The Gender Plan (The Gender Game #6)

“There’s an easy way to figure this out,” announced Viggo loudly, his voice cutting through the room, challenging. “We merely need to ask the woman in the next room. And, as far as I know, her dose of sedative should be wearing off soon.”


I looked at the people around me for their reaction: this was part of the fight that we kept having amongst ourselves. Viggo wanted to use Desmond for information while we were forced to keep her captive. Many of us just wanted her dead. I was torn over the decision, every fiber of my being wanted Desmond dead. But I didn’t want to have to play executioner. And I didn’t want her people to hurt the boys.

Ms. Dale sighed, settling back into her chair, her fingers and thumbs digging into her temples. I knew what she was thinking. I felt the same way: Desmond was never going to talk. Keeping her around was jeopardizing us all. Even unarmed and chained in the next room, she still had use of her most lethal weapon—her mouth. “Viggo,” she said, “we’ve gone over this.”

I worried about having Dr. Arlan in with her. He had zero experience with her, which meant that if she could, she would find a way to lure him in and try to gain his trust. Which was why I had insisted that Dr. Arlan never be left alone with her. Bad enough she was here, but I would be damned if I let her get her hooks into any of our people. These people were more than just fellow rebels who’d had their lives torn apart by Elena and Desmond. They were becoming my friends. And I didn’t want to give her any opportunity to hurt any of them ever again.

“We haven’t even begun to formulate a plan for what to do with her,” Thomas interjected to the generalized muttering that had erupted around the room, drawing everyone’s attention to him. “There’s only a three percent chance she’ll reveal anything of relevance to us.”

“We have a resource in the other room,” Viggo insisted. “We should at least attempt to use it.”

“You cannot trust a word out of Desmond Bertrand’s mouth,” Ms. Dale said, her voice heavy with bitter wisdom. “She will lie and manipulate to confuse and distract us. Honestly, the only thing we should do when we go into that room is put a bullet in her head, and leave her body in the woods for the crows to find. It won’t be the first time I’ve killed in the name of the cause, but at least this time, it’ll be the right cause.”

Her words rose to an avalanche of conviction, and I felt them resonate deep within me, making me inclined to agree with her crude and brutal thought process. I knew it wasn’t right. Executing her would only make me more like her, and less like myself… but, more and more, it was feeling like a hit I was willing to take in order to spare us all her brand of evil. What else could we do? Surrender her to the nonexistent Patrian authorities?

Viggo shook his head at Ms. Dale, his brows drawing together. “I don’t disagree, Ms. Dale. But you know we can’t do that yet. We have to find out if harm will come to the boys if the Matrians don’t hear from her.”

Ms. Dale’s eyes narrowed. “I know that’s what we agreed on, but the more I think about it, the more I find it a farfetched story. It’s highly likely she’s lying, and I wonder if we shouldn’t just call her bluff.”

Viggo’s voice was low. “That’s a chance that we absolutely cannot take. We can’t gamble on the boys’ lives!”

“Ms. Dale, Viggo, calm down! Both of you!” Amber slapped her hand on the table and leaned forward, her mouth twisted in a scowl. “Desmond is already winning if we fight about what to do with her. I suggest a compromise. We can’t execute her now, and we all know how dangerous she is. Let’s go in and see what she has to say.”

“About what?” asked Thomas.

“About anything. Bring the gun; let her think we made the decision to off her. See if she says anything.”

“I’ll agree to do it if I get to carry the gun,” Ms. Dale finally said, resignation thick in her voice. “But it won’t help and it won’t work.”

“Let’s not jump to that,” I said, trying not to catch the volatile emotions whirling around the room. “Viggo, you and Ms. Dale go in and let her know we’ve decided to execute her. See what she says. If we are convinced she holds nothing of interest, we continue with our current plan—find out whether or not the threat to the boys is true, and make sure we’re in the clear before we execute her. It won’t be a lie then.”

“Let’s put it to a vote,” Ms. Dale said after a long moment of silence. “Just for this exact plan. All in favor?”

Thomas, Amber, and Viggo’s hands shot up, the three of them saying “aye” at almost the exact same time. After a moment of hesitation, I raised my hand as well, resolving to see the decision through to the end.

Ms. Dale’s face was impassive, but I could tell she still wasn’t happy with the decision. “The ayes have it,” she said softly. “Let’s get ready to talk to Desmond.”

A chill raced down my spine in trepidation about what was in store for us all. There never was any telling, where Desmond was concerned.





13





Viggo





The den had suffered massively in our attempt to create a prison for Desmond. The animal heads and pictures that had adorned the wall had been stripped away, although their former presence was still distinguishable by the dark sections of paint that hadn’t faded like the rest of the walls. We had cleared out every knickknack and every keepsake, every object in the room, creating a wide-open space.

We had given her a big fluffy blanket and a couch cushion (with no zippers on the upholstery) so she could make a small nest on the floor—Ms. Dale had warned us about the many dangerous uses of sheets. She’d also been very upset that we’d even given her something besides bare floor to keep herself warm, but I’d been adamant about it. We weren’t animals, and wouldn’t treat our prisoners as such. Cruelty in itself had never been justice. That was what separated us from people like Desmond.

The windows had been boarded up from the outside, and I had personally knocked out every pane of glass and removed any shards. I did not want her to have any shot at finding a weapon. I couldn’t risk anyone here, especially given how much I knew everyone wanted her dead.