Page 39 of Resist

But Sasha had told me everything I needed to know that day in the Situation Room, hadn’t she? She warned me that everyone was motivated by four things. I knew she was talking about the Calvernons, but I just failed to read between the lines and apply those same four motives to her. I opened my eyes, feeling my stomach churn as the smell of food invaded my senses. I felt sick.

Wes bumped my shoulder softly, and I turned to see furrowed brows and questioning eyes. “You okay?” I grimaced, but gave him a quick nod before I turned away from him.

“What about a gala?” Fisher’s voice weaseled in through my thoughts.

Who, what, when now? What was this about a gala?I tuned back into the room as Charles spoke up.

“Yes! Excellent idea, Gary. A gala would be a marvelous way to announce the engagement.”

A different woman spoke up. “We could set it out in two weeks. That would give us time to prepare.”

“Yes! Yes!” Charles exclaimed. His exuberance appeared genuine, but all I felt was more and more nausea.

What the hell was happening? What was going on now?

“Perhaps,” Fisher pipped in again, “we could have him propose to heratthe gala. It would be like a fairytale. The people would love it!”

Charles slammed his fist on the table, causing all the dishes to clatter. “Yes! A wonderful way to lift the spirits of the people.”

“It might even help to bring more people to our cause,” Sasha added.

Oh my god…they were talking about me, aboutus. This whole thing was going to be some giant show, a giant parade of propaganda. Not only was I going to have to go through with getting engaged, but I was going to have to do it in front of an audience. I just…I couldn’t do this anymore. I felt my stomach twist and turn. And this time, I was pretty sure I was going to throw up.

“Excuse me.” I barely got the words out as I pushed my chair away from the table and left the room.

22: Optics

Iwish there was an award for making it to the bathroom on time before puking all over the place. Because if there was, I would have nailed it with an incredible photo finish. In trying to make it back to my room, I found a random guest bathroom in the hallway, not too far from the dining room. There wasn’t much in my stomach to begin with, but it settled the nausea and brought relief. I sat on the stone floor, cradling the porcelain throne as sweat peppered my brow and the torrential queasiness calmed at last. Heavy breaths fell out of me as my body trembled from the experience. But it settled too, and I finally felt strong enough to stand.

I turned around and found the pedestal sink waiting for me. Turning on the water, I felt the cool, soothing liquid flow over my cupped hands. Bringing it to my lips, I sipped it, swished it around vigorously, and then spat out the aftertaste. With the taste gone, I sipped more water, but this time, I drank it greedily to soothe the acidic burn in my throat and stomach. Finally, Isplashed the liquid over my face, feeling it wash away the sweat. It felt good, and a sense of calm finally came over me.

What did I get myself into?I had slipped right into the lion’s den, played right into Sasha’s hand. My brother’s life in exchange for her victory and power grab. The joke was going to be on her though, when I disappeared with Jacob and she was left answering to the North. That brought a smirk to my face. Then, I was reminded why I got so sick in the first place.

A gala.

A big show.

It was one thing to quietly play the part, but it was a totally different thing to waltz around a region, being shown off as the future doting wife of the First Son of the North. The wife to…

Wes.

My stomach churned, threatening once again. That was the bigger problem, wasn’t it? It was one thing to quietly go along, to remain a shadow in the background. But it was a totally different story to parade around with Wes. To make him think…

No.He wouldn’t believe it anyway. He didn’t want to marry me any more than I wanted to marry him. He made that clear enough. I was his brother’s burden, laid down on his lap without his consent or desire.

No, he didn’t want to marry me. I would be doing him a favor in the end. Giving him an out. I breathed in deeply as I splashed my face with more water, allowing the cool liquid to soothe my soul once again. It was all for the best.

Taking in a deep breath, I turned off the water and grabbed a hand towel hanging from a ring on the wall to dry my face.Do I go back to dinner, or do I call it a night?The mere thought of food sent my insides turning again. Clearly, my body had a strong preference for calling it a night. With one last shaky breath, I replaced the towel, put my hand on the knob, and opened the bathroom door.

“There you are.”

I jumped, startled by the person I least expected to see. Satin dress, pearls, golden locks, hazel eyes—Marissa. “Jesus,” my hand flew to my chest, covering my thundering heart. “You scared me.”

Her face remained stoic, elegant, clean. No emotion peeked through, no hint at what thoughts circled her mind. “I apologize. My intent wasn’t to startle you.”

“Yeah, sure. It’s fine,” I breathed out as I worked to steady myself. I decided this night needed to be over. I took several steps out of the bathroom and around the queen of the castle.

“You left the table so abruptly. Is everything all right?” Still no emotion. The words conveyed concern, but nothing displayed itself on her face.

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