10-07-2019, 09:39 PM
Hale Family Overnight Apartment in the Council Chambers
7th October 2019 – 2am
Jennifer Hale sat at a desk scowling as she read through her writing, then deleting a paragraph and starting over. She had stayed in the Chamber working on the piece of legislation she had been trying to draft herself until she had inadvertently terrified a cleaner who had come in, panicking at the sight of a Councillor in the flesh. After she had reassured the poor girl, she had walked to a wing of the building which contained ten apartments for Councillors working late who didn’t wish to return to their city mansions.
Jennifer despised the Hale apartment, but outside was a hailstorm and her driver had been rather worried about taking her through it – after all, if something had happened to her, it would have cost him his life. So, she had sucked it up for the sake of her staff, who she cared about and thought it unfair how they were treated, and headed to the apartment she had been held prisoner in for several days last year upon her return to the country. It was her first time in the place since her relative freedom, and though she’d ordered it redecorated months back, she still didn’t want to look around her.
Knock, knock.
The sound startled Jennifer, who jumped up and drew the concealed pistol she carried, her heart beating heavily. It only took two seconds for her to realise this was an overreaction and lower the weapon – apparently, the location made her jumpy. She closed the window on her computer on which the piece of untitled legislation which aimed to make elections to the Kerlian Parliament actually fair (it had about as much chance of passing as a Shuellian communist gaining power, but it can’t hurt to try) and walked over, opening the door.
“Jennifer, can we talk?” said Carmen Robinson, who was standing outside in pyjamas, her hair messed up, and her eyes red as if she had been crying. She was shivering from the cold of the corridor, and she seemed afraid.
“Carmen, what’s the matter? Come in, you look freezing!” Jennifer gestured for Carmen to enter, leading her over to the couch and sitting down beside her. “Can I get you some coffee, tea, hot chocolate?”
“Can… can I just have some warm milk? Like when we were children?” Carmen said, her voice shaking. Jennifer picked up a nearby blanket and offered it to her fellow Councillor, who took it around her shoulders and pulled it tight.
“Of course,” Jennifer said, walking to the small kitchenette and taking out some milk, pouring a mug and sticking it in the microwave. Carmen was three years younger than Jennifer, but with a possible friend pool of only the female descendants of ten women who had lived less than a century ago, that age gap meant little. They had known each other before Jennifer had fled her family, though they rarely spoke of that time now.
Jennifer took out the milk, and stirred it, taking it back to the couch. She stopped to pick up her own coffee from the desk and then sat beside her old friend, handing her the milk. Carmen downed the entire drink in three large gulps, then set it on the table and began to cry.
“I can’t sleep because every night I just remember what they did,” she sobbed. “I’m so terrified it will happen again that I honestly think I should just leave the country and never return. It wasn’t meant to be like this!”
Startled, Jennifer quickly put down her coffee and put her arm around Carmen, holding her close as the younger woman sobbed into her shoulder.
“Carmen…”
“No, don’t, just listen. I’m not stupid, I know leaking classified information to a foreign power was treason. And I know how treason is punished. But that wasn’t what I planned to do! Goddess, I’ve got Lauchenoirians praising me and my own people hating me and all sorts of speculation in the media… but I wasn’t trying to leak the information about the Aurora Programme to Lauchenoiria.”
“I don’t understand,” Jennifer frowned, sitting up straighter. “Then where did that USB come from?”
“It wasn’t meant for them,” Carmen said, turning to face Jennifer and wiping away the tears. “It was meant for you. The instructions I gave the messenger was to get it to Sonja Viratnen-Alvarez. Not any old Resistance leader. But then you got yourself captured and your identity revealed, and…”
“Oh Carmen.”
“Yeah. If you’d received it you’d have understood. You’d have been able to use the information to stop them, to stop Clarke. You wouldn’t have been foolish enough to reveal the existence of hundreds of sleeper agents to the entire world! And then Pierre would have been humiliated, and Lauchenoiria would have been saved. And I wouldn’t have been… have been…”
“You don’t need to say it. Carmen, was there no other way? The amount of trouble this has caused… you’re right, I wouldn’t have revealed it. Frankly I’d have got to Clarke before she ever killed Chaher. He would have been easier to fight – he made five mistakes a day, and that was before noon. You couldn’t have known what would happen but still.”
“I didn’t want to be a traitor, Jennifer. They hurt me, tortured me as a traitor. They will do it again and I won’t survive.”
“Carmen… it’s not fair. Hell, if anyone on the Council should be convicted of treason it is definitely me. I fought against them in two wars, I mean come on,” Jennifer laughed, trying to lighten the mood. Carmen smiled weakly in response. “They won’t do it again, they have no reason to.”
Carmen sat up very straight, and her face became serious. She leaned closer to Jennifer.
“But there’s going to be another leak.”
“What!? Surely you aren’t fool enough to…”
“Not me. Look, since the end of the war the Pierres and I have been keeping our eyes on the Council archives. Watching in case either of our families made a move. Well, something happened. More information on the Aurora Programme went… missing.”
“No way Pierre would do that, and if it wasn’t you….” Jennifer swallowed.
“Someone hacked the database. And I fear I’m an easy target to frame.”
“Do you know who?”
“I have a suspicion.”
“Who?”
Carmen took out a small envelope and sat it down on the table in front of her. Then she stood up, placing the blanket back on the couch.
“Promise me you won’t let them torture me again? I would rather die,” Carmen said meaningfully, looking Hale in the eye. The message was clear. If they are about to take me, kill me.
“I won’t let them torture you,” Hale said, standing, taking both of Carmen’s hands in hers and meeting her eyes. “Upon my life.”
“Thank you, Jennifer. I know you didn’t want to be here, and I’m sorry for the way it happened but… I’m glad you are. We will need you in the times to come.”
“Carmen… we’ll stop them, okay? We are making so much progress. Just a little further. And we will both see our success one day, okay?”
“I hope you’re right,” Carmen said, turning around and walking out of the apartment.
Hale stood a little longer, watching, until she heard the click of the lock. Then she picked up the envelope, opening it, and taking out a piece of paper. She read it through once, then twice, then three times. Then she folded it carefully, and sat it down on the coffee table, then took a seat. She began to laugh, hysterically, but after a while her laughter turned to tears. Jennifer Hale lay down on the couch and sobbed herself to sleep.
7th October 2019 – 2am
Jennifer Hale sat at a desk scowling as she read through her writing, then deleting a paragraph and starting over. She had stayed in the Chamber working on the piece of legislation she had been trying to draft herself until she had inadvertently terrified a cleaner who had come in, panicking at the sight of a Councillor in the flesh. After she had reassured the poor girl, she had walked to a wing of the building which contained ten apartments for Councillors working late who didn’t wish to return to their city mansions.
Jennifer despised the Hale apartment, but outside was a hailstorm and her driver had been rather worried about taking her through it – after all, if something had happened to her, it would have cost him his life. So, she had sucked it up for the sake of her staff, who she cared about and thought it unfair how they were treated, and headed to the apartment she had been held prisoner in for several days last year upon her return to the country. It was her first time in the place since her relative freedom, and though she’d ordered it redecorated months back, she still didn’t want to look around her.
Knock, knock.
The sound startled Jennifer, who jumped up and drew the concealed pistol she carried, her heart beating heavily. It only took two seconds for her to realise this was an overreaction and lower the weapon – apparently, the location made her jumpy. She closed the window on her computer on which the piece of untitled legislation which aimed to make elections to the Kerlian Parliament actually fair (it had about as much chance of passing as a Shuellian communist gaining power, but it can’t hurt to try) and walked over, opening the door.
“Jennifer, can we talk?” said Carmen Robinson, who was standing outside in pyjamas, her hair messed up, and her eyes red as if she had been crying. She was shivering from the cold of the corridor, and she seemed afraid.
“Carmen, what’s the matter? Come in, you look freezing!” Jennifer gestured for Carmen to enter, leading her over to the couch and sitting down beside her. “Can I get you some coffee, tea, hot chocolate?”
“Can… can I just have some warm milk? Like when we were children?” Carmen said, her voice shaking. Jennifer picked up a nearby blanket and offered it to her fellow Councillor, who took it around her shoulders and pulled it tight.
“Of course,” Jennifer said, walking to the small kitchenette and taking out some milk, pouring a mug and sticking it in the microwave. Carmen was three years younger than Jennifer, but with a possible friend pool of only the female descendants of ten women who had lived less than a century ago, that age gap meant little. They had known each other before Jennifer had fled her family, though they rarely spoke of that time now.
Jennifer took out the milk, and stirred it, taking it back to the couch. She stopped to pick up her own coffee from the desk and then sat beside her old friend, handing her the milk. Carmen downed the entire drink in three large gulps, then set it on the table and began to cry.
“I can’t sleep because every night I just remember what they did,” she sobbed. “I’m so terrified it will happen again that I honestly think I should just leave the country and never return. It wasn’t meant to be like this!”
Startled, Jennifer quickly put down her coffee and put her arm around Carmen, holding her close as the younger woman sobbed into her shoulder.
“Carmen…”
“No, don’t, just listen. I’m not stupid, I know leaking classified information to a foreign power was treason. And I know how treason is punished. But that wasn’t what I planned to do! Goddess, I’ve got Lauchenoirians praising me and my own people hating me and all sorts of speculation in the media… but I wasn’t trying to leak the information about the Aurora Programme to Lauchenoiria.”
“I don’t understand,” Jennifer frowned, sitting up straighter. “Then where did that USB come from?”
“It wasn’t meant for them,” Carmen said, turning to face Jennifer and wiping away the tears. “It was meant for you. The instructions I gave the messenger was to get it to Sonja Viratnen-Alvarez. Not any old Resistance leader. But then you got yourself captured and your identity revealed, and…”
“Oh Carmen.”
“Yeah. If you’d received it you’d have understood. You’d have been able to use the information to stop them, to stop Clarke. You wouldn’t have been foolish enough to reveal the existence of hundreds of sleeper agents to the entire world! And then Pierre would have been humiliated, and Lauchenoiria would have been saved. And I wouldn’t have been… have been…”
“You don’t need to say it. Carmen, was there no other way? The amount of trouble this has caused… you’re right, I wouldn’t have revealed it. Frankly I’d have got to Clarke before she ever killed Chaher. He would have been easier to fight – he made five mistakes a day, and that was before noon. You couldn’t have known what would happen but still.”
“I didn’t want to be a traitor, Jennifer. They hurt me, tortured me as a traitor. They will do it again and I won’t survive.”
“Carmen… it’s not fair. Hell, if anyone on the Council should be convicted of treason it is definitely me. I fought against them in two wars, I mean come on,” Jennifer laughed, trying to lighten the mood. Carmen smiled weakly in response. “They won’t do it again, they have no reason to.”
Carmen sat up very straight, and her face became serious. She leaned closer to Jennifer.
“But there’s going to be another leak.”
“What!? Surely you aren’t fool enough to…”
“Not me. Look, since the end of the war the Pierres and I have been keeping our eyes on the Council archives. Watching in case either of our families made a move. Well, something happened. More information on the Aurora Programme went… missing.”
“No way Pierre would do that, and if it wasn’t you….” Jennifer swallowed.
“Someone hacked the database. And I fear I’m an easy target to frame.”
“Do you know who?”
“I have a suspicion.”
“Who?”
Carmen took out a small envelope and sat it down on the table in front of her. Then she stood up, placing the blanket back on the couch.
“Promise me you won’t let them torture me again? I would rather die,” Carmen said meaningfully, looking Hale in the eye. The message was clear. If they are about to take me, kill me.
“I won’t let them torture you,” Hale said, standing, taking both of Carmen’s hands in hers and meeting her eyes. “Upon my life.”
“Thank you, Jennifer. I know you didn’t want to be here, and I’m sorry for the way it happened but… I’m glad you are. We will need you in the times to come.”
“Carmen… we’ll stop them, okay? We are making so much progress. Just a little further. And we will both see our success one day, okay?”
“I hope you’re right,” Carmen said, turning around and walking out of the apartment.
Hale stood a little longer, watching, until she heard the click of the lock. Then she picked up the envelope, opening it, and taking out a piece of paper. She read it through once, then twice, then three times. Then she folded it carefully, and sat it down on the coffee table, then took a seat. She began to laugh, hysterically, but after a while her laughter turned to tears. Jennifer Hale lay down on the couch and sobbed herself to sleep.
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