He smiled. I wonder what the plantation workers would have thought, had anyone told them they were “exotic.”
But then the Collapse had come—the rebellion predicted in his books and theories coming to life. His beliefs hadn’t been able to continue as mere academic abstractions. And he’d come to know the skaa—not just Vin and the crew, but the workers and the servants. He’d seen the hope beginning to grow within them. He’d seen the awakening of self-respect, and of self-worth, in the people of the city, and it excited him.
He would not abandon them.
That’s what I am, Elend thought, pausing as he walked the wall. An idealist. A melodramatic idealist who, despite his books and learning, never did make a very good nobleman.
“What?” Ham asked, stopping next to him.
Elend turned toward him. “I’ve got an idea,” he said.
This is the problem. Though I believed in Alendi at first, I later became suspicious. It seemed that he fit the signs, true. But, well, how can I explain this?
Could it be that he fit them too well?
38
HOW CAN HE POSSIBLY LOOK so confident when I feel so nervous? Vin thought, standing beside Elend as the Assembly Hall began to fill. They had arrived early; this time, Elend said he wanted to appear in control by being the one who greeted each Assemblyman as he arrived.
Today, the vote for king would occur.
Vin and Elend stood on the stage, nodding to the Assemblymen as they entered through the room’s side door. On the floor of the room, the benches were already growing crowded. The first few rows, as always, were seeded with guards.
“You look beautiful today,” Elend said, looking at Vin.
Vin shrugged. She had worn her white gown, a flowing garment with a few diaphanous layers on the top. Like the others, it was designed for mobility, and it matched Elend’s new outfits—especially with the dark embroidery on the sleeves. Her jewelry was gone, but she did have a few white wooden barrettes for her hair.
“It’s odd,” she said, “how quickly wearing these gowns became natural for me again.”
“I’m glad you made the switch,” Elend said. “The trousers and shirt are you … but this is you, too. The part of you I remember from the balls, when we barely knew each other.”
Vin smiled wistfully, looking up at him, the gathering crowd growing a bit more distant. “You never did dance with me.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, holding her arm with a light touch. “We haven’t had much time for each other lately, have we?”
Vin shook her head.
“I’ll fix that,” Elend said. “Once this confusion is all through, once the throne is secure, we can get back to us.”
Vin nodded, then turned sharply as she noticed movement behind her. An Assemblyman walking across the stage.
“You’re jumpy,” Elend said, frowning slightly. “Even more than usual. What am I missing?”
Vin shook her head. “I don’t know.”
Elend greeted the Assemblyman—one of the skaa representatives—with a firm handshake. Vin stood at his side, her earlier wistfulness evaporating like mist as her mind returned to the moment. What is bothering me?
The room was packed—everyone wanted to witness the events of the day. Elend had been forced to post guards at the doors to maintain order. But, it wasn’t just the number of people that made her edgy. It was a sense of … wrongness to the event. People were gathering like carrion feeders to a rotting carcass.
“This isn’t right,” Vin said, holding Elend’s arm as the Assemblyman moved off. “Governments shouldn’t change hands based on arguments made from a lectern.”
“Just because it hasn’t happened that way in the past doesn’t mean it shouldn’t happen,” Elend said.
Vin shook her head. “Something is going to go wrong, Elend. Cett will surprise you, and maybe Penrod will, too. Men like them won’t sit still and let a vote decide their future.”
“I know,” Elend said. “But they aren’t the only ones who can offer up surprises.”
Vin looked at him quizzically. “You’re planning something?”
He paused, then glanced at her. “I … well, Ham and I came up with something last night. A ploy. I’ve been trying to find a way to talk to you about it, but there just hasn’t been time. We had to move quickly.”
Vin frowned, sensing his apprehension. She started to say something, but then stopped, studying his eyes. He seemed a little embarrassed. “What?” she asked.
“Well … it kind of involves you, and your reputation. I was going to ask permission, but …”
Vin felt a slight chill. Behind them, the last Assemblyman took his seat, and Penrod stood up to conduct the meeting. He glanced toward Elend, clearing his throat.
Elend cursed quietly. “Look, I don’t have time to explain,” he said. “But, it’s really not a big deal—it might not even get me that many votes. But, well, I had to try. And it doesn’t change anything. Between us, I mean.”
“What?”
“Lord Venture?” Penrod said. “Are you ready for this meeting to begin?”
The hall grew quiet. Vin and Elend still stood in the center of the stage, between the lectern and the seats of the Assembly members. She looked at him, torn between a sense of dread, a sense of confusion, and a slight sense of betrayal.
Why didn’t you tell me? she thought. How can I be ready if you don’t tell me what you’re planning? And … why are you looking at me like that?
“I’m sorry,” Elend said, moving over to take his seat.
Vin remained standing alone before the audience. Once, so much attention would have terrified her. It still made her uncomfortable. She ducked her head slightly, walking toward the back benches and her empty spot.
Ham wasn’t there. Vin frowned, turning as Penrod opened the proceedings. There, she thought, finding Ham in the audience, sitting calmly with a group of skaa. The group was obviously conversing quietly, but even with tin, Vin would never be able to pick out their voices in the large crowd. Breeze stood with some of Ham’s soldiers at the back of the room. It didn’t matter if they knew about Elend’s plan—they were too far away for her to interrogate them.
Annoyed, she arranged her skirts, then sat. She hadn’t felt so blind since …
Since that night a year ago, she thought, that moment just before we figured out Kelsier’s true plan, that moment when I thought everything was collapsing around me.
Perhaps that was a good sign. Had Elend cooked up some last-minute flash of political brilliance? It didn’t really matter that he hadn’t shared it with her; she probably wouldn’t understand the legal basis for it anyway.
But … he always shared his plans with me before.
Penrod continued to drone on, likely maximizing his time in front of the Assembly. Cett was on the front bench of the audience, surrounded by a good twenty soldiers, sitting with a look of self-satisfaction. As well he should. From the accounts she’d heard, Cett stood to take the vote with ease.
But what was Elend planning?
Penrod will vote for himself, Vin thought. So will Elend. That leaves twenty-two votes. The merchants are behind Cett, and so are the skaa. They’re too afraid of that army to vote for anyone else.