Tap Sapiens, page 13
part #1 of Reign of Sapiens' Evil Series
This left Brandi in a state of half obliged, half self-imposed solitude. She didn’t want to bother her friends and they didn’t insist too much either when she had rejected their help. But she was sure in her heart that, the awkwardness of the moment was fleeting and the furthest thing away from ill-intentioned. So, with nerves overflowing from her while doing most of the work alone, Brandi got ready for the highly acclaimed event.
The Winter Ball was a tradition of the military. Admittedly, it did change minimally every few decades or so. But the purpose of the occasion to welcome holidays and in preparation before each year drew to a close, remained. Since the Supremo had ascended to the top of the government while having the Confederacy to establish itself as a force to be reckoned with across the globe, a few liberties were allowed. That government clearly aimed at the satisfaction of a minority of people and besides the privileged rich families, the army was the Confederacy’s spoiled child. This meant that almost all officers got to enjoy too many luxuries.
For example, basically the one dress code for the ball was to include the badges and service ribbons in order to represent one’s rank and past military achievements. What's more, the officers were allowed to experiment reasonably to their hearts’ content. Most men decided to stick with the traditional, classic formal suit of the army uniform that had been used nearly in all military functions. This perfectly allowed them to flaunt every badge and ribbon they had ever won. Women, on the other hand, were more rational yet creative and felt that they didn’t need all those military decorations to demonstrate their authority, meaning that they gave life to the party, simply with the most diverse suits and dresses in all colors and textures.
Brandi in particular, was truly content with her personal choice for the night. Her dress was a light blue color, the fabric fell delicately around her and around the shoulder that it was just strong enough to hold her rank insignia of Second Lieutenant. She was adding a few last-minute touches to her soft yet glittery make-up when a knock sounded at her door. For an instant, she felt like she couldn’t breathe. She was alone, ignorant of Sara’s plans for the night. And outside the door of her room was presumably, no one other than Daniel O’Reilly. He was the son of the Supremo and that made their situation worse than just inconvenient. He was the General of the fort as well and that would surely draw unwanted attention. In the army, it was customarily rare for a couple to be formed by people of different ranks, let alone a General with one of the lowest-ranked officers. For a moment, Brandi was perturbed by the previous memory of a Sergeant delivering a message on behalf of Danny, maybe that was what waiting for her on the other side of her bedroom door.
Bad for her nerves, but good for her heart perhaps, it turned out that Brandi opened the door to reveal the one and only General O’Reilly. Danny was there, looking as handsome as ever, standing firm before her with a charming smile in place. He was wearing a traditional army suit, but this one was unique as he would be the only General present in the ball. No one in that place shared the same awards as he did while genetics be damned, as Brandi was sure that no one else in the world could have the exact same eyes as Daniel O’Reilly. All these seemed to produce butterflies in Brandi’s stomach. Somehow, it made her chuckle. She rapidly covered her mouth with a hand, but the lovely sound had escaped her red-colored lips.
“What’s so funny? Is something wrong?” he questioned in a soft voice, tilting down his head and quickly looking all over his clothes in search of an imperfection.
Brandi walked towards him, certain in her steps and after standing carefully on the tips of her toes while resting her hands on his chest, she leaned in to softly kiss his cheek.
“Nothing. I’m just excited, let’s go.”
With the way her eyes sparkled and the way she took his hand, so confident and determined, now he understood what she had meant. Excited wasn’t exactly the right word. But if he couldn’t describe how he felt for her, a laugh was deemed fitting enough. His laughter was deep and it carried certain tenderness aimed exclusively at her. It was so magical that it seemed enough to lift them, to move them through walls, closed doors and judgmental crowds until they were at the center of the ball, unconcerned by the looks and the opinions that clouded the air, only attentive to the eyes and every move of each other.
Their date didn’t exactly go by undisturbed. Celebrating or not, Danny was the General of the fort and this came with plenty of tedious responsibilities. Everybody wanted to talk to him, every man wanted a handshake and every woman wanted a dance with the General himself. Brandi was unfamiliar with the majority of the officers, so she had prepared herself to get acquainted with the fancy drinks and snacks served, even visiting the washroom a redundant amount of times longer than possibly necessary, just to pass the time. She had it all planned beforehand. A few sacrifices in order to spend some quality time with the closest thing to Prince Charming on the planet.
Just as if he had read her mind, Danny showed up that night more than ready to exceed his girl’s expectations. For the first few minutes, Brandi had been thrown off by the close presence of Colonel Evans, always within an arm’s reach of Danny. However, she quickly caught on to the understanding that the two friends had worked out for Danny to refer all the irksome interruptions to his right-hand man. Brandi was delighted to realize each one of Danny’s tricks. No one could stop them from dancing if they were still on the dance floor. No one could demand answers from him if they always caught him eating, his mouth full of delicious treats from the party and being the polite man he was, he would kindly send any interruptions away. And so on. Each time he turned back to Brandi, his smile was wide yet apologetic, even if the interruption lasted no more than a handful of seconds. His blue eyes seemed to dance with the lights whenever she granted a smile equally as bright.
“Let’s see. That one over there, with the deep frown … he peed his pants on his first mission. Do you see the girl beside him? She was sentenced to a week of solitary confinement because she had punched a Sergeant that laughed hysterically at her unladylike sneeze.” Danny was commenting randomly while Brandi was struggling to contain her laughter beside him.
Somewhere along the way of introducing Brandi to the senior officers, Danny had fallen into entertaining them with the retelling of certain bizarre military stories.
“The guy that looks intimidating because of the way he walks? It’s because of an injury when he accidentally shot his own leg during a practice. This girl with the curls was his girlfriend at that time. She dumped him later on and he almost entered the wrong toilet to commit suicide thanks to the real embarrassment but ultimately, couldn’t pull it off.”
Danny continued to talk until a real laugh made its way loudly out of Brandi’s mouth. She blushed at her own reaction, but he found it lovely. He strived to make her so happy for the emotion to be uncontainable as often as possible. Still, there was a lingering sensation of fear and uncertainty. It was like walking on a tightrope with the eyes blindfolded but a smile on the lips.
“Please, Brandi … one more dance.” Danny spoke and directed a wink at her.
“Danny, I’m tired … the party is about to end.” she complained in response.
“All the more reason!”
“You’re such a child!”
Brandi was certain that Danny was a real barrel of fun while he had lost count of how many times they had been laughing like crazy that night. But he wasn’t complaining if that was to be the theme for their night. It seemed fitting to find amusement in their situation. And then, the party really began dying down. Most people attended it as part of the social tactics, to climb metaphorical ladders, call in some favor and seek additional privileges. But with the General refusing to be bothered, the environment was layered with confusion and fidgety figures. Not Brandi and Danny, of course. They had made the most of their time together and their actions along with words complemented each other in perfect harmony. Tender touches and truthful confessions cemented a set of emotions that filled their hearts pleasantly.
“It’s a slow song, my favorite.” he whispered, as he wrapped his hands around her waist while she placed hers around his neck.
“I guess it’s because you’re not a great dancer and this is relatively easy.”
“You have grown way too comfortable around your superiors, Miss Perry.” Danny teased her and in response, she smiled and found a place for her head to rest on his chest.
“Do you like dancing?” he was eager to know.
“Yes, I’ve always liked it. When I was a little girl, it was my favorite thing to do – besides reading.” she answered, content where she was while her fingers were absent-mindedly playing with her rings behind his head.
Danny mulled the information over. He could picture a little girl with dark hair dancing around her house, stumbling over books she had read earlier than she should have.
“When I was a kid … I was too curious for my own good.” Danny chuckled at the memories that visited his mind, “I learned to cook that way, sneaking into the kitchen. I’ve loved it ever since.”
“Back then, I didn’t like vegetables. I’m still not very fond of most salads.”
Brandi pulled back from her comfortable pause, no longer tucked under Danny’s chin and subsequently grinned at his beaming blue eyes. For a minute or so, their sincere confessions and heartfelt stories continued. Brandi found a way to empathize Danny’s life. He grew up without a mother and his father had been the single greatest thing in his life. Still, he was just a man, following a predetermined career and trying to live up to monumental expectations. He was only a mere mortal. Brandi only had to see if it was possible for her to take the edge off the terrifying connotations surrounding Danny’s life. However, being enamored of his voice and desperate to believe their connection was imperishable once again, Brandi’s brain worked too fast for her own benefit and before she knew it, she had told Danny that she grew up in a middle-class family, and that her father had been an honored policeman who inspired her to willingly join the army.
Her heart was racing, doubling the beat of the song, bleeding the lies she had spoken and getting faster each passing beat, because a second ago, Danny had been resting his forehead tenderly against hers and now, he was leaning in towards her lips. Her mind, frenzied for an instant and pleasant calmness the next, was turned upside down when their lips finally met. They were barely touching, disbelieving the achievement that had finally taken place. But after waiting so long, after the pushing and pulling, the magical dreams, the warm conversations, the bubbling emotions, all these were easily translated into a pristine rhythm, a perfect kiss.
The song went on and the watch on Danny’s wrist continued to count the passing seconds until they pulled away. Brandi couldn’t contain her smile or the blush that had embraced her entire face. She resolved to hide again against his neck.
“Thank you for tonight, Danny … it was beautiful.”
Brandi whispered, on time with the end of the song. The finality of it all was what made something within Danny’s heart snap wide open. It was the awakening of a sour memory that he couldn’t restrain.
♠ ♥ ♣ ♦
“Well, that was a successful night, if I do say so myself.”
It was the self-assured voice of Danny’s father, Frank O’Reilly, Major General of the ASC. He was an ambitious man whose charisma and bold behavior had opened for him endless doors of opportunity in the military and subsequently in politics. He had his aim right at the top post of the Confederacy and every day, that future seemed drawing closer and closer.
“A party? That’s work?” Danny replied skeptically.
He was exhausted after a night of meeting countless people in suits, from the army to big companies, while Danny couldn’t wrap his mind around why it was necessary at all. Danny made the effort to understand, nonetheless, because he knew that was certainly what his father would have expected of him. Mr. O’Reilly was relentless in his teaching methods. He walked towards his son and held his young face in his rough hands, affectionately but firm.
“Listen, Danny. You and I, we are not here to ask questions. We are here to pave the way for ourselves. I’m doing a good job so far and I’m leaving behind a trail for you to follow, son. Don’t disappoint me and don’t lose sight of your goals. Stay the course, attend the parties and the meetings, make new acquaintances and allies, not friends nor lovers, remain loyal to our Confederacy, and one day you’ll make me proud.”
CHAPTER
11
“Don’t you eat?”
“When there’s food …”
T HE DAMAGED DOOR TO THE ROOFTOP of one of the buildings at Fort SC1902 was pushed aside carefully and three pairs of feet moved slowly and hesitantly forward to the meeting point. Brandi had her back to her friends once they arrived and when she started talking, she didn’t turn around just yet. It wasn’t a deliberate dramatic gesture – it was a small mercy she granted herself. Don’t look them in the eyes if you’re not ready. No matter what, don’t let yourself cry – Brandi had told herself that morning.
At 7am sharp, every soldier at the fort was called for an announcement. Colonel Evans spoke frostily in front of hundreds of foggy heads and explained that General O’Reilly had been summoned to the Confederacy headquarters for an emergency meeting. In the absence of their General, the fort would be welcoming General Rodriguez – at which point Brandi stopped listening already. She couldn’t care less about the twists and turns of the army and the damned ranks. In her heart, the facts came loud and clear: Danny had given her a perfect night and a kiss more powerful than a promise, just to leave without a goodbye, just to break it all again.
“Girls, I’ve had enough time to rack my brain today and the only logical and possible conclusion to my train of thought is that it’s time for action. It’s all that matters, right? Do what we are supposed to do …” – Brandi’s voice wavered and unable to differentiate between hurt and rage, she then focused on the latter and turned around to command her team once and for all – “Abby, I remembered two weeks ago, you had told us you wanted to fight and I lied when I said, I had a few ideas. Well, I can’t make up lies anymore. The ideas are here, we are going to make them happen soon and we are going to fight for what we believe. Since that day besides a few hiccups, we’ve only attended one more mission. Pretty uneventful, if you ask me. Guarding some trucks as they made their way through a desolated city.”
“Mary, correct me if I’m wrong but the city was empty because everybody had died, possibly due to starvation, and the trucks we protected were full of food.”
“You’re correct.”
Mary replied confidently, not only because Brandi was sure of the answer, but because as she gained momentum in her speech, she let go of everything but the determination that had brought her to the military in the first place. It was noticeable and inspiring.
“Well, you’re in Intelligence … I believe you should be able to pull this off. Now, listen to me very closely. I want you to get us into the system of this fort, put the three of us together in one of the trucks for the next mission and make sure it’ll pass by a city that is not entirely dead yet.”
After getting closer to Mary while describing her plan, Brandi then proceeded to take a step back in order to make eye contact with Cate and Abby as well.
“We’re sabotaging the mission, hijacking the truck and letting the food fall into the hands of the needy ones. Any questions?”
“Aren’t you bringing Clark with us?” Cate questioned, genuinely curious.
The mention of Sara rubbed a sour spot in Brandi’s heart. The reminder of pain and struggle beyond Brandi herself fueled her to do what she had to do, “It’s best for her to stay out of this. I won’t bring her any trouble.”
In that very last sentence, the breath that came out of Brandi stole a fraction of her resolve. The girls in front of her got to see their hurt friend that lived inside the figure of a leader they chose to follow. For a second, the four of them wondered if they’d ever be able to brace themselves for the perilous battle ahead when its casualties had weighed way too heavily on their shoulders, in the form of past memories or present-day struggles.
“I have a question.” Abby spoke timidly, raising her hand while amusing her friends with the girly action, “Are you okay?”
The query nearly broke the last of Brandi’s walls. But at that point, she was more stubborn than she was in love, which wasn’t even the way she’d describe her feelings.
“Yes, I am okay. And I’ll be perfectly fine. He has hurt me, and I wish I had him by my side, but he’s not one of my priorities now. So, it’s time to move on, isn’t it?”
Although Brandi’s voice remained steady, she allowed her feet to take her forward and into the awaiting and caring arms of her friends, somewhat a reliable source of comfort for the team in the upcoming war.
♠ ♥ ♣ ♦
The actual day of the mission was a mixture of almost unbearable tension as well as unparalleled exhilaration. There were too many details to be taken care of. There was the risk of interference in communication with each other while they were in the company of their peers. Still, the group trusted each other to know with only the briefest of looks if everything was moving according to plan, or if there was a sudden threat transpiring along with the need to neutralize its severity.
