“She’s a danger to every single one of us! You saw it yourselves. Theo bled out on that table while she stood there, glowing like some kind of alien weapon. You want to risk all of Perileos for her?”
The crowd roared, some in agreement while others shouted her down. Christian’s pulse spiked as Gemma’s hand tightened in his. His instincts screamed to shove Gemma behind him, to grab their things and run before the tide turned.
But heads and glares found them immediately, and fleeing from Tent City would only prove them right and lead to a chase—which meant he wouldn’t get her out safely.
“Stay close to me,” he whispered and tucked her against his body.
“She’s marked. Just look at her arm!” someone bellowed, pointing at Gemma.
“She’s part of us now. We can’t turn on her!” another shot back.
“She’s why Theo’s dead!” Cho’s voice cut through again, high and vicious.
Christian’s jaw locked. She stood near the front, her black hair swinging as she gestured to the gathered crowd like she was the one in command.
“The Systems is right,” Cho sneered. “Gemma Proctor is a weapon, and the longer we keep her here, the harder they’ll look for her. We need to hand her over before they burn Perileos to the ground.”
A ripple of agreement surged through the people. Gemma shrunk beside him. He squeezed her hand tighter as Lysa appeared at his other side.
Nadine shoved her way to the front. “That’s enough.” Her voice cracked like a whip, silencing the noise. “Nobody lays a hand on my sister. She’s done more for this camp in days than some of you have in months.”
Cho didn’t back down. “She killed Theo.”
“No,” Nadine snapped, her face raw with grief. “Theo died because the Systems gutted him, and you fucking know it.”
“But they only gutted him because of her!” Cho pushed, her dark eyes glinting. “You all saw her glowing. You get why they want her. She’s dangerous.”
A fresh wave of mutters rippled through the crowd.
Christian’s vision tunneled. He surged forward, leaving Gemma to stand by his sister. “She is not a danger,” he bit out, his voice low and furious. “And if you had a shred of sense, you’d stop spitting Systems propaganda out of your mouths like dogs begging for scraps.”
Cho smirked, tilting her chin. “Oh, but she is dangerous. And you’d let her tear us apart because you can’t keep your cock in your pants.”
“Keep moving your mouth, and I’ll cut out your fucking tongue,” Imara’s sharp voice cut through. She pushed her wayforward and squared off with Cho, her eyes flashing. “You really think handing her over buys us safety? The Systems don’t do mercy. They do control. Give them Gemma, and they’ll just demand the next name, the next body, until there’s nothing left of the Dissent but ashes.”
Hawk slid in behind Imara, one hand already resting on the hilt of his blade. His voice, though quieter, carried a dangerous calm. “She’s right. You all know it. The Systems don’t negotiate. If you think betraying Gemma will stop their boots from marching down here, you’re delusional.”
A sneer rose from the crowd.
“Easy for a Gallowood to say,” Cho snapped, spitting the name like poison. “Your family’s never wanted for anything. Why should we listen to you about what it means to be crushed under the Systems’ heel? Daddy will always be there to save you.”
The mutters deepened, a few heads nodded, and others shook theirs.
Hawk’s jaw tightened, the red of his hair catching the lamps’ light like fire. He stepped closer, teeth bared. “You think I don’t know what it means to be crushed?” he shot back. “You’re right. I am a Gallowood. And I hate it. I hate the name, the blood, the expectations, every pompous title my family clings to. I’d cut it out of me if I could. I stand here now because I chose this family.” He put a hand on Imara’s shoulder and pointed toward Gemma and Christian. “Not the one I was born into. And I’d rather die with them than live one more day under the Systems with their chains and my parents’ expectations around my throat.”
A few voices rose in agreement, ragged but sincere. Yet they were quickly drowned beneath the sharper calls from others.
“She’ll bring the Systems down on all our heads!”
“We’ve seen her arm. She isn’t human anymore!”
“You heard her screams last night. She’ll lose control, and it won’t be their soldiers who pay. It’ll be us!”
The command tent was a storm now, voices overlapping until it was impossible to tell which belonged to friends and which to enemies. Fear and fury churned together, pushing the crowd closer to breaking. Christian stepped back to stand in front of Gemma and Lysa, his hands shaking.
Across the press of bodies, Nadine and Cho locked stares, the camp itself straining between them like a rope pulled to snapping.
Nadine’s face was angry and red. “This debate was never up for discussion. Gemma has my protection. If any of you lay a single finger on her—”
