Sector B

44

Decha massaged his forehead. He already had a migraine.

Decha was supposed to meet with the Council. But before he could state a case, the six members all began to argue about handling the petition.

"How many times do I have to repeat it? We need to take action against the Brackets! The only way to get our message across is to take away traveling rights! Then we need to send the refugees back!" Cardinal exclaimed.

"The people want more than that, you fool. Execution is the only solution. We can't ignore our citizen's requests! We need to process the petition!" Chauncey rebuked.

"No, we have to handle it the way we always have. Petitions have come and gone here and there, but we've always provided a date for court. This allows the Agency to complete a thorough investigation. Who knows, the culprit may be more guilty once more evidence is found." Henry frowned.

"Execution is too good for him if you ask me!" Cardinal spat. "Death is too quick of a punishment. That murderer deserves to rot for the rest of his life!"

"Men, settle down, N96 is trying to speak." Lou Stein gestured to Decha. "He has been trying to voice his thoughts and you all have been talking over him. I'm sure he has a reasonable solution. Do allow him to speak."

Decha relaxed his shoulders and leaned against the table. "About that." He mumbled. "In regards to the petition, I don't have a solution for it."

"Well, what do you know." Cardinal scoffed and crossed his arms. "Not even one of our greatest heroes has a clue!"

"So are we just supposed to sit here and act like the petition doesn't exist?" Henry frowned.

Decha cleared his throat, and all of the members quickly piped down. "The signatures on the petition are high numbers, but it isn't official. Nothing the people say can influence the Agency's actions."

Decha crossed his arms. "It'll be impossible to ignore the petition since everyone in Downtown and Midtown knows about it. But it's easier to postpone going over the angry comments. We are still conducting an investigation."

"Why?" Cardinal spat.

"Because I want to make sure this investigation takes into consideration all other options for another possible culprit."

"Are you saying that the Bracketer the Agency arrested isn't the culprit? Don't kid yourself N96! He had all the pieces of evidence!"

"In my line of work, too much evidence against a person is very suspicious." Decha narrowed his eyes at Cardinal. He wasn't tolerant of this particular council member, as he was known for hating Bracketers.

"I'm not going to give any more details about the case until I'm sure."

"Why can't you report to us?"

"I came here to look through the pieces of evidence that the culprit submitted. Handling that petition isn't in my line of work. I can only tell you that nothing will happen without the Agency's approval."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're stalling because of your bias towards Bracketers," Chauncey commented bitterly.

"I have no bias toward them," Decha responded, vexed at the accusations. No doubt, Abigail probably shared with him about her being rejected by Decha.

Decha opened his mouth to say something but stopped when he felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He had just received a text message. He transferred the display from his phone onto his watch, and a holographic screen appeared.

The message was from an unknown number, but Decha knew that it was Antoine. The message came with a tip for the next bombing location.

But he wanted to make sure it was accurate. He tapped his watch and the screen blipped away. Then Decha brought his focus back to the 6 men at the table. "I'll excuse myself now." Decha stood up and left the room.