“Please think carefully, Tani.” Anna’s eyes bored into me. Her voice had gone quieter, but the same hard edge remained in her expression. “I know we got off to a rough start today, but you’d be foolish to lose sight of the goal. A few blemishes don’tcancel out the fact that this is all for the greater good, in the end. You will realize that, surely. Many, many will realize that.”
Her eyes took on a distant quality as she spoke the last words, and I experienced the most uncomfortable feeling, as if she were having a conversation with herself that I was locked out of. We were supposed to be “mentor” and “mentee”, but I had never felt more misaligned with a person in my life. It felt like she was talking at me, without even caring whether I was convinced or not. I didn’t recall ever having such a… dehumanizing experience. I didn’t understand why any of my own behavior would warrant such a reaction.
Then Anna stood up and opened the door of her bedroom. “You know your way out. If you’d like to continue with the program, I’ll see you outside my home’s front door at 9 a.m. tomorrow.”
As soon as I stepped through her door, she closed it behind me.
I climbed quickly down the staircase to the lowest floor, not wanting to encounter any of her other family members, and let myself out the front door.
Wrapped in the silence of the grand corridor outside, filled with paintings of Fairwell’s founders of the past, a deep chill settled into the core of my bones.
I didn’t know where Jessie was. My hands trembled, not just because I was still trying to reel in from the shock of what I had done earlier, but also from my encounter with Anna. When I arrived at the fortress’s exit, I managed to fumble in my pocket for my phone and saw Jessie’s text:
Meet me back at Fraser Isle.
Like me, she never called it home either.
I hurried back along the quickest shuttle route I knew. A headache had begun to creep into my skull, and I figured I needed to rest for at least a few minutes. Try to gather my thoughts and emotions. Try to think straight, before talking with more people.
I ran the whole way from the shuttle stop, burst through my door, and went straight for the kitchen sink, gulping cold water and splashing my face, heart still hammering.
“You’re back.”
The voice was low—deep enough to make me drop my water glass. I spun, one hand on the counter, every nerve on edge.
“Hayden?” My voice was a rasp.
He sat on the edge of my sofa, barely visible in the blue dusk. He stood, half-shadow, mouth slanted in apology. “Didn’t mean to startle you. The door was open.”
I stared. “You broke in?”
He nodded toward the back. “Wasn’t locked. You should be more careful.”
“Most people knock.” My breath was still ragged, but a reluctant, shaky smile tugged at my lips. “Is that what they teach you in employment officer school?”
He gave a shrug, not quite matching the sly look he cut me. “I’m off the clock.”
For a beat, neither of us said anything. The last light angled across his face—he looked more drained than I’d ever seen him, the kind of tired that goes all the way to the bone.
“Areyouokay?” I managed.
He shook his head, slow and deliberate. “I’m not here about me.”
The tension flickered back, thick as ever. I wiped my hands on my jeans, suddenly aware of how small the room felt. “So what are you here for?”
He took a step closer, the air shifting. “We don’t have to talk specifics. I already know enough.” He glanced at my hand, at the ring, and something sharp crossed his face. “I know where your parents are. I know how much it costs. And I know you don’t have it.”
A lump formed in my throat. “So what—are you here to lecture me about Fairwell’s rules, or?—?”
“No.” His answer was immediate, voice cutting through the air. “I’m here to offer you something better.”
I blinked, thrown. “What do you mean?”
He came closer, eyes locked on mine, tone suddenly more intense than I’d ever heard from him. “I’ll give you half my coins. Five thousand. You get your parents what they need. No strings. That’s it.”
The world slowed, every nerve in my body waking up. “Hayden, that’s—why would you do that?”
He held my gaze, jaw flexing, all the tension in him now aimed at me. “Call it insurance. Or maybe I just don’t want to see you run yourself into the ground. Either way—it’s yours if you want it.”
