The Starborn Saga (Books 1, 2, & 3) (68 page)

As Christopher neared the manhole, he looked up to see us running toward him. His eyes brightened when he saw us. Heather was already beside him. The rest of us ran as quickly as our tired legs would carry us. Finally, out of breath and wanting to collapse, we made it to the sewer. Christopher climbed down first followed by Heather. Danny was next and Aaron motioned for me to go. As I started to climb down, we both heard the sound of trucks and soldiers coming toward us. They were still out of view, but we were out of time. 

“Come on!” I yelled at Aaron, but he didn’t listen to me. Instead of climbing down, he reached out to the manhole cover and started moving it over us. “What are you doing?”

“There’s no time!” Aaron said as he slid it into place. 

“Aaron, no!” I screamed out. I tried to climb back up the ladder, but I felt a pair of strong arms wrap around my waist, and then a hand covered my mouth. 

A voice whispered into my ear. “Be quiet.” It was Danny, and I knew that I wouldn’t be able to get out of his grip. Not without giving away where we were.

I stopped struggling and Danny finally released his grip on me and I just fell to the floor. We had to get out of there before we were caught, but I couldn’t find the will to make my legs move. Danny seemed to have noticed this becausest fell to he reached his arms under me and picked me up as though I were a small child that was ready for a nap. I stopped fighting it. As we traveled through the dark tunnels of the Screven underground, I shut my eyes, wiping away a silent tear when I thought of Aaron. 

He had picked up a rifle from the ground and began walki
ng toward the trucks that were approaching him. He held the rifle in his hands and walked confidently toward them like he was invincible. Soldier after soldier tore out of the trucks, guns ready, aimed at Aaron. 

“Put the gun down!” one of the soldiers yelled at him. 

I wondered if he had any electricity stored away. I didn’t notice the yellow glow anymore. It seemed that he was just a normal man walking to face his doom. A distraction to keep the Screven guards away from the sewers.

He kept walking. 

One of the soldiers didn’t wait to give him a second warning. The soldier pulled up his gun, aimed, and shot. Aaron fell to the ground.

I let out an involuntary scream as he went down. I could hear my voice echoing through the tunnels, but the guards didn’t seem to hear it. I could feel the comforting arms of Danny pull me tighter as he felt the sobs escape me.

One of the soldiers walked over to Aaron and stood over him, barrel pointed at his head. Aaron stared up at him and smiled. “You know this will all be over by tomorrow,” he said. 

The guard lowered the barrel until it was pressed firmly against Aaron’s forehead. Aaron never let the smile leave his face. 

Through sobs, I felt nauseous. I couldn’t stand to watch, but I couldn’t open my eyes to leave Aaron either. 

Before the guard could pull the trigger, a voice came out from behind him.

“Wait,” the voice said calmly.

The guard turned his head around. 

“We have to take in everyone we capture in case they are one of the Starborns.”

“This one’s bleeding out,” the guard said. 

The soldier who had told the other to wait, walked forward and looked down at Aaron. He shook his head. “It’s just a shoulder wound. We have to take him.” 

The guard let out a nasty snarl and stooped down to pick Aaron up from the ground. Aaron let out a painful groan as they grabbed his shoulder roughly. 

When I opened my eyes, we were still traveling through the dark tunnels quietly. I felt relief in knowing that Aaron had just survived. But I knew what his survival meant. It meant interrogation by Jeremiah. 

For Aaron’s sake, it might have been better to just be shot through the head.     

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

Even though I truly appreciated Danny carrying me, I no longer found it necessary. After just a few minutes of watching them take Aaron in one of the trucks, I at least knew he would be okay for the time being.

When Danny let me down, I half-expected Heather to give me a dirty look, but she stared straight ahead. No one said a word as we followed Allison through the sewers. The smell was terrible and our feet sloshed through the filthy water as we walked. Allison led the way with determined step, although I was sure she was disheartThe sened by what we had found in the prison. There were supposed to be hundreds of new soldiers following us through these tunnels to help in the fight later - a fight I wasn’t even sure I would be alive for. 

I don’t know how long we walked. It had probably only been an hour, but it felt like it took the entire afternoon. Occasionally, I would look in on Aaron only to find him held in an empty room. There were no lights or electricity, it seemed, but there was a very large, barred window that looked out over the city. No one had taken care of his wound, but it seemed to have stopped bleeding.

I was so thankful that he was still alive, but I regretted that I hadn’t been able to tell him everything. I had wanted to talk to him about my abilities. I had wanted to talk to him about what Connor was doing, though now, it seemed like a good thing that I missed that chance. This was exactly why we hadn’t told anyone about Connor. Aaron would surely be questioned, and he was none the wiser. 

As we walked through the underground roads of waste, I realized I might not ever see him again in person. And when I thought about Connor too, my heart sank. We were supposed to take the Center in the morning. I would be on my way out of this world by then. The sadness I felt had nothing to do with the loss of my own life, but for the loss of the bond I had shared with each of them.

I couldn’t believe how reckless I had been. I should have paid more attention before I had been scratched. I had the power to take on those greyskins, but I had let my guard down. In my determination and rage, I had forgotten that it only took the smallest scratch to kill.

After a seemingly endless maze full of twists and turns, we had finally made it to the hideout. After trudging through the labyrinth, I began to understand why Allison wanted to escape through the sewers. With our head start, the Screven guards would have only been able to follow our path with an enormous amount of luck. The flowing water at our ankles kept us from leaving any kind of trail, and the turns were so numerous, I figured Allison must have been some kind of genius to remember how to make it back.

By the time we made it into the hideout, I was exhausted. I knew I wasn’t myself. I’m sure part of it came from the endless sloshing through reeking water, and maybe even from being electrocuted earlier. But I knew that wasn’t  all it was. I could feel snot starting to drip out of my nose. My right hand had a soft tremor that I didn’t care for. Walking through the hideout, I tried to find the darkest corner possible. I had no desire to be near anyone. 

Regardless, Christopher found me and sat next to me. As he was about to place a hand on my skin, I held up a hand and shook my head. 

“Don’t,” I said. 

“Why not?” He looked confused.

I stared away from him, watching the Resistance members bustling about. Allison was in some sort of frenzy, trying to organize everyone. Apparently the attack was still on. 

“I’m done,” I said to Christopher. “There’s no reason for you to take on my symptoms anymore. I’m at the end of myself.” I felt a single tear streak down my face, but I didn’t try to wipe it. There was no reason to. 

“That’s nonsense,” Christopher said. “I can’t believe I’m hearing that from you. You’ve been so confident. So…strong. It’s hard to see you give up so easily.”

A silent laugh actually escaped me and I looked at him. “That was the uninfected Mora. The new me has a slightly more pessimistic view on things.”

“When were you scratched?” he asked. 

I let out a deep breath. “This morning. I think about eightt corner. I’m not exactly sure.”

“Then you have so many hours left,” he said. “Why would you give up when you’re only halfway to the end?”

“Look at me, Christopher. I’m weak. I’m losing it. I can barely keep myself together for an hour.”

“But that’s why
I’m
here,” he said. His eyes showed nothing but true sympathy. I didn’t know what it was, but there was something about Christopher that made me realize that it was wrong for me to give up. Maybe it was the fact that he wasn’t even supposed to be there with us.  Maybe it was his unfaltering willingness to take my pain away any time I needed strength. 

As another tear dripped down my face, I reached out and grabbed his hand. Somehow, he knew I wasn’t gesturing to be healed. He knew that all I wanted was a friend. Support. He sat closer to me, holding my hand tightly.

“Tell me about New Haven,” I said, remembering the story about how he learned of his gift. 

He smiled at me. “It’s beautiful. Of course, we had only been able to see it from a high vantage point. Its lush grasslands would be perfect for farming and it’s surrounded on three sides by mountains. The only way a greyskin could reach it would be through the front entrance to the valley, but even then, it is so secluded, that they would never notice it without a deliberate search.” He sighed. “The only downside is getting to it. The forests below New Haven are filled with greyskins.”

“But it’s possible?”

“With the right firepower and enough Starborns, I’m sure it would be very possible to get to New Haven.”

“What about an entire village of people?” I asked. 

He smiled at me. “It would take some work. But anything is possible. I just wish I would have known all you Starborns when I had gone out to find New Haven the first time. I would probably be there right now, tending to my own garden.”

He made it sound so wonderful. As he spoke of it, I knew that New Haven was the future of humanity. Life was no longer about building walls or tearing them down. Once Jeremiah was out of the picture, it would be about finding a new beginning. And why couldn’t that happen with New Haven?

I looked at Christopher, still clutching his hand tightly. “Will you promise me that when this is all over, you will make sure my family and village get there?” He looked at me with surprise. “I know it sounds like a lot to ask, but you know it’s worth it. Think about Sadie.”

“I do all the time,” he said. “I can’t do it alone.”

I shook my head. “You won’t have to. The other Starborns will help you. They just don’t know enough about it yet.”

“Your family is going to be very sad that you aren’t with them,” he said. “They’ve lost so much already. To lose you will make things so much harder.”

“You’ll watch out for them, won’t you?” I asked. 

“Of course I will. It would be an honor.”

Hearing him say the words filled me with hope and relief. It was nice to know that someone would be there for my grandma and Jake. All of this would be for nothing if something were to happen to them. They are the only reason I started all this to begin with. 

Christopher placed a hand on his chest. Clearly his bullet wound from the other day was still hurting. 

“Too bad you can’t heal yourself,” I said. 

“I admit, it would be helpful.” He grimaced as he sat up. 

I rested my head against the wall and closed my eyes. This time I didn’t think about anyone. My eyes just needed the rest.

<2em">“Let me take your pain,” Christopher said. “It will help.”

“How many more times can you do that?” I asked, eyes still closed. 

“I don’t know.”

“We should save it,” I said. “As long as we are just sitting here, there isn’t much of a point. I can use you when we start moving.”

“I’m glad to see that you haven’t given up yet,” he said. 

I smiled at him, but kept my eyes closed. My plan was to get some sleep, hoping it would provide a bit of strength to me later, but I couldn’t keep my mind from wandering to Aaron. He still remained in the room, injured and alone. I didn’t know what they were waiting for. Surely they would question him sooner or later. 

I then thought about Connor and I instantly saw him in a room with Jeremiah and the two battered and bruised hunters, Anthony and Trace. 

“You told me three days,” Jeremiah said. “Yet as I sit, your friends tiptoe through my city, destroying things, killing guards.”

“They are not my friends,” Connor said. He hated saying the words. He wanted nothing more than to reach out and break Jeremiah’s neck, but that wouldn’t help. He could feel my presence. He knew I could read his thoughts from where I sat.

I’m glad you’re seeing this
, he said to me in his mind. 

Connor looked at Jeremiah. “I only told you what I knew. For some reason, they decided to come early.”

“Apparently,” Jeremiah mocked. He looked at Anthony and Trace, then back at Connor. “We caught one of them.”

It was difficult for Connor to hide his surprise. He wanted to know who it was, but he knew he couldn’t seem overly anxious to know either. He had to play it cool. So, he didn’t ask. 

But Jeremiah offered the information anyway. 

“I think this one might be of some interest to you,” Jeremiah said. “His name is Aaron.”

Connor looked down at his feet. His stomach lurched at what Jeremiah had said. He and Aaron may not have left each other on good terms before, but Connor wasn’t about to be put into another situation like he was with Heinrich that morning. If Jeremiah were to make Connor choose, he would point the gun at Jeremiah and fire, regardless of the consequences. Connor would die, of course. And so would Aaron. But the two would go down fighting.

“I want you to talk to him,” Jeremiah said. 

Connor looked up in surprise. “What?”

Jeremiah nodded. “I think he would be more likely to talk to you than me or anyone else.”

“What makes you think he would talk to me?”

“He’s your brother!”

Connor scratched the back o this head and sat forward. “He looks at me as a traitor,” he explained. “He hates me as much as he hates you.”

Jeremiah shrugged. “Give it a try.”