by Sonya Weiss
He kept his hand still, leaving the decision up to me.
Feeling weak from his nearness and hoping I wasn’t making a mistake, I put my hand in his. His fingers threaded in between mine, and I was glad for the dark, glad he couldn’t see the raw emotion I knew showed on my face. I wanted to take this moment and put it in a bottle to save it for the darker, lonelier days that loomed ahead.
He led the way to the corner of the fence and burned through the metal with his power like he was slicing through bread. Peeling back the wire mesh, he reached for me, pulling me through the opening.
“Aren’t there Guards nearby?”
“Yes, but they’re on my side.” He gave my hand a reassuring squeeze as we darted from the base into the woods bordering it. We jogged for a few minutes until we reached the banks of a fast moving river. Without a word, he lifted me up, the motion throwing me off balance. Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around his neck as we headed for a series of jutting rocks marking a pathway across the water. He crossed them nimbly.
“I wanted you here to see this.”
“This?” I turned my head to look at him. Our faces were too close, my lips too near his. Our breathing twined together. I wanted him to kiss me, but I couldn’t go there. It would only make the end harder for both of us.
I pushed against his chest and he let go, allowing my body to slide down his until my feet touched the ground. I smoothed down my T-shirt where it had ridden up. I opened my mouth to ask him again what this was, but before I got a word out, there was rustling in the woods, and hundreds of Supernaturals spilled out, surrounding us.
I froze, wondering for a split second if I’d been set up. Sensing my fear, Riley said, “You can relax. They’re not going to hurt you. I wanted you to see how many are fighting with us. There are more than a dozen teams with hundreds of Supernaturals.”
“Why is everyone hiding in the woods?”
“No one is hiding,” he said, staring at me intently. “Look at your people, Juliet.”
I swept my gaze over the Supernaturals, trying to hide my worry at their stone-faced expressions.
“This is where you belong. This side of the war.”
I clenched my teeth. Don’t think about all I stand to lose. Don’t think about having his blood on my hands. Don’t think at all or otherwise, I can’t do this. A machete carved me up inside, making me want to fall to my knees and scream out against the future I knew was coming.
I fell back on what was still a truth but not all of it. “You know I can’t risk Maisy. Especially after the rescue failed. It’s impossible.”
“If you trusted me, you would know I’d figure out a way to protect Maisy.” His jaw clenched. “Since I received the information Mallen left behind, I’ve been searching for answers about you. Ones I can’t understand. I keep coming back to the fact that betrayal’s in your DNA. Your father betrayed mine with the rebellion. Your mother betrayed your father.”
I squeezed my hands into fists. “Your father was a cruel murderer and so is your half brother. Are you like them?”
He dismissed the idea as if it was crazy. “Of course not.”
“Exactly. We are not our families. Our histories, our DNA doesn’t matter. We choose the kind of Supernatural we are. We choose what we feel. Even though you’re from the house of my enemy, I choose to love you.”
His face paled and he gave a short, bitter laughter. “You didn’t deny that you would betray me. Not once have you denied it.”
“Riley, please…”
“I’ve been stupid to believe we could overcome years of prejudice between our families.”
I understood where he was coming from. I’d hated Riley and his family. He’d hated me and mine. The wounds created throughout history were passed down from generation to generation and rarely healed. I should never have lost sight of that. Should never have fallen in love with Riley. But I had and it was beautiful.
“Tell me the truth,” Riley demanded.
“The truth is I love you.”
He glanced away like my reassurance wasn’t enough. A muscle worked in his jaw before he focused on me again. “Emotions are humanistic in nature and therefore a weakness. I had that drilled into my head by my father from the time I was a toddler. Then I fell in love with you, and my world exploded with meaning, with warmth. Now, I can’t help but wonder if my father was right all along.”
I let the tears fall. We were caught in the in-between of a relationship not quite dead but not quite alive, and I knew in that second, I couldn’t resuscitate it.
He touched his royal crest. “You either fight with us or against.”
Everything I was trying to balance to save us all flashed in my mind’s eye. Heaviness invaded my body. I ached right down to my soul, and I didn’t think I would ever feel warm again. “Against,” I said softly, knowing I had no choice. I let myself stare at him, drinking in his handsome features.
His breath escaped in a groan. “Then you know what I have to do.”
I lowered my chin as I nodded.
He put his forehead against mine, and his hand shook slightly when he stroked his fingers across the side of my face. I couldn’t prevent the moan escaping from my lips. I tried to lock away in my mind how his touch felt. Though his touch was soft, it struck me like the blow of a hammer. One that shattered everything we used to be.
“Heavy lies the crown,” he whispered, his face drawn into a mask of pain as if those words were pulled from him. He lifted his face, his eyes as moist as my own. “Juliet… I would do anything to be someone else.”
I didn’t stop the moisture in my eyes from spilling over as tears. “Me too.”
His thumb traced my bottom lip. “The Juliet I know and love would never hurt me. Is she still in there?” His eyes sought mine. Say yes, they pleaded.
“No.” I said the lie easily, protecting him, protecting me.
He threw his head back and looked at the sky.
I love you, Riley. Please don’t hate me. It hurt to breathe.
“Damn you, Juliet. Did I ever really know you?” He ran his fingers through my hair and lowered his lips to mine. He kissed me with hunger, anger, sorrow, and broke the kiss on determination. He lowered his hands and stiffened his shoulders. His face bore the expression of a king, not a boy. His voice strong and imperious, it carried across the crowd. “Do you choose to fight against your people and your king? Do you choose the humans over the Supernaturals? Do you betray me?”
Chills ran up my arms. My throat clogged. Was this the same choice my father had to make? Had his soul rent in two as mine was? Had he been caught between love and destiny?
“Yes.” I could barely choke the word out.
Riley’s face paled and I saw the tiniest tremble in his lips. His voice loud and strong, he said, “I declare Juliet Sawyer a traitor to the kingdom and strip her of the protection and privileges afforded to a Supernatural.”
I backed away carefully, the pressure in my chest so intense I thought a heart attack was imminent. Please don’t let him say the words.
Tears filled his eyes, and he blinked them back. “I order her to be executed for treason.”
With a sob, I spun around, running to the river’s edge and race-hopped across the rocks to the other side. I glanced back at Riley. He stood where I’d left him with his head bowed before he dropped to his knees.
Once I reached the other side, I thought I heard my name carried on the wind, but I didn’t have time to stop and listen. Footsteps were rushing toward me. The Supernaturals were coming for me.
RILEY
I ordered the execution of the girl I love.
Chapter 21
JULIET
I trekked back to the base and squeezed through the fence, looking over my shoulder the entire time. Riley’s edict placed a bulls-eye on me. It didn’t matter that he wasn’t officially crowned as the king. He was a royal and his orders carried weight. Every Supernatural looking to suck up to the crown would be gunning f
or me. It wouldn’t take long for the order to reach the base and then the Supernaturals here would also want me dead.
I let out a curse and quickly jogged to the back of the barracks, waiting a second before I went to the window.
Nixie was waiting. She pushed it open and helped me in. “You were gone so long I thought something happened.”
“Riley happened.” I turned to close the window behind me. “We went to the woods. There where hundreds of Supernaturals there. I think they’re going to attack the base.”
Nixie made a face. “Risky.”
“I know.” I walked to my locker and removed the royal dagger. Using shoestrings I swiped from another Supernatural girl’s shoes, I tied it securely to my thigh. From now on, I would keep it with me wherever I went.
Her eyes widened. “What are you doing?”
“Saving my sister when they come for the president.”
She pushed her hair back. “Okay. Let’s think. What if we try and get Maisy out of the White House?”
“After the last escape attempt, the agents are probably prepared for another attempt.”
“What happened tonight, Juliet?”
“Riley declared me a traitor and ordered my execution.” Saying the words out loud made them more real. I mentally replayed the last moments I’d spent with Riley, trying to find anything to cling to that would erase the hollowness in my chest.
Nixie sucked in a breath, then got up to wrap her arms around me in a tight hug.
“I can’t imagine what it’s like to be you, but I know you wouldn’t have been chosen if you weren’t strong enough to handle this burden.”
“I’m afraid, Nixie. I’m scared I won’t be brave enough or strong enough to do what has to be done.”
“God, Juliet. You don’t see yourself for who you truly are. I remember the day the edict was handed down against the mixed-bloods. I was terrified. They were killing the parents who tried to save their children.” She swallowed.
“That day was horrible. I still have nightmares where I hear the children scream and I can’t save them all,” I admitted.
“But you did what you could. The other Supernaturals were frozen with fear or shock. I looked over and there you were charging right into the thick of the chaos. You risked your own life because you’re brave, because you’re strong, and because you have such a huge capacity to love others. I watched helplessly when the Guards beat you. I wanted to find you afterward and heal you, but my mother was terrified the leaders would find out what I am.” She lowered her head and sniffed. “If I was at home right now, I would binge on ice cream.”
I laughed at that and Nixie did too. She held out her hand. “Come on. I know there’s ice cream in the freezer at the dining barracks.”
Before we left, she went to her locker and removed a jacket for herself. “Where’d you get your coat?”
I stroked my hand down the front of it, forgetting I had it. “It’s Riley’s.”
“I saw something while you were gone. Adler had a box of the pellets, and he slipped off the base through the corner fence behind the barracks.”
“They’re probably for me.”
“We need to find out,” Nixie said. “I think he went over to the hospital.”
“Then we’ll stop there before the ice cream,” I said.
We went outside into the biting night air, and I was thankful to have Riley’s coat. I couldn’t help that my attention was drawn toward the fence where I’d left with him. The fence didn’t look like it had been torn open at all. Like we’d never passed that way. Sort of like our relationship.
“I’ve heard Adler sometimes hangs out in the testing unit in the hospital where we were all poked and prodded after we arrived on base.”
I shuddered. Since I was unconscious after my surgery, I had no idea what the humans had or hadn’t done to me.
Nixie was silent for a minute as we walked toward the hospital, then she said, “Tomorrow is when we have both weapons training and psychological testing. I’ve heard that’s a tough one because they try to mess with your head.”
“Not compared to going through the Terrors of the Void.”
Her interest perked up. “You went through the Terrors? What was it like?”
“It lives up to its name.”
Even though it was the middle of the night, there were men patrolling the hallways, and we had to hide several times after we sneaked into the hospital to avoid being seen. Creeping forward, then hiding took us longer than I would have liked to get to the testing unit. Nixie peered into the small square window on the door, then ducked back down. “Adler’s in there, but he’s talking to Agent Davis.”
I crawled forward and inched to the door, trying not to make any noise.
“You’re sure he’s the one who’s going to try and take the president?” the agent demanded.
“I heard him say it,” Adler replied.
I dropped down. Adler was double-crossing Riley? “We have to get out of here. Now.” We crawled backward, then ducked into a supply closet when we heard someone coming. I nearly put my foot into a mop bucket filled with dirty water. We crouched onto the floor, barely daring to breathe.
“What did you hear?”
“Adler is the informant for the humans.”
“Then why’d he kill Halo?” Nixie asked.
“Probably to throw us off. Ide did the same thing before the war started. He killed a Supernatural and made me think she was fighting against us.”
The door jerked open and Nixie gasped. Stone stepped into the small space with us and turned off the light. “You shouldn’t be creeping around,” he scolded.
“How’d you get here?” I asked.
“Never mind about that.” He gripped my shoulders. “You can’t interfere with Riley’s plan to take the president to Ide.”
“I have to.”
His lips tightened. “I’m asking you. Please, don’t.”
I pushed his hands away, irritated with him. After years of close friendship, how could he not realize something serious was going on in my life? “Adler is working with Agent Davis.”
“I know that already,” Stone said. “We need you on our side, Juliet.”
“I’m sorry.” I shuffled by him to peek out the door.
Stone sighed, a defeated sound. “The men patrol every fifteen minutes. That gives you ten to get out of here. Take the hallway to the cafeteria and leave through the docks.” His hand found mine in the darkness, and he slipped a piece of paper into my hand.
I tucked it into the pocket of the jacket. He’d chosen to side with Riley, and I was upset with him about that, but it didn’t mean I didn’t love my friend. I squeezed his hand. “Be careful.”
“Ah, honey, you take the fun out of everything.” He gave a quiet laugh. “Get ready. I’ll stay here for a few minutes to make sure you two make it.” He opened the door a crack. “Go.”
Nixie and I darted out, then dove into a room when a nurse came down the hall. Thankfully, she was busy reading a chart and hadn’t noticed us. We waited until the coast was clear, then made our way to the cafeteria. The back doors were closed with a padlock. I grabbed one of them and held it in my closed hand, allowing my power to lightly surge and melt the lock. Jerking hard, I tugged the lock off and tossed it into the trashcan, making sure it was covered by food so the humans wouldn’t notice it.
Nixie hurried into the freezer and came back with a half gallon container of chocolate ice cream. She grabbed two spoons, and we stepped out onto the dock.
Back at the barracks, one of the other Supernatural girls was awake, sitting on her bunk, crying quietly. She jerked when we came inside, then relaxed. In her hands, she had a picture of a laughing family with her in the middle of them. She tucked the photo beneath her pillow. No one had to ask. We all understood missing our families and the accompanying loss and heartache.
“We have ice cream,” I said softly.
Her eyes lit up, and she came to the middle of th
e floor and joined us. We took turns sliding the container around.
“We need music,” Nixie announced. She dug out the radio, found a station playing soft rock music, and settled back down.
“Tomorrow’s the last day of training,” the Supernatural girl said. “Then we fight. We could all be dead at this time two days from now.”
“What’s your name?” I asked.
“Kalani.”
“Well, Kalani, it’s true. We could all be dead in two days. But tonight, we have music and ice cream.”
Nixie nodded. “The cup is half full as the humans like to say.”
I took out the paper Stone had given me. There was a phone number on it with the words “call now” scribbled below it. I jumped up and dug out the phone and dialed. A woman’s voice answered.
“Hello, Juliet,” she said quietly.
“Why am I calling?” I asked, unable to keep suspicion from coating my voice.
“One moment.”
Then like a sweet dagger to the heart, Maisy’s voice came across the line. “Juliet!” She sounded sleepy but good.
I squeezed the phone tight. “Hey, sweetness. How are you?” I could have danced with giddiness.
“I watched two movies and we had pizza.”
“Yeah? Are you alone?”
“No. Annora and Maxfield and Tobiah are here. Oh, and the human leader.”
“You mean the president?” My power stirred and I fought to tamp down anger. Breathing deeply, I exhaled slowly.
“She gave me the phone. Are you coming to get us?” she asked, her voice instantly alert and doubling in excitement.
“Soon, honey. I love you.”
“I love you too. The human leader wants to talk to you.” I heard the phone being passed.
“Your service to the White House is appreciated,” the president said.
I hated the slight tinge of mockery in her voice. My muscles ached from the tension of keeping the phone to my ear instead of pitching it across the barracks. “You gave the okay for the use of children as a pawn to save your own skin. Who does that kind of evil?”