by AR Colbert
“We’re not putting this off any longer. You can take the rest of the week to train her in whichever areas you see fit. But beginning Monday morning I want her out in the boroughs.”
She didn’t look at me as she spoke, but at Felix. Of course Justice Hines wouldn’t give me the courtesy or respect anyone else in my position would have received. I’d have to try harder to make her believe we were actually working together.
“I’ve arranged meetings with the head Peacemakers in each borough. She should be able to speak with them all on Monday and Tuesday. They will give her as many details regarding the disappearances of their people as they can, and I want her Outside placing the devices within a week from today.”
Seven days. That’s all the time I had to find a way out of this.
CHAPTER 6
Dax was sitting at the breakfast table when I came downstairs the next morning. He and Felix were side by side, talking with low voices. I thought about turning around and heading straight back to my room, but Felix looked up before I could get away.
“Good morning, beautiful,” His entire face was lit up by his smile.
I should have felt all fluttery and excited at the sight of this ridiculously attractive, powerful man calling me beautiful and lighting up at my presence. But I wasn’t. I was just annoyed at the sight of Dax, ruining my breakfast.
I was also still a little perturbed by Felix’s ability to switch on and off so quickly in front of the other Leaders. As a politician, it was his job to appease everyone and lead them to believe he was on their side. But his acting was too good at times. It left me unsure of how well I could really trust him. Was he acting for me, too? I certainly wasn’t going to buy into his compliments. He probably just wanted something.
Dax scoffed and took a swig of his coffee.
“Morning,” I said. “Strange to see you here so early, Dax.”
“Get used to it.” Dax was as unhappy to be there as I was to see him.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
Felix set down his fork. “Well after your orientation yesterday, several members of the team got together and decided it was in everyone’s best interest to increase your security right away. Dimitri fought hard to send Aiden over last night, but I was able to convince them that one live-in security guard would be enough.”
I shuddered. Dax was unwelcome. But the thought of that meat-head Aiden sleeping over and watching me all day really gave me the creeps. He may have had a big mouth, but at least I wouldn’t have to worry about Dax strutting around flaunting his muscles.
“I appreciate that. And since it’s just you, Dax, I hope you won’t mind me saying that I’m perfectly fine on my own.”
Dax looked to Felix with an expression that said SEE?
Felix shook his head. “No, I’m sorry, but I have to agree with them on this one. I do think it’s good to have Dax here.”
“I’m not going to try to run again, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
Felix held one finger in the air, his expression serious. “I prefer not to discuss business over meals. Let’s talk more in the study after we eat.” His eyes shot over to the other side of the room where an attendant was entering with my breakfast, and it dawned on me. Felix didn’t even trust his own people. He was more alone here than I thought.
Nothing more was said about it until we were tucked safe and alone behind the closed doors of Felix’s study. A fire was already burning, and the same tea cart from earlier in the week sat waiting for us.
“Really,” I said. “I don’t need a babysitter. There are gobs of attendants throughout this house, and security everywhere at the municipal building. I can’t even open a door by myself anymore. I couldn’t get away if I wanted to.”
“And do you want to?” Felix’s blue eyes glistened with the reflection of the flames burning in the fireplace. His golden hair glowed, a perfect swoop to the side framing his handsome face. “Do you still want to run away?”
I paused, trying to determine the answer for myself. I did want to get out and warn the Embers of what was coming. But I knew I could make a bigger difference from the inside. Frank had been alluding to this all along. The question was how could I do both? How could I keep the trust of the Leaders without harming the people I cared about Outside?
There was a rap on the door before I could answer.
“Come in.” Felix sat straight, turning to greet the attendant in the doorway.
“Mr. Walsh, your father is on the phone.”
Felix closed his eyes, breathing deeply. “I’ll be right there,” he called out. Then turning back toward me he whispered, “We’ll finish this in a minute.”
The tension in the room rose with every step Felix took toward the exit, and Dax didn’t wait for a second after the door clicked shut behind him to lay into me.
“There’s no point in you running. They don’t have a place for you out there anyway.”
“Maybe not yet. But I’ve got to let them know what’s going to happen.”
“They know what’s coming. They’ve known for longer than you have. They don’t need you.”
Dax’s words stung, but he was wrong. They might have known what was coming, but I was in a unique position to stop it. I just hadn’t quite figured out how. I needed to talk to them Outside. I was sure we could find a way to prevent Triple-T from harming them.
“That’s not true,” I said with a glare. “Frank told me himself that they could use my help from the inside.”
Dax’s scowl grew even deeper, and he practically spat his next words. “That was before you turned him over to Justice Hines and got your brother killed. They needed Cato. Not a traitor.”
Tears instantly sprang to my eyes at the mention of my brother. It was still too fresh and raw. “I’m not a traitor,” I whispered, turning toward the fire. But saying the words aloud didn’t make me believe them. Dax was right. They probably wouldn’t want to see me at all.
That didn’t mean I was going to give up on them, though. I would help them however I could, for the rest of my life. Even if it cost me my life. It was the least I could do.
I watched the flames dance in and out of the forefront, taking turns in swirls of orange and yellow. And I remembered the soft glow of the embers in my fireplace back home the morning before I came here. Cato’s last words written to me were still folded and tucked into the pocket of my backpack upstairs. “You’ve done everything right... Keep trusting your instincts...” Even if I didn’t believe in myself, Cato believed in me. He didn’t think I was a traitor. And then there was the last thing he wrote, “Trust no one. No one.”
I shook my head, wishing I knew what he meant. Who was the kink in the system? Who had betrayed my brother? Could it have been Dax?
I looked up at the pale face still scowling across from me. No, Dax was a jerk, but I could feel his sincerity. He really believed I wasn’t wanted Outside. He might have hated me, but he also hated that my brother was gone.
So maybe I wasn’t welcome Outside. But what if I didn’t have to go? Maybe I didn’t need to be the messenger. I knew someone else who was connected to both worlds. My pulse quickened as his face appeared in my mind.
“Have you seen Raf lately?” I hated how my voice still quivered as I asked the question. I didn’t want Dax to know he’d hurt me with his last comments.
But he didn’t attack me again. His eyes softened and he looked away as he responded. “I saw him about a week ago.”
“So he made it out.” It was a statement more than a question, but I was overcome with relief. How selfish was I that I’d only thought of my own loss, only dealt with my own grief after the incident at the courthouse when Cato was shot. I knew the Outsiders were resilient, and I knew they probably had really solid plans in place before they escaped with Frank at the trial. But I’d never even stopped to consider verifying their safety with Dax when I first saw him.
Raf was safe. He would know what to do. And if nothing else, he
could help me find my strength to keep going through this. That’s what he did. Who he was. Strength and love personified.
Love? No. Well, maybe. But in the love your neighbor sense of the word. Either way, I had to see him.
“Dax?”
He didn’t turn toward me but grunted a “huh?”
“When we go to the boroughs next week, do you think it will be possible for me to talk to him?”
“I don’t know if I’ll be able to get you away from the others long enough to make that happen. But even if I can...”
His left eye twitched slightly, and he inhaled, processing his next words. Whatever he was going to say, I knew I wasn’t getting the whole truth.
“Even if I can, it might be best to stay away from him.”
“Why? Did something happen to him?” My heart was pounding in my chest. Raf was one of the few people left who I felt like I could really trust. I couldn’t lose him too.
“Nothing happened to him.” Dax looked pained, like he wanted to say more. “He’s fine, and he’s still involved with the Embers. I shouldn’t have said anything at all. It’s just that I was hired to protect you, and... it may not be in your best interest to see him right now. We need you thinking clearly.”
“But as your boss, I could technically order you to make it happen, right?”
Dax rolled his eyes. “Don’t fool yourself. Felix is my boss, but my orders don’t really even come from him. Look, it’s not that big of a deal. If you wanna see Raf, I’ll take you to see him. But you might wish you hadn’t.” He laughed quietly through his nose.
Felix opened the door, preventing me from asking any more questions. “Sorry that took me a bit. We’ll have to talk more later. It’s time to get up to the project headquarters. Claren’s got a lot to learn.”
CHAPTER 7
James’ smile as he opened the car door for me was contagious. It was nice to have a bright spot in this dreary world full of dark news. But after a brief exchange of greetings, it was time to face the demons inside.
I’d be spending the rest of the week splitting my mornings with defense training and my afternoons with Emilio teaching me more about the technology. But this defense training was nothing like I’d received in the Peacemaker training program. The stun guns were gone. My education had been placed in the hands of trained assassins.
That’s what Aiden would’ve had me believe anyway.
He strutted into the shooting range where we would be training like he was the most dangerous man in all the earth. Chest puffed out, eyes cold and serious, he took my shoulder into his hand and leaned in closer than necessary.
“Don’t be afraid, Claren. You’re being trained by the very best. Our time is short, but I’m confident we can teach you everything you need to know to stay safe from those lunatics Outside.”
I pulled away and he continued, gesturing around the room with broad sweeping hand motions. “You may be asking yourself, ‘How did I luck out with such skilled trainers in such an impressive facility?’”
He looked back over his shoulder at me and gave a little wink.
“Well as you may know, this used to be a holding facility for criminals before the Great War. They would wait here behind bars before facing the judge for their imminent doom. But as the head of my Protection Unit, it was my duty to eradicate such criminals. And as you can see, I took my job very seriously. Without the need for numerous cells, we transformed this building into a training center and shooting range for Leaders here in the Center. Though with me on your side, I don’t expect you’ll ever need to actually use this training.”
He lifted his brows at me and I stifled a groan. Dax and Rider, the only other people in the room with us were nonplussed. So it was just me with a hostile Dax, an arrogant Aiden, and the ever quiet and mysterious Rider. Surely nothing could go wrong.
Despite an awkward start, the training went relatively smoothly—better than I expected. We began with some stretching and physically warming up our bodies with short exercises. Then Aiden taught me some self-defense basics. Thankfully, he took his job as a teacher too seriously to physically interact with me. Instead, he stood back watching and critiquing my form as Dax and Rider acted out different threats that I could potentially have to defend myself from.
Both young men were much stronger than me, but Rider was especially impressive. His tall agile frame reminded me of Raf, and it motivated me that much more to excel in my training. If playing the role of a Leader is what it took to save Raf and the Embers, then I was going to be the best Leader I could possibly be.
We skipped strength training because Aiden felt we didn’t have enough time for me to develop the necessary skills before we left for the boroughs. So my time with him was almost entirely dedicated to blocking attacks and finding ways to release myself from an attacker. I didn’t even have to touch a firearm until the next day.
Rider took charge of the training on day two. He spoke quietly, but with confidence. And while Dax and Aiden were easy books to read, I had a much harder time getting a feel for Rider. It was as though this mysterious cloud that hung about him originated from his very core, naturally blocking his affect and preventing me from understanding how he felt. Or maybe he just didn’t feel much of anything at all.
But part of me also wondered if it was all orchestrated. I knew he was raised a Leader and trained in Protection at the highest levels, but could it be possible that he was also an Empath? Maybe he was blocking his affect intentionally.
I shouldn’t have cared as much as I did. My curiosity surrounding him definitely interfered with my training. I found myself hovering close to try and get a better feel from him. When he showed me how to hold the handgun, I played dumb, forcing him to come and adjust my arms so I could get some skin to skin contact. But nothing worked. Instead, I just made him frustrated that I wasn’t picking things up as quickly as he wanted me to.
But I couldn’t let it go. Something was up with this guy. It was clear by Felix’s reaction at our first meeting. I needed to know what kind of person I was working with here.
Late in the morning on that second day I found myself trying for the umpteenth time to hit a target at the opposite end of the range. I knew I could do it, I’d done just fine with the stun guns a few weeks earlier, but I was entirely too distracted to make my hands cooperate that morning.
With a sigh, Rider came up from behind me and guided my arms to the proper position. Even with his body practically surrounding me, I didn’t feel anything coming from him but extreme focus on the task at hand. And I knew I wasn’t going to be able to do anything properly until I had a better understanding of him.
Without giving a single thought to the consequences, I whipped my body around to face him, placing my hands on either side of his neck. It was foolish, yes. I had definitely allowed my obsession with finding out what was going on in Rider’s head to take over any semblance of rational thinking. But it was done.
With my palms flush against his skin, I targeted strong feelings of trust and relaxation toward him, hoping my projections would break down any walls he had and allow me to see inside his mind. Even just for a moment.
His eyes widened, but he didn’t pull back. He dropped his arms and cut his gaze over to the door behind me. And whatever I hoped I might have learned from this crazy idea of mine was nothing like what I actually felt. Rider wasn’t putting off vibes of malice or kindness. There was no love or lust or anger or fear. There wasn’t much at all. The only emotion I perceived from Rider was guilt.
“You call this training?” Felix’s voice boomed from behind me. I’d never heard him sound so angry. He must’ve come in right as I spun around.
Thinking fast, I said “Thank you, Rider. I think I’ve got it now.” Then I patted his cheek and turned back toward the targets.
“Hey Felix, you came just in time. Rider finally helped me figure out what I was doing wrong. Watch this.” Determined to move past the awkward scene I’d just created, I rai
sed my gun and fired a near-perfect shot.
I lowered the gun and turned back to Felix, but he wasn’t watching me. He was glaring at Rider. Dax and Aiden sat open-mouthed along the wall, neither saying much but both clearly interested in whatever was about to go down.
And Rider was back to his emotionless self behind me. He gave a simple, “well done,” and walked back over to the other guys. Which left me alone in the center of the room buried under the weight of my absurd actions. What was I thinking? Why did I feel the need to touch him?
And why oh why did Felix have to choose that very moment to make his entrance? I obviously wasn’t helping with the tension between the two of them.
“I’m glad you got it figured out,” Felix said. His tone was softer toward me but there was still a rawness in his voice. While Rider was blank, Felix was a swirl of emotion. Anger and distrust and... jealousy?
“That’s probably good for today,” he added. “The other heads would like to meet briefly over lunch before you join up with Emilio this afternoon.”
I nodded and pulled off my safety goggles and hearing protection. “Thanks again,” I said as I handed the equipment over to Rider. Then I silently mouthed sorry before joining Felix.
Felix put his arm possessively around me as we exited the room. Dax followed, but he kept his distance, presumably so Felix and I could talk. But Felix remained silent. He was still seething and I thought it would be best to give him a minute. I didn’t know if he was upset with me or Rider or both of us.
I felt like a kid who got caught sneaking fruit from the kitchen while her mom’s back was turned. Unfortunately, I didn’t even get any good fruit. I just got caught.
I still had so many questions. Who was Rider, and why was he such a tough nut to crack? Based on Felix’s reaction, I would like to assume he’s not really on our side. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that Rider was good. Mysterious, yes. But not nefarious. And that guilt was so authentic. Why did seeing Felix make Rider feel so remorseful?