“What you must,” Origin said, turning from us now. “But remember what I told you,” he said over his shoulder. “Never let any of them change you or make you less than what you are.”
He walked back to the shadow of his water dish, signaling the end of the conversation. Derrick stood, but I still sat there, staring blankly at the tank.
“We better get back,” Derrick said, his voice still revealing no emotion, but his words woke me up.
“Yes.”I stood and pressed my fingers against the glass. I had an unexplainable feeling that this might be the last time I would see Origin. “Thank you,” I whispered and left.
Chapter Nineteen
Double Death
Derrick is my match. Derrick is my match. Origin’s words played over and over in my mind as we left the lab. But I love Ray. Ray is everything to me. Nathan stood still keeping a watch out for any other scarb in the darkness beyond the doorway. I was sure they wouldn’t be too happy about us knocking a guard unconscious to pay a visit to Origin. And now we knew the truth: We’d been made scarb to drastically expand the colony. The queen knew I was capable of reproduction after I was Changed, and she was going to try to use me to make more scarb. With Derrick.
“What did you learn?” Nathan asked as we made our way back up the dark hallways to our dormitory.
“Just that I should be careful not to let this queen control me,” I answered, careful to leave out the part about Derrick being my mate. I refused to let it even enter my thoughts now that I was with my brother.
“We should tell the others,” Derrick said lowly as we ducked into the spacious hall that led to our quarters.
“Yes,” I agreed. “Let’s wake them up. And then we’re getting out of here.”
Nathan paused at our door, his eyes wide. “Getting out of here? How? I’m sure they won’t just let us leave.”
“Good point.”
“I have an idea,” Derrick said.
I was glad he did, because my idea was just to run out of there as fast as I could. But Nathan was right; we probably wouldn’t make it too far that way. Someone was bound to discover the unconscious guard, and then they’d be after us.
Inside the dorm, the guys woke up Officer Reynolds, Gray, Travis, and Jorge, and I knocked on Mrs. Weatherstone’s door. We all gathered around the coffee table.
“What the blazes is going on?” Officer Reynolds asked, rubbing his temples. “Someone tell me that the Raiders won the Super Bowl, or I’m going back to bed.”
“Yeah,” Travis grunted, his large, barbed arms crossed over his big chest.
Derrick quickly explained what we had learned from Origin, though he left out the part about him and me being matched. Thank heavens. When he was done, Officer Reynold’s dark eyes narrowed. Mrs. Weatherstone came and took my arm.
“Oh, you poor thing,” she told me. “You must be so scared. So much pressure on you!”
I was shocked that she thought it was right what Emerald was doing. “We’re not staying,” I said defiantly. “We’ve got to get out of here, now.”
Deep concern creased her brows. “But where would we go? Honey, we’re scarb now. It’s a dangerous world out there.” She waved her arms at whatever lay beyond the walls of the colony. “Saki has told us about rogue bands of scarb that will kill us just as quickly as if we were still human. And there are the other colonies to worry about. Queens don’t take lightly to others trespassing on their territory.”
“Yes,” Officer Reynolds agreed. “The colony offers us protection.”He took Mrs. Weatherstone by the other arm and pulled her close in a sheltering embrace.
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
“So, you’re okay that they’re just using us?” Nathan asked, clearly baffled, as well.
Officer Reynolds face was hard. “They could have killed us, but they didn’t. They gave us a chance at a new life.”
“All they care about is winning their pathetic wars!” Nathan’s voice rose. “And what they want to do with Cat? It’s sick!”
Mrs. Weatherstone was gentle when she spoke. “I can see how that would upset you. You are very young. We must all learn to deal with the changes and challenges that life brings us. The colony has been good to us. They have given us everything we could need and never asked anything in return.”
“Except for us to be slaves!” Nathan scoffed. “You think they’ll take it well when Cat tells them she won’t breed their army? Jack already told her that they would have killed her already if she couldn’t make more baby scarb. Sounds pretty generous to me!”
“The point is”—Derrick stepped in closer to the group—“we are leaving. We wanted to give you the opportunity to do the same.”
Mrs. Weatherstone looked unsure. “I don’t know, honey,” she said, putting her hand again on my arm. “Are you sure you don’t want to just stay here and see how it goes? It might not be as bad as you’re making it out to be.”
“I’m sure,” I replied.
Officer Reynolds stared at a space on the wall over my head, his face scrunched up in thought. “I’m going to stay,” he finally said. “I’ve lived my entire life fighting one battle after another. I finally have a chance to live out the rest of my days in comfort.”
“And all it costs you is your freedom,” Nathan said lowly, clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth.
“I’ll stay, too,” Mrs. Weatherstone said, standing by Officer Reynolds. My heart hurt. I liked Mrs. Weatherstone. She had always been so kind to me, even motherly. Why would she choose to stay here when she knew what they were trying do with me?
“What about you, Gray?” Nathan asked his friend.
“Absolutely, I’m with you,” he said, putting his hand on Nate’s shoulder.
“Jorge? Travis?” Derrick said, turning to them. “It’s your choice.”
Travis rubbed at the brown stubble on his chin. “What will we do after we get out of here?”
“No clue,” Derrick answered.
“Sounds like a plan to me. I’m in.”
“Me, too,” Jorge chimed.
Without Mrs. Weatherstone and Office Reynolds, that made six of us. I looked at them in the dim light: the turquoise streaks in her hair, the rippling chest muscles he sported. They were scarb now, through and through.
“All right,” Derrick said with finality. “Travis, Jorge, and I have seen the exits here and I can tell you that there’s no way we can get out without being seen. There are at least eight guards posted at each, twenty-four-seven.”
“So how do we get out?” I asked. “The atrium?”I remembered the large open windows that led to the world outside.
Nathan disagreed. “The windows are at least a hundred feet up in the air. I hate to break it to you, sis, but you ain’t got no wings.”He gave his a little flap. “There’s no way you can get up there, and we’re not strong enough yet to carry you.”
“Or even fly up there ourselves,” Gray added.
“We take the underground tunnel,” Derrick said lowly.
I’d never heard of any underground tunnel, but then again, I’d spent most of my time stuck in a lab with a bunch of dusty papers. “It’s not guarded?” I asked.
“No,” Derrick said with a little smile. “It’s in the subterranean level. Just to the right of the waterfall. I noticed it there the other night. And because of the water, there won’t be any scarb.”
I wondered again why he was going down to the cavern all by himself, but considering the options, it seemed like a good plan.
“Excellent,” Nathan said, excitement glinting in his eyes.
It was a little terrifying leaving the colony. Where will we go? Back to the island? The humans will kill us. Other scarb will kill us. What will we eat? How will we find safety? But I knew that no matter what lay in the world outside, it was better than staying in the colony. Ray wasn’t there. I had to hope he was outside the colony. And still alive.
“Let’s
go,” Derrick said when were all gathered again. He led the way out of the dormitory, pausing and using the connection to check if any scarb were out, but the halls were dark and quiet. Maybe we can slip out of here unnoticed.
Our steps against the marble floors sounded like gunfire in my ears, no matter how hard we tried to keep them quiet. Ten minutes later, we scurried across the earthen opening into the underground cavern. I sensed no scarb in it. Again, it was entirely void of light. We used our hands against the rocky wall for guidance and headed toward the sound of the waterfall. With each step, my heart rejoiced. We were going to make it!
Soft spray dampened my arms and face. The waterfall had to be close. Just a little farther.
Suddenly, bright lights blinded us from above. Scarb flooded the cavern and blocked us from the waterfall. Why didn’t I sense them? It’s the waterfall, I realized. I blinked, trying to force my eyes to adjust. Jack stood at the forefront of the soldiers, Saki beside him. The rest of the scarb were strangers, most of them large and bullish.
“You thought you could escape so easily?” Jack said, stepping toward us and clicking his antennae disapprovingly. “I told you, the colony created you for a specific purpose. Leaving isn’t an option.”
“Origin told us all about your reasons for keeping us here,” Derrick spat back. “We aren’t going to be your slaves. Let us go.”
“Not possible,” Jack said solidly.
Nathan stepped forward. “And who’s going to stop us?” he huffed. “You’re no soldier, and we can take this pathetic excuse of a guard you have here.”
Saki put her hands together in a prayer position. “Please, let’s not fight. We’re here to talk about this, to reason with you. There’s still a lot you don’t understand. We can teach you.”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Derrick returned. “Now, let us pass.” His deep growl rang through the cave. He flexed the black barbs of his elbows.
Jack threw his hands up in the air, and he and Saki stepped to the left, out of the way of the guard. “You have your orders. Take them.”
The soldiers charged us.
“Get to the passage on the left side of the falls,” Derrick said to my mind. “I’ll keep them off you.”
I wanted to protest I wasn’t going without them, but there wasn’t time. Two large brown scarb with tan crests on their heads reached us first. Derrick was a whirl of slashing barbs. More soldiers ran for us, pinning us in a tight circle. Nathan, Gray, Jorge, and Travis fought on all sides around me, leaving me protected in the middle like an island. I felt a light tingling sensation on my knuckles. The blue barbs extended, ready to fight. I looked at the others, struggling against the scarb. I should help.
“Go, Cat! Now!”Derrick’s voice cut into my thoughts sharply.
But then I saw a glint of bright red hair in the throng of scarb. Iva. It had to be her. Who else had hair like that?
I barreled forward into the throng of scarb. A soldier lunged at me from the right, but I pushed him back with a sharp sidekick. I smashed the nose of another with a jab of my elbow. The crowd parted a crack, and I saw her, coming right for me. Her light-green wings beat to the rhythm of her marching steps. Her eyes were as cold as emeralds.
I’ve found her. Now, I’ll get my answers. Revenge won’t hurt, either. Nathan knocked a scarb to the ground. I jumped over his body, feeling like an arrow in flight. My feet hit the ground, and I sprinted toward her. She flew up into the air, and though I jumped at least eight feet off the ground, she was still out of my reach. A second flier joined her, this one a large male with peculiar red wings and red eyes. They began circling me from above. We were just feet from the falls. The mist dampened my hair, and I brushed the wet blonde strands from my eyes.
“Cat!” Nathan cried.
Suddenly, both scarb dove for me, arms outstretched for a deathly embrace. Iva came for me head on, the male from the left. I could have fended off one, but not both. Then, from the corner of my eye, another scarb launched into the air, just a flash of blond hair and muscle. Derrick. He collided with the male scarb in mid-air, sending them both crashing to the wet rocks surrounding the pool.
In my distraction, Iva’s fists bashed my collar bone, and I hit the ground so hard, I felt that it would crack beneath me. She landed on top of me but rolled quickly off to the left. I was on my feet faster than my breath could catch up with me. Scarb struggled all around us, but they all seemed to fade away so that it was just her and me.
“That’s it!” I growled and leapt at her throat. I found the skin of her neck before she was able to take flight again. I threw her to the ground and pinned her chest under my knee. I stabbed her throat. Trickles of her clear blood ran down the sharp blue barbs on my knuckles. She hissed and struggled to get up, but I slammed her head back down against the hard rock.
“Tell. Me. Where. Ray. Is.” I punched each word with a tightening of my hands.
Derrick and the red-winged flier fought by the water. Water sprayed us and made Iva’s skin slick, but I wasn’t going to let her go. There was a deep splash from the pool. Iva’s eyes flashed over to the pool, and her face filled with fear.
“Bram!” she yelled, a deep blood-chilling scream.
The bright lights silhouetted Derricks back as he crouched at the edge of the rocks, holding another scarb down into the water. One wet red wing came up from the drowning scarb, before it went down with another splash.
“Please,” she said, looking back at me with horrible desperation in her eyes. “Please let me save him.” An image slipped from her frantic mind, and I saw her and the red-winged scarb kissing deeply. This was her lover. Derrick was killing.
“Please, Cat.”
The water gurgled and splashed. Derrick grunted with the effort of keeping the flier submerged.
There was no way I would let her save him. The scarb were trying to enslave us. But I could feel the love she had for him burning in my own heart. Why am I so confused? “You didn’t show mercy to the man I loved,” I spat back at her as the flier thrashed about in the water. “Why should I help you?”
She closed her mouth, resolve settling into the lines of her face. Her lover gave one last gurgling cry, and then the water stilled. A single tear streamed out of her closed eyes. It glimmered like silver before it ran off her chin onto my clenched fingers. “I can’t let him go.”
Her words stabbed at my heart. It pierced through my fear, my resentment, my hate. I felt her pain as if it were my own, and I knew how horrible it was to have to let someone go. I grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. “Go,” I said. Like a streak of red lighting, she flew to the edge of the pool and dove into the water. The battle was still thick and none of the other scarb were watching as the flier’s body sank down with the pull of the falls. Derrick made to go after Iva, but I put a hand on his chest. “Don’t,” I said. Iva’s hair waved in the current like red ribbons as she went down.
Is it suicide, then? A double death of lovers? She had to be at least eight feet deep now. A watery grave.
But then, her arms sprang to life, wrapping themselves around the body of her lover. She kicked her legs ferociously and jetted out of the pool with a burst of water. She climbed out onto the rocks and pulled him up beside her. She’s alive! How did she not die? But his body was completely stiff. Is he still alive, too? He couldn’t be. No scarb could survive that much water, but the water seemed to have no effect on Iva.
Iva put her palms on either side of his head and kissed him.
“Bram, please come back,” she whispered. His chest rose, and she exhaled, then looked up as if suddenly aware of us again. Quickly, she heaved his massive body into her arms, and began to flap her damp wings. I couldn’t believe she could hold him.
Her green eyes were on me. “Don’t tell anyone I’m a swimmer.” With a mighty beat of her wings, she lifted her lover into the air and flew out of the cavern.
More scarb surround Derrick and me. M
y arms twisted sharply behind me before I could even blink. Two massive guards held me.
“Grahhh!” They had Derrick as well.
I tried to smash their noses with the back of my head, but their arms were long and they held me back.
“Don’t fight,” Jack’s voice said as he reappeared amongst the guard. Saki came beside him, looking sad. Someone had cut a deep gash in her check. Scarb got Nathan and the others too. My heart sank. We’d barely gotten to the waterfall, hadn’t even made it to the passageway, and now it was all over.
“You need to learn to mind the queen,” Jack said, turning to each of us. “There is an order here in the colony. You will learn to follow. The queen has ordered you to the dungeons.” They clasped our hands in handcuffs and forced us out of the cavern. We were taken through a door at the bottom of the hall. Steep stone steps led us downward several flights. We were deep into the earth. The air was musty and rank, like fresh air was a foreign concept. Down we went.
Chapter Twenty
The Queen
“Cat, are you awake?” Nathan’s voice called to my mind. He was two cells down from mine.
“Of course I’m awake,” I answered him, not caring that the guards or any of the others could undoubtedly hear my conversation with my brother. “How could anyone sleep on this blasted cold floor?”
The entire space was excavated out of rock and earth. Iron bars kept us contained in cells less than fifty feet square. Seven burly guards watched us. It was only by the light of their dim, bluish lanterns that we could see at all. We were the only occupants in the prison. All the other cells were dark and quiet. “Emerald probably doesn’t keep prisoners for long,” Derrick guessed. We’d already been stuck there for several long hours.
The ground beneath me was stiff and frozen as winter. There was no cot, nothing to sit on. “You’ll stay here until the queen determines what to do with you,” Jack told us, before he left with the others. That’s all we had to go on. It didn’t feel like much.
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