Rebel Grey

by Stella Drexler

  ***

  Later, at the safe house...

  Petra was on pins and needles. The rest of the inner circle were as tense as she was. They sat around a table in the tiny conference room beside Grey's office room. The doors and windows had been broken long ago, and shards of glass still littered the floor.

  "You brought him back here?" Jesse demanded. "Are you crazy?"

  Petra sat between Key and Lux. They stared back at Jesse as a united front. "He is with us now," Lux said firmly. "He is trying to get together with the rebel leader to stage an attack on the King."

  "But having him here is dangerous! The hunters found out about him once already. I don't think I need to remind anyone here how that went down."

  "Yes, the hunters did find him once, but that was because we were careless enough to let Shaw see him," Key said in a low voice. He still looked bruised, but he was beginning to look almost normal. He moved around nearly as well as he had before the attack. Petra was relieved; she had enough to worry about without worrying about Key just now.

  "Shaw doesn't know about this place," Petra added. "No one knows about this place. We have sentries and guards watching the perimeter to make sure no one sneaks up on us again."

  It didn't persuade anyone. "This is risky," Ellis said.

  "Yes, but living in Razor City is risky. You know we can't let things keep on this way. We have to do something about Scarlet. We have to get our families back and stop all this once and for all."

  "Nothing has changed since the war. It's always been like this," Jesse said. "Since when did you turn into the revolutionary, Petra? Do you actually think you can do something about it?"

  "It hasn't been like this since the war," Key argued. "We let Scarlet take over because he was the most powerful. He was the only one who could bring the city back together. But he became corrupt. And now he has to be stopped."

  "He doesn't have enough men to stop us all," Petra put in. "We can fight him."

  "If we take out the King, the rest of the men will fall," Lux said.

  "Do you think it will be that easy?" Ellis asked. "He is one man, but this is an empire you are trying to topple. His people will step in. They will just take over and perpetuate the corruption. Nothing will change."

  "That is why we need the rebel army," Lux told him. "We need to take out the heart and the rest of the empire."

  "Grey knows how to do it. He said we had to strike all at once. We can take all the King's holdings at once, suppress his army, and then the rebels will take control."

  "I'm not so sure I want them to be in control, either," Rip said grimly.

  "They are still better than Scarlet. Anything is better than him."

  "And what about Dante?" Ellis asked. "Do you think he will remain loyal to our side? Until days ago, he was one of them."

  "He's changed."

  "Why. Because of a bump on the head?" Jesse growled.

  "Because he found out his father is trying to kill him. He is part of this now. He wants what we want. You should have seen him with the rebel leader. He wants to see change in this city. He has ideas, and they're good. He is serious. He is with us."

  "Petra, this is a mistake," Jesse told her. "We need to get him out of here. We can't hide him anymore."

  "No!" Petra and Lux said at the same time. "This is the only place he is safe," Petra added.

  "But the rest of us are in danger."

  Lux frowned. "He is the key to the rebellion. If he is with the Uprising--if he is with us--we stand a chance."

  "This isn't what we set out to do," Ellis said. "We just wanted a safe place for all of us to live."

  "Things have changed, Ellis! It isn't safe. There is no safe place in this city anymore."

  "Because you brought him here," Jesse said angrily.

  "That isn't fair," Lux said. "Petra did what she thought was right. She saved his life. It isn't her fault the city is in trouble."

  "No. It's his."

  "No, it isn't!" Petra snapped. "It wouldn't matter now if he was with us or not. The ball is rolling. Things are moving. The rebels have a list of people who are being targeted for imprisonment and death by King Scarlet. The Uprising can mobilize them to fight. If they follow Grey's plan, if they strike at all the locations at once, they could suppress the King's forces before anyone is the wiser. Before anyone has time to fight."

  "We're just kids," Rip argued.

  "Not anymore. We haven't been kids since the war. And we can't keep letting this happen. We have to do something. Grey is the one who wants to do something. He wants to make it happen. He's the one who knows what to do. Would you rather live in a city like this forever where we live constantly in fear and are missing our loved ones who have been falsely accused? Or would you like to at least give change a chance?"

  "We have a chance now," Lux added. "And Dante is that chance."

  They were silent for a long moment. "We can't know that we can trust him," Ellis said finally. "And we could be risking everything to keep him here. He could be working for the King, trying to get the location of the rebel base and its leader for his father. Have you thought of that? The rebels are already in danger. He knows their leader now."

  "They made that choice. Cage chose to meet him. He knew the risk."

  "He might have already gone off and told his father everything."

  "He wouldn't do that!" Petra argued.

  "How do you know? You don't know anything about him. This whole thing could be a trick."

  "I don't believe that."

  "But how can you be sure? You knew nothing about him until days ago when he claimed to have been attacked."

  "No. I believe what happened to him is true. I think he was telling the truth. He has changed. If he were trying to shut everyone down and spying on the rebels, the Uprising would already be in trouble, and we would have been raided by now. We have already been raided once before, and they didn't wait for anything."

  "Yes, but that was because of Shaw."

  "And he doesn't know where this place is. He's still just out there in the outlands or the city. He can't tell anyone. We haven't had any trouble since he left. Dante is the real thing."

  "I'm not so sure," Ellis said grimly. "We want him out of here before he can cause any more damage. We've already lost our home because of him."

  Petra lifted her chin. "If he's going, I'm going."

  Key scowled. "Petra, no."

  Jesse looked around. "We'll vote, then. We can't stop you from leaving with him. Everyone in favor of getting Dante out of here, raise their hand."

  Rip, Ellis and Jesse raised their hands. Lux rolled her eyes. "You can't call a vote. Beth isn't here. And if she was, she would vote with us. It's off the table. He stays. If he is a spy, we need to keep our eyes on him so we can be sure he isn't running off to his father."

  "Unless he has a means of contacting him inside," Ellis said darkly.

  "No," Petra said sharply. "He doesn't."

  "How can you know that, Petra? You can't watch him every second. You aren't watching him now. He could be talking to Scarlet as we're in here arguing over it. We are in danger as long as he is still here."

  "Then we have to do something!"

  "Like what?"

  "We can join the rebels," Beth said from the doorway.

  They all looked up at her in surprise. The compound--the lost kids--had never taken a side in this war. They had always remained on the outside, stayed out of the fight. Talking about Dante and Petra joining the war was one thing, but the others had never wanted to be part of it. They just wanted to get by. But things were different now; they could feel it. Something had changed, and they would never be able to go back the way it was.

  Petra shot to her feet. "Has Cage given his decision."

  Beth shook her head and took a seat beside Key. "No. Not yet. I'm sorry." She looked at the others. "We can all join the Uprising and stop all this once and for all. It's time to choose a side."

  "We s
tay out of it," Ellis said. "We have always stayed out of it."

  "That is no longer an option. Things have reached the breaking point. The Uprising can keep us all safe. The King's men haven't discovered their locations yet, and they have a safe house if it is needed. They are aware of the situation now. They will be preparing to hide their children and those who cannot fight. They would take in the younger kids and protect them."

  They all considered this. "The outlands are dangerous for kids," Petra reminded them.

  "We are safe inside this house. That's what a safe house is for."

  "No. It is not safe for us anywhere in the outlands, not without an army to protect us," Key told him. "We aren't safe anywhere in Razor City."

  "We have an army."

  "It's not big or good enough. Some of us can stay here, but we should get the little kids out."

  Ellis and Jesse glanced at each other. "That is actually not a bad idea," Ellis conceded. "Are they prepared to take them in?"

  "Yes," Beth replied positively.

  Ellis finally nodded. "We should give them a choice. Some of the kids won't like it. We have to let them know the danger they are in and let them make their own decision. We have been responsible for them all this time. Even in the present situation, we can't let them get hurt because of us, but we also cannot force them to choose a side. We should not force anyone who doesn't want to go."

  "Fine. We will give them the choice," Petra said impatiently.

  "The Uprising will protect them even if they choose not to join the fight," Beth said. "They will agree to take them in and allow them to remain neutral. Not everyone who they keep is part of the war."

  "We should do it soon," Lux said. "As soon as we can."

  Beth nodded. "I will talk to my people. We can plan how to evacuate the ones who want to go."

  "Do it now," Lux said.

  "I will gather the kids and talk to them," Key said. "We will let them know we have to move and where they are going."

  "Okay," Beth rose from her seat in the circle."I will let the leaders know we are coming. They will take anyone." She looked at Petra. "Within reason. We don't want to take anyone who will cause a security breech. We can trust the people here. The ones we know."

  Petra understood. She lifted her chin defiantly. Grey wasn't welcome. Chances are, neither was she. It didn't matter. She wasn't going anywhere Grey wasn't.

  "I will go with you, Beth," Lux said. "We can coordinate the evacuation with our guards." She looked at the others. "It is time to get involved. It is time to do something. But the rest of you have a choice. It is up to you to decide how far you want to take this. If you aren't prepared to join the rebels, you can do what you want."

  "We have been together all this time," Ellis said. "We have made our decisions and lived our lives together all these years. We are together now." He looked at Jesse and Rip. "Does anyone want to back out?"

  Jesse sighed, but he glanced at Rip. Rip shrugged. "I'm good," he said.

  Finally, Jesse nodded. He didn't look happy. "Okay, I'm in, too. At the very least we can buy some time and make sure the littler ones are safe."

  "They won't have to join the army, Jesse. You won't have to join the army. But the Uprising will protect you," Beth told him. "You could help in other ways. They could use your skills."

  This perked Jesse up a bit. "Most people could use my skills."

  Petra rose to follow the others out. "I will talk to Grey and let him know what is happening."

  Beth turned to her. "You know you can't bring him there."

  Petra nodded. "I know."

  Key looked at her seriously. "Petra, come with us."

  "No. I can't leave Grey. I'll stay here with him. We will work with the Uprising here and try to come up with something to do while we're waiting to find out if the rebels are willing to work with us and make a plan. When they are ready to move, we'll be ready."

  Beth stepped forward to hug her. "I will speak to you soon."

  She smiled wanly. "Yeah."

  “Take care of yourself.”

  “You, too.”

  Petra glanced at Key. He scowled at her. "Do you think it's safe for you to stay here alone with him?"

  She shrugged. "What's going to happen without you that wouldn't happen with you here? All he wants now is to help stop his father."

  Key sighed. "I know he can help. But I'm not sure he is the best one to align yourself with right now."

  "He is the best one, Key. He is the reason we are in this. He has a plan. He wants to attack the palace, the holdings and the prisons all at once. He knows all the locations. With him and Cage, we have a chance. If the Uprising follows Grey's plan, it could work. We might be able to get Ren and the others out. It could all finally be over. Scarlet will lose his hold on the city."

  Key sighed, but he stepped forward to hug her tightly. "We will do what we can to convince Cage. I trust you, Petra. I think you know what you're doing. At the very least, I've seen you get out of some pretty bad scrapes. In the meantime, though, at least we'll be protecting the kids in case—in case Grey isn't as he seems. The King's people won't know where to find us."

  Petra squared her shoulders. "If Grey is a spy, I will be the one to face the consequences. Not any of you or any of them."

  "Will you tell him what we're doing?"

  She sighed. "No, not if you all agree it would be best not to. Even if I did tell him, he doesn't know the location of the Uprising safe house. They would not be in danger."

  Beth nodded. "She's right. We did not meet with Dante at the safe house. The location we used was disposable. It was not one of ours. Cage is not foolish enough to let Prince Dante see where we are keeping our people. We do protect ourselves. No one knows what the prince is really after right now, and the King has been wanting to crush the rebels from the beginning. He knows they are his biggest threat. He might have finally found the way--through his son." She touched Petra's arm. "I know you trust him. Just be careful."

  "I will. I do trust him."

  "Okay. We will be back with you soon."

  Grey paced the small room like a caged jungle animal, muttering softly to himself. When he heard her slip inside the room, his head snapped up. He turned to look at her with a tempestuous frown. "I am not a spy."

  She blinked at him in surprise. "Were you listening?"

  "Not to all of it. Just some of it. I'm not a spy, Petra." He strode toward her and gripped her hands. "Everything I told you has been the truth!"

  "I know that. I believe you, Grey. But not everyone does."

  He nodded decisively. The he released her abruptly and turned away. "I need to leave."

  "What? You can't! All we've been doing here has been to protect you."

  "No. It has been to stop all this. The corruption and murder and false imprisonment. Everything my father has been up to. But before that it was about keeping your people safe, and they aren't safe as long as I am here." He looked at her seriously. "I have to go."

  "I won't let you."

  "Petra, I'm not going to put you in danger."

  "We have a plan. We have an alternative plan--"

  He held up his hand. "Don't tell me! I don't want to know. Whatever your people are planning, they need to do it without me hearing about it. I don't want there to be any question about whether I'm passing information to my father. I will do whatever I can to prove it, but don't tell me."

  She sighed, but she didn't argue. "All right."

  "I want your people to be safe. I don't want anyone else to be hurt because of me and my father. If the rebels won't help us, I have to do it on my own."

  "What? You can't take on an entire army by yourself!"

  "I might be able to get to my father...get in and seize power by force."

  She stared at him. "What? You intend to kill your father and take over the city?"

  "I might not have to kill him. I might be able to sneak in and catch him by surprise. Maybe I can lock him up somewhere. I
f he was out of commission and I was back, I would be the obvious successor."

  She shook her head. "No, Grey, it's too risky. You can't. If Scarlet is the one trying to kill you, Saer could be waiting for you."

  "I beat him twice already when I wasn't expecting him. Now that I am, I think I can handle him."

  She scowled. "Grey, this isn't the way."

  "What other way is there? Wait? Wait for Cage to decide he's ready to mobilize? That would be ideal if the rebels go ahead with the strike, but we don't have time to wait for them. Time is running out before my father begins to suspect I have joined their side or they find me. We have to act now. We can't wait." He gripped her shoulders. "Your people will be safe. You will be safe. I don't matter."

  "You do matter!"

  "I matter right now only in that I might be the only one who can get into the palace and take out the King to seize power. His courtiers won't have a choice but to follow me. I will see to that. I can place myself in charge. And when I am in charge, I can stop all this. I can change everything."

  "No, Grey, it's too dangerous. It's too risky. What if the people won't agree to it? What if they won't follow you? They could kill you."

  "No. They won't have a choice. I will be in a position to help the rebels take all the holdings and bring change. Then they will know."

  "But they might take you out. And it is power, Grey. How can you be sure it won't corrupt you just like it did your father?"

  "Because it's happened to me once. I know how to give it back now. I will only take it in order to give it back to the people."

  "Power corrupts. Grey, it has corrupted you in the past. How can you be sure you'll be able to let it go?"

  He looked hurt. "You don't trust me?"

  She sighed. She stepped forward and clenched his fingers in hers. She looked into his eyes. She did trust him. "I do. I think you mean what you say. I think you have a good heart and your intentions are good. But I think your father's intentions were good once, too. In the beginning."

  Grey shook his head. "I won't keep hold of the city long enough to let myself become my father." He wrapped her into a fierce hug. "And I will have you. Won't I?” He leaned back to look at her. “Won't I, Petra? Will you stay with me and make sure I will not let this ruin me like it did my father?"

  She melted into him. She wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. "I will. Of course I will. So let me go with you."

  He shook his head. "No. I can't let you. I'm sorry. You have to stay here where I know you will be safe. Or go with the rebels for now. Anywhere they won't be able to get to you."

  "But--"

  "I can't let you, Petra."

  "Then stay here. Don't go. Not until we can sort this all out."

  "What is there to sort out? I'm going to have to wing it no matter what."

  "Please, Grey, don't. We're not ready yet. I'm not ready for you to go."

  He leaned down and kissed her. For several moments, she leaned into him and let herself forget everything. As long as he was here and he was all right, everything would be okay. As long as he didn't go off to try to take the city from his father by force, everything would be fine. In that small moment, she didn't care about rebels or Kings or the war that she was trying to start. She just wanted to be with him.

  She tightened her arms around his neck. If she just held on, he might not leave. "Just don't go," she whispered in his ear.

  "I won't." He tilted her chin up to kiss her again. "Not anytime soon."

  He walked her backward so they fell back onto the bed. He leaned over her. She stared up at him with pale, troubled eyes. "Do you promise?"

  Grey hesitated. Finally, he replied, "I promise."

  Petra smiled and pulled him down to kiss her. It was a long time before she stopped kissing him. For several moments, it was as though the city had stopped moving, as though the Uprising and the King had ceased to exist. She could almost believe they were two people who loved each other; two people who didn't have anything to fear.

  He lifted his head to look down at her. "I won't let anything bad happen to you, Petra."

  She smiled and drew a finger down his cheek. "I don't want anything bad to happen to you, either."

  "But Cage is right, Petra. Sometimes you have to sacrifice one for the good of many."

  She clutched his arms. "I'm not willing to let you go. I'm not willing to sacrifice you, Grey. You promised. You promised you won't go until we can plan this. I want to know what is going to happen."

  "Okay." There was something in his eyes. She wasn't sure what it was. She wanted to trust him. She wasn't sure she should. "I promise."

  "Do you really promise?"

  "Yes." He looked determined now. He smiled and cupped her cheek in his hand. "I won't go. Not until we know what we're going to do."

  She smiled and curled against his side. He wrapped his arms around her. She sighed contentedly and closed her eyes.

  He waited. In mere moments, her breathing grew deep, slow and steady. He leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Petra?"

  She didn't answer.

  Grey slipped carefully out from under her her arm. She didn't stir. She hadn't slept well in several days. She probably wouldn't wake up until he was long gone. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "I'm sorry, Petra. Goodbye."