Boundary

by Heather Terrell

  Did he follow us from the Hall of Archons? Does he think that I’m here against my will? That maybe I’m Lukas’s prisoner? My mind squirms with questions, and my survival instincts tell me to play the victim, but I can’t do that to Lukas. He’d get the gallows for certain. I’ve got to try something else.

  Theo turns to Lukas with an expression as menacing as he can muster. “Did you hurt her?”

  I place a hand on Lukas’s shoulder. “I’m fine, Archon Theo. Truly.”

  His eyes widen, and he steps away from us; it’s unimaginable to him that an Archon and daughter of the Aerie would willingly touch the shoulder of a Boundary boy. “What in the Gods are you doing in here, Eva? In … in an Attendant’s chamber?” His confusion is so strong that he can barely stammer out the words.

  “This is Lukas,” I reply, forcing him to meet my gaze. “He was my brother’s Companion. I wanted to talk with him about Eamon.”

  Theo’s eyes narrow. He will not be easily deceived. “That explanation strains credulity, Eva. A Maiden venturing out after the final bell to chat with a Boundary Companion about her dead brother?”

  I have to hand it to him: He is nothing if not logical. I lower my head humbly, as if beseeching his understanding. Even his forgiveness. “It’s true, Archon Theo.”

  I wonder if he suspects that Lukas and I are more than master and servant. I doubt it; every member of the Triad has witnessed my genuine affection for Jasper. I feel that all-too-familiar pang of guilt. Does the very thought of a Maiden and a Boundary together alone so offend Theo?

  “Is that what you two were doing sneaking around the Hall of Archons tonight?” Theo demands. “Chatting about your dead brother?”

  By the Gods, Theo saw us there. He followed us from the Hall to Lukas’s chambers. He knew that someone had broken into the Hall of Archon after-bells with a Boundary person in tow, but he had no idea that it was me. The Archon uniform must have masked my identity; it’s truly uniform in every sense of the word, after all. No wonder he is so shocked and disappointed to see me of all people here. His favorite pupil deceived him. Not only that; I’ve violated The Lex countless times along the way, an anathema to Theo. My near word-for-word knowledge of The Lex was what endeared me to him in the first place; I was one of the few who could interpret and bend it.

  He shakes his head in fury and disbelief. “I knew someone was examining the Genesis Tech in the Conservation Chamber at night. It was never precisely where I left it. I thought it was my brother … I was certain Laurence was warning you further, trying to sabotage our efforts because of his dislike and fear of you. But I never dreamed that you were the one breaking into the Chamber. Never you. Why did you do it, Eva?”

  “You say ‘warning me further,’ ” I reply. “Was it Laurence who broke into my iglu and stabbed that awful knife through my clothing?”

  Theo bows his head.

  I could offer other excuses to him, but what is the point? We have both been hiding truths from each other. And unless I tell Theo every piece of the secret history we’ve uncovered—which he may or may not believe—nothing will justify my many Lex violations tonight. But what can he say of the truth he withheld from me?

  “What are you going to do?” I ask.

  He looks sad. Pleas that prey on his own withholding of truth will not move him. All that remains is our punishment.

  “You’ve left me with only one choice. I’ve got to turn you over to the Lexors for judgment. I will pray to the Gods that you’re sentenced only to banishment.” My hand still rests on Lukas’s shoulder, but I feel him shift slightly. He knows what’s coming. He doesn’t even register for Theo beyond his certain fate at the gallows.

  Theo turns away from us and heads toward the door. In a tick, he will summon the guards. All that Lukas and I have worked so hard to discover will be lost, like natquik, snow that drifts away in a strong wind.

  Before Theo’s hand touches the door handle, Lukas grabs him. He pulls Theo in front of him, wraps one arm around Theo’s body, and uses the other to place the blade of his pana under Theo’s chin. My heart leaps into my throat.

  “No!” I hear myself gasp. Even though I desperately want to escape from this situation, I don’t want it to come at the cost of Theo’s life. “Don’t hurt him, Lukas,” I beg, my voice trembling.

  Theo’s eyes are wide with terror.

  “Eva,” says Lukas, “we’re the ones left with only one choice. This old man has said so himself.”

  A hot tear falls from my lashes. “There’s always a choice.”

  Lukas presses his blade against Theo’s neck. Theo stiffens, his belly jutting out, his arm twisted behind his back. “I’ve been raised for this my whole life, Eva,” Lukas hisses. “Find the Angakkuq. Place the Angakkuq in motion. Uncover the truth. Set New North free. I’ve made so many sacrifices to reach that goal, and we are so close … I can’t let this Archon go.”

  Theo stares at me. Maybe he’s given up. Now I can see nothing in his weary, wrinkled eyes other than resigned exhaustion.

  “We can find a way to tell people the truth without hurting him,” I say, stepping a little closer to Lukas and Theo with each word.

  “If we let him leave here, you and I will be swinging from the gallows. We are going to get you back home without anyone finding out about this.” Lukas tries to sound convincing, but his voice wavers. I know in that tick he doesn’t want to kill Theo, either.

  “Lukas, please don’t.” I am crying now, but I feel no shame. “Eamon wouldn’t have wanted anyone else to die for the truth.”

  “Eamon.” At the mention of Eamon’s name, tears start to stream down Lukas’s face as well. “I thought your brother was the Angakkuq. But it was you. It could only ever be you. And I had to make certain that it was you.”

  I finally understand. The sacrifices that Lukas refers to can only mean one thing: Eamon.

  I back away, horror creeping in with the revelation. “No, no, no, no. It can’t be you. Tell me you aren’t the one who killed Eamon.”

  Lukas doesn’t deny me. He chokes on his words. “Eamon wasn’t the Angakkuq; you are. He could not have accomplished what you have with your Chronicles, and he could not have rallied the people the way you have and will again tomorrow. Believe me, Eva, I didn’t want to do what I had to do. I loved Eamon like a brother, but there was no other course.”

  “Loved him? You killed him!”

  He sighs, his grip on Theo slackening just a bit. “I did love him. I do love him. I did a terrible thing. For the greater good.”

  I back into the corner of the chamber, as far as I can get from my brother’s murderer. “You are no better than the Founders who drowned billions to create a new world!”

  He nods sadly. “I suppose it’s fitting punishment. To know that I love you—not just admire your greatness as the Angakkuq but truly love you—just as I tell you the one thing which will ensure that you’ll never love me back.”

  He drops the pana knife and releases Theo. “Goodbye, Eva.”

  Theo and I both collapse as he vanishes into the night. The pana clatters to the floor.

  I’m not sure how much time passes after that. A tick, a bell, a lifetime. I am lost and adrift in this tiny room until Theo pulls me back into the present.

  “Eva, I have to order the Guards to go after Lukas,” he grunts, pushing himself to his feet and leaning over to help me up. “We can’t let the murderer of your brother go free.”

  He doesn’t need to convince me. All these many, many siniks searching for my brother’s killer, and he was standing by my side the whole time. It’s unbearable.

  He pulls back the window covering and calls out orders to the Guards. Then he turns back to me. “I’m so sorry, Eva, but I must turn you over to them as well. The Lex demands it.”

  I shake my head. No, not this. Not now. Not with the horror of Eamon’s death looming before me. “Please, Theo. Please don’t.”

  “The tragedy of your brother’s murder doesn’t ex
cuse your actions,” Theo states plainly.

  He’s right. How can I expect leniency simply by begging for it? I owe Theo more. I can’t expect him to take a leap of faith when I haven’t taken one myself. Through my tears, I say, “What if I told you that Lukas and I were in the Hall of Archons because the Genesis Tech revealed something terrible about the creation of New North?”

  He sighs, again looking more resigned than angry. “What do you mean?”

  “Archon Theo, Tech is not an altar where pre-Healing people worshipped Apple. Tech was a way that pre-Healing people communicated with one another … and did all sorts of other extraordinary things. Apple was not a false god to whom they prayed; Apple was the Keep that made the Tech.”

  Now I have his attention. He straightens. “That can’t be true.”

  “It is. I can take you back to the Hall of Archons and show you.” I consider which of the many nightmarish facts to tell him. “Listen to me, and listen well: The Healing was no act of retribution by the Gods. The Founders themselves flooded the earth.”

  “Come on, Eva. Do you think a preposterous lie—”

  “It’s true!” I shout. “If you find what I’m saying to be a lie, then I will go to the gallows willingly. The Founders perverted the truth! They took Tech, and they took the Bible, and they took—”

  “Stop.” Now it’s his turn to interrupt. He moves closer to the door. “That one word. Say it again.”

  I know the one he means. “Bible.”

  “Yes. Where did you learn that word?”

  “Lukas and … I found parts of the Bible stored in the Tech and elsewhere and compared them to The Lex.” I almost mention Jasper’s name, but if I am to die, I want to spare him. He never asked for this. “Several sections are nearly identical.”

  “What is the Bible?” Theo asks.

  The question catches me off guard. He honestly doesn’t know; he’s asking me because he’s curious. “It’s the religious document from before the Healing.”

  He shifts on his feet. “I’ve seen that word mentioned in certain Relics. I’ve kept private tabs on it over the years. But I’ve never heard anyone mention it before; it doesn’t seem to be on the Triad’s mind.” He moves away from the door. “Okay. I sense truth within you, and I will consider letting you go for now, Eva—if you answer one question for me.”

  “Anything.”

  “Why did you break all these laws, Eva? What made you do it?”

  “Because my brother was seeking the truth about New North when he …” I can’t bring myself to finish the sentence. I wipe my eyes and plow forward. “I wanted to finish what he started. Becoming a Testor was only part of that; finding the facts about the pre-Healing world, the creation of New North and the writing of The Lex were the other parts. Now that I’ve pieced together the past, I believe that he would want me to share that truth with New North.”

  “You are planning on making your revelation tomorrow, then?” He understands now.

  “Yes. At the Founders’ Day celebration.”

  His brow furrows. “Eva, what is an Angakkuq?” He butchers the word, but I know what he’s asking.

  I take a deep breath and answer, “The Boundary believe that the Angakkuq is a spiritual person, a sort of shaman who can serve the higher powers by bringing about order to the world.”

  “Your friend Lukas … the Boundary people … they believe you are this Angakkuq?”

  I feel sick. “I’ve explained that I’m only a Maiden in search of the answers.”

  He pauses for a long tick. “I won’t turn you over to the guards. If you do not get the reaction you seek after you speak tomorrow, the Triad will exact punishment enough.”

  Without thinking, I leap forward and sweep him into an embrace. “Thank you,” I breathe.

  He’s clearly uncomfortable being so close to me. As he wriggles free, he asks, “Where can I find you to report on Lukas? You deserve to know when we find him.”

  “At Jasper’s home. I need to tell him everything, too. Before tomorrow.”

  “His parents will let you in at this bell?”

  “I’ll scale the walls to talk with him privately.”

  “Your skill with climbing comes as much in handy as your skill with words, it seems.” His tone is lighter now. Perhaps he, too, is relieved—or at least relieved at having an excuse not to send me to my death.

  I try to smile at him, but tears course down my cheeks instead. The kindness and trust he’s granted me, contrasted with the evil and deception perpetrated by Lukas, are a welcome gift. “Thank you, Theo.”

  He grants me a guarded smile, then turns toward the door. “I’ll handle the guards. You go your own way. And Eva? Tighten that sash around your cloak. It’s frigid out there.”

  XXXXIII.

  Augustus 15

  Year 242, A.H.

  I tap Jasper on the shoulder. He doesn’t even move, he’s so deeply asleep. A sliver of moonlight illuminates his face—the only part of him I can see, given that he’s laden with the bedcovers of a high-ranking Gallant and Lexor—and I realize that I’ve never seen him sleep before. This is the sight to which I will awaken every morning after our Union.

  Our Union.

  Will that even happen after I give my speech tomorrow? Will this be the only time I’ll ever see him this way? I know my brother made the ultimate sacrifice for New North. If I must make a sacrifice, too, so be it. My only regret is that I wasted any ticks or feelings on my brother’s killer.

  Sweet Jasper. I study the curve of his jaw and his angular cheek bones. His lashes are surprisingly long, almost like a Maiden’s. Without the usual Gallant styling, his hair is curly and longer than I thought, nearly to his shoulder. I stroke a lock that loops around his collarbone. He is beautiful.

  Jasper would have never hurt Eamon. How could I have ever suspected him? How could I have ever betrayed him by kissing Lukas, my brother’s killer?

  I run my fingers along Jasper’s cheek. He makes a small noise, almost like a moan. Although his eyelids are still closed, his fingers creep out from the bedcovers and cover mine. He pulls me down onto the bed, and his eyes flutter open.

  “Eva!” He looks so shocked that I realize he must have been dreaming when he reached for me. “What in the Gods are you doing here?”

  “Shhh.” I place a single finger over his lips. “I’m sorry to frighten you.”

  “I’m happy to see you,” he says underneath my finger. “This is just unorthodox.”

  “I wish this was a simple visit.”

  “What’s wrong? You wouldn’t scale the walls unless it was serious.” He grins mischievously. “Even though I am irresistible.”

  “I’m here to tell you the truth.”

  Jasper’s eyebrows knit in concern, and his smile vanishes. “About what?”

  Does he worry that my revelation has something to do with our Union? I wouldn’t be surprised, given how strangely our Betrothal path began. I reach for his hand to reassure him, squeeze it tightly.

  “Not about us, Jasper. About everything else.”

  I’m not certain how to begin, but once I start, the words pour out of me in torrents. I tell him nearly everything I’ve uncovered, starting with the Testing. Elizabet’s Relics and Lukas’s ability to read her Tech. The reality of the Boundary lands and people. The origins of The Lex in the pre-Healing Bible. The actual nature of Tech and Apple. Madeline’s journal and the Genesis. Even the secret found on the Genesis about the Founders’ intentional flooding of the earth. The only thing I don’t share is Eamon’s murder and Lukas’s betrayal. Not yet, and I’m not sure why.

  I grow quiet, and so does Jasper. His hands slide out of mine.

  I wonder what he’s thinking. Can he ever trust me again after all the secrets I’ve kept from him? After all this time that I’ve spent alone with another man, a Boundary at that. A dark shadow falls over his golden profile. I could ascribe it to the moon’s movement, but I know well its source. The horror of the truth. May
be the horror of my involvement in unearthing that truth, too.

  And yet, amidst it all, I see a spark of hope on his face. A glimmer of Jasper the Gallant returns. “The Triad. We’ve got to report this to the Triad.”

  At first, I’m just thrilled that his initial reaction isn’t akin to Theo’s: confusion, then anger, then resignation. But still I realize that I face enormous problems with his suggestion. He thinks that the Triad can fix this problem. I only have a few ticks to explain why going to the Triad isn’t possible. And to make him understand why it’s so important to challenge everything he’s held dear about the Aerie.

  “What if I told you that I think the Triad already knows? Some of them, anyway. And that they’ve intentionally kept the truth from the New North people to make sure we stay in the roles they’ve prescribed for us?” I speak with confidence, even though I don’t have actual proof of the Triad’s awareness; my belief has always been more intuitive than that.

  He recoils. I knew this would be hard for him. He has family members and friends in the Triad. Just like me.

  “No, Eva. The Triad? Maybe the early Triad members who were also Founders, but not the Triad members today. Why would you ever think that?”

  Since I don’t have proof, I explain to him about the acts of hatred toward me, about the violent and unambiguous warnings. And Eamon. I know that the animosity toward me can be justified by the dislike of a Maiden in an Archon’s role, but the same can’t be said for Eamon. I tell him about Eamon’s death, although I leave out the part about Lukas. Why I am protecting my brother’s killer? Part of me loathes myself for the omission, but another part is starting to understand that I have to keep Lukas’s image clean, or Jasper might challenge our discoveries.

  “No, Eva. Not Eamon.”

  “Yes, Jasper. Eamon. And even if the Triad doesn’t know, and even if they’re not responsible for Eamon’s death, my gut tells me that they will block me from trying to share the truth with the people of New North. It will jeopardize the Triad’s control.”