Going Down in Flames (Going Down in Flames #1)(84)

“I never kept my relationship to the Westgates a secret. Zavien knew Lillith was my older sister, and you knew I represented Jaxon from the start.”

“He’s an overindulged brat. I thought he had a lawyer on call. I didn’t know you were family.”

Merrick straightened his tie. “Family is a bit of an overstatement. My sister is eight years my senior. We were never close. She lives an isolated life. Jaxon sees me more as a lawyer than an uncle.”

Since Bryn never had any extended family, this argument didn’t make sense to her. She glared at Merrick but didn’t know how to put her accusations into words.

Zavien took her hand and pulled her back down onto the couch. “We need Merrick, and I think we need the overindulged brat to attend the Directorate meeting with you.”

Bryn turned to Clint. “I can’t take any more. If I asked nicely, would you shift and bite my head off?”

Clint pretended to think about her request. “That might upset Zavien.” He threw her a candy bar. “Try some chocolate therapy.”

“Being a dragon sucks.” Bryn ripped open the wrapper and slumped back on the couch.

“Why would Jaxon need to go with her?” Ivy asked.

“He’ll act as a witness. Bryn’s word alone may not be enough, given her mother’s lack of credibility,” Merrick said.

“My mother—”

Zavien pushed the candy bar into her mouth, cutting off her tirade. She growled at him as she chewed.

“You should take Medic Williams, too. She’ll provide appropriate documentation,” Mr. Stanton said.

She managed to swallow the candy bar, but not her words. “Why in the hell would I lie about being poisoned? That’s ridiculous.”

“Some on the Directorate might think it’s a ploy to gain sympathy for the Revisionists,” Merrick said.

“Clint.” Bryn held her hand out. “More candy bars.”

He threw two over in quick succession. She finished chewing the first bar while she unwrapped the second.

Merrick raised a brow. “Are we free to continue?”

The chocolate-covered toffee melting in her mouth helped her tamp down the instinct to flip him off.

“Good, you’re maintaining control. I’ll make an appointment for us to see the Directorate tomorrow.”

Nooooooo. “The camping trip is tomorrow.”

Zavien squeezed her shoulders. “I know you’ll hate missing this, but there will be other camping trips.”

Like she gave a rat’s ass about camping. “You can’t go camping. You have to come with me.”

With him, she could do anything.

Without him, she felt vulnerable.

“It’ll be all right,” Zavien said. “Merrick will take care of you.”

She wanted to pout and whine. Merrick was a poor substitute for someone who cared about her. She had total faith in Zavien. Merrick’s trust was newly earned. For all she knew, this could be an elaborate game played by the Directorate.

“Bryn.” Merrick’s voice was kind. “No harm will come to you while you’re in my care.”

“Promise you’ll never leave me alone with a Directorate member.”

“You have my word. Now, I need to know more about you. Besides your propensity for eating obscene amounts of food and your use of inappropriate language, what’s special about you?”

She considered the question. “I can produce fire and ice. I use Quintessence to change my coloring. I can outfly the Blues.”

“Is she leaving anything out?” Merrick asked the room at large.

Mr. Stanton pointed to his hand. “I scratched myself with a paper clip. She healed the wound. She wants to be a medic.”

Merrick sucked in his breath. “That’s it. We’ll present you as someone who’s grateful to be allowed into the Institute. You want to give something back to the community by becoming a medic.”

Zavien laughed first.

Bryn snorted.

Ivy and Clint joined them.

“It’s a good plan.” Merrick sounded offended.

“It would be good plan if I could pretend to be grateful.” Bryn ticked items off on her fingers. “Since I’ve arrived at the Institute, I’ve been called a mongrel, told I have undesirable genes, been attacked by a classroom teacher, traded numerous insults with Jaxon, and I’ve been poisoned. What idiot would be grateful for all that?”

“An idiot who wants to be protected from future attempts on her life would play the part of a grateful young lady who’s seeking help from her betters.”

Right. “There aren’t enough candy bars in the world for me to play that part. If you’re so superior, think of a different strategy.”

Merrick crossed his arms. “Fine. They forced you to come here. Now it’s their job to protect you. If you live to graduation, you want to become a medic.”

“That’s much more realistic.” Bryn licked a smudge of chocolate off her finger. She couldn’t believe she was going to speak to the freaking Directorate. “When will this festival of fun begin?”

“Be ready by seven tomorrow morning.” Merrick exited the room.

Mr. Stanton said his good-byes and left.

Bryn lay back on the carpet and stared at the ceiling. “Tomorrow I face the Directorate. The man who’s supposed to help me is related to the man who probably poisoned me. My day is going to suck.”