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“They’re lying to you,” Rowan snapped angrily. “There isn’t much a witch can’t cure. What are the symptoms and how did the sickness start?”
Riley and Pip shared a look, and then Riley finally decided to continue. “It started about two years back. A professor from Salem asked some of the tunnel women to smuggle metal containers filled with what looked like ordinary dust out of each of the cities. But when the women came back they had burns on their hands and faces, like sunburns only much worse. Then they started getting sick. A lot of them died, and those that didn’t had babies that—” Riley suddenly broke off and grimaced like his stomach was turning. “Every woman who helped in the smuggling in every city ended up sick, dead, or with a baby that just wasn’t right.”
“Where did the smugglers bring the dust?” Rowan asked.
“Outland.” Riley suddenly looked sheepishly at his feet to avoid Rowan’s eyes. “The Salem professor who organized the whole thing was an Outlander.”
A chill rattled down Lily’s spine. “Did you get a name?”
Riley nodded. “She was important, so I remembered her name. Professor Chenoa. And there were two others. They weren’t real professors, but they were still awfully smart. Hawk and Kiwi? No, that’s not right, but it’s close.”
“Let me see the sick,” Lily ordered hollowly. “And I want to see the babies.”
Lily glanced at Rowan as she followed Riley down a dark passageway that led away from the main group of tunnel people.
Lily. You know Chenoa, don’t you?
I know of her. She and the other two—Hakan and Keme—were the scientists that Lillian wanted. They were the scientists we fought Lillian to protect, Rowan.
Lily saw Rowan’s brow furrow in thought. He didn’t ask any more questions, not even to find out how Lily knew that. Before she could formulate a question for Rowan that didn’t implicate her, the group arrived at a satellite camp for the sick.
“Holy shit,” Tristan cursed under his breath.
Rowan staggered forward, wading out into the huddled groups of skeletal woman and twisted, deformed children. Even though he was wearing a glamour, they could tell from his skin tone and from the beaded leather work of his pack that he was an Outlander. They scowled at him as he passed, their hatred palpable. Right or wrong, they apparently blamed him and all Outlanders for what Chenoa had done to them.
“No,” Rowan said in disbelief, ignoring their glares. “This isn’t natural.”
Lily came forward and focused on one of the women. She was balding and had ulcerous sores around her mouth—like the people in the cinder world. Lily crouched down and looked the woman in the eye. She could see the chromosomal damage in the woman’s cells. The woman’s liver, kidneys, and immune system were all shutting down, unable to repair themselves.
“Why don’t you take a step back, Rowan,” Tristan said. As Rowan moved away, Tristan crouched next to Lily and introduced himself to the woman kindly. Tristan remembered her humanity, even if Lily was too stunned to be polite.
It’s her DNA. I can’t find any cells in her that have undamaged genetic material, Lily. Can you?
No, Tristan. She’s past saving.
What did this?
Lily heard Breakfast and then Una in her head.
Their cells can’t repair themselves. It’s horrible.
What is this? Can you see the air around them? It’s filled with little specks of almost nothing that are whizzing around like crazy.
Lily reached out to all of her mechanics, sharing mindspeak with them.
They’re radioactive, you guys. We can’t stay with them for long. Rowan, do you have any idea how to help these people?
Those that haven’t passed the tipping point? Yes. But the ritual will be very difficult for you, Lily. Tell the others to spread out and try to find people who still have some healthy life-helix material.
It took Lily a moment to understand, but when Rowan passed an image of what he needed to her, she instantly understood.
We call that DNA, Rowan.
Try to find healthy DNA. I’m afraid I’ll have to stay here while you go scan them. These people don’t want me near them. They hate Outlanders.
I’m sorry about that.
I’ve dealt with prejudice my whole life, Lily, but at least these people have a reason. An Outlander betrayed them and exposed them to some contaminant that did this to them, although I can’t think of what it was.
