Free Office of Mercy (9781101606100) by Ariel Djanikian

their touch loosened, though, Natasha noticed that his smile was a little strained.
    â€œDon’t tell me you regret this,” she said quietly. “It’s too late for that.”
    â€œNot at all, not at all. Who am I to argue with the choice of our superiors? You should be proud of yourself, Natasha,” he added in a more serious tone. “The Alphas do not take these matters lightly, and neither do I. You would not be on this mission if anyone doubted your potential in the field.”
    â€œI don’t know, I bet I can name a few,” said Eric, nudging Natasha in the ribs.
    Natasha looked, expecting to see Claudia Kim. But instead, she followed Eric’s gaze to a tight group of Deltas standing to the side of the elephant doors. At the center of the group was Raj Radhakrishnan, a lean man with deeply set eyes and caramel skin so smooth that it seemed untouched by bioreplacement. Natasha had never spoken to Raj in any meaningful way, but she did know a little about him. Raj had served as Min-he’s director in the Archives until the Alphas had abruptly transferred him to level nine—to the Electricity and Piping crews. His name came up now and then in the Office of Mercy, though never in a very friendly light. Raj was one of the only citizens in America-Five who openly objected to the existence of sweeps. Natasha did not know the details of his views, only that he had called for the abolition of the Office of Mercy on several occasions. She had heard similar rumors about the Delta men and women surrounding him now, though nothing so extreme. From across the room, Natasha picked out their faces: Mercedes Laplace, Eduardo Castilla, Benjamin Rook, and Sarah O’Keefe. She thought that Mercedes and Sarah both worked in Health. Eduardo’s winning smile she recognized from one of the current construction teams, and also from when he’d had a long-standing romantic relationship with her favorite childhood doctor, a man named Malcolm Finn. Ben Rook was a nervous, small-boned man who tended the beehives and vegetable gardens in the Department of Agriculture, and who rarely spoke more than five words together. He and Sarah were a couple, Natasha did know that for sure, one of the eccentric few who had a sleeproom together.
    As Raj finished speaking, he rubbed his hand slowly over his mouth, a sad, serious gesture strikingly at odds with the mirthful crowd around him. Raj was a distinctive man, most people agreed, even outside his views on the Office of Mercy. He had a quiet, appraising way about him that made him seem too intelligent to laugh at, yet too reserved to merit much in the way of kindness or general cordiality.
    â€œTry not to worry about them,” Jeffrey told Eric and Natasha, shaking his head. “There’s always going to be dissent in a free society. But they’ll get over their petty selfishness soon enough. A couple of nights looking over the Ethical Code wouldn’t harm them either.
Be conscious of the universe and let it overwhelm the personal and the particular
,” he added, quoting from the final chapter.
    The tide of people was moving toward the Dining Hall, and Natasha, Eric, and Jeffrey moved with it. The new team had converged at one of the tables, their trays of biscuits and gravy and coffee growing cold as they stood at their seats shaking hands all around. Natasha did not know Douglas Truman or Nolan Al-Rashid very well, but she liked them both immediately. Alejandra was an outspoken, gregarious woman and, true to her reputation, within minutes she was laughing loudly and cracking jokes with Eric.
    â€œAnd what about our precocious Epsilons, eh?” Douglas said, giving Natasha’s shoulder a hearty pat. “Makes me reevaluate the successes of my own youth, I’ll tell you that. If I remember right, at age twenty-four, my greatest responsibility was tallying chicken-to-egg ratios in Agriculture at the end of each