Jake found Zeus's silence creepy, and for that fear, he hated himself. He assumed that was part of the big lug's plan, and he almost scooted his chair away in aversion. His mind was racing with ideas, fury, pleasure, and such a modicum of mixed emotions it was a miracle that he'd kept his face. Zeus was not the priority of his anger though, and for once Ben had a night off as the target of Jake's ire. The dark angel was a far more annoying individual. His attempt to throw Jake over the coals was laughable. The only leader who had a rite to throw that stone was Zeus, and he sat silent as death. It was an obvious ploy for his own interests, paper thin in obscurity, and utterly lacking in style. Jake wondered if this is what he sounded like when he was being the Black Prince. He made no attempts to defend himself. The room seemed to do that for him, although Jake knew it was not for him. They all had their own reasons for not wanting trial by counsel.
Jake mostly used his phone to distract himself, making sure to look up when Charon or Sabrina spoke. He would never tell her, but he'd found Zoheret's read of Ben delicious, and felt like she could've gone much further. She was trying to behave it seemed, but he'd stepped on her toes. Jake recognized that angry spike, and while he couldn't see her eyes, he reasoned he knew exactly what they looked like. She looked at him like that all the time. He also noticed that her feelings about Ben's role in the fall of the Oligarchy matched his own, and while he'd never admit it, he wondered if they actually thought alike.
He knew now he wouldn't relax until he was out of this room. Thankfully Damien was going to relieve Luke and be his escort home. He insisted they meet to debrief, and considering the enormous tension he felt, now he understood why. He needed to vent. He hadn't even brought up his proposal yet. The only thing getting him through, other than watching the other district leaders sweep Sara to the side, was that it didn't look like a good night for Ben. Jake loved the idea of his clever little plans backfiring. He almost felt bad for him. Then he remembered this was Ben and then felt nothing for him at all.
The one thing he respected about Ben tonight was that he was committed to beating Jake in the election, and had rejected Saraekiel's hasty scheme. He wanted to beat Ben too. Another thing he'd never admit, was that Ben had made him stronger. The constant struggles they'd shared since their fateful limo ride had changed Jake, he felt for the better. He knew Ben would never be able to endorse a view point this sophisticated, but he thought of Ben as an honorable rival. He hated him deeply, but Jake saw his own strength, tucked away behind Ben's eyes.
To Sabrina's comments, and Ben's proposed timeline, he simply replied, "Three months is fine. I don't have any questions. Thank you Ben."
He went back to his phone. No eye contact was given.
