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I nod. He lingers with me for a moment, then gets up and walks away. I go home.
That was the last time I ever saw him.
* * *
A day’s passed. I’m sitting alone on my assigned Patriot bed in one of the bunk rooms, studying the pendant looped around my neck. My hair falls around my face, making me feel like I’m looking at the pendant through a bright veil. Before my shower earlier, Kaede had given me a bottle of gel that stripped the fake color from my hair. For the next part of the plan, she’d told me.
Someone knocks on the door.
“Day?” The voice sounds muffled from the other side of the wood. It takes me a second to reorient myself and recognize Tess. I’d woken up from a nightmare about my eighth birthday. I can still see everything like it happened yesterday, and my eyes feel red and swollen from crying. When I woke up, my mind started producing images of Eden strapped to a gurney, screaming as lab techs inject him with chemicals, and John standing blindfolded before a squad of soldiers. And Mom. I can’t stop all this goddy stuff from replaying in my head, and it pisses me off so much. If I find Eden, what then? How the hell do I take him from the Republic? I have to assume that Razor will be able to help me get him back. And in order to get him back, I’ve absolutely got to make sure Anden dies.
My arms are sore from spending most of the morning under Kaede’s and Pascao’s supervision, learning how to shoot a gun. “Don’t worry if you miss the Elector,” Pascao said as we worked on my aim. He ran his hands along my arm enough to make me blush. “Won’t matter. There will be others with you who will finish the job, regardless. Razor just wants the image of you pointing a gun at the Elector. Isn’t it perfect? The Elector, at the warfront to give morale-boosting speeches to the soldiers, gunned down with hundreds of troops in the vicinity. Oh, the irony!” Pascao then gave me one of his signature grins. “The people’s hero kills the tyrant. What a story that will be.”
Yeah—what a story, indeed.
“Day?” Tess says from behind the door. “Are you in there? Razor wants to talk to you.” Oh, right. She’s still out there, calling for me.
“Yeah, you can come in,” I reply.
Tess pokes her head inside. “Hey,” she says. “How long have you been in here?”
Be good to her, Kaede had told me. You two match. I shoot Tess a small smile in greeting. “No idea,” I reply. “I was getting some rest. Couple hours, maybe?”
“Razor’s asking for you out in the main room. They’re running a live feed of June. I thought you might be—”
Live feed? She must have made it. She’s still okay. I jump to my feet. Finally, an update on June—the thought of seeing her again, even if it’s on a grainy security cam, makes me dizzy with anticipation. “I’ll be right out.”
As we head down the short hall toward the main room, a number of other Patriots greet Tess. She smiles each time, exchanging gentle jokes and laughs as if she’s known them forever. Two boys give her good-natured pats on her shoulder.
“Hurry the hell up, kids. Don’t wanna keep Razor waiting.” We both turn to see Kaede jog past us in the direction of the main room. She pauses to swing one arm around Tess’s neck, then ruffles her hair lovingly and plants a playful kiss on her cheek. “I swear—you’re the slowest of the bunch, sweetheart.”
Tess laughs and shoves her off. Kaede winks back before picking up her pace, disappearing around the corner into the main room. I look on, a little surprised at Kaede’s display of affection. Not something I’d expect from her. I’d never thought about it before, but now I realize just how good Tess is at forming new bonds—I sense the Patriots’ ease around her, the same ease I’d always felt with her on the streets. That’s her strength, no doubt. She heals. She’s comforting.
Then Baxter passes us. Tess turns her eyes downward as he brushes her arm, and I notice him give her a brief nod before glaring at me. When he’s out of earshot, I lean over to Tess. “What’s his deal?” I whisper.
She just shrugs and brushes my arm with her hand. “Don’t mind him,” she replies, repeating what Kaede had said back when I first arrived at the tunnel. “He has mood swings.”
Tell me about it, I think darkly. “If he gives you a hard time, let me know,” I mutter.
Tess shrugs again. “It’s okay, Day. I can handle him.”
I suddenly feel a little stupid, offering my help like an arrogant knight in shining armor when Tess probably has dozens of new friends eager to help her out. When she can help herself.
By the time we’ve made it out to the main room, a small crowd has gathered in front of one of the larger wall screens, where a tape of security cam footage is playing. Razor is near the front of the crowd with his arms casually crossed, while Pascao and Kaede stand beside him. They see me and motion me over.
“Day,” Razor says, clapping me on the shoulder. Kaede gives me a quick nod in greeting. “Good to see you here. Are you okay? I heard you’ve been a little down this morning.”
His concern’s actually kinda nice—it reminds me of the way my father used to talk to me. “I’m fine,” I reply. “Just tired from the trip.”
“Understandable. It was a stressful flight.” He gestures up to the screen. “Our Hackers got us footage of June. The audio’s separated out, but you’ll get to hear it soon enough. I thought you’d want to see the video regardless.”
