too .
“What?” I
jumped in my seatand felt myself grin hugely. Dan wasn’t exactly smiling while he pressed a finger to
his lips, reminding me to keep it down. He had music going, but it was later in
the morning, and a neighbor might hear my voice. Danny tapped the page, wanting
me to continue.
We can’t be in
contact with Petra at all. She’s been blacklisted by the Speakers—anyone
friendly toward her is instantly on their radar. Besides, I’m not convinced she
is your friend. She spread rumors about you and a Speaker, hoping it would get
to the Speakers and dislocate you from the theater, or worse.
I know this because I saw her sign to an usher weeks ago. The only
thing I can think of is
that she was jealous .
I scoffed,
hissing fervently, “I don’t believe it.” Petra would never do that. And she was still my friend,
even if we weren’t very close anymore.
“What did
she tell the usher?” My heart deflated as I asked. Petra didn’t have a mean
bone in her body; she could be a little harsh to those she didn’t exactly like, but it was more sarcasm than anything. Besides that… she was jealous of me ?
There was no way. She was perfection, not only in dance, but in everything. Dan
tapped the paper, frowning.
The
soap-opera story I was reading continued, unfortunately.
She signed
that you had confided to her of being raped by one of the Speakers while newly pregnant,
and he was going to force you to have an abortion in order to keep you as his personal
concubine.
“You’re
kidding me, right?” I whispered while digesting this disturbingly bizarre
information.
Dan grabbed
my hand, sensing my distress, while I argued, “It can’t be true. Someone else
must’ve made that up and she was dispelling the rumor, not circulating it.” There
had to be an explanation for what Dan had seen, and for the look of pity he was
giving me. And then I remembered where I was. This story could have been
entirely true if a different Elodie had been running around out there. I glanced
down at my knee. This is still me—my body, my soul—isn’t it? The
signing everyone did here looked exceptionally complex; Dan must’ve gotten the
story wrong. I read on, hoping the ending was not as horrifying as the
beginning.
You
volunteered to have an exam, proving the rumor false. Petra
was reprimanded .
Well, I definitely wasn’t pregnant. It would have been a miracle, seeing as how I was a
late-bloomer in the sex department. My eyes shifted to my knee. I wasn’t, was
I? My face grew hot with a flash of fear. At the same time I became troubled
about Petra. She’d been reprimanded . Punishment here seemed to be unusually
cruel for mundane things; for example, death to a Mute with the ability to talk.
“Petra’s…
okay? They didn’t hurt her, did they?” Intuition led me to believe he was
leaving something out. If Petra had been harmed because of me, I would never
forgive myself. And I would hunt down who sentenced her. Of course, I wouldn’t
have a clue as to what to do with the culprit once found, but that was a
trivial matter.
Dan nodded
to the paper, impatient that I kept interrupting his story with questions he
was trying to answer.
She can’t
dance anymore. They damaged her leg badly and turned her
into a janitor for the city. I
haven’t seen her since it happened .
The
information blurred before my eyes, as if reading the words underwater. I re-read
them, hoping I’d gotten
them jumbled somehow.
“Just for
spreading a rumor?”
Dan was holding
my hand. I hadn’t even noticed.
S-H-E K-N-E-W T-H-E R-U-L-E-S
Dan’s coding
was gentle; it calmed me and made me focus on something other than the horror—for
a few minutes, anyway.
“That
doesn’t make it okay. This place is out of control.” Dan nodded in agreement. “Why
would they break her leg?”
Dan raised
his eyebrows. I read on, taking the hint.
The Speakers
keep tight reins on
“What?” I
jumped in my seatand felt myself grin hugely. Dan wasn’t exactly smiling while he pressed a finger to
his lips, reminding me to keep it down. He had music going, but it was later in
the morning, and a neighbor might hear my voice. Danny tapped the page, wanting
me to continue.
We can’t be in
contact with Petra at all. She’s been blacklisted by the Speakers—anyone
friendly toward her is instantly on their radar. Besides, I’m not convinced she
is your friend. She spread rumors about you and a Speaker, hoping it would get
to the Speakers and dislocate you from the theater, or worse.
I know this because I saw her sign to an usher weeks ago. The only
thing I can think of is
that she was jealous .
I scoffed,
hissing fervently, “I don’t believe it.” Petra would never do that. And she was still my friend,
even if we weren’t very close anymore.
“What did
she tell the usher?” My heart deflated as I asked. Petra didn’t have a mean
bone in her body; she could be a little harsh to those she didn’t exactly like, but it was more sarcasm than anything. Besides that… she was jealous of me ?
There was no way. She was perfection, not only in dance, but in everything. Dan
tapped the paper, frowning.
The
soap-opera story I was reading continued, unfortunately.
She signed
that you had confided to her of being raped by one of the Speakers while newly pregnant,
and he was going to force you to have an abortion in order to keep you as his personal
concubine.
“You’re
kidding me, right?” I whispered while digesting this disturbingly bizarre
information.
Dan grabbed
my hand, sensing my distress, while I argued, “It can’t be true. Someone else
must’ve made that up and she was dispelling the rumor, not circulating it.” There
had to be an explanation for what Dan had seen, and for the look of pity he was
giving me. And then I remembered where I was. This story could have been
entirely true if a different Elodie had been running around out there. I glanced
down at my knee. This is still me—my body, my soul—isn’t it? The
signing everyone did here looked exceptionally complex; Dan must’ve gotten the
story wrong. I read on, hoping the ending was not as horrifying as the
beginning.
You
volunteered to have an exam, proving the rumor false. Petra
was reprimanded .
Well, I definitely wasn’t pregnant. It would have been a miracle, seeing as how I was a
late-bloomer in the sex department. My eyes shifted to my knee. I wasn’t, was
I? My face grew hot with a flash of fear. At the same time I became troubled
about Petra. She’d been reprimanded . Punishment here seemed to be unusually
cruel for mundane things; for example, death to a Mute with the ability to talk.
“Petra’s…
okay? They didn’t hurt her, did they?” Intuition led me to believe he was
leaving something out. If Petra had been harmed because of me, I would never
forgive myself. And I would hunt down who sentenced her. Of course, I wouldn’t
have a clue as to what to do with the culprit once found, but that was a
trivial matter.
Dan nodded
to the paper, impatient that I kept interrupting his story with questions he
was trying to answer.
She can’t
dance anymore. They damaged her leg badly and turned her
into a janitor for the city. I
haven’t seen her since it happened .
The
information blurred before my eyes, as if reading the words underwater. I re-read
them, hoping I’d gotten
them jumbled somehow.
“Just for
spreading a rumor?”
Dan was holding
my hand. I hadn’t even noticed.
S-H-E K-N-E-W T-H-E R-U-L-E-S
Dan’s coding
was gentle; it calmed me and made me focus on something other than the horror—for
a few minutes, anyway.
“That
doesn’t make it okay. This place is out of control.” Dan nodded in agreement. “Why
would they break her leg?”
Dan raised
his eyebrows. I read on, taking the hint.
The Speakers
keep tight reins on
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