Inescapable (Talented Saga #7) Read Free Page A

time for preparations—it is not
as if they will instantaneously disappear. Therefore, as much as it
pains me to even consider such drastic measures, the council does
need to reach a decision on this today.”
    An eerie silence fell over the room. Every
pair of eyes, save one, returned to the proposition document,
reading it again with more attention to the details. Amberly’s gaze
was focused intently on Victoria, her arrogant smile tugging the
corners of her mouth upwards.
    She’s enjoying this, Victoria thought, swallowing her disgust before
it showed on her face.
    “ Is there not another
solution?” Michael finally asked. “Perhaps we could house more
Talents on the residential islands? The suites are quite large;
couldn’t we put more people in each of them, beyond the standard
capacity?”
    Several council members quickly chimed in
with their approval.
    “ I agree with Michael,
Madame Chair—there simply must be other options on the Isle,” the
Columbian delegate spoke up. “These refugees don’t need every
creature comfort, they will be grateful for a place to lay their
head and a warm meal. This is simply an interim solution of course,
but it is far preferable to the alternative.”
    Victoria smiled sadly. “Housing more Talents
than the standard capacity of our residential floors has already
been accounted for in the numbers. The cryptos used a myriad of
factors to calculate the number of available spots on the Isle of
Exile, including your proposed solution. Essentially, no one will
have his or her own bedroom, let alone an entire apartment. Myself
included. The islands will truly be at maximum capacity with
another fifteen thousand citizens.”
    Michael shook his head grimly. “I see.”
    “ Then let us vote on
Proposition 2690,” Amberly said loudly. Her smoky gaze made a quick
trip around the conference table, conviction emanating from her
like a particularly pungent perfume. “It will reduce the number of
those homeless innocents to just over four thousand.”
    “ I do not believe we have
finished discussion of this matter, Councilwoman Azevedo,” Michael
said.
    “ All this council does is
talk. It is time we take action!” Alexi snapped, pounding his meaty
fist on the table in front of him. The gesture lacked the punch it
otherwise might have packed, since he was present only in
holographic form. “I second the motion.”
    Charlene shook her head. “We cannot make a
decision of this magnitude rashly. You are asking this council to
sanction the deaths of over four thousand people—”
    “ Criminals . They are convicted
criminals, Charlene,” Amberly interrupted.
    “ Be that as it may, they
are people. I, for one, am not comfortable authorizing their
executions until we have discussed all other possibilities,”
Charlene fired back, quickly becoming as annoyed as Amberly.
“Surely all five thousand of those people aren’t violent offenders.
All five thousand do not deserve to die for their
mistakes.”
    “ Further discussion is
pointless, a waste of our valuable time,” Alois Neumann
interjected, waving his hand in the air dismissively. “In four
days, the Joint Nations will vote in favor of renewing the
Coexistence Treaty, just as they have done many times before.
Failure might have been a concern a month ago, but our offensive
actions have successfully combated the damage inflicted by the
Created.”
    “ What is your point,
Alois?” Ian demanded, drumming his fingers irritably on the
table.
    “ That our decision will not
matter,” Alois replied simply, as though the answer was obvious.
“That more talking will do nothing but cause arguments between us.
The minutes for these meetings are classified, so no one outside of
this room will ever even know we considered executing prisoners.
Let us vote now, and then we can all go about our daily business.
Amberly has made a motion, Alexi has seconded it; the formalities
are complete. Madame Councilwoman, will you kindly call for