Page 38 of Interion

“If you’ll permit me an observation, Lionel,” he said, placing the briefcase he’d been carrying on the desk, “I must say we’re lucky that I’m a psychic from the crimes department and brought my work equipment. I’m sure we can resolve this quickly.”

“No!” Adele exclaimed so loudly it made me jump. Realizing she’d overreacted, she composed herself, straightening her shoulders and holding on to what remained of her composure. “I think it’s unfair for it to be someone from my family… I mean, wouldn’t it be better to have another psychic? I don’t want to be accused of falsifying the result because he’s my uncle. It could be another psychic, maybe… Serguei. I’m sure he’d be more impartial.”

Everyone in the room looked at her as if green antennas had sprouted from her head. What was this crazy girl talking about? Serguei? Only Adele would be crazy enough to say that name out loud. Besides, it made no sense at all, because she was the guilty one, and if anyone could get her off the hook, it was her own uncle—who was now looking at her with a kind of perverse gleam in his eyes. Even I stiffened at the violent promise his eyes carried, though it vanished almost as quickly as it appeared. He opened his mouth to speak, but Lionel cut in.

“Yes, Miss Ivanov, calling another psychic would be ideal, but you see, out of respect for the good friendship I have with your guardians, I’d prefer to resolve this right here. If we take this to court, things could get even more complicated, and I value this academy’s reputation. So, if Mr. Ivanov and Mr. Voluz are in agreement and open to negotiation, we can resolve this quickly.”

It was obvious this would happen. I don’t even know why I was so worried. The Voluz name would cover any problem I got myself into, and apparently, the Ivanov name was just as influential as mine.

That’s how justice worked for the powerful.

“But…”

“Enough, Adelevik!” the man now known as Ivanov shouted. “This is the second time this week you’ve caused problems. What do you want? To drive me crazy? We’ll resolve this quickly so we can go home. Enough of this.”

Adele shrank beside me and fell silent. Lionel stared at Zion, waiting for an answer.

“We can resolve it.” He composed himself, his gaze on Adele.

“Excellent! Then you can start the investigation.” Lionel gestured toward Ivanov.

The psychic smiled and opened his laptop, pulling a device from his bag that looked like a helmet frame once assembled. He put it on his head and connected the wires to the laptop.

“For those who don’t understand: this device on my head will turn everything I see in your minds into images. So there’s no way to fake anything, since memories are unchangeable and reliable.” He looked at me and Adele. “Who wants to go first?”

Since the Yonserian didn’t respond, I volunteered to get it over with. Ivanov’s large, gentle eyes focused on me.

“Excellent! It’ll be quick, and you might feel confused, but that’ll pass by tonight.”

Zion clasped his hands behind his back, looking uncomfortable as he watched us, but once again, he said nothing.

Ivanov pulled his chair up to me and took my hands, closing his eyes. I swallowed hard. When his icy skin touched mine, every hair on my body stood on end. I didn’t know why I felt this way, but something about psychics made me uneasy.

I felt something brush against my mind and gritted my teeth as my brain was churned like it was in a blender. In the background, I heard voices coming from the laptop and forced myself to keep my eyes open, watching the scenes play on the screen. It was as if my eyes were cameras, and there was even a desperate, frightened edge to my own feelings as all the events unfolded. Finally, it ended with the scene of the director arriving at the woods. Ivanov released my hands and I blinked in confusion, feeling terribly nauseous. I noticed Zion staring at me, and this time, disgust and irritation broke through his usual serious expression, as if he couldn’t contain them. The director was looking at Adele, trying to absorb everything he had seen.

“I don’t think we need to visit Adele’s mind, since Kyller’s images were clear. You have a good memory, Miss Voluz—your mental voice is the clearest I’ve ever seen,” Adele’s uncle said, smiling at me.

The director pulled out a calculator and straightened in his chair as he spoke:

“Now that everything’s been clarified, let’s get down to business.”

Had I heard him right, or had he just said “business”? Zion moved to my side, finally showing some reaction to what had happened, and Ivanov spoke up before anyone else could:

“Yes, my good friend. You’ve been so kind I don’t even know how to thank you. If something like this were taken to court, my niece would be in serious trouble. I offer my sincere apologies for what happened and promise there won’t be a repeat. For now, I’m immensely grateful for your kindness.”

I could only think that promise was a joke, since Adele was constantly in trouble and her taste for hallucinogens and sports cars was known throughout Interion. Lionel cleared his throat and accepted the other man’s words graciously. I figured he was expecting something from Zion, but Zion wasn’t in the mood to argue.

“First, let’s address the simpler matter: Kyller Voluz got into a fight and, like Adrian, Ethan, Miverik, Naoki, and Adele, must pay 5,000 dunas. The fine is set by the academy.”

My mouth fell open. 5,000 dunas? I only made 600 dunas a month at the hospital—that was an absurd amount for me. It reminded me that Breno had been to the director’s office several times because of me and had to pay for it. I just didn’t know it was such a steep price.

Zion didn’t seem to care, and Ivanov nodded.

“The second amount is only for them—it’s the price of my silence regarding what happened with Naoki. I want 10,000 dunas.”

“This is absurd!” I found myself saying, shocked. “I only acted to save his life!”

“Quiet, Kyller,” Zion said, placing his hand on my shoulder. The warmth of his skin held me in place, and I fell silent at the sharp command.