Page 78 of The Honor Society

Axel curses behind me. “How fucking far does this go, Famine.”

“As far as you imagine.” Mom lifts her chin. “And I have no regrets in using my seat, my power, my influence to bring down everyone in power who allowed Edward to abuse his!”

Realization dawns. “You did all of this because of him?”

“Oh please, it’s not all about him! Look at the bigger picture! I wanted to protect you. The minute he found out what family I was from he tried to trap me in that house, he did horrible things while they looked the other way, the amount of people listed in The Dean’s List, incriminated, myself included, he recorded them expecting them to move to The Ledger, he was attempting to stack everyone against us.” She looks away. “And then you go and fall for the executioner of the entire Society!”

“Axel isn’t an executioner!” I argue.

Mom actually laughs. Who is this person? Seriously. “Sweetheart, open your eyes, that’s exactly what a Proctor does.”

I shake my head. “He holds people accountable. There’s a difference in the monsters.”

Whispering commences around us, hopefully because I’m making a good point.

“Then we’re the same. Since I too hold people accountable. What else do you think Famine does but starve people for information until they’re dry? Remove options? Hmm?” She shakes her head. “War attacks, Death ends, Conquest takes, and Famine? It deprives.”

The way she says it has Famine almost looking like the most terrifying of all The Horsemen. The dark horse if you will. You know what you’re getting with every single one of them, except Famine wants you to suffer before they end you.

“I didn’t force Edward to hurt and kill people. I didn’t make him trade himself for valuable information. I just stole every comfortable place had left to hide.” She lifts a shoulder. “His money? Sure, I took some of it. His allies? Absolutely. His protection? Well, that goes without saying. I bled him dry little by little and waited in the shadows.”

Axel curses under his breath while everyone around us is still, watching, waiting to see what her next move will be and what I’m going to do to counter it. This is where I count. This is where I don’t back down. This is where I’m sure what Axel thought was betrayal is saving, protecting, and stepping up.

I lick my lips. “And in the end, Edward was killed.”

“His fault.” Mom shrugged. “The Proctor merely collected a debt owed and finished the job as an executioner does.” She glares in Axel’s direction. “I spent my entire life making sure nobody ever owned me again, and then I watched my precious daughter hand herself willingly to the most dangerous man in this organization so forgive me for being a bit salty and pissed off.”

“Thank you.” Axel mutters.

“It wasn’t a compliment.” She hisses.

“Pity, I took it for one.” The man has the audacity to wink at her. I could both strangle and kiss him.

I walk over to him and grab his gloved hand. “You’re wrong though.” I squeeze it tight. “I’m not his, and he’s not mine. He marked me to protect me from people he thought were hunting me—you apparently—nobody owns us. We belong to ourselves and somehow every single time we still keep choosing each other.”

Axel turns to me then, slowly, his eyes bright with admiration. I want to kiss him so bad. I want to tell him I’m sorry for making him doubt me for even a fraction of a second.

I need to press forward. I drop his hand and turn towards my mom one last time, my steps are measured as they walk towards her seat—my seat. “You taught me something though without even realizing it.”

“Oh?” She’s looking between me and Axel and then overhead at the exit, she knows what happens if I take her seat. She knows it’s the end. And that The Proctor and The Chancellor will pass judgement for her sins. Can I bare it? It’s either her or me. It’s right and wrong. There is no middle ground. This is why I could never be The Proctor, the crown is too heavy, the sword too swift. “What’s that?”

“Hunger.” I lick my lips and take another step. “Makes people desperate.” I take another step, then another. “And eventually people either give into its demands, or learn how to fucking feed themselves.” I turn to The Chancellor. “I move to vote. I take the seat as Famine. And Jenner takes his seat as War. It’s time for new blood to rise and old wounds to heal.”

“Famine first.” Axel slowly nods to The Chancellor. “Honor Society code states the first must be decided before the second vote is brought forward.”

“All in favor of Famine’s heir taking the seat?”

“Approved.” Death.

“Approved.” Conquest.

Axel stares down War. The man looks away and then very slowly stands. “Approved as my final acting vote.”

Holy shit he’s stepping down.

“On one condition.” War smirks at Axel. “A debt has now been paid.”

Axel grins. “Of course.” He holds out his hand to me. I hand him The Ledger. “In full.”