Chapter Fourteen Page Thirteen, Elys, The Brick Center

PREVIOUS PAGE

Elys waited outside while the meeting proceeded. She felt she had much more important things to do than wait around in meetings. But her father had already asked her to wait for him. He said he had something for her, a mission, a final test before she’d be able to take a position beside him on the Board.

            So he came out before anyone else did, closed the door behind him, and cleared his throat.

            “Yes?” Elys asked.

            “It’s no secret that we’ve had a very important artifact go missing,” he said, “We have leads, which all point to the brother of a friend of yours. A kid named William Prestige. He picked up a briefcase that a couple of Greys were watching over and took it somewhere. I need you to find out where he took it.”

            “Got it,” Elys said, “I’ll find your briefcase.”

            “You don’t need to find it,” her father said, “I just want to know whose hands it passed into after William dropped it off somewhere. We have suspicions that the Strifepalms are to blame. An informant said that they were very interested in the artifact; interested in destroying it. It could be the artifact is gone.”

            “What is it?” Elys asked. She had her arms crossed; was tapping against the sides of her ribcages in impatience.

            “I can’t tell you what it is,” her father said, shrugging, “The boy, William, seems the most obvious choice. Go and rough him up. Your friend, Dani, may know something too.

            “So,” Elys said, “Find where the briefcase went after Will had it. Seems easy. Why not hand this off to Georgie, Elmer, or Yarl?”

            “Goons don’t have subtlety,” her father said, “They’ll be on hand to deal with anything you could possibly need help with, if you need an extra pair of hands or two. But above all, avoid direct confrontation whenever possible.”

            “Right,” Elys said, “I should work on keeping our pride intact.”

            “Exactly,” her father said, “I am glad to see that you see it my way. Your acceptance of this mission solidifies my agreement to allow your friend membership into the Bricklayers. If you fail this mission, I will exonerate him.”

            “I won’t fail this mission,” Elys said, “I’ve done greater things.”

            He smiled and nodded. He was, if nothing else, a proud father, who understood that he’d raised this girl well.

            “I’ll see you at home,” she said.

            “That I will,” he said, “If you’re still up, we’ll be having lasagna.”

            “Maybe I will stay up for that,” she said. They turned; her father walked back into the meeting and Elys walked out the double doors to her car, which was parked just across the street. Since walking Dave back to his house, she’d done little else than drive out to the Brick Center and wait for her dad. She started the engine with the feeling that she was finally going to get a moment to herself.

            As she parked in the driveway of her home, she became aware that she was not alone. She glanced in the rearview to see a pair of blue eyes watching her from across the street. She got out of the car and turned, “I see you!” She shouted.

            Elys saw a toothy grin. And then the eyes disappeared.

            Elys wished that she’d be able to catch Bira one of those days and make her pay for everything she ever did.


NEXT CHAPTER