There was another man who had a distractingly bulbous nose, which had nothing at all to do with either region or occupation but caught my attention nonetheless. From right here in the Capitol perhaps, or possibly from 3E, which had been recently renamed Charletown, now that cities were allowed to have names of their own.

Another woman with perfectly coifed hair made me think of a large metropolitan area. I thought he might have been from the eastern region, where grains were plentiful. A man with leathered skin might have been a farmer, or possibly a builder who’d spent many years laboring beneath a baking sun. I picked out certain features and tried to guess which region each council member might hail from, a game to kill time and distract my thoughts. I explored their faces, too, careful not to fix on any one for too long. Several moments ticked by, during which I could feel the weight of their misgivings searching me out, settling over me like a heavy blanket. I took my seat and waited apprehensively while everyone else in the room took theirs. It was hard to imagine that something so bland-looking might possibly change everything. My gaze slid to the transmitter on the table in front of me, where it sat, still and silent. That I hadn’t made a colossal mistake in risking so much on one venture. I needed to show them that all the changes I’d been leading us toward, all we’d sacrificed, had been for the best. Everyone stood when I entered, and I tried my best to appear calm, but my heart was racing as I looked out at all the intense expressions of the people watching me, judging me.Īt any other time I might’ve explained my reaction away as nerves, but not today. My lips stretched into a tight smile as I made my way to the front of the congregation of stone-faced officials who’d gathered in the crowded meeting room. She lives in the Pacific Northwest where the gloomy weather is ideal for writing anything dark and creepy. Kimberly Derting is also the author of the BODY FINDER series.

The Offering by Kimberly Derting