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I take Raffe to the same building where Michal once spoke to me in secret. Perhaps I should have asked Michal to come, but he would have objected to taking this risk and exposing the rebellion. So I tell Raffe about The Testing, the candidates who disappear or die, and the need to put an end to the system once and for all. I tell him the end can only come if certain information is found. My throat is still swollen and sore from the abuse at Damone’s hands. My words sometimes drop to a whisper, but I keep talking.
When I finish, the room goes silent. Seconds stretch to minutes as Raffe’s eyes search my face. Is he looking for the truth? Is he trying to decide the best way to report this conversation to his father or to the University officials? I clench and unclench my hands and wait.
Finally, he asks, “Colony students who get wrong answers die during The Testing?”
“Not all of them, but yes. In The Testing, death is often the punishment for failure. And
for some, causing those deaths is the path to success.”
Raffe rakes a hand through his hair. “What about Tosu City students who don’t pass their Early Studies exams? My father said my sister was assigned to a job in one of the colonies. Is that true, or is she . . .”
The unspoken word hangs between us as he waits for my answer. For the first time, I understand the motivation behind his aid—the event that happened two years ago and changed everything for him. He is looking for his sister. Now he assumes I might have an idea where she is.
“I don’t know.” The unhappiness on Raffe’s face makes me wish I did. “Maybe if we can get Dr. Barnes removed, we can find out.”
Raffe takes a deep breath and nods. “Then I guess I should get started.”
Before I can ask what he plans to do, Raffe opens and closes the door, leaving me alone to wait and worry.
Time passes slowly. Though my throat is still sore, I eat an apple and swallow some water. I think of Tomas. Did he make it back to the University without anyone noticing he had been absent? Is he worried that I might not return? When I stand and stretch my muscles, my eyes stay glued to the ground below.
An hour passes. Two. Part of me wonders if Raffe was caught, while the other part wonders if he was telling the truth about his sister. Raffe’s father is in charge of the Department of Education. Surely, he would be able to protect his daughter from the punishments Dr. Barnes might exact.
The clock taunts me as its hands move from one number to the next. Closing my eyes, I picture the people I love. My parents. Zeen. My other three brothers. Daileen, who so badly wishes to be chosen for The Testing and join me at the University. Tomas. Would they understand what I am doing now? I know my father would agree that putting a stop to The Testing with bloodshed is just as wrong as ending lives because of incorrect answers. Fighting death with more death was the choice that led to the Seven Stages of War. Our country barely weathered the consequences. We may not survive if the same choice is made again.
I hear footsteps outside and hold my breath. Is it Raffe, or has someone Raffe alerted come in his place? Was putting my faith in him correct, or will I now be punished for once again ignoring my father’s advice to trust no one?
The footsteps pause.
The door swings inward.
Raffe stands alone in the doorway. In his hands are a bag and a gun.
Chapter 19
RAFFE TURNS THE gun around and offers me the handle. I look at him before wrapping my fingers around the hard wood grip, and he gives me a satisfied nod. “I grabbed this out of my dad’s private office. Since you’re trying to stop a war, I thought it might come in handy. This will too.”
He reaches into the bag hanging from his shoulder and pulls out a palm-sized machine. A recorder.
“I’m pretty sure the recording in this machine and the others in the bag are what you’re looking for. And you’re right, Cia.” His expression darkens. “What’s on these recordings needs to end.”
“It’ll end as soon as Michal gets the recordings to Symon,” I say.
But when I leave and return with Michal, Raffe refuses to hand the recordings over. “No offense,” he tells Michal. “But I don’t know you. If you want to deliver this to your people, you’ll have to take me with you.”
Michal stiffens. “I’m not taking the son of one of the biggest advocates of Dr. Barnes into rebel headquarters. Not only do I not trust you, but even if I did, Symon and the other members of the rebellion would see you as a threat. They’d eliminate you as soon as you walked into camp.”
That Michal believes the members of the rebellion would kill so easily makes my blood run cold.
“Raffe is on our side. He’s trying to find out what happened—”
“Look,” Raffe says, cutting me off. “There’s nothing I can say that will make you trust me. All I know is I have the recordings from The Testing. If you want them, you’ll just have to make sure your friends don’t see Cia and me. Otherwise, the two of us are walking out the door and taking the recordings with us.”
I blink at Raffe’s assumptions not only that I will side with him over Michal but that I plan on going back to the rebel camp. However, when I think about it, I know he’s right. I have to go. While I do not doubt Michal’s dedication to ending The Testing, President Collindar’s first assignment taught me that the only way to know the truth is to see it for myself.
But while I know what I need to do, I hesitate. If Tomas safely returned to the University, he is now waiting for me to signal him. Hours have passed since the time he must have expected me. Does he think I have been killed or captured? Will he stay in his residence and trust that I will make it back, or is he already planning to leave in search of me? I should let him know I am okay. But without knowing if my absence has been noted by Professor Holt or my fellow students, I cannot take the risk. If I return to campus now, I may never have this chance again.
Straightening my shoulders, I walk over and stand next to Raffe to show we are united. We will all go to the rebel camp.
