The look on his face tells me he likes the plan.All the worry and concern from before is gone. Now he’s ready to start a war.
“Fine.” He says something under his breath about always having to do things the hard way. The crooked smile gives him away even though he’s pretending to be annoyed.
He shoves a final handful of dried meat into the pack and cinches it closed.
“Once we get to the surface, I think we should find ‘the Others.’ They can’t possibly be worse than the homicidal sex cult down here,” I suggest.
“Exactly,” he says. “We get out and go south.”
“Do you think they’ll help us?” I ask, optimistically, hoping for some good news.
“Not really. But I remember you saying that nothing can stop you when you really want something.”
There he goes, using my own words against me. Tai steps up to me, blocking out everything else but him.
“I should have told you I’ve been here before. I was so close to telling you the whole story when we came back from the oasis. I don’t know what stopped me. No. Wait. That’s not true. It was shame. I’m ashamed of who I was back then.”
I’m surprised by the sudden confession. I don’t fault him for not wanting to admit his past mistakes. I should be mad. I should be livid, but somehow, I feel closer to him than ever.
Maybe I’m letting him off the hook too easily, but I stand up on tiptoes and brush my lips across his. It’s my way of telling him we are okay. It’s not an apology or victory. It’s a truce. I smooth his hair back, and when he leans into my hand, I know he understands.
“Let’s get out of here before I change my mind and leave you here to deal with the brethren on your own,” he says, laughter lighting up his eyes.
“Oh, he’s got jokes! Someone must be feeling better.” I lift up my hood. “Ready to go, prisoner?” I say with a low voice, trying to imitate the brethren’s accent and tenor.
“Bri, play this by the book. None of your bullshit,” he warns.
“I resent that.” We fall back into our normal banter easily. It’s second nature at this point.
I yank his arms behind his back and push him forward and out of the pantry with a smile.
There must be something wrong with me. A normal person wouldn’t have this much fun running for their life.
We manage to get down the first hallway without rousing the guard or running into anyone. Tai whispers directions through the tunnels, leading us to the main level of the colony and closer to the surface.
A brethren scurries toward us. Putting on a show, I push Tai forward off balance. “Come on, prisoner,” I say with a comically low voice.
The brethren knocks into my shoulder in his rush to get past.
“Watch it!” he yells over his shoulder.
“What the fuck?” I whisper to Tai.
“Don’t blame the guy. He’s in a hurry. He needs to purify himself for the goddess.” He looks back at me with a crooked smile.
“You’re never going to let me live this down, are you?” I ask, pretending I am not enjoying every second of this.
Get it together, Bri. Your life is in literal danger! Now is not the time to flirt with Tai!
“Definitely not,” Tai whispers over his shoulder.
“Keep it moving, Tilak.” I continue the charade.
“Bri.” The low rumble of his warning hits me right between the legs.
Down, girl.
Tai crouches down to fit into a low stairwell I’ve never been in before. His broad shoulders nearly touch both walls, blocking out everything. I follow him up a steep incline, the air getting warmer with every step.
