Perfectly Scarred

The Missing

"Come on, Rosie, let's get the hell out of here," Lisa says angrily, giving up on her very visible desire to beat George to a bloody pulp.

"How macho of you," George says, amused.

"Stop it, the both of you." I raise my voice. "Lisa, we need his help."

"His help?" She asks, appalled. "He just called the Whistleblowers on us."

"Just on Roseanne, actually. I didn't think they'd come any quicker if I mentioned you."

I look from Lisa to George, feeling torn. We've come all this way. This is the only plan I've got. George Angelo is the only lawyer ever to overturn a Failure ruling. I need him. Without him, what do I do? How do I take my case to Judge Ramirez?

"Fine. You stay," Lisa says. "I'm not sticking around. I don't trust this guy. One more second here and we'll land ourselves back in Seoul Citadel."

"Lisa, wait." I turn to George. "Can she and I talk privately?"

"Sure. Tick, tick, tick," George says, watching the clock over the fireplace, which I notice for the first time is a pair of "human hands" in the pointing position wearing marigold gloves. He leaves the room.

Lisa faces me, arms folded, jaw square. Black eyes. "We can't trust him."

"What was he talking about when he mentioned Nina Choi?" I ask shakily.

And even though she's trying to be cool about it, his body language changes.

"Look, Rosie." She comes to me, takes my hands gently. "Now is not the time to talk about that."

"Now is exactly the time. I need to know the truth."

She sighs, annoyed that I'm killing time. "Nina Choi approached me during your trial—she wanted to contact you. She wanted to help you. She's running a campaign entirely based on your principles, commiseration and empathy, those were your words, you've seen them on every lamppost and billboard in the city. I told her I'd help her find you, but it was difficult. The press was at your house, your school. I couldn't get to you. Mila Cruz was on your case."

"You came to find me because Nina Choi asked you to?" I ask, feeling the tremor in my voice. I hear her say those words to me when I was walking down the corridor to the Branding Chamber. I'll find you.

I waited for her in those weeks afterward, thinking it was something else, a connection or a bond of some sort, but it wasn't.

It was a favor to a politician.

"Wait, Rosie, listen," she says impatiently. "Nina was the one who was at the castle for me when my trial was over and I was allowed to leave."

"She helped you become a Deviant?"

She looks around and lowers her voice. "I can't say that. She guided me. Gave me tips. Who I could trust and who I couldn't. She received information that my mother was at Vigor. She has a lot of resources. It was through Nina that I met Dae, Jessie, and Jennie. She has plans for the Failure, she puts like-minded people together. There's strength in numbers. Her campaign just needs you. You're the key to all this. She wants to meet with you but she can't, given that you're wanted. She's not the enemy, Rosie, she's trying to help us."