Outcast: A Corporation Novel (The Corporation) (19 page)

Dhevan passes us and stops to say, “No turning back.” He looks so handsome in his traditional clothing. A white jacket that goes to his knees is embroidered in gold, showing the same symbols as Journey’s dress. He has a gold scarf lying over his right shoulder and he plays with the edges. The white of his pants and shirt are as blinding as his smile.

“Today is the day,” I agree. I give him a brief hug. “Nervous?”

“Dhevan, nervous?” Ethan says. “I don't think he knows the definition of the word.”

Dhevan pauses before he breaks out into a grin. “Journey and I were made for each other. There's no reason to be nervous.”

“True enough,” I say. “Need anything before this all goes down?”

“There is one thing, now that you mention it. Have you seen Journey?”

“When I first got here.”

“How did she look? I want every detail.”

This is somewhat amusing, coming from Dhevan. “Beautiful. And that's all I'm going to say. You'll see for yourself not long from now.”

“You're a good friend, Karis. You deserve the best.” There's that look again towards Ethan. And Ethan catches it, too.

“What? You're saying I'm not the best model available? I'd be lying if I said I wasn't hurt.”

“Yeah, you will be hurting if you hurt Karis.”

“No intention of doing any such thing.”

“I'm right here, guys. And thanks for the concern, Dhevan, but Ethan wouldn't hurt me.”

“Not intentionally,” Dhevan says. He breaks up the tension that's suddenly descended with a grin and a quick and playful punch to Ethan's arm.

“What was that all about?” I ask when Dhevan's left us alone, hoping Ethan hasn’t said anything to him about us breaking up.

He shrugs a little and plays it off as if it were nothing. “You know, the whole 'older brother' thing. He cares a lot about you and wants to make sure that I care as much as he does. I told him I cared more.”

“Well, I would think that would be a good enough answer for him.”

“I don't think any answer would be a good enough answer for him when it comes to you. He cares a lot about you. You're a lucky gal.”

“Yeah, pretty lucky.” I look up at him. “Did you get enough sleep last night?” I ask, looking at the hollows under his eyes.

“It's nothing,” he waves me away. “Honest. It's just a couple of nights where I haven't been sleeping too soundly. Lots going through my mind. Eta's giving me a tea that should help.”

I don't know why, but his answer doesn't sit well with me. “If it were more, you'd tell me, right?”

He doesn't answer right away. “I'd tell you as much as you'd tell me.”

My cheeks burn with guilt.
He'd tell me as much as I'd tell him.

We take our seats next to my father and Journey's family. Déjà looks about as proud as any papa could be of his only daughter getting Paired to a man as good as Dhevan.

I think what I like most about Pairing Celebrations is their simplicity and purity. There isn't the flair or flamboyance that Dahn probably has. All we have in Neech is all we can afford, the easiness of love and family, and I think those two things make for the best Ceremony possible.

A stillness seeps through the crowd. Almost like a sixth sense, everyone knows it's time and we all turn. Journey stands at the back of the crowd, looking radiant and happy, and we all start to sing the traditional Pairing song. She starts her slow walk up the aisle that is created as she moves. She makes eye contact with no one as she keeps her gaze trained on Dhevan.

Ethan

I'm carrying out a mundane, brainless task—taking chairs from one pile, carrying them to the spots Journey designated, unfolding them, and doing it all over again. It gives me time to think about everything I still need to do. Make a life for myself here, get things right with Karis, get Ajna back, survive the Further, stop the Corporation. But I don't have an order for any of those things.

Here in the Outer City, life isn't lived linearly like it is in the Dahn. Life is lived in fragments, scattered in the pitted and uneven, dirty streets. They're picked up as you get a chance, and dropped back to be trampled over when the Corporation gets in the way.

It's tiresome, and I have no idea how I'll ever get anything accomplished. How I'll ever be able to take my father down, so that the people I've come to care about can live a life they deserve. I've been so preoccupied with everything that my relationship with Karis is suffering. Between trying to lay low, helping Eta, and the resistance I'm trying to stir up, I don't have a lot of time for her. And then there are the dreams.

“Ethan.” Dhevan's voice is a bit sharp, like this isn't the first time he's said my name.

I look up at the hulking farmer. His brows are pinched together and his meaty arms are folded over his barrel chest. He cleans up nice enough, as nice as one can for living in Neech. He's changed out of his farm clothes and put on the traditional white suit and scarf.

“What's up?” I say casually. He’s eyeing me as if I’m an unruly calf that refuses to be haltered. Karis says I'm imagining things with him, but I'm pretty good at reading people.

He flicks his head in a quick nod towards the chairs I've been lining up. Apparently, my task wasn't as brainless as I had believed. They're on the lines Journey had marked out, but they aren't facing the same direction. Some are forward, some backward, some in between.

“Oh,” I say as I scratch my head. “Sorry, my brain was elsewhere.” I stoop over and start to right them.

“No worries,” he says, moving to help me.

I stop him before he can touch a chair. “Don't want Journey to blame me for your clothes not being pristine.”

He gives a half smile. “You know her pretty well.”

“I know a lot of girls like that. They all want their Pairing Ceremony to be perfect. And I am not going to be to be the one to make it anything but.”

“Wise man.” He moves to leave. “I have an answer for you.”

“You do?”

“I won't risk the safety of my family by leaving them alone to go out into the Further. After today, I have to think of more than just myself. I have to think of Journey and any children we might have together. I can't risk their safety or make an enemy of the Corporation and be on their radar. I can protect her better here than I can from out there.”

I hang my head and don't bother arguing. His mind is made up. I'm on my own. And Dhevan has more than likely sealed the fate of himself and his Pair.

Karis

Journey is standing up at the front of the crowd, staring into Dhevan’s eyes, ready to recite her vows when someone speaks up.

“Stop the Ceremony, immediately!” The command comes from a strong voice at the back of the gathering. Everyone turns to look and see what's going on. There are a handful of Guards standing at the back, making their way up the aisle.

My head snaps up towards Journey and Dhevan, and I see fear in their eyes. My friend clings to her Pair’s arm. The Guards are half way to the front. Nobody says anything. No one asks why they're here or what this is about. Men grab their Pairs and mothers clutch their children.

“This Pairing Ceremony has been suspended until further notice,” the Guard at the front of the pack says.

“You can't do that!” Journey erupts.

Dhevan guides her behind his wide frame. “This is our designated Pairing date. It's been scheduled for the majority of our lives. It has been sanctioned and recorded from the first day.”

“Careful, farmer. You’re starting to sound dangerously close to insubordination.” He waits. “The process has been changed. The proper paperwork has not been filed by the parties to be Paired. As such, the Ceremony is in suspension.”

We’re all sitting on the point of a needle at his words. Everyone is frozen, waiting to hear what's coming next. Dhevan takes a massive breath. This is a very precarious position he's in. Saying the wrong thing could send the situation in a drastically bad direction. “Do you have the papers with you? I’ll fill them out now.”

“Request for the papers have to be Comm'd in. Form XP10 needs to be filled out and submitted requesting the proper Pairing Ceremony application, through your local leader. Then, there is a waiting period of twelve weeks for processing—depending on demand. Of course, there's the processing fee of five credits.”

I can see the red creeping up Dhevan's neck. Why is the Corporation doing this? What reason would they have for stopping Pairings in such an obvious way? And why start with Journey and Dhevan? My heart sinks with a thought. Because of Ethan and me.

“This is ludicrous, a process to keep us chasing—”

“We'll do it,” Journey says, pulling herself out from behind her Pair. “We will gather the new forms and submit them. Thank you.”

The Guards turn to leave. “Since this is no longer a sanctified gathering, this large of a group would be considered an unruly gathering according to new ordinance QB245. Unless you all want citations and possible detainment and fines, everyone needs to return home, immediately.”

This can't be happening. I look to my best friends. Journey looks heartbroken, but Dhevan looks livid. He leans down and says something into her ear. She looks surprised then angry. She shakes her head, her hair flying about her head. He puts his big hands on her shoulders, encasing her small frame. He says something else and she bows her head. I see her shoulders rise and fall with a heavy breath. She looks up at him and kisses him on the lips.

Dhevan looks over to Ethan and nods.

Ethan

The Guards walk away and the crowd stays silent. We're all too afraid to say anything. Slowly, families turn into the aisle and make their way home. Dhevan looks to me and nods. He gives Journey a kiss on the side of the head and hands her over to Karis.

I think he’s headed my way, but he weaves through the crowd, pulling Jeret, Déjà, and a couple of other men aside. He talks to them animatedly, his cheeks red and his hands flying. They nod their agreement to whatever it is he’s saying to them, but offer rebuttals; which only make Dhevan more upset. He must argue a strong case, because they eventually nod, shake hands, and go in different directions, grabbing and talking to other people on their way out.

Dhevan turns and walks towards me. There's a look on his face that I haven't seen before. He's more than just mad. I'm trying to decide what it is, but I can't quite put it into words. But I know that look. I've had it on my own face several times. He leans in close, his voice low and dangerous. “I've changed my mind. My answer is yes. When do we leave?”

I don't waste time thinking about what he's just said. “Tonight. After dinner at the Singh’s.”

Dhevan turns away and takes Journey by the waist, pulling her with him. He says something into her ear as they walk away and I see her nod.

“This is horrible! Why would the Corporation do this? What do they gain by delaying an already approved and scheduled Pairing?” Karis says, coming up next to me.

“Besides getting to us?” I say, rubbing at the back of my neck.

“Poor Journey.”

“She seems to be handling it all in stride. I think she'll be okay.”

There's a loud sigh. “That's not the point, Ethan.”

“No, I know it's not.” I'm only half paying attention to our conversation. “Eta and I will be over in about an hour. We have a few things we need to take care of.”

“I can’t believe they still want to have their Pairing dinner,” she says. “Okay, we'll see you then.”

७

The last place I want to be at this moment is here. I feel like I'm deep in enemy territory and at any moment, I will be found out and annihilated.

Karis is sitting to my left, Journey across from me. Eta is on her right and Dhevan to her left. Jeret and Déjà sit at each end of the table. She stares at me every few bites of food, making it entirely obvious, in my opinion, that I have something to hide that needs to be poked, prodded, and investigated.

Nothing really has any flavor to begin with, but tonight it tastes especially dry and dull. The air is thick with potential explosives, keeping everyone angry and quiet. It sits on all of our shoulders, weighing us down.

Besides Eta and me, no one is making eye contact. Dhevan and Journey are holding hands under the table, their sadness and anger permeating the room. My anxiousness has me bouncing a leg on the ball of my foot. We were all at the Ceremony, but we would rather pretend nothing happened.

“How'd the meeting go last night?” Jeret asks Karis, I think in an attempt to ease the discomfort without bringing up an explosive topic, even though I see it as unavoidable. “I was in bed when you got back.”

She pushes her food around her plate with her fork. The shriveled potatoes are getting a work out. “It was, uh,” she sets her fork down with a small
tink.
“Actually, I didn't get a chance to make it to the meeting. Not the entire thing, anyway.” She sounds a bit embarrassed.

“Why not?” Jeret looks tired, rather than angry. I'm guessing he's already anticipating the battle that will come from this question.

“I was headed to the meeting when I got sidetracked. I came across something important that needed my attention.” She takes a drink of her tea. She doesn't say anything else, and Jeret doesn't push it.

“Guess that leaves you to fill us in, Ethan.” Déjà says.

I wipe the corners of my mouth with my napkin, resisting all urges to pat at the sweat starting at my hairline.

“Anything
interesting
come up?” Eta says.

I've decided that being a Medic is her side job. Her main form of employment is meddling. “
Interesting
you should ask that specific question, Eta,” I try to keep the sarcasm from my voice. It's not her fault I'm in this current situation. “Actually, something
interesting
did happen.”

“Oh?” Jeret sounds surprised.

I feel every pair of eyes on me. Now, I'm not a shy person by any means; anyone who knows me will vouch for that. But right now, my tongue feels weighted down and about as swollen as a waterlogged…I don't know, exactly. But it's not moving very well. “I don't know how many of you heard about how the meeting before last went.”

“Not very well,” Dhevan sounds a bit too pleased with that fact.

“You'd be correct,” I give him a half-hearted curl of the lip. “They demanded some sort of proof be given to them before they joined the cause.”

“No,” Karis says, “
Raj
demanded proof.”

“Raj?” Jeret asks. “Our neighbor.”

“One and the same,” she says.

“And the others unanimously agreed,” I say. “You don't need to split hairs, Karis. The end result is the same, no matter who demanded it, originally.” I see eyes widen a bit with my snappy comment. She sits back a bit in her chair, arms crossed.

“Anyway,” I say with a sigh, running my hand through my hair and sitting back, myself. “I've agreed to try and give them what they're asking for. And what happened tonight at the Ceremony only solidifies that the Corporation is getting out of control and needs to be stopped. Tonight convinced me that my coming actions are the right ones.”

The table remains silent. I don't think they know how to respond to what I've just said. I venture a glance at Karis. Her eyes are pinched down at the corners and I have no doubt she’s trying to think about what I could mean. Everyone looks to some degree like that; except for Eta. She just looks weary and a little sad.

“Proof?” Jeret asks. “What kind of proof?”

“I don't know, yet. I guess I'll know when I come across it.”

Karis leans forward again, her forearms on the table as she turns her head to look at me. I catch all this from the corner of my eye, because I'm intentionally avoiding her direct stare.

“Where are you going to stumble upon this proof, exactly?” she asks. “We agreed that going back into the Inner City was too dangerous.”

“We did,” I say, looking at my hands as I fold my fingers together. “Besides, the Inner City doesn’t what have what I need.”

“Then where do you think you’re going to find what they need?”

“The Further.”