ashen city (Black Tiger Series Book 2)

by Sara Baysinger

  You could leave.

  So maybe I should leave.

  But if you leave, you’ll regret your decision forever, another more persistent voice says.

  Once across, I can never come back. The Indy Tribe won’t allow it. Ky’s fate would be a mystery. How can I walk away, knowing the people of Ky are brainwashed and, essentially, slaves? When I have Alpha Blood running through my veins, how can I just abandon this opportunity to take the country back? My country? How can I embrace freedom, leaving thousands of people in the dark? My people?

  I was suddenly overwhelmed with the realization that I loved all these people.

  Rain steps up behind me and places his hands on both my shoulders, and a shocked breath escapes me. He’s standing so close, so incredibly close, I can feel his warm breath on my ear. Smell the peppermint. Count the millimeters of space between his lips and my neck, and my heart shudders.

  “Make your choice, Ember Carter,” he whispers. “And make it count.”

  A freezing wind sweeps in from behind me, urging me forward, rushing over the back of my neck, making me catch my breath. And my heart is pounding, pounding, pounding, telling me to run across that bridge because I’m here. I’m right here. And I might never have this chance again.

  I was suddenly overwhelmed with the realization that I loved all these people walking around shining like the sun.

  Then a stronger wind gusts in from the river, slamming into my face, pushing me back against Rain. He grips my shoulders, bracing me from the impact, and I know what I have to do.

  I know exactly what I have to do.

  The wind dies down. I swallow hard, fighting down my longing to leave, and clinging to what I should do. The right thing to do. The good thing.

  “I’m staying,” I breathe. I turn and look at Rain. “I’m staying,” I say again, this time to convince myself.

  And I think I see relief flit across his features, but I’m not sure, because he sure didn’t act like he cared one way or the other a second ago.

  But now.

  Now he searches my eyes. His mouth settles in a mulish line. His throat convulses in a swallow. The wind has stopped, but my blood flows through my veins like the torrents of a storm. My heart is beating to a different rhythm because the way he’s looking at me right now, like he almost lost me, like I died and came back to life, makes everything inside of me spin. The space is electrically charged between us. He reaches out, tips my chin up, leans in, closer and closer until I feel his warm peppermint breath on my freezing lips. I inhale it. I close my eyes. Tilt my head back, waiting, aching for what’s to come.

  But then he drops his hand. I blink my eyes open, disappointed and confused all at once when he takes a step back and clears his throat.

  “Forest will be happy with your decision,” he says, shoving his hands into his pockets. He looks away. “Come on. We should head back before they send a search party out for us.”

  I stare at him. It’s all that I can do at this very humiliating moment. I have never felt so used, so played by my emotions.

  “Of course,” I say in a choked voice. I turn away from him, terrified that he might see my tears of embarrassment and pure disappointment. Disappointment in myself. Disappointment in a kiss I thought I had. Disappointment in what I almost did. I clear my throat. “I’ll meet you there.”

  I need to get away from Rain, like, now. I stalk down the ramp we came on. I know my way home. I don’t need Rain. In fact, I don’t really ever want to see or speak to him again. Because he knows. He knows now that I’m maybe a little bit attracted to him. And he will use it against me. No doubt about that. He may be more compassionate now, but he’s still Rain––the arrogant rogue I knew in Frankfort. The player. So it makes perfect sense that he would pretend to want to kiss me, if only to get this reaction out of me—just so he could break the moment with the mention of Forest, and hold this almost-mistake over my head forever.

  But larger issues are at hand now than a kiss.

  Because I just turned my back on freedom and made a very dramatic decision to help the Resurgence take down Titus. And everyone in the caverns needs to know as soon as possible so we can begin planning.

  Swiping a tear from my face, I break into a run and sprint back to the caverns.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  Dad’s standing at the mouth of the cavern. I slow my pace to a walk before I reach him, and Rain trots up beside me, breathing heavily.

  “Holy Crawford. You’re fast,” he says between breaths. “Why’d you have to run all the way back, huh? Trying to kill me?”

  I keep my gaze ahead. “I knew my way back. You didn’t have to keep up.”

  “Oh, yeah I did. It’s dangerous out here, Ember. Don’t be fooled by the ghost-town appearance.”

  I bark out a laugh. “Am I to believe you actually want to protect me?”

  “Of course. Can’t have Forest shouting at me if he finds out you’re dead.”

  Forest. Of course. Everything is about Forest. Forest, Forest, Forest. Slowing my pace to a walk was a mistake. I pick up my jog again. My nose is numb against the cold, but a bead of sweat trickles down my spine by the time I reach Dad.

  “Where have you been?” he asks, walking toward me.

  “Went to the bridge.”

  Surprise flickers across his features. Then hurt. “You were going to leave?”

  “No. That’s why I went. To see the bridge, to catch a glimpse of it before returning to Frankfort.”

  He grins. “So you’re staying.”

  “Can’t have you and Elijah marching into battle without my protection, now can I?”

  He wraps his arm around my shoulder while we head back inside. “That’s my girl.”

  Levi, Isaac, Elijah, Digory, Ash, and Kate all meet us in the cavern. The Fearless Six. All of them, save for Elijah, ran away from their careers in the Line of Defenders before they got brainwashed, and somehow found the Resurgence. They’re only a few years older than me, and their name suits them. They are every bit fearless. And I guess when Elijah came along and proved his courage and skill with the slingshot, they accepted him as one of their own. He’s made friends here and gained the Resurgence’s trust quicker than I ever could.

  Levi is the brains of the group. He wears thick-rimmed glasses and has dark curly hair. Digory is the softer one, with reddish hair and blue eyes. The approachable one, in my opinion. He owns the guitar Rain was playing last night. Besides being musical, he’s also an artist. Like me. I guess that’s why I can relate to him so much. Kate is strong with light brown hair, and Ash is fast and willowy, with skin a darker shade of brown than most Ky folk.

  The Fearless Six have vowed to risk their lives for the sake of Ky, which makes them that much more heroic than I’ll ever be.

  “What’s the word?” Kate asks. Everyone’s been waiting for my decision for the past two weeks. But that doesn’t keep the pressure of making a decision any easier. They’re always watching, always waiting.

  Always judging.

  But since Digory and Isaac’s return yesterday, they’ve been a bit more impatient for my decision that usual.

  Ash lifts a brow expectantly. How wimpy I must appear to them. I’m no hero. I’m a coward.

  “I’m going…back…to Frankfort,” I finally say.

  My response is met with relieved “Yes’s” and “woohoo’s” and high-fives and cheers. James Mcallister appears through the crowd and pulls me into a tight hug that shocks the breath out of me. “Good decision, Ember. You won’t regret it.”

  “Unless I die.”

  “Even then,” Elijah says. “At least you will have died for a good cause.”

  “Wow.” I pull away from Mcallister, still a little thrown off by a hug from a once-captain-of-Defenders. “It’s so comforting that I’ll be missed by my own brother.”

  “You’ll be missed,” he says with a grin. “And honored.”

  I roll my eyes as we travel deeper into the cavern. Walke
r’s standing by the fire.

  I open my mouth to tell him my decision, but he holds up his hand, stopping me. “I already heard. Welcome. You’re officially a part of the Resurgence, niece.”

  “Thanks.” A sense of welcoming and pride that I didn’t expect fills me. “So what’s the plan?”

  The Fearless Six, Rain, Walker, Mcallister, and a few others gather around the fire. Richa passes out tins full of warm water. I wrap my hands around the tin cup, warming my freezing fingers from the outside cold, then hold it up to my face and let the steam thaw my nose before chugging it. After that long walk to the bridge and then a full run back, I’m parched.

  “The Fearless Six will go to Frankfort while you stay here,” Walker is saying. “They will scout out what’s going on, get up to speed on all the banquets and feasts and parades. You know. All those social occasions that might make it easier to take Titus down.”

  “Wait,” I say. “So then you’re sending the Six in to do the dirty work, which, by the way, I haven’t even decided if I’m going to let you take Elijah.”

  “Hey,” Elijah says. “I can go if I wa—”

  “And,” I say, cutting him off. “You’re just going to let me sit back while they put their lives on the line?”

  Jonah doesn’t bat an eye. “Yes. That’s exactly right.”

  I shake my head. “No. That is too much like Titus. The sign of cowardice is a sign of a poor leader.”

  “Just because you’re staying behind,” Mcallister says, “doesn’t mean you’re a coward or a poor leader. I’m staying behind, and I don’t consider myself a coward.”

  “Why?” I ask. “Why are you staying behind? You’re, like, the best soldier here.”

  “Because,” Jonah says, “he’s too well known in Frankfort. All the Defenders know him. They’ll shoot him at first glance for being a traitor.”

  Oh. Of course. Mcallister has a huge target on his back…because he ditched his post to save me.

  “That’s a valid reason to stay behind, Mcallister. But you’ve already done so much. You’ve already put in your work, risked your life for the good of Ky. I haven’t.” I glare at Walker. “If Elijah is going, then I need to go so I can be close by in case something goes wrong. If you want me to lead, then I will march out into battle at the front of the line.”

  “No. The only time you’re going back to Frankfort is after Titus has been taken down.”

  “I thought I was taking him down.” And I haven’t even decided if I’m going to accept the title as chief, but no need to tell Walker here that quite yet.

  “No. Don’t you understand?” His eyes green glow like emeralds in firelight. “You’re too valuable to send into enemy territory. And you don’t know anything about self-defense. If anything, you’ll slow the Six down. And we need you alive when Titus is taken down.”

  “I don’t have to go with the Fearless Six!” I say. “I just want—I need to be close by.” I look at Elijah, the grief I felt when I thought I lost him welling inside until my chest aches. “I thought I lost you once already. I can’t risk it again. Not if I can protect you.” He nods, and I look back at Walker. “Rain and I can mingle among the Patricians while the Six do their work. You know, spy, just like Rain has been doing all this time.”

  “Don’t drag me into this.” Rain shakes his head too quickly. “You think spying is fun? Like it’s some adventurous little game? You have no idea what you’ll be getting yourself into, and I am not going back there as a spy.”

  “Why not? I thought you missed the food?”

  “Food is a very small positive in a universe of negatives, little apple-picker.”

  Our conversation two weeks ago comes back to me. How Rain pretty much loathes everyone he pretends to be friends with in Frankfort. How keeping up the act of Rain Turner can be so exhausting, and I almost feel bad. I should probably let it go. But then, what are we here for if not to do everything in our power to redeem Ky, even if it means leaving our comfort zone?

  “Come on, Rain,” I plead. “It’s not like you have a target on your back like Mcallister.” I stare at him, try to convince him with my eyes so I don’t have to make a scene in front of everyone here. I even throw in a charming little smile. “You’ll get to see Julius again.”

  He narrows his eyes. “Look, Ember. This isn’t about me. It’s about you and your safety. The chief may not know I helped you escape, but he certainly wants you dead. He will kill you on the spot if he sees you. No question about that.”

  I shrug. “I’ll get a makeover. You know people, right? People who do hair and makeup? Just change my look and he won’t even recognize me.”

  “The chief isn’t stupid. He’s got Defenders all over the city looking for you.”

  “Don’t you know a few secret entrances to Frankfort? It’s how we escaped, right? Take me in. Give me a makeover. I will only make an appearance in crowds, and I’ll stay far away from Titus. I promise. I just want to go back.” I never thought in a million years I would say those words, so desperately, but I say them again, looking at Walker. “I want to go back. I want to see Forest. But more importantly, I need to stick by Elijah. I can’t let him walk into the tiger's mouth without being close by to help if I’m needed. Besides, if I’m going to help you fight, I want to know firsthand everything that’s going on.”

  “Nope,” Walker says. “No way.”

  And rage builds, because he’s not even thinking about it. He’s not even giving me a chance. So I stand, glare at him head on, then say, “I will go to Frankfort with the Fearless Six tomorrow, or I won’t go at all.” I cross my arms with finality, feeling every bit a spoiled Patrician, but the threat works, because, after a heavy sigh, Walker nods.

  “Fine. Whatever you wish, Chief Carter.”

  I grin. The title is kind of catchy.

  “I do need someone to get the lowdown on Titus’s next holiday plans,” Walker admits. “It’s a lot easier breaking into the food bank and searching for the antitoxin during the holidays.” He nods at Rain. “Rain will go with you and help you blend in with the Patricians, and you two can garner as much information as possible.”

  “What?” Rain says. “Are you serious right now? I don’t want to go there. I just got back.”

  I chew my lip, feeling just a little guilty for dragging Rain into this.

  “Someone needs to keep an eye on Ember,” Walker says.

  “So make Digory babysit.”

  My mouth drops open. I didn’t realize Rain spending time with me in Frankfort was such a chore. Babysit.

  “Digory has to go with the Six,” Walker says. “You know this.”

  Rain rolls his eyes, drags his hands through his hair, mutters something under his breath.

  The Fearless Six fit together like a puzzle: Levi, the smart one, knows how to build a bomb and set it off. Apparently he set up the bomb that blew up the food-storage unit that day I was painting in the garden. Elijah is the fighter and climber. He’s small enough to fit through tiny openings, and quick enough to use his slingshot before anyone catches him. Kate is also a fighter, quick and agile and good with a gun. Ash is slender with the stealth of a lioness. She uses mortal combat to fight and needs no guns. Digory…Digory isn’t really a fighter at all. I actually don’t really know what his purpose is in the Fearless Six. He’s quiet. He’s gentle. He sings and plays guitar and paints pictures. A very strange, artistic boy. But the one I identify with most.

  Because, let’s face it, I would rather paint all day than lead Ky.

  The rest of the day, we go over plans. The Fearless Six, Rain, and I will enter Frankfort undercover, and part ways as soon as we’re inside the cupola. Rain and I will take two days to learn when the upcoming feasts and parties are, because we have no access to that information way out here. But there are spies throughout Frankfort. Spies, who, like Rain and Mcallister, work everyday jobs and report back to the Resurgence. Once we glean all the necessary information, we’ll come back, make a plan revolvin
g around one of those holidays, and then take down the chief.

  My personal goal is to find Forest and figure out our relationship. Although Rain’s already made me promise not to tell him anything about the Resurgence or our plans, I still want to see Forest. I want to remind myself that I love him. Remind him that he loves me and not this fake version of me. And I guess, ultimately, I kind of want to test the waters to see if Forest will lean more on my side.

  Or Titus’s.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  The next morning we’re off to Frankfort. Our group includes me, Rain, Elijah, Kate, Ash, Levi, Isaac, and Digory. I’m wearing new clothes now, courtesy of the Resurgence. No more wool pants and shirt from the orchard. Instead, I’m wearing cargo pants, a long-sleeved gray shirt, a black bulletproof vest, and combat boots. I feel like I’m marching into battle.

  “You and Rain are going to stick together, right?” Isaac, our leader, asks as we approach the parking garage. I nod. “Good. You need to stick by his side at all times, because he’s experienced in spying, and he’ll need to keep an eye on you so you don’t slip up.”

  There it is again. The guilt of having Rain babysit me.

  “The rest of us have some classified business to attend to,” Isaac says.

  Classified. Meaning, secret. And I can’t know, because if I did know there’s a risk of me revealing these secrets if I’m caught and tortured.

  “Now,” Isaac says to me as we walk in the moonlight down the Watterson Expressway, “what you don’t understand is that this Ember look-alike is a blessing in disguise. Because now, after a few changes to your looks, no one will know who you are. You’ll just be another one of Rain’s diversions, a new girl he picked up. And, unless the chief sees you up close, you’ll be safe.”

  Rain saunters up beside me. “Newest diversion, eh?” he whispers in my ear.

  I step away from him. “We both have an image to uphold, now, Rain.” I glower at him, still hurt at the way he said he had to babysit me. “But let’s not allow appearances to get in the way of reality. We both know my heart will always belong to Forest.”