He hung a lime slip of paper on a low branch. “My wish.”
So did I. I wished that none of the events of last month had ever happened. That Aldan Harris never lost the race, that Link didn’t denounce his destiny, that I didn’t investigate my file, that I didn’t tell Dax the truth. But wishes couldn’t change the past, and now I had no future.
“Don’t you want to know what it is?” He flicked the note he hung with his finger.
I didn’t respond, but that didn’t stop him from telling me. “It’s to try new things. Open my horizons. Make some new friends.”
“Great,” I said, the sarcasm practically dripping from my words. “I hope it all works out for you.”
“The problem is,” he continued unfazed, “The friends I’m looking to make are from the Purple ring. I’ll need an introduction. That’s where you come in.”
I scowled at him. “My friends aren’t really your type.”
“Well let’s be honest, if they find out the truth about you, they won’t be your type any longer either. But that’s a problem for another day. Assuming you cooperate.”
It took every bit of self-control I possessed to stop myself from smacking the superior grin off of his face.
“You and I aren’t that different, Madden,” he said. “Both being Blanks and all.”
I tried to keep the shock from my face. Zane was a Blank? Now that he’d said it, it made sense. He was what everyone always described Blanks as being—dangerous, unpredictable, insane. He deserved to be locked up. But not all Blanks were like Zane. Then again, it wasn’t like I had ever met one before—other than myself. But I certainly wasn’t like that. Was I?
As if sensing my thoughts, he continued. “It’s not a bad designation, despite what others say. You may not have a place in New City when the truth comes out, but that doesn’t mean you have no options. You’re a diplomat, so I’m sure you understand how this works. Help me, and I’ll help you in return.”
I crossed my arms in front of me. “What do you want, Zane?”
“Delighted you asked,” he said. “To begin with, I’d like to meet a charming young lady. I’m sure you know her. Rather small. Goes by the name of Aya Lee.”
I sucked in my breath. “Aya? She’s just a kid. What do you want with her?”
“None of your concern.”
“It is if you want me involved.” I’d already heard enough to know I wasn’t about to help him, but if he was suddenly interested in Aya, I wanted to know why.
He shrugged a shoulder. “Just a little chat.”
This was ridiculous, there was no way I was a scheduling a meeting. “So you just want me to waltz you on over to her house so you can say hello? It would never work.”
“That’s why you’re going to set up a private meeting, where you’ll bring her—just her—to me. Little Aya and I have much to discuss.”
Of all the things I imagined the Revenants would ask me to do, something like this had never crossed my mind. This wasn’t just stealing some minister’s code. This was about the fate of a little girl. “I’m not bringing Aya to you. I’m not bringing anyone,” I said. “This stops now.”
He leaned toward me, his eyes shining. “Future Minister Sumner, we both know that’s not true.”
His breath was hot on my face, and I flinched back. “Think what you like,” I said. “Do what you like. I’m not one of your minions to order around.”
Zane clapped. “A fine performance. Now if you’re done, let’s get down to business.”
An Ash woman approached to hang up a wish. Zane and I pretended we were making our own. I could barely tie the slip of purple paper onto the tree, my hands were shaking so badly. From anger or fear, I wasn’t sure. I used to love standing by the wishing tree. I’d had dozens of photo ops here, meet and greets with the public, speeches about new reforms. It made a beautiful backdrop. It was hopeful, optimistic, a place of possibilities—but not today. Today it was a reminder of the importance of destiny and how not following it could lead to catastrophes. Had I just told the truth, had I accepted my true destiny, Zane wouldn’t have any power over me now. The Ash touched her fingers to her lips and then placed them on the paper, sealing it with a kiss before she left.
I had hoped the interruption would help me come up with a solution to dealing with Zane, but I had nothing. Of all the people the Revenants could have sent, this one seemed the least likely to understand reason. “Why Aya?” I asked. My voice sounded small, and Zane seemed to delight in my discomfort.
“Well, if you must know, I used that code you gave me to unlock the child’s destiny. Between you and me, I don’t care for it. Not one bit.”
Aya’s destiny had always been a mystery. Only a select few were privy to the details. At least that was the case until I handed over Worthington’s code. But from the way Zane was acting, it clearly spelled trouble for him. “What’s her destiny?”
“You just concentrate on getting me the girl,” he said.
“So you can what? Hurt her? Kill her?” My fists were balled up at my side, one hand clutching the amethyst slip of paper. I hadn’t even realized I tore it down. “I won’t be a part of that.”
“I already told you, you are going to do what I say.” The amusement was gone from his eyes. They were cold and staring straight at me. “If you don’t, not only will I expose you, but I will destroy the rest of your world, starting with that Ash you are so fond of. I can see to it that his destiny comes to pass sooner than later. I probably don’t need to remind you, but death can be such a painful affair. From there I’ll move onto Link. Then your father. He’s been a huge inconvenience over the years. And after that, I suppose I’ll simply go down the list and kill anyone you’ve ever known or cared about. Believe me when I say that this is no idle threat.” He smiled. “Stay tuned. I’ll send coordinates for the meet in the next few days. The choice is yours, future minister. But I don’t think you want to disappoint me on this one.”
I couldn’t sleep all night. All I could think about was the conversation I overheard about Aya Lee. Would the Revenants hurt her? I wanted to believe that they wouldn’t, but I knew the lengths they were willing to go for what they believed in. Would they justify killing one child to save thousands of others? No, I told myself. They’d find another way. Besides Zane had promised to fill me in on the group’s next steps, and it was in his best interests to keep his word. The Revenants needed me. My destiny would be able to further their cause. They wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize that. Yet, as much as I tried to reassure myself that Aya would be fine, something still gnawed at me.
When I woke up I knew what I had to do. I got ready for school like any other day, but instead of heading straight to Spectrum I waited about a block from the main building. Madden would be coming this way. Our last conversation hadn’t ended well, but I knew this was something she’d want to hear about.
She was later than usual, which was good and bad. It meant that no one else was walking in now, but also that we’d have less time. Madden was so lost in thought as she passed me, she didn’t even look in my direction.
“Hey,” I called out softly.
She swirled in my direction, ready to ream someone out until she saw that it was me. I hadn’t expected a welcome committee, but was surprised when I saw her nostrils flare and eyes turn to slits. I had thought she’d be all minister-like and diplomatic, but instead anger shone through. I ignored her look and gestured for her to meet me across the road at the sports facility. She was definitely annoyed but crossed the street and waited for me inside. At this hour it would be empty.
“What now?” She flung the words at me angrily before I even had a chance to step inside the door.
I wanted to tell her to knock it off with the attitude, that she was the one who stole my identity. But we only had a few minutes before first period, and I had to make Aya my priority. “Listen,” I said. “I can’t tell you how I know this, but there’s this Purple kid, her name is Aya Lee, I thi
nk something might happen to her. Can you maybe see about getting her extra security?”
Madden’s face went through a rainbow of emotions.“You don’t know, do you?” she said.
“Know what?”
“What your friends asked me to do?”
As Madden recounted her meeting with Zane, I wanted to scream. He’d promised to keep me in the loop. On my honor, he had said.
I covered my face with my hands. Maybe this was just another test. Maybe Zane just wanted to see if Madden would actually try and take Aya to him. I shook my head. I was being naive. He’d threatened Madden’s family. More importantly, he’d threatened Link. He wasn’t playing around. I felt angry, disappointed and even a little foolish.
“What does he want with her?” she asked quietly.
“Her destiny is to expose the Revenants. I guess he’ll do anything to stop that from happening.”
“Maybe,” she bit her lip. “Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea if they were found. It could solve everything. You know where they are—let’s tell the PAE, and Aya doesn’t have to get caught up in the middle of it.”
“I can’t do that. I can’t jeopardize Link’s life.”
“We can have him hide somewhere else,” she tried to reason.
“And what about all the other innocent people down there? I can’t risk them either.”
“And I can’t risk something happening to Aya or all the people I love.”
“There has to be another way to stop him,” I said.
“If you have any ideas, I’m listening.”
“I don’t know,” I said, racking my brain. “What if somehow we set him up? We could make it look like you’re following his orders, and then instead you could…” I trailed off. I had no idea what our counter move would be. I shook my head. “Forget it, it’s a dumb idea. And it would probably still put Aya in danger.”
“No,” Madden said, lighting up. “It’s brilliant. Aya has major security around her.
Because of my clearance they’ll let me alone with her.” She paused ever so slightly, probably feeling guilty because she knew it was really my clearance she was talking about. “But they’ll still track both of our whereabouts the whole time. She’s not allowed to leave Purple without several PAE officers present. If she crosses over, we’ll be surrounded in seconds. So if Zane picks a place outside the Purple Zone, we’re set. Even if he doesn’t, I can still get Aya across the border before the scheduled meet time. I’ll tell her I need to make a quick stop. Once I break the border rule, the guards will never let me alone with her again, and Zane can’t fault me for not trying.”
I nodded. “It’s a good plan,” I said. “But the Revenants were able to control my tracker. If Zane wanted to, he could just reprogram yours to make it look like you and Aya are still in the Purple ring.”
Madden thought about that for a minute, then broke into a smile. “Aya is considered an asset. An extremely important one. The ministry is very careful with her, not only do they hide her destiny and have PAE watching her whereabouts, they gave her an implant in addition to her tracker. That’s never done. Zane wouldn’t know to look for it. If he tampers with our trackers, then they’ll show one location, and Aya’s implant will show another. Alerts will go off all over the place.”
“It could work,” I said, mulling it over. The plan sounded surprisingly simple, but maybe that was the key to it.
“It will,” she said. “It has to.”
The clock tower bells began to toll in the distance, interrupting our conversation. Class was about to begin.
“Go,” she said. “I’ll use my injury as an excuse, but you better get there on time.”
“Let me know when it’s going to happen,” I said.
She nodded, and I darted across the lawn toward Spectrum, trailing a mishmash of conflicting emotions. I wanted to be a Revenant, but Link was right. It was time to keep my own council—do what I thought was right. I’d been wrong to trust Zane so easily. It was a lesson I didn’t plan to repeat.
Three days after meeting with Dax, I’d been given the coordinates of where to drop Aya. It was in the Purple zone, not far from the Crimson border. The meet was for today. Even though I felt slightly guilty about it, I asked Sol to get involved. I needed a driver who would cross out of Purple with the young girl and not make a big deal about it. Bastin’s friend, Brine, had originally been assigned to the job, but I knew he’d never go along with the plan. Instead I had him taken off of my detail, saying I was too uncomfortable working with an ex’s confidant. I then recommended Sol for the job. After his “heroic” actions at the UV building, I was able to convince the PAE and my father to give him clearance to be my chauffer. Sol was more than happy to take part; I just hated pulling him into another plan that could land him in trouble. But I needed Zane to think I was escorting Aya to him, then trigger an alarm en route so we’d never show up. Without a cooperative driver the plan failed, and I couldn’t afford that. Did I think this would solve the bigger issue, or keep Zane from blackmailing me again? No. But it did what I needed it to do for the time being. It bought me time and kept Aya safe.
The doorbell rang at exactly noon and despite the tension, I found myself nodding in approval. Timeliness was something I always appreciated. I walked down the stairs right as Nora was opening the door. Aya stood there in a violet knee length dress, her dark ringlets framing a huge grin. She was a tiny thing, barely reaching Nora’s chest, and brimming with enthusiasm.
“Hi Madden!” she hollered up at me, hopping up and down as she waved.
“Hi Aya,” I replied, smiling at her excitement. I held my own dress up as I walked down the stairs.
Nora invited Aya’s two escorts in. One followed, the other waited outside our door. I’d gone to great pains to detail how I’d ensure Aya’s safety at all times before her team agreed to the outing. I told them it was important for young Purple leaders to stick together, and that after a nice lunch at Perse Manor, I’d take Aya on a private tour of the UV. Once we left my house, we’d be on our own. The guards weren’t too pleased with the idea of me being alone with Aya, but my clearance made it hard to refuse. It also helped that her parents were happy for her to get out. Aya’s high security made her somewhat of a social pariah among her classmates, so they were pleased to see their daughter get an invitation. I hated that I was going to break the rules and appear untrustworthy, but it couldn’t be helped, I reminded myself.
“May I take anything for you, Aya?” Nora asked.
“I’m fine, thank you,” Aya chirped back.
“Well in that case, your lunch is all ready. I’ll bring it to you both in the sunroom.” Nora gave me a quick smile before heading back toward the kitchen, taking the guard with her.
I turned back to Aya. “Welcome to Perse Manor. I’m glad you could come over. And I can’t wait to show you the UV building later.”
“Thanks for having me,” Aya said. “I was so excited when my parents said it was okay.”
“You’re welcome,” I said. “It’s good to shake up your routine, right?” I felt my heart thud. I wondered if her parents would ever let her out again after I took her on an unauthorized trip to Crimson. “So tell me,” I continued. “How have you been?”
She gestured to her tracker excitedly. “Good! I have new game I’m playing. I can show you if you want?”
I laughed. “I’d love to see it. How about we have lunch first?”
“Sure,” she said, and followed as I led her from the foyer. Our footsteps echoed off of the marble floor as we walked down the hallway to my favorite part of the house, the sunroom. It was a circular room located in the far south quarter. The walls and ceiling were made almost completely out of glass. Center Lake lapped ten feet from the edge of the windows and sunlight streamed through the crystal chandeliers overhead, sending rainbow prisms bouncing over the floors.
“Wow,” Aya said. “That’s an ultra view.”
“Thanks,” I said. “I think so too.
”
Nora brought us sandwiches, and Aya told me about how hard it was to have guards following her all the time. “I can’t wait for my Destiny Day. My parents never let me do anything without either one of them there, or my security detail.”
Now that I knew Aya’s destiny, I wondered how she’d managed to keep it to herself for so long. It must have been hard for someone her age. It was a secret that would have rocked our entire society if it got out. No use dwelling on it now, though. Instead I offered her a bright smile. “Well, parents know best, right?”
She laughed while inside I cringed. After today, my father would be very disappointed in me. I knew better than to bring Aya outside of Purple, but I had to keep her from getting hurt. She was such a tiny thing. I couldn’t let Zane get anywhere close to her, and if that meant looking untrustworthy to my dad and the PAE, then it was worth it.
As Aya and I finished our lunch, I got a ping from Sol.
“Outside now,” he wrote.
“Be out soon,” I replied.
I looked at Aya, trying to cover my worry with a smile. “Ready for your tour of the UV building?” I asked. I felt my stomach twist. The plan was in place. Nothing would go wrong, I reminded myself.
“Yep!” Aya said. She sprung up from her seat at the table, her dress flouncing around her knees.
“Great,” I said, standing to join her. I forced myself to relax. My shoulders were practically bunched up to my ears I was so tense. Everything would be okay. It was just a drive. One that would end with PAE officers swarming our vehicle.
Nora met us at the front door again, fussing over my dress and making sure we’d gotten enough to eat. I think she could tell I was upset about something. She always could.
“We’re fine, Nora,” I said.
“Alright then,” she said easily. “You girls enjoy the rest of your day.”
She waved as Aya’s security guard followed us out to the waiting black car. He opened the back passenger side door. Aya’s other officer was standing by the driver’s window, apparently giving Sol the third degree.
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