Canvas Skies (Reliance on Citizens Makes Us Great!) (26 page)

“Is Tony a friend?”

“Um, sort of. He owns a bar. We were hiding
from the Gov. They came after us, but Hisoka contacted Guy. He told
us they charged you. He saved our lives.”

“Hisoka Watanabe?”

She nodded.

“He was at the trial too.”

“The trial?”

“They let him go.”

“Oh. He took a stand outside too.”

“Outside?”

“Yeah, that's something you'll have to see
to believe.”

Just then, a piercing cry cut through the
room. We both turned to look.

Thousands of knives pierced my skin. They
prickled along my right lung and my rib cage. No, not knives, I
realized. Needles stitched me back together. I curled up and almost
fell to the floor. Hands pushed me back onto a mattress and held me
in place as the needles did their work.

The pain...so intense. Eventually, I became
aware of my surroundings: lights, voices, faces, Keira. And then,
the needles simply stopped. The memory lingered, but the actual
pain was gone. Could I? I took a deep breath just to see. Yes, I
could breathe easily. I closed my eyes and just breathed. Soft
fingers trailed down the side of my face.

“Mmm...” I opened my eyes.

“Can you sit?” Keira asked.

“I think so.”

She put her arm around my shoulders and
helped me up. My stomach complained loudly.

“Hungry?”

“Very.”

“I guess that's part of it then.” She leaned
over and whispered something to Eberhardt.

A military doc approached and held up a
stethoscope. “May I?”

I nodded but flinched when the cool metal
brushed against my chest. “What happened?” I tried to ignore the
lions gnawing at my stomach.

“You were shot. You were dying, so we gave
you some of my blood.” Keira looked away. “I'm sorry.”

“I was shot?” I looked down at my chest.
There was a faint scar. “And now I'm not.”

“Yes, because of my blood. I didn't want to,
but no one else had the right type.”

“You saved my life.” She looked into my
eyes. “Thank you.”

Eberhardt approached and handed me a
sandwich. “You back in charge?”

“Give me a few minutes. Where did you get
this?”

“His lunch cooler.” He nodded toward one of
the doctors in custody.

I was about to say thank you when I saw all
the people with their chests blown apart. I tried to hand the
sandwich back. “Maybe later.”

Keira put her hand on mine and pushed the
sandwich back toward me. “You need to eat to regain your strength.”
She stepped in front of me. “Just keep your eyes on me, okay?”

I looked into her brilliant green eyes and
took a bite. The food calmed my angry stomach. After I polished off
the sandwich, I looked at Eberhardt. “I guess it's time. Everyone
must be wondering, especially about this. Where's your
vid'recorder?”

He patted his pocket. “The electricity back
at Tony's went out just after it happened.”

“So they don't know anything?”

“Only that we took Parliament. Raquelle
contacted me a few minutes ago. Some of Harlow's men got the power
back up again, and Alexis has reassured everyone.” He handed me my
earpiece. “Just tell me when.”

I shook my head. “Not yet. Do we have full
control?”

Eberhardt nodded. “We've taken the Gov, and
most of the military are with us.”

“Not to mention the thousands of people
gathered on the front lawn,” Keira said.

“Most of the military?” I asked.

“A small percentage are siding against. The
man who shot you, for one.”

I used my transmitter. “Harlow, how many
military, would you say, are against us at this point?”

“Hey, good to hear from you! Not many. I'd
say just over 5% are with the Elite. Look, I don't know how
Saunders slipped through, but he'll get what he deserves.”

“No, let him go.”

Keira and Eberhardt looked at me in
surprise.

“You don't know what you're suggesting,”
Harlow said.

“Let him go. Dishonorable discharge, nothing
more.”

“But he shot to kill,” Harlow argued.

“He was following orders, and we don't want
to form a new Gov that's the same as the old. We're all Terenians.
We all need to be on the same side. Do you have enough authority to
give the order? Will they listen to you?”

“Yeah, because of my link with you, they
will.”

“Alright then. Honorable discharge for
anyone who wants to leave the service. Hook up with Alexis. You'll
need to make a public statement.”

Harlow took a deep breath. “I hope you know
what you're doing.”

“Alexis? Did you get that?”

“Yes, I heard. Any other brilliant
ideas?”

“I'm still thinking. How about this. We'll
use Eberhardt's vid'recorder to get some footage in here. The
people should know what the Gov did, so we'll record it now, and
Raquelle will show it in a little bit. We'll need to work it in
somehow, so the people will understand what they're seeing.”

Everyone in the room was hanging onto every
word. I motioned for Eberhardt to hand the recorder to a soldier.
He showed him how to work the small device.

“I don't understand. What did you find in
there?” Alexis's voice registered through my earpiece.

“I'll get back to you. I need to talk with
my team.” I looked first at Keira and then at Eberhardt. “Let's go
somewhere we can talk in private.”

I found Brody's clothes stashed in a cabinet
in the lab. Although they were a bit wrinkled, he looked much more
comfortable in his suit. Brody leaned on me slightly as we climbed
a flight of stairs and went past the main conference room. The
ministers were still in there, tied to their chairs. Prime Minister
Armstrong lifted his head as we walked by. His glare bore into me,
and I silently thanked the soldiers who stood guard throughout the
room. I tore my gaze away and led Brody toward the main
entrance.

“Wow,” he said. “You weren't
exaggerating.”

I looked across the sea of people on the
front lawn of the Justice Center. They overflowed into the streets
in all directions. Of course, I had seen them on the teleview back
at Tony's and on my way in, but I'd been too distracted then to
really comprehend the magnitude of it all. I took a deep breath and
leaned my head back, relaxing a bit in the warmth of the sun, but
tensed again when I heard my name. I opened my eyes.

Alexis stood in front of us. “Aimee? Is he
one of them? Where are the others?” Her vidcrew was at her back.
They faced the opposite direction and scanned the crowd.

“Brody was the only one still alive,” I
said.

“Can I get an interview?”

Brody's arm was still draped around my
shoulders, and I felt him stiffen at her words.

“We'd rather not,” I said.

“But the world needs to know,” Alexis
insisted.

Brody stared at her. “You don't know what
you're suggesting, but if you really want them to know, there's
plenty of evidence inside. Leave us out of it.”

“Please, Alexis,” Aimee pleaded. “Just
report there were no survivors, okay?”

Alexis held her hand to her ear and then
spun around. She called to her crew. “We've got work to do inside,
guys. Let's move it!”

On the front wall of the Justice Center,
Raquelle's projection went blank. A minute later, an image
appeared, and a hush fell over the crowd. It was the room we'd just
passed, the one with the ministers. They were still tied to their
chairs. A cheer rose from the crowd and floated up to the clouds.
After showing each of the ministers in turn, Guy and Keira took
center stage.

Guy cleared his throat and began. “Many of
you know us as Richard Burke and Kendra James. You may have seen us
on Everyday Elite. You've probably heard that we're engaged to be
married. You may think you know us, but every coin has two sides.”
He flipped a small golden object into the air and caught it as it
fell. It was Keira's pendant.

She picked up where he'd left off. “You may
think you know us, but you do not know the whole truth. You see, as
long as the Divide remains strong, people must either hide or
pretend.” She paused. “I'm tired of hiding. I'm tired of pretending
who I am for the vid'recorders and for all of you. And what's more?
I believe you deserve to know the truth. Don't you want to know the
truth?” She shook her head. “Whether you're with us or not, you all
have a right to know certain truths. For example, have you ever
wondered what happens inside these walls?”

Keira held out her hands, and words appeared
along the bottom of the screen: The Justice Center, Tkaron. “This
place was designed to uphold the laws meant to protect the citizens
of Terene. The Gov should be working for you.”

Guy continued. “Instead of doing their job,
the current administration has tortured and experimented on the
very people they claimed to protect. What we are about to show you
is graphic and disturbing, and it is real. Please, cover your
children's eyes.”

Guy put his hand to his ear and spoke into
his transmitter. “Roll the footage.”

Dozens of bloodied corpses and cases of
living organs were displayed for everyone to see. It was quiet at
first, but then we heard a rumbling in the distance. It grew louder
and louder as the chanting rolled forward. “Lies, lies, don't
believe your eyes. Lies, lies, to send the Gov goodbye.”

I turned to Brody. My mouth hung open. I had
no words.

“Come with me.” He took my hand and pulled
me along behind him. “Hurry! We don't have much time.” The chanting
grew increasingly louder.

Four soldiers blocked the entrance.

“We need to get back in,” I insisted.

They drew closer together.

“Don't you remember me? Harlow brought me in
earlier. We just came out to see the crowd.”

One of the soldiers took the time to study
my face. He gave a curt nod and a signal, and the others stepped
aside.

We burst into the main conference room.
Brody strode up to Guy. “They don't believe it. I don't think they
want to.”

Guy looked at Alexis, but his words were for
both her and Raquelle. “Cut it. Switch back to me.”

Brody and I ducked behind the vid crew as
they pointed their equipment at Guy.

“It's come to our attention that some of you
don't believe us. And why should you? The Gov has lied to you and
so have we. So no more lies, at least not from us. From this day
forward, Richard Burke is dead. I prefer to be called by my chosen
name, Guy Bensen.”

Keira chimed in, “And the Redemption for
Orphans committee will have to find a new leader, because Kendra
James is gone too. My real name is Keira Maddock.”

Guy smiled and threw his arm around Keira's
shoulders. “This is truly an historic day. I am a highly regarded
member of the Elite, and my lovely fiancee is a wanted Freelancer
fugitive. We are, in fact, engaged, and we've been working together
for over a year to bring down this administration.”

Keira leaned into him. “Working together to
close the Divide.”

“With a Gov that represents all citizens, in
a realm where everyone has a say.” Guy turned, and they kissed.
Then he addressed the people once more. “And now, an invitation.
We'll take a group of citizens downstairs for a tour, and we'll all
go along for the ride.”

Alexis instructed Raquelle to show some
earlier footage while her team got ready to shoot on the front
steps of the Justice Center. Meanwhile, Guy told Harlow to form a
team to search the crowd for a dozen willing citizens. He wanted a
mix of ages, genders and occupations. Most important, half were to
be Elite and half Working Class.

Brody and I found a smaller conference room
with a vidscreen. I sank into a tan leather seat, leaned my head
back and closed my eyes, trying to clear my head. I used a
technique Guy once taught me. Thoughts flowed in and out. I simply
let them come and go, and my mind began to still. My breathing
became even and relaxed. A slight tickle along my forearm brought a
smile to my lips. Brody's fingers moved to my palm and settled. I
curled my fingers around his and opened my eyes.

He stared at me, then leaned in for a kiss,
but I instinctively turned my head.

“I'm sorry. I just wanted to thank you.” He
pulled his hand away and leaned back in his chair.

I curled and uncurled my fingers around the
sudden emptiness. Then I reached forward and pushed a button. The
vidscreen lit up.

They were on the front steps. Alexis stood
in front of a small group. “I'm Alexis Palamara. In just a few
moments, we'll be entering the Justice Center to see it all
firsthand. Let's meet these courageous citizens.” She turned to a
man. “Sir, what brings you here today?”

“My sister went missing a few weeks ago. I
want to see if...” He choked up and turned away, mumbling, “I'm
sorry.”

“And you, Miss Armstrong?” Alexis turned to
a young woman with long blond hair. Her startling blue eyes looked
directly into the vid'recorder.

“I'm Adira Armstrong. I want to see my
father, to know that he's alright, and to disprove your lies.”

“They're letting her in? Why?” I asked.

“Why not? Guy said he wanted a mixed
group.”

I leaned toward Brody and explained, “She
hired a Freelancer to kill us, but Keira stopped him.”

Brody turned and stared at me. “Does Guy
know about that?”

I shrugged. “I don't know.”

He nodded at the screen, and we continued to
watch. They had assembled a mix of Elite and Working Class
citizens, some with every reason in the world to want in, and
others with no reason save curiosity.

After every member of the group had been
introduced, they made their way inside, escorted by four soldiers,
two in front and two in back. Guy and Keira welcomed the group, and
they began their tour in the main conference room.