by Aral Bereux
‘You need me for anything else, Commander?’
Julianna thought Devo looked as though she hadn’t slept for a week, or had been crying just as long. Caden must have told her, she thought. Katherine was her safety net, then Bas, and now they’re both gone.
‘Thanks Sarah, go grab something to eat, rest up. We move out at zero four-hundred.’
Devo nodded. Julianna watched until her feet disappeared where the wall met with the staircase.
‘I was under the impression Devo was staying here with the gang.’
‘You try telling little Miss that, she has as much right as I to fight for Bas. I’m not about to dictate to the grieving what they can and can’t do – even if it is Sarah Deveaux – and you should be resting,’ Caden said.
‘Feel fine.’ Liar, feel like crap. Stop giving me that look. ‘The sleep helped. Zero four-hundred?’ He’s planning the attack without me.
‘Bullshit. Every watcher goes through it, me included. We all know the transformation knocks us about.’ Caden slammed the locker door shut. The bag was empty. ‘You should be initiated. Without it, your body will just fight the process.’
Now he’s ignoring me.
Julianna turned for the stairs. Devo’s footsteps were on the level above them.
‘Julianna Elizbeth Rae, come on back now.’
‘I’m not a watcher! I’m certainly not a damned Seer – whatever the hell that means, and I’m positively not going through whatever the transformation is – and if you mention initiation one more time Caden Madison, Taris will be the least of your worries when I have my hands around your balls and my knife handy.’
He was amused. ‘You wanna’ see these tunnels or not?’
She hung her head in frustration on the first rise of the steps and took the few back past the wall and into the basement again. Caden padlocked the gates.
‘Are you going all Council on my ass?’
‘I wouldn’t dare on the eve of battle, my girl.’ He fastened the gates with a bolt lock and the last padlock. ‘Your temper scares me far too much.’
Now he’s mocking me. ‘No more talk about it?’
He nodded in silent agreement. ‘I like my balls where they are.’
Julianna hit the uneven ground of the basement and her knees buckled again. Her hands shot in front, searching to grab some support, ending up with a hand full of his shirt and Caden staring down at her.
‘You’re always there to catch me.’ She pouted at his frown. ‘Lighten up, C Mads.’
He raised a thick eyebrow. ‘This way then.’ He moved her hands from his shirt and ambled to the large metal grate resting against the wall.
She followed the few steps to the crawl space and peered down into its darkness from her haunches, eager to go forward. Its long, narrow area was barely enough space for her to crawl into.
Caden gestured for her to continue into the tunnel first.
How the hell does he fit in there? She figured he struggles. But he’s a shape shifter. She looked at him waiting. Yeah, I remember, and he’s still listening.
‘Can I have some privacy with my thoughts?’
‘Habit, sorry.’
She slipped onto her belly to pull herself along. Low light stretched from the other end, offering its guidance that she followed, with Caden close behind her heels.
‘When you get out, the ground’s rough, easy to slip on.’
His voice bounced along the narrow rock surrounding them. From their damp touch under her hands, she sensed their age. The smell of stagnated water pushed into her face on a breeze, forcing her to turn from the stench. When it stopped she continued her belly crawl towards the light. Julianna’s eyes widened, when her arms hung over the edge of the tunnel.
‘Get a move on, J Rae, I’m suffocating back here!’ His voice fell on deaf ears.
A large, open cavern stared upon her. It was beyond massive, and her eyes widened to take in its stature. From the open area, a network of tunnels stretched in every direction from its main channel. Water trickled down the walls, from the storm waters on street level, and more crashed somewhere into a distant pool. The direction it came from was impossible to tell.
She stared at the largeness of it all. The height, the abundance – it was a chasm of its own right. An under city of chambers and streets, spilling in every direction. She couldn’t see where its height ended beneath the city, or its length moving into the dark tunnels ahead. There was no end in sight for every which way she glanced.
‘Freaking move it, girlfriend!’ his voice boomed along the tunnels until it disappeared into the vastness before her.
Julianna edged out of the tunnel and found her feet on the cobbled ground. It was uneven, as he warned, and she almost landed in the thin layer of water covering it.
He propped on the edge, watching her move into the center of the chambers. Her footsteps echoed and splashed as she circled in one spot to comprehend the greatness of the ancient structure.
‘They go from Sector One to the countryside,’ he said.
‘Why didn’t Isis tell me any of this existed?’ she felt the anger rise. ‘All the times I went to the Club with patrols on my ass. The times I was shot at, chased—’
Caden stood. ‘Doesn’t matter now, you won’t be dancing anymore.’
Julianna stood, dumbfounded. He ignored her why the hell not expression, walking along a wall to a tunnel instead.
She inched forward, stepping over the network of drains channeled into the ground that cupped the flowing water. She wondered where it all went, for a city short of fresh water.
He pointed. ‘You’ll find the countryside down there. Behind you, Sector One.’ He pointed to a chip in the wall above him. ‘Use this to guide you.’
She looked over her shoulder. Something ominous lurked in his voice. When she returned to him, his gaze was sharp and meaningful. He pouted.
‘Spill it,’ she said.
‘Everyone agrees that the best place for you right now, is the safe house. I’m showing you these tunnels in case you need a quick escape, when we’re not here.’
She stood in silence.
‘You’re not going to Sector One with us in the morning,’ he paused, ‘I don’t want you to.’
‘I’m part of the Rebellion. I’m one of the best you have.’
‘Don’t go getting all pragmatic on me. You know what I’m talking about – and it’s not the Rebellion,’ he started to finger point.
‘Of course I’ll be pragmatic about it. You have no right.’ she snapped. ‘How dare you.’
The finger pointing was well on its way towards a slap. ‘I have every right in the world. You’re staying here and you’ve no choice in the matter. We’ve already discussed it. You don’t understand half of what you’re about and the other half is too arrogant to accept explanation!’
‘You talk about being pragmatic and you say things like that?’ she shook her head. ‘I’m scared to death about this. None of it makes sense; no one offers any explanation when I ask…’
He calmed down and leaned against the wall. Water ran down his back and he swore as he dodged more of it.
She pushed past him near tears. ‘So don’t fucking yell at me!’
There was a silence. He took in her words and watched her walk down the tunnel that led to the countryside.
‘Someone has too,’ he yelled.
Julianna tipped her head to his approaching footsteps. His large hands rested firmly on her shoulders, forcing her to turn around as though she were an impertinent child. His face was calm but he looked through her with his dark brooding eyes and his arched brow.
‘If I need to yell at you, I’ll yell at you,’ he extended a hand to raise her chin. ‘You’ve always gone in your own direction, even as a child. Problem is you tend to get lost. I’ve never met anyone so damned lost and I’m not going to ignore it any longer. This fight isn’t your fight, Jay,’ he dropped his hand. ‘You’re not going, and that’s the end of it.’
She blinked away the tears. ‘Who else will cover your backside when you see Bastiaan? You have other sharp shooters with my skill? Anyone else that can call your attention when you’re about to do something stupid?’
‘I’m not discussing this. The decision’s made.’ He turned toward the exit in the wall. She moved with him, taking the bold move to block his path.
‘How can you stand there and say that you know me?’
‘You’re not the big mystery to me that you’d so like to think,’ Caden shook his head. The disagreement was clear. ‘Isis is about to promote you to Commander. It’s high time you grew up and led from example.’
‘What are you talking about?’
‘After the skirmish at the road block, figured you proved yourself worthy. I told Isis about it. You’ll have your own camp once this is all said and done.’
His comment blind sighted her. Again! The no more dancing comment was making sense. No wonder he offered no explanation. She put her hands on her hips to help compute his words. The idea of Commander appealed. The idea of more freedom appealed, but working closely with Isis and Caden didn’t.
Yeah sure, not a hope.
She shook her tightly lipped expression with her eyes looking everywhere but at him.
It’s their way of keeping a tight lead on me. This one’s about being the Seer.
‘Don’t want the job. Thanks anyway.’ She looked over her shoulder. ‘Countryside that way, behind me is Sector One. Got it, Commander.’
She stepped over a large stream of water. The grate was across from them. Julianna bent down to shuffle through the tunnel and when she turned Caden watched with contempt.
‘I may get lost sometimes…’ she said and sat on the edge of the crawl space before swinging her body into it. ‘But I’m not ignorant.’ She didn’t need the ability to read anyone when their intentions were blatantly obvious.
* * *
There had only been one other conversation between them for that day. Caden was busy preparing final plans and stockpiling weapons for the mission, but when they crossed paths on the roof where she sat, listening to Hensley waffle on about his homeland as they pointed snipers together, his tone was cool.
‘Why are you up here?’ Caden had asked.
She remembered looking blankly between him and Squad Leader ‘Irish’ Hensley, before disengaging the rifle to push it into Caden’s chest. He’d cut through her, had said something about not following his command and being on active duty without permission, and she’d silently excused herself downstairs.
Now she sat in the mess room alone, plucking at an unraveling thread that poked from the sofa, which exposed the foam inside the cushion. She stopped tugging at it and looked around. Everyone else was in their respective rooms, or on duty somewhere in the building, preparing for the night yet to come. Only a skeleton crew would stay, and as far as she could tell, Squad Leader ‘Irish’ Hensley was in charge once the others departed. He mentioned it before Caden chastised her, in front of her safe house comrades.
She sucked in her breath. The frustration she felt at his expense. Caden was meeting with the general and other seniors in the building, and she was alone. The quiet was welcomed after the eventful shit week – even the city streets were having an evening off – but the frustration tapped away inside her mind in the form of Devo’s voice.
Daniel’s your brother and you’re the freakin’ Seer.
She sat back in the sofa, old but comfortable, and reminisced about the nights she had spent on its cushions. The thread twirled between her fingers again. She tried to push it all away.
But you’re the freakin’ Seer. Great, she thought. So what does that mean exactly? Huh Cade, what does that really mean, and by the way, thanks for telling me about it – my brother and my father; and by the way, still haven’t mentioned where I could find my old man, like you promised.
She pushed the thought away. The trembling in her body was in tune with her annoyance. Every time she stressed, her fingers trembled more.
Think of something more pleasant – the Militia…there you go, knew you could do it.
She smirked at her own factiousness. The Militia, the Rebellion, everything before it got ugly. The recruitment campaigns when it initially started – she was old enough to remember that part, but it was a lifetime ago.
She looked down at her fingers, drumming out the math quickly. Sixteen months. Sixteen months since meeting him. How things change so much in sixteen short months.
The day’s results left her feeling more than unremarkable. Caden’s words churned in her mind. Initiation, transformation, commander, own camp. It was too much. Being something she never really cared for, was another matter. The seizure last night hammered that one home. She didn’t ignore it.
If he doesn’t let me go, I’ll go anyway.
She closed her thoughts, sensing he was listening, tapping in and out, with the expectation she may disobey a direct order again.
She conceded Caden knew her better than she initially thought. One step ahead, every time. Christ, I wish I could have coffee right now. Yep, think of something else. Her attention was taken with a spoon left from someone, on the table in front of her.
She lowered her feet from its edge and sat forward. Its shape, color, weight and length struck her curiosity. Why it had taken her attention she didn’t know, but anything was better than Caden and his plans.
Damn it, stop thinking about him!
The spoon moved.
She checked over her shoulder. The room was empty. She stared at the spoon in its open space. It was alone, with nothing on the table to cause its disturbance. Nothing rested in its way. She bent down, checked under the table, searching for the magic trick that wasn’t there.
Seeing things. It never, really happened.
She thumped her hands against her head and braced her feet against the floor. The spoon moved again.
’Is this really happening?’ she whispered.
Like Caden had done so many times in front of her, she brushed her hand through the air, swatting the imaginary fly. The spoon moved with her hand’s pattern. Her eyes widened, her nose twitched. Her invisible touch slid the spoon to the end of the table, suspending it from the edge.
‘Fuck me sideways,’ she whispered. ‘This really can’t be happening right now.’
Her disdain for the spoon returned it to its original place, center of the table, pointing at her, mocking her.
The Sector paper rested beside her, taking her attention. She cut her hand faintly through the air, barely moving. The paper turned itself to page four under her silent command before closing. The front title painted across the cover in bold, red capitals screamed, THE BULLETIN. She glanced over the contents with her heart in her throat.
Each Sector had its own contributions, each week it said the same thing: obey and you’ll be okay with the Militia, rat your friends out, and it’ll be all good. Noncompliance will see you arrested, or killed, blah, blah, blah. The bulletin continued to bullshit, and her mind continued to dance.
She moved her gaze to the boarded windows stretching over the far wall. The large congregation room, with its peeling paint and worn carpet, was abandoned, but for the scent of coffee wafted through the air and into her nose. She turned into the cup presented over her shoulder. Caden stared down with his usual pout and sat on the sofa across from her, sipping his coffee in silence and scratching at a white mark on his black pants. She hated the uniform that made him resemble the senior Militia.
‘You okay?’ she asked.
He was surprised with her question.
She wondered if they were they still fighting while glancing back at The Bulletin, feigning interest on the printed contents.
‘The General was surprisingly accepting of the whole situation. He thinks I should let you join us. Isis on the other hand…’ he sipped his coffee and leaned into the chair. ‘He’s fiercely protective of you.’
‘He pisses me off,’ Juliann
a looked into her coffee. The chipped mug rested comfortably within her curled fingers. She savored her first sip. She’d wished for coffee and he’d brought it to her. He’d piggy-backed her thoughts after all.
Double crap!
‘You okay, Jay?’ his gentle tone surprised her.
‘What’s not to be okay about?’ she said. ‘I’m fine.’ She returned to her coffee with nowhere else to look, but at him. ‘Worried about Bas—’
He cut her off. ‘Not what I’m talking about.’
She reached for the thread in the sofa cushion again, stopping herself as the coffee threatened to spill. She steadied it in her hands and pulled a nonchalant expression instead. They were alone, no risk of them being interrupted. It bothered her. She wanted a distraction.
‘You can’t keep going like this,’ he stated.
‘No idea what you’re talking about.’
Caden’s eyes reached her from under his furrowed brow. Was it a look of concern, she wondered. The expression wasn’t straight forward, wasn’t pouty. He was extremely serious.
He leaned over his coffee. ‘How long has it been going on for?’
She played. ‘Has what?’
The spoon moved until it held itself out against the edge of the table precipice. The neck of it tipped as the body suspended in midair. There was no gesture, for him it was a parlor trick.
‘Days, weeks?’ he stared with her, studying the spoon. ‘It hasn’t been months, you’re not at that stage, and you’re too calm.’ The spoon slid back to its original position.
She rolled her eyes. ‘Fuck, Cade, here we go again. Don’t go all Council on me. It’s a sure way to piss me off right now.’ She tucked her legs beneath her.
‘At your age, if last night was your first break, then you’re in for a hell of a ride.’
‘Don’t care,’ she sipped her coffee. ‘You’re trying to scare me.’
‘You’re a full-blood.’
‘My mother’s a walker. Makes that impossible,’ she snarled.
‘Makes you ignorant of your heritage.’
The thought was beyond her reach. She wanted to know the outcome of the discussion between him and the other seniors instead. His expression wasn’t a happy one, and she figured for a second she may have had a win.
