“Exactly right. And we get our entertainment either way.”
“This is where our leadership meets,” she said, gesturing to a smaller building. It was a single story made of the same brick that the other buildings had. The windows were narrow and the roof was flat, like a box someone would be shoved inside and never leave. “Would you like to attend our next one? Just to get a better understanding of exactly what this rebellion represents?”
In my head, I repeated the same thing.
A new reign of terror is built upon the old.
“Yes, Altair and I would love to come.”
The commander gritted her teeth, her nostrils flaring as she faced me head-on. But she still nodded, her eyes squinted and her hands wrapping behind her back.
“Excellent.”
“About my sister—“
“We can talk again after the meeting. For now, let’s finish up the tour and get you back to Azazel.”
Silently nodding, knowing I had both won and lost, I followed.
Chapter Fourteen
Azazel
“Today, Mariella said she loves me. I told her we can’t see each other anymore. This is why Father doesn’t like me to go to the Star District. It only causes trouble.”
-From the journal of Azazel Altair, 9272 AS
What a load of absolutegarbage.
Maitoza wasn’t only getting on my nerves now, she was crossing a line. What would she tell Tershetta? How would she attempt to sway her to join the rebellion? Why didn’t she want me there?
“You’re thinking so hard you look like you’re going to shit yourself.”
Whipping around, I found Celeste leaned against a tree, a burner between her fingers and a too-honest grin on her face. Probably because if I was here, it meant her sister was too, and that was enough to put even Celeste in a good mood.
“What are you doing out here? Shouldn’t you be in a meeting or something? It’s past lunch.” I walked over to her, trying to resist the urge to hunch over in defeat. I felt like the small amount of control I had was slipping through my fingers. Like water flowing through a river, passing over rocks instead of being stilled by them.
Celeste’s smile grew as she handed me the burner, which I eagerly took a hefty pull of. “You greedy ass! Give it back if you’re going to be a beast!”
Passing it back, I quickly blew out the dark smoke into her face, laughing when she sputtered. She’d been the one to get me hooked on burners when I was suffering through withdrawals from the whiskey. I could still see the moment she sighed and offered me one, chuckling in satisfaction when I nearly hacked up my lungs.
“Seriously, why are you out here?”
“I’m not supposed to be. The second the wards were triggered, Maitoza ordered me to hide. We knew it meant Nova was here.” Taken aback by her choice to disregard orders, I openly stared at her, trying to understand the version of Celeste before me. She had always been so eager to follow Maitoza’s commands—to fall in line. Maybe this was the piece of her that she shared with her sister. The half not even the possibility of death could stomp out. “I guess I wanted to at least see you. Just for an update. You haven’t written since she woke up.”
“Yeah, well, your sister isn’t exactly easy to hide from.” I snatched the burner with a groan, nearly snapping it as I brought it to my lips. The scorch of the herbs made my throat itch, but my head was wonderfully—blissfully—light.
“Seriously, Az, how is she?” Her lips pursed as she took the burner and threw it to the ground, stomping out my only source of peace for the next hour.
I’d been wrong before, they really didn’t look as alike as I’d thought. Celeste had chopped her curls even shorter, the ends stopping just below her ears now. Her eyes were slightly more round, the deep grey like violent storms rather than summer heat. Her freckles were more spread out, not contained to her cheeks and nose. While the wrinkles at her eyes and on herforehead didn’t match that of a fifty year old eadi, they still separated her from Little Void.
“She’s okay. Sad. Angry. Bored.” Not that it really mattered when I was lying to Tershetta already, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell Celeste about what happened in the Sham District. It felt like a secret between the two of us, something Tershetta would want to tell her sister on her own. Or maybe I was the one who wanted it that way. “It’d help if she knew her sister was still alive.”
A tear pooled on her lower lashes, but she didn’t cry. Not fully. Celeste would save those feelings for when Desi was in her presence and prepared to hold her. I knew that much about them, at least.
“I’m doing what I have to do to save Dajahim. Nova will understand that.”
“Will she though? I don’t think that exactly fits the personality of your sister.”
