by Trisha Leigh
The shorter one steps through the hole, pulling his arms tight across his front to avoid touching the melted edges. “Which one of you is the fire-breathing dragon, anyway?”
I have no idea what a dragon is, but with the fire reference, he must mean me. The tall one laughs, planting himself in front of the opening.
We have nowhere to go.
“Are you kidding, Rahaj? The girl is Flacara’s daughter. Look at her hair.”
For someone else to acknowledge Fire as my mother solidifies the fact in my mind. My stomach feels funny, amazement and loathing fighting for a spot.
The second one squints at me as though he’s trying to see someone else in my face. He comes closer and my heart races at the thought of him touching me. The memory of the younger Others talking about liking me—wanting to do things to me—returns with enough force to make me gag. Lucas steps between us at the last moment and the short one’s leering face disappears from my vision.
“Get out of the way, boy. Or did you enjoy the beating you took earlier?”
“Don’t touch her. If you’re going to take us, just get it over with.”
“You hear that, Lanej?” I can’t see his face as he addresses his cohort. “Sweet, isn’t it? Young love?”
The tall one barks a laugh. “Adorable. These humans and their love. Maybe we should tell them what it did to their parents. How the Prime tore their minds apart until they begged to die.”
“Move aside, hero,” Rahaj leers. “I want a good look at your girlfriend.”
Lucas grabs the short Warden’s hand and he howls. The sound is unlike anything I’ve ever heard, deep and guttural. Agonized.
He pulls away from Lucas with some effort, a tearing sound accompanying the split. Lanej runs through the doors to help his cohort.
The two of them are still between us and the exit. Stepping up next to Lucas, my mouth falls open and my stomach heaves at the sight of Rahaj’s arm.
It’s missing skin. A huge chunk of it.
“Lucas.” The word rips from my throat. What has he done?
Lucas doesn’t answer. He’s in some kind of daze. He turns to me and his eyes focus a bit. “Althea. I saw something when I touched him. The room they tortured Ko in. The Prime ordered the Wardens out after us. How did that happen?”
“I don’t know. I saw something when I touched one earlier, too. Their minds are connected, like Cadi said.”
Lucas snaps out of the dream state faster than I managed to in the hallway, frantically wiping his palm on his shorts. He tugs me closer to the door as Lanej straightens up and sidles back to his position blocking our escape. He looks scared but still unwilling to let us go.
He turns glaring eyes on Lucas. “What did you do? Fix him.”
“I can’t. I don’t know how.”
“He froze my skin to his hand and when I pulled away it ripped…off…” Rahaj attempts to explain but the pain lacing his voice makes his words hard to hear.
My hands itch to cover my ears, to block it out.
Leah’s pretty face contorts and she does cover her ears, then drops to her knees in one corner of the back office. The Healer squats beside her, patting her head and looking more confused than ever. They’re not going to be any help to Lucas and me, but at least they’re safe.
Lanej obscures our path but no longer looks sure he wants to be there. The need to get out overtakes every other emotion stewing inside me. The fear, the pain, the loathing over hurting people. Or even hurting Others.
Pushing it all deep down, I screw up my courage until it sticks. “If you don’t want to get hurt like your friend, I suggest you get out of our way. We’re leaving.”
“No. What are you going to do? You’re just a couple of kids.” He sounds like he’s trying to convince himself. It’s probably what Deshi said when he asked them to detain us.
“Really? Why don’t you ask your skinless friend over there? I’m guessing you showed up here because of the melted security cameras. How about I do that to your face?”
“You wouldn’t dare.”
He’s no more sure than I am. “Do you want to take your chances or just get out of the way?”
“You can’t hide. There isn’t anywhere you can go where we can’t find you. Don’t you want to come with us, find out more about who you are? Meet your parents?” He’s baiting me, desperation tingeing his voice.
Those boys who disposed of Mrs. Morgan were so frightened of Deshi. The Prime tortured Ko without remorse, the sick pleasure on his face giving away his enjoyment. The big question at the moment is whether this Warden’s fear of punishment from his own kind is enough to trump his fear of us.
He glances at Rahaj, and I follow his gaze. The Warden Lucas hurt has fallen unconscious. His eyes are closed and he slumps up against the wall. In front of my eyes, the flaps of remaining skin grow back toward each other.
He’s healing. We have to hurry.
Lanej’s features harden as we step toward him. He’s going to stand and fight. To be honest, I’d be more scared of the Others than me, too.
My loathing of what I’m about to do intensifies. Lucas lets go of my hand, granting silent permission to take care of the Warden standing in our path.
“Don’t go crazy, Althea.”
I think of the melted cameras and know what he means. The intensity of heat that melted the door would turn the Warden into a puddle of flesh and bone. A question about what they look like underneath their humanesque costumes tugs my curiosity.
Lanej shrinks back against what’s left of the door. His face slackens as he realizes there’s nowhere else to go. My fingertips trace along his forearm, the pads heating up one by one.
He screams and jerks, even though the only evidence of my touch is angry red streaks. He’s more frightened than anything; he realizes it and lunges for me. Scare tactics alone aren’t going to do it.
Lucas strides forward but I beat him to the punch. Wrapping both hands firmly around the Warden’s right arm, I let the heat go.
I’m inside his mind. Alarms shriek. I see Ko’s torture chamber, like Lucas did. An Other skids in, stops in front of the Prime. “They’ve breached the hive.”
The Prime’s face twists into a horrid mask of a human face. “Go get them. Use everyone. Do not underestimate them again.”
Tentacles reach into my brain and probe, cautious but soon dealing a painful jab. I gasp at the explosion of pain, then feel a slap on my cheek.
The Administrative Center reappears. The Warden jerks out of my loosened grip, dropping to the ground in pain. The skin that sat under my palms oozes and drips from the bones of his arm. He joins his friend in some sort of sleep state. I wonder if that’s what Deshi did last night, if they heal faster that way.
Lucas holds my face. He’s talking. For a second I can’t hear, then sounds comes back.
“Althea. I’m sorry I smacked you. You looked…you wouldn’t come back.”
“They know we’re here. The Prime is coming. They’re all coming. Right now.”
The wounds on Lucas’s victim have nearly healed. Knowing the damage isn’t permanent makes me feel better.
Also worse.
Lucas waits outside the door. His voice is sharp. “Althea. Move.”
My body responds to the command in his voice. I step through the melted glass and we move back to the Cell entrance with swift steps. My last glimpse of the Danbury Administrative Center is an image Leah’s clear gray eyes watching me go.
Running isn’t an option for Lucas, who still hugs his bruised side and limps. His steps are surer though, and hopefully the antibiotic has begun to work.
Gathered shadows conceal us against the outside of the building. Sirens explode, wailing through the frosty black night. I’ve heard them before, when they’re being tested, but never in use. Tonight they’re calling together a search for us.
Three months ago I would never have dreamed of causing physical damage, inflicting mental trauma, or running from the Warde
ns. Never would have believed that being Something Else meant I’m half Other.
Never would have guessed that animals aren’t the most frightening part of this world.
The idea of finding someone like me was still a fantasy, too. I glance sideways at Lucas, taking in his concerned profile. He’s worth it.
Lucas turns, meeting my eyes. “We should go. Who knows how long it will take them to get here. We need to get outside the boundary where there’s more places to hide. They’ll probably look for us in the park first.”
Cold sweat soaks my body. “We’ll go as fast as you can manage.”
I lead the way, stepping onto the sidewalk but staying close to the brick exterior of the building. Lucas keeps up as we race across the street and melt into the trees on the opposite side.
That’s when we see them.
Two riders pull up in front of the Cell and ten—no, twenty—Wardens get out. Half go inside the Cell. The rest head toward us. Toward the park.
They know the best place to search for us. At least Deshi never learned exactly where we crawled over the boundary. They’ll have to waste some time searching.
Without a word, we hurry ahead of them. My breath explodes in gasps that I work hard to keep quiet. The sound of Lucas’s wild inhales pounds in my ears, keeping time with my heart.
The Wardens’ footsteps slap the pavement behind us, gaining with each forward motion. Lucas grabs my hand and yanks. I stumble and fall, bringing him down with me. He grunts softly as we hit the dirt, but gathers me in his arms. We roll behind a large clump of holly bushes near the park entrance.
There’s no time to voice my irritation as the Wardens jog past less than a minute later. If we’d kept running, they would’ve caught us. Now they’re in the park, roaming around between us and our escape route. Once the sound of their boots slogging through the piles of wet leaves disappears, I turn and whisper to Lucas. “Now what are we going to do?”
He shrugs, then flinches. His face has paled again and shines with sweat. “I don’t know. Getting out of sight was the extent of my plan. Wait?”
“Yeah, for how long? It could take hours to search the park, and what if they don’t leave? They could just set up along the boundary and wait.” I look around, appraising our hiding place. The front of me is already sodden from the damp ground. “These bushes are thick, but they’ll find us eventually.”
“Have you got a better idea?” He hisses the words, heavy with exasperation.
“Well, excuse me for not wanting to get caught. You know, since we’ve just seriously injured a bunch of Others and proven beyond all shadow of a doubt that we have powers they’ll want to kill us for. And you’re welcome for not leaving you behind, by the way.”
“Thank you for coming to get me. And for doing what you had to do to get us this far.”
The thought of what I’ve done makes my temples throb.
I change the subject, keeping my voice at a murmur and my ears open for approaching death. “What happened this morning?”
“I don’t know. I got dizzy and fell while I was packing. The next thing I knew I woke up at Cell.”
“I asked you a million times if you were okay. Why didn’t you say something?”
He continues as though he didn’t hear me. “I guess the Wardens threw me in the office and let the Healer fix me enough to wake up.” Lucas’s face screws up like he wants to punch someone. “Deshi showed up and changed into an Other right in front of me. Two Wardens held me down, wouldn’t let me fight back while he hit me.”
In another time, a different place, the defensiveness in his voice might make me smile.
Anger at the Others bubbles up as I take a closer look at his marred features. I bury it as best as I can. “He’s been playing with us for a long time. Are you okay now?”
“I feel better. I’m not going to pass out again, at any rate.” Lucas gingerly fingers the cut on his forehead, then pokes the edge of his swollen eye.
“Can you see out of your eye?”
“Quit worrying about me. I haven’t felt any pain since I woke up to you kissing me.”
My cheeks heat up even though I know he’s lying. “Shut up. What do you think, you’re charming or something?”
He grins, mouth sitting lopsided because of the swelling. “Tell you what. We get out of this thing alive and I might let you kiss me again.”
The statement, meant as a tease, sobers me instead. “Getting out of this thing alive is a big, fat question mark at the moment.”
Only the sounds of the icy wind howling through the trees and our even breathing interrupts the silence for several minutes. My watch says it’s ten thirty. Light from the streetlamps pools in puddles on the road as my ears strain. I hope the Wardens leave the park soon. As though they hear my silent urging, eleven come into view at that moment. They talk in low voices, words indiscernible until they are almost on top of us.
“They’ll turn up. Where could they go?”
“Did you hear what came over the line? What they did to the guys at the Cell? The Prime will not forgive anyone for losing them.”
I hold my breath as they pass within four feet of us, arguing about the best course of action. My lungs burn in protest, but I don’t let the stale air escape until the Wardens are well out of sight.
Lucas hauls me to my feet. “Let’s get out of here.”
My legs are stiff and cramping. I limp beside Lucas until the numbness wears off, then trot to keep pace. He seems better, no longer holding his side or grimacing with every step.
Even though the Wardens who entered the park walked back by us, my unease grows as we pass the playground equipment. The trees provide some shelter, as they always have, but not enough with their leaves strewn about the ground. They cast long, spindly shadows in the moonlight.
We make it to the boundary and wind our way around to the spot we can crawl over. I know it like the back of my hand by now, couldn’t miss it if I suddenly went blind. Lucas reaches out to grab the fence.
He turns to say something at the last minute, which is why the explosion of pain on his face is so clear when the angry outburst of sparks illuminates the night.
CHAPTER 30.
The fence is working.
The truth stumbles through my mind, which is as sluggish and in shock as my body. Lucas flies back from the boundary in slow motion, crumpling to the ground. The light and sparks fade before his twitching body hits with a thud. The sound brings me to my senses and I throw myself down beside him for the third time today.
“Lucas! Lucas, answer me!”
He doesn’t move, doesn’t even a groan this time. In the silence, the sound of footsteps whips my head around. Deshi walks out of the trees and ambles toward us as though he hasn’t a care in the world. The marks from last night’s burns have faded to pink puckers in less than twenty-four hours.
“Too bad about that. Not sure if he’ll wake up this time. Kind of surprised he did after I planted my fist in his face before.”
My back leans into Lucas’s side; I know there’s no way to protect him. “How did you know?”
“What, about where the two of you snuck out?” He shrugs and leans against the nearest tree trunk, crossing his feet at the ankle.
The relaxed pose is odd, false. In a series of seconds, he becomes indistinct, shimmering like the Ko in my necklace, then solidifies into an Other. Tall. Blond hair. Limitless black eyes. Cold cruelty encased in perfection. His star-shaped scar is bigger and an angrier red than I’ve ever seen, and he has a thick black band around his neck—just like the Prime’s, except it’s only one line instead of three.
“I didn’t, not really. I searched the boundary after I got out of that stream earlier. Cool trick, by the way. Apa would have been proud of his boy. Anyway, I should have figured it out sooner.”
“Yeah, well, I guess dealing with your rotting skin suit took up too much of your time.”
“Maybe.” He slinks toward us.
I swall
ow my terror to keep it from showing. The sick, twisted smile crawling across his beautiful face tells me I failed. I press my lips together, unwilling to risk revealing any information.
He stops a few feet away and sighs. “It’s adorable that the two of you thought you could get away. Interesting though your powers are, you can’t kill us. But, oh, how I’ve enjoyed playing this game with you.” His voice dips deep, dripping hatred. “The storied half-breed children of the Elements. The products of sickening unions. You all deserve to die.”
“Why don’t you kill us then?”
“My father, the Prime Other, wants you alive.” His eyes ferret out the shock on my face. “Oh, you didn’t know who you attacked earlier? He wants to know more about your talents in case, you know, it’s something we can use. He’ll enjoy hurting you for what you did to me. For your parents’ betrayals.”
He takes another step forward and my hand goes involuntarily to Lucas’s shoulder.
“Well, take us then. Or are you too scared?”
He laughs, an eerie, frightening noise. “Of you? Hardly. I saw what you did back at the Cell, and haven’t forgotten the temporary setback you dealt me in the Wilds this morning, but I’m a fast learner.”
Lucas stirs, and despite the fact that we’re dead meat, tears spring to my eyes. “Lucas.”
His eyes flutter and then open. He puts a hand to his head and groans, revealing burn marks on his palms. “What happened?”
I don’t answer, cutting my eyes at Other Deshi, who keeps coming closer. Lucas’s eyes follow and widen in shock and fear. He regains control in a flash and shoots to his knees beside me.
Without warning Deshi’s hand snakes out and twists around Lucas’s upper arm. He yanks, pulling Lucas toward him on the ground, and then drags him to a standing position by his hair. Deshi holds Lucas like a shield. There’s no way I can shoot heat at Deshi and be sure some of it won’t graze Lucas. There’s a slippery-looking scarf wrapped around Deshi’s hands, a barrier between him and Lucas’s skin.
Protection from the cold.