She held Gray's gaze without blinking. "Gray.” Her voice broke. She heaved in another breath and started over. “Gray, I love you. I want you to know that." Gray blinked and started forward, but the guard roughly pushed him back into line.
"Maeve, why are you telling me this now?" he asked warily. "What have you done?"
Maeve took another deep breath. "Arabella is going to give Emery the antidote."
Emery pushed herself upright and swayed. "I don't want it if you're going to do something stupid to get it."
Maeve ignored the interruption and continued. "She's also going to let Thomas go to the oasis."
Thomas moved closer to Gray at the mention of his name. "Alone?" he asked. "I don't want to go alone."
Gray leaned down and whispered something in Thomas's ear. Thomas nodded and looked back at Maeve.
Maeve lifted her chin and attached her gaze to Gray's once more. "Last, she's going to drop the four of you in the Beyond." Gray's eyes widened. Ginger's mouth dropped open.
"No one knows what's out there," Tristan said quietly.
Maeve nodded. "I know." Her voice trembled. "But at least you'll be alive."
Gray's blue eyes pierced Maeve's brown ones. She knew what was coming next. "What happens to you, Maeve?" His voice was calm, but a muscle in his jaw twitched and his body vibrated tension.
Maeve refused to blink. "She injects me with the virus and sends me back into Palumbra to infect the new government."
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Gray struggled with his bonds and rushed forward. Arabella's guards moved forward, guns pointed at Gray, but she motioned them back. Gray stood just inches from Maeve.
"Now, that's not gonna happen." Gray pinned Maeve with an icy stare. "Why would you agree to something like that?"
Maeve stepped toward him, close enough to feel the heat, confusion and rage rolling off his body, her eyes pleading with him to understand. "What choice do I have? It's the only way Emery gets the antidote and the rest of you survive."
"But what about you? What about us?" Gray's voice broke.
She moved forward until she was right in front of him. "I love you. This is the only way." Her voice got even quieter. "Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. Remember?"
Gray leaned down until his forehead touched hers, and Maeve closed her eyes. She could feel his breath on her face, and she savored the feeling, knowing it was probably the last time she would ever be this close to him. Tears prickled her eyes. "Surely there's another way. Let her inject me. Why does it have to be you?"
Maeve leaned just a little closer. "Because she sees me as the root of her downfall. For her, it's poetic justice. For us, it's the end."
Gray breathed through his mouth as if in pain. Maeve opened her eyes and looked into his gorgeous blue eyes. The agony in them pierced her soul. "I love you," she said again as if saying it over and over would make up for all the times she hadn't said it and would never get to say it in the future.
"I'm not giving up. We'll find you." His eyes blazed with intensity. "Don't you dare give up!" He shifted slightly so his mouth now covered hers in a searing kiss. Maeve threw her heart and soul into the kiss, trying to convey all the joy she had felt in her relationship with him and all the sorrow that it would be over far too soon. Finally, one of Arabella's guards nudged them apart, and Maeve thought she saw a hint of compassion in the guard's eyes.
"Don't do this for me." Emery's weak voice broke the silence.
"Or me." Thomas's voice echoed with frustration.
Maeve, still standing as close to Gray as the guard would allow, turned toward Emery. She missed the feel of Gray's skin against hers. She took a tiny step closer so their sleeves brushed. "Emery, I would gladly sacrifice myself so you can live. Just be amazing, OK? Live a fantastic life and show the world how brilliant you can be."
She turned to Thomas. "And you. You are one of the bravest people I have ever met. Stay strong. You can do this. Find your way home." She stepped away from Gray and walked to where Thomas stood next to Tristan. She leaned down so her eyes were level with his. "You can do this. I promise."
Thomas sniffed, wiped his nose with the back of his hand and nodded. She straightened and looked at Emery again. "Take care of your sister, OK?"
Still leaning against Ginger, Emery nodded her head as tears leaked down her cheeks followed by a gut-wrenching cough. Ginger leaned her head against Emery's and whispered something in her ear. Emery nodded and turned her face into Ginger's shoulder.
"Thank you." Ginger's voice caught. "This shouldn't be a choice. She shouldn't force you to make this choice." Ginger's eyes burned with hatred as she looked at Arabella, who gave her a tiny wave with her red-tipped fingers. "You've always been my best friend, but this..." Ginger broke off, unable to continue. Tristan stepped closer to her, trying to offer comfort with his presence.
"Maeve," Tristan said. "You don't have to do this. We can find another way."
Maeve smiled sadly. "How? You know this is the only way. Sacrifice me to keep all of you safe. It's not a bad trade, not really."
Her gaze swept over her friends. "And how lucky am I? To have all of you as my friends, my family. I wouldn't trade you for the world. Just make good use of the rest of your lives, please. Make all of this worth it. Don't let things go back to the way they were. Keep fighting for what matters. And always remember that I love you all."
As Maeve finished, Arabella began to clap. "Oh, bravo. That was touching. I'm so glad I could be a part of your sad goodbyes. But, time's up. We have so much to do. Take them away."
She motioned to the guards to return everyone but Maeve to their cells. "Wait." Maeve marched across the room until she stood in front of Arabella. "I get to see Emery get the antidote."
Arabella glared at her.
“We had a deal, Arabella.”
Arabella said nothing. The guards had stopped prodding the others in the direction of the door, waiting to see what Arabella had to say. Arabella's face tightened, and a muscle twitched in her cheek. Finally, she nodded. "Fine."
Arabella held her hand out to Elton. He used his good arm to reach in his pocket and hand her a small packet.
"Wait," Maeve said. "You knew where the antidote was the whole time?"
Elton smirked at Maeve. "Of course. You don't think I'd take any chances of accidentally getting the disease, do you?"
Maeve's mouth dropped and her eyes narrowed. "But why didn't you get it to save your sister?"
Elton gave a short laugh. Maeve and Gray shared a horrified look.
"You guys are quite easily fooled." Elton laughed again. "She wasn't my sister. She was just a girl from the slums."
Emery gasped. "You killed her," she said in a whisper. Tears rolled down her cheeks. "She was my friend, and you killed her."
Maeve shook her head in disbelief. "But why did she go along with the lie? We could have helped her."
It was Arabella's turn to laugh. "She was beyond help. We had her family, so she did what we asked. Kind of like you, Maeve."
Maeve winced. "What happened to her family?" Even as she asked the question, she wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer.
Arabella waved her hand carelessly. "Dead, of course. They died before she and Elton even left Bellus."
"Did you kill them?"
Arabella shook her head. "We didn't have to. They were infected."
Ginger raised her head and stared at Arabella with hatred burning in her gaze. "How can you be so callous? All those people died, and for what?"
Arabella's perfectly manicured eyebrows rose to her forehead. Her voice took on a menacing tone. "For what? For a better future for humanity."
"And you're going to provide that future?" Tristan chimed in.
"Of course. Can you think of anyone better?"
"I can," Gray muttered under his breath.
Arabella's eyes blazed with passion. "What does that future look like?" Maeve asked.
/> Arabella's eyes became distant as she stared into a future none of them could see.
"It's a future of peace where everyone agrees on how things should be run. A future where I lead the people of Palumbra into an era of plenty."
"The people of Palumbra you're trying to kill off with a disease?" Derision dripped from Maeve's words.
Arabella seemed to come back to herself and stared at Maeve with displeasure. "Not all of them. Just the ones that threw me out of power. We plan to target our weapon − that's you, dear − well so as not to infect all the people of Palumbra. We don't want to repeat the mistake we made with Bellus."
"So, you didn't mean to kill all the people?" Gray asked.
"Of course not." Arabella's voice took on a defensive tone. "Do you think I'm stupid. We could have used some of those people. We thought we had the virus targeted to simply take out half the population − the weakest half. But someone messed up and added it to the main water supply instead of putting it into the water station that served the poor side of the city." She waved her hand dismissively. "That person is no longer with us."
"So, by the weakest people, you mean the poor people?" Maeve asked.
Arabella tapped her chin. "Of course. The ones that contribute the least to society. Who would you have gotten rid of?" She cocked her had as if it had never occurred to her that there was another option.
"None of them." Maeve was nearly shouting. "Why did you need to get rid of any of them?"
Arabella looked at Maeve as if she had just dribbled something on her shirt.
"Because there aren't enough resources for all of us. The water and food supplies will run out in 10 years at our current rate of population. But with the technology of Bellus and the weapons cache hidden in Palumbra, we can conquer the other survivors out in The Beyond and survive."
Maeve's eyes widened at Arabella's pronouncement. She shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. Her arms were starting to hurt from being bound behind her. She shook her head in confusion. "What weapons cache? There are no mass weapons in Palumbra. We destroyed them."
Arabella smiled. "Oh, honey, do you think the weapon you discovered was the only one? We have secrets that you and that silly new government will never find."
Maeve struggled to take in this piece of information. She scanned the faces of her friends, and they all wore the same look of shocked disbelief that she knew was mirrored on her own face. She opened her mouth to ask another question, but Arabella cut her off.
"Enough of that. We have work to do."
She took the packet from Elton who had stood wordlessly while Arabella outlined her mad plan to rule Palumbra again and marched over to Emery.
"Open your mouth."
Emery shook her head and looked at Maeve.
"Oh, little girl, not taking the antidote won't save her. It will just kill you."
Emery's eyes glistened as she held Maeve's gaze. Maeve nodded, and Emery opened her mouth. Arabella poured the contents of the packet into her mouth.
"Swallow that, and it will deactivate the virus. You should be good as new in a couple of hours."
Arabella motioned to the guards. "Take them back to their cells. We have work to do." She turned to Maeve. "Rest up. You'll need it."
CHAPTER THIRTY
Waiting to die was boring. Maeve lay on the bed in her cell, her head cushioned on her arms, and stared up at the ceiling, which was dotted with tiny holes. She had counted all 182 of them − twice. It had been hours since Arabella's guards had marched her back to her cell and shoved her in. Her stomach grumbled.
She had thought she would be anxious as she waited for her impending death, but she simply felt hollow. She didn't want to die, but she knew that given a choice between her friends and her own life, she would make this choice every time. The only thing that worried her now was how to avoid infecting her friends in Palumbra and whether Arabella would keep her word and not go after Gray, Tristan, Ginger and Emery after Maeve was dead.
With nothing to do but think, she let her thoughts wander. She thought about her parents and wondered how they would react to her death. While their relationship wasn't great, she did love them, and they loved her. She knew her dying before they had time to fully repair their relationship would be devastating to them. It was devastating to her. She wished she had been quicker to forgive them and had worked harder on restoring their relationship.
Her thoughts turned then to Emma, who would be distraught at having sent them into this kind of danger. Maeve had no doubt that Emma thought they would go into the desert and meet up with the patrol. Their job was supposed to be easy − spy on the patrol and see if they could figure out who was undermining the new government. Instead, they had found Arabella. Thinking of Emma gave Maeve new strength as she remembered just how much Emma had endured in her life. Emma would be OK. Maeve sent up a prayer that she could be half as brave as Emma had been in her life.
She rolled to a sitting position and pulled her knees up to her chest, resting her arms on top of them as her thoughts turned to Gray. She wrinkled her nose and sniffed, determined not to cry. They had had so little time together − and so much of it they had lived in danger. She smiled when she thought about how they had met and their first fishing trip. She still wasn't sure what it was about her that attracted Gray, but she was grateful for it.
She closed her eyes and envisioned the rugged lines of his face and those crystal blue eyes that pierced her soul. She remembered the tingle she felt the first time their hands had brushed, the tingle she still felt every time they touched. She touched her lips as she relived their first kiss and the many kisses after that. Her sorrow turned bittersweet as her mind slipped back to the kiss where she knew everything had changed, where she knew she loved him.
She opened her eyes and grimaced as she thought about telling him she loved him while they were both prisoners held to the whim of Arabella. They widened a bit when she realized he hadn't said those words back, but she shook off the doubt quickly. He loved her, but his artistic soul wouldn't have wanted to share that moment with their enemy. She knew she might never get to hear him say it.
She began to pace the room, wondering how long it would take Arabella to be ready to implement her plan. On her fourth circuit of the room, she heard a key in the lock. She took a deep breath and braced herself.
The door opened.
"What are you doing here?" Maeve said, disgust dripping from her voice.
"Bringing you some food." Elton motioned toward the tray he was holding. "It's a last meal of sorts. Wish it could be more than a protein bar and some water." He set the tray on the bed.
"You can leave now." Maeve stood against the back wall of the room as far from Elton as she could get.
Elton ignored her dismissal and sat on the bed next to the tray.
"I want you to understand why I did what I did."
"What's to understand? You've thrown your support to an evil woman, and you betrayed us. And used an innocent girl to get us to sympathize with you. How do you possibly think you could convince me you had a good reason for that?"
Elton looked at his hands and shrugged. "From your point of view, I understand that things look bad."
"Look bad?" Maeve stared at him in disbelief. "I'm a prisoner. My friends are also prisoners, one of them could be dying for all I know. I'm about to let myself be injected with a deadly virus so they can live, and you think that 'from my point of view' things look bad?" She shook her head and began pacing again. "From my point of view things look about three levels worse than bad."
"Please, just hear me out." Elton gave her a pleading look. "We made a decent team out there in the desert. For Shalara's sake, for her memory, just listen to what I have to say."
Maeve stopped pacing. "Don't even say her name." Maeve's voice was deadly quiet. "You killed her. You don't get to claim her."
Elton nodded. "I understand your feelings. But listen to what I have to say. Then I'll go."
; Maeve stopped pacing and leaned against the wall with her arms crossed in front of her. "Fine. But make it quick."
He fidgeted on the bed and finally raised his eyes to Maeve's. "My family really did die of the plague. That much is true. And while Shalara wasn't my sister, she was my friend."
"I'd hate to be your enemy." Maeve shifted her shoulders against the wall.
"We went to school together. Both of our families died of the plague. One day they were fine. The next they were dead." Elton looked down at his hands and shook his head. "I don't know why she and I didn't get sick. I guess we just missed out on drinking the water that day."
Elton pinned his gaze on Maeve again. "We were part of that group that Arabella wanted to get rid of, the working poor. We barely scraped by. Not much to eat, and we owned little. It was a hard life, but at least we had family. And then that was gone. Shalara and I were all that was left."
Despite herself, Maeve was intrigued. "What did you do?" The words left her mouth grudgingly as she tried not to be moved by Elton's story.
"We didn't know what was causing people to die, so we took to the streets and hid. We would move from place to place, sleeping in abandoned homes. The plague was over in just a few weeks. There was just a small handful of survivors left. One morning we woke to guns pointed in our faces."
"Let me guess. Sarge."
Elton nodded. "He brought us here to Arabella. She knew that Palumbra had been patrolling the desert and it was only a matter of time before they found the force shield. She wanted to trap a patrol."
Maeve pushed herself off the wall and strolled over to the bed where she picked up the protein bar then returned to her place on the opposite wall. "But why? If she had control of Bellus, why did she need Palumbra?"
The Lost City: The Palumbra Chronicles: Book Two Page 16