by Aileen Erin
“No. I can’t risk moving you. You’re the pawn my brother needs to draw the Aunare into a war.”
It wasn’t safe to stay, and it wasn’t safe to leave. I wasn’t sure what that left us with. “So what are we going to do? We can’t just wait for him to find us. We have to leave.”
“That’s exactly what he wants. You run now, and he’ll know. AI will be searching for anything out of the ordinary on their surveillance cameras. Any coming and going that’s not routine will stand out, and you can’t afford to stand out. Especially not now. The spaceport gala is in three days, and this city is going to be a madhouse with over five thousand SpaceTech officials already arriving from all over the galaxy. After that, everyone will leave, including my brother. I’ll make sure of that. Once he’s gone, it’ll be much easier to sneak you out of here. He’ll be in cryo for his trip back to VegaFive, and the STPF here is lazy. They’ll have been working nonstop for days, and won’t care anymore. They’ll be ready for a break. Without him on their asses, they’ll drop their search.”
“So four days?” Mom asked.
“Hopefully four. Five max. I’ll be keeping an eye on both of you, but I won’t make contact. Not unless I have to. I just can’t mess this up. There’s too much at risk.”
Mom put her arm around my shoulders. “We’ll wait a little longer. A few days won’t matter to us.”
“Thank you for being understanding. Keep doing your normal routine until I come back. Go to work. See friends. Whatever it is you normally do, do that. Don’t deviate too much, because AI will be looking for irregularities in traffic.” He moved away from the door, stepping closer to me. “I wish things were different but… Just be ready. Because when I come back, it’ll be time for us to run.” He took another step closer. “I won’t leave you a second longer than I have to.”
“Okay.” After everything Declan had told me, I trusted him. Maybe more than I should. So, when he said we’d leave as soon as we could, I believed him. “We’ll be here.”
“Good.” He closed his eyes for a second as he let out a long breath. “Good.” He walked to the door but stopped before opening it. He glanced at me over his shoulder. “It really is good to see you again, Amihanna.”
The sound of my birth name made my chest tighten. I wasn’t her. Not anymore. “My name’s Maité.”
“Right. Maité.” He gave a stiff nod and stepped outside.
When the door shut, I gave my mom a squeeze before she could start asking me if I was okay or what I thought of Declan or any of the other million questions I could see running across her face.
“I need time to process. We’ll talk in the morning?”
“Okay. But if you change your mind, come get me. I’m not sure I’ll be sleeping anyway.”
“Okay.” I slipped out of the room, heading back to my bedroom. If I thought I needed a minute before… Overwhelmed didn’t begin to describe how I felt now.
I crawled up on my bed until I was pressed into the corner. It felt nice, having the walls at my back. It made me feel like nothing was going to sneak up behind me. I hugged my knees into my chest and took a breath.
A few days and this nightmare would be over. I might be heading into a totally different life. I didn’t know what that would mean, but at least it would be a change. That was a start. It was more than I’d had to look forward to in a long time.
Chapter Five
It’d been three days since I found Declan waiting in my apartment. Since then, the city had been swarming with SpaceTech’s goons. I know that he said it was only going to be a few thousand of them, but it felt like everywhere I turned there was another uniformed officer. Everything in me said I should lay low and hide, but I kept hearing Declan’s voice in my head telling me to do my normal routine. The AI would be looking for changes in the routines of locals. So that’s what I’d been doing, but it wasn’t easy. Especially this afternoon.
There’d been a table of ten SpaceTech officers in the diner. I’d been terrified every second of showing what I was. Of one of them recognizing me. Of something happening to mess up my chance of getting away. When I took them the check at the end of the meal, I wasn’t thinking about anything other than getting them gone as quickly as possible.
As I left the table, one of them knocked over a bottle of ketchup, and I caught it. I caught it. My reflexes had been too good to be human.
Stupid. So stupid. So unbelievably stupid.
Who cared if it made a mess? None of them caught on, but it’d been close enough that I’d moved slowly through the rest of my shift, even if it pained me to do so. I wasn’t messing up again.
After thirteen years, I was on the verge of actually having some freedom. All of the waiting for someone to find us was done. All of the hiding and pretending and lying was almost over. Almost over. But not yet. I wasn’t quite there yet. This last little bit of waiting and pretending felt more intense than what I’d felt the last thirteen years combined. The stress of staying hidden was eating me up inside, devouring me.
Mom had been trying to keep me calm during my shift, but she was too busy cooking in the diner’s kitchen to handle my freak-out. We’d been slammed. As soon as my shift was over, I waved goodbye to her and sprinted straight to the warehouse gym. When my last student was gone, and all my classes were done, I decided to take a second for myself. Instead of rushing home, I’d set up some equipment to work out. It was just me and my thoughts, but once I started thinking, my skin started glowing. I’d been moving nonstop since then.
Sweat coated me, but the workout hadn’t been enough to stop the glow. At this point, I wasn’t sure it’d ever be enough.
I’d turned on some music an hour ago because the silence was too much, but no matter what I did, I couldn’t dampen the glow. It was almost as if working out was making it worse, but I didn’t know how that was possible. Usually working out calmed me down and the glow would slowly start to fade until I’d snuffed it out entirely.
A whistle cut through the warehouse, and I stopped moving. Roan.
I spun to see him walking through the door, slamming it behind him. His shirt looked wrinkled, and his thick, tightly curled hair was sticking out even poofier than normal. He waved a dark finger through the air, and the music instantly turned off. “Have you been here since your last class?”
“Yeah.” My words sounded hollow as I tried to catch my breath. “Just trying to get in a good workout.”
“It’s three in the morning. I’d say you should be done, but looking at you tells me otherwise.”
“Is it really that late?” I’d only planned to stay until my mind and nerves settled, but that hadn’t happened yet. I wasn’t paying attention to the time.
“Liz is losing her mind.”
My mom. Damn it. I’d forgotten to call my mother, and it was totally understandable that she was upset. Especially since I’d turned off all my message and call notifications. “I’ll call her.”
“Good. She woke me up, convinced that you were out with me, but except for your classes here, I haven’t seen you in days. You’re shutting me out, and now you’re here all night, looking super-Aunare, and all that’s telling me that something’s going down. What happened?”
“Nothing happened.” Lie. “I’m fine.” Another lie.
He stared me down.
Roan had a point. The glowing skin was a dead giveaway. It usually only happened in times of extreme stress, and even then I could get it to go away pretty quickly. But not tonight. Tonight was a whole new level of Aunare that I wasn’t prepared to deal with.
I walked to my bag and grabbed a water. I wasn’t sure I should tell him what had been going on, but he was right. I’d been avoiding him for days, and that didn’t sit right with me. I wasn’t sure how to tell Roan I was about to leave. I’d probably never see him again. Saying goodbye might kill me.
I wanted him to come with me. Leaving him here didn’t seem like a good option. If anyone found out that he was my best friend and that he knew exactly w
ho I was, then he’d be in danger. But asking him to leave his family and friends and home? That was a huge price to pay for my friendship.
If I asked him to come, then where should I draw the line? Should I ask Declan if we can take Roan’s family, too? Jorge? The whole Crew?
I should’ve kept to myself all these years, but I wouldn’t have survived without Jorge. Without the Crew. And for sure, not without Roan.
“Is it the SpaceTech douches?” Roan broke the silence. “I know it must’ve been hard the last few days, but the news says most are gone this morning. In, like, a few hours.”
“It hasn’t been easy, but no. I… Something’s happened.” How could I tell him I was leaving? It seemed impossibly hard.
I lay down on the floor, staring up at the ceiling. Now that I wasn’t moving my body ached. I’d pushed myself too hard.
Roan stood over me. “Just say it. We haven’t had any secrets between us ever, and I don’t think we should start now.”
He was right. Again. “A man came to my house a few nights ago.” I spit out the words as quickly as I could. “I’mleavingintwodays.”
“Leaving? What the hell are you talking about?” Roan sat down hard next to me. “What man? Where are you going?”
“He’s SpaceTech, but an ally of my father’s. He found me because of the implant—”
Roan’s dark skin paled, making his green eyes look brighter. “But we were—”
“I know. We were careful, but the missing blood was flagged.” I closed my eyes. “I’m scared of leaving you behind. If anyone finds out—”
“You’re skipping a few steps. Are you sure you can trust this person?”
“I think so.” I took a breath. That wasn’t true. “Yes. I absolutely trust him.”
“Seriously? You’re sure.”
I opened my eyes. I knew Roan well enough to see the concern on his face. That tilt of his chin and wrinkling between the eyes said it all. “Yes. I’m leaving for Sel’Ani tomorrow or the day after.”
Roan was quiet for a long while, staring off into the distance before he finally let out a breath. “I knew this would happen eventually, but I’m not ready. How’re you doing?”
I held up my hands. The golden shimmer from them wasn’t super bright like I’d seen from full-blooded Aunare, but it wasn’t nothing either. “I’ve been working out for the past five hours, and it’s not getting any better.”
Roan touched my hand carefully with his fingertip. “You’re glowing brighter than I’ve ever seen.”
I itched to pull my hand away, but Declan said it was safe. At least now I knew I couldn’t hurt anyone when I was glowing, but I felt even more clueless about what it meant and how to make it stop. “It’s never lasted this long before.”
“Shit, Maité.” He ran his fingers through his hair, making it even poofier. “How are you going to get home like that?”
“Exactly. I might have to sleep here.” I shrugged. It sucked, but as far as I could figure, it was my best option. “I’ll keep moving until I drop, and then maybe I’ll be able to sleep. But I forgot to tell Mom. I’m sorry she woke you.”
“Don’t worry about that. I can try sparring with—”
The lock beeped as it disengaged. The only person besides me and Roan who had the code were my mother and Jorge.
I popped up from the floor when I saw it was neither of them. “What are you doing here? How do you know the code?”
Declan grinned. “I have my ways.” He was wearing a pair of loose black active pants and a dark gray shirt. He was a little sweaty with a touch of red in his cheeks, but he didn’t look out of breath. I wondered if he’d been out for a run.
Roan moved to stand between us. “Who the hell are you?”
It was nice that he wanted to protect me, but I could do that just fine on my own.
“This is the guy I was just telling you about.” I stepped around Roan. “Do we need to leave now?” I asked Declan.
“No. I’m just checking on you.” He gave a nod to Roan. “Hi, I’m Declan. A very good friend of her family.”
“You turn her in, and I’ll kill you.” I’d never heard Roan’s voice so deep and dark. He meant every word.
Roan was the best.
“You don’t have to worry about me. I promise,” Declan said to Roan before turning his attention to me. “You okay? You’ve been here for a long time, and I got worried.”
Roan laughed. “You don’t need to worry about Maité. She can more than take care of herself.”
“Just because she can take care of herself doesn’t mean that she should have to.”
Roan’s smile disappeared. “You think you know her better than I do?”
They stepped closer together, and I could feel the fight brewing under my skin.
No. This wasn’t the time or the place. I put myself between them again. “Roan, this is Declan. He’s an old family friend.” I turned to Declan. “This is my best friend, Roan. Please be nice to him. He’s family to me.”
“Who is this guy? He looks familiar.”
“I get that sometimes. I’m SpaceTech and have been for a long time, but I work to help ease the tension between Human and Aunare.”
Roan crossed his arms. “Ease tension? Is that a joke? After what we did to the Aunare—what we’re still doing to them—it’s a wonder they don’t slaughter us all. Must be a fun job.”
Declan let out a long sigh. “It’s not easy, that’s for sure. We’re in the middle of a very deadly chess game, and Amihan—”
I cleared my throat. Roan knew my name, but I didn’t like hearing it. The name gave me hope, and even with Declan right there, I wasn’t sure I could believe that he was going to whisk me away and everything was going to be fine and dandy in a day.
“Maité is the mother of all pawns,” Declan said.
“I don’t know if I like the comparison. I don’t want to be some piece that could be moved around and played.” That turned me into an object, and I was a person.
“I wouldn’t either if I were you, but it doesn’t change the truth.” He gave me a solid once-over that had me squirming. “You’re glowing.”
“I’m aware.” It wasn’t something anyone could miss.
“Why?”
My cheeks heated. I didn’t like to show weakness, but this was one I couldn’t hide. “I don’t know. I can’t get it to stop.”
His eyes widened. “What do you mean?”
“What do you mean what do I mean?”
“Okay. Why won’t it stop?” He said the words slowly.
Was the man being annoying on purpose? “How the hell should I know? I’m a little stressed at the moment and—”
“I’m an idiot.” He wiped a hand down his face, and when he looked back at me, his mouth dropped open slightly. He finally understood. “You were never taught how to control it. You don’t even know what it means, do you?”
“No. It’s not like there are any Aunare around that I can ask, and I can’t trust any information that SpaceTech puts out.”
“You can’t hide when you look like that.” He was stating the obvious, but at least he was getting it.
“Exactly. I can’t leave here. I’m stuck. Usually working out helps, but apparently not tonight.”
“What do you do when your skin starts glowing out there?” He motioned toward the door.
He wasn’t wrong to be surprised. It was kind of a miracle I’d survived this long.
No part of surviving had been easy for me. “I learned to cover all my body parts whenever I’m in public, so it’s just my hands and face I have to worry about. If I start glowing, I shove my hoodie over my head, use my hair as a shield, keep my head down, and stick my hands in my pockets. All while moving as fast as possible to a safe place.” I stared off at nothing.
This whole conversation made me feel too exposed. I didn’t like that my skin was giving away my feelings, and I didn’t like talking about my feelings to a stranger. Even one that I trusted. The g
low gave too much of it away, and talking about my survival methods just seemed odd to me.
“It used to happen only once in a blue moon, but it’s been getting worse the last year or so. But I’m on edge. I’m going to keep working out, and it’ll stop.” Declan tilted his head as I said that, and my heart sank. He said he’d be keeping an eye on me, which meant that he knew I’d been here, working out, for over five hours. “It has to stop, right? Eventually?”
“No. It actually doesn’t. The glow has to do with energies. I can help some, but I’m not Aunare. I don’t really understand it all.” He pointed to the desk. “I’m going to make a call. You need to talk to someone who can explain it to you better than me. Just need a second, and I’ll get it connected.”
He went to the desk and placed three small devices on it. I wasn’t sure if he wanted privacy for the call or if he just needed the desk for the devices, but I was going with the latter.
I walked toward him. “What are those?”
“I need to make an untraceable, off-the-grid call. This will help me do that.”
“Is it safe?”
He gave me a fierce look. “I would never do anything that would put you in danger.” His voice was firm but had a tinge of hurt in it. He was mad that I would even question that, but what he didn’t get was that I always had to make sure.
I let out a breath. “Okay.”
“But, as I said, you need more help than I can give. You need to talk to another Aunare.” He powered them up and started tapping his fingers in the air. “Hey.”
“Is there a problem?” A rich voice came through the line. He sounded worried, but the voice—the timbre and texture of it—sent shivers through my body, and I’d pay my hard-earned money to listen to the man talk all day.
I’d thought that Declan’s voice was nice, but this one was out of this world.
I almost laughed at that thought. Whoever he was, he was out of this world. Literally.
“No problem. At least not how you mean,” Declan said.
“What does that mean? Did you find her? Is she okay? What’s—”
“She’s here with me now. She’s fine. I’m—”
