After a moment, she answered.
Gabby said that no one seems to be following you.
There was a moment of silence where I could feel her worry and sorrow.
Who did you leave behind?
Gregory.
How many will we lose before this ends?she sent, echoing my thoughts.
Five
OLIVIA…
The tense silence remained after Gabby’s announcement that Jim was clear of the Urbat but that Gregory was no longer with them. Whoever Jim and Gregory were, they seemed pretty important given the group’s reaction.
“I’m sorry for your loss,” I said softly to Winifred, masking the pity and sorrow I wanted to feel.
“Thank you,” Winifred said. “Gabby, if it’s safe, can you find us a place where we can stop for the night?”
“Sure,” Gabby said. “There’s a town a ways to the south that looks good. Maybe another hour or two. I’ll text Michelle.”
“Good,” Winifred said.
I could feel her gaze on me. I wasn’t unaware of their vague conversations about where we were going and understood that Winifred, and probably the rest, didn’t trust me. Not that I blamed them. Blake had hurt so many in his reach for power and control and would continue to do so until the end. That I’d lived with him for most of my life but couldn’t tell these people anything significant about his plans hadn’t endeared me to anyone. Yet, their feelings toward me changed nothing.
“Blake needs to be stopped,” I said, looking out the window. “Soon.”
“How do we do that?” Winifred asked.
“Complete the Judgement. The dreamer has the answer to that, even if she hasn’t dreamed it yet.”
“That’s just fucking ducky,” Bethi mumbled.
No one said anything more, and I hesitated to again bring up the need to decide the direction of our Judgement first. Blake had pushed them all so much already. If I did the same, they would trust me even less. And, I needed their trust.
For the next two hours, we traveled in silence. It was something that I was very used to, but a small part of me had hoped it would be different when I joined my sisters.
Bethi slept frequently, usually waking with a curse. Luke would murmur assurances to her; she would calm then sleep again. I didn’t envy her gift. I didn’t envy any of our gifts. But, I did envy Bethi’s connection with Luke. And Gabby’s with Clay. Although those two never spoke, he would turn often to look back at her. What would it be like to have someone honestly care about me, not just because of the role I would play in the Judgement?
Courage,the echo of the Lady’s whisper brought my attention to the Others. I forced my mind away from thoughts of caring mates and waited for our next stop.
When the vehicle finally parked, Bethi woke up.
“About time,” she said, reaching for the door.
I sat still, waiting for the rest to leave first. The grey swirls outlined the door and the people as they hopped out of the car but not the floorboard or the ground. I would have to try to judge the distance for myself. Before I could move to get out, another person came to stand beside the door. Based on the angle of her face, she was watching me.
“Can I help you?” a female voice asked. It took a moment to place it with a name.
“Thank you, Charlene. I think I can manage, though.”
I gripped the side of the door, just in case, and slowly stepped out. My toes hit the ground an inch sooner than I anticipated, and the door saved me from stumbling. Still, Charlene reached out to steady me. Her offer hadn’t been an empty, polite gesture after all but one of true caring.
“Thank you,” I said.
“It’s no problem. Can I walk with you?” she asked.
