"Iguess," Sin said, not truly convinced. "I just don't buy it. If this thing is stolen like Rissa thinks, then what are the chances Pharmacon didn't get the cops involved?"
"Mm…" Zan seemed to mull that over. "Police would mean a record. A record means proof it exists."
"And if they don't even want to risk getting a patent—which is public record—then Pharmacon definitely wouldn't want the police involved," Sin realized.
"Sounds plausible," Zan agreed. "I mean, corporate espionage is pretty common, and this data—regardless of who is sending it—isdefinitelyillegal. There's no other reason for the jackings."
"Except Joshua," Sin realized. "The bitch who handled Rissa's last data transfer said the Censor was adamant they match the piece. They're starting production tomorrow."
"Sounds to me like Rissa's right," Zan said. "Joshua is somehow involved with this. Either he stole the chemical, lucked out and the person who stole it contacted him, or somethingelse. Either way, he's encouraging the transfer of illegal data to make this thing."
"Shit," Sin breathed as things finally began to make sense. "Joshua got his hands on a drug that was stolen so he can make a miracle thatcan't be traced!Rissa said something about the new patent only being on a part of it, so I bet that's to hide it. Pharmacon screwed up because they don't want the public to know there's a cure. Their stocks would crash if it got out they weren't planning to make it. The public would turn against them. Dhatri, however, wants to make a cure so they can get a slice of the cybernetic drug market. To do that, they're willing to work with stolen research and pay off the church to get away with it." But he paused. "Except it still doesn't explain why a priest attacked her. Zan, we're still missing something."
"Well, fuck," Zan breathed. "So what is Pharmacon doing in all of this?"
And something clicked into place. "It's Pharmacon trying to stop thedownloads!" Sin gasped. "Caleb didn't attack us because she'd already finished downloading, Zan. Pharmacon wants to make sure no one has this information, and they don't care if these girls die to keep it safe, but once it's out of their heads, they don't give a shit about the Ingénue." He leaned his head back and groaned. "It's the only thing that makes sense. Shit, and I can't even ask Rissa to check the records in there."
"Next time," Zan said.
Sin just shook his head. "Going to be a while before I get a next time with her. I'm about to be tried for taking out that priest, Zan. Means a few days away from her."
"Right." The kid's brow furrowed. "Why would a priest be trying to jack the data the Censor wants?"
"No idea," Sin told him. "And that's the problem. Every time I think I've got this figured out, I'm wrong. The problem is, I can't stop it if I have no fucking clue what I'm stopping. What I doknow is that we have at least two different groups attacking these women. Maybe even three. But why? And more importantly, why right now?"
"So talk to Benedict," Zan told him. "Drop me off, and when you take the car back to the Legion, tell him all of this. Tell him about the videos. Tell him everything about Rissa, Sin." And he looked over. "I meaneverything."
"Yeah," Sin agreed. "I will, if only because I don't know what else to do, and he's going to need to know her answer before my trial."
Chapter Thirty-One
Benedict wasn't thrilled about Rissa's answer, but he accepted it. He also began planning for Sin's defense, which meant the pair went over every detail of Sin's story until late in the night. The next day, the Praetor summoned Sister Julie to work with Sin as his primary defender. He also sent out polite requests for both the guy from the boutique and Ingénue R1554-9370S-02K16 to attend as witnesses.
Since no one in their right mind would refuse a polite request from the Praetor himself, Sin felt confident he would be proven to have acted with justification. To make sure Rissa could act as a witness, he made a call to Daniel Briggs and apologized for any inconvenience this would cause. Then he waited, staring at the walls of his apartment while the rest of the day dragged by.
The hardest part was not knowing. There was no hint of what would come next, which angle Joshua was planning to use in his prosecution, or how the other priests would feel once they had the whole story. About the only thing Sin was sure of was that this was about to become a very impressive shit-show. Something bigger was going on, something Sin couldn't fully wrap his mind around, and if he didn't get this right, he was going to bring about the downfall of his own church.
To distract himself, he called Davis and made sure things were in progress for the safe house. Next, it was Rob. If the trial dragged on for days and Rissa had an assignment, Sin wanted to make sure someone could cover for him. When all of that was done, all he had left was to lie in his bed, staring at theceiling while he fought through the mess this had all become and pretended to sleep.
Needless to say, he had a very restless night. The next morning, Sin was up early, clean-shaven, and dressed in his finest robes. He'd even gone so far as to take off the pendant he always wore, storing it safely in his apartment. While he didn't want to use the word nervous, he certainly wasn't looking forward to this ordeal. It was nothing more than Joshua's attempt to prove the enhanced were dangerous. Sin had absolutely no interest in being used to make it easier to hate others.
When he reached the Legion, his first stop was the cathedral. A few turned to look at him. Most wore expressions of shock, making it clear the news of his trial had spread through the church as only rumors could. Sin ignored it all as he headed to the eye at the back. The moment he reached the first step, he knelt and bowed his head.
"May I serve only the power of God, and do Your will as only You can see best," he breathed, pressing two fingers between his brows.
Then, in his own mind, he added a prayer for deliverance, because he had a feeling he would need it. While he sent his thoughts to his God, the other priests watched. He could almost feel the weight of their eyes on his back, but his first loyalty would always be to his God. That was his purpose, and his purpose gave him meaning. It was why he kept pushing himself to keep going, even when things got hard—like today.
Eventually, he stood. Then, without a word, Sin turned and marched toward the Hall of Judgement. As he passed people, they stopped. Some turned to watch him pass. Others dropped their eyes to the ground, refusing to even look at him. And there, outside the main door, Sister Julie paced the length of a single bench. Her lips moved like she was offering her own prayers,and from the way she kept clenching her fist at her side, she was even more nervous than he was.
"Julie," Sin said when he was close enough.
She turned to him and sighed in relief. "I was so worried you'd oversleep, skip town, or do something else stupid. Thank God you're here."
"Where's Benedict?" he asked.
Julie pulled in a deep breath. "He is going to collect your witness. I've been asked to stand as your defense until he returns. We have everything set up for a data transfer if necessary. Sin, the bigger problem will be the questions."
"I can handle the questions," Sin assured her. "So let's do this and get it over with."
