Page 62 of Stormbreaker

She considers my answer, her gaze searching my face. “I hope I don’t have to tell you how important your position in House Fiama is,” she says. “You won’t be at Amery long, and The Shield is expecting support from you and Knox. New Manhattan cannot maintain peace without cooperation from the Houses.”

I nod. Of course, I know. It sometimes feels like it’s the only thing I know.

“The grip on our safety is tenuous,” she continues, and I blink in surprise. “The Solitudes are growing bolder, more vicious. They’re infiltrating the city almost nightly.” When she senses my confusion, she tips her head. “The news is kept quiet. We don’t need anyone to panic.”

“I see?” I say, wishing I sounded more confident.

I don’t understand why she’s telling me all this.

“But the threats within our borders are just as worrisome, if not more so. Your father does an admirable job of keeping them in check, but tensions in the city are escalating, as we saw from last week’s incident. A shift in Fiama’s leadership wouldn’t benefit any of us.”

She pauses, letting those words sink in as I gauge her meaning. If I don’t marry Knox, then it might threaten my father’s position. If he’s ousted as scion, it might lead to the same turmoil we faced in the past. The Shield might rule us, but they have limited control over who the Houses choose as their scions.

“But a House is also responsible for all its pledged members,” she continues. “Society must act with the dignity of the position they’ve been afforded, not brawl in the tunnels and lead people to question the tenets that keep our world stable.”

I nod slowly.

“I’m telling you all this because Knox Arden is young and has a lot of growing to do. I believe he will make a great leader someday, but he’ll need . . . corralling. Someone with a cooler head and level thinking to help guide him. I know from speaking with your father that you are smart and dependable. You are the anchor Knox needs.”

Her words settle around me like an iron straitjacket. Not only am I being forced into this marriage, but I’m also now responsible for Knox’s behavior. None of it surprises me, but that doesn’t mean it’s any easier to swallow.

“Is that everything?” I ask, realizing it comes out more impertinent than I’d like. I brace for backlash, but the general’s lip curls up in a half smile.

“You have spirit. You’ll do just fine, Poet Graves. I’m counting on you.”

Then she steps back and assesses me up and down.

“There is one other thing,” she adds. “It has nothing to do with all this, but increasing numbers of the infected are being reported to the Extinguishers. They’ve been gathering them up before they can do any harm, but the numbers are unprecedented. The most shocking thing is just how quickly they’re becoming mentally unstable. Most show up already violent and difficult to control, and the rest aren’t far behind.”

She pauses and stares at me, and the back of my head flames with heat and nerves.

“Please pass along the message to your classmates, so they can immediately report any signs of the infected in their midst.”

“Okay,” I say, trying to keep my voice even.

“And remind anyone that if they’re caught hiding either their own ability or someone else’s, their punishments will be . . . unpleasant.”

I can barely breathe around the balloon swelling in my chest. Somehow, I manage an affirmative response that appears to satisfy her well enough.

“Until we meet again, Poet Graves,” she says with a bow before spinning on her heel and walking away.

A shiver races down my spine at her words.

I’ve always lived in fear, wondering when and if my secret will be discovered.

Why does that moment suddenly feel so much more inevitable?

23

For several minutes, I stand perfectly still, trying to calm the racing of my heart. That entire conversation was . . . upsetting. Does she suspect anything? Surely, if she did, I’d already be in the hands of the Extinguishers, preparing for whatever horrible things they do to people like me. I’m sure it was just an overall warning. I hope.

The wind kicks up, the drizzle turning to heavier rain as a burst of verdant light flashes across the sky, signaling the start of an Emerald Storm. The main difference between these and Empire Storms is that the cloud bursts don’t send energy hurtling to the earth. Only the rain. They also happen much less often.

New Manhattan is surrounded by water, most of it brackish and purified by massive underwater tanks, so while it’s clean, it’s not always the freshest.

Emerald Storms bring with them something else—water that is clear as crystal and tastes almost sweet. Apparently, it’s what drinking water was like before they poisoned so much of it during the Warming Age.

Thus, the water is collected and used by The Shield and Society. It’s sold in green glass bottles at high-end grocery stores behind doors with little alarm bells. It’s actually become valuable, and the cisterns are closely guarded, since many people believe Emerald Water brings good luck. Collecting it for yourself is illegal, though many people do it regardless.