Tainted Rescue

by Jenn Vakey

  I was considering playing the Sentry role to get to them when everything around us just stopped. The large screens set up in this section lit up. They were used to give information to the citizens. The face filling the screen now was the new king, Dex Behrer, son of Adler.

  “Citizens of Eden,” he said, his voice echoing through the entire city. “I'm afraid I have troublesome news. Tainted are within our walls. They have attacked us, trying to steal our city. I can now confirm to you that Tainted were responsible for the assassination of dear King Phineas and his children, as well as my own father. Please be ever vigilant. They are here to destroy us, destroy our city. They must be stopped.”

  With that, it started again from the beginning.

  “Selfish little bastard,” Gryffin hissed, staring at the screen with disdain.

  I looked over, shocked by what he said. “Is he involved in this?”

  “Oh yeah,” he stated firmly. “He's the one I confided in when my powers started. He acted so supportive, then that team came for me that night.”

  “Leeya, please get yourself out of here,” Rhydian pleaded.

  But how could I? Dex wanted the crown. He would have to finish what Adler had started in order to keep it. Killing Rhydian. If the citizens knew about Rhydian…

  “That’s it,” I gasped, the solution so clear I felt dumb for not thinking of it sooner. I turned to Gryffin and smiled. “The reason Rhydian is so important is because of who he is. So are you.”

  “And?” he asked, not getting it.

  “And, we need to replace that broadcast with one of our own.”

  Dallin nodded. “This way. We aren't far from the station.”

  Hope. That's what this was.

  “Hold on, Rhydian,” I said, running after Dallin. “We're getting you out of here.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  RHYDIAN

  I shouldn't have told her I was in trouble. This was definitely one of those times when I wished I could lie to her. Anything to get her out of this damn city.

  Not that I could really fault her, no matter how much I hate it. I would have done the same if she was the one stuck like this. I never would have left without her.

  This was what Orson had been worried about.

  We were almost to the exit when we ran into trouble. Some Sentry who had seen two of our guys before. Of everyone who could have spotted us.

  Most of the group was able to push through, but Prestyn, Jaythan, and I were cornered. Lamont could have actually gotten away clean. He came back for us. It was a stupid move, but I had to respect the guy for it. He made a promise to Leeya, and he wasn't leaving without me.

  We had no choice after that than to go deeper into the city. We tried to get to the Maker section so we could blend easier, but Sentry numbers were starting to increase. They knew where we were, and they had no intention of letting us out of here.

  We really didn't have a choice at this point but to stick to where we were hidden, in the shadows between two houses, and hope that Leeya and Gryffin could make some magic happen.

  “Did she tell you anything about Stazie?” Lamont asked, careful to keep his voice down so our presence wasn't discovered.

  I hated having to shake my head. “No, but she wouldn't have left without getting everyone out.”

  He was disappointed, but he tried to hide it. I couldn't blame him. We were both worried about our girls.

  “Your brother's really alive?”

  “Yeah,” I breathed out. I was still completely in shock myself. Leeya had been so certain, so much that we told the others. But I was still too afraid to get my hopes up. Then he was there, talking to me just like no time had passed at all.

  He got to be the first person I told that I was engaged to that beautiful, stubborn woman. So stubborn that I was terrified she was going to get herself killed trying to get me out of here.

  “We need a plan,” I said, looking between my guys. I wasn’t in a terrible place. Jaythan and I both had telekinesis abilities, Prestyn had werewolf strength, and although Lamont wasn't Tainted, he was a good fighter.

  “If we can get to Sentry section, we can hide out in my house until things settle down,” Lamont offered. “I've been reported missing, but they won't suspect that I've changed sides.”

  Changed sides. Because that was exactly what he'd done. Orson had warned me to keep an eye on him while we were here, but I no longer had any doubts about where his allegiances lie.

  As for the idea, it wasn't a terrible one. Sentry section was two away, but it wasn't in the direction we had been heading when they spotted us. That would be where most of their focus was. Besides, we would have to be stupid to try to move through there.

  We would also have access to Sentry uniforms. It could give us the advantage we needed to be able to slip out of the city unseen.

  All we had to do was make it there.

  “Let's go,” I said, knowing it really was the best chance we had. The others nodded and we started moving in that direction.

  We made it almost to the edge of Distribution section before anyone paid us any attention. Not just anyone. A group of Sentry, armed and waiting.

  “Stop!” I yelled out of pure desperation. There was no trying to hide this time. They had seen us just as much as we had seen them. We were also very outnumbered. “Look at me,” I demanded, trying to sound as princely as I could. “Do you know who I am?”

  Surprisingly, they actually halted their advance and did take a good look at me. Then they turned and looked at each other. They had seen it. My eyes, then the face. It might have been four years, but I didn't really look that different. Well, assuming they actually tried to make that connection. And seeing the way they were looking at me, like they couldn't believe what they were seeing, I could tell they had.

  “It's a Tainted trick,” one older Sentry stated, shaking his head in disbelief. “We have reports of attacks.”

  “No, it's not,” I said, holding my hands up in what I hoped was a non-threatening way. “My father sent me out of the city four years ago after an assassination attempt. Then my brother was taken and held captive in the city. We only came in to rescue him. Adler killed my father and attempted to get rid of his heirs so he could claim the throne for himself.”

  Okay, so half of that wasn't true, but it was at least something that could be seen as believable. Some of them seemed to and actually faltered. Others didn't.

  Close to half of the Sentry had heard enough and charged right at us. I didn't want to fight, not when I was hoping it would be possible to convince them to let us go, but we didn't have a choice. The moment we started fighting back, the others joined in. Had the situation been different, had we been able to talk to them on a normal day, that tactic might have actually worked. Like it had with Lamont. Right now there was too much fear. It was easier for them to believe what their city told them.

  Aside from Prestyn and his strength, we actually didn't use our abilities against them. Leeya had been right. We didn't need to give them any more reasons than they already had to fear us. And while we were outnumbered three to one, our training was better.

  Just before we took down the last few Sentry, a crack filled the air, causing people in the surrounding blocks to all start screaming. A sickening sound that filled my nightmares at times. Both from my battle with Sentry years ago and with our encounter with Adler.

  A gunshot.

  I knocked down the man I was fighting and turned just in time to see Jaythan fall. I moved to grab him; we needed to get out of there. But it was too late. Blood stained the chest of his jumpsuit, and the life left his eyes.

  Prestyn grabbed the Sentry that shot him and threw him back into the side of the closest house. Screaming at him and calling him a murderer. To my surprise, there were actually several citizens watching in horror. Not toward us, even after Prestyn’s display of strength. But at the Sentry. It must have been apparent to anyone who watched that we made no attempt to kill any of them. Especiall
y to anyone who had heard what I’d said.

  Maybe there was hope for Eden after all.

  “Get off the streets,” I yelled back toward the observers. They looked at me, stunned. I saw one older man mouth my name. My real name.

  We didn't wait to see if they listened. I hated leaving Jaythan there, but there was no way we could get him out.

  We ran between houses, moving as fast as we could without going in a straight line. I considered briefly using my name to try to get a citizen to shelter us. The reason I decided against it wasn't because I didn't think it would work. Leeya had asked me once if I thought that the majority of the people here hated us. I hadn't lied when I said I didn't think they did. I didn't doubt that we could find someone to take us in. I just didn't want to risk their lives by pulling them into this. Gryffin said Dex was in on this. I wouldn't put it past him to silence anyone who knew I was alive.

  We were barely into Distribution section when the gunshots started again. I grabbed Lamont, who was sticking close to my side, and pulled him with me into the walkway between two houses Prestyn had just ducked into.

  We paused for a moment to catch our breath and to decide where to go from here. It was starting to feel helpless. The Sentry presence was starting to grow. They knew where we were. It was only a matter of time before they were able to pin us down completely.

  “We should split up,” I said, knowing it was really me they were after. “I'll get their attention. You two start working your way back to the wall.”

  Lamont actually laughed. It was stiff, but it told me what he thought about my suggestion before he said a single word. “You actually thought that would work?”

  I looked at him and saw nothing but determination. He knew the chances of actually making it out of this situation, but he wasn't going anywhere. When I turned to Prestyn, hoping he could convince him, I saw the same thing.

  So, with a resigned sigh, we started moving again. We just had to make it through this section and we would reach Sentry section. Hopefully, moving this way would take us away from the majority of the Sentry.

  We were several rows of houses in when a woman ran smack into me at an intersection. She stumbled back, both from the impact and the shock I could see on her face. She was young. Early twenties, with brown hair that actually reminded me of Leeya's before she cut it. Her pale brown eyes were locked on mine.

  “Prince Evran?” she gasped, then looked at the two men right behind me. Her confusion hadn't eased in the slightest by the time she met my gaze again.

  “You should get back into your house,” I told her. “The Sentry are after us, and it might not be safe out here much longer.”

  She didn't budge. “Y–you’re alive?”

  I nodded. So did she.

  “The Sentry are after you? People are saying there are Tainted people in the city.”

  I could see the wheels turning in her head as she tried to make sense of this. Tried to understand.

  “We should get moving,” Lamont said, echoing thoughts I'd been having myself. It was too dangerous staying still like this.

  I considered just leaving her there, but something about her made me want to take a chance. Maybe it was the hair, or my complete desperation by this point.

  “There are,” I confirmed, watching her closely for her reaction. “But not to hurt anyone here. The rumors that go around about Tainted people here being taken after failing the test is true. We're only here to rescue them and get them out of Eden.”

  She blinked, but actually looked to be taking it better than I'd expected. “We?”

  Now it was the moment of truth. Either this would work or it would bite me in the ass.

  “We,” I said, then looked over my shoulder and made a pot sitting on someone's window raise up a few inches before dropping back down. When I faced her again, her eyes were wide with disbelief. “And that scares a lot of people, which is why you would be safer in your home. The smell that drove you out isn't harmful.”

  She looked around, and I expected her to turn and run. Taking my advice. Especially when we could see Sentry in the distance moving around in the crowd. Instead, she looked back with a look that said she had settled on something.

  “Come with me,” she said, pushing past me in the way we'd just come from.

  I looked between the guys, then followed. What other choice did we really have at this point?

  The woman led us a few houses deep into Healer section, looking around cautiously before she opened a door and ushered us in. As soon as the door closed, she walked to the other side of the bookcase next to it and placed her hand on the side.

  Her eyes were on me when she pushed it and slid it with one hand in front of the door. My jaw actually dropped. This wasn't a small bookcase. It would have been heavy on its own. Add to it the books and assorted items she had filling the shelves, and it would have been impossible to move like that.

  “You're Tainted,” I said, now understanding even more why she had taken everything so easily.

  She gave me a wicked smile and shrugged. “It didn't start until a few months after my test. I guess I got lucky.”

  “More than you know,” I agreed, deciding not to fill her in on just what they had been doing to the captured Tainted.

  Lamont and Prestyn each took up posts at the windows on the front of the house. I took the back, watching through the curtains as people moved around. Hopefully the fact that the lights were still out and most people were still running around would help us to stay hidden.

  The woman left us there and moved deeper into the house, grabbing a bag from the closet just before she disappeared from sight.

  I almost asked what she was doing, but I already knew. Eden was about to become even more dangerous for the Tainted.

  I almost reached out to Leeya to update her, but I decided against it. Telling her we were somewhere safe wasn't going to make her abandon her plan. Whatever it was she was doing, that's where her attention needed to be.

  After a few minutes, our host came back out with what looked like a standard work bag over her shoulder.

  “I'm going with you,” she stated. She looked determined, almost like she expected me to argue against it.

  “I figured,” I nodded, then looked back at her bag. She wouldn't stand out carrying it. To anyone who saw her, she would just look like she was coming home from work. We could definitely use her strength, but being with us would put her in danger. The best thing for her, her best chance to actually get out of here, would be for me to send her to the wall as soon as we could. Even if we couldn't follow her.

  “The first chance you get, go as casually as you can to Laborer’s section,” I said. “Go to the wall behind house twelve. A man named Harun will be there. Tell him Rhydian sent you and show him your ability. He'll give you directions to Alkwin. If you're quick, you can catch up with the people we just rescued and sent out. Ask for a man named Auggie and he'll make sure you're taken care of.”

  “You're not coming?”

  I shook my head. “We will if we can, but not if it means putting you in danger. You can move through the crowd unnoticed.”

  “That's not going to be an option,” Lamont said from across the room.

  I looked up to find him looking out the window, doing his best to stay out of sight. I knew by the tension he was emitting that things were no longer looking up.

  Hurrying toward him, I peered around myself and saw a group of Sentry standing in front of the house across from this one. With them was a man, a citizen. And he was pointing right toward us.

  “Go hide,” I said firmly, looking back to the woman. “If they take us and question you, tell them you heard us come in and you hid. You never saw any of us. You didn't see me, do you understand?”

  She looked worried, and like she wanted to argue, but she finally nodded and ran back toward her bedroom.

  “What do we do?” Lamont asked. “They're starting to gather. It won't be long before they decide to just s
torm the house.”

  No, it wouldn't.

  “Time for round two,” I said, then reached over and carefully slid the window open a few inches. I wasn't going to show myself unless I had to. Nearly all of the Sentry I'd seen were armed, and I wasn't going to give them a target.

  “This is Prince Evran Behrer, son of the late King Phineas,” I said tightly. “I demand to speak to whoever is in charge, and I'm not talking about Othman Meltzer.”

  “Show yourself,” someone yelled back.

  Lamont looked at where I was pressed against the wall and shook his head. Not that I needed him to. “So you can shoot me before you actually verify I really am who I say I am?”

  “There's at least a dozen out there,” Prestyn said, peering out the other window. “More keep coming in.”

  “My name is Kavon Trombly,” the same man who had spoken before said. “I am the highest ranking Sentry out here. Step into the window so I can see your face.”

  I knew the risk here, but I didn't have any other choice. If I refused, they would storm in and likely kill all of us without listening to anything I had to say. I had to buy time.

  With my hands up, I stepped in front of the window I had opened. Instantly, a bright light shone in my face.

  “I know the hair is longer,” I said, trying not to sound threatening. Well, more than a prince should. “Four years does that.”

  The light made it impossible for me to actually see anything. It was a struggle just to keep my eyes open, although it was needed. The eyes always gave it away. I had to trust Lamont and Prestyn to let me know if they saw any trouble.

  “My uncle attempted to assassinate my brother and me,” I announced. “Yes, I did say attempted. Gryffin is also alive. Sadly, he was successful with my father. Now, as I don't know any of you enough to trust that someone out there wasn't a part of that plot for the throne, you'll have to forgive me for stepping out of your line of sight.”

  Not a full second after I jumped back behind the safety of the wall, a bullet hit the window just where my head had been.

  “Who the hell fired that?” Kavon yelled.