Elite (Citizen Saga, Book 1) by Nicola Claire Read Free Book Online

like this? Was it a game to her? A bored Elite with nothing to challenge her in life? She was bold, rash. Reckless.
    And what had she wanted in a dilapidated building in Citizen zoned Muhgah Keekee ?
    I'd sat outside, unable to get in undetected, and waited. Playing over that iPol scene she'd watched from the shadows down the street. People didn't pay attention to Cardinal drones. But she did. As though it meant something. As though it moved her. But how did it move her? In which way? Pro Wánměi? Or anti Chew-wen.
    And now this. Her own iRec-oning. How ironic.
    I held my breath as she offered the most wicked looking smile to the drone. Something in me shifted. Something unidentifiable. Something... strange. My breath left me in a rush as she stepped forward, and I found myself leaning closer, almost out of the shadowed alcove I was using as cover. My fists clenched, my lips pressed in a thin line, my eyes boring into the eScanner that had risen from the iPol's arm.
    I was actually praying she passed, and I couldn't figure out why.
    It had to be the file she'd stolen. If she failed an iRec scan, she'd be arrested. And then how would I get the codes?
    I licked my lips as the laser rolled over her eyeball. I found myself wondering what colour her eyes were. The shots we'd taken in the rain on that rooftop didn't identify her eye colour. I was going with blue, what with that white hair, but what shade?
    Who the fuck cares? What was wrong with me?
    A grunt of incredulity sounded out from the back of my throat just as the eScanner beeped acceptance. Miraculously my body released its tension, which didn't make any sense at all.
    "Honourable Selena Carstairs," Shiloh announced through the drone's communicator. "No warrants. Highest regards."
    Highest regards. I snorted softly, leaning back in the shadows again. She'd receive that greeting due to her relationship to General Chew-wen. How convenient.
    "Forgiveness, Honourable Selena Carstairs," the drone intoned. "We were expecting someone else."
    I frowned. They didn't usually make mistakes. One thing to be said for Cardinal efficiency, they rarely pulled someone over who didn't deserve it.
    "An honest mistake, Cardinal," the Elite replied, directing her response to the Cardinal controlling the drone, and not the iPol unit itself.
    Only Elites could get away with that. The rest of us had to talk to the robot.
    "May I enquire as to your reasons for visiting Muhgah Keekee this morning?" the Cardinal asked through the drone's communicator.
    "I lost my way," she replied, with a coy smile the operator would be able to see through the camera lens mounted at eye level on the drone.
    "May I escort you back to Parnell Rise," the Cardinal pushed. I was getting the impression he didn't believe her.
    And so was she. Quick, this one. Not drugged. Definitely not complacent. But was she Wánměi minded? I could tell from here she was superior, but then being an Elite she would need to be. Even in their own social structure one had to fight to stay on top, or get swallowed by the whole.
    "No need. I believe I am near a charity I volunteer at," she smoothly replied. "I'll spend the day there helping those less fortunate."
    How sweet.
    The drone hesitated. The Cardinal clearly checking to see what charity organisations were located nearby.
    "I shall accompany you, Honourable Selena Carstairs. These streets are not safe for one such as yourself."
    Did that sound like a threat to the Elite as well?
    I watched as she swallowed imperceptibly, the smile never leaving her beautiful, but pale face.
    The world stopped.
    I'm not sure why I did it. There is no way to explain my actions other than to call them for what they were.
    Reckless.
    Utterly, unbelievably, undeniably reckless.
    Oh, yeah. This Elite was going to be the death of me. It was official now. I was totally screwed.

Chapter 7
And Bottomless Blue Eyes
Lena
    "Stand down, drone," a Cardinal said as he strode across the street with purpose towards