Chapter Fifteen
‘WHO'S NOLAND?’ I asked Purple. He was sitting on a patch of dirty ground outside the theatre, resting against the brick wall. The building was one of the only ones made from bricks.
‘One of Artie’s old warriors,’ he replied, keeping his eyes closed.
‘Well, he’s back,’ I said, falling to the ground next to him and adopting his pose. The sun was warm on my face as I felt the tension drain away from me.
‘What?’
I heard Purple’s head move. He grabbed my cast and I yelped in pain.
‘Sorry, but he’s been gone a while. We didn’t think he’d be back,’ Purple’s tone had me opening my eyes and looking at him. He ran a hand through his loose hair and glanced at me sideways.
‘That’ll be why you have such a dreamy look in your eye.’
I laughed and he joined in. There was no denying it. I was attracted to the hulking warrior with dirty blonde hair, pale skin and a voice deep enough to drill a hole into my heart.
‘He’s no Jason, that’s for certain,’ I replied, feeling guilty at the bitter tone in my voice.
‘No, he’s much worse than Jason, Hope, don’t even think about getting involved,’ he said, taking my hand gently and leaning his head back against the wall.
‘Don’t you have some work to do?’ Artie’s voice floated over to us from the open doorway of the theatre.
‘Okay, okay,’ Purple said, standing.
I got up and pushed my straggly hair back out of my eyes. I felt my mouth screw up as I encountered my greasy locks.
‘And you met Noland looking like that?’ Purple smirked. I couldn’t even punch him. My broken arm was still sore, but it was feeling better as the hours went by. I wondered if being an angel meant I healed quicker. I glanced at Artie and saw that he’d frozen. He was staring at Purple.
‘I saw him, Artie, he told me to tell you he was back and wanted to help.’
Artie nodded once and went inside.
‘What is it with everyone knowing everyone else and me not knowing anyone?’ I asked.
Purple raised his eyebrows at me. ‘If you’d stopped sneaking off with lover boy for the last couple of months, you’d be more focused on what’s going on. You’ve completely missed the bigger picture,’ Purple almost spat the words at me.
I frowned at his sudden change in mood. ‘Well, why don’t you enlighten me? You’re supposed to be my boss.’
We stood in the street. The sun was sinking and Avoidables were going home after a day of trying to make their life better. Some of the jobs they had were making products, teaching or just dragging up their children.
‘You’re supposed to be the enlightened one, angel,’ he whispered.
‘What’s your problem?’
Purple had gone from warm to cold in the space of a few minutes.
‘Nothing, Noland is a dangerous warrior. He was good for a long time but then his parents were killed and since then, he’s gone off the rails a bit.’ Purple was looking down at the ground.
‘Why is he an Avoidable?’ I couldn’t help but ask. I’d not been able to see any mar of imperfection on him.
‘Because his parents were Avoidables. He was born here, but has nothing wrong with him. In fact, one Perfect female government official tried to get him to go over to their side. He refused. He’s always seen himself as one of us. He’s the perfect advocate for us really. A man that’s not only handsome but has a soul and is conscious too. Unfortunately, that consciousness has been a little absent recently.’
‘Where has he been?’ I had to know about this man.
‘After he’d got a bit trigger happy at one of the Perfect’s summer events, Artie sent him on a mission. He was to go and check all of the rebel camps over the wilderness. It should have taken him years to do, but he’s only been gone nine months. He’s not stupid. In fact, that’s half the problem. He knows Artie was trying to get rid of him.’ Purple looked at me and shook his head.
‘Will Artie let him help?’ I asked, hoping that he would.
‘I doubt it, Hope, Noland killed Artie’s parents.’
Chapter Sixteen
‘S>TAY BACK, HOPE,’ Purple whispered.
‘Let’s just get this over and done with, shall we?’ I said, running around him and sprinting through the centre of the high street. We were on the Upper Side and I was fed up of being treated like a child. I knew nothing about what was going on and it was time I found out. I needed answers and I was going to get them tonight.
We didn’t say anything as our boots hit the concrete. The compound wall was at the end of the street. It was the middle of the night and the Perfects were all tucked up in their beds. As I got nearer, I pushed out my wings. I didn’t want to fly far, but I needed to get over the wall. Purple drew level with me and we both jumped at the same time. We soared over and landed in a crouch on the other side. There was grass below our feet and I took a moment to pull my wings in. I kneeled on the floor and sniffed. We didn’t have grass in the Lower Side and I loved the feeling of running my fingers through it.
‘Come on,’ Purple hissed, grabbing my waist and pulling me up. He never did understand my fascination with nature. I left my good arm out. I was going to need it to escape if we were seen. I followed Purple through the gardens. Up ahead, I could see various concrete buildings. I knew cameras would be everywhere.
‘Pull your sleeve down,’ Purple stopped me behind a tree. I brushed my hand over its rough bark. I pulled my black jacket sleeve down over my cast. The white of it would attract the cameras.
‘Remember what I said. His bedroom is over there.’ Purple pointed to the nearest building. The windows were big. They were gorgeous and I couldn’t wait to get a closer look inside the luxury bedrooms. I nodded at him and we started forward. We crept slowly, our boots silent on the grass. I gasped when I kicked something and it made a crunching noise. Purple looked back at me, but it was too dark to see his face. I’d stepped on a snail. We stayed still for a moment, listening for sounds. There were none. We started to walk again. I could see the bedroom window we were heading to. It was in darkness. We heard a little buzz and stopped.
‘Camera,’ Purple breathed. I only just heard him and looked around to find it. Artie had given us the layout of the compound. It surprised me that he’d never used it to his advantage before. Then I remembered that I actually knew nothing about all this. I felt a growl leap out of my throat.
‘What?’ Purple whispered.
‘Nothing, the camera is on the corner of the building to the left. We’re going to have to make a run for it as it swings away.’ I tried not to make too much noise as I spoke.
‘Okay, it’s swinging away now, let’s go.’
I didn’t realise he was going to go that quickly and I almost tripped over myself. Luckily, I just about managed to stay on my feet and we ran silently over the grass, onto the concrete and onto his outside patio. His windows were French apparently. That’s what Purple had told me. We pressed our backs against the wall on either side of the doors. They were white, with glass in them. There were two that opened from the middle and out. We didn’t have glass on the Lower Side. It was too dangerous. Everything was made from plastic. I wanted to touch the glass, but Purple saw me reach out and grabbed my hand. I looked over at him and could just make out his frustrated glare. We waited until the camera had swung again and then Purple tried the handle of the door. It came open and we paused. This was too easy.
‘You can come in,’ a voice from inside said. I recognised William’s tone and felt relief as we walked in. It seemed ages since we’d seen the angel from the Perfect government.
‘How did you know?’ Purple said once the door was closed behind me. I stared around the room. There was a huge soft looking bed with a red duvet cover. The curtains were long and thick. A massive television was on the wall and there was a dressing table below that. William was sitting in an armchair in the corner.
‘My good friend, Artie
, managed to get a message to me,’ he replied, gesturing for us to sit. There was another chair near him and Purple took it. I went over to the bed and let the softness of it envelope me as I leaned back against it.
‘Hope,’ Purple snapped. I stood up and came over, where I sat on the arm of the chair and smiled at William. I couldn’t help it. His charm was just as strong as ever.
‘What can I do for you?’ he asked, looking directly at me.
‘I wanted to come and talk to you, William. Purple is only here because he didn’t trust me. He always thinks I’m going to get caught.’
‘That’s because you always do,’ Purple butt in.
‘No, I don’t.’
‘Yes, you do. Who had to rescue you when Jason got you caught?’
‘I could’ve got out of…’
Will cleared his throat and we both hung our heads. It had been a while since Purple and I had bickered. It felt good to almost be back to how we’d been before Jason.
‘Sorry, Will. I need to know more. Everyone seems to know everyone else and what’s going on, but I’m clueless.’ I sounded whiny and I hated that.
Will sat forward and grinned at me. His flirtatious charm melted away and his angel personality came through. I could see the light shining in his eyes. Purple could see it too. He was staring at him.
‘I’ve been waiting for this day. You see, Jason and I have been working together since he found you. Being human is a completely different experience from being at home. It’s a lot harder and we have to fight all sorts of emotions. You both still have huge amounts of growth to go through.’
I nodded at him, waiting for him to tell me everything.
‘The thing is, Hope, you’re not supposed to know it all yet. You’ve got to find out for yourself, otherwise you won’t grow. If I tell you the plan, it won’t help the mission. In fact, it may even hinder it,’ he said, sitting back in the chair.
I blinked a few times and frowned.
‘Okay, then tell me about the connections then. Artie and my mother. Jason and Artie. What’s going on there?’
A kind smile landed on his lips and he glanced at Purple. I looked over at my friend and saw him shake his head. They were treating me like a child.
‘Don’t you see, Hope, this is the plan? Do you think these connections are all just coincidences? Nothing is ever a coincidence, but a planned synchronicity. Everything happens for a reason.’ He shrugged and started to get to his feet.
‘Wait!’
William froze and sat back down.
‘You’re not going to tell me anything? What about me? What can I do to find out about it all?’ I felt a hot surge rush through me. Why was he being such hard work? Why did everyone seem to know everything, but I was always left in the dark?
‘Have you asked anyone?’ Will said quietly, ‘It’s not my story to tell but maybe the people you are talking about will tell you if you just ask them.’
I went still. His words were like an arrow into the centre of my eyebrows. Purple laughed and I looked at him. William was smiling. I’d been so caught up in everything that was going on, I’d not even thought about directly asking the people involved. I shook my head and got up to leave. William wasn’t going to give me anything more and I needed to sleep.
‘Will we be seeing you soon?’ I asked, standing with my hands on my hips.
‘Yes, Artie will tell you when you’re needed for the trial. It will be in a few days.’ William stood and offered his hand. I took it and he pulled me into his arms. The hug was warm and I felt a vibration soar through me. I relaxed against him as a soft feeling enveloped my whole being. This was what a true angel felt like.
‘You’re a true angel, Hope, you’re just not there yet,’ William whispered in my ear. I smiled. He had the same ability as Purple had. It was really annoying, but I couldn’t get angry.
‘Thank you,’ I whispered back before stepping out of his embrace and following Purple out of the door.
Chapter Seventeen
HOW I'D ENDED up in the cave, I wasn’t sure. I was panting and could feel the sweat on my body. It was dark and damp and I was crouching in a low cave. I could feel earth under my hands as I lifted them from the ground. I’d woken up to find I was somewhere strange. My breathing started to pull in and out of me. I’d gone to sleep at the theatre as normal last night. Now I was here. I couldn’t see anything. I reached up and felt rock above my head. I felt around me and felt the same texture. In front of me was a tiny spot of light. I pressed forward and felt the rock move gently.
‘Ah, she must be awake,’ came a very deep voice from outside. I recognised that sexy voice. It was Noland, the man who had worked for Artie. The rock shifted and I blinked as the light hit me. A big hand grabbed my cast and pulled me out of the hole.
‘Ouch! What are you doing?’ I cried as I was plonked on the floor. My hair flung forward as I landed on my butt.
‘She’s quite attractive if you ignore the lack of an arm,’ another voice said. I looked up to see the rebel, Leon, looking down at me.
‘You…’ I started, but he cut me off by bending down and putting his hand over my mouth.
‘Don’t say anything, lovely,’ he whispered against my ear. I cringed as his hot breath hit my skin.
‘Leave her alone,’ Noland said, grabbing hold of Leon’s arm and pulling him away. He crouched down in front of me. His blue eyes were actually almost grey as he assessed me. He was looking straight through me or maybe it was straight into me. His facial hair was a bit longer than was normally acceptable for me to like but somehow, with his long plaited braid and the sides of his head shaved, he looked all man. The way he looked at me. I wiped my palms on my trousers and cleared my throat. Our eyes were locked and although I wanted to look away, I couldn’t.
‘Noland is a warrior, Hope, have you ever met one before? They’re from ancient times and there are only a few descendants left. He has the ability to look into your soul and see your truth.’ Leon said.
I tore my eyes away from Noland. It may have been too late, but I didn’t want him to see my truth. I didn’t even know my own truth yet. A rough callused hand grabbed my chin and he pulled my face back to look at him. He was frowning.
‘Don’t like what you see?’ I sneered, looking everywhere but into his eyes. He laughed and let me go, standing to tower over me.
‘Get up,’ Leon said. I looked around and saw that we were out in the wilderness. The hole I’d been in was at the base of a mountain. I could see Lower Side in the distance. We had to be at one of the rebel camps.
‘How did you get me here?’
‘I escaped and then injected you.’ He started to walk away, holding up his hand and waving for me to follow. I glanced at Noland. His face was now clear.
‘What about the others?’ I followed him and Noland followed me. I could feel his presence right behind me. If I stopped he would walk straight into my back. The thought was tempting for a moment. I shook my head and focused on my surroundings. The ground was dirty and desert-like. We were walking around the base of the red mountain.
‘They’re fine. I left them alone,’ Leon called, not looking back.
‘Why did you take me then?’ My whole body was leaking sweat and I had to swallow a few times. What did they want from me? I felt my back start to vibrate but was able to stop my wings from popping out. I had no idea what they’d do if they saw my wings.
‘Because you’re a good bargaining tool. I saw the way that Perfect and the dragon defended you.’
‘Purple?’ Noland said from behind me.
‘Yes,’ Leon answered throwing a glare over his shoulder towards his partner in crime.
We came around the corner and I saw a small gap in the red mountain rock. We walked through it and came into a big clearing. The mountain rose above us, but stopped quite low on one side so plenty of light could get in. There were make-shift tents littered about. There were about ten little camps and then a big space in the centre where pe
ople could sit on the ground. A huge fire was unlit in the middle. Wooden benches were spread out around the fire.
‘That’s where we all gather to talk and sing. The bathroom is over there,’ Leon said pointing to another gap in the rock. It led into a cave and as we watched a woman came out. She had wet hair and a smile on her face.
‘Everyone works together here. We cook on our own fires, but sometimes we have huge feasts.’
‘Where do you get the food?’ I asked as we stood and watched the hundred or so people going about their day. Some of them glanced over and waved at Leon. I looked at him when he didn’t answer and he was watching me. He smiled slightly and tapped his nose. Of course, why would he tell me?
‘You can sleep in my tent if you like,’ Noland whispered into my ear. This time the breath that hit my sensitive lobe made me shiver. It felt good.
‘Don’t be silly, Noland, she’ll have her own tent and a guard,’ Leon replied, walking off again. I started after him, fascinated by the way the rebels lived. There were washing lines drying clothes pinned from one corner of a tent to another. I knew the Lower Side lacked all the luxuries of the Upper Side, but they truly lived like cavemen here.
‘Hope, have you ever seen this many Avoidables live so peacefully side by side?’ Leon led us to the centre of the camp and gestured for me to sit. I was so fascinated by my surroundings that the thought of escaping hadn’t even crossed my mind. I looked around me again and noticed everyone here was an Avoidable. Some people had missing limbs; some had scars and skin trouble. Some were out of proportion and some even looked normal.
‘No, I haven’t,’ I admitted as I saw how everyone was helping one another. Not one Avoidable that I could see was looking defensive or aggressive.
‘This is how it should be, but there is one thing missing.’ Leon sat next to me and looked into my eyes. I could sense the passion he felt for his cause.
Riot Girls: Seven Books With Girls Who Don't Need A Hero Page 34