My chest tickles with a warmth I rarely feel. I never thought Rei and I would be anything less than bitter rivals, but over the course of the past few weeks, she’s become one of my closest allies, along with Flint and our manic leader, Spider.
“Thanks, Rei,” I say. “You’re not a coward either.”
Rei scoffs. “It’s hard for you to compliment people, isn’t it?”
“I’m not really an affectionate person,” I admit. “My sister was always the one who drew people to us with her gentlenessand kindness. This is the longest we’ve been apart, and I suppose a part of me grew to rely on her.”
Even Grayson was her friend first, before I began my combat lessons with him.
I’ve always been closed off and guarded ever since my mother died. It was hard for me to trust anyone when the man who sired me could betray me so cruelly.
“I don’t know your sister, and I have no idea what it’s like to have a twin,” Rei says. “But you are enough, Mercy. You do not need your sister to complete you.”
For a moment, I want to confide in her. To tell her my real name. To admit to someone that I am Haven.
It is self-absorbed, but I can’t stand that my accomplishments and victories will never be under my name. That one day, when the regime falls, and we rebuild a new world from the rubble, the name that will be written in the books will beMercy Warrickand not Haven Warrick.
I unfold Prue’s letter in the bathroom. It is the one place in Block A with no cameras.
You will meet one of our own soon. Trust him. We need your help.
The message is short and to the point.
I tear the paper and flush it down the toilet.
There is another undercover rebel here who will make contact with me soon. I don’t know how or when, but I’ll have to keep my eyes peeled for anyone who seems unusual.
I’m impressed that they have someone on the inside. The Forge is a dangerous place to infiltrate. I feel like at any moment, Ender will unearth all my secrets and kill me for it. He’s already attempting it by subjecting me to Ansel.
I just have to make sure I don’t get caught.
I have to always be two steps ahead.
chapter
twenty-six
Ender
“She is a liar,” Ansel says.
“This does not prove that she is a traitor,” I say.
But even as I speak the words, I don’t fully believe it. Ansel reports directly to my father, even though military structure dictates that he speak to Orson Warrick first, who passes the message along to the Supreme Director.
Ansel was rather bitter when my father passed him up for the promotion over me. And then again, when he picked Haven instead of Clover to be my wife. He despises Orson Warrick, too, so it would please him to see his daughter arrested for treason. It would taint the Warrick name.
“I’ll keep a close eye on the girl,” I say. “And find out the entire truth.”
“It would be best to ask an unbiased person,” he says. “Clover can handle the task. If there are any secrets she is keeping, my daughter will unearth them.”
A knock sounds.
“Enter,” Ansel says.
Clover steps inside. Her white hair is knotted in a tight bun, and her arms are folded behind her back.
“Yes, sir?” Clover asks, staring at me.
