Phoenix

by Elizabeth Richards

Day gasps. “Natalie!”

  She points toward the house. It takes me a moment to realize what I’m looking at through the smoke, and then I see it.

  Painted on the side of the house is a bright red rose.

  8.

  NATALIE

  “POLLY! POLLY!” I yell.

  Ash holds me back, and I kick and whale against him like a wild animal. I know the symbol is a message for me. Purian Rose has taken Polly. Sebastian’s words ring in my head: Just know it could’ve been prevented. They never intended to kill me. I make these little hiccupping sounds until my chest hurts.

  “Why won’t Rose leave us alone?” I say.

  “Because we’re a threat,” Ash replies.

  “But Polly wasn’t a threat. MJ wasn’t a threat!” I say. “Why should they suffer because of something you did?”

  Ash flinches.

  I regret the words as soon as they fall out of my mouth.

  “I didn’t mean that,” I say.

  “It’s true, though.”

  I pull away from Ash, my whole body shaking with rage at the Sentry. They took my sister, they tried to kill MJ. Who else will they hurt to get back at us? A name suddenly springs into my mind.

  “Harold!” I exclaim.

  What better way to punish Ash than to kill his father? We push our way through the crowds of people trying to put out the fire, and sprint through the streets until we reach the Ivy Church.

  We burst through the front door.

  “Dad!” Ash yells.

  Harold comes rushing out of the kitchen and goes pale when he sees us.

  “Oh, my heavens! What happened?”

  We tell him about the house fire, about Polly and MJ and the rose symbol. When we’re done, I collapse in a kitchen chair, utterly drained. Ash tentatively rubs my back. I lift my head up to face him, tears in my eyes. It strikes me how gaunt he’s looking, with deep shadows under his sharp cheekbones, the stress of the past two months catching up with him. I wonder when he last ate something.

  “I really am sorry for what I said earlier, about this being your fault,” I say. “It’s not.”

  “It is, in a way.” Ash lowers his lashes. “Rose told me he was going to take ‘Miss Buchanan.’ It didn’t even occur to me it could be your sister.”

  “Did Purian Rose tell you what he had planned for her?” I say quietly.

  “No,” he says, not looking at me.

  He’s lying, but maybe it’s best I don’t know.

  Harold fetches Ash a sachet of Synth-O-Blood from the fridge and makes me a cup of herbal tea. I stare at the tea leaves drifting down to the bottom of the cup, thinking about Polly. She must be so scared. Another sob escapes my lips. Ash cradles me in his arms as Harold goes to get Day and her family. The front door closes. We’re alone.

  “Am I a bad person, Ash?” I say.

  “Why would you think that?”

  “Because my whole family has been taken away from me,” I say. “My father was killed, Polly’s been kidnapped, and I have no idea where my mother is. It’s too much.”

  He hooks a finger under my chin, tilting my face up to meet his. “We’ll get through this.” He kisses me softly, trying to take the pain away. It works for a while, like a dam holding back the tides, but the second he breaks the kiss, it all comes flooding back, worse than before.

  “I wish my mother were here,” I whisper. “She’d know what to do.”

  Ash’s arms tighten around me, but he says nothing.

  Thirty minutes later, Harold returns with the others. He helps Michael bring MJ into the church on a makeshift stretcher while Day carries the few charred possessions they’ve managed to salvage from the wreckage. Our whole lives fit into one bag. I briefly think about the birthday gifts I was given yesterday. They would have gone up in flames along with the house. I lightly touch the pendant around my neck, grateful that I never took it off. It’s covered in soot, but it seems intact.

  They bring MJ into Harold’s bedroom and make him comfortable, and everyone sorts out where they’re going to sleep now that we’re homeless. We all get comfortable while Sumrina clatters about the tiny kitchen, the bustle of her cerulean dress knocking into our chairs as she moves about. She manages to find an old apron tucked in the back of one of the cupboards and ties it around her wide hips. Rolling up her sleeves, she sweeps her silken black hair up into a bun and starts making dinner, despite Harold’s protests. She seems to need the distraction.

  Michael finishes setting up the beds downstairs and reenters the kitchen. The small room doesn’t have any of the homeyness that our kitchen did. There’s no floral wallpaper, no smell of bread baking in the oven, no woman’s touch, but that’s hardly surprising, since only Harold and Ash live here, and it’s not like Ash has any real need for a kitchen—he can’t eat human food.

  Day sits beside me. “We’ll find her, Nat.”

  I take in a shaky breath.

  “At least she’s alive—that’s something to hold on to,” Day continues.

  I don’t say anything. There’s no guarantee my sister is alive.

  Night starts to creep in through the windows, and the air-raid siren wails across the city, letting us know curfew has started. Harold lights some candles while Day phones Beetle to tell him what happened. The instant he arrives, he begins a tirade about how he’s going to kill every single Sentry in the country for what they did. Right now, that sounds like a really good idea. I want them to suffer too.

  “I’ve already put the word out around Humans for Unity to look for her,” Beetle says. “They’re sending out teams as we speak.”

  “I want to join them,” I say.

  “Me too,” Ash replies.

  “No way,” Beetle says firmly. “There are Sentry guards swarming all over the place, and it’s after curfew. The last thing we need is for you both to get arrested. We’re taking care of it.”

  I sigh, frustrated. But he’s right.

  Everyone offers suggestions of where we should look for Polly while Sumrina serves dinner. I don’t join in the conversation, knowing in my heart we won’t find Polly in Black City; I somehow doubt Purian Rose would risk keeping her so close by. She’s probably on a Transporter to Centrum by now. A terrible, aching pain balls up in my chest, and I push my plate aside, my appetite lost.

  “How are Sigur and the other Darklings doing?” Harold asks Beetle.

  “Not so good,” Beetle replies. “There was a lot of shouting, a lot of tears. Roach is still with them, trying to work out what to do next. They were hoping to see—”

  THUD!

  There’s a smash of slate tiles as something heavy lands on the church roof, making us all start. It’s quickly followed by a scratching, scuffling sound as the animal—or person—slides down the side. There’s a moment’s silence, then another thud as whatever it is hits the gravel pavement outside.

  “What the fragg . . . ?” Ash says, kicking back his chair.

  I grab a knife and follow him through the church.

  Ash yanks open the front door. “Who’s there? Show yourself!”

  A teenage boy emerges from the shadows, his gold wristbands glinting as he raises his hands. He’s dressed in a leather vest and pants, which match the color of his dark russet hair. I gasp, instantly recognizing him. It would be hard to forget a boy with a long tail and markings like a cheetah’s down the sides of his face, neck and flanks. It’s the Bastet I rescued from the laboratory in Sentry headquarters more than two months ago!

  A lazy smile plays over his sensuous lips as he leans against the door frame.

  “Hello, Natalie,” he says. “I bet you didn’t expect to see me again so soon.”

  I lower my knife.

  “And you are . . . ?” Ash says.

  “Elijah Theroux,” he replies, turning his topaz eyes back on me.
“Natalie and I go way back, don’t we, pretty girl?”

  My cheeks burn with shame, remembering how I found him in Dr. Craven’s laboratory, chained up, naked and bruised. The scientist had been draining Elijah’s venom to use in the Golden Haze.

  “What are you doing here?” I ask.

  “I have a proposition for you.” He casually studies his nails. “What would you give for a weapon so powerful, it could bring down the Sentry and end the war between our races?”

  “Erm, pretty much anything,” I reply.

  “Good.” He smirks. “Because I happen to know one exists. I just need your help to get it.”

  9.

  ASH

  THIRTY MINUTES LATER, we’ve all converged in the nave of the church. The pews have been moved to create a square of seats, with the kitchen table in the center. Day is perched on Beetle’s lap on the bench to my left, while Natalie is sitting between me and Amy. The Jones sisters arrived a few minutes ago, along with Stuart, who is chatting to Dad about a new camera lens he bought. They’re on the pew to my right. All of Day’s family has gone to bed, and we’re just waiting for the others to arrive before starting the meeting.

  Natalie rests her head on my shoulder, lost in thought. I know she’s thinking about Polly; she’s on my mind as well. I’m at a loss over what to do. We’ll search for her at dawn, after curfew is lifted, but where do we even begin to look?

  Although everyone is worried about Polly, there’s also excitement in the air about the prospect of a weapon that can take down the Sentry government. Elijah strolls around the church, curling his lip as he runs his fingers through the dust coating the pews. Amy giggles slightly when his tail brushes past her legs as he walks by, rubbing his scent on her, marking his territory. I scrunch my nose up, able to smell the offensive musk from here. The humans don’t seem to notice it, though. He sighs, and sits on the table in front of us.

  “I’ve never met a Bastet before,” Amy says shyly. “Where are you from?”

  “Viridis, in the Emerald State,” he says. “My dad’s the Consul, so I live in the embassy with my family and the rest of the senate.” He leans toward Amy, a cocky smile on his lips. “I’m famous among my people, you know?”

  Amy blushes.

  “Maybe I’ll take you there, one day,” he continues. “We don’t get many humans visiting the city. Certainly not ones as pretty as you.”

  She turns beetroot red. From across the table, Juno glares at Elijah. She’s very protective of her little sister.

  There’s a knock at the door, and Roach, Sigur, Logan and Garrick enter the church, dressed in hooded robes. My dad quickly introduces them to Elijah. The two Darklings scowl at the Bastet as they cross the room, and I understand what they’re feeling. I’m sensing it too—a twisting, seething hatred toward him, like snakes writhing in my belly. It’s our basic instinct to distrust Bastets, since they’re the Darklings’ natural predator.

  “So how do you and Natalie know each other, Elijah?” Day asks, pushing her glasses up her nose.

  He tenses up.

  “Elijah was being held captive in Sentry headquarters,” Natalie answers. “I helped him escape.”

  “She saved my life,” he says quietly. “I owe her everything.”

  Why did she never tell me any of this?

  “You’re looking much better,” Natalie says.

  “Thanks. My mom’s been taking care of me back in Viridis.” A dark emotion crosses his eyes. “Well, she was, until she went missing.”

  “Oh my God, what happened?” Natalie takes his hand. Jealousy stirs inside me at the sight.

  “My mom went to fetch the Ora—that’s the name of the weapon,” Elijah says. “She was supposed to call me every day to let me know she was safe, but the last time she got in touch was three days ago. I think she’s been captured by the Sentry.” He looks directly at me. “That’s why I’m here. I don’t just need your help to find the weapon; I need your help to find her.”

  Natalie catches my eye. We’ve both lost our moms recently—mine was murdered, and hers is on the run from the law, so we can understand what he’s going through.

  “What makes you think I can help you find them?” I reply.

  “Have you heard of the Four Kingdoms?” he asks.

  “I have,” Sigur answers. “They were a rebel group who wanted to overthrow the Sentry government and replace it with a democratic system that represented all four races. They were highly radical in their methods, even by my standards.” He looks at me. “Your aunt Lucinda was a member.”

  “She was?” I say, surprised.

  “Yes, and so was my mom,” Elijah says.

  “I thought the group had disbanded after the incident at the Black City waterworks,” Sigur says.

  “They did,” Elijah replies. “But then a week and a half ago, my mom received this.”

  He takes out a folded piece of paper from his pocket and lays it on the table in front of us. It’s the remains of a letter, which has been torn up, then crudely stuck back together. It’s stained in places, obscuring some of the words.

  “Immediately after receiving the letter, my mom packed a bag and left Viridis,” Elijah continues. “She wouldn’t tell me where she was going, saying it was too dangerous for me to know.”

  “What are these stains?” Day asks, picking up the letter.

  “Medical waste,” Elijah says, and Day drops the letter and hurriedly wipes her hands on her pants. “My mom works in a laboratory—she’s a geneticist. She tore up the letter after reading it, and threw the remains into the waste container. I managed to salvage what I could after she left.”

  “I’m still not sure how you think I can help,” I admit.

  “Look who it’s from,” he says.

  “Luci. So?”

  “As in your aunt, Lucinda Coombs.” His golden eyes light up with hope. “I thought you might know where she went to meet my mom.”

  I shake my head, really confused. “It can’t be from my aunt. She died in the Barren Lands during the war.” I look at Sigur. “Right?”

  “It’s possible she survived,” he admits.

  This is news to me! “Why wouldn’t she contact us if she were still alive?”

  Sigur looks at my dad.

  “What is it?” I say.

  “Lucinda is angry at us both,” Sigur replies.

  “Why?”

  “Early on in the war, Lucinda came to me and told me about her plan to release a deadly virus into the city’s water system. She asked for my help,” Sigur explains. “Obviously, I refused. Our war was with the Sentry, not the Workboots.”

  Logan tenses, and I wonder if she disagreed with that decision.

  “I went to Natalie’s father, General Buchanan, and told him about her plan,” Sigur continues. “He stopped the attack, but Lucinda’s Blood Mate, Niall, was killed. After being interrogated, she was sent to the Barren Lands to perish with the other Darklings.”

  I feel a rush of anger toward Sigur for betraying my aunt like that, but at the same time I know he did the right thing. The Workboots aren’t our enemy; they suffered at the hands of Purian Rose almost as much as we did during the war. Just ask Beetle, Juno and Amy, who were all orphaned when their parents were killed in the air raids. Still, it’s little wonder Lucinda hates him so much.

  “And what about you?” I say to my dad. “What did you do that made her so mad, she hasn’t been in contact with us?”

  “It’s complicated.”

  “Try me,” I say.

  He sighs. “I wasn’t always a minister, son. When I first met your mom, I was a Sentry guard.”

  “What?” I sputter. “You’re a Sentry?”

  Why did Dad never tell me this? Come to think of it, he’s never really spoken about his parents. I thought they were dead. Is this why? Is he ashamed of
them? Or is it because they’re ashamed of me?

  “Lucinda couldn’t forgive your mom for marrying me, so they lost touch,” Dad says.

  I rake my fingers through my hair. This is a lot to take in.

  “This is all very enlightening, but I’d like to hear more about the weapon,” Roach interjects. “What precisely is the Ora?”

  We all look at Elijah.

  “It’s weaponized yellowpox,” he replies, and there are a few stunned gasps from around the room. Yellowpox is one of the deadliest viruses in the world. “Well, I’m pretty sure that’s what it is. I only got hold of the letter after my mom left, so I couldn’t ask her about it.”

  I frown. “Then how do you know it’s yellowpox?”

  “I was curious to know more about the Ora, so I hacked into my mom’s laboratory computer, looking for answers,” he says. “I found some old research documents, dated around the time she was involved in the Four Kingdoms. They weren’t specifically about the Ora, but I figured it was probably a code name.”

  “Or nickname? Like how the C18-Virus is also known as the Wrath?” Day suggests.

  Elijah nods. “I discovered my mom had been researching yellowpox, and more specifically how to create a strain of the virus that would only target those with the v-gene—”

  “Like the Trackers!” Day says.

  The v-gene helps humans sense Darklings and is quite rare; only about 6 percent of the population has it, and most of those are from Sentry heritage, like Natalie and—as it turns out—me as well.

  “And you think your mother succeeded in creating this new strain of the virus?” Logan asks.

  He nods. “But after the incident at the waterworks, and Lucinda’s arrest, my mom fled to Viridis to seek refuge with the Bastets, so I guess they never got to complete the project.”

  “But now that Lucinda is back, they’re hoping to finish what they started?” Sigur says.

  “Yeah, that’s what I think,” Elijah says. “It fits—it’s a weapon that can bring down the Sentry, but with limited casualties, since it only targets those with the v-gene. Also, why else would Lucinda need my mom’s expertise if it wasn’t for this?”