Mom put on a smile, but I knew that smile too well. It was the one she always forced when she was extremely upset. “That won’t be necessary.”
Amy stepped forward. “Yes, it will. Remember our agreement, Janice.” So much hatred lingered on that last word that I flinched.
For some reason, I had an overwhelming need to defend my mother. “Surely we don’t need both of you. Just one should suffice.” Tami opened her mouth to speak, but I stepped forward, my voice cutting her off. “We have four from our city. We only need four from yours for this meeting. Three seats are already taken, so only one of you may come. That’s our agreement.”
Nick and Sean shared a smile. Nick covered his mouth and forced out a fake cough to cover up his laughter. Apparently, they hated the Randall’s as much as everyone else in the room did.
Tami glared at me, her face turning red. “How dare you speak to me like that. You have no …”
Amy held up her hand to silence her daughter. When Tami stopped, she put down her hand. “I’ll stay. Tami can take the others on a tour of our two precincts.”
“That sounds like an excellent idea,” Gideon said. He looked expectantly at Tami. “If you’d lead the way, please.”
Tami’s jaw hung open. She snapped it shut after a few awkward seconds. “Sure. If everyone would follow me, I’d be happy to give you a tour.”
Luke stood closest to the door. He shoved Tina out of the room like he couldn’t get them out fast enough. Gideon, Will, Dee, and the others followed them. Joshua stood in the corner, frozen in place. Eric went up to him and said something so quiet that no one else could hear.
Tami had gone out of the room but came back in when she realized Eric still hadn’t come out. She glanced over at him and for the first time noticed her brother. “You!” She stormed over to him, but Eric stepped between them. She shoved him in the chest. “Get out of my way!”
“No.” Eric kept his feet planted where they were. “We aren’t going on the tour, so you may leave now and escort everyone else.”
“You can’t stay in here if I can’t!” Tami had her hands on her hip. She had her hair pulled back, but some had escaped, making it look like a mess.
Eric’s voice was firm. “I didn’t say we were staying in this room. I said we weren’t going on the tour. Now leave.”
She tried to get past him, but he just held out his arm to stop her. Her strength didn’t even compare to his. He hardly moved as she pushed him.
Rolling his eyes, he looked over at me. “This is going to get old fast.”
“Enough, Tami.” Until then, Amy had been quiet. She just stared at Joshua, her face unreadable.
Tami glanced over Eric’s arm at Joshua. “This isn’t over. We’ll talk later.” She stormed out of the room without looking back.
Eric looked at Nick. “Are Carla and Courtney at home?”
“They should be,” Nick said, glancing at his watch.
“Good,” Eric said. “I think Joshua and I will walk over there so we can catch up.” He looked at me. “I have my communicator if you need us.”
“Sounds good,” I said. “Have fun.”
Eric kept in front of Joshua as they walked out, putting a barrier between him and Amy. Once they were out of the room, Nick closed the door and we all sat down, eager to get started.
Sitting in a circle took some getting used to. Usually, there was a desk in front of me where I could hide my bouncing leg or twirling thumbs. I felt fully exposed.
Mom sat on my left. Dante was on my right, followed by Maya, Santiago, Amy, Nick, and Sean. Mom turned to Sean and asked him to get waters for everyone. We waited in silence until he came back and handed them out. I still had the one Mom had given me for the pills, so I declined.
As he sat down, Sean scooted his chair closer to Mom. I looked at them, trying to see if I could get any insight on their relationship but I came up with nothing. Maybe he just didn’t like sitting so close to Nick.
“First and foremost,” Mom said as she crossed her legs, “I want to thank New Haven for coming to our aide.”
Dante glanced sideways at me. “We didn’t have much of a choice.”
With her eyebrows raised, Mom looked at me. “Did you force everyone to come?”
I shrugged. “No, I just said we were coming, so we came.”
“We don’t have time for chit chat.” Amy’s tone was cold, reminding me of her husband Whit. Mom must have noticed my shiver because she stood, went to her desk, and opened a drawer. She pulled out a blanket and brought it over to me, wrapping it around my shoulders.
Santiago rubbed his hands together. “Let’s get down to business, then. What do you need us to do?”
“I’m hoping to do this without bloodshed, but I doubt that’s possible,” Mom said.
“Austin will fight until the end,” Nick said. “He won’t surrender.”
I put my hand over my mouth and sighed. I still couldn’t believe Austin was capable of this. His father would never have done something so drastic. “Is he really that bad?”
Sean nodded, his face grave. “Unfortunately, yes.”
“He sounds just like Whit.” I tugged on the blanket, pulling it tighter around me. Dante scooted his chair closer and put his arm around me. I snuggled into him, grateful for the added warmth and grateful things were back to normal between us.
As I adjusted myself, I noticed an awkward pause hanging in the air. I looked over to see Amy and Mom both staring at me, their faces a mix of shock and anger. At first, I thought it was because Dante was holding me, but then it hit me.
“Oh.” I sighed. “Let’s just get this out in the open so we can work together. I hate Whit, so I call him Whit. I know my mom loved him, I know Amy had her own weird relationship with him, but I can’t stand the man. He’s a coward, a traitor, and plain pathetic. He stopped at nothing to get what he wanted. Amy and my mom hate each other. I don’t like Amy. I love my mom. I have no idea how Amy feels about me, but judging by the look on her face, she doesn’t like me either. Am I correct?”
Amy gawked at me but nodded. Mom shook her head and surprisingly a laugh escaped her mouth. She patted my knee. “I think that sums it up. Anyone else want to add to that?”
There were some shaking of heads and murmured nos. Smiling, Nick winked at me.
Mom kept her hand on my knee as she talked. “Now that the air is cleared, we need a game plan. I have a feeling Austin's going to strike soon.”
“Emmie said President Coleman showed up,” Dante said, looking at Mom.
Mom nodded. “Yes, just the other day.”
“He’s ruthless,” Dante said. “Not as bad as President Randall, but close. He and Austin working together won’t be good for anyone. Whatever you’re thinking Austin might do, multiply that by at least two.”
“I was afraid of that,” Sean said.
“What’s your weapon supply like over here?” Santiago asked.
Nick leaned forward and rested his arms on his knees. “We have guns and plenty of ammo. I was able to get my hands on a few grenades, but not much.”
“We brought guns,” Maya said, fingering the sword pendant on her charm bracelet. “In addition to swords and bows and arrows.”
Sean raised his eyebrows. “Different weaponry?”
Maya nodded. “Yes. We used swords in my old city.”
“And we used bows and arrows in mine.” Dante pulled out our smaller version of the sword. He had it in a scabbard at his side. “We made these beauties, too. Much easier than hauling a regular sword around, but more powerful than a knife.”
“Do you mind if I look at that?” Nick asked.
“Sure.” Dante released his grip on me and reached his sword out for Nick to take.
Nick looked it over, examining the blade and the hilt. “These are nice.”
Sean let out a forced laugh. “Yes, but I sure hope we don’t have to get close enough to use them.”
“I have a feeling we will,” I said. Nic
k handed the sword back to Dante.
“Me, too.” Mom removed her hand from my knee. “I think we’ll need to set up our military along the edge that touches Austin’s territory.”
“Do we wait for them to come to us?” Sean asked. “Or do we go to them?”
“We need to go to them,” Santiago said. “We don’t have time to waste and the sooner we attack, the better.”
Maya nodded. “It would be nice if we could throw them off guard.”
I looked at Mom. “Do you think they know we’re here?”
“Yes.” She glanced at Sean and then Nick. “We have scouts watching their area, so we have to assume they have some watching ours.”
“They could already be getting ready,” Dante commented.
“We need to drive forward until we can get to Austin and President Coleman,” Maya said. “Once they’re dead, it will be easier to gain control of the rest of the city.”
“What about numbers?” Nick asked.
Dante scratched his chin. “If we can get more buses back here with the New Haven warriors, plus the military personnel Marcus is sending from Kingsland, I think we might outnumber them.”
“That’s good,” Mom said. “We need any advantage we can get.”
I looked over at Santiago. “Don’t forget we have a side mission.”
His face fell. “Yes, we do. And that one we can’t fail.”
“What are you talking about?” Mom asked.
I turned to her. “They kidnapped Santiago’s ten-year-old sister Rosie.”
Mom gasped, her face genuinely surprised and concerned. “What? We had no idea. When did that happen?”
“When we were invading Kingsland.” Maya eyed the sewing machine pendant on her bracelet. She’d been teaching Rosie how to sew.
“They went to New Haven to kidnap Emmie,” Dante said.
Santiago sighed. “But when they realized Emmie wasn’t there, they took Rosie.”
Mom shot Amy an accusatory look. “You never said anything about them bringing back a little girl with them.”
Amy’s face twisted, anger lined on every inch. “Our scouts didn’t see a little girl with them.”
Standing up abruptly, Mom approached Amy. “How could you not notice a girl with them?”
Amy was quick to her feet, standing inches away from Mom, her fist balled like she was ready to throw a punch. Sean forced himself between the two of them, pushing them away from each other.
He looked at Mom. “We don’t have time for this right now. We need to focus on the rescue of Rosie and the upcoming battle.”
I did my best to hold back my tears as I looked back and forth between Mom and Amy, my thoughts on an entirely different matter. “The things Whit did to Eric last year and how he killed Vice President Oliver …” I choked on a sob. “They wouldn’t do that to a little girl, would they?”
Mom turned to me, her face softening instantly. She knelt in front of me, putting her hand on my knee. “Honey, I’m positive Austin would never do that to a girl. He may be an arrogant, prideful man, but he’s not capable of anything that evil.”
“Whit was not evil!” Amy yelled out. “He didn’t even do those things. He’s never killed anyone or hurt anyone!”
I turned to her, my tears now falling. My jaw clenched tight as I spoke. “How dare you defend him. He was evil. Just because he didn’t pull the trigger or throw the punches himself, he gave the orders. He watched it happen. I watched him give the order to kill Vice President Oliver! I had to watch him die.”
“Emmie …” Mom started.
“No!” I screamed. “I’m not going to sit here and listen to anyone defend that animal. I don’t care how much you loved him.” I looked at her. “Do you know what it felt like to see Eric in the condition he was brought back in? He was bruised, broken, and still has scars from the torture he received. It took months for him to recover.” I gasped for air. Dante put his arm around me and held me tight. “If Luke hadn’t gotten there when he did, Eric would be dead.”
“You don’t know that.” Mom’s voice was quiet.
“He couldn’t have survived much longer,” Dante said. “We all saw him. He’s lucky to be alive.”
Maya reached over and handed me some tissues. I wiped away some tears and then looked back at Mom. “Do you know what he did to Luke’s father?”
Mom slowly shook her head as she sat down in her seat. “I heard he died, but I’m not sure how.” It looked like she was telling the truth. It made me wonder how many things Whit did over the years that she had no idea about.
“He told Dean Johnson to kill him,” I said.
“No.” Amy’s voice was barely audible, but I heard it. She was back in her seat, her leg bouncing up and down. I remembered then that she and Dean had been sleeping together. How much had she known about Whit and Dean and the things they were capable of?
“Luke saw it happen,” I said. “Whit ordered Dean to kill Carl right in front of his own son. That’s why Luke left. That’s why Eric’s alive.” I paused at the realization. “The only good thing that came from Carl’s death was that it saved Eric’s life.”
Nick stood and ran his fingers through his hair. He walked away from the group, sniffling as he rubbed his eyes. All of us watched him, not knowing what to do. There was no one in the room close enough to Nick to be able to console him.
Mom cleared her throat. “Enough talk about Whit. It’s obvious he did some horrendous things, but we need everyone focused on the task at hand. We need to stop Austin before he does something crazy. We need to stop him before more lives are ruined and more families are shattered.”
“She’s right,” Sean said. He stood up and walked over to Nick, putting his hand on his shoulder. “Let’s start getting all the supplies ready to go and prep our military.”
“Emmie,” Mom said, “you’re staying inside, right?” She glanced at my stomach. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to fight.”
“She’s staying inside,” Dante said. “She already agreed to it. We can have her running communication, sending messages between people and looking over maps for us.”
“Speaking of maps.” Mom stood and went to her desk. She pulled out a bunch of papers from the top drawer and sat them on the desk. “Emmie, come over here for a minute so we can look over these.”
Dante helped me up and together we walked over to Mom. Soon everyone else joined us at the desk.
Mom pointed to the medical trade school building on the map. “This is where we are right now. Austin will most likely be in Headquarters calling the shots.”
“Is there any other way of getting there besides taking the streets?” Santiago asked.
Sean shook his head. “Nope. I’m afraid that’s the only way.”
“We’ll be so exposed,” Amy said.
“There’s no other option,” Nick said. He gave me a sympathetic look and half-smile. His eyes were a little red, but he’d stopped crying.
“Then we’ll just have to go as fast as we can,” Dante said.
Maya looked at Mom. “What about the residents you don’t want fighting? Where should we move them?”
“Good question.” Mom traced her finger along the map until she stopped at the foot of the mountain in the Mountain Precinct. “Here. It’s the farthest away from Austin. There’s a trade school building where we can send everyone to.”
Mom looked at Nick. “As soon as we leave this room, start the evacuation. We can use New Haven’s buses to transport people there.”
“We can have Samantha set up downstairs for the injured,” Maya said.
“Should they be so close to the edge of the split?” Amy asked.
Maya ran her hand over her spiked hair. “No, but we need to get them checked out as quickly as possible.”
I looked at Maya. “Maybe we can have Samantha check them over. Anyone with minor injuries can be treated right away and then sent back out to fight or sent to the building near the mountain with the o
thers.”
Dante nodded. “And people with serious injuries she can do her best to slow the problem and then transport them where they can continue to be worked on there.”
“Derek and Naomi.” I looked over the map. “Where should they set up their technical equipment?”
“Let’s move them farther away from here, but not too far,” Mom said.
“We can set them up at my house,” Nick said. “It’s a few blocks from here.” He looked at me. “Emmie, you can stay with them there.”
“Is everyone okay with these plans?” Santiago asked. Everyone nodded. “Okay, let’s head out.” We started to move, but he stopped us again. “Oh, prayer. Revolutionaries, let’s move it in.” He looked at Mom, Nick, Sean, and Amy. “You’re welcome to join us if you’d like.”
The four of us put our arms around each other. I glanced over at Mom. She had a confused look on her face but came over and put her arm around my waist. Soon Nick and Sean joined us, but Amy stayed back.
Santiago cleared his throat. “Lord, give us the strength to carry out our mission. Help us to keep our eyes clear and focused, our hearts full and open, so we can win this battle for New Haven, River Springs, and Kingsland. Amen.”
“Amen,” Dante, Maya, and I said at the same time.
Mom, Nick, and Sean threw in a rushed, “Amen,” after they heard us say it. Since religion wasn’t practiced in River Springs, it was all new to them.
As everyone started to leave, Nick came up to me and put his hand on my shoulder. “Is it true? Did President Randall really do all those things to Eric?”
I nodded. “Yes. It was bad, Nick, really bad. I could barely recognize him.”
He blinked back some tears. “That scar on his cheek, is that from Whit?”
“Yes,” I said.
“I can’t believe it,” Nick said. “And he had Vice President Oliver killed right in front of you?”
I nodded again. “I wasn’t the only one in the room that had to watch.”
He looked down at me. “Did Eric witness it?”
“Yes.” I wiped away some tears. “Alexander had to see, too. Plus, some of my friends.”
Rise (New Haven Book 3) Page 22