The Gender Lie(62)

At this, Cody looked confused, and I grinned, settling myself back down on the floor.

That move with Cody was ingenious. Viggo had undermined the boy’s power by acting like it had been planned while simultaneously allowing him to save face among his peers. I watched as Cody trudged back, the other boys congratulating him on helping Viggo, and my smile grew wider.

Whatever Viggo was doing, so far it seemed to be working. I watched as he organized the boys into teams, explaining that their first task was to get the ball in the middle of the room. They weren’t allowed to touch anyone else except their own team members, and they had to race to be the first one to touch it. They also weren’t allowed to use the same technique twice.

I listened intently as Viggo continued talking to the boys. He had designed several tasks that required teamwork and problem-solving. After this, it was a lesson, followed by another task, followed by another lesson.

I stood up, prepared to go over to congratulate him on a good start, when I spotted Desmond striding toward me, looking like she wanted to talk.

“What a remarkable start your man has had with these boys,” she announced as she arrived.

I nodded, feeling immensely proud of Viggo. “How long have you been watching?” I asked.

“Since the beginning, but I was tucked off in one of the side rooms. I didn’t want to interfere. Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect from this idea, but so far, I am impressed. The potential for it… is really quite remarkable.” There was a note of praise in her voice, and something else—something I couldn’t quite place.

“Does that mean you’re going to hold off on the Benuxupane for now?”

Desmond hesitated. “Actually, that’s what I wanted to tell you—I discovered a stockpile of Benuxupane. It’s in the same area that you raided for Viggo’s cure. I’ve authorized a team to go after it.”

“Oh… Isn’t that risky? It’s only been a few weeks since the facility was hit… hell, we blew up a warehouse. Wouldn’t security be increased?”

Desmond held up a hand. “I’ve considered this, of course, and I think the team can pull it off.”

“But Viggo and his program—”

“Will continue, uninterrupted,” Desmond said and I wondered if she could appreciate the irony of her interrupting me with that statement. “And just for your edification, I spoke with Mr. Croft and told him his month started today… I wanted to tell you about the Benuxupane because of what happened after we implemented the other pills. I figured you would want to be informed. But until I am sure that Mr. Croft’s program is effective and can be replicated and sustained, I need to have a backup plan in place. I want you to know that I am rooting for your friend’s method to work. I don’t like the idea of exposing the boys to another experimental drug if I don’t have to.”

I found it interesting that she shared similar concerns about the Benuxupane as Viggo did.

I turned my gaze back to the boys. “So… uh, how goes the war effort?” I asked, only half-joking.

Desmond gave me a look from the corner of her eye and then leaned back with a contemplative expression. “I know you think we can’t do this, Violet,” she said.

I saw no point in denying it—it was what I thought. “Of course I don’t. We’re so few, and Matrus is too massive. Not to mention, if you start something in Matrus, it won’t be too long before Patrus finds a way to join the fight—probably with the goal of claiming Matrus as its own. I know things are bad now… but could you imagine if Patrus was in charge of everything?”

Desmond laughed. “Violet,” she said. “First of all, I appreciate that you are now saying ‘we’ as opposed to ‘you.’ That’s a very positive step, in my mind, that you consider yourself a part of us. But also… that is such a harsh approach to starting a war, and haphazard. You need to look at the bigger picture.”

I stared at her—that was the big picture, as far as I was concerned. “What do you mean?” I asked.

Desmond leaned closer to me, sliding her hands into her pockets. “Imagine you are a mouse. You’re walking around, doing mouse things, when you freeze. You realize that in your wanderings, you’ve stumbled into a clearing, where a massive snake is looking at you like you’re lunch. And then you hear a noise behind you, and you realize another massive snake is looking at you like it wants to eat you, too. What do you do?”

I tilted my gaze up to the roof, trying to puzzle through Desmond’s scenario. She liked it when people figured things out for themselves, but this time, I didn’t have any idea what she was getting at. After a minute, I gave up.