Watch of Nightingales

by Honor Gable

  My breath catches on a sob as the veins on my pale arms streak and glow silver. The pain heightens, stealing my voice so I can't scream. What's happening to me? Am I about to die? Or develop strange growths or be driven to madness like the men they tried this on?

  I pinch my eyes closed and bite my bottom lip so hard I taste iron, fighting the throb pulsing through me.

  After what I'm certain is an hour, the torment subsides bit by bit, leaving me able to move and breathe again. My eyes open and meet Audrey's green ones from where she lays on a table beside me. They're still pinched and wild, but the madness starts to fade, leaving a slow burn glistening deep inside them. Her dusky skin is ashy and blanched, her lips pressed into a line, but she sends me a weak smile.

  Do I look as broken and mad as she does?

  The man we only know as Mr. Pipping gestures to the doctor, who scurries over to us. He peels back Rivka's eyelids and shines a light in them, has her open her mouth, checks her pulse. Last, he inspects the bracelets and cleans the blood off with a swab. He performs much the same with each of us, leaving Lois for last. Her lips twist in a terrifying grin and his steps falter as he approaches her. I bite back a nervous giggle. Lois is the only one of us in prison for murder. Of her husband. Rumor is, he knocked her around one too many times, so she took a frying pan to his head while he slept.

  Once the doctor is done with his examinations, he scrambles from the room, clutching his notes to his chest. I struggle to a sitting position using the arm that isn't still pulsing with shooting pain and stare down at my swollen wrist encased in black and silver rocks, reminding me a bit of quartz. The doctor did a pretty decent job cleaning it up, the rocks sparkle and shine under the fake light. It's rather pretty, completely hiding the truth behind it. No one will guess it's anything other than a pretty bauble, and our uniforms will cover them anyway.

  What will I be able to do now? Judging from the terrifying color change of my veins, it worked. Maybe I can read minds. I close my eyes and focus, but no thoughts join my own. Maybe I can move things with my brain. I stare at the swab the doctor left on the table beside me and try to lift it. It doesn't move. Huh. Maybe it takes a while for any powers we might have to show up.

  Maybe we've turned into Frankenstein's monster.

  And if we have, they should be terrified.

  Mr. Pipping's muffled voice floats through the curtains, intruding on the memory. I squeeze my eyes shut for a moment, chanting Sebastian's name through my head before leaving my hiding place. Lois and Audrey emerge from their changing areas at the same time, and we join Rivka in the middle of the room. She's watching Mr. Pipping and the scientists murmuring near the entrance.

  I want to ask what the girls think they're saying, but my vocal chords are frozen. We wait.

  After a few long moments, Mr. Pipping comes to us alone. "All right, girls. Because you've taxed your powers so much this week, the scientists think you should have a weekend of leave. You have to stay in London I'm afraid, no visiting family, but it will give you the chance to heal and rest. When you return, you will have another check up to see how you've healed and if they clear you, you'll be headed for your first mission. Hand in your bracelets on the way out."

  Disappointment wells within me.

  I need to see my family.

  To say goodbye.

  Just in case.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  VIOLA

  The sun, unmarred by clouds and fog sets the water on fire-—oranges and yellows shimmering and rippling across the surface. My eyes blur and it mesmerizes me, the colors swirling and blending into flickering lights.

  "I don't ever want to leave."

  When I look away from the river to focus on Audrey, she's painted the color of the sun. I blink a few times to clear it away. "Me either."

  She sighs at the empty picnic basket. "I was hoping without the bracelets, this hunger would go away." She flops onto her back and groans.

  "I think it has less to do with our powers and more to do with all we brought with us was half a loaf of bread and a wheel of cheese."

  "Damn your logic." Audrey stretches, her head tilting towards the streaming light like a cat.

  "Too bad Lois and Rivka didn't come." I thread my fingers through the grass.

  "I'm glad they didn't."

  "What? Why?" My surprise tears up some of the grass in my hands.

  Her eyes squint open a little, mischief twinkling emerald fire. "Rivka annoys me. Lois would have been fine, but she's a bit of a downer."

  A laugh startles from me before I can stop it. "She's a downer probably because she's had an awful life."

  "Oh, absolutely. Doesn't change the fact she isn't too fun to be around. I love her, but it's better when it's just us. And Rivka would want us to do drills or something. She's such a goody two shoes."

  "She's just doing her job."

  She has a point. Rivka is always on us to do this or that. Always looking to Mr. Pipping for approval. Never complaining.

  Audrey makes a snow angel in the grass. "Well, they're both only twenty-three. They should be enjoying life a little. And Rivka looks down on us because we were in prison."

  "Everyone looks down at us for that." Everyone. The sniffs, the head shakes, the pursed lips.

  She waves a hand and splutters. "It's all right. Besides. If life had gone differently for us, we wouldn't be heroes."

  Needing a change of subject, I say, "I'm surprised you wanted to come here yourself. What happened to your grand plans of dancing till sunrise and sleeping till sunset?"

  "The fellows at the Paramount weren't impressive enough for me. I came home early."

  I snort with laughter. "Are you sure you didn't get tossed out again?"

  "No." Her smile is sheepish. "Not this time." She stands and holds her hands out and helps pull me to my feet. "Let's go. I'm starving."

  I pack up the picnic basket with our trash, quite ready for tea myself.

  Audrey bites out a curse when she picks up her shoes.

  "What's wrong?"

  She holds out her hand and the side of her palm has a little cut, blood seeping from it. "I caught it on something. It's not that big." I hand her a handkerchief from my pocket, but before she can wrap it around her hand, the cut seals up before our eyes.

  Dread ices through my veins, battling the burn of fear and anger. My entire body breaks into a cold sweat and my mouth dries out completely. Her expression is closed, still staring at her hand, her body unmoving.

  I sigh, check for people watching, and take a couple running steps. And in seconds I'm across the park and standing amid the trees.

  Our powers are still in us.

  Without the bracelets.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  AUDREY

  Viola and I hurry to the flat, our feet pounding up the steps. Inside Lois and Rivka are curled up on opposite ends of the sofa, Lois smoking and Rivka writing.

  I speak before anyone else has a chance. "Our powers are still here."

  Rivka and Lois's faces pale, their eyes widening. "What?" They ask in unison.

  Annoyed, I shout at them. "Viola and I both just used our powers. Without the bracelets."

  Rivka's mouth opens, but nothing comes out. Lois gets up and closes the blackout curtains, shutting us off from light other than a flickering candle.

  And then she disappears.

  Yellow lights flow from Rivka and the candle disintegrates.

  I throw open the curtains. "Bollocks." I continue cursing, no one paying me any mind as I pace in the small confines of the parlor.

  Viola leans against the wall. "I'm sure we'll have yet another check-up with the scientist. Maybe he'll know what's going on."

  Lois shakes her head, blonde hair flying about her face. "No, absolutely not. We can't tell them. If they find out we can still do these things without the bracelets, they'll never let us go."

  Rivka waves an unbelieving hand. "Don't be so dramatic. Maybe they'll be able to make them stop
."

  "Don't be so naive." Lois fires back. "You aren't a British citizen, and the rest of us are criminals. We won't be trusted with them and we'll spend the rest of our lives under watch and having experiments and checkups, forced to do whatever the Queen and country need."

  Viola objects, her big eyes trusting and naive. "No. They wouldn't do that." It's sweet how she still trusts.

  I snort. "Of course they would. They already are. When they came and offered us the commutation, they mentioned picking us for speaking French. They planned on sending us overseas, but we've been stuck here under watch so far."

  Viola frowns. "But...we're supposed to be getting orders for France tomorrow."

  "Not if they find out about this." Lois's voice is bleak and certain.

  "They're trusting us to take the bracelets," Rivka protests.

  I kick the edge of the table, the glasses shaking and one falling over with a clang. "Doesn't matter. Believe me." This cannot be happening. It changes everything. Goodbye, America. I slump against the wall beside Viola.

  "Is there anything in the journals about the children ending up with powers? Did Lucy ever mention her own children or Oscar and Clara's? What if we end up starting a whole race of new humans? Did they?" Lois trembles, her arms wrapped around her stomach.

  I don't remember much from reading the journals in training. Lucy Bly was some sort of reporter from America who discovered a group of vigilantes with powers. There had been a meteor storm while they were fighting in the American Civil War, and it had effected their entire squad. Lucy ended up married to one of them and her journals were found years after her death, detailing everything.

  Super heroes before comic books were even a thought. Scientists in England and America have been trying to duplicate the powers ever since, getting more serious since Hitler came into power. They found the site of the storm and mined all the meteorite from the area.

  There were even rumors of others storms across the globe on that same day. From what I understand, they're still searching.

  I guess we should be happy America and England are the only countries who know about it.

  As far as we know.

  Viola answers after thinking for a moment. She's the one who's read the journals the most. "No. None of the powers passed to them. Lucy mentioned it several times. It was something they feared before she and Clara started having children."

  "What if ours are different? Most of our powers are similar to the people in Lucy's journals. We didn't get them from some meteor shower, it was an experiment. What if our children have growths like the men they experimented on before us?" Lois's voice is shrill, the panic undisguised.

  Rivka pinches her nose. "Calm down. We don't know any of this will happen. And all the problems you just mentioned were possible before this. And you still agreed."

  Lois turns on Rivka in fury. "I was in prison for life. For killing my husband after he caused my fourth miscarriage. What did I have to lose?"

  Rivka doesn't back down. "This doesn't change anything. Not about that. There was always the possibility of it killing or changing us. The problem at hand is, do we tell or not. If they find out we hid this..."

  She doesn't have to finish, we know what'll happen. Back to prison, experimented on for life at best. At worst, executed as traitors. Silence smothers us, but if they find out, we might never be free.

  Viola straightens up from her spot on the wall. "I've changed my mind. We shouldn't say anything. Not yet anyway, not until we know more."

  Rivka mutters in a mixture of Italian and Hebrew, taking her turn pacing in the small space. With a loud sigh, she sinks back down in her seat. "Fine. Fine. We keep it quiet for now, but if we get caught, I'll kill you all myself."

  The relief of the decision being made relaxes us all. I stare down at my fingers, the bones sticking out more than ever before. If we keep the powers, will they waste me away to nothing but dust?

  Or will I live forever, never able to die?

  A grin twitches my lips. That would be brilliant. I'd get the chance to do and experience everything I've ever wanted. Maybe these powers aren't such rubbish after all.

  CHAPTER SIX

  VIOLA

  WE BREAK INTO UNCONTROLLABLE giggles at Audrey's antics as she sashays about wrapped in scarves, speaking in horribly fake accented French. Two days we've spent speaking only in French, practicing our new aliases, and it's nice to remember who we really are. Though my cover isn't really too far from my real life. No matter where I turn, I can't escape my future of being a maid. Our fun is interrupted by a knock. My stomach swoops. Is it time?

  Lois opens the door, flitting through shadows to make it there first. She murmurs something and closes the door, her hand clutching a small stack of letters. "Mail call," she sings.

  We rush towards her, starved for words from the people we love. These may be our last ones for a while. I'm deep into a letter from my mother when my head jerks up at Rivka's moan. Her hand covers her mouth and the letter shakes before her face. We rush to her, sitting and kneeling around her.

  "What's wrong?" Audrey asks.

  "M-my family. They—-they were taken. A friend of ours—a neighbor wrote to tell me. My sister got away, but my parents and three brothers and all four of my grandparents, and my aunts, uncles, cousins. Everyone."

  "Did she say where?"

  "She didn't know. Germany I assume, to one of the camps there. She couldn't say much about my sister, but it seems the resistance is trying to smuggle her out from what I understand of her words." Her face is blank and voice hollow, shock numbing her.

  Nausea rises in my throat and I wrap my arm around her shoulders. "I'm so sorry." I don't know what else to say. Is there anything else to say? Her body shudders and a sob bursts from her. She jumps to her feet and runs into her bedroom, slamming the door behind her. Pity and pain and horror overwhelm me and I bury my face in my hands. Poor Rivka. Her poor family. I hate this world.

  The last war was supposed to end all wars, but here we are, fighting a worse one.

  Lois rises to her feet, slamming both fists on the table, things rattling like they did when Audrey kicked it. She whirls around to stare at us with blazing eyes. "We are going to make them pay for this." She stalks to the door. "I need some air."

  I turn to Audrey, my hands clenched in my lap. "Do you think what we've been hearing about the camps are true?"

  Her face contorts into a grimace. "Yes. And they're probably worse than what we've heard."

  My throat works hard to swallow, as I think of the torture and starvation and beatings and executions we've heard about. What could be worse? "Should we check on her?"

  "No. She wants to be alone. She'll come to us when she's ready."

  "What about Lois?"

  "She's just angry. She'll walk it off and be back too."

  I lay my head on Audrey's shoulder and search for some anger to hold on to. But all I find is a cold and weary sadness.

  And guilt.

  My family is safe in the country, far from bombs and war. Even rationing isn't as bad out there.

  Rivka's family could already be dead.

  I shoot to my feet, and hurry to our room. I should write one of those letters. The just in case ones.

  We leave tomorrow night. It's been a week since we received our orders and when we haven't been driving ambulances and helping with the devastation the buzz bombs leave behind, we've been studying and practicing our cover stories. I sit at my desk, staring at the sheets of paper before me, my pen twirling between my fingers.

  How do I write a note explaining to my family that I'm dead?

  I throw the pen down and rub my eyes with the heels of my palms. What do I say? Especially when everything we do is so secret. I rub my fingers together and pick the pen back up. There's only one thing to say, really.

  Dear Mum and Sebastian,

  I'm sorry. So sorry you're reading this. But I want you to know I don't regret anything I did to get me here.
And I love you both more than anything in the world.

  Love,

  Viola

  Bit pathetic, but otherwise they might not give my family the letter. While we're in France I'll work on another one with a bit more soul, and give it to Audrey or one of the others. Sealing it up, I set it aside to give to Shirley later when she comes to check our bags and take us to the airfield. I finger through the ticket stubs, letters, ration cards, and other bits and bobs I'm to keep in my pockets. Everything is French. Apparently, she got them from Vera Atkins, the lady who deals with all the regular girl agents of F section. I don't know where she collected all of these. Maybe she asks the other agents to bring them back.

  I sigh and look around the room. How long will it be until we're back here? Will we all return? Will someone be left behind, dancing into flames and dying a thousand deaths? My hands clench into fists. Not if I can help it. I'm done being weak.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  VIOLA

  I sip at the drink we were given, the rumbling of the plane sloshing the liquid about in the glass. We're packed in so tight, I can barely get it to my lips. It burns all the way down into my stomach, but my muscles release a bit of the tension and cold stiffening my limbs. It's going to be much worse once we jump; the air this high is cold and wet.

  Audrey reaches over and clinks her glass against mine. "Cheer up, lovey. You enjoyed jumping during practice."

  "I did, but I have a feeling this won't be the same as a static balloon. And there weren't people wanting us dead at the bottom then." My throat convulses.