[Lauchenoiria]

Eva Pierre quadruple-checked the records and then swore, throwing a folder across the room. Her searching had not produced the desired results; indeed quite the opposite. When she went to the Kerlian Intelligence basement where the old Aurora files were now kept, she'd intended to find some proof that it had been a reformist who had hired an Aurora to murder Anita Patel. Instead, she'd found the opposite.

For all Eva's traditionalism, however, she believed firmly in integrity. She could no more hide her findings than she would support male rights. Sighing, she picked up the phone and dialled her mother.

*

Nirmala Patel opened the door of her office to find Pauline Pierre outside. She raised an eyebrow.

"You have refrained from speaking to me alone since your vote in favour of the EUDCA amendments," Nirmala said without any prelude or introduction.

"My second daughter, Eva, has discovered information that I believe you will find interesting. May I come in?" Pauline replied in a similar fashion.

"Very well," Nirmala said, leading the other Councillor inside and sitting down behind her desk without offering Pauline any refreshments, as was customary.

Pauline sat across from her, pulling out a tablet, and sliding it across the desk. Nirmala picked it up, scanning the screen. It was an email from Eva containing photographs of paper documents. They appeared to be a record of every movement of each Aurora in Kerlile. After the Robinson affair, they began monitoring them much more strictly.

The second email contained the same information, this time originally in digital form, regarding the movements of each Reformist Councillor and their heirs to the fifth in line. Nirmala looked up at Pauline. "What am I looking at, here?"

"There's no crossover during the relevant dates," Pauline said. "None of the reformists had the opportunity to hire an Aurora. Communication logs don't turn anything up either."

"That proves nothing; they could have slipped surveillance," scoffed Nirmala.

"Normally I would agree, except Eva has found something further. There are no connections between the Reformists and the Auroras… but there is indeed a very suspicious connection with another Council Family," Pauline said, swiping on the tablet to land on a further two documents side by side in comparison.

Nirmala picked it up, looking over the documents. She scanned them again and again, shaking her head in disbelief. "No, the Arnotts, everything pointed to them."

"What did you really have?" Pauline said. "Motivation, yes, but certainly no opportunity. And how would it have benefitted them, in the end?"

"How would it benefit her?" Nirmala gestured at the documents.

"I don't know. I will help you find out, though. For a price," Pauline said.

"Name it," Nirmala said.

"Jia and Olivia," Pauline replied. "Their immediate release. The safety of Camille and Xia should they return, and Reena too for that matter. This whole thing started because you let your sister punish Reena for being a reformist. If the murder was not reformists, then you must admit fault in the starting of the affair."

"Very well," Nirmala agreed finally. "We can demonstrate our mercy. I shall have to convince Yamunda; she is trying to hunt Rosemary down."

"You have to stop her, she will make matters a million times worse," Pauline pointed out.

"I know," Nirmala said. "I do hope we are not too late."

“We cannot keep doing this, Nirmala,” Pauline sighed. “This infighting; the assassinations; the executions; the torture. It is making us look insane.”

“You sound like a reformist,” snorted Nirmala.

“I sound like someone who wishes to survive. Someone who believes in the mission of Kerlile and recognises that becoming an international pariah and the butt of all their jokes is counterproductive to our aims. If we tie up the idea of female rule with infighting, assassins and torture, do we really expect anywhere else to follow in our footsteps?”

Nirmala nodded her concession of the point. “Is this why you have begun voting for certain reformist policies?”

“Yes,” Pauline replied. “We must be tactical about this. I know you understand me, unlike your sister. So, I say this with all due respect, keep her at your heel. And please don’t torture any more of your relatives.”

“Fine,” Nirmala said in the tone of a whiny teenager, but with a conspiratorial smile on her face.