Pentimento: a dystopian Beauty and the Beast Read Online Free Page B

time,” she said. “Get me out of school. Can you hack the fence’s program, so I can climb it without frying like a stupid mosquito?”
    “I know the hack, but I could go to jail for this,” Cody’s voice pitched. He wasn’t going to sleep his day away anymore. “Why do you keep doing stuff like that?”
    “Stuff like what?” Iris said nonchalantly. “I'm just ditching school. Now hurry, you lazy beast . The robots should appear any second.”
    “Alright, alright,” Cody puffed. “You know why I'm helping you this time?”
    Iris could hear him working his magic on his computer already. “Because I’m irresistible,” she mocked him--and herself. “Now hurry. What’s taking you so long?”
    “No, dummy,” he joked. “Because you don’t care about being caught by the robot guards. If they catch you, you'll be punished, but it doesn’t concern you a bit. All you worry about is not being able to do what you want to do. I like that.”
    “I like that too, actually,” she considered, although she’d never analyzed it. She just did what she felt like doing, without worrying about what others thought of her.
    “Here you go, Beauty,” Cody said.
    Iris heard him press the enter button on his computer. The fence’s buzzing sound died. It was safe for her to climb up.
    “But that’s the last time I'll help you with this. If the Council finds out, me, and my family, will be toast.”
    “If you’re so keen about your family, why are you hacking the system in the first place?” Iris growled, climbing the fence.
    “I don’t know why I do it, Iris. I just do.”
    “But I know why you do it,” she thudded on the grass on the other side of the fence. “Because like me, you have questions. Only you don’t care about the Beasts. You care about our history before the Beasts. You want to know how humanity ended up ruled by some aliens we call the Beasts, which can’t even see. You want to know about what really happened to the The First United States."
    “I’m going to buzz it back now,” Cody said, neglecting her assumptions. She hated when he did that. Cody was the only one who shared her passion, but he was still conservative about it. It was like he had limits he wouldn't cross. And it was understandable, considering his family tree.
    Iris heard the buzz return as the guards appeared behind the fence. Although they couldn't harm her, they were going to report her to the police who'd be looking for her soon.
    “Thanks, Cody,” she said. “I'll hang up now. I’ve got some running to do.”
    “Wait,” Cody pleaded. “Where are you going?”
    “I thought you wanted to sleep your day away."
    “That was because it was going to be a boring day. You seem to have an adventure ahead,” he said. “I’m curious about the reason you’re escaping school. Where are you heading?”
    “You won’t like it."
    “Oh,” Cody said. Iris heard him shrug on the phone and the sound of him slumping in his chair. “To the Ruins?”
    “Yes.” There wasn’t the slightest hint of hesitation in her voice. “And don’t give me that crap about it being a forbidden place."
    "I won't, Beauty," he said. "I'm just curious. You told me you haven't been there for about three months. Why now?"
    "I guess I need something to distract me from thinking about Eva," she swallowed. "I believe the Ruins hold the answers to why the Beasts are doing this and who they are. I told you about it before. Remember?"
    “You mean the Pentimento?” Cody sighed. The words sounded scary on his lips.
    "Yes."
    "The possible answer to how the world came to be messed up like this,” he mumbled.
    “I have to run now. Do you want to come?”
    Cody didn't answer. Iris could hear him breathing heavily on the phone. Sometimes, she thought he was the kind of boy who loved to ask questions, but was afraid of knowing the answer.
    "Cody?" Iris stopped in her tracks. It was as if Cody suddenly disappeared, without hanging up. "Come on, Cody," she