The Scarlet Dagger (The Red Sector Chronicles, #1)

Chapter 25

The pea gravel driveway wound up a hill, snaking like a river toward the main gate guarding Sovereign McAllister's mansion. I'm not even sure "mansion" would have done it justice; "palace" was more like it. It was a two story, Southern plantation styled home. My mother had it built shortly following her victory in the Sovereign election. Upon the house's completion, I had dubbed it "the shrine to the South," figuring my mom still had some lingering feelings toward her roots. Lights shone on it, making it appear that much larger. Colossal columns rose toward the balcony, from which hung the American flag and the blue Pennsylvania flag. Long shadows stretched along the white panels and brick-laid front porch, complete with white wicker rocking chairs. The grounds looked surprisingly charming, considering the severity of the woman living inside.

Bitterness ate at me as I stared at the house. It had never been my home, not truly, though we'd lived there for little over a year. Home was where my father and brother had been, and now they were both gone, abandoning me to the cruel whims of my mother and the cut-throat game of politics she loved to play. Like my brother and I, our mother had a desire to battle. Sometimes I thought her race to outsmart her opponents was her way of getting her fix, since she wasn't on the actual battlefield anymore. My mother relished victory no matter how she attained it, through spilled blood or winning a competition.

Things were hectic within the nation's government right after the Eclipse. When elections rolled around for the new position of Sovereign, it didn't take my mother long to win the job. After the federal government decided to do away with governors in favor of creating a leadership role that relied more heavily on military power, my mother was a natural shoo-in, having come from a military background herself.

Leo and I were silent as we drove. A wrought iron gate surrounded the entire massive property, with its immaculate, sprinkler-system-fed lawns and sharply trimmed hedges. Leo pulled to a stop at the clearance gate, where a man dressed from head to toe in a red military uniform waited inside a glass structure.

Seeing the Scarlet Guard again gave me chills. There was something unnatural and foreign about them, from their big bucket helmets that completely covered their faces – almost space-outfit looking – to the eerie way they seemed to stand perfectly still. My mother had made them all swear fealty at this big knighting ceremony, the only occasion I've ever actually seen the Guard not wear their helmets. Wide white ribbons threaded in gold with the Allegiance to the Sovereign ran along the front of their long robes, the skirt of which was cut up into four "flags," allowing them to easily move. Beneath the robe, which hid all the knives and guns the Guard also carried, they wore red pants bunched up in tall black boots.

"Identification," the Scarlet Guard said in his cold, robotic voice. The tall black scythe – my mother's odd weapon of choice – stood sentinel next to him, the blade of which arced clear over the top of his helmet. I suppose Sovereign McAllister thought they looked more intimidating than a gun and a baton.

Leo glanced at me, as if asking for permission to proceed. I reluctantly nodded, throwing up the strongest mental barrier I could, as if doing so would help me endure the verbal lashing I was sure to find inside the mansion.

Let's get this over with.

Leo cleared his throat. "You might want to skip over all the formalities and protocol bullshit."

The guard was unperturbed. "And why might that be?"

Leo paused for dramatic effect. "Because I have Sloane McAllister with me."

What happened next happened so fast I barely had time to breathe. One minute, I was sitting in the Jeep; the next, Leo and I were both seized by the Scarlet Guard. They took us into the mansion, hauling Leo off in a different direction for questioning while they notified my mother of my arrival.