“And killing the heir?” It’s not my place to question an order, so I won’t. But I need to voice my concerns somewhere, and who better to do that with than the man who trained me to replace him.
“A bigger mistake.” He fiddles with the toothpick, never completely facing me.
“The Hand will find out.” My voice is steady, all things considered, but war rages in my mind.
“He will,” he says. His voice holds no fear, just certainty.
“And when he does?” I shift on my heels, following his focus.
The shadows fill me with a sense of urgency and pride. They stir some long-suppressed center in my brain,sparking a need to fulfill my duty. For these shadows are a reflection of who we are, and bathing in them gives us strength.
“The Hand’s loyalty will be tested.”
“How could a father remain loyal, after we kill his son?” Not all who stay behind the Veil hold its values as dear as my own father. The prestige a title carries won’t outweigh a transgression of this magnitude.
“Most men wouldn’t.” Ghost reaches for the brown canvas bag beside him. He pulls it over his lap and undoes the zip, but doesn’t expose the contents. “That’s what makes it a test.”
“Why him?” I ask.
“You know the rule about questions, Initiate,” he says.
“I do, but the logic is flawed.”
He turns to me, but I’m not greeted by a face. Instead, what peers back is the Ghost’s blank ivory visage. Simple shapes, a nose, a mouth, and eyes, but uncanny in design.
For that’s what we are—faces in the crowd. Almost human, but not quite.
Ghosts.
“Is that so?” I can’t read his expression behind the mask. His voice alone isn’t enough to indicate what’s going through his mind. I might as well be talking to the trees, hoping to find what emotion runs through their rings.
“I’m an Initiate. I’m meant to study under you, under my father, yet how can I learn without questions?” I stand my ground, no matter the consequences.
“Well done,” he says. I’d like to imagine he’s smiling behind the mask. “This right here? This is how I know you’re ready.”
Confusion furrows my brow.
“Free-thinkers are rare behind the Veil. It’s complacency that keeps the flock loyal. Men like us can’t afford to follow like sheep. A long time ago, the Head, Hand, Heart and Spirit believed the same. The tip of our society was radical in nature but wise in tactics…” he trails off before spilling too much information.
“That’s why I fear what the future may hold.”
“Fear?” I never thought I’d hear those words uttered by a Ghost.
“The Veil’s duty is to bring light to the dark. We…” he gestures between us to signify the Ghost. “Maintain the ecosystem. Set the balance when it’s at fault. And where the Head has brought Midnite City out of the dark, imbalance will follow. Your task tonight is proof.”
He pauses, nods a few times and then continues.
“Speaking of your task,” Ghost shifts back to business. “Five targets, all young enough to indulge in this foolish act, old enough to know better.”
No more questions about the intentions of our leaders then. Now is the time to listen, ingest, and execute.
“They call themselvesThe Eye.Their choice to follow our naming conventions means that they know the Veil exists, but they haven’t gotten more than a taste of it.” Ghost shoves a hand under the brown bag’s flap, his eyes returning to the trees. “This stunt, and others like it before, are meant to catch our attention.”
“What could they want with the Veil?” My eyes narrow as my protective instinct kicks in.
“Not the Veil. The Ghost,” he says. “For the longest time it didn’t matter. They kept themselves hidden and secretive, the way a society should do. But, like us, the Eye is ritualistic by nature. They’ve spent years toying with new ideas on how to lure a Ghost out of the shadows. We’ve ignored them, until tonight.”
And now we’re ignoring them no longer, because of the girl…
