On the walk back to the clinic, she ran through her plan. It was a delicate dance, requiring all the actors to play their roles with precision, but she was not requiring anything more of them than they usually did.

When it was time to meet the rulers, Madam Ria would come to retrieve her. As usual, she would lead the way with two attendants in front and two behind Eluvie. The arrangement worked well for preventing escape, but it kept them from seeing her actions. When they reached a spot with no guards, she would retrieve the blade and hold it in her hand.

They would take her to the grand hall where she would stand with the rulers in front of her and her attendants behind her. Only Madam Ria would stand beside her. The rulers would be too far away to reach her quickly, but her attendants would not be able to see her actions.

When the rulers asked about her dreams, she would begin a speech about her treatment. It would be a short speech, but it was necessary. She would highlight Madam Ria’s cruelty, the punishment imposed that morning, and her near-death experience in the clinic. Then, she would say that since they treated her so poorly, she would make herself useless to them.

Then, she would cut off her tongue.

That was the trickiest part of the process. The blade was sharp enough, and she had practiced the logistics in the latrine, but Madam Ria could stop her before she completed the task. Still, even partial success could prove adequate.

Would the rulers suspect that there was more to her action? Not if her speech was convincing enough. They were confident in their ability to spot her lies, and she had enough grievances to justify her actions.

If they discovered her ruse, then she would have to accept the loss. Since she could neither read nor write, they would be unable to effectively question her. So, it would be a partial success.

Either way, whether they caught on or not, they would have to choose what steps to take. They would either teach her to read - a massive gain - or find a way to heal her. Whatever they did, she would learn something about them from their reactions and better manipulate them next time.

Madam Ria burst into the room with her usual energy. Eluvie would never need sight to recognize her. None of the others threw doors open in that manner.

“Get up,” Madam Ria said. She was furious. Clearly, she had been scolded. That brought Eluvie some joy.

Eluvie rose. The knife strapped to her arm weighed heavily on her thoughts, but she kept her movements natural. She thought of the boy, of what she would gain from this experiment, and of her eventual escape, and felt certainty settle on her.

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She didn’t pray for aid. That would be useless or worse - detrimental.

They walked in formation again just as predicted. Eluvie felt weak, but she tried to carry on as usual.

As they passed the first set of guards at the end of the corridor, Eluvie’s heart pounded. They passed a second set at the top of the staircase leading to the first floor. No one paid her any attention. Once they turned a corner and there were no guards ahead or behind, she retrieved the knife. Those behind her would interpret the movement as a scratch. She hid the blade up her sleeve and clenched her other fist. She hoped that she would seem to be clenching both rather than hiding something.

Her breathing seemed to be coming fast, so she worked on controlling it and acting normal.

They continued walking until they reached the doors to the great hall. The guards there made no comment. Eluvie hoped she wasn’t shaking; her hands felt like they were.The doors opened, and Eluvie followed her caretakers into a large hall. She had never seen it, but words spoken in it echoed like in no other room. The rulers always spoke to her from four seats arranged on a dais at the room’s end. Lady Mirab had the seat at one end, while the other three were occupied by men.

“Finally!” one of the men said as they entered. “Can we be done with this now?”

“Bring the blood,” Lady Mirab said.

Madam Ria obeyed. While everyone else stopped in the middle of the room, she went on to the dais where the rulers sat.

“You,” the voice said. “List all your dreams so we can leave.”

Heaven was finally helping her. Madam Ria’s proximity had been the greatest risk in her plan, and here was one of the rulers ordering her out of the way and questioning Eluvie.

“No,” Eluvie said. “I won’t do this anymore.”

She hated that she could not see their expressions. All she had for clues was their silence.

“Mirab?” someone asked. “What is this?”

“I almost died today,” Eluvie said, “giving this blood. And I don’t even fight it anymore. I don’t ask for anything either. You want to know my dreams? I narrate them. You want me to eat bread and water? I eat it."

“Mirab,” some said furiously, “is this the work you’ve been doing?”

“Eluvie,” Lady Mirab’s tone promised retribution.

Eluvie laughed hysterically. “You can’t punish me! Madam Ria already promised me the rest of the day in the tub - for doing nothing! So, bad behavior gets me punished, but good behavior also gets me punished. So, I quit. I won’t answer your questions, I won’t give you blood, and I’ll kill anyone who hurts me.”

“Finally,” someone sighed. “She hadn’t rebelled in so long, I was starting to worry. Well, Mirab, we’ll take your word about her dreams. Get her back in line by next week.”

More sighs joined the first, and the creaking of leather announced that they were rising.

Eluvie pulled out the blade, grabbed her tongue with her left hand, and sawed through it with her right.

It hurt far less than she expected. Compared to what she endured every morning, it was nothing. Shock at that realization almost ruined her plan, but she shook herself out of it and redoubled her effort. Someone ordered the attendants to stop her, but he was far too late. She dropped the knife and piece of flesh just as someone grabbed her hand. Then, faced the dais and gave the rulers her most triumphant smile.

“Stop that, you imbeciles, and get a doctor.”

The attendants released Eluvie and dashed off.

"Sherok," Lady Mirab said, "she's going to bleed out."

"And whose fault is that?!"

"Can we argue later?" someone else asked.

Eluvie's blindfold went off.

Her first sight in eight years was of a heavily bearded face scowling down at her. The figure was blurry, but the expression was unmistakable.