Just to make her laugh, I hold it to my earlobe, pretending it’s a sparkly earring.
The meeting goes on for an entire hour, then another, and another, and though I’m accustomed to waiting around to fulfill the needs of an itinerary I did not plan, Gray is not. He started fidgeting in his leather seat after the first half hour, and there’s no end in sight.
“You alright, brother?”
Gray tugs at his collar. “I’m not used to sitting still for this long. They always had us moving at Prigham’s. Plus, I’ve been on the move since we got out. I want to get back to the camp to see what help I should’ve been offering this whole time.”
I tilt my head in his direction. “No one’s cross with you, Gray. Loads of campers are still finding their way. Adjusting. Everyone’s different. Some of us needed to keep ourselves busy, and others needed time to figure out this new life.” I cross my right ankle over my left knee. “Though I will say, I did miss having you around.”
Gray pauses his fidgeting and trades my smile for his. “Cheers, brother.” His eyes flick toward the elevator. “You think she’s okay up there? It’s been three hours. How long are these things supposed to take?”
I shrug as Arlanna’s phone rings. “I would have more perspective on that if I knew anything about her industry.” My nose scrunches as I check the caller ID before I answer her phone.
I’m supposed to pick up only if it’s Sloan, but the name that greets me stills the blood in my veins.
I hold up my finger to the others, then wave them over. Obviously, when my father’s number blinks up at me from Arlanna’s phone, I can’t not answer.
Why is he calling her? Does he do this often?
Jen and Gray take the seats on either side of me, their troubled expressions mirroring my own when I tell them who is calling.
“Answer it,” Jen instructs. “I’ll be Arly.”
That’s the only nudge I need.
I swipe to accept the call, and Jen says in a chipper voice, “Hello?”
Though the call isn’t on speaker, I can hear my father’s voice just fine. My father, who hasn’t called me once after I broke out of the prison he sent me to.
“Arlanna Scarlett Valentine, I didn’t think you’d answer. You’ve been ignoring my calls.”
He’s been calling Arlanna? Why didn’t she tell me?
“What do you want?” Jen asks, trying to mimic Arlanna’s crisp tone.
“It’s more what you want that I have.”
My stomach roils at the suggestive nature of his reply.
When Jen doesn’t take the bait, Father presses on. “Your Commune of Sinners grows in popularity every day. You demand funding, and you get it from people without question. I wonder why that is.”
“Maybe they’re just as sick of you as I am. Maybe they know the thing to do with a guilty conscience is try to make the world better for those you’ve crushed.”
Father chortles, and my toes bunch in my shoes. “Maybe so. Or perhaps you’re playing with an unfair advantage. But that hardly matters, because you’re about to back down. This is how this is going to work: I’ll hold to the asylum I’ve granted you fugitives, and in exchange, you’ll back down. You’re stirring up hatred for my Sins of the Father bill, which is still in effect. I’ve no plans to change the system. I’ve freed you, but you’ll not strong-arm me into throwing out a bill I crafted. We’ll start over, adding one prisoner at a time, like we did in the beginning. I want you to go to your Commune of Sinners and stop causing problems for me with your little speeches on my front steps. Take your win and go.”
Jen snorts. “You’re delusional.”
Father’s tone remains cool. “Then I guess you’ll be short one guard until you come to see reason. Sloan will remain with me until you agree to back down.”
I close my eyes through Jen’s heartbroken gasp.
“Every day that I see your face on my television demanding the Sins of the Father bill be overthrown is a day I’ll forget to feed my new prisoner.” When Father’s threats are met with silence, I can hear his wicked grin through the phone. “Make it clear to the press that you support your king, go back to your Commune of Sinners, and I’ll send Sloan back to you in however many pieces still remain. Be my good girl.”
Rage curdles my stomach. I wonder how many times in Arlanna’s life she’s been told some variation of that load of shite. “Be a good girl” isn’t something a grown woman ever needs to hear. She is the finest woman I know, and my father is trying to back her into a cage, calling the confinement “good.”
“Send Sloan back now!” Jen rages. Her cheeks are red and her grip on the phone so tight, I’m afraid she might shatter the case.
“If you want Sloan returned, then you’ll give me what I want. And since you’ve been so belligerent, I think I’ll require something to level the playing field.”
Jen’s nose scrunches. “What are you talking about?”
The line goes quiet for a few beats. “You’ve worn my patience thin. I want a braid from your head. Not a measly few hairs. I want a fat braid to boost my magic. Give me that, and I’ll give you back your nursemaid. In fact, if I don’t have your braid in my hand in twenty-four hours, I’ll send your guard back in pieces.”
Jen’s eyes close, and she ends the call. She makes to throw the phone across the lobby, but I catch her arm before she can launch it. My arms go around her as she sobs angrily into my shoulder. Her red painted fingernails grip my skin through my shirt, probably drawing blood.
Gray is on his feet, running to the elevator and punching the button to get to Arlanna as quick as possible. Twenty-four hours isn’t that much time, so we need to make every minute count.
I cup the back of Jen’s head. “I won’t let that happen. If worse comes to worst, Arlanna will give him her braid. We’ll get Sloan back.”
Though as I say this, I’m not sure how much stock even I can put in my own promise.
No Sloan, No Soul
Arlanna
I’ve left my soul behind me. I have no use for something that would slow me down. I got the contract I wanted from Elizabeth Lauren’s Vault, but that victory seems so small now. Everything is insignificant, all my plans. I should have been spending time with my best friend, instead of plotting how to take down a company who took advantage of me.
Sloan and I have protocols for everything. If I’m abducted. If he’s taken. If we’re separated and need a rendezvous point. We go over the plans so there’s no emotion clouding our judgment.
After calling my father and alerting him of the issue, I know my next steps.
If I still had access to my soul, it would be hard for me to pick up the scissors after locking myself in the bathroom. It would be impossible to plug in the clippers that Paxton uses for his haircuts.
Lucky for me, I don’t feel anything.
I can hear Jen tearfully explaining it all to Cass and Charlotte, with Paxton interjecting every so often.
Gray has been silent, ever since he interrupted my meeting and told me there was an emergency. I didn’t need those few words to know something terrible had happened. I could tell by the hard look about him that my world was about to be shattered.