Seeing Red

Chapter 20

She dropped the grip on my arm, and snapped at me. Her heels clicked sharply against the floor as she marched away. I followed behind her, reeling myself in and resisting the urge to go back after David. Then I would look like the immature one and I was not willing to slap that title on.

She walked me to a interview room and pointed at the single white chair tucked into the table. She shut the door and I begrudgingly pulled the chair out, allowing it to screech along the floor intentionally pinpointing my frustrations at anything but her.

I slumped down in the chair, finding myself with my head in my hands. My chest, still heaving from the earlier chase.

"Do you think this is a game, Genevieve?" Her voice sliced through the silence. "That you can just throw a tantrum when things don't go your way?" her arms crossed and her accusatory tone irritated me. I went from being the best, to the most criticized.

I'm so done with being belittled and lectured for everything I've done.

I kept my head bowed, my hands clutching the sides of my head. "I'm not throwing a tantrum. David would kill me if he had the chance." I lifted my head, challenging her accusation, "And you and The Appointed have been kicked back watching while he almost succeeded. What would have happened if he killed me? Huh?"

I stood up pushing my chair back abruptly. "You think you have people rising up against you now? My death, which would have inherently been sanctioned by The Appointed, would have brought The Agency as whole to it is knees. Unjust Agent deaths do not get passed by."

That sounded incredibly self centered, Eve.

And no matter what, it was the harsh truth. I was done being beat down like some dog in training. I just didn't think I'd come unglued on my grandmother.

Her expression remained impassive, cold, and plainly uninterested in what I was saying. She made it look easy to let words fall off of her back.

"We are not discussing the implications of your death. Now, Sit down." She dismissed my concerns, quickly replacing them with her own questions. I slowly lowered myself back down, willingly letting her continue. She may be able to share information with me that I have been waiting for.

"Do you understand the severity of this situation?"

Depends on what we're referring to dear grandmother.

"The panel of The Appointed is sitting in a room down the hall evaluating you. They watched from the moment you left your isolation pod, all the way until you were sent to the ground by the door opening. They are highly impressed."

I certainly did not understand the severity until you mentioned two words.

The Appointed.

The Appointed was the group of oversights running The Agency, there is no higher authority above them. Their stamp of approval was the best an agent could get.

Being praised by them was a rare honor. Honor I was uncertain that I wanted. It is hard to be proud and frustrated in the same breathe.

"If you can prove yourself under their scrutiny, you just might come out of this unscathed." She was warning me without outwardly saying it. "Understand that while you were under their watch, I cannot intervene on your behalf. Your performance is critical."

I knew she was imparting words that had once been shared with her, she was sharing a deep scene of understanding that I was longing for. "Stai addulurannu la me fiorella... There is a time in our lives where we grieve the loss of ourselves in hopes that who we become is superior." Her words, like a poem written on my soul. She put into words, a feeling I did not want to understand.