Escape from Harrizel (32 page)

Vix jumps up. “I shall attend as well and
escort Fallon back to her room afterwards.”

Reid nods, looking at me. I offer a grin,
caught in his stare, my body heating under his intense gaze. I meet
Vix and Sampson by the door, and with a final glance in Reid’s
direction, I leave the hollowed burrow.

I follow them outside and into the dark
night. As soon as I breathe in the jungle’s damp air, I feel it,
the same call as before, pulling me closer to Ellae. I start to
take off for it, following my feet which seem to know the way when
Vix clings to my hips. Sampson’s already off on his own, keeping
ahead but veering left.

“Know where you are going?” Vix wants to
know, trudging through the shrubbery with me.

“Ellae, I hope.”

“Why is that?”

“Why is what?”

“You want to be there so bad,” she states,
swaying overgrown foliage from our way, “what are you hoping you
will find?”

I’ve pondered it several times myself. What
will I find in the place of ruin—a place I’ve never seen, never
been to or heard about, a place I’ve never dreamed of or felt or
knew existed and yet somehow, in some way, it’s a place I
belong.

“Answers,” I step over a bubbling root. “I
hope to find answers.”

“You are smart to seek them,” she pulls back
the yellow-tongued leaves to reveal the broken city of Ellae,
“especially here.”

The question dawns on me as I watch Vix
taking in the sight of the fractured city before us. “You lived
here?”

“Yes.”

“Were you here when it happened?”

A long pause and her voice
tightens.“
Yes
.”

“Do you remember it as well as Sampson?”

“I
feel
it,” she jabs her fingers to
her chest, “still.”

“Feel what?”

“The pain…” she whispers, her eyes heavy
with grief, loss. “Me’lock was home when it happened. I could
feel
it,” she sucks in her breath, shutting her eyes at the
thought. “What happened. What they did.”

I give her a moment but when she doesn’t
elaborate, I lead her on, “And before? Can you feel…
before
then?” I step toward her, “When you were happy?”

At this Vix closes her eyes, inhaling as she
loses herself from our reality. She’s lost somewhere,
sometime
, her mouth curving into jubilation, a pure joy few
ever know.

“I can…” her words drift, a smile
forming.

The wind rushes through the walls as the
dark night lights up with her confession. In this second I see
it—Ellae rebuilt, standing tall as originally crafted. Flashes of
faces, of the village fully restored stream over me like a veil. It
only lasts a second but I’m there, in the sunlight of another day.
And thousands are moving about. Young ones dash by, toward the
thriving market, but then I’m back here again, in the night of its
ruins, in silence.

“Me’lock was your…”

“Husband.”

“You can still feel him?”

“Shades,” she says, “only shades. Me’lock is
gone. Nothing can bring him back. I can only touch what we used to
have. See his face as it’s burned in my memory,” she takes a step,
a sad sigh escaping. “He only exists now in his remains, in what he
gave me during life,” Vix places a gentle hand on my shoulder,
motioning out to the broken city. “What do
you
feel?”

Stepping closer, I inhale the damp scent of
night, the sweet, floral fragrance riding the wind. I close my
eyes, willing life to reappear but nothing happens. I wait a second
longer, breathing it all in again, concentrating, but when nothing
happens, I open my eyes, shrugging at Vix. “I don’t know.”

“You will,” Vix nods with certainty, “when
you are ready.”

Vix keeps to the city’s outer perimeter and
I follow, glancing past the shattered walls and hanging ivy. She’s
leading us somewhere but I’m too busy to notice, my focus glued to
Ellae’s fractured remains. I’m still trying to will the light that
sometimes rips through me, so that I see it beforehand, when this
place still breathed. We’re slowing and I nearly run into Vix when
a new source of light beams in the distance ahead.

The Rinzal tree stands like a beacon out in
the wide field beyond the broken city. Radiating pink, peach and
red tresses reach like a thousand long arms to smooth Sampson who
kneels at her base, his head lowered. He’s bent forward, toward the
tree, slightly rocking and muttering soft words.

“He prays,” Vix whispers as we come to a
stop and watch. A terrible pang of guilt sweeps over me at
intruding on this intimate moment.

“To the Rinzal?”

“To the Way. To find
her
.”

“Who?”

But Vix refuses to say. It’s as if she’s
unable to speak it, especially this close to Sampson and especially
when he seeks her. Vix exhales exhaustedly, too familiar with the
scene. She gestures us away. “Come.”

We head back to the Castle and she drops me
off at my room. It’s a little while later and I’m still awake,
staring at the two babeebs under the ceiling’s Gizella roots when a
light knock sounds on the door. I sit up, my heart racing. I’m not
expecting anyone.

“It’s me,” Reid’s voice calls from the other
side. The knot in my stomach settles momentarily, until the thought
of seeing him replaces it. Suddenly, a new heat erupts as I jump
from the bed and pull back the crimson arch. He’s leaning against
it with one arm. “Hey.”

“Hi.”

“Yeah…uh…” he looks to the ground with a
light laugh, “I probably shouldn’t be here.”

“No, it’s fine,” I motion him inside and he
obliges, closing the door behind him. We’re trapped again in this
tiny space, the familiar fire consuming me. “How’d the rest of the
meeting go?”

“Fine. Guys are pretty weirded out by the
whole Sampson thing.”

“I get that,” I retire to my bed, crossing
my legs in front of me.

“Look,” he paces the small bit of space, “I
want to apologize for earlier. For Mantis.”

“Reid…”

“It won’t happen again. He isn’t crazy
enough to try anything after the message I sent him.”

“What message?”

He gnaws on the tip of his thumb, focused on
the floor.

“Reid?”

“I did what I had to do. I…” he gulps, “I’m
so
sorry, Fallon. I didn’t mean to involve you like this.
I…” he rubs his hands down his face. “I don’t know what I was
thinking. I really should’ve…” He takes a breath. “I really
should’ve been smarter with you.”

“But you didn’t—”

“If anything happened,” he jets to the bed,
his eyes shifting between mine, “I don’t know what I’d do,” he cups
my face, “I don’t know…” he kisses me, “…if I could control
myself…” he opens my mouth with his, “if I could hold back. If…”
his hands trail behind my head, locking me to him. He growls as our
tongues meet and suddenly, this is
hot
.

He climbs on top, pressing me down to the
bed. He moves to kiss my neck but withdraws, yanking his blue scrub
over his head and tossing it to the floor. I freeze at the sight of
his steel torso and the tiny black circle of alternating dots just
above his right nipple. The Chuloo. But before I have a second,
he’s back on me, his mouth on my neck and his hands sliding over my
chest. He takes me into his palm and squeezes, searing me.

“Reid…” I whisper his name with
pleasure.

He must like it because he growls again,
running his mouth over my jaw and toward my lips. I arch under his
roaming fingers as he rolls his bottom half onto mine, grinding
into me. He picks up speed and then separates my legs with his,
sliding his hand up my thigh. He reaches their junction and I’m
instantly ablaze, unable to stifle a gasp. He groans into my neck
and dips his fingers along the hem of my bottoms, trying to tug
them off.

“Wait,” I shove his shoulders back, my body
overheating, “…wait.”

“What?” he pants, glancing between my eyes,
searching for his error. “What’s wrong?”

“Fast,” my blood races, “…you’re going too
fast.”

He drops his head with a defeated grunt, his
body recovering from its rapid race to consume me. He grips the
blanket in his fists and I know it’s taking a lot for him to stop
himself.

“I don’t want you to leave,” I whisper,
“but… not tonight. Okay?”

“Um…” he laughs.

“Reid?”

“I’ll try.”

“I’m serious,” I look between his eyes.

“So am I,” he kisses me again, moving like
before. My hands trail up his body, ours mouths burning on one
another. My heart races at the taste of him, the
scent
of
him and I pull him closer, fire in my body where there should be
blood. He rolls himself on me harder, but suddenly pulls away,
leaving me cold, empty.

“I can’t. I’m going to want to, if we keep…”
he clears his throat, his face flushed, “so it’s probably best I
uh… I go. I’ll…” he gulps, rubbing the back of his neck, glancing
down at me beneath him, “…with you like this.” He jumps off the bed
and heads for the wall, grabbing his shirt from the floor.

Still recovering from my pounding heart, I’m
behind him in an instant, almost begging him to stay. But I know
what will happen if he does. And I’m not sure I’m ready for
that.

Pausing at the door, he yanks his shirt on.
He sneaks a peek at the bed and then back at me, “I didn’t mean to
go so fast. It’s just… been awhile.”

“Me too. Sorry we didn’t…”

“No, I’m cool with this.
More
than
cool,” he takes my hand and gently presses his lips into my palm.
“This is enough.”

“Reid?” I call as he opens the door.

“Yeah?” he looks back with a smile that
melts me. I have to remind myself to breathe as a new swelling
grows inside.

But I forgot what I was going to say. Maybe
it was nothing. Maybe it was just to see him a few seconds longer.
“Goodnight.”

He winks and then is gone.

“So… that was interesting about
Sampson.”

Able keeps his arm linked in mine as we head
down the stairwell for Rebuilding. He keeps me close, pressed
against his side, locking us together.

“Wasn’t it?”

“Did you suspect?” he lowers his voice as we
round to the ninth floor.

“No… but it makes sense when you think about
it.”

“I knew Reid had stuff he wasn’t telling us.
Like how he’d get us all that food in the beginning? And where did
Jothkore come from?” he makes a confused face. “We all thought he
and Tetlak had it out so he wanted to help us. What’d we know?” he
shrugs, skipping down a few steps, pulling me with him.

“How do you think the Rogues are taking
it?”

Able tilts his head, “Some better than
others. They understand why it needed to be kept a secret. I think
they’re just in shock over everything.”

“You seem to be doing alright.”

“Like I said… kind of figured Reid was
hiding something. Figured he’d tell us when we needed to know. And
he did.”

We reach the Courtyard. Keeping his arm
tightly linked with mine, Able shuttles me through the open
portcullis and out under the damp gray sky. As we walk toward the
Water Pole, my heart skips a beat. Mantis is walking with his head
down, the entire right half of his face darkened into a deep plum
color.

I stop. “Who did that?”

“Who do you think?”

“He didn’t have one of you…?”

“No,” Able scoffs. “Mantis messed with his
girl. What’d you think was going to happen?”

I look again. His eye is swollen shut in a
mash of green and purple. His bottom lip has been split open, the
side of his mouth swelling as if it’d been hit multiple times.

“But he didn’t touch me.”

“Like I said,” Able shrugs, “what’d you
think was going to happen?”

We start walking again, moving toward the
right bank of the trench.

“Was he this way with Ansley?” I slow,
giving us time to finish before he’ll get to work with the Gollops
or find his place further along down the trench line. Able picks up
on the speed change, slowing to match my casual pace.

“Well…” and now he tilts his head, “everyone
knew not to touch her… or so he thought. So he didn’t seem like it.
Plus, Ansley is a Kiss. Her safety is guaranteed through both
Clans.”

“So…”

“Did he ever go nuts like this?” Able asks
the question I’m desperately trying to phrase myself. He shakes his
head, his amber eyes grinning. “No. No, this is all for you,” he
backs up for the Gollops. “See you later, bestie.”

By late afternoon, my arms are about to
break and, my hands are the shape of tiny claws still trapped under
the Senz. I’ve gone to the Water Pole more times than usual and I’m
probably pushing my allowed quota. I don’t care. If I don’t take
another break, I’ll do just that—fall apart into tiny broken pieces
of myself, scattered over the ashy ground to be carried away on the
wind. Or maybe it’s for my sanity. So I don’t burst out in this
agonizing scream I’ve been suppressing since morning. Either way, I
can’t take another minute.

I slip my Senz off and toss them in my
bucket, heading for the Water Pole. I risk a sideways glance at
Tetlak who’s by the Castle’s portcullis, staff in hand and
starring. I half expect him to fly out of his trance, ordering me
to stay back and keep working but he doesn’t come. And I reach the
Water Pole without an issue.

A few people linger, drinking slowly or even
waiting to push the button—anything to keep from returning to the
Rebuilding. I get my water cup, fill it and down the cool beverage
in one long gulp. Nothing tastes better, the icy liquid refreshing
the arid depths of my abdomen. Refilling my cup, I take another
hearty sip just as the argument starts.

It’s on the ground near the trench, but I’m
too far to see anything. The voices—both male—grow louder, more
aggressive and suddenly, my feet begin moving of their own accord.
I’m running in seconds, halfway to the trench when another
spine-shattering scream escapes, slicing the air.