“Think about it.” He resumes pacing. “We will have the strength to overthrow the Duskers…unlike those pathetic Solguards.” He spares a glance at the tattoo on my right hand. “We will usher in a new era, one in which your abilities will be celebrated rather than feared. You will no longer have to deny what you really are.” His face flushes with passion.
I open my mouth, but no sound comes out. I would no longer have to deny what I really am. I wouldn’t be the only one of my kind.
My father is watching me with narrowed eyes. “You see the brilliance of it, don’t you?” His voice is quiet now.
You’re insane, I should tell him. But instead, I find myself considering his words. What would it be like to live in a world where there were others like me? No one would ever have to die from the Burn or Halve blood poison again.
What would it be like to walk through a crowd and not hear whispers and feel their fear as if it was some living thing? Maybe then Brice would have been free to love me as I was, and not because of what my father promised him….
“What makes you think any of them—any of us—would follow you? Anyone with my strength wouldn’t follow an ordinary human like you.”
Something dark passes across my father’s features before his face becomes impassive again. “That is why I need you, daughter. With everything I’ve discovered, and with your natural abilities, we will rule them all.”
A ruckus draws my attention to the opening of the cave. Three of the guards drag Dayne, bound in ropes, across the blood-stained floor.
CHAPTER 46
Leave him alone,” I shriek.
No one pays any attention to me. The Halves grip me.
“We found him snooping around outside,” one of the guards reports.
“Dayne Clarion.” My father says the name like it tastes foul in his mouth. “You are a fool for coming here.”
“Let her go.” Dayne’s voice breaks. “You have no right—”
My father steps closer to Dayne, shoving him onto his knees in a single, fluid motion.
“You have no right. You are nothing.” His voice is quiet. “As inconsequential as a gnat to a Burn vulture.” He lifts a hand to strike Dayne.
“How dare you.” I’m shaking with rage. “All this time….and you never thought to tell me I have a brother?!”
“The Duskers would have seized your mother for any association with her traitor sister and son,” he hissed. “Putting them both firmly in her past was the only way to keep her, and you, from the same fate.”
“You could have told me—”
“She lied to me!” my father roars. “She betrayed me!”
It takes me a second to realize he’s talking about my mother.
He swipes a hand over his brow. When he looks back at me, his face is twisted in pain. But then, just as quickly, the raw emotion is gone. When he speaks again, his voice is calm.
“She would still be alive if she hadn’t sought to betray me.”
“You’re a liar,” I snarl.
“She was going to the Solguards. On your twelfth birthday, the day she died.” He gives me a look as if to say you remember that day, don’t you?
“We were picking rupyberries—”
“She underestimated my spies,” he says as though I hadn’t spoken. “She entrusted Taniel with a letter meant for the Solguards. He, of course, brought the letter straight to me. It explained all about her plans to leave the Subterrane with you so she could join them.”
“You? You sent the Halve…to kill her?!” I don’t even care that I’m hysterical.
“The Halve was supposed to capture, not kill.” His voice is so quiet I almost don’t hear over the throbbing in my head.
“But it did, and it’s your fault. You killed her!”
“She killed herself with that final act of deception,” he snaps.
My father takes a deep, shuddering breath. “It was soon after that Jadem and Dayne escaped from Malarusk. When I heard they planned to return to the Subterrane, I did the only thing I could to keep them away. I made them believe you had died alongside your mother.”
“I wish those Halves killed you back at the Subterrane like I thought,” I say.
A darkness flits across his eyes before it’s gone again. “It is that spirit that proves I was right all along.” He smiles out of the corner of his mouth like he’s letting me in on a secret. “We will make an insurmountable team, you and I.”
“I’ll never help you. You’re the reason my mother is dead. You’re worse than the Duskers.”
I miss whatever my father says next because at that moment, a shadow slips out of the tunnel behind him. When it takes another step forward, the shadow’s arms stretch unevenly across the lighted floor. Ekil.
Adrenaline courses through me. All of the pain in my head disappears.
Forcing myself to wait until Ekil has taken a few more steps, I use all of my strength to break free from the Halves’ grip. The iron chains snap away from me like I was bound by nothing more than dried twigs.
The force of my movement sends the ten Halves surrounding me stumbling back. I leap off the table before they can recover.
“Don’t harm her!” my father yells.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Dayne on his feet, cracking his elbow into one of the guard’s faces.
I catch the other guard’s whip around my hand and yank it from him. A fresh wave of pain sends me reeling as something strikes the corner of my head. The guard, who either didn’t hear the Captain’s command or chose not to, plunges his dagger into my side.
Ekil is beside me, but his words to the other Halves sound far away. I watch as Ekil swings his stone club at the Captain’s guards.
“Kill it, kill it!” my father screams.
Ekil cradles me in his arms as he races for the tunnel. The dagger jostles in my side with each step. Barely aware of my own actions, I clutch the handle and draw the blade from me.
Warm blood slides down my side and soaks my hand when I press it to the wound. It’s strange how I don’t feel any pain.
“Why...helping me?” My words slur together.
Sunlight pours through the opening of the tunnel, but my vision is growing darker.
“The Master has made us slaves,” Ekil’s voice comes from somewhere far away. “His men take our blood. He forces us to kill. You can help us.”
“Just run away.” I try to blink away the spots darkening my vision. “He couldn’t stop you.”
I’m so tired.
“The Master will send his Zeroes after us.”
I see the opening of the cave through a veil of darkness.
CHAPTER 47
Hemera, Hemera,” a voice groans.
I open my eyes. I’m underneath a specere tree lit by a golden branch.
“Hemera?” Brice cries in disbelief as I blink up at him.
I try to sit up, but two pairs of hands push me back down.
“What happened?” I murmur.
“You were dead!” Dayne croaks. “You lost so much blood, and then your heart stopped.”
Dayne and Brice are kneeling over me. Vlaz is trying to squeeze between them. Eventually, he contents himself to curl up and rest his head on my legs.
Brice lifts the fabric of my cloak to inspect the wound. He sucks in a breath. “It’s almost healed!”
I touch my side. Sure enough, the hole left by the blade has sealed itself off.
“Your blood is stronger than I guessed,” Dayne marvels. “I would not have thought it possible.” His face darkens. “No wonder he wants you.”
Brice looks at my side like he can’t make up his mind whether to be relieved or terrified.
With that single glance, everything that happened before I was stabbed rushes back to me. My storm of emotions is mirrored in the fleeting glance Brice gives me before he clasps my hands in both of his and bows his head.
“I never meant to hurt you,” Brice’s voice is rough. “If I could take it all back, I w
ould. A thousand times…a million…I would.”
Even though the anguish is plain in Brice’s green eyes, it does nothing to ease the gaping hole in my heart.
“Leave her alone,” my brother growls.
Brice looks at me. Whatever expression is on my face makes his shoulders slump in defeat. I turn away so I won’t have to interpret the swirl of emotions I feel just from looking at him.
“He killed her.” I say to Dayne, my voice raspy. “My father sent that Halve after her. He killed our mother.”
Dayne gives me a short nod, telling me he suspected as much already.
“Where’s Ekil?” I ask, trying to will the furious tears back into my eyes. “Where’s the Halve?”
“It went back before we left the tunnel,” Dayne replies. “You’ve been unconscious, or verging on dead,” his voice breaks on the word, “or I don’t know, for the entire high day.”
Thinking about Ekil reminds me of what he said before I lost consciousness, “Do you know what a Zero is?”
Dayne shakes his head.
“Never heard of it,” Brice says. His attention is back on my healed side.
“Can you walk?” Dayne asks, concern etched into every line of his face. “It won’t be long before Zeidan’s servants find us.”
I stand without taking the hand Brice offers. “We need to get back to the others.”
✽✽✽
When I pull open the stone doors, we’re assaulted by a group of prisoners gripping Halve blades. There would be little to fear even if we had been the enemy; most of them look like they can barely lift the blades, let alone wield them.
“Stand down!” I hear Wade’s command. “Damn you, stand down. Give them some space.”
“What happened?” he demands when he sees the bloodstains on my cloak.
“Nothing, I’m fine.”
Brice glares at Wade as he puts an arm around my waist. When I twist out of his grasp, Wade smirks.
“I have something for you,” Dayne says, interrupting the tension. He pulls a sling and a cloth bag filled with colored stones from beneath his cloak.
“I made it during the high day, while you were—” His voice breaks.
“Thank you.” I touch the braided ropes. The sling isn’t as well-made as the one from my father, but at least this one won’t remind me of him.
My father. The reason my mother is dead.
Rage swells in me. Not now, I tell myself.
As though reading my thoughts, Dayne leans closer to me so only I can hear his words.
“We’re going to kill him, Hemera.” There is unrestrained fury in his voice. “We’re going to kill him.”
Instead of answering, I turn to the weapon in my hands. I put one of the stones in the sling’s pouch and flick it into motion. When I release the stone, it sails through the air and blasts through the building’s high ceiling. People leap out of the way as a beam of sunlight filters in through the hole.
The hum of activity in the building has stopped. Every pair of eyes is on me.
I clear my throat, uncomfortable to have everyone’s attention.
“So, what’s the plan?” I ask Dayne.
Dayne scratches his chin. “Seems to me you’re the one in charge.”
“Me?”
“You got us all out, didn’t you?” The hint of a smile curves his lips.
“But I don’t know the first thing about battle strategy,” I protest.
“You’re better at staying alive than anyone I’ve ever met.” Wade steps forward and places his right fist, the one emblazoned with the rebel sun, over his heart. “I can’t think of a more fitting leader.” His voice catches on the last word, and I know he’s thinking of Sal.
I look around at the others. Most nod or offer a faint smile. A few look dubious.
“Well just a minute now,” the huge man—Thutmose, Brice had called him—says as he steps forward. “Seeing as I’ve been here the longest, I think I might make for a better leader.”
He looks around at the other prisoners for support.
“Look at her eyes,” he continues. “She opened those cell doors like they were nothing. How can we trust her?”
Before I can speak, someone crosses the circle to stand before Thutmose. It’s Jarosh.
“Thutmose, you and I grew up in the settlement together. You know my word’s better than most.” He crosses his arms and waits for Thutmose’s nod of agreement. “So, when I tell you Hemera is a fitter leader than any among us, you’d better hear me.”
Jarosh walks over to me and says loudly enough for everyone else to hear, “You saved my life. I’ll follow you into battle or anywhere else you care to lead me. You have my trust.”
Ry whoops in agreement. To Jarosh, she says, “I knew there was a brain lurking somewhere in that big head of yours.”
Expectant faces turn to me.
“Well,” I falter, but Dayne gives me a nod of encouragement. “If we can divide their army, it will be easier than trying to fight all the Halves at once.”
“Speak up!” someone calls. “We can’t hear you from back here.”
I’m conscious of everyone’s attention on me as I take a few steps closer. My feet tangle on themselves, and I lurch forward. I catch my balance just before I fall, but not before Wade has seen.
Wade grins, but there’s no malice in it. Instead of trying to hide under the hood of my cloak like I usually would, I shrug and grin back.
“We need more weapons,” I say to the others with more confidence. “Sharp stones, branches, anything we can use. If we attack soon, we might be able to catch them unprepared.”
There is a deafening noise as the men and women surrounding me stamp the ground in anticipation. They are no longer the bedraggled prisoners who cowered in their cells, but soldiers heading into the fight they’ve been waiting for since they were first brought to Tanguro.
I clear my throat. “There’s something you need to know about the enemy.”
My cheeks flush, but my voice is steady.
“I know you’ve all been imprisoned by the Halves, but they are slaves just as you were.”
I pause to let my words sink in.
“It’s not an easy request to make,” I glance at Brice, “but I ask that you only kill the Halves when your own survival is threatened. It’s the Captain’s—my father’s—guards who must be killed.”
There are some shouts of surprise mixed in with angry mutterings.
“If any of you don’t agree to this request,” I raise my voice in an effort to sound bolder than I feel, “you can leave now and flee to the mountains while there’s still time.”
I wait for several moments. No one moves.
“Alright, then.” I take a deep breath. “Here’s what I think we should do.”
After I outline my plan, the circle disperses as everyone goes to carry out my orders.
“Will you be alright here?” Brice asks as he readies a team of scouts.
An almost irresistible urge to touch him fills me. I long to press myself against him and feel his arms wind around me.
And then I remember he lied to me. He used me. An almost overwhelming loneliness sweeps over me, and for the first time since escaping the catacombs, my father’s offer returns to me. More like me…never have to hide again….
But then I remember the blood streaked across the floor of the catacombs. The people he murdered. My mother. I remind myself of the price he’s paid, and is still willing to pay, for the sake of power and strength.
I take a step backward from Brice. There is no more than a pace between us, but it could just as easily be a mile. The hurt and longing and regret in Brice’s eyes mirrors my own feelings.
“Take Vlaz with you,” I say. “He’ll scare off any Halves you meet.”
For now, the prison building is ours. I wish there was a way to get some of the spears and blades from the weapons building, but that’s where all of the Halves are now; there would be no way to get in there without
being seen.
We’re doing what we can with what we have here. Every available space has been turned into a work area where materials and anything that could be used as a weapon is gathered. Some men sharpening branches into spears put down their work as I come near.
“We’re indebted to you, Captain Hemera,” one of them says with a nod of his head. “We’ve been here for a year and had all but given up hope. It’s our honor to fight alongside you.”
My face flushes. “Just call me Hemera,” I stammer.
I turn away to hide my embarrassment, but then a thought occurs to me. “Since you’ve been here for so long, you must know the plants around Tanguro.”
One of them raises his eyebrows. “’Course. What do you have in mind?”
“We need weapons. Any plants that could help us….”
“Say no more,” the man holds up his hand.
“One last thing,” I say as they put down their work. “Have you heard of Zeroes?”
Neither of them has.
“Is there anything else we can bring you?” the first one asks.
I run through a list in my head.
“Cammamoss,” I say. “As much of it as you can find.”
CHAPTER 48
Thutmose, Jarosh, and ten others return carrying armfuls of the most colorful plants I’ve ever seen. Most of them hold their arms away from their bodies, as though afraid the plants will erupt in a fiery explosion at any moment.
Three of the soldiers appear empty-handed but hold their arms at an unnatural angle like they’re carrying an unseen load. The cammamoss’s powerful scent trails in their wake. When the soldiers put it on the ground, there is a flicker as the cammamoss changes to the color of the packed-dirt ground.
The soldiers arrange the plants into neat piles against the wall of the building. Each pile gives off its own glow of color so bright it looks like we’re outside, rather than beneath the sun-proof specere leaves.
“What’s that one?” I point to a tangled silver root.
Thutmose nudges the plant with his toe.
“We call this one ‘cursed stammeroot.’ It’s a deadly poison when it’s crushed and boiled. It’ll just take a drop or two to turn a Halve into a puddle of acid.” He smiles.
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