To say I was spanked was an understatement, mates. The thing about Councilwoman Faust was she tended to sit there, in the angry silence, for a while before laying it out. I was never good at absorbing a scolding—that was Rhian’s thing. She was my offense and my defense, and though my sister had a big brain, she generally found thinking painful and annoying. So that’s how we did it. I schemed, got us in and out of trouble, and she did everything at every turn to make sure we didn’t die. That included taking the fall when things went sideways.
Though, to be fair, I probably wouldn’t have gone on a six day bender had we been together. But all that’s to say: the first half of the carriage ride to Oskari was tense. Faust was appalled, naturally. She was disappointed, obviously. She expected more of me, of course. But then…
“I’ve asked Alexander to step back,” she continued. “I fear you’ve become too reliant on his assistance.”
“It seems to me you want me to spy, but not interfere. You want me to make sure they don’t die, but not rely on allies. I just want to be sure we’re on the same page.”
Faust tilted her head. “We understand what we’re asking of you,” she said. “To watch your companions struggle, Rhian especially. But the trials they face in Amalia are only just the beginning. This isn’t only a test, Agent Finlay, it’s about insurance—about having confidence in our investment.”
Some time while she was speaking, my hand made its way into my bag, found a cracker, and put it into my mouth. I chewed and nodded along, as if any of what she was saying made sense.
My sister wasn’t an investment, she was a person.
Friendly reminder: at this point in the story, I knew about the Six because both Zacharias and Delilah had told me. But Faust hadn’t told me about the Six yet. The list of things I knew, but she didn’t know I knew, was growing by the day.
I wondered how far I could push my luck nudging her into spilling the beans.
“Let me ask you this: between you, Kelly, and Hall, that’s fifty per cent of Palisade.” I fished another cracker out of my bag, because who looks threatening eating a cracker? “Why not pack up your charges in the middle of the night, set sail on our ships, and incite the war that way? I say that because if we’re talking about a full-scale rebellion, war seems inevitable at the end of the day.”
“Oranen’s elementalists would bombard us before we’re ten leagues in the distance.”
“If you ask me—and this is only from my own experience chatting with the locals around Palisade—but most Celestian seem fragile. Under Oranen, they have the highest defector rate and make up a significant percentage of the asylum. Are you sure they wouldn’t seize the opportunity?”
I wasn't telling her anything she didn't already know, but the real reason they couldn't do the sensible things was account of the Six. Faust side-eyed me. It was brief, but it was there.
“It’s something to consider,” she replied.
Well, that was fun, but it was as far as I was willing to go. I nodded and chewed on another cracker. “We should be arriving in Oskari soon—what’s the situation?”
“I’d like you to shadow me while I address the village.”
“Right, well, we should have Peter drop me off early so I can skirt around, find a good vantage to keep an eye on you. Where will you be holding the address?”
“No, Agent Finlay, I want you with me.”
Well, well, well—that was weird. Why would Faust want me showing my face around Oskari at her side? Strachan bodyguards were a solid choice, but would typically cover from the shadows. And if she felt she needed protection, she had Michael or Varis—both undoubtedly more effective against the Anima. So, it wasn’t about protection. And having a Strachan at her side wouldn’t necessarily make her look any better to the Amali people, so it wasn’t about optics—
Or was it?
My being at Faust’s side would signal to RAM that I was still working with her, and in my absence, had probably been this whole time. And from RAM’s perspective, Faust had dropped them all into the middle of a nightmare I doubted she was about to explain.
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
Aye, so it was about optics. RAM’s optics. Because while Lidia was employing tactics to cause dissension between my mates, so was Faust.
I ate another cracker.
Oskari still smelled like burnt flesh, and we know it was because they’d just finished the ritual burning of the final old man decoy Rhian supposedly (but didn’t) kill. Varis was in the audience, and Michael was standing alongside Strauss and Father Belaia at the podium in the village centre.
I won’t rehash the whole affair, but the Councilwoman delivered an inspiring speech to the village, promising RAM to them indefinitely, and encouraging them to resume their wonderful lives now that the villagers were saved and the killer was dead. The villagers didn’t take too kindly to the Councilwoman suggesting they had wonderful lives while most of them were starving, cold, and sick—the unknowing targets of frequent Anima draining. So, the speech sparked a bit of an uprising, as you may remember. And while the villagers made reasonable demands, Faust just walked away. The people were RAM’s problem now, and I had no choice but to follow at her heels.
I glanced over my shoulder and caught Strauss’s eye.
He didn’t look mad, he just looked tired and worried.
As you know, the villagers continued to protest even after we left, and as you might remember, Helena Varis suggested execution for the rebels. But ultimately, Strauss diffused the conflict, solving the problem by donating the Zack portrait fund money to the village. He told them it was from the Councilwoman on behalf of Palisade.
When Faust and I returned to the wagon, she stopped me from following her inside.
“I’ll be traveling to the Drop and returning to Palisade with Davina for a time. You’ll continue to report to Alexander, but that’s the extent of his involvement, do you understand?”
“I do,” I said, and I did—especially the part about her going back to Palisade. “Oh—and Councilwoman?”
“Hmm?”
I rubbed my beard and shifted my weight from one foot to the other. “I am incredibly sorry,” I said, “for my behaviour and severe lack of judgment. I understand the position you’re putting yourself in trusting me with this job.”
“Good—it’s water under the bridge. And other than the momentary lapse, which—from Zelda to Feargus—I hope was cathartic, you’ve thus far lived up to every expectation. We’ll do everything we can to fulfill your request.”
I smiled winningly, and when the wagon finally rolled off, I waved goodbye.
What You Know From The First One:
Lidia promised to leave everybody alone if Rhian left Oskari. Rhian, fearing for everybody and her surprise baby, took her up on the offer. After about two days of feral dwelling in the forest, she got hungry. And as she was leaving the tavern at the Drop, she bumped into Councilwoman Faust. True story: Councilwoman Kelly was actually over in the Administrator’s outpost at the time. But what’s important is: Rhian saw Councilwoman Faust getting out of Alexander’s wagon, and what’s more, Alexander was in the wagon. When interviewing Alexander for this very book, I asked him:
“Alexander, why were you in the wagon? When I left you, you were at home.”
“Well, mister Finlay, you see, Peter picked me up on the way to delivering Zelda to the Drop. We still had a few things to discuss.”
“I see. And which things were those, Alexander?”
“I needed her to sign the renewal for the deed to my land.”
“How lucky for you, Alexander, that Peter remembered you forgot to have the Councilwoman renew the deed for your land.”
“Yes, how lucky for me.”
“So, you had Peter pick you up and take you all the way to the Drop so the Councilwoman could sign a piece of paper? And not to, say, have sex in the wagon?”
“I deny all accusations—but also yes, we had sex in the wagon.”
“Thank you for your candor.”
Now, let me present to you a quote from Rhian Sinclair, copied directly from The First One:
“I remembered what the brown-eyed man with the nice jacket was capable of at the schoolhouse-slash-tavern. I remembered him flipping me across the room and ripping apart floors like a goddess-be-damned grizzly bear. I wondered how he knew the Councilwoman. I wondered why he was with the Councilwoman. Maybe they were lovers. Maybe Those Things weren’t all bad. Maybe Faust was all bad. I could’ve come up with a thousand conspiracies.”
And as you can see, mates, she got most of it in one.
What Else You Know From The First One:
Councilwoman Faust, suddenly finding herself in an awkward position, ordered Rhian to get in the wagon with Alexander and have Peter take her back to Oskari—an order that was promptly ignored. When I interviewed Alexander for this very book, I asked him:
“Alexander, why, instead of returning Rhian to Oskari, did you spill your immortal secrets and bring her to your luxurious estate? Weren’t you told by your sparse but long-time lover, Councilwoman Faust, to politely back-off?”
“I may be a masochist, but I’m not a submissive man. We’d become friends, you and I, and not only is Rhian Evelyn's daughter, but she was carrying her grandchild."
"Thank you for your time."