Page 116 of Storm Caller

While everyone is chatting, waiting for the meeting to begin, Henry pulls up a chair and gestures for me to sit next to him.

“Did he know about me?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “No. He wondered, and he worried about it. Raine said he’d watch you when the storms arrived, and he suspected something was up.”

“Why did he never say anything?” I whisper. “We could have talked about it. We could have been there for each other.”

“The same reason he didn’t want to be too close to any of us. He was scared for himself and for you. I think he was waiting for you to enter Amery, so you would no longer be under your father’s constant watch, but . . . he never got the chance.”

I bite my bottom lip as I stare at an empty spot on the floor. “We could have been so much less scared together.”

“I’m sorry.”

I nod. “I wish . . .”

“I know,” Henry says. “I’m sure he does, too.”

At that moment, we’re interrupted by the doctor’s arrival. Domino and Journey take a pair of seats, and Rook leans against the wall right behind me.

Then Ada addresses us. “I understand you have information for us?” she asks, getting straight to the point.

“First, I want to know what your goal is,” Rook says.

“We cannot reveal everything to you,” Ada says. “We’ve been operating for years, and you’ve just arrived.”

“I understand that, but what we’re about to tell you will change everything you know about New Manhattan, The Shield, and Keepers.”

Ada arches a brow, tipping her head. “That’s a rather bold statement.”

He folds his arms and spreads his stance, saying nothing as he waits.

The members of the Fog all share a look with one another before I notice Ada checking in with Henry. “Very well,” she says. “We hope to cure and protect Keepers, while exposing The Shield and their lies. We know they’re hiding things from us, but we need proof.”

“To what end?” Rook asks.

“To force a change in New Manhattan. We’ve heard how they do things in some of the Neo-Cities, and we believe the hierarchy developed by our leaders is inhumane. We want to change . . . everything.”

A rush of shivers spreads over my scalp. This is bigger than we imagined, but I’m also not surprised.

“Tell them,” I say, peering up at Rook, and then we lay out everything.

We tell them about our break-in with Edward.

The video I saw of Raine’s death.

How we ran.

I tell them about everything I saw in the Veil.

Then we tell them about General Sol and everything she shared. The only thing we leave out is the lesson she gave us about turning Spark into a weapon. These people might be on our side, but Rook and I agreed that was one secret we should probably keep between us for now.

We tell them why Rook and I returned, and then about how we’re searching for the cure Sol claims does exist.

When Rook and I are finished, the room is so silent I can hear the creak of stone and distant drips of water.

I twist my fingers together while we wait for them to absorb everything we’ve just said.

“Well,” Ada says, running a hand across her forehead. She’s clearly shaken up. “I’ve suspected some of this. I’ve wondered. I hoped there was a cure.”