“We brought a couple more home with us too,” I say, putting the comb down and taking the proffered mug. “Aidan’s here,” I add, not knowing how else to broach the subject. The spoon clatters to the floor.
“What?”
“He’s alive.” I raise my left hand to pinch the bridge of my nose, trying to ease the headache that is building.
“Where is he?” she whispers, mindful of Alex in the next room.
“He’s here.” I sigh. “I’m going to take Alex home and take Aidan there.” For once Jenna knows when to keep quiet. She just nods in agreement, sympathy shining in her blue eyes.
Alex’s reaction to Aidan’s miraculous appearance is heart-wrenchingly entertaining. I spend an hour preparing him beforehand. I explain about Aidan’s ability to heal which he takes in his stride, only asking if he was strong and fast, too. He looks quite smug on hearing that Aidan has only one ability, unlike the two of us, and I hide my smile. He throws his arms around his father the minute he steps through the door and then leads him by the hand to the couch, a sombre expression on his little face.
“I’m sorry your head got broken,” he whispers, rubbing Aidan’s hair with a grubby hand. “I’m Alex,” he speaks slowly and clearly, as though Aidan is a mental patient, and I feel tears of mirth spring in my eyes. Everything is going to be okay.
Eventually Aidan leaves, promising Alex he will be back the next day. Our new guests have all been fed and bathed and accommodation has been prepared for them. I am too tired to check on anybody, so I curl up beside Alex and sleep until dawn.
Chapter 34
I call a meeting in the Gold Room just before lunch the following day. All the council members attend and I greet Kwan and Michael warmly. I have invited Jethro and Archer to join us, as well as Adam, who is representing the Ordinary. Hope stalks in behind him, taking a seat next to Morgan. Jethro and Veronica exchange a secret smile as she hands him his coffee, and I am happy to see them reconnecting. After an initial catch-up and introductions, we get started.
The General has successfully created forty new soldiers to add to our existing two hundred. NUSA have about four thousand Gifted. Not great odds, but every man counts. Sadly, six men lost their lives undergoing the procedures and the guilt weighs heavily on me.
“Some of my men would like to volunteer as well,” Adam offers, but I can tell by the look on his face that he is not happy about it.
“We’ll screen them as soon as possible,” the General nods in acknowledgement, glancing at Veronica, who is scribbling furiously, to check that she is making a note of Adam’s offer.
I recount the details of the successful detonation at the lab although David has already given them all the information he can.
“General, we have a problem,” I say eventually. “There is a NUSA convoy roaming around the Rebeldom. We lost them leaving Durango, but a small group broke off and followed us to Flagstaff. We took care of them and we haven’t seen the convoy since.”
“How big?” his gravelly voice is lower than usual.
“Big,” I answer. “At least a hundred and fifty soldiers, maybe more.” The General lets out a low whistle.
“Flagstaff is more than 250 miles from here,” he rationalises. “We should be safe.”
“We headed straight for Kingman from Flagstaff,” Archer points out. “They may well have tracked us.”
“Kingman is only 100 miles away,” Kwan voices what we are all thinking.
“Okay, I’ll tell the scouts to extend the perimeter and keep their eyes open.” The General’s gaze falls on me again and he hesitates, as though it almost pains him to ask the next question.
“What now, Miss Davis? What’s our next move?”
“We need to reduce their numbers,” I answer, forcing a confidence I don’t really feel. Reed’s absence is ever-present, like a blind spot in my vision. Planning without him is so much harder.
“In taking out the lab, we’ve cut off their legs – they cannot create any new soldiers. That means that their numbers are finite; four thousand soldiers, that’s it.”
“That’s it?” Morgan snorts. “We’re outnumbered twenty to one!”
“I know that, Morgan,” I snap, “let me finish. Yes, we’re outnumbered, but NUSA can’t be everywhere at once. We need to focus our efforts, take them out in small clusters.” I take a deep breath. “We need to start studying the fences, finding the weaker points. If we attack sections, quickly and without warning, we can eliminate the soldiers patrolling those sections. Ten, maybe fifteen men at a time.”
“That is not the worst idea I’ve ever heard,” the General remarks generously. It’s as close to a compliment as I’m going to get. “Okay, I take it you will make the necessary arrangements?” he asks and I nod, my heart heavy in my chest. I do not have the energy or the inclination to even get up off this chair, and I have only just got back to Alex. Unfortunately, duty calls, so I keep Kwan, Morgan, Archer, Jethro and David back after the meeting adjourns and we start brainstorming.
“I’m coming with you on these raids,” Kwan says firmly, referring to his having to stay behind on our last mission to the lab. “They won’t be long and we’ll be taking a great number of men with us, I presume?”
“The more men we take, the higher the success rate,” I agree, “and the less chance of any of our own getting hurt.”
“How many?” David asks.
“I’d say thirty or so, so long as we have the upper hand.”
“What if they call for reinforcements?” Morgan poses the question.
“We’ll be gone long before they arrive,” I explain. “The aim is not to take out every guard we see. We identify a group, we get in, take them out and retreat. Small victories. Hanging around indefinitely as they call for others will get us killed. We’re aiming for small, focused attacks, then we run like hell.”
“At that rate, you’re looking at up to four hundred raids,” Archer points out.
“Not as many as that,” I reply. “Not all of NUSA’s soldiers patrol the fences; there are plenty in the States that we will need to concern ourselves with. We’ll deal with that later, but for now our focus is on bringing down the numbers.”
I stop in to visit Brooke on my way home and am surprised to find my father there.
“Dad?” I smile, as I enter the temporary hostel where we have set up our guests. They will slowly be integrated into the community and given their own space but with such a massive influx this is not going to happen overnight. The Ordinary alone number more than two hundred people, not including those who we saved in California. “What brings you here?” I ask, sitting down beside him. Brooke and Oliver are being read a story by Elizabeth, who has volunteered to slowly introduce them to our school system.
“Her,” my dad gestures at Brooke, who is smiling at Elizabeth’s antics.
“Her ability,” I say. “What do you think? Do you think she could have had the procedure out here in the Rebeldom? She doesn’t recall crossing any fences, but maybe she was too young to remember.”
“She didn’t have her procedure out here,” he declares.
“So, in the States then?” I had suspected as much.
“No, Bex,” he shakes his head. “I examined her. She didn’t have a procedure at all.”
“That’s impossible,” I deny. “She healed, Dad, I saw it with my own eyes.”
“She has the ability,” he agrees, “but she was born with it.”
I turn to stare at the little girl, my eyes widening.
“Are you sure?” I ask, wondering what this could possibly mean.
“I’m certain.”
“What does it mean?”
“I have no idea.”
I set off for Kwan’s dojo, my mind seething with a myriad questions. Thankfully we are training alone which gives me time to think and time to reconnect
with my old friend.
“Jethro told me about Reed’s leaving,” he mentions after we have warmed up. I don’t answer.
“I assume it had something to do with Aidan’s reappearance?” he prompts and I sigh.
“I didn’t want him to go, but I couldn’t stop him either.”
“He’s a proud man,” Kwan justifies.
“Tell me about it.” I lift a Bo staff from the top shelf, raising my brow at Kwan. He nods and I throw one over to him. Whenever we practise with the Bo staffs I am always reminded of the day Kwan first discovered that I was Gifted. He has been a mentor and close friend, and is one of the few people I am comfortable talking to about my private life.
“What are you going to do?” He carries on our conversation as we whirl and strike, the Bo staffs blurring with the speed of our movements.
“I have no idea,” I answer truthfully.
“I don’t envy your situation,” he sympathises, spinning and bringing the Bo soaring around, stopping only an inch from my lower back. “You’re distracted,” he scolds. Kwan takes his training very seriously and I force myself to focus.
Later, drinking a bottle of water and sitting cross-legged on the clean wooden floor, I bring up the question that I have long been wanting to ask.
“Where did you get your procedure done, Kwan?”
He smiles secretively. “I’m sorry, Rebecca, but I can’t tell you that.”
Frustration wells up inside me, but I know my mentor, he will not be coaxed or coerced. Kwan does not play games and if he says he cannot tell me, then no amount of pleading will get him to change his mind. Heaving a sigh of acceptance, I bring up Morgan.
“She’s so angry with me.”
“She’s not dealing with the loss of Rellis,” Kwan explains, but he doesn’t contradict me. “She has to blame someone.”
“And you?” I ask, turning to face him. “Do you blame me? For Nina?” I probe, and he lowers his eyes.
“I did,” he admits, wiping a few drops of water from the floor, “but not any more. Nina made her choice and she chose wrong. You did what you had to do, I understand that. But I’m much older and much wiser than Morgan,” he smiles, lightening the mood. “You can’t expect such wisdom from her.” He throws me my towel. “You’ll make the right decision, Rebecca, when you’re ready.”
A few days go by and our planning is in full swing. We will depart on our first raid in about a month’s time once the scouts have returned. We have sent a few teams out to identify the weaker points along the boundary fences, and the areas where guards are minimal.
Adam approaches me alone one morning with his list of volunteers for the Gifting procedures. It consists of thirty men, and one woman.
“Hope?” I ask, shocked, my forehead creasing in a disbelieving frown. “You’re going to let Hope volunteer?” The thought of the fearless but foolish girl getting herself killed in the process horrifies me. Adam looks pained but resolute.
“She wants to go through with it. Her mind is made up.”
“Well, just tell her no!” My voice is riddled with condescension.
“I can’t do that. She, like everyone else in my family, has a choice.”
“Well, in my family things work a little differently,” I retort. “Minors don’t get to make their own decisions. Hope is sixteen; she’s underage, it’s not happening!” I thrust the list back into his hands angrily and almost miss the small smile that crosses his face.
“Thank you,” he murmurs gratefully, and I shake my head as he walks away.
Ten minutes later Hope confronts me as I make my way back to the hostel. I have about an hour before I have to fetch Alex from school and I am trying my hardest to avoid my dad. I know he’s got something up his sleeve.
“You can’t stop me!” Hope yells angrily, her face just inches from my own. “You’re not my mother!”
“No, young lady, I’m not. And the very fact that you resort to that line just shows how immature you actually are. No one under eighteen may volunteer. Those are the rules. If you don’t like them, well, tough shit.”
“Michael got his ability when he was sixteen!” she whines, dragging a reluctant Michael out of the small crowd that has gathered around us.
“Not on my watch, he didn’t,” I answer lightly.
“She won’t change her mind,” Morgan drawls from the sidelines, her eyes fixed on me, a mixture of resentment and respect. “You may as well give it up,” she adds, turning to Hope.
“It’s not fair! You can’t do this!” Hope repeats, and I walk away, leaving her to fume and praying that the baby I am carrying is not going to be a girl if Morgan and Hope are any indication of what I have to look forward to.
I reach the hostel and quickly find Henry, who is monitoring the three Deranged who fell ill in San Francisco. All three have made steady progress and are almost fully recovered. The woman, in particular, had me most concerned, but she’s going to be fine.
“I have a surprise for you,” I announce and Henry’s kind face looks up at me. “Come with me. You too,” I nod at Sofia, who is hanging back, hesitantly.
I walk them only about half a mile and then I turn to the left, opening my arms in front of me.
“Ta-dah!” I laugh, watching the understanding dawning on their faces. The small brick house is modest and unassuming, but it’s clean and it’s theirs. More importantly, it has a bigger garden than most of the houses in the area. “The soil is good,” I point to the flat front lawn and Henry brings his hand to his mouth, trying to curb his emotion. “Your seeds should do very well here,” I add warmly, and he takes both my hands in his own and squeezes them tightly. I open the front door and usher them in but I don’t stay. They need to be alone to settle in and I make my way back to the school.
I am surprised to see Aidan waiting at the front entrance, scuffing his sneakers on the old tiles.
“Hi,” I eye him curiously.
“I’m sorry, I should have checked with you first,” he apologises. “I just, well, I wanted to spend some time with him.”
“Ah,” I smile knowingly. “He’s got to you already, hasn’t he?” Aidan laughs.
“Yeah, he has. Anyway, I just wanted to see if he wanted to play some ball, or go for a walk. If that’s okay with you?”
“No problem at all.”
“Is it his birthday?” Aidan asks suddenly, a puzzled expression on his face.
“No, why?”
“It’s the fifteenth, right?” his eyes narrow.
“Yes.”
“I just have this weird feeling, you know, that today is kind of important.”
“Oh.” I fight the urge to put him out of his misery. “Well, it’s not. Sorry. I’ll see you guys later.” I smile and head back into town, to Jenna’s.
“Where is he?” I demand, as I scan the street and shut the door behind me.
“Where’s who?” she asks innocently, looking as though butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth.
“My dad, Jen,” I warn and she rolls her eyes. “I know you guys are up to something.”
“Becca,” she whines, flopping down onto the couch and curling her legs beneath her. “It’s your birthday. You don’t turn twenty-seven every day, you know. You can’t hide, certainly not from those lines,” she adds, scrutinising my face. “So embrace it!”
“What’s the plan?” I put on my most intimidating soldier face. She ignores me.
“I’m not telling. Now shoo! I have to get ready.”
“Get ready for what?” I snap, but she just pushes me towards the door, smiling secretively.
“I’ve been looking everywhere for you!” my dad beams, as he comes through the Gold Room doors. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were avoiding me,” he winks and crosses the room to stand beside the boardroom table. He drops a kiss on the top of my head.
“Happy birthday, sweetheart.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I smile, knowing the game is up.
“You’d better go and get ready,” he instructs. “Everyone’s waiting for you.”
“I really don’t feel up to a party,” I grumble, but it is pointless arguing.
“The Supper Theatre,” he says. “Don’t be late.”
When I get home Aidan is there with Alex.
“You could have told me,” he chides. “Turns out I was right about today being something important.”
“Yeah, but it was fun watching you suffer,” I laugh. “Are you coming to the party?”
“Nah, I’m babysitting,” he nods at Alex, who is sitting at the table drawing.
“Can I come to the party?” he pleads, as I go to kiss him hello.
“Grown-ups only,” I sigh. Spending the night with Alex is far more appealing than a birthday bash but I know if I don’t go they’ll just come and get me.
“I won’t be late,” I tell Aidan as I leave. He is quieter than usual, but I did notice the appreciative glance when I emerged from my room. Knowing Jenna will never let me live it down if I don’t, I have dressed appropriately, in the same little black dress that I wore to Michael’s party. My hair is clean and is, for once, not pulled back into a ponytail but falling in a curtain of sleek, shiny, good health down my back. Figuring that maybe if I feel better on the outside, I might feel better on the inside, I have added a touch of lip gloss and some eye make-up. A liberal application of mascara makes my eyes look luminous in my face, more silver than grey.
“No rush,” Aidan answers, smiling sincerely down at me. “Have fun.”
The hall looks almost exactly as it did for Michael’s party but there are far fewer guests. The obvious absentee is Reed, who I am missing more than I could have imagined. I circulate a bit, greeting everyone who has taken the trouble to come and celebrate. I feel like Rebecca Dane again, putting on a front for the public. I smile and say all the right things, but I just want to be at home with my son.
“Here,” Jenna hands me a glass of punch.
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