Evelyn looked back at the girl and shook her head. “No. But she will be.” Evelyn couldn’t help but wonder if the girl would even remember the conversation that had taken place tonight. The girl hadn’t looked at her once, but she seemed to have taken it in. Evelyn said a silent goodbye to the girl as Jeffrey grabbed her by the hand. In a flash, they were gone.
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
I woke up with tears streaking down the sides of my face. I quickly wiped them away in hopes that no one saw me crying in my sleep. When I looked over at Christopher he was still asleep on the ground next to me. I knew I couldn’t have been out for very long because there were still people in the hideout, shuffling around like they were doing something important.
I sat up and instantly my head started swimming. My limbs were starting to get sore and my neck felt stiff. I had to use the top of my shirtsleeve to wipe the mucus from my nostrils. Perhaps the tears in my sleep hadn’t been from the emotions running through me, but the virus causing a reaction. I shook my head when I thought about what I had just seen.
Evelyn had been there for me from the beginning. I never knew. I searched through my own memories, trying to remember that night. There were so many nights like that where I just went out to the broken village wall and sat, wishing that my parents would come back. Though I didn’t remember anyone being there to comfort me, I believe the message from her had stuck with me.
The whole thing felt so bizarre, yet it made sense. Maybe that’s why all this time Evelyn has looked at me as the one to carry on when she was done. Maybe she thought our second meeting was a sign of our connection - a sign that I was the one she had been looking for.
I rested my head against the wall again, feeling the weight of the virus taking over my bones. I was glad to know that my brain was still functioning normally. Perhaps it was Christopher who had helped that. I didn’t know what kind of mess I would be if he hadn’t been here to help. I would have probably already asked someone to shoot me.
A couple of minutes went by and finally Heather came up to us. When she rounded the corner to face us, she stopped abruptly.
“What happened to you?” she asked.
“What do you mean?”
“You look sick,” she said. “If I didn’t know any better, I would think you were bitten by a greyskin.”
“Do you know any better?” I asked. “For all you know I could have been bitten five times.”
Heather hesitated. “I…guess.”
I did my best to give her a devious grin, though I wasn’t sure it was my most convincing one. “I’m just not feeling well. That’s all.”
“Okay…Uh, everyone is about ready. Evelyn asked me to come get you. We’re about to take the fight to Jeremiah.”
“Lucky us,” I said.
“Tell me about it,” she said rolling her eyes. “If this thing was any less organized we’d already be dead.”
I smiled at her and she smiled back before leaving to find the others. It might have been the first time I had actually seen her smile. I wasn’t sure.
I reached a hand over to Christopher and grabbed his shoulder, shaking it softly. His eyes blinked open and he turned his head to me.
“It’s time to go,” I said.
“Already?” he asked.
I nodded. “I might need you to help me out one last time.”
He sat up from his sleeping position and looked at me. “Your eyes are starting to darken a bit. That’s not good.”
“I’m running out of time,” I said.
“I’m going to wait to heal your symptoms until we get close to the Center. I want you to have as much strength as you can for when we get there. Sound good?”
“Yeah,” I said.
We helped each other off the floor and made our wae fight y into the main room where Allison was preparing to leave. Everyone stood near the table and looked up when we came into the room. Evelyn stared at me in the eyes and I could tell she was wondering if I had slept. I smiled at her, feeling warmer toward her than I had expected.
“So, what’s the plan?” Danny asked.
Allison took a deep breath. “We take everyone we have and attack the Center.”
The room was silent. This was the extent of her plan. Martin stood next to her and placed a calming hand on her shoulder. He spoke next.
“We try to cause enough of a diversion so I can get the explosives into the Center basement. I have a small team. We need the Starborns to help us and to make sure no one actually leaves the Center.”
My eyes darted to Evelyn and she met my stare. The two of us knew that Aaron and Connor were going to be stuck in there and it would probably be up to me to get them out. The two of us knew that I would be going into the Center no matter what, because I was going to die anyway. If I could get to Jeremiah, our work would be finished. As far as Evelyn and I were concerned, the mission was to sneak me inside, not the explosives. They were just the backup.
But I knew I couldn’t just go after Jeremiah. Aaron and Connor were both stuck in there. There was no way I was just going to let them die. What if it came down to me having to choose between saving them or killing Jeremiah? I wasn’t sure what I would do. I didn’t even want to entertain the thought of having to save one over the other.
“Has anyone considered the possibility of using Jeffrey to get the explosives inside?” Heather asked, shrugging. “I figure that would be much easier.”
Jeffrey shook his head at this. “I don’t know if I could do it. That’s too specific. It would take too much energy to be that specific.”
“I don’t understand,” Heather came back. “Why don’t you just think about the place real hard, and zap yourself and the explosives into it?”
“You’re right,” Jeffrey said, “you don’t understand.”
“We’ve already considered that approach,” Allison said. “It’s too risky.”
“And charging the Center with only about fifty people isn’t risky?” Heather came back.
“I am asking a lot from all of you,” Allison said. “It’s likely most of us will die in this mission. But if it means stopping Jeremiah, then it is worth it.”
The words fell heavy on the group. I thought they were all ready to die for the cause, but as I looked at Heather and Danny, I didn’t see confidence on their faces. I saw fear. I would have been making the same face as well, I’m sure, if I had been in their shoes. But I had no fear for my own life any more. My only fear was that I wouldn’t accomplish what I had set out to do. If we didn’t get Jeremiah, then my family would still be in danger. I wouldn’t be able to die in peace, knowing that they still lived in a world where Jeremiah ruled.
The room was silent for a long time before Allison told us to load up in the trucks. All of us fell in line to get a rifle in case we needed it. When the soldier offered me one, I refused and said I didn’t need it. Christopher took one, and when he did, he handed the pistol back to me.
I looked at the handgun, studying the smooth metal. It was a nice weapon. Someone had taken good care of it. I pulled out the clip to see if it still had bullets. It was fully loaded. Of course, I would only need one. But maybe, if I was lucky, I would die in the explosion, staring Jeremiah in the face as the fire consumed us both.
Everyone gathered to get into the trucks. Alli thson took the front one and Martin drove the back truck with all the explosives. Before Evelyn and I got in the truck, she stopped me for a moment. “Did you get to sleep?” she asked me.
I looked at her for a long second and instead of answering her directly, I reached out both arms and pulled her in tight, hugging her like she was a best friend I hadn’t seen in years. She didn’t seem to know how to take the gesture at first. Her hands fell awkwardly at her sides for a moment until she realized I was waiting for her to hug me back. When her arms wrapped around me, I could feel it. These were the same arms that had wrapped around my shoulders six years ago. It was the same woman who had told me that I had a new responsibility to
care for what family I had left.
When we let go of our embrace, she held me out at arms length, looking me deep in the eyes. “There was supposed to be one more dream,” she said. She looked in every direction before continuing. “But I don’t suppose you will get to see it.” Water filled her eyes as she said this to me.
“We need to get going,” came the voice of Allison from inside one of the trucks.
Evelyn sighed and let her arms drop. “I suppose it doesn’t matter. It was meant to show you why I thought you were the one. Why I thought you should carry on things after I’m gone.”
“Maybe it’s me who is supposed to end all this, and you’re to carry on after I’m gone,” I told her.
She didn’t say anything, but only stared past me, trying to keep herself together.
I reached out and held her hand. “Come on, Evelyn. Let’s go kill Jeremiah.”
She smiled and nodded at me, and we both got into the truck together. The drive felt like hours, though I knew it was only a couple of minutes. The drivers stopped a few blocks from the Center, but the giant building was in full view. I hesitated and looked at Christopher before I opened the door.
“You ready for this?”
He nodded at me and smiled. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
I opened the door to let everyone out. Christopher and I stepped to the back of the vehicle and he grabbed my hand with both of his. When he closed his eyes, I could feel the symptoms of the greyskin virus lift off me like a vapor. My limbs didn’t ache. My nose wasn’t running. I felt strength again. Christopher, however, fell to his knees.
He started convulsing and all of a sudden, his joints locked up and he was on the ground. Several of the Resistance soldiers came up beside me and asked what was wrong. When Heather and Danny came up, I knew I had to say something.
“I don’t know,” I said. “I think he’s sick.” I cradled his head in my lap, wishing I could do something to help him. But this was his part of the mission, which meant I had to make good on my part.
Allison was gathering all the soldiers together in the street, preparing them for the final march on the Center. Evelyn came up beside me as the others left.
“He’s not going to be able to do it much longer, is he?” she asked.
“This is the last time,” I said. And as the words left my lips, the realization floored me. This would be the last time I would ever feel alive again. I thought about it for a moment and shook my head. I had to get to Jeremiah. If I didn’t make it through to the end, what would be the point? Sure, I had until the next morning, but that didn’t mean anything. Christopher was losing so much to do this for me. Doing it again might kill him.
Evelyn placed a comforting hand on my shoulder and then walked to the group forming in the street. I half-listened as Allisoning i explained what they were about to do. She said something about bravery and that everything they had ever done had led up to this point.
As I looked at Christopher’s face, he opened his eyes and looked up at me. “What are you doing here?” he asked.
“Trying to make you comfortable,” I said. “It’s hard to watch you, knowing that I’m the one that is supposed to be feeling this way.”
“Then stop watching me,” he said with a forced grin. “Go fight. That’s why I’m here. For you. Just leave me here. I’ll be better soon enough.”
He was right. There was no use in trying to help him. I couldn’t let my feelings get in the way now. I bent down and kissed him on the forehead. With my mouth close to his ear, I whispered. “This may be the last time I see you,” I said. “Remember what we talked about with our family. Get them to New Haven.”
“They will get there,” Christopher said.
“Thank you for everything.”
“It is my honor,” he said.
I moved my legs and placed his head gently on the ground so he could rest. I hoped that he would be safe here. Surely it was safer than going into the Center. Jeffrey walked up next to me.
“What’s wrong with him?” he asked.
I just shook my head. “Would you mind staying back with him? If everything gets a little too crazy, it might be a good idea just to get him out of Screven and back to Springhill.”
“I would take him now,” he said, “but I don’t know if the others will need to leave as well.”
“I’d wait,” I said. I looked down at Christopher one more time, thanked Jeffrey and started to walk toward the group.
Allison was done with her little speech and the Resistance soldiers were already marching silently down the street. I walked next to Evelyn who held her gun ready.
“The plan actually isn’t so bad,” she said to me.
“Yeah?”
She nodded. “Jeremiah can’t be expecting us to attack the Center right now. All we have to do is start a commotion long enough for Martin to get the explosives into the basement. I don’t expect the Center to be guarded all that well.”
“Let’s hope not,” I said.
The march turned into a slow jog as the fifty or so of us made our way to the Center. We slowed, however when we crossed one of the buildings closest to it. Allison held up a hand immediately to signal for everyone to hold back and find cover. All of us crouched low behind whatever we could find. Trashcans, vehicles, it didn’t matter.
Danny and Heather were next to Allison. Evelyn and I were situated behind the corner of a building. She was closest to the end and I was further down the alley.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“There are covered trucks all around the Center,” she answered. “Screven soldiers are standing on top of them. It’s like they’re waiting for us.”
When she said that, I shut my eyes and thought of Connor. He was standing next to an open window in one of the highest stories with a rifle in his hand. The hunters, Anthony and Trace, stood behind him, waiting.
“We’re here,” I said out loud. I could tell that he tried not to react to my presence. He felt happy to know I was there, but terrified at the same time. He knew he couldn’t take on a Starborn alone. He wasn’t entirely sure what these two could do, but he was sure his rifle wouldn’t be enough for him here.
“When do you want me to shoot Allison?” Connor asked Trace.
“Whenever she comes into view,” he answered coldly.
“So, how is it that the Screven soldiers knew the Resistance was coming?” Connor asked. “Some guy named Martin, you said?”
My insides dropped.
Trace gave him a strange look. “What’s wrong with you? We’ve gone over everything. You just need to shut up and be ready.”
Connor turned back to the window. “Do you still want me to shoot her if the greyskins inside those trucks get to her first?”
My eyes shot open and I jerked my head at Evelyn. “We’ve got to stop the attack,” I said, breathing hard.
“What?” Evelyn asked.
“We’ve got to stop Allison,” I said. “They know we’re coming! They’re ready for us. Martin told them. The trucks are full of greyskins!”
Evelyn didn’t wait for me to finish before she darted away from the building, running toward Allison. I wanted to follow her, but my legs kept me firmly planted behind the building. I shut my eyes again, this time seeking out Martin. I had last seen him getting into the farthest truck with all of the explosives. Now that I can see him through my consciousness, he’s driving away from all of us. It looked like he must have followed most of the way and was now making his way back to the hideout. What was he planning?
I switched to Evelyn who now crouched next to Allison. “Full of greyskins,” Evelyn said.
Allison shook her head at her. “How does she know this?” she asked, talking about me.
“I can’t explain right now,” Evelyn said. “But it’s a trap. We need to back off.”
In almost an answer to what Evelyn was saying, one of the guards on top of the trucks pulled a bullhorn up to his mouth and started speaking throu
gh it.
“It’s time to give it up,” he said. “You have come in through our streets, but we knew you were coming. You are now surrounded. Fighting us would be useless.”
Allison swore.
“It’s time to give yourselves up,” the guard said again.
“What do you suggest we do?” Allison asked.
Evelyn shook her head.
“I say we kill them,” Heather said. Danny nodded in agreement.
“You can kill a few,” Evelyn said, “but they have greyskins. The few of us can’t keep the rest of the Resistance from dying.”
“Looks like a lose-lose situation,” Allison said.
“But we have a bargaining chip,” Evelyn said. “We have a healer.”
I wasn’t sure if it was anger or terror that gripped me when Evelyn said this. I was the one that brought Christopher here. Evelyn couldn’t just give him up like that. But had it really come down to deciding between Christopher’s life, or the lives of everyone else?
I switched my consciousness back to Connor. He was standing at the window staring through the scope of his rifle, waiting. He was nervous. He didn’t want to shoot anyone, but he knew it was going to come to that. He was doubting his decision to come to Screven. This wasn’t the first time he had doubted it. He had been trying to do the right thing. He only wanted to help the best way he knew how. He didn’t have any special powers or abilities. All he had was a sharp mind that could possibly fool Jeremiah into giving up some valuable information to him.
As I watched him, I couldn’t help but think that by him being there and letting me know about the greyskins and Martin’s betrayal, he might have saved these soldiers’ lives.
I wished tg therehere was a way for me to see Jeremiah. I wondered if he was somewhere watching this scene unfold to his delight. Somewhere along the way he had found Martin and persuaded him to double-cross the Resistance. Jeremiah’s prisoners had all died because of Martin. Jeremiah knew that Allison had planned to break them out and use them as soldiers. She might have had a chance if that plan worked.
My consciousness moved to Aaron, thinking maybe Jeremiah had gone to meet him. I didn’t expect what I saw. He was in the large room alone, but he was staring out the window. To his right, and a few stories up, Connor hung out the window with a rifle pointing at the streets below.
The Starborn Saga (Books 1, 2, & 3) Page 57
