by M. K. Krys
“Then let’s go.” Everleigh turned to her dad. “Follow us. As quickly and as quietly as you can.”
They set off. The twins’ dad hobbled along after them, his bare feet slapping the tile. Beacon tried not to look at him. Tried not to think about the disturbingly blank stare on his face as he followed Everleigh’s commands like a puppy. That was a problem for after they saved the planet.
A crackle came over the PA system. Victor’s voice echoed through the halls. “Initiate the sequence.”
An alarm began blaring. Overhead, a red light flashed across the white walls.
“Um, what’s ‘the sequence’?” Beacon said.
“I don’t think we want to know,” Everleigh said. “Where is that room?”
“Left here,” Arthur said.
They started to bank left, but Everleigh skidded back, holding out her arm to stop the group from advancing.
Beacon peeked around the corner.
Perry and Sumiko stood importantly in front of a set of large wooden double doors at the end of the hall. Their gold and blue varsity jackets shone under the harsh fluorescent lights.
“Gold Stars,” Beacon whispered. “I can see a baton on Perry’s belt. Sumiko probably has one, too. What’s the plan?”
“Blitzkrieg.” Everleigh pushed away from the wall.
“Wait!” Beacon said, but she strolled out around the corner, her hazmat suit crunching as she walked. Beacon ground his teeth and followed his sister.
Perry stood up straight as Everleigh approached.
“Where have you been?” Everleigh demanded. “Victor’s been trying to reach you for the last twenty minutes. Haven’t you heard the announcement?”
“What?” Sumiko said. “Of course I heard, but—wait, what’s that in your hand?”
Everleigh paused for a moment. She’d clearly forgotten she was still holding the vial of blue liquid.
“One of the samples, of course,” she said, recovering.
“Why is it out of the lab?” Sumiko said. “Is that why the alarms are going off?”
“You would know the answers to all of this if you had just answered Victor’s calls,” Beacon said.
“Did he radio? I didn’t hear anything.” Perry reached for his radio, just as Everleigh grabbed the baton from his belt. Before he could react, she jammed the baton into his abdomen and depressed the trigger. Perry’s mouth opened, as if to say something, before he dropped like a sack of potatoes. Sumiko had her baton out, but she wasn’t fast enough. Everleigh jabbed her in the shoulder before she could even raise the weapon. Sumiko joined Perry on the ground.
Everleigh stepped over her body and turned the door handle. But it was locked.
“Maybe one of them has keys?” Arthur said.
Everleigh handed the vial to Arthur.
“What? I don’t want this!” he shrieked.
“Relax, it’s just deadly acid rain.” Everleigh patted down Sumiko’s pockets and pulled out a key ring. “Bingo!”
“Hurry!” Arthur held the vial as if it might leap out of his hands if he didn’t grip it tightly enough.
Everleigh tried three keys before the lock snicked.
She scooped up Sumiko’s baton and tossed it to Beacon. He couldn’t help looking at his dad then, waiting for him to tell him that he was too young to be handling a weapon and that he would only end up hurting himself. But of course, his dad didn’t say any of those things.
Everleigh gripped her own baton as she cracked the door open and peered inside. Beacon looked over her shoulder. There was a huge four-poster bed in the middle of the room, covered in silky sheets and too many pillows to count. Elegant furniture that looked like it might break if you actually used it was dotted around the room, and the floor was covered with a thick, intricately woven rug. Candles flickered in sconces on the damask-covered walls.
“What is this place?” Everleigh said.
Beacon looked around, and the realization dawned on him. “It’s the queen’s bedroom.”
“Wow, so embarrassing to only have one crystal chandelier in your bedroom,” Everleigh said sarcastically.
Thundering footsteps suddenly echoed down the corridor behind them.
“Someone’s coming!” Arthur said.
“Help me get them in here or they’ll know something’s up.” Everleigh grabbed Perry under his armpits, as Beacon grabbed his feet. They hauled him through the doors, then went back for Sumiko. Meanwhile, their dad just stood there waiting for orders.
“Get in,” Everleigh commanded her dad. He shuffled inside, then they closed the door behind him and locked it.
Beacon pressed a finger to his lips. They went still, listening as the footsteps on the other side of the door grew louder, then retreated. When a minute passed and no other sounds could be heard, Arthur blew out a huge breath.
“That was close. Who do you think that was out there? Do you think the Sov are awake yet?”
Beacon shuddered. “I hope not.”
“Ditch your suits,” Everleigh said, tossing her respirator onto a divan. “They’ll be looking for people dressed as scientists.”
Arthur carefully laid down the vial on a nearby desk. Beacon ditched his baton. Then he and Arthur threw off their backpacks and respirators and unzipped their hazmat suits.
“What are you doing here?”
Beacon froze, the nuclear suit pooled around his ankles.
A girl stepped out of a bathroom and into the room.
She was paler than in the picture, sickly looking, as if she belonged in a prison and not in this lush room. But Beacon instantly recognized the girl from Galen’s wallet. Daisy.
“I said what are you doing here?” Daisy said, casting a suspicious gaze at the twins’ motionless dad. “And what have you done to my guards?”
Her guards.
Beacon’s eyes landed on the necklace at the girl’s throat. The oval emerald was big enough to break a window, and it didn’t look fake.
The truth slammed into Beacon like a freight train.
This was why Galen had been afraid of Daisy before they became friends.
Why she couldn’t leave the ship when he’d run away.
Why Galen could make sure the queen was off the ship during Operation Moonlight Serenade.
Daisy was the Sovereign queen.
16
“I said what have you done with my guards?”
Even though she was as thin as a fence post, the girl had an imperial tone to her voice that made Beacon’s back go ramrod straight. She had the air of a person who was used to giving commands and having them obeyed without question.
Everleigh kicked her suit off her leg and gripped her weapon.
“We’re the people with the batons,” she said. “And we’re looking for the Rainmaker. Where is it?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Daisy said.
“Don’t play stupid with us. It’s obvious you’re the Sov queen. Why else would they put you up in a room like this? We need to know where the Rainmaker is.”
Daisy lifted her chin. “I don’t know.”
Everleigh switched on the baton. The wand glowed blue, and electricity popped and fizzed from its tip.
Daisy stepped back, fear widening her eyes.
“I don’t know anything about their plans. No one tells me anything, I swear! I was only brought here a few days ago. I don’t even know what this place is.”
Beacon remembered the security feed Galen had been watching from the aquarium. It’d been inside the underwater ship. She wasn’t lying—at least not about just coming to this base. Was it possible she hadn’t known the real reason they came to Earth, either, like Galen?
Beacon grabbed Everleigh’s arm and lowered his voice. “This is Daisy. Galen’s friend—the girl from his wallet.”
/> Everleigh gave the girl a suspicious look.
“Galen?” Daisy said, perking up. “Is—is he here? Or is this just another trick?” Her eyes went almost as dark as her tone.
“Trick?” Beacon said.
“Like that message I got to go meet him at our spot in the forest, only no one was there. I got in so much trouble for that when Victor couldn’t find me anywhere.”
“What are you talking about?” Everleigh said, but the pieces clicked together in Beacon’s head.
“The boat. That’s how Galen made sure the queen was MIA when we lured the Sov out onto the water.”
“Galen really is here, then?” Daisy said.
Arthur opened his mouth to speak, but Everleigh elbowed him in the stomach.
“Don’t tell her anything. She’s our enemy,” Everleigh said.
“Galen said we can trust her,” Beacon said. “He’s sacrificed a lot to help us.”
“Well, Galen left out a bit of key information,” Everleigh shot back. “Like the fact that his best friend is the queen of his entire alien race.”
“She’s telling the truth,” Beacon said.
“How do we know?” Everleigh retorted. “Of course she’d lie. She doesn’t want us to ruin her precious world genocide plans.”
“I have nothing to do with their plans,” Daisy said.
“I guess we’ll find out about that.” Everleigh glared at her.
“Everleigh,” Beacon chastised.
Everleigh glowered at her brother. Then she blew out an annoyed breath, switched off the baton, and turned haughtily to the queen.
“How do we get out of here? Arthur, give her the map.”
Arthur started to dig in his pocket, but Daisy help up a hand.
She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose for the briefest moment before she said, “Behind the wall hanging.” She gestured to a large tapestry on a far wall.
“Arthur?” Everleigh said.
Arthur walked over and pulled back the tapestry, revealing a door.
“What is it?” Everleigh said.
“A door,” Daisy replied. “I’m sorry, I thought you were familiar with them.”
“You know what I mean,” Everleigh spat.
Daisy crossed her arms. “It’s an escape tunnel. They must have put it in for my safety in case of emergency. They tried to hide it from me with that tapestry, but I found it when I was putting my things away.”
“Great. Get your coat,” Everleigh said. “You’re coming with us.”
“What?!” Daisy cried, her arms falling to her sides again.
“You didn’t really think we’d let you go, did you?” Everleigh said. “We have miles to cover if we’re going to get out of here without getting caught. If we have the queen, no one can hurt us.”
Daisy’s eyes narrowed dangerously at Everleigh.
“You have no idea who you’re dealing with,” she said darkly. “No idea what I’m capable of.”
“Yes, yes, you can turn into a squid, we’re all very impressed,” Everleigh deadpanned, rolling her eyes. “Now get your coat, or you’re going to get very cold.” She pointed the baton at her.
Daisy stomped over to a wardrobe and grabbed a jacket. It was several sizes too big, and Beacon immediately thought of the photo of her Galen carried in his wallet. She’d been healthy in the picture, happy. What had happened to her since then?
“And take that thing off.” Everleigh nodded at her necklace.
Daisy’s hand went up to her throat, fingering the emerald hanging on the delicate gold chain.
“No,” she said defiantly.
“Just let her keep the necklace,” Beacon said.
“It could have a tracking device or something,” Arthur said. “I agree, she should take it off.”
“I can’t take it off,” Daisy said.
“We’ll see about that.” Before Daisy could react, Everleigh reached out and yanked on the chain. The necklace should have snapped, but Daisy jerked forward.
Everleigh tried again. She wrenched on the chain as hard as she could.
“Ow!” Daisy cried, grabbing her neck. “Stop that!”
“Why didn’t it break?” Everleigh demanded.
“I told you, I can’t take it off! It’s a part of me.”
“Arthur, do you have any tools on you? Pliers, or something like that?” Everleigh said.
“That isn’t going to work,” Daisy said. “The necklace is a part of me.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” Everleigh said.
There was a knock on the door.
Beacon’s eyes widened with alarm.
“Daisy, are you okay?” Victor said.
Everleigh held the baton held up to Daisy’s neck.
“Tell him you’re fine,” she ordered.
Daisy lifted her chin, her eyes flashing with challenge as she watched the door.
“Daisy? It’s Victor,” the man said. “Your guards aren’t here. I wanted to check that you’re okay.”
“Tell him you’re fine,” Everleigh said.
Daisy ground her jaw, her nostrils flaring as she looked at Everleigh’s weapon.
“Daisy, if you don’t answer, I’m coming in!” Victor called.
Daisy cleared her throat. “It’s fine,” she said weakly. “I’m fine. I was just . . . resting.”
“Are you sure?” Victor said. “There’s been a containment breach. Nothing for you to worry about, of course, and we’re getting it all under control. But we wanted to make sure you’re okay.”
“I’m perfectly fine,” Daisy replied.
“Okay, great. I’ll have extra security posted at your door. Just stay put.”
“Thank you,” Daisy said.
“Good,” Everleigh whispered. “Now let’s go.” She pushed the baton into Daisy’s back. “Lead the way, your highness.”
Daisy stalked over to the far wall. She flung aside the tapestry and opened the door to the secret passage. Beacon saw a dirt floor and naked rock walls before the narrow tunnel fell away into shadow. She hesitated.
“Go!” Everleigh demanded.
The girl took one step through the doorway.
“Help me!” she screamed at the top of her lungs.
Victor banged on the door. Through the thick wood, they could hear shouts about master keys.
Beacon closed his eyes for one brief, frustrated second.
“You idiot,” Everleigh cried. “Come on, let’s go! Everyone move it!”
Beacon grabbed his dad’s arm and pulled him through the doorway into the passage. He realized he’d left Sumiko’s baton on the floor, but it was too late to go back for it. Arthur ducked in after them. Then Everleigh shoved Daisy through and slid inside, pulling the tapestry back down as she did. The door to the secret entrance had just clicked shut when the doors to Daisy’s room burst open.
Everleigh clamped a hand over Daisy’s mouth, then jammed the baton into her side.
“Scream like that again, and I’ll drop you with this,” Everleigh whispered.
Daisy cut her a vicious look, but she did as she was told.
They ran, their boots pounding on the dirt. But it didn’t seem to matter how urgently Everleigh commanded their dad. He was weak and tired, and he lagged behind.
“Hurry!” Beacon whispered urgently.
They needed to be faster. It would only be a matter of time before Victor figured out that they’d used the emergency escape.
They pushed forward through the cold, dark passage. Despite the chilling temperature, sweat rolled down Beacon’s skin in thick, salty beads. His throat was raw, and he’d kill for a moment to lean up against the wall and catch his breath. But distance was all that mattered right now.
He heard a gasp behind him and turned to
see Daisy on the ground and Everleigh shoving her with the baton.
“What’s going on?” Beacon asked, falling back.
“She’s playing possum,” Everleigh said.
“No I’m not,” Daisy spat. “I’m tired.”
“Are you okay?” he asked, bending to help her up. Beacon had been so worried that his dad wouldn’t be able to handle the run, but he hadn’t even thought about the girl. She might have been the queen, but she was as frail as some of the prisoners he’d seen back in the lab. “Here, take my arm.”
But she elbowed his hand away and pushed herself up, wiping dirt indignantly from her nightgown.
Daisy settled to hobbling along beside them. It was obvious she was in pain, but she followed their grueling pace without complaint.
Soon, they’d reached the end of the tunnel. A narrow ladder on the wall fed up to a large hatch in the ceiling.
Everleigh took in a sudden sharp breath. “What was that?” she said.
“What was what?” Beacon asked.
“Shhh!” Everleigh held up a finger to her lips.
They listened. Faint footsteps could be heard in the tunnel behind them.
“They’re coming,” Everleigh said. “Hurry, Beaks! I’ll cover you.” She pointed the baton at Daisy.
Daisy sighed and crossed her arms.
Beacon climbed up the ladder and grabbed the rusted metal lever. Dirt rained down from the ceiling as he pushed up on the door. It groaned open, and cool air filtered in through the small gap. Beacon pushed the door a few inches wider and peered outside.
They were in the woods. Thick, old trees were packed so tightly together that the moonlight barely penetrated through to the forest floor.
No guards. No Sov.
“The coast is clear.” Beacon shoved open the hatch all the way.
He climbed out and turned to the side, dusting off his hands.
And stared straight down the barrel of a gun.
17
Beacon stumbled back, his hands up.
“Don’t shoot!” he cried.
“Beacon?” a familiar voice said.
The gun moved an inch to the side. Beacon’s vision focused, and he saw a puff of white hair, a deeply lined face, and pale blue eyes—only now, they weren’t glassy or unfocused. They were alert, clear, and calculating.