The Decoder - Chapter 10

Edith

Edith stared at the stack of papers in front of her, papers that contained various sets of binary numbers and algorithms that required decoding. For the life of her, she couldn’t forget Avery’s introduction of his fiancée, Ira Ekker. It had been five days since the introduction which caught her off guard. She should feel happy for her childhood best friend. Indeed, she should. But instead of feeling happy for Avery, she couldn’t shake off the uncomfortable feeling wrestling in her. Feeling of sadness? Disappointment?

Ira Ekker was a beautiful woman and it’s not difficult to see why men fawned all over her. Avery was not immune to her beauty. No, Edith didn’t expect so. If she were to be honest, if she was born a man, she could see herself falling hard for Ira, too. She pictured them side by side and they do indeed make a perfect pair. Avery with his handsome looks and charisma, and Ira with her radiant beauty and intelligence.

Edith couldn’t bring herself to face Avery, not when she was feeling agitated and sad. Was there a way to get rid of those feelings? She heaved a sigh. She had been keeping herself busy for the past five days and keeping her lunch hour short, so she could avoid Avery. She knew it was childish of her to do so, but each time she willed herself to face him, she would cower away.

“Something is troubling you. Let me guess. Avery’s engagement to Ira?” Merille said beside her as she organised the stacks of papers.

“You could say so.” There was no use hiding it from Merille. She and Caden knew of her friendship with Avery.

“Why didn’t he tell me earlier?” Edith swallowed. She was disappointment that it did not came from Avery’s mouth directly. Why did he have to hide it from her? Considering the fact that he had been engaged to Ira for a year.

“I guess he didn’t want to surprise you.”

Edith let out an uncharacteristic groan. When it came to the matters of the heart, Edith was no expert. Her gaze fell on Merille’s slender hands and wrist, and she frowned, noticing the bruise around her left wrist. Its dark blue-black colouring staring back at her. That’s odd.

“Merille, how did you get that bruise on your wrist?” Edith asked.

“Oh…It’s nothing. I accidentally knocked it against the edge of a table.” Merille hastily pulled the sleeves of her dress over her wrist, hiding the bruise.

Edith narrowed her eyes. From Merille’s actions, she could tell something was off. Besides, how does knocking one’s wrist against the edge of the table could result in such a bad bruise. The thought brought her to the memory from three days ago, when she had overheard some of the nurses speaking at the corner of a hallway.

“That Merille is really getting on my nerves. I can’t bear to see her with Caden every afternoon.” One of the nurses had said in annoyance.

“Do calm down, Jen. Soon, she will be kicked out from the Militia for her poor performance.” Another nurse had said.

“Oh, I do hope the Major will come to realise how incompetent she is.” Said the third nurse.

“I have an idea. Let’s give her a piece of our mind.”

Those were the last words Edith had heard before Dr. Maia called out to the group, reprimanding them for slacking off. Edith couldn’t help feeling worried for Merille, especially the last sentence. She wondered if the bruise is the result of their “piece of our mind”. Ever since that day, Edith would sneak into the Decoding and Encoding Department under the guise of sending her logbook over. However, she couldn’t keep sneaking into the department forever, the officer would take notice.

Merille stood then, scraping her chair behind. As she carried the stacks of paper to the drawers, a piece of paper fell out of the stack to the floor. Edith bend to pick it up the same time her eyes eyed the word “Hathage” on the piece of decoded message. Curiosity kicked in and she read the message.

“His Majesty, Lord Noel has agreed to send some food supplies and armory in exchange for the release of the Hathagian refugees.

-Agent A-“

Her eyes widened at the message. She rubbed her eyes several times to confirm that she hadn’t read wrongly. Agent A? Edith wondered. Most importantly, how did the Militia came to know of the refugees? Alarm bells rang in her mind and she tried to calm herself down. There was a spy, a secret intelligent officer. Edith looked up at Merille, her back facing her as she arranged the stacks of paper. She thought of Mr. Roan. How could she have forgotten him for the past few days. Her mind was filled with nothing but Avery. Damn it, Edith. You are a total fool” She chewed the insides of her cheek. She needed to see Mr. Roan at once. But how? Employees of Militia are not allowed to leave the compound until weekends.

Edith straightened to her full height and walked over to Merille, returning the piece of paper that had turned her blood to ice. An invisible chill ran down her spine as she thought of the refugees’ safety. They thought they could hide from the Militia for some time, but not anymore. Who had leaked their hideout? Agent A…Who is Agent A? There were not many people who knew of the refugees’ hideout. There was no way the refugee would expose themselves. Which left only one possibility.

* * * * *

The next night, Edith clutched her overcoat tighter to her chest as she made her way down Eder Street to Kyron House. She had found an excuse for the guards to allow her to leave the Militia’s compounds. She did not think it was that easy to persuade them to allow her to leave for an hour, but with the word “on assignment”, the guards had let her past through the iron gates. However, not before they required her to record her name in the logbook.

She hurried through the street, not caring if the freezing wind brushed past her face. She could swear at any minute, her face would be frozen, but she needed to see Mr. Roan urgently to gain more information of her father and his history as well as alerting him that they would soon be released back to Hathage. Edith wasn’t when they would be moved, but she suspected soon.

When she arrived at Kyron House, Miss Bryn had greeted her, and Edith requested to speak to Mr. Roan. He had complied and led her to the kitchen again, only a single candle was lit at the corner of the kitchen. She scanned the rooms for Lady Ada, but she was nowhere to be seen.

“I’m sorry it took me some time to return.” Edith apologised.

“No, it’s alright.” Mr. Roan shook his head.

“I have some news.”

“Please go on.”

“I happened to come across a message yesterday. It says that all of you will be released. His Majesty, Lord Noel has agreed to send some food supplied and armory in exchange for the release of Hathage’s refugees.” Edith said, keeping her voice low.

“How did you know about this?” Mr. Roan’s face brightened at the news.

“I’m working at the Militia now.” Edith did not bother to evaluate that she had sneaked into the Decoding and Encoding Department and her knowledge in cryptography.

“What?” Mr. Roan looked at her, incredulous, as if she was spouting nonsense.

“I’m currently working in the Militia.” Edith repeated.

“That’s the last place you should be at.”

“Why do you say so?” Edith cocked an eyebrow. Mr. Roan was silent for a long moment and Edith drew a breath.

“What is it? Please tell me, Mr. Roan. You mentioned my father is good friends with the former Lord Sykes and the High Commander, but…” She urged, recalling his words.

“Sir Alcoft was good friends with His Majesty and High Commander Ekker, but he does not trust High Commander Ekker. He had suspected that he was up to something. Sir Alcoft has never told me the details, but he told me to keep an eye on him. One day, I caught him writing some complex codes and placing it into a pendant meant for his daughter, meant for you.”

Edith grabbed her necklace instinctively at the mention of the pendant. Now, she was right afterall, the tiny piece of parchment he’d placed in the pendant contained some information. But, did she dare to decipher it? Decode it? Suddenly, she was afraid of what she might discover in that tiny parchment. To decode it, she would need to read through her father’s notebook, which she couldn’t bring herself to do so.

“I see you have the necklace.” Mr. Roan said.

“Yes, my father gave it to me the night before the Elites came for him.”

“What happened to your father, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“He was shot, eight years ago.” Edith swallowed. Memories from that night threatened to break free, but she forced them away.

“But, one question. I thought High Commander Ekker is no longer alive?” Edith asked before Mr. Roan could reply, recalling Lady Ada’s words.

“Who told you that? High Commander Ekker is very much alive. He rules the Militia and Rayard now.” Mr. Roan tilted his head.

“But Lady Ada told me otherwise…” Edith couldn’t believe her ears. Had Lady Ada lied to her? The suspicion Edith had towards Lady Ada was beginning to doubt Lady Ada’s identity and trust.

“I’m not sure where she got that information from.”

“The High Commander from eleven years ago, whom my father is good friends with, is the very same High Commander Mason Ekker now?” Edith thought maybe High Commander Ekker from eleven years ago was a father to the current High Commander Ekker. Afterall, Ekker was a family name.

“Yes.” Mr. Roan supplied, rubbing his stubbed chin.

Edith felt as if she might faint from the discovery at any moment. Why would Lady Ada have told her otherwise? She wanted to question Mr. Roan why and what the High Commander was up to, but he wouldn’t know the answers. Only her father would know. My father…And the note. Edith touched her necklace once more.

“I’m sorry to hear about your fath—"

“What are the two of you discussing about?” A feminine voice startled both of them and they turned to find Lady Ada standing at the doorway. They did not realise her presence. When had she arrived? Did she happened to hear their conversation? Damn it, Edith swore inwardly.

“Just the well-being of the refugees.” Edith blurted before Lady Ada could suspect anything.

“We didn’t notice you. Apologies, Lady Ada. I shall return to the children once more.” Mr. Roan bowed a little and stepped away from the kitchen counter. His speech and manner held nobility, which Edith wasn’t surprised, knowing he was once the late Lord Sykes’s righthand man. Once he stepped past Lady Ada, she focused her intense gaze on Edith, which made her uncomfortable.

“I shall excuse myself as well. It’s getting late and I ought to return to the Militia. I was on an errand and needed to return soon.” Edith said hastily as she moved to step past Lady Ada.

“An errand? What errand?” Lady Ada asked.

“The Health Department ran out of some medicines, which my uncle’s clinic has some stock left.” Edith lied, putting on an expression of innocence.

When Lady Ada only smiled in response, Edith lowered her head and excused herself. She was itching to ask why she had lied to her about High Commander Ekker, but decided against it. She already had a suspicion swarming about her, and Edith would need to keep an eye on her to confirm that suspicion.

* * * * *

The next day, some work held Edith from the usual lunch hour. When she was finally done, she made her way to the cafeteria, grabbed some food and stepped out to the field. It was bathed in the glorious afternoon sunlight. Though it was still cold, the beautiful weather beckoned her to join Caden and Merille for lunch. As she made her way to the usual spot, she halted at the sight of Avery and Ira sitting side by side at the wooden table, with Caden, Merille and Lucien, laughing away. She felt a tightness at her chest, and she took a step back. She mentally told herself that it was time to stop avoiding Avery, that it was immature of her, and it could not go on forever. But her heart refused to listen to her mind.

Edith whirled around and decided to have her lunch at the cafeteria. As she passed the main compound and a group of nurses who were lounging about, she overheard their conversation once more. She took note they were the same group who had spoken ill of Merille, and she wondered why she had to run into them most of the time.

“Why is Avery and Ira sitting together with that group? Merille is definitely having a good time, isn’t she?”

“It infuriates me.”

And your jealousy infuriates me. Why is Merille the centre of all this? Edith wondered. Wasn’t Edith herself part of the group, too, yet they hadn’t mentioned her name. However, that thought died off when one of the nurses said,

“I don’t see Edith among them today.”

At the mention of her name, Edith quickly disappeared behind a column and down the stairway to the cafeteria. She did not wish to be the centre of attention, not when she was still a newbie in the Health Department. Making enemies was the last thing in her mind, especially not with the nurses.

That night, Edith snuck into the Decoding and Encoding Department once more, worried for Merille and part of her wanted to snoop about for more messages about the Hathagian refugees. She knew she shouldn’t poke her nose in this affair, but the Hathagian refugees were her friends. When Edith had told the Administrator that Merille had called for her, the Administrator had eyed her, suspicion was playing on her gaze. Probably wondering why Edith was frequenting the Administration Building. Merille had welcomed her and Edith had helped decoding a few messages, but they were not all important. Nothing that entails about the Hathagian refugees. However, one message did draw her attention:

“I’m glad that Agent 20 will be sent to assist me at Yvyle Forest to gather information on Hathage.

-Agent 15-“

She recalled the very first message she had decoded the first time she came to the Decoding and Encoding Department to assist the frustrated Merille. Both kingdoms are sending their spies and secret intelligence team. She heaved a sigh. This was not her business, but she couldn’t help that it bothered her. Edith shook her head and glanced at Merille who was busy decoding the last message.

It was then she noticed a slight bruising at her right temple. Why hadn’t she realised it earlier? Edith faced Merille and scrutinised the bruise. She was sure it wasn’t there the night before.

“Merille, there’s a bruise on your right temple. How did that happen?” Edith questioned.

“Oh, I accidentally hit myself against a pole. I was paying attention on something else and walked into a pole. How clumsy am I.” Merille laughed. However, Edith did not miss the strain in her voice as she spoke. It was definitely a lie, she concluded. She had known Merille to be the second most meticulous person she had ever met, after her uncle.

“The nurses did it, didn’t they?” Edith said softly. Merille looked up at her then, eyes wide with fear.

“No, what are you talking about, Edith?” Merille forced a smile and returned to her work.

“Merille, please speak the truth.” Edith pushed, but Merille dropped her pencil.

“I think it’s time to call it a night. I’m packing up.” Merille stood and started tidying the table, gathering all the papers, stacking and organising them. Edith pursed her lips, afraid to push Merille further if she wasn’t willing to spill the truth. There was no point forcing someone who was not willing or ready to confess. So, all she could do was watch over Merille until she was ready.

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