The boy gave her a half-hearted nod before scurrying back toward the rows of tents.
Nadine’s voice cut across the camp like a gunshot. “I need a medic out here!”
Gemma jerked her head up, catching Polly’s stare.
“You go,” the older woman said. “I’ll bring the bag.”
With a nod, Gemma hurried out of the tent and sprinted the rest of the way to where a crowd had already formed near the ladder. Many faces were pale. Some covered their mouths. She pushed through without apology.
Gemma’s breath caught the moment she spied Nadine holding pressure against Theo’s abdomen. Blood covered the bottom half of his shirt and almost his entire right leg. His face was ashen, his jaw tight with pain but his eyes still alert. He gripped Nadine’s wrist as if holding her steady, even as his own strength faltered.
“Move,” Gemma snapped at her sister, sliding into her place without hesitation. Her palms pressed against the soaked fabric, and heat pulsed against her hands as blood seeped through.
Too much blood.
“Picked up a tail,” Theo croaked. “Killed the bastard but not before he got me first.” His eyelids fluttered closed.
“Nuh uh,” Gemma said, her voice sharper than she’d intended. “Don’t you dare close your eyes.”
Theo gave her a faint, crooked smile. “Bossin’ me around already, just like your sister here.”
“Shut up and breathe,” Nadine hissed, her eyes full of unshed tears.
Polly dropped the medbag next to Gemma, and in the next breath, Gemma was fishing for a coagulant. But there were no Systems-grade injections like the one she’d used on Christian when he had gotten shot. Just the typical patches found in the infirmaries here in Perileos.
With shaky hands, she opened and slapped a patch over the wound, praying it would seal. For a heartbeat, the bleeding slowed, but then the patch bubbled uselessly, overwhelmed. Gemma pressed her hands against Theo’s stomach again.What do I do, what do I do, what do I do?
Theo coughed, red foaming at the corner of his mouth. With clenched teeth, he grabbed Nadine’s wrist, smearing blood on her skin. “They know about her. Your sister. Whole city’s whisperin’ it now. They’re callin’ her”—he coughed again—“dangerous.”
Nadine’s face hardened as an icy cold chill of fear rolled down Gemma’s spine.
A ripple of unease moved through the gathering.
“There’s a ton of them now. Soldiers everywhere. They’re pastin’ propaganda too,” Theo rasped. “Every wall is plastered with it.” His eyes shifted to Gemma, sharp despite the pallor. “They’ve made you their story, Gemma. They’re sayin’ you’re a traitor. A weapon.”
Her heart slammed against her ribs.
Theo coughed again, a ferocious spasm that made Nadine swear under her breath. Gemma pressed harder on the wound,but it didn’t matter anymore. No one could survive on such little blood volume.
A massive lump caught in her throat. She couldn’t save him.
“They’re callin’ you the Systems’ greatest threat,” Theo whispered. “And promisin’ anyone who turns you in will have their debts erased. Full citizenship.” His gaze locked on hers, intent and desperate. “People will sell ya out. Even people ya thought you could trust.”
The words hung heavy in the air. Around them, the crowd shifted uneasily, some refusing to meet Gemma’s eyes. The hum of murmured voices grew sharper, edged with fear.
“Enough talking,” Nadine barked, trying to haul Theo toward the med tent. “Gemma, help me move him.”
They half-carried, half-dragged Theo through the parting crowd. Behind them, whispers followed like smoke:
“Weapon.”
“Not human.”
“Threat.”
Inside the med tent, Polly rushed to clear a table. Together, they lay Theo down, Gemma’s hands slick with his blood. She barely heard Polly’s instructions as she worked, her mind echoing with Theo’s words.
If enough of them believed the Systems’ lies, how long before Nadine’s protection didn’t matter?
