Chapter 60: Finger in Every Pie
Not long afterwards, the governors were informed about the incident in Jeed. That evening, another emergency meeting was called. The governors and selected leaders from the Business Sector and the House of Divine Knowledge gathered at the Carvaress Head Office meeting room.
They sat themselves around two tables that had been joined to accommodate the number attending.
‘We seem to have these meetings far too often,’ said Collingswaggle.
‘It is obvious why,’ said John. ‘The new governors’ insistence on rolling back “rights” has demoralised the population.’
The leaders of the House of Divine Knowledge nodded in agreement.
‘Yet again, you prove to be the dumbest in the room,’ said Collingswaggle firmly as he pressed down hard on the table. ‘Do you expect us to believe that the Ripe specialist set fire to her workplace, killed the chief scientist, and then committed suicide because she didn’t have cake for breakfast?’
John was about to respond but decided against it when he noticed Lily’s angry glare.
‘Let’s not play politics but keep with the facts,’ said Pardi. ‘Everything that has happened over the past couple of weeks is connected. Sapes are fighting Sapes because they have gone crazy. The craziness has been caused by the contamination of the water. As I have previously explained, the contamination is caused by small particles being blown into the water supply and sea. In Jeed, an employee went crazy for the same reasons. Jeed is one of the few regions that has open access to an external Agriculture Zone. The Agriculture Zone ends at the wastelands. Contamination can easily enter the Agriculture Zone and can easily enter a region such as Jeed. This could be directly through the water or even the fruits they eat. Maybe we should consider a ban on the food they export until the problem is resolved.’
‘I would like to add further to that statement,’ said Nettor, a senior manager for Ripe Company. ‘The employee in question, Mikayla, had recently spent several days in the Southern Agriculture Zone. It was reported by many Ripe employees that her behaviour had changed on her return.’
‘Given this information, how did Ripe Company respond?’ probed Collingswaggle.
‘Senior management was only aware a few hours ago when we accessed reports in response to the incident,’ replied Nettor.
‘What are you going to do now that it has become apparent that your employees are a threat to society?’ asked Collingswaggle.
‘We have already started a thorough investigation into the events of that day and the ones leading up to it,’ replied Nettor.
‘You’ll do better than that,’ said Lily. ‘The region will be locked down indefinitely. All your findings will be submitted to your region’s representatives and passed on to the governors.’
Nettor nodded in acknowledgement.
Lily turned to Pardi. ‘Any update on your proposed solution?’
‘We are making great progress,’ replied Pardi. ‘It’s ready for Sapien trials. I’m just rounding up the test subjects.’
‘The sooner, the better,’ said Lily. ‘Things are getting bad.’
‘I would like to offer praise to Ripe Company,’ said Pardi. ‘They have contributed several test subjects. This will greatly help me finalise and certify the solution for Sapien consumption.’
Nettor felt a little relieved. At least someone was showing him some support.
‘There is still the issue of the media statement,’ said Collingswaggle. ‘How much should we allow the media to relay to the public?’
‘The media’s job is to keep the public informed,’ said Pardi. ‘It is of utmost importance that the public be made aware of how dangerous this contamination problem has become.’
Everyone at the table nodded in agreement. He even had the support of the leaders of the House of Divine Knowledge. John was very unhappy with how the meeting was going but felt obliged to support what had been discussed.
That night, Lily was over at Pardi’s apartment. It was her final night in the Capital Region. The next day, she was returning to her home region of West. She was returning to campaign for the General Election. It was now just a few weeks away.
‘You really are committed to the greater good,’ said Lily to Pardi as they sat next to each other on the sofa.
‘I have always been,’ responded Pardi. ‘It’s sad, so few believe me.’
‘The way you do things is just so abhorrent,’ said Lily. ‘It makes it difficult for others to see the real good in you.’
‘I guess I need to work on my PR,’ said Pardi.
‘After the General Election, we can work on that together,’ said Lily as she kissed Pardi’s cheek. Pardi kissed her on the forehead.
He then got up and walked out on the balcony. He could see Jallelle sitting in the park, opposite the small pond.
‘It’s a beautiful night,’ he said as he turned to Lily.
‘Nothing like the Capital Region skyline,’ said Lily as she watched him from the sofa.
‘Come, join me?’ asked Pardi.
Lily smiled back at him. ‘I won’t be gone that long,’ she replied. ‘I won’t forget the view in such a hurry.’
‘Fine, spoil the romance,’ said Pardi in a disappointed tone.
‘I would have said, “That’s crazy,” just a few months ago,’ said Lily. ‘Now it’s not.’
She got up off the sofa to join Pardi on the balcony. Pardi put his arms around Lily. They both kissed.
Jallelle had seen Lily and Pardi on the balcony. She pulled out her phone and began filming them kissing. ‘You’ll regret the day you ever screwed me over, bitch,’ Jallelle said to herself.
The next morning, the twins went into the kitchen to make breakfast. Pardi and Lily were already at the breakfast table.
‘You’re here. In the morning!’ exclaimed Yassme as she looked at Lily in amazement.
‘We have something we want to tell you,’ said Lily to the twins.
‘Dad likes females again,’ said Yassmay.
‘Hahaha,’ laughed Pardi.
‘More than that,’ said Lily.
‘Are you getting married?’ asked Yassme. ‘You’ll be our mummy for real.’
‘Not quite,’ replied Lily.
‘Hardly sounds like news then,’ said Yassmay.
‘Your father and I are in a secret relationship,’ said Lily.
‘Sounds like code word for pretend, which is where we’ve been for the last few months,’ sighed Yassmay.
‘This is different,’ said Lily. ‘We can’t go public yet because of the General Election.’
‘Good point. If the public thought you were with Dad, they wouldn’t vote for you,’ said Yassme.
‘Not exactly. It would be a shock for them and could influence how they vote,’ replied Lily.
‘If they knew the real reason you were with Dad, they wouldn’t mind as much,’ said Yassmay.
‘What’s that?’ asked Lily.
‘Us,’ both girls replied simultaneously.
Lily and the twins hugged. Pardi grabbed another sausage as he chuckled.
About an hour later, Lily was on the express train to West Region. Three other representatives accompanied her. West was the largest southern region in Sapey. It was also the furthest west of the southern regions, hence the name. It was not far from the Capital Region. The express train could get them to West in just over six hours.
As the West Region was large, the public could elect four representatives instead of just two. The four representatives were Lily, who was currently holding a governor’s position; Jallelle; Leanne; and Jaslene. Jallelle had been a governor for almost a decade until the most recent Governors Election. Leanna and Jaslene were both in their first term as representatives. All four of them aligned themselves with the House of Divine Knowledge. This was not surprising, as West was home to the largest House of Divine Knowledge temple in Sapey, and many of its residents were devout followers.
The moment the train left, Lily approached Jallelle to attempt to resolve their dispute. ‘I want to say how sorry I am about the Governors Election,’ said Lily.
‘That was really mean of you,’ replied Jallelle.
‘I never meant to backstab you,’ said Lily. ‘It was purely a tactical move to maintain some order in Government before the General Election.’
‘In the heat of the moment, I wanted to rip your head off,’ said Jallelle. ‘Since then, I’ve had time to think about it. What you did was a huge mistake, but I believe you had good intentions.’
‘I admit, it was an error,’ said Lily.
‘I’m ready to move on,’ said Jallelle. ‘We have an election to win.’
Lily and Jallelle got up and hugged. For the rest of the journey, they discussed election strategies. Lily noticed how close Jallelle was with both Leanne and Jaslene. This did concern her a little. She did not want to be pushed out by these two young representatives and potentially future governors. She also knew that at a General Election, the team win was more important than individual dominance. She knew her position as governor would be safer if all four of them won seats as representatives. She also knew that she needed at least one of them to become a governor with her. Now that they had made amends, Jallelle looked like the best option.
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