By the candlelight, in the dark of his eyes, I see a tiny reflection. It’s me.
I kiss his lips softly. G’bye, Seth, I says. His eyes close. His chest rises an falls. Rises an falls. His breathin deepens.
Seth, I says. Seth?
No answer. He’s out.
I grab the knife from unner the rug, unlock the door to DeMalo’s room an hurry down the stairs. Then I hitch up the red dress an, boots in hand, I run. Fast as I can, quiet in bare feet. A night-time hush thickens the air. Down the long, long corridor of the fourth floor. Past the bolted room where the weak-chinned commander dreams of crows.
As far as I can tell, I was only with DeMalo a few minutes. But his room, his tent, the Wrecker bunker, they’re all places outta time. Where real life stops. An this place . . . Without the sky to tell me, I got no idea how much of the night’s passed. It’s like bein trapped unnerground.
Tommo must of put the rope in place long ago. He’ll be in a panic, wonderin where I am. What if they all left without me? What if I’m trapped here? If I am, I got nobody to blame but myself. Set on revenge when all I should be thinkin about is Emmi. Lugh’s right. I’m obsessed with Jack. If I do git outta here, I’ll make it up to her.
Suddenly – not more’n fifteen foot ahead of me – a door opens. I press aginst the wall. Two Tonton come out. They stand in the corridor, talkin in low voices.
I don’t breathe, don’t even blink. I clutch the knife tight, ready to slash out. Inside my head, I’m screamin at ’em to move, to go. Somethin drips on my head. Hot. Painful. I raise my eyes. I’m right unner a wall candle. A drip lands on my forehead. I don’t even wince.
At last, they start to move, still talkin. I let myself breathe agin, let my face screw in pain. I wait till their footsteps fade. Then I hurry after ’em.
Finally. There it is. The open metal staircase that runs up the middle of this place like a spine. It’s all clear. I make my way down one floor, silent, knife at the ready, boots in my hand.
Okay, third floor, any window, lakeside. Fix the ropes an down we go to the waitin canoes. As I step offa the last stair into the third floor corridor, I catch a flash of movement to my right. About thirty foot along, I’m jest in time to see a Tonton open a door. It’s on the lakeside. He slips inside. My flesh goosebumps. I know the back of that head. I stared at it all the way to Freedom Fields. The heartstone’s warm aginst my skin.
It’s Jack.
The red hot slams to life. I pull on my boots with tremblin hands an poundin heart. I tiptoe along the corridor, clutchin the knife.
Hold fast. Hold fast to what he’s done. If it warn’t fer his deceit, none of us ’ud be here. An I wouldn’t of lost myself to DeMalo. Lost myself in DeMalo.
I used to know who I am. I don’t no more. An it’s all down to Jack.
I stop outside the door. The heartstone’s hot. I move slow, silent. I turn the handle.
I open the door. An I step inside.
It happens fast. In a flash.
A tiny room. Like a cell. Dark. Moonlight floods through a small window, waist high.
Jack’s leanin out of it. As I come in, he whips his head around, eyes wide. No! he hisses.
A rope stretches across the room an out the window. Tied at this end to the door handle. Our rope. He’s holdin it. Clutchin it.
Sabotage.
Even as I take in all of this, I’m at him. On him. Knife held high. The room’s so small, he ain’t got time to dodge. He grabs my knife hand. My rush jest about topples him outta the window. He’s off balance, tippin backwards. Keepin the knife high with one hand, hangin on to the rope with his other. He pushes back aginst me with his lower body. Scrabbles at the floor with his feet.
No! he gasps. Emmi!
I dig my boots into the floor. With all my strength, I push aginst him. I inch the knife towards his face.
Emmi! he chokes out. Rope!
Hands seize me from behind. Throw me offa Jack. I stagger into the wall. It’s Maev. Her an Jack’s both got hold of the rope. They’re pullin aginst it, like there’s a weight on it. A person.
Shut the door! hisses Maev.
What? I says.
Door!
I do as she says an the rope pulls taut. My head’s poundin an crashin. The wild rush of redness that took me over. I’m pantin fer breath. Suddenly, I realize what Jack was tryin to tell me. Emmi’s on the rope.
I dash to the window. Pull Maev away an lean out next to Jack. Emmi’s clingin to the rope about ten foot down, swingin back an forth high above the waters of the lake. Five pale faces look up at me. Molly an Tommo in one boat. Ash an Lugh in another. Ash tows a third boat – empty – behind her. Creed’s treadin water. He shakes his head an starts swimmin fer the empty boat.
Emmi! I whisper. Are you okay?
She looks up an sees me. Breaks into a great grin. Jack was helpin me, she says, an then the rope jerked an I nearly fell off an Creed fell in the water.
Jack? I says. Helpin you? He knocked you out cold.
I was play actin, she says. I saved yer life. We bin havin the best fun, me an Jack!
Fun? I says.
Okay, Em, Jack whispers from beside me. Down you go. Slow, like I told you. Don’t be afeared.
I ain’t, she says. See you later. An down she goes, inch by careful inch towards Molly an Tommo.
I look at him. At Jack. Play actin? I says.
I didn’t have time to think, he says. I jest had to move. She’s a loose cannon, that girl. She got all excited when she seen me, that’s why she came bustin outta the loft like that. I knew th’other guy was gonna come from the back of the barn any second an I couldn’t take the chance she might blurt out somethin about you. The moment I seen her, I knew you must be nearby. I told her to pretend I hit her an she did the rest.
Why warn’t you at the Lost Cause? I says. Did you find the message I left you?
No, he says. I couldn’t git away. I got moved to a different patrol a few days ago. They switch us around to avoid factions. No loyalty to anybody but the Pathfinder. We warn’t nowhere near. I’m sorry.
Maev’s at the door, bolt shooter out, keepin watch. Saba, she says, yer next. Time to go.
My heart lurches. What? I says. No, I gotta – hang on, what’s goin on here? Why does everybody essept me seem to know what’s goin on? You go next.
I’m last out, says Maev. It’s my operation. We already bin here too long.
Maev, please, says Jack.
Two minutes, she says. She slips outta the door.
Then it’s jest me an Jack.
We’re standin by the window, facin each other. The moon streams in through the open shutters.
I take a breath. Start to sp—
Jack’s hooked my waist with one arm, clapped his other hand over my mouth an pulled me close.
We ain’t got time fer you to yell at me or fer me to tell you everythin that’s happened, so I’m jest gonna cover the main points real quick an then I’m gonna kiss you, he says. I went after the guys that raped Molly. One thing led to another an I seen a chance an ended up joinin the Tonton. I’m deep inside now. Nobody suspects me. I sent the message with Maev becuz I wanted you to work with me. I’d be on the inside, feedin you information, you’d be on the outside, actin on it. A team. You an me . . . we’re good together. We’d work to stop this thing before it goes any further. But I thought you’d come by yerself, that you’d slip away. Th’only way this could work is if nobody knows about me, jest you. I cain’t trust nobody else. This is my life we’re talkin about. But here you are, with this huge crowd, an they all know I ain’t real Tonton. If I was, I would of raised the alarm. Instead, I led ’em to Emmi’s cell an opened the door.