Instead of answering me, he stepped forward. "The west side?"
"They came from the west," Drozel said. "Through the mountain pass."
"Fuck!" Zasen snarled. "They wentallthe way around us. Now they know it's there."
"But that's a problem for another time," Rymar said before he nodded toward Jerlis. Then he turned to look at me. "Because we finally know how to get in there."
"I'm going," I said, refusing to lift my voice.
"What?" Kanik asked, whipping his head around to gape at me.
It wasn't that he hadn't heard me, but rather he didn't believe his own ears. Those two little words were bigger than most of these people realized, but Kanik? He understood what I was saying.
"Ayla, you can't go back. You know what they'll do to you."
"I don't care." Gently, I caressed the back of Tamin's head. "Tobias is being held at the Reaper's camp, right?"
"He is," Kanik agreed.
I nodded, thinking quickly. "I know the code. I can do this."
"Not here," Zasen hissed like he was trying to convince me not to talk about this.
"Then where?" I asked. "Should I keep it a secret that we finally have the one thing we need to finish them? Should I hide the fact that there's actually hope to save the people taken tonight? Should I pretend like I'm completely okay with getting here late? Zasen,they took my sister!"
"And you aren't thinking straight yet!" Zasen shot back.
"She is," Rymar said.
"I am," I agreed.
Kanik reached down to palm the back of Tamin's head. "She's also right."
Rymar thrust out an arm at me. "And our Phoenix is going to rise. She's going to burn. We know how to get in, and do you know what that means?" he asked the crowd.
I did, so I said, "It means we can save our loved ones. That comes first, and I know exactly how to do it. They made a big mistake when they took my sister."
"No," Rymar said. "They made their big mistake when they let you leave. You did this, Ayla. You're the one who made us realize that our strength? It comes from the Reapers who rodewith us. It's from the Moles who have come here for a better life. More than all of that?" He made his way toward me. "They fucked up bad when they thought you women were worthless."
I nodded, deciding I liked that, then called out, "I amgoingto save my sister!" My words were for everyone here. "And then I'm going to make them all pay."
"And we're going to help," Rymar promised.
The crowd murmured in agreement.
"Say it again," Rymar whispered to me.
So I said a little stronger. "I'm going to make thempay!"
"Louder," he encouraged.
"Iam going to makethempay!" I yelled.
"Only two things rise after death," he said softly. "Messiahs and phoenixes. I happen to prefer the second, but I bet you can use the first, because theywillpay, Ayla. I'm not going to lose anyone else."
"Will you help me?"
He clasped the side of my neck, those beautiful turquoise eyes holding mine. "I'll hold Zasen down so he won't stop you."
