Page 42 of Resist

Perfect.

I nodded and followed the woman down the left hall, took a turn, and then stopped in front of a door with a nameplate that read Sasha’s name. She knocked on the door and then opened it, leading me in.

“President De’vor, your guest.”

I stepped around the secretary, immediately catching Sasha’s gaze. Her face gave nothing away, but she smiled and dismissed the woman before returning her attention to me. The door clicked closed behind us.

“Mara, I wasn’t expecting you. But, then again, I suppose I should have.” She extended her hand out in front of her, motioning to a chair on the opposite side of her desk. “Would you like to sit? Or are you going to stand like the last time we met?”

I bristled.Why is it always a power struggle with her now?Ever since that day in the hospital when she promised to rescue Jacob, I constantly felt like I was playing the hardest game of chess ever, and my brother’s life was on the line. It wasunsettling, and I hated it. I wasn’t cut out for all of this political nonsense. And yet, here I was. Standing taller, I took the seat.

“Can I get you anything? Tea, perhaps?”

Food!

“Actually, can I get something to eat?”

Sasha’s eyes glimmered as she reached for the intercom box on her desk and pushed a button. “Lindy, can I get tea and a sandwich delivered to my office?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Thank you, Lindy.” Sasha let go of the button and returned her attention to me. “There. Lunch is on the way. Now, what do you need, child?”

Though her facial expressions convened warmth, something about her tone spoke of annoyance. I couldn’t blame her, really. Ididjust show up and interrupt whatever it was she was doing. I took a deep breath, trying to settle the growing angst inside me. “I want to start planning Jacob’s rescue. I’ve done my part, so it’s time to do yours.”

Sasha leaned back in her chair, lacing her fingers and placing them in her lap. “And what makes you think I haven’t done mine?”

Wait…did she? Did she already rescue him? “Uh…did you—”

“Of course not. You and I only just agreed to our bargain several days ago. That’s not nearly enough time to plan an operation of this magnitude.”

I was confused. “So…I don’t get your question then.”

Sasha sighed heavily, exasperation painted across the lines of her face. “Child, you jump from one assumption to the other, leaping from one theory to the next. It’s a bad habit to be in. If you ever expect to survive the political game you are stuck in, it would behoove you to stop following whimsy and stick to the facts.”

Just the mention of me living a life in the same political chaos I grew up in caused acid to climb up my throat. “Don’t get me wrong, but your question seems pretty simple to me. I want to talk about rescuing Jacob and you shoot back that you’ve already done it.”

“Wrong again, child. YouassumedI had done nothing to keep my end of the bargain in your brother’s rescue. Your assumption is wrong. That’s what I was pointing out. Never did I say I had alreadycompletedmy end of the bargain. You lack focus and attention. You need tolistento the words that are spoken andhearthe unspoken message without allowing your emotions to cloud the message you receive.”

“Well, sorry if I’m not used to deciphering cryptic half-truths—”

“I would think you would be an expert after living in the Presidential Palace.”

Oh, she had me there. “Okay, whatever, Sasha. I’m not here to do this with you. What have you done so far to save my brother?”

Silence fell between us for a moment until Sasha shifted in her seat. “I have people working on the mission as we speak. We’ve taken the information you retrieved from the Admin Job and have determined our best course of action. I hope to have the mission parameters defined, and the team selected and ready in less than four weeks.”

My annoyance lifted. Three to four weeks felt like ages to wait for my brother, especially since there was a gala I was going to have to attend before then. But, in reality, I knew less than four weeks was a quick turnaround for an operation like this. I had to give it to her…she was doing her part.

I nodded, relaxing a bit. “Okay, that’s…that’s great, actually. Thank you.”

Sasha tipped her head. “You’re welcome.”

“How soon will you pick the team?”

“Well, we have less than a month to get this mission underway. And to be successful, our team will need every second we can afford them to prepare. I hope to have them selected this week.”

This week?“Oh…” This was all a pleasant surprise. I didn’t know how to explain it. I came in here expecting to push Sasha into doing something to help my brother, only to discover that she was already on it. And then, not only was she on it, she was going to be selecting a team this week, which was great news. But then…why did I feel so weird about it?

---