The sirens grow louder. People have begun to peer into the street from behind their curtains, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Key-breaker, Community-traitor. Oh, their glee when they realize it’s me. Every suspicion of a defect in Ellis blood clearly confirmed. “I have to try, Harlan. I can’t go back. I…I need to do this. For Easton!”
Harlan looks at me patiently, and though it’s hardly the time, I admire his composure. Even as the weight of the Covinus bears down on us, his face is untroubled, and his breathing is even. Perhaps he is not a willow blowing beside the pond; perhaps he is the wind that blows it. “You can’t outrun them, so they need something else to chase.”
It takes a moment for his suggestion to register.
Himself.He is suggesting himself.
“Harlan, no!” I cannot let him do this, sacrifice himself for me. It’s untenable, unbearable. He’s done nothing wrong, other than having the bad luck of being Bound to me. What will his punishment be if they think he’s trying to betray his Community and leave them forever? Will he be Outcast? I’m willing to bet my own future on a loophole of leaving willingly, but am I willing to bet Harlan’s as well?
“The hole is on the right side of the gate. I am going to take them through the sector and toward the other side of the Boundary. The Boundary men have had personnel shortages this month. If I cause a big enough commotion, there won’t be anyone to stop you from slipping out. Once you’re out, get to the trees as fast as you can.”
“Harlan, you can’t do this. What if they—
“It’s the only way to save Easton,” he says, his words final. Strong.
Before I can utter another word, he takes off running and I am left alone in the shadows.
In seconds, the Covinus overtakes Harlan; vans with angry red lights swarm around him, the squeal of their brakes sounding so much like the injured screams from yesterday’s explosion. Harlan leaps through a small space between two vans and a mass of people in navy jumpsuits hurtle after him, their black helmets glinting beneath the Similian lights.
Violent trembles run up my spine, causing my teeth to clack together. I want to run after him, to grab him by the collar and pull him back into the shadows with me. I want to curl up into myself, to sit down and close my eyes and pretend that I’m safe and my brother is safe and that none of this ever happened. But I force myself to move.
I plant my feet firmly in the pavement. With a rallying cry, Harlan leads the Covinus away from me and toward the front gate of the Boundary. The four Boundary men who guard the hole do exactly as Harlan said they would and race toward the commotion, determined to stop the defector.
So, I run.
With a speed I didn’t know I possessed, I sprint toward the now empty hole. This close to the Boundary, the lights are bright as day. If any of the Covinus or Boundary men look my way, there will be nowhere to hide. But I run anyway. I run for Easton. And for Harlan, the nature of whose sacrifice remains untold.
My heart pumps roughly in my chest, but my breathing remains steady as I will my legs to move faster, to carry me further. I don’t dare look over my shoulder, but the commotion surrounding Harlan follows me. Yelling and anger, sounds so rarely heard in Similis. But I don’t look. The hole is so close.
When I reach the Boundary breach, I almost cry in victory. The Boundary gapes like a decrepit wound, seeping and raw, as if the wall is made of flesh rather than metal. A hole made from violation and hatred, but I am thankful for it nonetheless.
I am about to climb through when a loud crack echoes through the silence of the night. Reflex has me whipping my head toward the noise and a sharp pang of fear sizzles through me.
The Covinus points what is unmistakably a gun at Harlan. And then shoots.
Another crack echoes and I shove my fist into my mouth to stifle the scream building in my chest. Harlan’s eyes flash in my direction for only a moment before they roll up into his head. He collapses to the ground and the golden boy is still.
The Covinus and Boundary men swarm him, blocking his body from my view. Orders are shouted and more sirens scream. I only have moments before the entirety of the Covinus descends on the front gate. Only moments before one of them looks up.
I am shaking so violently that when I crawl through the Boundary, the broken shards tear at my jumpsuit, scraping my hip. The hole is only big enough for me to slide through on my belly, so I claw at the damp ground, dragging my body through the opening.
I scramble to my feet. My shoes slip on the loose gravel. I throw my hands out in front of me as I fall, scraping those, too. I need to move. I’m a sitting duck here in the open, beneath the lights.
I can honor Harlan in the one way I have left. I can escape and make sure his sacrifice wasn’t in vain. It’s the only thing my brain clings to, the one thing that keeps shock and terror from freezing me in place and letting the Covinus shoot me, too.
I push myself up and stand tall, the Boundary a solid presence behind me. Under the grief that threatens to overwhelm me, under the fear and confusion, a grim determination settles deep within me. I’ve crossed the Boundary. Home lies behind me and only the unknown lays before me.
I am in the Dark World.
ChapterFive
Mirren
Three breaths. That’s all I allow before forcing myself to run. The dull slap of my feet on the dirt sounds in rhythm with my heart and fear grips me that it’s all too loud. That one of the Boundary men will spare a glance over his shoulder and they will come after me as they came for Harlan.
Panic, hot and sharp, squeezes my chest as I think of the way his eyes rolled back in his head. The smacking sound of his body hitting the ground.
Dying, dead, died.
