Izzy also shared her enthusiasm, while Mary-Anne tried to keep her cool.
Kain was the only one to remain silent, taking a big gulp as a thousand thoughts raced through his head.
The chief one being, would an airship feel like a dinghy when it flew, or would it be safe, like the pirate ship?
Chapter Nine
Prince Edward Island, Ontario
The moon was high in the night sky, a crescent hovering above the world. Mary-Anne watched it with admiring eyes, wondering what it would look like from the air when they were flying in impossible technology, hundreds of feet in the air.
The wind was refreshing. It blew through the open window causing the curtains to shiver. She took a deep breath, doing her best to ignore the irritable rumble deep inside of her. The part of her which had threatened to take control still lurked there like a piece of food in her teeth she could not shift.
Someone approached from behind. The door opened and closed.
Caitlin met her at the window. “You know you should get some rest. We’ve all had a long day.”
Mary-Anne nodded but remained quiet. She had been working out a way to talk to the others. To tell them all that she wouldn’t be accompanying them on their journey. To be stuck on a vessel high above the ground with no easy exits was a recipe for disaster, especially considering her experience on the ship earlier that day when the Madness had first threatened to take control.
Caitlin elbowed Mary-Anne softly. “You know you’re not fooling anyone.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Something’s wrong,” Caitlin replied simply. There was no judgment in her voice. It was simply a fact. As neutral and off-the-cuff as telling someone what the weather was doing.
Mary-Anne’s eyes lowered.
“You can tell me, y’know,” Caitlin pressed. “I mean, after all that we’ve been through, there’s no point keeping any secrets. You, me, and Kain should never have a reason to hide or lie to each other.”
“What about if one secret could change the course of our friendship?” Mary-Anne argued. “What about if it tears our group apart?”
Caitlin took a step forward and pressed a hand against the glass. It was cold to the touch. “You know, they say best friends can tell each other anything. They go through it all together. Thick and thin. When I was growing up, my family were my best friends. My mother and father never had anything to hide. Even when they succumbed to the Madness and they were carted away by the Governor, they never once lied about their condition. Honest from the start, despite their fears. That’s how we save the world.”
Mary-Anne met Caitlin’s eyes, and she flushed red. “How long have you known?”
Caitlin smiled sadly. “Since the museum. I saw the blood on your face. Made the connection. Hoped it wouldn’t be true.”
“If Izzy hadn’t had—”
Caitlin cut across Mary-Anne before her anger took over. “Izzy had no choice. She was saving her friend. You would have done the same.”
Mary-Anne considered this. “I’m not so sure.”
“You would,” Caitlin argued. “You’d die to protect those you love. That’s why you’re thinking of leaving, isn’t it?”
Mary-Anne looked impressed. “Is it that obvious?”
“Not really. I’ve just been thinking of what I’d do in your position. Not knowing what the Madness was going do to me, wondering when it’ll strike next. Those mood swings have got to be tough on you, eh?”
Mary-Anne nodded.
“Here’s my two cents, for what it’s worth,” Caitlin told her firmly. “We need you. Mad or not, I need you. We can whip up some of Stump’s concoction and slow the rate of infection, keep you as near to mint condition as we can possibly muster. Then it’s a race to find this fucking cure. If anything, you becoming infected has made me all the more determined to kick this son-of-a-bitch virus in the ass and cure the world once and for all.”
Mary-Anne’s eyes grew glassy. She couldn’t remember the last time someone had to take care of her. The last time she had been vulnerable in the eyes of someone else and found she was relying on another to save her.
The Madness was taking hold slowly, creeping through her system and causing her to lose control piece by piece. Sure, it was slow now, but what would happen if the rate accelerated? What would happen if she woke up and it had already taken hold? What then?
“You really think we’re going to find the cure?” she asked in a small voice. “Soon?”
Caitlin nodded.
“How can you be so sure?”
Caitlin chewed her lip. “Because I don’t know what we’re going to do if we don’t. Dylan, Sully, Vex, Belle, you, Kain, even Jaxon. All of you are at risk of this disease. I won’t be able to rest until the damn thing is gone. I have to believe that the path we’re on will lead to a result. I have to believe in Helena. She’s the answer to all of this, I can feel it in my heart.”
Mary-Anne looked down at the pirate town. Silhouettes of birds flew across the sky. Somewhere in the distance, a fire was blazing with several pirates dancing around it jovially. It was a different world for her now, with the ever-looming deadline of a virus that would destroy her completely.
“You won’t attack us,” Caitlin denied as if reading her thoughts.
“I won’t?”
“Nah,” Caitlin said with a confidence that Mary-Anne didn’t feel. “You love us too much.” She winked and giggled. “Besides, you couldn’t kick my ass anymore.”
“Excuse me?”
“You taught me too well. Even with your vampire powers, I could destroy you.”
Mary-Anne laughed, the sound a relief in the quiet of the room. “I’ll hold you to that the minute I fully turn and come at your throat like a leopard to its prey.”
“Well, it’s a good thing that’s never going to happen.” Caitlin’s face straightened. “Because we won’t let it get that far.”
Mary-Anne laughed once more, then let out a deep sigh. “Okay, Kitty-Cat, consider me convinced. But on your head be it.”
“I can take that risk.”
“What about the others?”
Caitlin thought about this. “We don’t tell them. Not until they need to know.”
“I’d argue that they probably need to know. Y’know, in case I suddenly go feral on them all.”
Caitlin nodded. “You’re right. We’ll tell them at first light. If they have any issues with it, we’ll deal with it then.”
“You thinking of Kain?”
“Yep. Who else?” Caitlin poked out her tongue.
They stood a long while in silence, looking out of the window.
Mary-Anne thought ahead to the future, wondering how long she might have left.
Caitlin, meanwhile, looked for solutions. She tried to imagine the moment she’d finally meet Helena Millican and they paired up to find the cure.
Because no matter what happened, she wouldn’t let another member of her family fall to the Madness.
Chapter Ten
Prince Edward Island, Ontario
The dirigible was a sight to behold.
Caitlin stared at it with an open mouth, unable to believe what she was seeing. When she had slept aboard the abandoned airship and trained with her Revolutionaries, she had always imagined what the vessel would look like upright and airborne.
Now she was going to get that chance.
Caitlin, Kain, Mary-Anne, Izzy, and Jaxon waited patiently the following morning as the pirates prepared the ship for liftoff. Caitlin and Mary-Anne took the opportunity to tell the others about her condition.
“You’re kidding?” Izzy breathed, her hand finding her mouth. “Ma, I’m sooo sorry.”
Mary-Anne waved her comment away. “It’s not your fault.”
“But it is! If I hadn’t had shot that Mad, then the blood wouldn’t have sprayed, and none of this would have happened.”
“Look, you were doing what you knew to be right,” Mary-Anne assure
d her. “There’s nothing that can be done about the past, so forgive yourself. I’ve already forgiven you.”
Izzy fell silent, but thoughts were running wild in her head.
Caitlin turned to Kain. “Pooch? You’re surprisingly quiet, for a change. You got anything to ask?”
Kain took a long breath and shook his head. “No questions, really. Well, none other than: why aren’t we already in the air trying to find the bitch who can fix this mess.”
Mary-Anne let out a small laugh, laced with relief.
Kain stared intently at the vampire, studying her face. “Seriously, are you feeling okay? Do you feel up for this?”
Mary-Anne nodded. “I do. We started this together, now let’s find a way to end this together. If I happen to turn feral, well, then you can worry.” She met Kain’s eyes without blinking. “Because I’m coming for you first.”
Despite the heaviness of the situation, they found laughter somewhere within it. They talked some more and made plans for what might happen if Mary-Anne suddenly turned, while the pirates stocked the ship with food and drink. They also loaded the vessel with various anonymous crates and containers, and one particularly long-nosed pirate spent an inordinately large amount of time ticking boxes on a scrap of old paper as he examined every inch of the dirigible’s body.
As they waited, Caitlin stared at the ship, wondering what Dylan would think if he could see her now. Her only regret in the moments before takeoff was that she wouldn’t be able to send a message back to him. To tell him that she was safe and that she had found things that they would never believe to be possible from their childhood.
Cammie and Royland were the last to appear as the final checks to the dirigible were made. They looked a splendid couple, dressed in their finest garb to take to the skies. Royland was cloaked in dark, thick material similar to Mary-Anne’s to help protect his skin from the sun.
Caitlin could sense their excitement. They were clearly hyped up for the journey to visit their friend and reunite after so many years.
They boarded the ship a little after noon. Caitlin was buzzing with excitement as she stood at the helm and waited for the technology to be activated.
Kain, Mary-Anne, and Izzy stood beside her. The dirigible gave a violent lurch, shifting its position as it began to rise sluggishly into the sky. Jaxon’s ears lowered as he took position lying between Caitlin’s legs, paws over his eyes.
“Sorry about that!” Royland called, keeping both his hands on the ship’s wheel. “I’m a little bit rusty.”
“A little bit?” Cammie called from the floor where she’d stumbled over. “You’re telling me!”
Caitlin leaned over the edge of the railing and watched the world fall away beneath the ship. The town became a toy-city. A short while later, it was nothing more than a series of dots on the landscape, and then not even that when the ship reached the cloud banks and was swallowed for a moment.
The land unfolded before them as the dirigible made progress. Caitlin could see for miles around. Fields and forests painted the land green, while rivers and streams decorated and broke the land like thin ribbons of silk. The lake became nothing more than a droplet of water, and by mid-evening, they had already covered more expanse of land than any sea-faring vessel could ever have dreamed.
“How’s the ride?” Royland shouted over the whispering wind.
Caitlin stuck a thumb in the air. Moxie shone in the rays of the burning crimson sunset, glad to be reunited with its master.
Mary-Anne and Izzy called back words of encouragement, then laughed as Kain belched and ran to the side of the ship.
Caitlin grinned. “I thought you’d gotten over your seasickness.”
Kain watched his vomit plunge to the ground, giggling slightly at the mental image of a Mad finding himself covered head to toe in Were puke.
“I guess every ship is different?” he managed. “Now, just leave me for a minute, please.”
They passed over the lake, and it wasn’t long before Caitlin could feel their descent. She crossed the deck toward Royland, confusion on her face.
“Are we there already? I don’t know the world all too much, but I figured that this Chee-car-goo place would be much farther away?”
Royland laughed at Caitlin’s pronunciation. “We’re not quite there yet. But I do have a little surprise for you all,” Royland replied, turning the wheel and sending the dirigible down toward the ground.
Caitlin grasped the railing and squinted through the dying rays of the sunlight. Below, she could see a city sprawled out at the water’s edge. The roofs of skyscrapers were loaded with grass and livestock, and she could just make out the tiny shapes of figures in the streets below.
“Welcome home,” Cammie announced, appearing from the door leading down to the private quarters. “We made good time, baby.”
“You sound surprised,” Royland replied.
She smirked. “Nope, you’re always quick to the draw.”
As they descended toward the city, Royland brought the dirigible down to drift near the edges of town. A stray gunshot sent a bullet flying meters from the vessel as it soared low over the buildings, and Royland took them back up out of range. Eventually, he brought the ship down to land on the grass just beyond the city walls.
Caitlin could hear the crowds even before she exited the ship. She hopped onto the grass and was met by a mob of several hundred citizens of the Broken City. The front row held pistols and swords before them, all pointed at the ship.
“Halt!” Alicia’s voice cried out.
“Whoever you are, declare yourself, in the name of the Broken City.”
Caitlin’s eyes lit up. That was Dylan’s voice.
She kicked out the docking ramp and took a step toward the mob. She placed her hands on her hips. “It is I, Caitlin Harrison, sister of Dylan Harrison of the Broken City.” She smiled as Dylan’s face dropped. “Is that okay with you?”
The Broken City, Ontario
At Royland’s instructions, they didn’t stay long in the city at all.
Several members of the recently instated council of the city were invited aboard, while the rest of the city-folk waited and marveled at the ship from the outside.
Caitlin took the council down into a large dining area below decks. She showed them the walls covered with oil paintings, then led them to the table decorated in cloths and doilies.
“When Miriam came back alone, I worried that you’d found some strange new way to get yourself killed,” Dylan joked, elbowing Caitlin affectionately. “I worried I’d never see you again.”
“Oh, she tried,” Mary-Anne told him. “Your sister decided to run at a load of pirates with her weapons drawn.”
“Pirates?” Dylan choked. “How is that even possible?”
Caitlin explained to Dylan, Alicia, Sully, and Tristan all that had happened, and all she had seen on Prince Edward Island, while Cammie and Royland took great pleasure in introducing themselves to Bryce, Cynthia, Nessa, and Sasha, and hearing about the experiences of Weres on this side of the world.
They shared a few drinks, talking animatedly until the moon rose high into the sky. Caitlin was extremely interested in the developments that were happening in the city.
Dylan explained that the first point of action had been to secure the outer perimeter. For the last week or so, they had had humans and Weres sourcing materials to reinforce the fences and stop more Mad from finding their way into the city.
They had also begun to find ways to utilize the sewer space that had acted as the Weres’ home. They had found a way to improve the facility and create underground living quarters that anyone would be proud to live in. There was much work still to be done, of course, but it was a start.
Not only that, but a group of Weres had teamed up with a group of humans to raid the entire city and clean out any final colonies of Mad. With the Weres’ improved sense of smell, they were perfect tracking companions. They had already confidently cleared out the eastern
quarter of the city from any possible Madness-infected intruders.
When people started yawning, Cammie tapped an invisible watch on her wrist and began to call time.
“You mean, you’re not staying?” Dylan complained, his shoulders slumping. “I thought we’d at least have a little while to catch up.”
Caitlin looked at Mary-Anne across the table. Though her attention was caught by a snippet of conversation between Royland and Bryce, she looked pained, as if even now she was concentrating to fight back the darkness inside of her.
Caitlin shook her head. “I’m afraid not. Our mission has taken a little extra urgency.” She suddenly sat up straight. “Speaking of, do you have any more of Stump’s concoction spare?”
Dylan’s eyes narrowed. “Caitlin? What aren’t you telling me?”
Caitlin leaned in close to Dylan and gave him a brief overview of the Mary-Anne situation.
“Shit,” was all he could manage.
“I know. That’s why we need to get going. We can’t lose her to the Madness, too. No matter what happens, I won’t lose another person I love.”
“You’re not responsible for Mom and Dad’s death,” Dylan argued. “You know that, right?”
Caitlin nodded. “I do. Back then, I had no way of helping. Now, I know there’s something out there. Helena is the answer. I’m sure of it.”
Dylan studied Caitlin. “I’m sure of it, too.”
And then they were back outside the ship, Caitlin once more hugging her brother and saying her goodbyes. It was as she was turning away from the council that Cammie jogged up to her with a strange object in each hand.
“Here,” she said, slapping one into Caitlin’s palm and the other into Dylan’s. “A gift from Royland and me.”
Caitlin turned the item over in her hand. It was a dark grey, rectangular in shape, with a gridded box at the bottom half and a long antenna at the top. “What is it?”
“A two-way radio,” Cammie replied as if it was obvious. “A piece of technology from the old world. We managed to keep a metric shit-ton of these safe, so you can have these. They’re long-range communication devices. Solar-powered, too, so you don’t need to worry about batteries.”
Chasing The Cure: Age Of Madness - A Kurtherian Gambit Series (The Caitlin Chronicles Book 5) Page 8