Then I see Red turn to his side. His profile is framed in the shadows, but in that darkness, I make out the expression on his face. He’s looking over his shoulder, his eyes lost in thought, his body blurred in mist. As if he heard a whisper from some faraway place. From me.
I wake up gasping, my face damp with tears. The dim light streaking blue across my sheets tells me it is the hour just before dawn. I tremble, my head turning instinctively toward the window, aching and hopeful and bewildered at the dream I’d just had of Red. Not a dream, no. Every detail in it was so vivid that I can still feel the tingle of Red’s presence in my fingers, still feel the cold breeze at the top of the ledge where he sat with the others. It was a glimpse into something real. They are out there, and they are planning to make a move on the train tracks this morning.
I’m in such turmoil that, when Constantine’s voice appears in my mind, it’s too late. Through our link, I can almost feel him shifting into a sitting position in his own bed. The fog in his head has cleared. His medicine must have worked.
You are thinking about Red, he says.
He has sensed the storm of my feelings. He knows something has happened.
I can hear you whispering his name in your mind, over and over again.
I want to shake my head and lie to him. But I’m still too unsettled by my dream, still shaking off the bewilderment of sleep to hide it properly. The image of my mother appears in my mind, her back turned to me as she cooks over her old stove. I remember the guard holding a gun to her head when I first pledged my loyalty to Constantine. I think of where she might be now, in a place Constantine has yet to reveal to me.
You saw him, didn’t you?he says.You linked with him.
I didn’t, I reply. But he doesn’t believe me.
You are going to tell me everything, he orders, his voice at once gentle and menacing.And when we return to Cardinia, you will be pleased with where your mother is staying. Do you understand me?
And I find myself doing exactly as he says.
6
RED
From our vantage point on the cliff overlooking the city walls, the train yard is already active in the early hours before dawn. Adena looks on with me, while beside her, Jeran finishes sheathing his blades. Tomm and Pira are checking their weapons too.
“They’re already in position,” Pira mutters. “Earlier than we thought.”
“If the Premier himself is going to be on that train, then we haven’t even seen how crowded it’s going to get,” I reply. “Talin may already be out there, overseeing the train’s inspection.”
“Any Ghosts out?” Jeran asks.
Adena shakes her head. “Not yet. I’ll be surprised if they don’t make an appearance though.”
“We’ll wait for your move,” Tomm says.
Adena looks at me. “You sure you can act alone?”
“Yes,” I reply. “As long as the rest of you can handle the station and the train cars.” If Talin really is going to be near the train, then it’s better she run into me than anyone else.
Adena does not look convinced, but we have little choice, so she just nods and hands me a small object covered in makeshift plates of joined steel, an armored explosive she had made out of the scrap metal we hadsalvaged. “This isn’t exactly a perfect product,” she tells me, turning it gingerly in her hands. “But it should work. See here?” She touches a small length of rope at one end. “It’s linked to an interior of gunpowder. If you pull the string, it lights a flint inside that will give you a brief flame. It’s quick. Release it right away and toss it. It’ll explode on contact.”
I nod. “Pull and release immediately. I can handle it.”
“Make sure it doesn’t get wet.” Adena takes a deep breath. “It won’t work if it does, and I’ve only been able to make a handful of these. And don’t blow it up in your face. You may be a Skyhunter, but as far as I can tell, you’re not immortal.”
It is my turn to give her a wry smile. “Close enough.” I rise and stretch my wings slightly. The pain lances through me again, but noticeably duller.
Adena just rolls her eyes as she hops to her feet and rests her hands on her blade hilts. “No reason to keep waiting around, then. Let’s go.”
Below my bold façade, my fears are a living, slithering thing in my bones. The sky is clear, everything in place, and we have a plan. But it doesn’t matter. The other voice shifts in my mind, stirring awake.
Somehow, you can still feel at your core that it’s all about to go horribly wrong.
Talin will be down at the train yard today with the Premier. I shake my head, trying not to let thoughts of her take over my mind. There had even been an instant last night when I thought I had sensed her watching my back, looking at me from some faraway place. But I can’t be sure. When you’ve been an experiment most of your life, it always feels like someone’s watching you.
If I cross her path this morning, it’s best if I face her alone. At least it should be enough of a distraction for the others to escape.
