Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 110809 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 554(@200wpm)___ 443(@250wpm)___ 369(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 110809 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 554(@200wpm)___ 443(@250wpm)___ 369(@300wpm)
The moment he’s out of sight, the room takes a collective breath, then everyone starts talking at once.
“Who the hell was that?” I start.
“Ban him from the capitol,” Vince almost barks. “I don’t want him anywhere near you ever again. This isn’t—”
“Who was that?” I ask again, louder this time to try and be heard over Vince.
Juno sidesteps Vince. “Just governor’s business. Nothing for you to worry about. I—”
“I’m serious, Juno!” Vince moves in front of her again, staring her down—not that anyone ever has the upper hand against my sister. “He’s a threat. If even an iota of what he said was true—”
“I think you know it’s true, and I’ve had enough of your histrionics about it. We’ll discuss this another time,” Juno says quietly, her gaze never wavering from his.
Vince stops cold at that.
I glance at Candice. She’s watching the showdown with a worried look. Fatima is still doing a whirlwind of one-handed typing.
“We can’t let him get close to you again.” Vince lightens his tone as best he can. He’s not a particularly soft man, especially not where his job’s concerned. “We don’t know what he’s capable of.”
“I told you to let this lie for now, Vince.” Juno glares up at him, her mouth tight.
“Georgia was out after dark,” Candice pipes up.
My mouth drops open as she points at me. Betrayed. Vince and Juno turn, finding a common enemy in their midst, stopping their disagreement.
“What were you thinking?” Juno and Vince yell at me in unison.
I give Candice what I hope is a withering look. “I was only half an hour late. Don’t let her change the subject. Who was that guy and what—”
“Georgia!” Juno cuts me off. “When I said you could go to the university instead of working on your research here, you promised me you’d return before dark. Remember?”
She’s using the mom voice. God, I feel like a kid again with her standing over me, judgment written all over her face. Fifteen years my senior, she used to tell me our parents found me under a rock—and she wasn’t too far off.
“I ought to put in a standing order that you aren’t to leave the Governor’s Mansion.” Vince glowers, his eyes narrowed on me in his usual hawkish way. But that’s normal for him. We’ve never understood each other’s language, but we both orbit Juno, each of us warmed by the same sun of my sister.
“I won’t do it again, okay?” I lean back in the chair though it does nothing to hide me from their disapproval.
Juno, her face drawn, crosses her arms over her middle. “It’s more dangerous than you can imagine, Georgia. Okay? The plague is the least of the troubles outside the barricades. The military doesn’t have enough personnel to handle the militants, weekend warriors, wannabe cops—all those guys who peaked in high school and own more guns than sense. They’re all a real threat. Inside the barricades, this idea of security is all make-believe, but it’s the safest thing we’ve got. We have to keep some semblance of normalcy, of order. If we aren’t careful, we’ll end up like New Orleans.” She always knows how to punctuate a point. New Orleans burned to the ground six months ago, thousands upon thousands killed as the fire spread and the already-collapsed local government was in too much disarray to help.
“I know,” I say more forcefully.
“If you knew, you wouldn’t stay out past dark,” Vince intones.
“All right! You two can stop now. I’m a grown-ass woman, and I won’t do it again.” I try to keep the irritation from my tone as I stand. “Now that we’re done discussing Candice’s distraction.” I shoot her another glare. “Maybe we can talk about the presidency?”
“Over supper. Come on.” Juno leads us out.
“I’ll close up here, meet you at the table,” Candice calls. She lives in the Governor’s Mansion now. With Earl gone and her son in California holed up in some sort of commune outside Stanford, it’s safer for her to stay here. I’m glad I’ll be able to stare daggers at her over dinner.
I look down the hall toward the front door, hoping to get another glimpse of the man who was in Juno’s office. There’s no one except the usual guard.
I pick up the pace and walk beside Juno. “Are you really going to run? I mean, the election’s in less than a year. Isn’t it too late?”
“Not too late,” Fatima chirps, her heels clicking behind us. “All the paperwork was handled a while ago.”
“Of course it was,” I mutter.
We enter the dining room as the last of the service staff disappears through the kitchen door. The meager remaining crew has set out a small buffet on the sideboard. They no longer stay for service. It’s safer that way. The fewer people you come into contact with, the better.