“It doesn’t matter,” he whispered to himself. He knew she might win today, but Creed would never allow it, and even if a miracle happened, he couldn’t ask his team to lose for her sake.
Down on the sphere’s floor, Perryn peeked up at the observation booth. She could see Willis standing there staring down at her. He didn’t look good.
“What’s up with Willis?” Dex followed her gaze.
“I don’t know, but that’s not important. You guys clear on what we’re going to do?”
“Yeah.” Amber nodded.
“Gotcha,” Dex said smiling.
At least I’ve got him in a good mood. It’s going to take more than that to win, though.
She turned to watch as the doors opened to reveal the Gold Team. For a split second, she didn’t recognize any of them besides Joanne. Lacey, Starr, and Cleo stood shoulder to shoulder talking about the track without looking at each other. No nail polish. No make-up. They’d each pulled their hair back tightly into a bun to match Joanne’s.
“What is up with the goldies?” Amber muttered.
Dex shrugged. “I guess a couple of recodings changes you.”
“They didn’t come to lose today, that’s for sure.” Perryn looked back at the observation booth to see if Willis had noticed the Gold Team.
Willis didn’t like the Gold Team’s appearance. Their obsession with themselves, which had always been their handicap, was gone. Joanne had finally won over her team, and they came ready to win.
“Stay focused, Perryn,” he whispered.
Blacc made his usual rounds harassing the runners and finished with his speech about the pride of the Alliance. The runners took their places at the gate, and the tone sounded. Both teams took off into the cylinder which slowly turned. Joanne directed her team over the closest pyramid of blocks trying to draw as straight a line as possible along the deceptively short track. Perryn, Dex, and Amber were climbing through a hole on the nearest side of the opening. It would slow them down, but Willis smiled as he realized it’d also maximize their time before the track turned them upside-down. The early lead of the goldies was erased as they were forced to hang on with their hands while Perryn and her team had extra moments on their feet. Joanne moved the girls slowly forward, encouraging them not to lose their grip. A fall would surely injure any runner enough to remove them from the race.
Having seen the first two teams, he wasn’t surprised this time at how slow the teams made progress. They had seconds on their feet until they were hanging on again. Willis’s nerves turned his stomach sour as he watched Perryn catch her team up to then lose ground as they hung in the air.
She needs a different plan. She’s using the same approach as the goldies, and they’re out performing her. He closed his eyes and breathed out a long, slow breath to will his thoughts to Perryn. When he opened them, he stared. Perryn, Dex, and Amber were hanging on the upside of the track without moving forward.
“What are you doing?” he shouted, pounding on the glass. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud, but he couldn’t contain it. “Don’t break down!”
“Perryn, we can’t beat them this way,” Amber cried out.
“She’s r-right. They’re gaining ground on us with each r-rotation.” Dex grunted as he strained not to lose his grip.
Perryn panted as she tried not to fall. Her racing heart was sinking inside. We’re not going to lose. Not again. Not now.
She watched as the Gold Team slowly moved forward. Motion in the corner of her eye caused her to glance at the opening of the cylinder. It was Willis. He was shouting something, his arms pounding at the window.
“Perryn, what do we do?” Dex pleaded. “They’re getting f-further away. I c-c-can’t hold on much longer anyway. This is getting harder each t-time we go around.”
Everything blurred in Perryn’s vision. She realized it was tears starting to seep out of her eyes. Blinking them away, she heard Dex repeat, “can’t—hold—on.”
“So don’t.” Her order received puzzled looks from her teammates. Her mind raced through the idea. It might work. “Next pass, Dex, run. Run against the turn of the cylinder. Stay on the ground moving sideways through the obstacles.”
“But what if I get caught?” he said. “What if I fall?”
“Amber and I will keep going this way, but you’re fast. Dex, maybe you can outrun them.”
“You sure?”
“No. I’m not, but if anyone has the speed to do it, it’s you.”
As soon as they came to the near side, Dex split off of the group, running as if on a treadmill uphill against the turn of the cylinder. His legs churned as his speed kept him in pace with the moving track. Perryn’s heart leapt as an opening big enough came, and Dex jumped sideways through it.
Perryn and Amber continued to move straight forward, directly chasing the Gold Team. Joanne and her team appeared exhausted, barely able to hold on until back on their feet. Dex was expending a lot of energy, but he was steadily gaining on the others.
That’s it, Dex! Perryn chanced a look away from the handle she was reaching for to see if the Gold Team had noticed Dex.
“Joanne, what’s he doing?” Cleo readjusted her grip on her handle. Joanne looked down, horror crossing her face. Dex was right below them, darting sideways anytime he saw an opportunity to move forward.
“As soon as we get down again, do what he’s doing.” Joanne said between heavy breaths.
“Dex, look out!” Perryn shouted. Starr leapt too early on the rotation, falling next to Dex. Her knees crumpled with her momentum, and the track movement flipped her over backward. Her head smacked one of the blocks, and she sat confused for a moment.
Once her feet were under her, Perryn scaled to the top of a pile of blocks and saw that Joanne and the others were copying their plan. She thrust her spent legs forward, knowing Dex’s tiny lead was their one hope. She and Amber could never catch up.
Please let him make it, she begged silently.
As she and Amber squeezed through the next small opening, she caught a glimpse of Joanne, who ran practically even with Dex.
“Run, Dex!” Perryn’s voice squeaked, unable to conjure enough breath to voice her words. Amber tripped and stepped on Perryn while trying to recover. Perryn’s ankle buckled, causing her whole body to fall forward. Their momentum and the added rotation sent both crashing into a block pillar and sliding sideways on the floor. Dazed, Perryn tried to clear her vision.
Tone.
The cylinder shuddered to a halt. The race was over. Someone had won. But who? She started to climb to her feet to see over the last several meters of obstacles.
Willis held his breath. From his view out the window he could see the starting gate and most of the inside of the cylinder. The slight downward angle prevented him from seeing the end of the track or the finish gate. Someone had finished first, and everything in him longed to peek over the administrators’ shoulders to peek at the monitors.
Instead, he closed his eyes. Please let it be Dex. Please, he repeated to himself.
“Do we have confirmation?” Blacc watched the administrators for an answer.
“All monitors and gate sensors read the same,” came the voice of a man in a laboratory coat. “They won.”
Who are ‘they?’ Willis tried unsuccessfully to control his rapid breathing.
Blacc stood motionless. He had one hand at his chin as if contemplating his next move. Willis saw the corners of his mouth turn upward and his shoulders shrug as he let out a single breath of laughter.
“All right, Red Leader.” He slowly nodded once to Willis. “Your little blue friends get to race another day. Remember to keep your mouth shut about the Alliance’s plans. I’d hate to have to come up with a reason why they’d need to forfeit this win.”
For a moment, Willis didn’t care about the Alliance’s plans. As long as Blue Team wasn’t eliminated, he had time to figure it out. Presently, all he could think about was reaching Perryn. He knew she would be w
earing the smile he loved so much.
Chapter Twenty-One
The quiet of the barracks’ hallways pressed in like a tomb that afternoon with both Green and Gold teams in recoding. Willis could hardly stand the wait outside Perryn’s quarters. The three members of Blue Team had celebrated briefly before Blacc ushered them off the track. Willis had missed her, and she’d retreated to her room to clean up. Now he stared at the doorway unable to stand still as he waited for her to emerge.
Schwipp. The door opened, and Perryn took a step back, a startled expression crossing her face. She smiled at him.
Willis hadn’t pondered what he would do when she came out of the room. Seeing her smile, he wanted to lift her in his arms and spin her in the air. Instead, he managed a quiet, “Hey.” To his surprise, she leapt forward and wrapped her arms around his neck.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“For what?” He pulled back enough to give her a puzzled look.
“For not letting me give up.”
“I didn’t—”
“No, I mean it.” She stepped backward. “Without your help, I think I would have crumbled into pieces at the starting line today.”
“Don’t go falling apart on me. Besides, it wasn’t me who came up with the brilliant plan to have Dex outrun the track. I hear that was all you.”
“I suppose.” Perryn glanced down at the floor, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks. She paused, taking a second to move a stray lock of hair behind her ear.
“Does Jaden know yet?”
“No, I guess I should go tell him.”
“Seriously? The guy’s probably climbing the walls wanting to know what happened!”
“Yeah, well...he isn’t the one I wanted to see first.”
“Come on.” He took her hand and led her to Jaden’s doorway down the hall. It was when they got to his door that he realized what she’d said. “Wait! Were you coming to see me?”
Schwipp! Jaden’s doorway opened. He stood there smiling, obviously glad for some company.
“Hey, guys. How’d it go?” Jaden’s eyes darted back and forth between them. The quiet corridor quickly became awkward as Perryn stared at Willis. The corners of her mouth turned upward shyly, answering his question. Jaden noticed their joined hands and smirked. “I’d say that I don’t want to interrupt, but I believe you came to my door.”
The joke broke into the moment, and both Willis and Perryn let out embarrassed laughs.
“Seriously, I’ve been in here for a half an hour since I heard you guys return.” Jaden put his hands on his hips like a scolding mother. “A guy needs to know what happened. Please tell me you come with good news.”
“Let’s just say you’re not done racing this season,” Perryn said.
“Yes!” Jaden leapt in the air and pumped his fists. He grabbed each of them on one shoulder and pulled them toward his room. “Come inside. I want every detail.”
“You’d have been unbelievably proud of her, Jaden.” Willis smiled and patted Perryn on the shoulder. “She was incredible out there. And that decision to have Dex start running—”
“That was nothing, really.” Perryn waved him off.
“Hardly.” Jaden’s ear-to-ear smile hadn’t left since they’d told him the news.
They’d been talking for an hour recounting every move of the race. Perryn told Jaden about the Gold Team’s appearance, the cylindrical track, and her fear when she and Amber had fallen. Willis wouldn’t let her get away without telling Jaden about her leadership.
“All I did was make a quick decision. I had no idea what to do.”
“But that’s leadership, Perr.” Jaden leaned forward.
Willis nodded his approval. “Don’t sell yourself short.”
“Whatever.” She looked down and ran a hand through her hair, a slight flush appearing on her cheeks.
“Seriously, friend,” Jaden responded soberly. “You are made to lead. I think you’re going to do something great one day.”
“Gotta get out of this place first.”
“Yeah.” Jaden whispered loudly as he pretended to lean in to tell a secret. “But we can’t discuss our top-secret plans to win it all with the opposing team present.”
Willis sat up straight trying to appear as serious as possible, which was difficult with the laughter welling up inside him. “If I’m not welcome here, I’ll leave.”
Jaden snorted, not quite stifling a laugh.
“Speaking of getting out of here.” Perryn suddenly sat up straight. “When are you free to leave your quarters?”
“I’m a free man.” Jaden smiled. “With the elimination race done, the month is officially over. Lunch anyone?”
“Yes. I’m starving.” Perryn held her stomach in both hands.
“Me too.” The tension of the race gone, Willis realized how hungry he was. “I need to stop by my room for my notes, though.”
“Do you ever stop training?” Jaden softened the question with a smile.
“You see, there’s this new upstart team threatening to win it all.”
Willis smiled. Perryn started to giggle. Jaden snorted again before a fit of laughter overtook him.
“I’ll be minute if you want to wait here,” Willis said. They were in the main corridor near the mess hall. Willis moved toward the red barracks.
“Nah. We’ll walk with you,” Jaden offered. “Besides, it’s not every day that I get to peer into the quarters of the red leader.” At this he waved his hands next to his head as if in awe.
“I’m sure your life will be forever changed,” Willis shot back, smiling.
Willis walked ahead of the other two down the hallway. The red lights appeared unfriendly to him after their time in Jaden’s quarters, and Willis was momentarily saddened that his home was separated from theirs. He was about to say something to that effect when he saw her.
The woman stood in the same shadows she’d been in before. She was wearing the same ragged uniform, and her hair was falling out as if she’d been working for hours. In fact, her appearance could have been a memory had Willis not noticed the healing wound on her left temple.
Willis’s feet froze as she stepped into the light. She looked him in the eye with a note of longing in her gaze. It was when her eyes shifted to glance behind him that Willis remembered that Jaden and Perryn were still with him.
“Who are you?” Perryn’s voice was barely audible. She placed her hand on Willis’s shoulder.
The woman didn’t answer. Her eyes studied Perryn’s face and moved to Perryn’s hand. She turned once more, this time to look at Jaden who had stepped forward to Willis’s other side.
“And here I was thinking she’d end up with you, Son,” she whispered, her voice sounding tired.
Son? Willis repeated to himself. He glanced at Jaden who wore a warm expression on his face as he looked at the woman.
“Mother, you need to be more careful. You shouldn’t be out here.”
Mother? Willis’s mind raced. This is Jaden’s—mother?
“My boy,” her gaze softened, “you told me these were the two people on the station that you trusted.”
“I do.” He smiled. “Someone else could come by at any moment. But—it’s good to see you, Mom.” Jaden stepped forward and embraced the woman. She appeared so small next to the much taller Jaden.
“I got your message. Did you get mine?” She cocked her head to the side. Willis realized she was addressing him.
“Message?” He pointed to himself.
“Wait, you’ve met her?” Perryn’s eyes widened.
Willis nodded. “Once. I’m not sure I can say we met. What did you mean by ‘message’?” He turned back to the woman.
“The tear in your uniform. It was in a place that wouldn’t casually tear. That journalist told you about us, and you wanted to know if she was imagining it all.”
Willis brushed the repair on his uniform with a finger. “And so, you answered.”
“We are here, Willis.
We’re all over the station.”
“We?” Perryn was still catching up. “All over the station. What are you talking about? How many people?” She placed her hands on the side of her head as if to contain the thought.
“Workers—slaves,” Jaden said flatly. “The station is operated by hundreds of them.”
“Slaves? Since when?” Perryn stepped backward as though threatened.
“Since forever.”
“Sheila says the entire Alliance depends upon them,” Willis added.
The woman nodded slowly and frowned. The wrinkles on her face deepened with sadness.
“Mom, that was too big a risk, repairing Willis’s uniform like that.” Jaden placed a hand on his mother’s shoulder. “If the administrators found out, they would—after last time—” His voice choked for a moment. Willis saw him holding back tears.
“Son, what they did to me after the last time I showed myself,” she responded, fingering the wound on her head, “cannot change my hope. This young man could change everything.” She motioned to Willis. “They don’t want to recode him lest they risk ruining him and their near guarantee at winning, so he’s one of the few who gets to keep his memories. He can remember we exist.”
“Willis, what is she talking about? Who’s ‘we?’ Someone please explain this to me.” Perryn scanned the group with furrowed eyebrows. Willis understood. She’d been recoded almost the full one-hundred times. Who she was currently, or had been in her past, was at the mercy of doctors by this point. Any knowledge she had of slavery was gone.
“Perr, I’ll explain later,” Jaden said. “For now, Mom, you have to leave the hallway.”
“I will. I wished for him to see me one more time. Willis, you’re the hope of the Alliance, but not for the reasons they think you are. If my boy doesn’t make it to the Chase, you’re the one who can help us.”
The Chase Page 14
