I shudder as some of the pre-mortas kids run onto the arena and lift the limp, bleeding body from the ground. The next fight starts and I don’t even pay attention to who is called out of the tunnels. I just sit on my hands and wait. Time stands still as another girl falls into the dirt, her moment in the Colosseum brief albeit more respectable than the first match. I’m blind to anything that’s happening below. I’m also blind to the developments around me, and it’s only when Ryka pulls me closer to his body that I realize someone is trying to sit beside me. An old man with wispy white hair and deeply worn laughter lines. There is a round, fat stain on his shirt, which pulls tightly across his huge belly. He smiles at me and sits his considerable weight down before I have time to move, and I almost end up in Ryka’s lap.
“The prodigal daughter returns,” the old man says brightly. I stare at him, leaning away. Not because he’s so close, although that is rather annoying; my complete horror is closely tied in with the fact that this man is grinning at me like a simpleton. He’s a True. And he’s recognized me. My hands clamp around Ryka’s leg and I get ready to bolt. That’s the only option. That’s the only way―
“Calm down, girl,” he says, slouching back into the stone cut step we use as a seat. “I sit up here all the time. The guards are used to it.”
I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. Ryka thankfully has his faculties about him. “You’re Opa?” he asks.
The old man nods. “I am Opa.”
Ryka affords himself a little smirk. “So that’s why they haven’t found you.”
Ingenious. The reason they haven’t discovered him is because he’s not one of the drugged masses. He’s part of the system that drugs them in the first place. I’m immediately suspicious.
“Why did you want to meet us?” And why did Cai never mention the fact that Opa was a True in his recordings? It doesn’t add up.
“You know full well why I wanted to meet with you. You’re the only way out of this gods-forsaken city for my friends.” He tosses a handful of red tickertape down onto the crowd below us like most Trues do, laughing in the most obscene way. He waves at one of the guards, who frowns at the old man and realigns his body so there’s very little chance he’ll make eye contact with Opa again. Clever old bastard.
I shake my head, knowing that James is probably hopping mad right now. Mad he’s not the one meeting with Opa. “Why are you supporting the Radicals?” I demand.
“Come, now. That’s a horrible name.”
“Whatever,” I huff. “Get to it. Answer the question.”
Opa tilts his head, looking at me. Studying me. He pats his belly and shifts so he’s watching the fight. “You’re nothing like he thought you would be, you know. He was convinced you’d be this scared little girl who needed protecting. That’s clearly not the case. Still all hard edges, aren’t you?”
My stomach churns. “We don’t have time to talk about Cai. We’re kind of in a precarious position if you hadn’t noticed.”
“Where are the others?” Ryka adds.
“The others are safe. They’re prepared to leave with you tonight. As soon as the finale match is called, you all need to go. I’ll meet you outside the front of your old house,” he tells me.
I frown, shaking my head. “We can’t. We can’t leave before the end. They’ll notice. Plus I have to make sure my brother’s okay.”
Opa’s bushy eyebrows press together to form one scruffy white line. “If we don’t move before then, the streets will be teeming with people. I’m an old man, I can’t navigate through large crowds quickly. We’ll miss our window of opportunity.”
“We can come back for him once we’ve gotten everyone past the refinery,” Ryka says, squeezing my hand.
“No!” My ears feel really hot and my eyes are pricking. I bite down the urge to curse. “James will never let us. It has to be now.” I shut down and don’t look at either of them, mainly because I know they’re talking sense and I should just agree to leave, but I can’t. He’s my brother. Ryka shifts in his seat next to me.
“I swear to you we’ll come back for him.”
“Would you leave Olivia?” I whisper. That shuts him up. I glare at the back of the Therin’s head in front of me, trying to figure out this problem. There has to be a way. The third match is drawing out and Opa is getting twitchy. “Look, I’m about to stage a way out for you. This is kind of a now or never thing.”
I refuse to acknowledge that I’ve heard him, because doing so is like admitting defeat. I’ll go along with whatever he does, but I’ll be damned if I don’t somehow make the situation work to my advantage. Opa takes my silence as a sign and then does something really unexpected. He lists sideways out of his seat and collapses onto the stairs, clutching at his chest. He groans, nice and loud for effect.
“What the hell is he doing?” Ryka squeaks. His voice is so high pitched that I break out into a terrified sweat. The guards that Opa has so conveniently irritated into ignoring us just before are not only paying us attention now, but they’re coming straight towards us. And quick.
“Crap!” I grit out.
“My chest!” Opa howls. People on the seats around us are on their feet in seconds, rushing to his side. It’s their main purpose in life, after all, to jump whenever a True needs them. Chaos ensues as guards and Therin alike all rush to try and help. Ryka pulls me back through the crowd as an announcement goes up over the loud speakers that the technicians are required in the stands.
“Time to go,” he says.
We slip away, fighting a current for the second time in as many days, only this time it’s bodies, not water we struggle against. When we reach one of the tiered exits, stairs disappearing into the dark, no one notices us. Ryka grabs onto my wrist and drags me down after him, not looking back once. I do, though. The sound of footsteps hammering after us makes me stumble as I turn to see who is following us. It’s James. The tight expression on his face tells me immediately that he’s pissed off. Seriously pissed off.
“What the hell happened?” he roars.
“Distraction,” I manage, tripping behind Ryka as he hurries on regardless. At the bottom of the stairs I realise we’ve come out into the tunnels underneath the Colosseum, the ones where I used to warm up before the matches. Ryka falters a second before I point off to the left.
“That way. There’s an exit,” I say breathlessly. Callum, Max and Raff sweep around James as Ryka tugs me away, but James pauses for a beat, staring at me with a dark look in his eyes, like I somehow engineered all of this madness. My mouth falls open but I don’t get a chance to say anything.
“Come on!” Ryka hisses, yanking on my arm. “We’ve got to get out of here.”
We run until it feels like my arm is going to come out of my shoulder socket, and it’s only when a Falin steps out into a corridor that Ryka slows his pace. He shoves the Falin out of the way so hard he falls onto his ass as we charge by, but the fighter remains silent. Or close enough. His halo clicks like crazy. Our eyes meet briefly and I recognise him; it’s the Belcoras with the mis-matched eyes that I threatened with my knife after Cai died. He looks surprised when he sees me, but he doesn’t move an inch. Then we’re gone.
“What the hell is that stupid old man thinking?” James snarls once I have directed our group out into the night air. A fanfare kicks up and my whole body locks, knowing what it means. My brother’s fight will be next. I dig my heels in so that Ryka has to stop pulling me along. He doesn’t even know where he’s going anyway.
“Stop!”
The five of them do so, and I wrestle my arm out of Ryka’s grip. “I’m not leaving without my brother.”
“Kit, I told you, we’ll come back once we’ve got everyone―”
I shake my head at Ryka, ignoring the pleading look in the pooled darkness of his brown eyes. “And I told you, I’m not leaving him.”
“Your brother has survived every fight he’s been in thus far, Kit. He’s going to survive this one. You think he’s go
ing to come quietly?” James snaps.
“No.” I know he won’t. “That doesn’t mean we can’t make him come.”
“We barely made it out of there after that incredibly stupid manoeuvre, girl. If we live past tonight then we can talk about sending someone back another time for your family.”
I start shaking my head before he’s even finished talking. My eyes are unwavering when I lock onto James.
“No.”
He rakes his hands back through his hair and scowls at Ryka, dismissing me. “What’s the old man’s plan?”
“We’re meeting him and the others by the river near where Kit used to live. They’re going to be waiting for us.”
They talk for a moment while I stare back up at the Colosseum. The bright red banners list on the breeze and a jolt of panic rushes through me. Am I being selfish wanting my brother to come with us? Is it just because I feel so alone out there? Undoubtedly. But it’s also not fair leaving him here, killing indiscriminately because he’s told to. I clench my fist, feeling pain. I look down and see red; there’s blood across my knuckles. I must have scraped my hand when I was running. I’ve already lost so much blood to this Colosseum, too much of it has seeped into the dirt floor and the sandstone walls. I’m furious that it’s cost me this ridiculously small amount now. There’s no way I want it to claim any more of my brother’s.
I’d like to say none of them notice me when I slink quietly away from the huddled group of men, but that would be a lie. Every single one of them does. James pulls himself up straight and comes for me.
“Don’t make me carry you kicking and screaming, Kit.”
“That’s exactly what you’re going to have to do,” I tell him.
“You’re going to get yourself killed. You’re going to get all of us killed, too, as well as all the people relying on us to get them out of here tonight. Do you want that?”
His words do make me pause, but not for long. “I know where he will be. I know exactly how to get there. I’m not asking any of you to come with me. I’ll go alone. It’ll be easier that way. Just go and get the others out. I’ll meet you at the refinery.”
James glares at me, exasperation clear in his eyes. Max speaks up first. “Just let her go. She’s capable enough.”
I shoot him a thankful glance. James looks at Max like he’s mad, that is until Callum and Raff agree. “She’ll be fine,” Callum says, nodding at me.
James turns on Ryka. “And I suppose you think this is a great idea, too?”
“No, I think it’s a terrible idea,” he says. My jaw drops, but Ryka’s hand reaches out for mine. “I’m going with her, though. She’s right. I would never leave Olivia behind.”
Relief. That’s what I experience, even though I know he’s putting himself in danger for me. I take his hand and press myself against his side.
“Fine. Go, then,” James says. “But I’m telling you now, if you get yourselves killed, I won’t be held responsible.”
“No, not this time,” Ryka says quietly. I hear it, though, and James does, too. A sharp, jagged smile spreads across his face.
“We’ll see you at the refinery.” He turns and melts into the night, swiftly followed by Max and Raff. I catch hold of Callum’s hand as he goes to leave.
“Make sure you get Penny and her family, too.”
He nods. “Of course.”
REUNION
Back in the Colosseum, the thunder of footfall pounds on the arena steps. Everyone is returning to their seats following Opa’s production. The fanfare is blaring out loud again, and it can only be ten minutes before my brother is called out onto the match floor. We’re almost too late.
“Hurry,” I whisper to Ryka, running through the empty passageways. I still can’t believe he wanted to stay with me. My heart hurts a little as I consider how much trouble I’m probably getting him into. Actually, it hurts a whole lot. I pause outside the waiting room reserved for the Kitsch family’s fighters, panicking.
“My brother’s on the other side of this door. He’s not going to want to hear what I say. He’s going to want to get the guards as soon as I step foot in there. I might have to fight him, so there’s a strong chance I’m going to get caught. You should probably go.”
Ryka frowns a little and smiles at me. “I’m not going anywhere. It’s taking you far too long to realise how I feel about you, Kit. I’m not leaving you. I’m never leaving you. If you go, I go.”
I shiver at what he says, grateful but at the same time completely blown away. I’m no good with words. I have no idea how to tell him what he means to me, that he’s the only reason I’m not a gibbering wreck under the weight of all my guilt. I trace my fingertips lightly across his cheekbone and he dips his head, leaning into my palm. That’s enough to make my heart start hammering all over again. He tilts his head and carefully kisses the inside of my wrist. “It’s time to do this,” he says.
And it really is.
The door handle feels freezing cold in my hand after the searing heat of Ryka’s skin. I blow out a shaky breath before turning it and pushing myself forward, not allowing myself time to react. The scene on the other side of the door takes a second to sink in. The sight of my brother, fidgeting with his wrist straps, bouncing on the balls of his feet, isn’t what surprises me. That’s normal. It isn’t even Lowrence, leaning against the wall across the room, or the two guards he has flanking him. It’s Miranda. It’s the look on her face when she sees me. A horrified, pained expression, like she’s being torn apart from the inside out. It’s the most emotion I’ve ever seen her wear, and it’s toxic.
“How?” she sighs softly, like all the air is escaping her body. A choked gasp follows. My brother, my father, the guards, everyone turns to look at Ryka and me standing in the doorway, and for a moment no one does anything.
It’s then that I hear Ryka exhale. “I don’t…I don’t understand,” he whispers. I catch sight of him and feel the bottom falling out of my world. His facial expression matches that of Miranda’s.
“What is it?” I murmur. I don’t really need to, though. Dread is cycling through me, gaining momentum, and I can predict the implosion that’s about to take place. It’s already started.
“You―” Ryka whispers.
Miranda tries to get to her feet, and it’s then that I notice Lexa sitting in her lap, her little arms wrapped around the blonde woman’s neck. Miranda unravels her daughter and places her absently on the floor beside her. She doesn’t move beyond that.
“What are you doing here?” she says.
A confused look passes around the room. Lowrence’s eyes land on me and I steel myself, planning how I’m going to take him down if he even so much as thinks about stepping towards me. My brother and the guards seem to be waiting for someone to tell them what to do.
“I came for her,” he says. Ryka’s words ground out a hollow in my stomach. He takes a step but it’s not forward, it’s sideways, closer to me. His hand snakes around my waist and he grabs hold of my hip protectively. I take my eyes off my wary brother for a moment to look up at Ryka; his eyes are filled with hurt. “Jack said he thought you’d come here. He said you didn’t want to feel anymore.”
Miranda’s head drops and her hair falls into her face. My father finally pushes off the wall and folds his arms across his chest. “Someone had better explain what’s going on. You know this boy?” he directs at Miranda. When she raises her head, there are bright tears shining on her eyelashes. She doesn’t respond to Lowrence. She takes a step towards Ryka.
“He was right. That’s why I wanted to come here. I didn’t want to feel anything.”
Ryka’s body goes stiff. “You’re a liar,” he snarls. “You’re not wearing a halo. You probably never did. You just left us and—”
She shakes her head quickly, holding out her hands. “That’s not true. I came here, I…I wanted more than anything to numb all the pain, but when I went to see the technicians I couldn’t do it. I knew if they took everything I fe
lt away then I wouldn’t remember how much I loved you and your sister. I wouldn’t remember how much I missed you.”
Ryka’s hand tightens on my hip so much so that my skin begins to throb. Not as much as my heart, though. None of this can be true. She can’t be….
“You were our mother. You weren’t supposed to leave us in the first place. You wouldn’t have had to miss us at all if you hadn’t left!” Ryka shouts.
So it’s true. I feel bile rising at the back of my throat. It all makes total sense. Ryka must have always suspected his mother came here. He’d thought she’d done it to escape her pain. That’s why he hates Lockdown, why he hated the thought of me putting my halo back on. It was all because of her. She turned up when I was six years old, for crying out loud. It all fits so neatly that I have to swallow down the urge to scream.
Ryka grabs hold of my hand, shaking like crazy. “Look at you. You didn’t waste any time. You’ve got yourself set up with another little family again. Do you even think about me and Olivia? You know she’s gone and interred herself in the Keep because she thinks your martyred yourself to do the Gods’ work! She’s in there right now, living that life, because you left us to come here and start all over again!”
A strangled sob works free from Miranda. With her hand on her chest, she takes in the two of us standing in front of her. Her eyes fix on me with a look of pure hate. “You brought him here. Why? Do you hate me that much?”
I stare at her blankly. She thinks I knew about this? She’s blind if she can’t see I’m as stunned as everyone else in the room. And mortified. Lexa starts crying as the second round of fanfare blares drunkenly through the speakers above us. They’re calling for my brother.
Lowrence tips his head at the guards and steps forward. “I have no idea what the hell is going on right now, but we need to sort this out later. Son, you have a match to win. And you,” he stabs a finger in my direction. “You have a lot to answer for. You’re not going anywhere.”
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