That doesn’t mean the poem is any good. It doesn’t rhyme.
3) The Shell arrived, and I honestly I think hate you. I’m pure male aggression, and you expect me to pass for a chick? As if anyone will be dumb enough to believe such a farce.
4) Myriad sent Killian. I’ve seen him skulking around in the shadows, watching the girl. Permission to slaughter?
TROIKA
From: L_N_3/19.1.1
To: A_P_5/23.43.2
Subject: Permission Gr... Denied! (Admit it. Your little-girl heart skipped a beat.)
You know our laws as well as I do. And what is at the heart of our second-most-important decree? Personal vendettas must be set aside for the good of the people. You are one of our people.
Do your job. Nothing else matters.
MYRIAD
From: K_F_5/23.53.6
To: P_B_4/65.1.18
Subject: My New Assignment
Hot and crazy, just the way I like ’em. Consider Tenley Lockwood bagged and tagged.
Might Equals Right!
Killian Flynn
MYRIAD
From: P_B_4/65.1.18
To: K_F_5/23.53.6
Subject: Show Some Respect!
You will speak of the girl with deference, or you won’t speak of her at all.
I’m already close to pulling you from this assignment, Mr. Flynn. In fact, I have no idea why I allowed the Generals to convince me you can do what no one else has managed to do. You’re too young, and your methods for success have always been inappropriate. But not this time! Persuade the girl to make covenant with us, but keep your pants zipped while you do it. And do not fail. We need her.
Might Equals Right!
Madame Pearl Bennett
MYRIAD
From: K_F_5/23.53.6
To: P_B_4/65.1.18
Subject: Fail? Not in This Lifetime <—See What I Did There?
You’ve never cared about my methods before, only the end result. What’s changed? What’s so important about this girl? If you’ve got inside info, do me a solid and share with the rest of the class.
And just so you know, we don’t need anyone. We’ve never been stronger, and we outnumber the Troikans two to one. Also, this girl is basically an “it.” When she dies, she’ll just be one more cog in our wheel. But don’t you worry your pretty little head. I’ll sign her—my way. I always do.
In other news, Troika sent Archer. I’m going to cut off his limbs and beat him to Second-death with them.
MYRIAD
From: P_B_4/65.1.18
To: K_F_5/23.53.6
Subject: NO!
Control your temper until you’ve signed the girl. Afterward, I’ll use my highest pair of heels to pin Archer down, and you can flay his skin to wear as a coat, if that’s what you desire. Have I made myself clear? Do not engage. Not yet!
And the girl is so much more than an “it” and a “cog.” Everyone is! But this girl...one day, she’ll be your boss. She’ll be both our bosses. If I were you, I’d be careful how I treated her.
MYRIAD
From: K_F_5/23.53.6
To: P_B_4/65.1.18
Subject: Sorry, but You’re NOT Me
What you are? Too cute. Imagine me wincing in embarrassment for you as I say: I don’t actually care about your permission. Consider my last message an FYI.
And you know better than most I treat my bosses the same way I treat everyone else. If you don’t like it, Madame, you can absolutely reassign me. I have nothing to lose. I’m guessing you have plenty.
MYRIAD
From: P_B_4/65.1.18
To: K_F_5/23.53.6
Subject: Nothing to Lose?
How about something to gain? Sign the girl, and I’ll give you what you’ve always wanted. Your mother’s name and where to find her.
I’ve been told history is written by survivors,
but I know that isn’t always true.
My name is Tenley Lockwood and very soon, I’ll be dead.
This is my story—but my end is only the beginning.
“You are better off Unsigned than a slave to Troikan law.”
—Myriad
I’ve been locked inside the Prynne Asylum—where happiness comes to die—for three hundred and seventy-eight days. (Or nine thousand and seventy-two hours.) I know the exact time frame, not because I watched the sun rise and set in the sky, but because I mark my walls in blood every time the lights in the good-girls-gone-bad wing of the facility turn on.
There are no windows in the building. At least, none that I’ve found. And I’ve never been allowed outside. None of the inmates have. To be honest, I don’t even know what country we’re in, or if we’re buried far underground. Before being flown, driven, shipped or dropped here, we were heavily sedated. Wherever we are, though, it’s bone-deep cold beyond the walls. Every day, hour, second, our air is heated.
I’ve heard friends and enemies alike ask the staff for details, but the response has always been the
