“She won’t be seen for long,” Lyana confirmed, watching as Darius laid back on the bed and relaxed. “We’d better get on with it then,” she said, noting the dismissal in his stance. Backing up to the door, she pushed it open and beckoned to Tay. “Let’s go.”
“Wait.” Tay walked up to the bed and stared down at him, idly noting the tautness of his muscles beneath his shirt. He opened his eyes and stared up at her, and she was struck by the bright blue of his gaze.
“Can I have time to let my sister know?” Darius pushed himself up and glanced across to his sister. “She needs to know that I won’t be here to collect ration,” she snapped, frustrated by their hesitancy. “Look, I’m going to do this, but I need to let my family know, just in case I…” She stammered to a halt. “Just in case I don’t come back.”
“Very well,” Darius said, settling back against the bed with a sigh. “Just don’t take too long.”
Tay stepped away from the bed and followed Lyana out into the hall. They closed the door to Darius’ room and walked back along the corridor in silence. Reaching Lyana’s room, the other girl stopped at the doorway and faced her.
“You will come back?” she asked, a whisper of fear in her voice.
Tay nodded, wondering why she agreed to return. She could run from the situation, take her siblings and… she stopped thinking. She could indeed flee, but it would be temporary. She had no doubt that Darius would withdraw his bargain if she left. There was even the possibility that he would turn the authorities onto her. Despite his calm, almost friendly demeanour, she had no delusions of his altruism. With his admission, he had declared his determination to save his sister, and he would look unfavourably on any effort to ruin her. Following Lyana into the room in silence, she changed out of the fancy clothes and back into her work garb, the fabric scratchy and uncomfortable after the luxurious feel of Lyana’s clothing.
“Tay.” Lyana took a hesitant step forward and clasped hold of her hand. “Thank you for doing this.” Tay looked down, focusing on the pale, unblemished hands that held hers as she tried to formulate a response.
“My hands.” She declared as the impact of seeing those fingers blazed into her mind. “They’re worker’s hands.” She held up her own fingers and displayed the roughened calluses, reddened skin and chipped nails that were the lot of a scullery maid’s life. “They’ll notice.”
“Not if you wear gloves.” Lyana smiled as she pulled a thin pair of kidskin gloves from a dresser drawer.
Tay gave a small snort of laughter at Lyana’s practical suggestion, and she drew the gloves onto her hands. “You’ve thought of everything,” she quipped lightly as she looked down at her concealed fingers.
“Of course,” Lyana replied with a chuckle. “Though you’d better take those off if you’re going to your home.”
“Oh.” Tay gave a start and removed the gloves. Placing them onto a table, she turned back to the room, and Lyana.
“I know it’ll be difficult,” Lyana said, watching the colour drain out of Tay’s face with some sympathy. “But I do thank you.”
“Yeah…” she replied, walking toward the door. “I hope you realise just how bad a position I’m in.” Her voice was flat, the anger strangely muted. “They could kill me for this.”
“I know you’re assuming most of the risk”－Lyana reached her side－“but I trust my brother to keep you safe.” Her fingers squeezed Tay’s upper arm reassuringly.
Tay picked up her cloak and stepped through the door. Moving through the empty house, she reached the kitchen without seeing another soul. Pushing open the heavy door, she moved into the alley, trying not to give in to the panic that was pulsing through her.
Chapter 9
Tay walked through the front door of her house and froze at the sound of masculine voices drifting from the direction of the kitchen. Carefully, she reached out and picked up a cane that stood by the front door. The kitchen door was closed and the voices continued from within. Hesitantly, she approached the door, cane shaking lightly in her grasp in preparation for confrontation with the intruders.
“Are you certain?” She stopped at the sound of Lars’ voice, and fury replaced caution. A loud bang echoed through the house as the door smashed against the wall. Lars and Cody stood within the kitchen, talking with a stunned Lana who was sitting on the edge of the kitchen counter.
“What the devil are you lot doing here?” Tay demanded as she brandished the cane in what she hoped was a threatening manner.
“I invited them.” Lana hopped down from her perch and walked toward her older sister.
“And I didn’t want them here.” Tay glanced across at Lars, who had the decency to look abashed. Rounding on her younger sister, she continued. “You’re inviting people in behind my back?”
“You would have said no.” Lana ignored her sister’s anger as she walked forward and poked a finger at her sister’s chest. “You don’t want to do anything.” Her voice echoed through the kitchen, full of righteous fury. “You know Father would have wanted us to help.”
“That still doesn’t…”
“No, Tay,” Lana protested, “I’m fed up with it. I’m fed up with the lack of food, the bullying from the guards, the slavery to the Ration.” Her voice spilled forth, like a river that had burst its banks. “We need to make changes. You know that.”
“Lana…” Lars stood and held up his hand. With an effort, Lana stopped speaking. “She wants to help,” he explained, as though he thought Tay could not understand.
“She’s still a child.” Helpless, frustrated fury, snarled from her lips.
“If you would help us”－Lars glanced across at Cody－“then we wouldn’t need to use her.”
“Blackmail.” Tay almost smacked him with the cane, disgusted by his words.
“No”－Lars gave a small smile－“practicality.” He nodded at her. “You could provide us with excellent information.” Cody nodded with agreement. “With that information, we would be more accurate with our targets.” He glanced across at Lana. “Besides which, your sister asked us if she could help.”
“And you didn’t think to say no?” It was only through supreme self-control that Tay did not smack him with the cane. “She’s only fifteen.”
“She’d only try to do this herself,” Lars continued, his voice the very soul of reason. “And at least this way I will be able to keep an eye on her.”
Tay lowered the cane a fraction, but didn’t release it. Intellectually she knew what Lars said was true, that he couldn’t stop her sister from doing anything dangerous, but it still rankled.
“Okay, fine.” Defeat mixed with anger flowed through her voice, as she gave in to the inevitable. “I’ll help.” She winced as Lana enthusiastically threw her arms around her. “If…” She focused on her younger sister. “If you keep out of trouble.”
“I will,” Lana promised fervently, fervour shining from her face.
“Good,” Lars said, stepping forward to face her. “So here’s what we want…” He stopped speaking as Tay raised her hand.
“Whatever you wanted me to do, you’ll have to change it,” she said, watching their faces shift expression as she spoke. “I’m going to the City,” she announced before they could speak. “I’ve been picked to go with the Overseer’s family,” she said, debating whether to explain just how she would be going to the city, and deciding against it. “That’s why I’m home now.” She reached into her pocket and handed over the two Ration tokens and the special dispensation disc. Lana looked up at her in shock as she palmed the three discs. “That disc will allow you to draw my and Father’s rations.”
Lana’s mouth opened and then closed, as though she could not ask the questions that were clearly forming in her mind.
“How did you get to go to the City?” Lars asked, staring down at the dispensation disc with disbelief.
“I’ll tell you how…” Cody spoke for the first time, the accusation in his voice as clear as a bell.
“Cody,” Lars warned, turning from his scrutiny of the disc to face the other man. “Give it a rest.”
Cody closed his mouth, but he still stared at Tay, scorn etched over his face.
“So when are you going?” Lars turned back to Tay, his voice gentle.
“Today,” she replied, trying to ignore Cody and his antagonism. “I got leave to deliver this.”
“Alright.” Lars stood back and gently ran his fingers across his upper lip in thought. “Here’s what I want you to do.”
Fifteen minutes later, Tay left her home and returned to the Overseer’s house, her heart beating much faster than normal. As if she didn’t have enough to handle. Lars had asked her to investigate the corridors of power. She could have refused the job, but if she had, there was every possibility that her sister would attempt to join the rebels in her stead. As her footsteps echoed on the cobblestones, she wondered how she had managed to end up mixed up in all of this. If only her father had not been involved with the resistance, then she wouldn’t have been forced to seek Darius’ help. She walked past the Ration Centre, avoiding the gaze of the guards as she hurried along the road. No, all she had to do now was survive pretending to be Darius’ sister and manage to steal the delivery schedules from the transit office. The thought chilled her, and she moved faster across the snowy ground, hoping for some miracle to get her out of the mess she had gotten into.
Chapter 10
“No, not that knife,” Lyana’s voice snapped through the still air of the dining room. Tay, in the process of selecting what she thought was the main course cutlery, dropped the offending object with a clatter. “And don’t just drop the silverware.”
Tay glanced up at her task-master; the last few days had been an endurance trial. Lyana had proved to be as harsh a teacher as she’d ever known, and the array of information that she needed to learn was beginning to make her head swim.
“So which knife is it?” Sitting at the table, dressed in Lyana’s less-than-comfortable clothes, Tay hoped that some miracle would prevent her travel to the City. The only positive point about the experience was Darius’ absence, and even that didn’t help the feeling of disorientation. There was too much to learn and not enough time to learn it.
She still had to perform her scullery duties, to keep up appearances, and cram lessons in the hours she was meant to be asleep. Even her sleep was disturbed with morbid musings on what could go wrong. Exhaustion was rapidly becoming an issue, but Lyana gave her no quarter in the lessons, drilling her endlessly on each point of etiquette. As a consequence of the taxing regime, comments about her capability had begun to circulate in the kitchen. Since her arrival she had broken three plates and knocked over a stack of pans. Tay could only hope that any reports of poor performance didn’t make their way back to the Frazers and affect her normal role.
“That one.” Lyana’s voice softened at the look of tired bewilderment on Tay’s face. “Just remember, outside in, and you’ll be fine.”
“It’s just…” Tay picked up the correct knife and began to eat. “It’s all so…”
“New,” Lyana interrupted, finishing Tay’s sentence for her. “Just relax, and it’ll come.”
“It’s easy for you to say,” Tay muttered. “You don’t have to learn a lifetime of etiquette lessons in three days.” A sigh whistled from between her lips. “This isn’t going to work.”
“It will.” Tay tried not comment on the desperate sound to Lyana’s voice.
“Is it going well?” Darius poked his head through the open door. A glance passed between him and his sister, and he walked into the room. “Don’t worry, I’ll help you.” The words were gentle, softer than she had expected from him. As he sat down at the table and helped himself to a plate of food, Tay looked up from her dinner and stared at him. While Lyana could almost be called friendly, she still did not know what to think about Darius.
“Well?” Lyana asked, after a moment of watching him chew.
“Well, what?” He reached out and picked up a glass of wine.
“Is Father occupied?” A nervous quaver entered her voice. “I thought you were checking.”
“He won’t be back for a while,” Darius confirmed, after taking a sip. “According to Carson, he’s been taken out of the district and the earliest estimate for him to return is about a month.” He nodded over at Tay. “More than enough time for us to get this done.”
“So…” Tay’s voice squeaked. She swallowed and started again. “We’ll be going tomorrow?”
“As planned.” Darius took another bite. “So I would see your family tonight”－he glanced down at the table－“just in case.” Tay stopped chewing, the food turning to sawdust in her mouth. On the other side of the table, Lyana threw her a sympathetic glance. Darius took another forkful of food, before pushing his dinner aside and standing up. “And get some sleep tonight.” He shot another glance at Lyana. “I’m going to need to talk to you.”
“Go see your family.” Lyana pushed aside her own plate of food. “I’ll see you when you come back.”
They walked out of the room, leaving Tay alone at the makeshift dinner table in Lyana’s room. A sense of dread settled over her as she contemplated the next few days. It had become easy to lose herself in the training and the food. She took another forkful, not quite willing to allow thoughts of the days ahead to affect her appetite. Now that the journey to the City was only a day away, she could barely keep still. Nervous and agitated, she finished her meal and headed back upstairs.
Tay walked into the room she had been given and changed back into her regular clothing. Her fingers shook as she did up the buttons on her coat, and she bit her lip. More than anything, she wished she did not have to do this. Moving to the door, she left the room.
She headed along the corridor, only to stop at the sound of Lyana crying. Carefully, she pushed open the door to Lyana’s room and stopped at the sight of Lyana in Darius’ arms. Tears streamed down her face, as she wept against her brother’s chest. Darius looked at Tay over the top of his sister’s head, and she was startled at the raw agony she saw there. Aware she was intruding on a private moment, she stepped back out of the room and headed downstairs, her emotions in tatters. She liked Lyana, despite the gulf in their backgrounds, and she hated to see her in pain, but at this moment in time she was far too worried about the trip to the City. This charade they were asking her to play could mean her death. Tay pushed open the kitchen door and headed off down the street.
“So you’re pretending to be a noble?” Lars sat in her mother’s chair and raised an eyebrow. “That’s why you’re going to the City?”
Tay nodded, unsure if she had done the right thing in telling Lars this information. Thankfully, Cody had not accompanied him to the house, but mistrust still festered between them. Spilling Lyana’s secrets had been the hardest, the noble girl seemed to trust her, and this felt like a betrayal.
“That’s great news.” Lars jumped up, a smile creasing his features. “As a noble, you’ll have far more access than any servant.”
“I doubt I’ll have that much,” Tay muttered, reluctance in each syllable. “But I can try.”
“That’s all I want.” Lars reached into a bag and drew forth a brass contraption. “This will plug into any of the archive devices in the City.” He placed it in her hands, and began to point at different parts of the mechanism. “We want the supply routes and guard schedules. I’m certain you’ll have access.”
Tay examined the recorder carefully, sceptical of Lars’ claims. “That’s if I can get away from Darius,” she noted, remembering his job as chaperone.
“I don’t think you’ll have a problem there,” Lars contradicted. “I’m sure you can be resourceful.”
Tay sniffed in derision, still unconvinced of the ease of her task. “And what about my siblings?” she asked, placing the device into a pocket. “I barely trust you to keep them safe, I don’t trust your friend at all.”
“I understand, Cody is
dedicated…”
“Dedicated?” Tay gave a bark of laughter. “He’s accused me on two separate occasions of sleeping with Darius, despite the fact that you both sent me to the man.” Tay paced the room, agitation and nerves turning into anger. “There was every possibility that was going to be his price. So knowing that, you sent me there, and then Cody attempts to make me feel cheap.” Another scornful chuckle ripped from her lips. “Whatever your excuses for his behaviour, I don’t ever want him to come here again, understand?”
“Yes, yes, of course,” Lars promised, attempting to mollify her. “Just get this done and that’s it, we can do the rest.”
Tay pursed her lips but stayed silent. There was only so much she could say before it became repetitive. Showing Lars out of the house, she moved up the stairs to her siblings’ bedroom, for potentially her last night with them.
Chapter 11
The train carriage was unlike anything she had ever seen. Drawn by a smoking locomotive, the carriage that belonged to the Overseer was painted royal blue with gold accents, and lace curtains hung over the windows prevented people from seeing in. Standing on the platform, dressed in the elegant travelling gown that belonged to Lyana, Tay looked every inch the lady. She took a cautious breath, and the soot and smoke nearly made her cough.
“Come on.” She felt Darius’ fingers grasp her elbow, and she allowed him to walk her forward. “Delicate steps.” His voice was a muffled whisper, as he guided her toward the steps. There was a click as a footman opened the door. Taking a fortifying breath, she stepped aboard.
Passing the footman with a brief nod, Tay moved through the panelled hall and into the main car. The space was beyond luxurious. Instead of rows of seating, the carriage had been turned into a lounge with a dining table beyond. Across the back wall, she could see the dark shape of a bar, and a small bookcase laid on the opposite side. Taking another step, her feet sank into the thick carpet that covered the floor, and she swallowed nervously.
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