Double-Blind: A Modern LITRPG

Chapter 175

I stared up at the metal beams stretching the length of Aarons house, supporting the wide open balcony on the second floor, an adage swirled up in my mind.

The bigger they are, the harder they fall.

As sayings go, its horseshit. And thats not even getting into the terminal velocity pedantry. The saying should be: the higher you climb, the grander the parachute. Aaron was proof of that. If he was a normal person, the racketeering trial would have easily ruined him with legal fees alone. Not to mention the damage to reputation, loss of his vocation, and inherent trauma such a drawn out battle comes with.

Itd taken Mom years to recover from the strain of the trial. Shed only just recently pulled herself out of the bottle, and even now, it was impossible to know whether it was going to stick. Still. If the dome hadnt come down? Shed have no real prospects. Even if its relatively small, even if you can explain it as a reasonable mistake, a felony is a felony. A steel anvil tethered to any resume, sending it plunging straight into the trash.

If her recovery had legs, she would have spent the rest of her life working for minimum or borderline minimum wage. If mom got lucky, shed only have to do so until one of us could support her. And if she didnt get luckya much more likely scenarioshed work until the day she couldnt anymore, or got sick.

With nothing but a guest room as her retirement home.

In terms of contrast, Aaron was doing just fine. He probably made a little less as a lawyer than he had as a hedge fund manager. The house was smaller. Not the massive estate on a hundred acre plot it once was, but not the smallest residence in the gated community, either. When the architect asked him what he wanted, Im guessing he said something like, Chic, minimalist, boxy, and post-modern. With a fuckton of glass.

More curiously, he appeared to have almost no security. Slipping past the rent-a-cops at the checkpoint was childs play. Once I was in, Azure confirmed that only one of them was a User, and not a particularly good one at that. There were a few security cameras hidden in various bushes and utility poles, but that was it.

So what was it? Was he so confident in whatever he and the rest of the suits were running that he considered himself too big to fail? Or was there some other security angle I wasnt seeing, like the camouflaged Users at the park?

It was Aaron. Safest to assume both. Take nothing for granted.

I saw him through a corner window. Aarons sleeves were rolled up to his forearms, and he held a napkin loosely in his grip. It was one of the few times Id seen him without a tie. He was leaning half-way over, eyebrow raised as if hed just told a real gut buster. His audience of onea woman who must have had an absolute prodigy for a plastic surgeonguffawed, her joyful laughter creating a strangely macabre image without the accompanying sound. She bounced a baby that couldnt be a day over six months on her knee. Not impressed or not listening, Daphne stared down at her food and poked at it with a fork tentatively.

Aaron slapped her on the shoulder and leaned in conspiratorially. Even as she fought it, Daphne cracked a small smile.

Even with the world on its head, some things had barely changed at all.

They looked happy. Whole. The family looked almost picturesque. Untouched by the dome, and everything that came before it. And theyd always looked that way. It was probably what attracted me to them.

I bore down on the swelling heat in my gut. A cool head was the only way through this.

Azure. Can you get anything from Aaron? I asked, not getting my hopes up.

No Azure sounded puzzled. But its different, somehow. With Sunny and Miles, it was a perceptible blur. Like something was working to shield themspending significant energy to muddy their thoughts. Meaning, in theory, I could have broken through eventually.

Thats not the case here?

Its like theres nothing there. Nothing. No wall to break down, nothing for me to tap into behind it. Id almost assume he was an empty vessel puppeted by some outside entity, but theres no trace of the astronomical mana required to pull that off.

I shrugged. Hes the leader of a powerful organization. Not surprising, that hes taken steps to shield himself.

This is different. Azure sulked.

You sure the shield isnt coming from him?

I had to be sure.

From everything I can tell, hes just a civilian. Judging from how unconcerned she is, hes keeping his wife out of the loop, but Daphne knows. And shes worried. Wasnt even trying to read her mindshe pretty much screamed it.

She should I bit the rest off. Aaron locked eyes with me through the glass from his seat at the table.

Shit.

For a split-second, his face was blank, smooth. Processing. Then he smiled widely and gestured towards the front of the house. I awkwardly stepped through the perfectly manicured lawn, circling around to the front to meet him.

Matthias. Aaron said, warm voice loud enough to announce my presence to the entire house. So glad you took me up on the offer.

Daphne leaned back to look out into the atrium. Matt?

I gave her a small wave, and she waved back, grinning. Then the grin died. It wasnt hard to guess what she was thinking about, because I was thinking about the same thing. The last time wed seen each other.

The tunnel.

Have to say, your timings impeccable. Aaron gestured for me to follow him, and I did, my footsteps echoing across the tile. Council takes up most of my time lately. Too much. Which is why I told them to shove it and took a mental health day. Extra spaghetti on the counter, so help yourself.

I felt physical revulsion at the idea of eating anything that Aaron had cooked. My eyes were drawn to a massive crystal chandelier on the ceiling. Looks like you all landed okay. After everything.

We did. Aaron shot me a pained smile. It was an adjustment, but we pulled through.

Glad to hear it. I said, not bothering to hide the sarcasm.

Standing next to the fridge, Aarons wife had shifted the baby to her hip and waited expectantly. Whos this?

Joyce, this is MattMatt, my lovely Joyce, and this adorable bundle of joy Aaron kissed his wifes cheek and took the baby from her gently. Is Olivia.

Nice to meet you. I said.

Theres parmesan cheese on the counter. Freshly grated. Your favorite. Daphne pointed out, her demeanor still muted.

My hand clenched into a fist. Aaron was playing the perfect doting father, but as he held the baby out towards me, all I could see was him using another innocent as a shield.

We have business.

Not at the table you dont, Joyce said, mockingly stern. She gave her husband a knowing look. No negotiations

At the family table. Aaron finished. I remember. So why dont we all

The feeling snuck up on me. This tangible, undeniable drive to escape. Even the idea of staying here a minute longer than I had to was impossible to stomach, let alone the time it would take to eat a bowl of Aarons signature spaghetti.

I would not sit here and play house with the motherfucker who burned mine to the ground.

No.

What? Aaron cocked his head.

And with a total of one, Ill do you exactly one more favor than youve ever done me. If youre planning on staying in today, dont. Go out in public. Somewhere youll be noticed, with as many witnesses as possible.

I watched, in some petty semblance of satisfaction, as Joyce slowly crooked her neck towards Aaron. Babe. Whats he talking about?

Aaron chuckled. Its an inside joke.

Was she going to buy that?

Oh. Well, if youre going out to the deck to talk business, eat something. Youre too skinny. Joyce dumped a heaving serving of pasta onto an ornate plate and handed it to me.

Apparently she was. Or shed elevated the practice of looking the other way into an art form.

Thanks. I smiled tightly. The steam from the fragrant sauce scalded my nostrils.

Aaron waited for me at the back door and I followed him outside. Unsurprisingly, the back had more in common with a botanical garden than a typical yard, with an artificial stream that cut down the center, framed by exotic looking trees.

When are you going to ditch that chip on your shoulder? Aaron said. Now that we were out of earshot from his wife, hed dropped the overly cheerful disposition. More than anything, he looked disappointed.

It shouldnt have mattered to me. Aarons approval. But somehow, it did.

Which chip?

The marx-addled rage that flares up anytime youre reminded that theres people out there who are more fortunate than others. He eyed me.

I bared my teeth. Youre right. I should be more sympathetic. Downgrading from three stories to two must be difficult. Not to mention the reduction in square-footage. Youre pretty much living on the street.

How can you not see the hypocrisy? Aaron countered. The matter-of-fact nature of his voice when he was gearing up for an argument was all it took to hit me with a wave of nostalgia. You are the one percent. Bonafide Nouveau rich. You maneuvered yourself perfectly, yet youre still stuck in this poor mans mindset centered around the idea that everyone with more is an enemy.

Save the political shit for someone who cares. I rolled my eyes. Aaron knew that wealth didnt even make the top ten list of issues I had with him, but he was pushing this conversation in that direction in order to win. Like this was a moderated debate with stakes, rather than a conversation. Listen, Aaron. I wasnt bullshitting, earlier. You need to be seen today.

Aarons expression stilled. Feel free to expand on that. Say what you mean.

Not yet. I settled down on a bench chair and felt the wound on my back scream in irritation. No one can hear what Im about to tell you. Your people or mine.

I guessedknowing how private he wasthat Aarons house was shielded somehow. Nevertheless, I pulled up my passive skill menu and activated

You realize, if you try to kill me herewhether or not you succeed, there will be repercussions. For just a second, the mask dropped. And what I saw in his eyes felt strangely familiar.

Its not your time.

I shook my head. As much as Id love to rub your nose in it, the old shit between us is buried.

Really. Just like that? Aarons expression turned calculated. Because it doesnt feel buried. Theres so many lies in circulation, Matthias. Hell, even the dreaded Ordinator cant seem to keep his story straight. Rumor has it he claimed to be there that fateful night your friend died. More interesting than that, your friend apparently confirmed it. What was her name? Sae?