Smoke

by Mariah Esterly

  Gertie shook her head, her fingers running over the fabric of his jacket. “No, I guess I just think it’s kind of weird that our first kiss was recorded and is now a part of security footage. You know, out there for anyone to see.”

  He laughed, apparently relieved. “Well, I hardly think just anyone would have access to it.” He stood up and held his hand out to her. She took it and allowed him to pull her to her feet. His hands dropped to her hips and pulled her in for one more kiss. “Come on. Let’s get you home.”

  Gertie nodded, and with another last glance at the camera in the corner, she followed him from the room.

  29

  Vail

  Vail watched Gertie leave. It took everything he had not to follow her. His instinct was to trail behind her, keep her safe. If he didn’t tell Atkins what Lanie had helped Gertie discover immediately, he would be reprimanded worse than he had been for bringing Gertie to the Office, and his back was still recovering from that.

  He hesitated, then returned to the wall, pressed his hand against the brick and entered the elevator. “Where’d Gertie go?” Dicie asked as the light flickered over Vail, scanning him.

  He shrugged. “She went to see her family.”

  “Shouldn’t you go with her?”

  The elevator stopped and he stepped out, paused by Dicie’s desk. “Do you have her?”

  Dicie nodded, and indicated a screen. “She’s almost to the checkpoint.” Vail watched her for a moment, navigating the crowds of people without really seeing them. “She looks... upset.” Dicie murmured before looking up at him. That was an understatement, she looked as though she was going to start crying at any moment. Vail felt his heart twist in his chest.

  “What did Lanie find?” Dicie asked, drawing his gaze from the screen.

  Vail shook his head. He couldn’t tell her, not before Atkins. “A lot.”

  She snorted. “Well, that’s illuminating. Thanks.”

  Vail placed his hands on her shoulders and gave a gentle squeeze. “Sorry. Is Atkins in?”

  Dicie shook her head. “He should be back soonish, I think.”

  He swore under his breath. He should have gone with Gertie. He could have convinced her to come to the Office after she talked to her grandfather. Dicie glanced up at him again. “You might as well pull up a chair if you’re going to keep watch while you wait. I don’t like you looming over me. It makes me feel itchy.”

  He sat. They watched until Gertie disappeared into the building where her family lived. Dicie leaned back in her chair, rested her hands on the back of her head. There was nothing for them to do now but wait for her to come back out.

  “So, you can’t give me any hint of what Lanie found?”

  Vail shook his head again. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s just so unfair that Lanie knows and I don’t. She’ll lord it over me until Atkins deems me worthy of knowing.”

  “Or until Gertie tells you herself.” Vail stared at the screen, his forehead furrowed. He should have gone with her, she shouldn’t have to face this alone.

  A hand tapped his shoulder. He twisted around and met Atkins gaze. “I hope you have a good reason for being here.” Vail nodded once. “Well, then, let’s go.”

  Dicie gave his hand a squeeze as he stood up. “Keep an eye on her for me.” He murmured.

  “Always.”

  Vail sat as Atkins closed the door. “No Graves today?”

  “He’s busy.” Atkins moved around his desk to face him and leaned his arms on his desk. “Talk.”

  Vail ran a hand down his face, exhausted to his core. “As much as I hate to say it. We might want to wait for Graves. This is big.”

  Atkins sighed. “I said he’s busy. If you’ve got something to share with me, then do it. Otherwise get out.”

  Vail braced his forearms on his knees. “I took Gertie to see Lanie.”

  Atkins’ scowl disappeared. “Dicie’s girlfriend?” Vail nodded. “Was she able to do what she does?” Another nod. “And?”

  Vail took a deep breath and looked at his hands dangling between his knees. I won’t be me, Gertie had said. She didn’t want him to tell what they’d discovered because she was worried that she would cease to be a person in the eyes of the Office. He glanced at Atkins. He was so determined to take down the Chancellor and Vail believed in the cause, but he was worried that Gertie might be right.

  “Jesus, Vail, if you don’t start talking soon…” Atkins left off letting the threat linger.

  “Lanie thinks Gertie might have a shade.” The words were out before he could stop them.

  Atkins’ eyebrows shot up. “Really? Tell me.” Vail told him as best he could what Lanie and Gertie had relayed to him. When he’d finished, Atkins leaned back, one hand fiddled with a pen on his desk. “That’s... interesting. Where is she now?”

  Vail could see the cogs of his brain working, already formulating the best way to use this information to the benefit of the Office. Already figuring out how to use Gertie to take down the Chancellor. “At her parents.” He answered. “She had some questions for them.”

  He nodded. “Yes, I would imagine so. Well, now we know why the Chancellor was so interested in her. Pulling her from 5th to 3rd. The cameras in her apartment.” He stared into the distance and mused, “Princess Victoria St. Clare.”

  “But they can’t know for sure that’s who she is, right?” Vail asked running a hand through his brown hair. “If they did, she would be in jail. They wouldn’t just be watching her.”

  Atkins eyes snapped back to Vail, and he nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. But it’s only a matter of time before they figure it out. Or stop caring one way or another and just arrest her anyway.” He leaned forward and slapped his palm against the desk. “We’ll need to bring her in, keep her here, until we can get her out of the city.”

  “She’ll want her family brought in too.”

  Atkins’ eyes flickered to him. “Are you sure? They’ve lied to her for her whole life, she might feel differently about them now.”

  Vail clenched his fist. “I know Gertie. She’ll want her family to go with her. You should start planning for that now.”

  The door burst open. Dicie hurried into the room. Atkins glared at her. “Did I tell you to come in?”

  She ignored him, her blue eyes locking with Vail’s grey ones. “Gertie’s in one of the holding rooms in the checkpoint between 4th and 3rd.”

  Vail leapt to his feet. He shouldn’t have left her. “Wait.” Atkins called out, stopping him before he could rush out the door. “What happened?” He asked Dicie. She shook her head, sending her curls bobbing.

  “I’m not sure. She was a few blocks from the checkpoint and all the sudden she took a detour. She stopped walking, said something and then it looks like she was physically being pulled forward. She struggled and then took off in the opposite direction.” Her blue eyes flicked to Vail. “The guards at the checkpoint, they almost shot her.” Vail felt the blood drain from his face. “But that guardsman that she knows, McDonagh, stopped them, and then pulled her into the holding room.”

  “Are they still there?” Atkins asked. Dicie nodded. “Pull it up on the screen.” She went to the computer and typed into the keyboard, a moment later the screen behind Atkins desk flickered to life and Gertie appeared on the screen. Vail let out a breath at seeing her. She didn’t seem to be in any trouble. She was talking earnestly with Liam, his hand wrapped around hers. Vail clenched his fist as Liam reached out and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, his fingers lingering far longer than necessary.

  He was overcome with the urge to smash his fist into Liam’s handsome face. He forced the feeling away, looked at Atkins, who was staring at the wall his head tilted. “Can you hear what they’re saying?”

  His brow furrowed in concentration. After a moment, he shook his head. “No, they’re too far away.”

  Vail watched as Liam sat in the chair next to Gertie again, pulled her to him. Vail felt his stomach drop as
she leaned into him, her fingers curling in his jacket. “Well,” Atkins murmured. “It doesn’t look like she’s in distress. Vail, go catch up with her, bring her in. Let her know as soon as she’s here we’ll get her family to a safe house.”

  Vail left without saying anything. Dicie hurried after him. “Are you okay?”

  “Why wouldn’t I be?” His voice sounded wrong to him, hoarse. “I should have gone with her.”

  “Vail.” Dicie grabbed his arm, forced him to stop. He couldn’t meet her eyes. “Listen to me. I know that looked like something, but trust me when I say it was nothing. I’ve seen the way Gertie looks at you when she can’t even see you.”

  “Yeah, and how’s that?”

  Dicie smiled. “Like you look at her when you think no one else is watching. Trust me. This is nothing.” She took him by the shoulders and turned him toward the elevator, giving him a gentle nudge. “Now, go get your girl.”

  30

  Gertie

  Liam led Gertie through the checkpoint and into the streets of 3rd. He had his fingers wrapped around hers, pulling her along in his wake. Gertie allowed it, but her heart gave a twinge at the thought that it should have been Vail that was pulling her along, giddy from their first kiss.

  She’d given him a choice and he’d picked the Office. Given the same choice would Liam have picked different, his job or her? Gertie had the uncomfortable feeling that she knew the answer.

  Liam kept one hand on his gun as they walked, his eyes alert for any sign of danger. Gertie knew if anyone attacked them, he wouldn’t see it coming. No one would. Even knowing that Gertie couldn’t help but glance over her shoulder, scanning the streets for any sign of someone following them.

  They were just passing a bakery with a black delivery van parked in front when Gertie felt arms grab her, a hand clamped over her mouth, blocking the cry from escaping her lips. She watched in horror as Liam’s head jerked back and he stumbled, a gash forming over his left temple.

  He didn’t fall or let go of her hand. Gertie struggled against the person holding her, as Liam spun and pulled her toward him, trying to dislodge the arms around her.

  The door of the van slid open. Liam jerked again. He brought his fist up, swinging at an attacker he couldn’t see. He didn’t make contact.

  Another blow fell on him, blood sprayed from his nose, staining the pavement. Whoever this was, they were going to kill him. And he was going to keep fighting until they did.

  Gertie dug her fingernails into the hand that covered her mouth, the man holding her swore and released his grip long enough for her to gasp out, “Liam, run.”

  “Like hell.” He ground out, just before a look of surprise crossed his face and he crumpled to the ground.

  “No!”

  Gertie brought her head back hard, catching the person holding her on some boney part of their face. They cursed again, but didn’t release their grip. Instead, Gertie found herself slammed into the side of the vehicle as they tried shove her into the open door. Her head smashed into the metal and she went limp. Two sets of hands forced her into the van. She thrashed as she felt a prick against her neck. Warmth flowed through her body, making her limbs heavy and her mind fuzzy. The grey ceiling of the van got farther and farther away until it was just a tiny dot in the center of a great black void. And then it too winked out.

  Gertie’s head ached. Light filtered through her closed lids, stinging her eyes, and setting her temples to throbbing. Without opening her eyes, she took a quick inventory of her body. The surface under her was soft, she was covered with a blanket. Her left arm ached right along with her head. She tried to lift it, but found that she couldn’t.

  Bracing herself, she cracked an eye open and looked. A fleece lined leather strap held her arm in place. A needle protruded from her forearm, a long plastic tube wound its way up to a plastic bag full of clear liquid hanging above her.

  Her right arm was also restrained, though her legs were not. The blanket that covered her was light blue with pink flowers, and faded. It reminded her of the couch in her parent’s apartment. The rest of the room was sparsely furnished. A table and a chair, a chest of drawers with a TV on it, and two doors, one that presumably led to a bathroom or a closet and the other must mean freedom.

  She twisted her right hand, trying to get her fingers on the clasp or the leather. Her ring finger could just reach it, but couldn’t do more than tap at the metal buckle. She scooted down and had just gotten her teeth around the strap when she heard the door open. Her vision swam as her head shot up, scanning the room for the newcomer.

  She should have known she wouldn’t see anyone. She heard them move across the room, saw the IV bag wiggle as if someone tapped it. Any progress she’d made on the buckle was undone as unseen hands pulled it tight. “Can’t have that,” a voice murmured. “How are you feeling?”

  Gertie stared at the tiled ceiling, stubbornly refusing to answer. It didn’t seem to bother her captor though. “I imagine you’re feeling a bit woozy from the medication. It’s a precaution for my safety. It should keep the shade inside you quiet, so that just you and I can talk.” His voice didn’t sound right, like he was speaking through a filter, one of those devices that changes your voice to hide your identity. “Not going to respond? Ah, no matter. I’ll talk enough for the both of us at least to start.” The chair moved from the table and was pushed closer to the bed.

  With a soft whirring sound, her bed lifted so that she was in more of a sitting position. The TV flickered on, channels were flipped through until it paused on a news report. “Ah, here we go. I knew it would be on. They’ve been running nothing but this story for the last 24 hours.”

  Gertie tried not to watch but the images on the screen caught her attention. “The police are looking for any information about this man, Vail Denholm,” an image of Vail flashed up on the screen. “Who is the prime suspect in the kidnapping of Gertrude Penn, a District 3 resident and government employee.” The news anchor continued speaking, but Gertie didn’t hear what she said. Instead, she watched a video of her kidnapping, watched Liam fall to the pavement, blood pooling under his body. The video changed to show Gertie alone in an alley leaning against a wall. Suddenly, Vail flickered into visibility, his hands on either side of her shoulders as he towered over her. To anyone who was watching it would look like he was threatening her. Vail had said that there weren’t any cameras in that alley. How had they gotten that footage?

  The whole world would know that he was an Extra. He wouldn’t be safe anywhere.

  The TV turned off. “What a shame, Miss Penn. It seems that you keep company with some very questionable characters. Though lucky for us that you do. You see, we have an interest in Mr. Denholm. We would like to be able to talk to him. I suspect that you know where he is and where we can find him.”

  Gertie focused on the ceiling tiles again. She began counting from left to right. Trying to block out the unnatural voice. She gotten to twenty-five when his hand cracked against her cheek. Tears sprang to her eyes, leaked down her cheeks.

  “I don’t like being ignored.”

  Gertie turned in his general direction. “You were saying?”

  “Where is Vail Denholm?”

  She shrugged. “I have no idea. Probably out of the city by now.”

  His hand smacked her other cheek. Gertie tasted blood. “Let’s try that again. Where is Vail Denholm?”

  Gertie shook her head and closed her eyes, knowing what was coming next.

  31

  Vail

  Vail was tired of people telling him what to do. Graves, Atkins, even Dicie. “You need to get out of the city.” Atkins said. “You’re a detriment to the Office while in here.”

  Vail ran a hand down his face. “I’ve already said I’m not leaving without Gertie.” They’d gone over this a million times since Gertie had been taken four days ago. Four days without a trace of her. Four days of not knowing where she was or if she was even still alive.

  Dicie
reached out and took his hand. “I understand what you’re saying, but it’s not safe for you here.”

  A map of the city and the surrounding area was lit up on the table in front of them. They’d already mapped out the fastest route to the fence and the safe house beyond it. The buildings that members of the Office had checked for Gertie glowed green. The 4th, 5th and 6th sections were a sea of green. Not one of the buildings in Section 1 were green.

  Vail glared at the section. “When are we going to get people into 1st?”

  Graves shook his head. “It’s not that easy. You know security is a hell of a lot tighter up there.”

  They’d been saying that for four days. Security’s too tight. We can just have someone go from house to house asking if they’ve seen her.

  “We’re working on it.” Atkins assured him.

  Vail stood up from the table, pushed his chair back. “I’ll go. I can get in and out without anyone seeing me.” He was halfway out the door when Graves’ voice stopped him.

  “The hell you will.”

  Atkins added his voice to the argument. “You’ll stay here in this building or you’ll go to the safe house. Those are your options. If you leave without our knowledge we will have a problem. Do you understand?” Vail didn’t respond. “Do you understand?” Atkins repeated.

  Vail clenched his jaw and nodded once.

  Dicie found him an hour later in the training room taking his frustration out on a punching bag. “Who are you imagining? Graves? Atkins?” He didn’t respond. “Guardsman McDonagh? Me?”

  He stopped punching and grabbed the bag to stop its swinging, leaning his head against the rough fabric, breathing heavy. “Not you.”

  She moved to the other side of the bag. “Not me but everyone else.”

  He nodded.

  “I know you’re worried. I’m worried too. But you going out and getting yourself killed isn’t going to help Gertie.” She reached out and patted his shoulder. “You have to believe that Graves and Atkins want to find her as much as you do. After all, she could be the heir to the throne and the answer to all of their problems.”