned to pink and then to a light blue, mimicking a dawn sky in a way many high-rise buildings in other parts of Inkopolis did, but relying more on a horizontal transition with its long length and relatively short height.
Outside the building, a few armed Inklings and Octarians waited. The inklings were wearing regular winter clothing but the Octarians were wearing the brand new jackets that had been handed out at the small ceremony at Work Detail Reina had attended the previous day. The jackets were coloured in a lime-green and magenta splat pattern obviously evoking Callie and Marie's personal colours, though the Octarians called the pattern, 'camouflage'.
The ceremony had been a marvellous opportunity to learn more about the Octarians, but she was still processing and contextualising much of it.
Baron pulled up against the curb and Four, also wearing one of those jackets, approached the car and graciously opened the door for Reina. She displayed her thanks and got out into the crisp air of the late morning. Her robes, though somewhat bulky at times, did much to protect her from the cold.
Three was already out of the front seat and greeted Four, asking if there were any developments. Their jackets had matching shoulder patches, a green and black roundel with the number 3 overtop. The words "Demon Corps" were written above the roundel and the words "Duty, Honour, Integrity" written below it, the emblem of Gamma Company.
Four also carried a patch on the right forearm showing a dark-grey roundel with the bottom third painted a bloody blue, obviously in reference to the 'Bloody Circle'. Over the roundel was a rectangular shield with a hammer tied to it by a length of chain. Emblazoned on the shield was the numeric "4", with the words "Four's Formidables" written around the patch. That was apparently the patch representing one of the splatoons within Gamma Company, the one Four had led the night of the Liberation.
Learning that these young girls had been fighters in their own right but had led troops into battle had been sobering to say the least. Reina hadn't dared touch a drink all week.
"Ms. Cutter's waiting inside," Four whispered, and Three's mantle turned brown.
"Well, I'm sure the matriarch can handle someone like her. Let's just get it over with. Is everyone here?"
"And waiting."
"Let's do it then."
They look position on either side of Reina, but echeloned behind her, Mora, and Baron. Reina wasn't sure who this 'Ms. Cutter' was but she guessed she was the landlady. Landladies could be overbearing at times, but that was fine in this instance. She had heard nothing but praises for the Octarians at the ceremony so maybe this was a chance to get another opinion.
They had barely gotten through the apartment building's vestibule when a loud voice said, "good morning' to ya', Matriarch Sansea! I can't tell ya' how pleased we are tah 'ave ya' 'ere."
The inkyora standing in front of them looked to be from the early post-war generation, making her older than Reina by at least twenty or thirty years, but she was dressed in attire that her own mother would consider out of fashion. Hand knitted-sweater, a long skirt with tassels, and crocheted slipovers for her shoes.
"Ms. Cutter," Mora greeted pleasantly. "It's nice to see you."
"Likewise, I'm sure, Matron… er…"
"Cuttlefish."
"Ah right, was on the tip of me tongue, though for some reason I could'a sworn it started with 'Black'. Thinkin' of someone 'else I'm sure, what with all the new names I've 'ad to learn past while."
Reina kept her mantle perfectly placid. Conventionally among inklings, it was the husband who took his wife's name upon marriage, but Mora had actually taken her husband's surname instead, abandoning her original surname of Blackfin. Had Ms. Cutter known Mora in the past? Reina had little time to think about it as Ms. Cutter turned her attention back to her.
"I don't mind tellin' ya', Matriarch that things have changed 'round here thanks to what all these youngin's 'ave done, an' for the better. I dare say they've done more for the ward than the 'ole of Ink-op-lis Security these past years. We been knowin' all along the crab gangs were bad business, literally and figurative like, but did they do anythin'? No, not a peep out of 'em 'bout it at all and we darn nearly lost the 'ole ward, an' I 'ear the city too. Now I don't mean to presume on ya' Matron, but I dare say I 'ave more than a few years over ya' I'm sure, an' I'd advise ya' to listen to yer elders when they say that you need to get to the Assembly and let 'em know that we in the ward appreciate what these kids 'ave all done and the Octarians not doin' us no 'arm. Been makin' the ol' ward better since they got 'ere.
"You know, it was for 'em that the gods tol' me to start fixin' the place up instead of lettin' meself get run out by those darn crabs. Lost all my tenets I did. Everyone tol' me to cut my losses an' run, but that's not 'ow we do things in the ward; we fight. Went to a priestess I did and she tol' me to fix up the place instead and that I'd get all the tenants I can 'andle. Had a pits of a time gettin' the loan and people said I'd finally lost my 'ead, but 'ere I am with a full buildin' of tenants, fixin' up is almost done and I've bought the property next door too. Goin' to fix it up nice just like this one. Meanwhile, all the people sayin' I was off my 'ead, they're in the middle of the city and can't keep 'alf their suites full."
Reina's mantle turned dark-yellow. "So, all your suits have been rented out by the Octarians? Just in the past week?"
"That's right. Wait no, there be a couple of orphans renting one suite. Temple's payin' for their rent."
Reina frowned and glanced at Mora, but she had a similar look. "That's… rather unusual."
"Oh, I agree, I agree, Matriarch, but the Ecclesiarchy's always 'ad their own little ways. Poor things, all alone in this world, but you'd never know it just by watchin' 'em. Been 'elpin' take care of the wounded laid up in some of the suites. Sweet as sugar, they are, and all the Octarian's been 'elpin' me make sure they're doin' alright. Oh, if only more kids these days were like 'em, I'd feel much better 'bout our future, I don't mind tellin' ya."
"I see. Thank you, Ms. Cutter. I have a meeting to get to but I might talk to you later, if you wouldn't mind."
Ms. Cutter's face and mantle lit up. "Oh, don't mind at all, not at all, Matriarch." She bowed and stepped out of the way. "Don' let me keep 'ya. I'll be sure tah 'ave some tea ready for whenever ya' drop by. My suit's just over there, right there, door right next to the office. You can't miss it."
Reina bowed her head in thanks then started towards the other end of the building.
"She's not that bad," she told the two teens once they were out of earshot. "She seems like a very nice lady."
"Too nice, almost," Four mumbled. "She's really nosey."
"She's just excited to have people to talk to again," Mora said. "Besides, anybody would be curious about the Octarians, and having a matriarch visit your building is no everyday thing, especially for anyone in Xapheerell."
At the end of the hallway was a closed door, blocking what was probably a sitting room for the building's tenants, appropriated for the day as a meeting room. It was flanked on either side by an inkyar guard, both of whom looked to be in their twenties. Counting the number of guards outside the building, guarding this one door, and probably more inside the room itself, Scylla was being more heavily guarded than the monarch herself.
But then, it's not the monarch the Consortium wants dead.
One of the guards knocked on the door and after a knock came back, he opened it for them.
The room, like most of the building they'd seen so far, looked recently redone, painted in contemplative blues and relaxing greens, which made Syclla Sundreader's molten red mantle stand out even more. She sat in an old but still comfortable-looking armchair. Two similar chairs had been arranged to face her.
As Reina had predicted, there were several guards within the room, inkling and Octarian. Conspicuously, only one of the guards was male, and he stood right behind Scylla, one hand on the back of her chair, making him and Baron the only males in the entire room.
Scylla stood and bowed, turning white. She was wearing a simple but nice black dress with a bodice that matched her mantle.
"Matriarch Sansea, welcome to Xapheerell Ward."
"Thank you. Believe it or not, it's actually nice to be here."
Scylla smiled wryly. "The ol' turf 'as changed a bit. Definitely a lot brighter and safer than it was before. Fact, you oughta' feel safer 'ere than in the Pinnacle itself."
"Yes, I probably should." Reina glanced around the room again, noting the guards and the two younger inkling girls standing on either side of a small table with tea and a snack tray. Reina recognized them from the ceremony when they'd been given their jackets separately from everyone else.
They all sat down, even Baron being granted a seat on the nearby couch with Three and Four. The two girls then began serving the tea and snacks. Reina glanced at the Octarian nearest to her. Her Company Patch showed a fist overtop a set of crosshairs. Above was written "Marie's Marauders" and the motto was written "Hit where it hurts."
"I've sure you've 'eard about me gettin' rejected applying to be a matron."
"I did. Any idea why you were rejected by Matriarch Danasta?"
Scylla's mantle darkened, botches of maroon appearing amidst the more lava-like reds. "She didn't say much at the time. One of 'er matrons caught up with me later and told me I was probably too radical and 'ot blooded for 'er." She shook her head. "Don' make sense. She's got Trailmaker for a matron and she's not exactly an ice queen."
Reina smirked. "Well, that wasn't necessarily by choice. The Trailmaker's run a neighbourhood almost like a gang and it borders on the area of responsibility of some of her matrons. It was in her best interest to offer Silvia Trailmaker a position as a matron so she could exert some control over her shoal and the territory it occupied. Otherwise, Gyari Trailmaker might have become a patron."
"And most inkyora 'ate is guts," Scylla finished with a smirk.
Reina wanted to ask her why she obviously didn't, but wanted to avoid going off on too many tangents. Actually, it was Four who spoke up next.
"Maybe you should talk to the Trailmakers. Silvia represents almost half the Octarians in Inkopolis."
Reina frowned. "Is she? Does Matriarch Danasta know?"
Four frowned. "Wouldn't a matriarch know that kind of thing?"
"You'd think, but remember why Trailmaker became a matron in the first place. Danasta didn't do it because she actually liked her. I doubt Danasta talks to her any more than she needs to, and given the current situation, I wouldn't be surprised if Trailmaker somehow forgot to mention it. Still, it might be worth you talking to her discreetly."
Scylla nodded to another inkyora about the same age, who quickly jotted down something in a notebook.
"So then," Reina went on. "I'm probably going to end up asking you things that you've already been asked to death but I hope you can understand that my own granddaughter's future may be at stake. I know they approached you first. I want to know why you went along with this plan of theirs. It must have sounded crazy to you."
Scylla smiled ruefully. "That's why I 'ad to meet 'em myself. After Four 'ere strong armed 'er way into our Bastion, I figured it was worth meetin' the bosses of anyone who could do that so confidently."
"You weren't the only ones against the wall," Four commented.
"Zactkly. That's why we went along with Callie and Marie's plan. Sure it sounded 'ard to believe but if they actually made it 'appen it was our best chance to take back the ol' turf before the shells wiped us out first.
"We'd been watchin' the crabs a long time and we knew they were gettin' ready for somethin' big, too big just to take out the Bastion, but we knew we were part of it. Didn't find out 'till later that they were just going to steamroll through us on their way to hittin' the rest of the city."
"How did you find that out?"
"Saw the plans myself after the last fight was over at Wharf 12. Went right into their boss' office and saw the sketches. Guess they were still figurin' out some of the details. It worked with the plans we found at some of the fortresses we took back. Security believes it too. I thought you'd know that."
"Security has yet to submit a full report to the Assembly, mostly because they haven't been able to properly interrogate Marie and Callie yet."
Scylla flashed burgundy. "What more do they want from 'em? They told 'em everything that appended, even tried to take the blame for stuff they didn' 'ave to."
"Not everything." Reina glanced at a few of the Octarians in the room before she asked Scylla, "did you know about the zapfish thefts?"
Scylla frowned while several of the Octarians flinched. Scylla's inkling guards looked around, confused. Reina explained.
"Callie and Marie had to tell me everything. How they got involved with the Octarians in the first place, how Three and Four learned to fight so well despite being so young, how they themselves somehow got hundreds of Octarians to follow them into Xapherell Ward, and how the Octarians stole the zapfish, twice and they had to get them back."
Scylla's mantle lit up in surprise. She glanced at a few of the Octarians in the room then her mantle turned a relaxed dark-blue in understanding. "Now I get it."
"What?"
"Whenever they tell us why they deserted their army or came to Inkopolis, a lot them said one of their reasons was that they didn't want to fight Inkopolis anymore. I knew that the girl's 'ad given 'em a few 'ard knocks but I didn't know it was 'cause they stole the zapfish."
"Only a few of us here actually took part in that," one of the Octarians protested. The name on her jacket read, 'Starfeller'. Her company patch showed a series of black crescents over a white moon and the name "Hani's Huntresses" written above. The motto was written "Feet first into night."
Starfeller continued, "the zapfish were critical to providing power to the domes enough to produce the war machine. We'd been raised thinking of the inklings only as evil. The… reputation of one inkling in particular somewhat reinforced that." She glanced briefly in Three's direction. "It wasn't until the Inkantation that most Octarians thought there might be something else there, that perhaps we didn't know the real truth. As for me, it was only after spending time as Lady Callie's bodyguard that I got a better understanding, but I wasn't fully convinced our leadership was wrong until I was made a political prisoner. Technically, I never deserted, I was liberated from the prison."
"Lady Callie?" Mora asked. "If she was your enemy, why would you be assigned as a bodyguard?"
"It was while she was hypnotised," Four answered. "Remember? Callie told you she was kidnapped and then hypnotised by Octavio."
"Yes, I remember that, but where does the Lady part come in?"
"She was a legate," Starfeller answered. "She was in command of much of the army, and she took on many civil duties as well, improving infrastructure, food production, and general quality of life for all Octarians." She smirked. "Octavio's plan to use her as a weapon against Inkopolis rather backfired a bit there. She started to usurp him in popularity among the troops."
"Funny, Callie didn't mention that," Reina said.
Scylla grinned. "Sounds like you weren't told everythin' either, Matriarch. Explains why the Octarian Army troops she brought in followed her though."
"SHE DID WHAT?"
Everyone in the room jumped and leaned away. Startled by Reina's sudden exclamation.
"She brought a foriegn army, one that had just tried to invade us, right through our capital city?"
Reina crossed her arms and glared at Three and Four, the two shrinking back into the couch as if trying to be absorbed by it.
"I knew there was something up at that ceremony. You had Beta Company, which Marie led, Gamma Company, which Three led, and Delta Company, which was led by one of the Octarians, but that made me wonder where Alpha Company was. Callie admitted to commanding a company of Octarians, so it could only have been hers. So, she deliberately avoided mentioning that her company was actually Octarian Army troops."
Four leaned forward slightly and ventured, "Well, all the Octarians in Inkopolis were Octarian Army troops."
"Deserters," Reina corrected sharply. "Not the same thing. What was she thinking?"
"We needed them!" Three argued. "There were a lot more crabs than we thought there were. Without their help, we would have taken more casualties and we… we might not have been able to save Gamma-Three."
She looked guiltily at Four who looked even more guilty. Reina knew from the ceremony that Four's splatoon had taken, by far, the most casualties. She didn't want to think about what might have happened.
"Even so, you can't just bring in foreign troops like that, especially with everything that had happened up to that point. How did Callie know she could trust them?"
"She had troops already loyal to her," Starfeller answered. "Had they tried anything, the consequences would have probably meant forcing the Octarian Empire to surrender rather than letting them achieve peace. She had safeguards in place." She paused then answered. "And there are at least two members of Alpha Company in Inkopolis."
"What?"
"One of them is Hachiko," Three quickly interjected. Reina frowned, unable to place the name.
"Three's girlfriend," Mora supplied with a sly smile. Three flushed slightly, indignant, and Four gave her a playful prod.
Reina glanced at Scylla out of the corner of her eye, who was waiting patiently for the conversation to get back to her.
"Well, we'll leave that aside for now. Scylla, why don't you tell me what's happened to the ward after the liberation."
Scylla smiled, and she began describing the ways the ward had benefited. The increased foot traffic thanks to tourism and safety granted local businesses the first real profits they'd seen in recent memory. The local temples became active again, infrastructure was being repaired by the government and she added how Work Detail had been helping with the infrastructure work, with the various utilities companies quietly hiring the Octarians to help boost their workforce in the area.
"Sounds like you've been doing a pretty good job, even without broader support. How long are you going to have your people double as guards?"
"Till we get rid o' the rest o' the shells hiding in this city. We let out guard down, they'll come for us. We've already seen a few of 'em pokin' around, lookin' for weaknesses, but they always manage to get away. We think they're usin' the underground."
"Under the city?" Mora asked.
"Under even the water and sewer pipes. Place is a maze in a maze in a maze, and it's dangerous even for the NSF to even go down there. There must've been a big tunnel they used to get all those little crabs up to the Bloody Circle, but we 'aven't figure out where it was. They may 'ave blocked it behind 'em."
"Afraid that's out of my area of expertise," Reina said dryly. "But, I thank you for your time. You've answered a lot of questions I've had." She started to get up but Scylla reached out her hand.
"Wait! What do I need to do to get someone to take me on as one of their matrons? With all this squit pilin' on us we need to do something to get our version of things heard in the Assembly!"
Reina paused. "Is there a lot of pressure on you from the people here to join a matriarch's shoal?"
Scylla looked away for a second, pouting slightly, like an indignant child. "Not really, but they made me their leader. I didn't ask for it but I was gran's only grandchild, she was the only matron in the whole ward before the shells tore 'er apart! Everyone's counting on me!"
Reina camly stood. "Scylla, it's not about trying to join someone's shoal as a matron. If it were that easy, almost anyone could become a matron. Don't let whether or not you have the title officially determine what you do. If your shoal needs a matron, then be a matron. Eventually, someone will have to acknowledge you as one. You're not there yet but it seems like you're doing a pretty good job so far."
Scylla settled back down in her chair, her mantle changing and rippling with conflict. Reina just smiled.
"Believe me, I know it's rough, but I became a matriarch before I was even a grandmother. Sometimes you have to take responsibility as it comes. You'll make mistakes, and you have to acknowledge them, and you'll have to make some very tough decisions, but not everyone can do that, which is why leaders are needed. If Marie and Callie believe in you, then you're capable. And if you need advice, you can always call me."
Scylla's eyes lit up. "Really?"
Scylla smiled and pulsed blue. "I'm a matriarch. It's part of my job. And if you want to make sure your message is heard, find a way to yell really loud. Just don't go overboard."
Reina left the room with Three and Four following. She could sense their anxiety as they trailed behind her and Mora.
"I think I'd like to stay and chat with Ms. Cutter," Mora said. "Care to join?"
"I don't think I should right now, Mora. I've got… a lot to think through right now."
"Alright. I'm sure I can find my own way back to the house. It's as safe here as anywhere else."
"Fine, the girls can stay with you. Baron and I will head back."
Hesitantly, Three and Four remained behind while Mora knocked on Ms. Cutter's door. Reina and Baron went back out to the car, Reina sitting in the passenger seat up front. The way she was feeling, she needed Baron beside her now.
As they drove down one of the main avenues, Baron said, "Reina, you know it wasn't the girl's fault."
"I know," she grumbled. "They're just cleaning up other people's messes, so of course those people are going to do everything in their power to pin the blame on them. How am I supposed to protect them from that?"
"Maybe you don't have to. The girls have done a pretty good job looking after themselves so far. You can help them but you can't shield them this time. They knew what was going to happen when they stuck their necks out."
"But they're hiding things, big things that will be disastrous when it gets revealed later!" She groaned and rubbed her hands over her face. "Whoever heard of a genuinely responsible grandchild being a problem?"
Baron laughed. "That's just how special our Marie is."
Reina sighed and crossed her arms. She stared at the dashboard, thinking about her upcoming meeting with the Octarian ambassador. Either it would give her new hope or it might doom Callie and Marie's futures.
Author'sNotes:
Those of you who read "In Shadows Tall" may remember that Callie was an Octarian legate. Why is this important again? Well, you'll have to keep reading to find out.
