I’d always told myself that bringing Progress to the world wasmypurpose, but until now I’d never understood what a true purpose felt like. All my life, I’d been lied to and manipulated and made to hurt countless others. Now I could tell people the truth about the poisonous march of Progress. While Julian focused on preparing to debut synthetic radiance at the Continental Exposition, I’d figure out how to convince the other Children of Industry to join us. We had more than a year to solidify our plans. Surely that was enough time.
Together, we could change everything.
Thatwas worth fighting for.
“Waiting for me?” Ezra asked, laughing gently at my startled yelp.
“No. I’m perfectly fine walking alone,” I said, embarrassed at how relieved I actually was that he’d caught up to me.
“I believe her,” Julian noted, as he passed us both. “She wasn’t too keen on your company this morning.”
I lobbed a stick at Julian’s back, deliberately missing. The truth was that I was overly keen on Ezra’s company. Though I knew I was being unreasonable, I couldn’t imagine not being by his side.
A terrible thought surfaced. Was I taking his companionship for granted?
I grabbed his wrist as if I needed to prevent him from darting away. “What will you do when we get to Cascade?”
“Why does it matter?” Ezra shook his hand out of my grip, eyeing me suspiciously. “It’s a little late to uninvite me.”
“I’m being serious. You weren’t planning to go to with Julian until I messed everything up.”
Julian had stopped walking and watched us silently. “Josephine,” he warned.
“Why were you going to leave Ezra in Frostbrook?” I snapped at him, unwilling to be silenced. His eyes widened. I didn’t give him a chance to formulate a response. “And why wereyougoing to let Julian go alone?” I asked, unable to comprehend why Ezra had been willing to stay behind when they so clearly cared for each other in their own baffling, prickly way. “Why weren’t the two of you—”
“Because I was tired!” Ezra shouted, interrupting me. The grass around him rustled. “Tired of Ainsley’s bloodthirst. Tired of Julian’s bloodless theoretical plans. I’m tired of being angry. And different. There’s noplacefor me, Jo.”
Aching, I shuffled back a step. What could I say to that? How could I make him believe that he had a place in my heart when my heart had been barren for so long?
Julian cleared his throat. “To answer your question, I left … I was leaving Ezra behind because I didn’t want him to get killed for my cause.”
“It’s notyourcause,” Ezra muttered. “Stop being so self-important.”
“The fact remains that you have more to lose,” Julian said, raising his voice. “When I travel to Sterling City in the fall to prepare for next year’s exposition, you should stay behind in Cascade.”
“You mean whenwetravel,” I mumbled.
“And not witness your great debut?” Ezra asked, failing to sound as mocking as I imagined he’d meant to sound.
“The Taylors will shelter you.” Julian went on as if neither of us had spoken. “You can apprentice with a healer in Cascade. You were right all along to want to stay out of this. I never should have pushed you.”
“You don’t get to make decisions for me,” Ezra said, clipped.
Julian stalked up to him furiously. “What if you’re the last of your kind? You’d be a fool to put yourself in the House’s crosshairs.”
This was not where I’d imagined this conversation going. I tried to interject. “Uh.”
“So now you’re telling me to hide when I want to help?” Ezra pressed his hand against the healing wound at his side, as if recalling where helping had gotten him so far.
“What would you do in Sterling City?” Julian said, once more the sneering Senior Conductor who had made me feel impossibly small. “Grow a hedge?Healthe House of Industry?”
It didn’t surprise me, really, when Ezra lunged for him. Julian ducked with surprising agility, dodging the blow. I staggered back, gasping, as Julian grabbed Ezra by the shirt and tackled him to the ground.
“Stop that!” I shouted, wishing I had a pail of water to douse them in. That had worked very well on me and Gertrude once. “Julian Gray! Have you lost your mind?”
Julian’s head popped up, his eyes wide with disbelief over being chastised. It gave Ezra an opening to land a solid punch to his jaw that sent him sprawling onto his back with a grunt. Seemingly satisfied, Ezra flopped onto his back in turn, fresh blood seeping through his shirt.
“I simply wanted to know if Ezra was going to leave us!” I yelled, resisting the urge to kick each of them in the ribs. “Why do you two make everything so stars-forsaken complicated?”
