Naomi Grim: Complete Novel (Parts 1-4) (The Silver Scythe Chronicles) (6 page)

     Chase
cracked his knuckles. I hated when people did that and it was a bad habit of
his.

     I
grabbed his hand. "Chase, really it was nothing." That wasn't exactly
true. I felt like if I had gotten to be with Hunter, I wouldn't have had to
learn to love him like other Grims had to learn to love their spouses. I would
just love him because that was what my heart wanted. "Chase, listen. What
I said before about you and Keira, I meant it. You should get married. You'd be
better off with her anyway."

     Chase
tilted his head to the side and narrowed his eyes at me. "What does that
mean?"

     "You
know. Keira's so beautiful."

     He
rolled his eyes. "Yeah, she is. And what are you? Chopped liver?"

     "I
don't know, it's just . . ." People had always told me I was pretty, but
Keira was gorgeous. Let's face it, gorgeous wins every time.

     "Why
do you have to compare yourself to someone else? Just know you're beautiful and
that's that."

     I
looked down at my badly chipped nail polish. "You're right, Chase."

     "So,
tell me the truth. What was it really like being a part of that world?"

     I
realized we hadn't really gotten a good chance to talk since I had been back.
"It wasn't bad. I liked it actually. It was just . . . different."

     "Different?
How?"

     "I
didn't have to worry about being dispatched for assignments. I did more than
just study. I got to really hang out with some kids. High school was pretty
fun. I got to go to a basketball game. A movie. A place that had all sorts of
games. I had a nice time."

     Chase
gave me a lackluster smile. "What was your favorite part?"

     I
thought for a moment. My favorite part would probably piss him off.
"Chase, if we lived there, we could date. We wouldn't have to wait until
we turned eighteen."

     "Is
that what you would want? For us to date."

      Before
I could answer, Keira came barreling out of the door.

     "Chase,
let's go!" she shouted.

     We
both stood. "Keir, what's wrong?" Chase asked.

     Keira
glanced back at the house. "Nothing, I just want to leave. Please let's
go."

     Chase
looked at me and sighed. "I guess I'll see you later. Hang in there."

     "Okay."
I followed him inside. Keira was already at the front door. She stormed out
without even saying good-bye.

     Chase
gave me a small smile. "Bye, Nay."

     "Bye."

     The
butler closed the door behind them.

     Selima
stuck her head out of the kitchen door and yelled for me to get back there to
help.

     I
heard a "Psssst," coming from the top of the staircase. I looked up. Colden
leaned over the banister, waving me up. I told Selima I was going to the
bathroom and then I'd be right there.

     I
darted up the steps, taking two at a time, totally breaking the rules. The help
was supposed to stay in their assigned stations, not wander around the house
without permission. By the time I made it to the top, Colden was walking down
the hall to his guest room. I passed a girl carrying a stack of towels. She
gave me a strange look that I ignored.

     Colden
pulled me into the room and shut the door. "We have a problem, a really
big problem."

     I
wondered when he and I had become a "we". "Yeah? What's
that?"

     "Dunningham's
not going to give me those lifestones. He's planning something. I know
it."

     "But
he has to. Grims are injured. He's not going to let them stay in pain."

     Colden
grabbed my arm much too tight. "He doesn't care about them. This is a
trap. He wants to lure his brother and the doctors here to kill them. There's
something about Dunningham—he can't come to the Outskirts, not even for a
little bit like other Grims. I don't know why, but I'm glad.  Naomi, we can be
killed. He can kill any one of us at any second and he knows it. Maybe he
thinks that if he keeps me here long enough, they'll send somebody looking for
me. We have to leave."

     I
pulled my arm from his grasp. "Well, there are guards all over this place.
How are we going to get out?"

     "Something's
going to happen tonight. He'll be distracted. He and his guards will have to
leave here, and we can handle everyone else, the rest of the help. They're all
mortal."

     "What's
going to happen?"

     Colden
shook his head. "It's going to be bad, Naomi. That's all I can tell you.
Listen, tonight I really need you to get some knives from the kitchen. We have
to have something to protect ourselves."

     "I
don't know if I can do that. Someone's always watching me."

     Colden
frowned. "Just do it! And be ready. Don't fall asleep. Have your shoes on.
I can't have you slowing me down."
     I rolled my eyes at him. "Why do you want to take me if you're so
worried about that?"

     "Because
I've been given strict orders not to come back without you. Trust me, if I had
a choice, I'd leave you right here."

     I
would never, ever, ever like this guy. "Whatever. I have to get back to
the kitchen."

That
night we made rack of lamb and steamed vegetables. Well, I guess I shouldn't
say
we
. All I did was cut the vegetables again. That was fine, because
it provided me with the opportunity to slide a couple of knives into the pocket
of my smock when Selima and Twila weren't looking. The knives formed a bulge in
the pocket I hoped no one would notice. Knives in my smock would be hard to
explain.

     "Thank
you for letting my friends come over," I said to Dunningham as I refilled
his water glass.

     "They
may not come back," he replied.

     "Oh.
Did something happen?" I asked.

     "Selima,
the lamb is delectable. Tender, just how I like it," he said, ignoring my
question.

     I
wanted to know what had Keira so upset and why he was blowing off my question. I
placed the pitcher of water on the table and stepped back in my place. Selima
shot me a disapproving glance. I wasn't supposed to speak to Dunningham at all
unless he spoke to me first.

     Thankfully,
the knives in my smock went undetected throughout clean-up. Back in our
quarters, I waited patiently for my turn to shower. Since I had been the last
maid added to the staff, I was last in line for the shower. I took a quick one
this time because I didn't feel like being slapped again. By the time I came
out, wearing the saggy pajamas I had been given, the lights were out and
everyone was in bed. I slid the knives from the pocket of my smock underneath
my pillow, pulled my boots on and waited.

* * *

     I
had almost become resigned to the fact that what Colden said was going to
happen, really wasn't going to happen. I fought sleep with all my might. The
even breathing of the other girls in the room didn't help. Then, just as I was
about to give into sleep, the warning sirens that always told us of Foragers
blared. Someone turned on a lamp, and everyone sat up in their beds. A worried
murmur spread across the room.

     "It's
okay, ladies," Hesper said calmly. "This doesn't concern us. We're
safe where we are. Whatever's happening will be taken care of."

     Everyone
quieted, but no one laid back down.

     "Mindy,
turn that light off," Hester ordered.

     Just
as Mindy reached for the lamp beside her bed, the door to our quarters opened.

     Colden
stood at the top of the stairs. "Naomi, come on!"

     Everyone
looked at me, but there was no time for hesitation. I grabbed the knives from
underneath my pillow and sped up the stairs.

     Hesper
yelled for me to come back, she even tried to run up the stairs after me, but
Colden and I were much faster.

     The
Butler, whose name I had never caught, dashed down the stairs, wrapping himself
in a robe. He yelled to us, asking where we were going, but we ignored him. I
followed Colden down the long narrow hallway and out the front door.

     "Come,"
Colden said once we had gotten outside. He led me to the line of Dunningham's
expensive cars. "I got the keys . . . I just need to see which one
fits." He tried the key in several of the cars until the doors of one
unlocked. "Get in!" he yelled.

     "Do
you know how to drive?" I asked as I climbed in on the passenger side.

     "Nope,
but I've seen it done before, in the human world." He turned on the
ignition, and we were off to a bumpy start. It reminded me of Bram's driving
during our assignment.

     I
fell back against the seat as we rounded Dunningham's circular driveway. The
gates opened for us, and Colden practically gave me whiplash as we made a sharp
turn onto the road.

     "Where
are you taking me?" I asked as we sped past mansions that only looked like
blurs. Lights were on in almost all the houses. Grims of the Upper Estates
didn't respond during the sirens unless it was an absolute emergency, and we
needed the back up. So far that had never happened. The lower-class Grims did
all the dirty work.

     "We're
going right back to the Outskirts. I can't risk anything happening to
you." Colden made another sharp turn, and I reached for my seat belt. I
had to remember that it was possible for me to die now.

     Once
we reached the Farrington city limits, Colden slammed on the breaks. He didn't
have a choice. The streets were filled with men, mostly Foragers, prisoners
from Gattica and the workers in the Mill. Many of them had large sticks. They
were busting out windows and kicking in doors. Two of them took a trash can and
threw it through the window of a dress shop. They ran inside and began to wreck
the place. Nowhere was in the middle of a full-out riot.

     A
fire had started in another building. I hoped they weren't doing this to the
houses. Shots rang out. Some of the rioters ducked for cover and some of them
didn't care. They continued on with their destruction. A man with a Mohawk
punched our car's driver side window. Colden put his hands up. The Forager
looked at him and then backed off as if he recognized him.

     `"How
am I supposed to get through this?" Colden asked.

     I
put my hand on the door handle. Colden looked at me and frowned, probably
because he knew what I was thinking. "Don't!"

     "I'm
sorry. I have to know that they're okay."

     He
made a grab for me, but I yanked away. He cursed as I took off.

     I
stayed close to the buildings, hoping not to get hit by any stray bullets. I
ran into a huge man with tattoos all over him and fell to the ground. He
sneered at me. I scrambled to my feet before he could do anything to me and continued
to run. I ran past Brickman's, where a group was inside tearing the place to shreds.
I hoped Sullivan was okay.

     When
I got my street, a knot formed in my chest. I couldn't breathe. Grims whose
homes had been invaded were scrambling in the street, looking for a safe place.
Mothers clung to their small children as they ran, but there was nowhere to go.
Doors were being kicked in, windows busted. I heard shots come from one house.

     Kerrin,
a friend of my mother's stepped onto her porch with a gun. "Who else? Who
else?" Kerrin seemed to be doing a good job protecting her home. She looked
at me with wide eyes. "Naomi, what are you doing out there? Get
inside."

     I
shook my head and kept running. I was four houses away from my own. From where
I stood, it looked untouched. Someone grabbed me from behind. I looked up to
see a man holding me. He had the look of a Gattica prisoner—well built and muscular.
He smelled like rotten meat.

     "Please,"
I pleaded. "I'm one of you. I'm a hybrid." Those words seemed so
wrong coming from my mouth, but they were true." I showed him my scar from
where Dunstan had cut me. "See? Look?"

     The
man stared at the scar for a few seconds and then reluctantly let me go.

     I
darted through the yard and to the back door. It was locked, and I didn't have
my key. I knocked on the door, knowing my family wouldn't answer unless they
knew it was me. "Please, it's me, Naomi. Open up!"

     "Yeah,
open up!" said a deep voice from behind me. I turned to see a strange man.
He pushed me off the stoop, and I landed on my side on the ground. The man
began to bang on the door. This had been a mistake. Now I'd drawn attention to
our home. When no one answered, he began to throw all his weight against the
door. With his size, it wouldn't take him long to break it down. I remembered
the knife I had hidden in my boot. I reached down for it, bracing myself. I had
never hurt anyone before and there was a chance anything I did to him would be
fatal.

     I
got back up on my feet. The man stopped throwing himself against the door. He
had noticed the knife in my hand. Now, I had less than a second to make a
decision. I thrust the knife into his abdomen with all my strength. Even though
he'd seen it coming, he looked surprised. Blood trickled quickly from the wound.
I twisted the knife, pulled it out of him, and turned to flee.

     I
slammed into Colden. He looked like he was in a trance. He shook his head.
"Come on, let's go."

     I
followed him as we made a dash back through Litropolis and to the Outskirts. I
hoped my family was hidden safely in the house and that Father and Bram were
okay. The sirens continued to ring. It was going to be a long night for
everyone.

* * *

     When
we arrived back in the Outskirts, Dunstan sat at his desk, looking at some kind
of list. His front door was open and Jax was nowhere to be seen.

     "Hey!"
I shouted as Colden and I entered the room. "There's a riot going on.
People are dying, your people, and you're sitting here reading."

     He
didn't look up. "Oh, I see you've made it back."

     I
kicked the back of the chair he was sitting in, and Colden pulled me back. Dunstan
stood and faced me, wearing a scowl.

     "You're
just like your brother," I told him. "You don't care about anyone but
yourself. You're using these people."

     Dunstan
took a deep breath and then sat back down. "I don't know what your problem
is, but you need to calm down."

     "You
don't know what my problem is? Nowhere is being destroyed right now. My family,
friends, and everyone that I know lives there. I understand why you guys are
angry and that you've been treated unfairly, but this isn't going to fix
anything. Your people are dying. They're being shot dead in the streets. Don't
you even care?"

     Dunstan's
expression didn't change, showing me he didn't care. "The casualties of
war. Everyone taking part in this knows what's at stake. They're willing to
give their lives for the cause. And unlike my brother, I don't force them to
participate. Now, I'm sorry about your family, but I have to think about my
people who've been made prisoners in Gattica and slaves in the Mill when
they've done nothing wrong."

     "So
what's next?" I asked.

     "Nowhere
will be flipped upside down after this. My brother will try to regroup and
rebuild, but we have them outnumbered. We've weakened them. He'll be forced to
negotiate.  The prisoners and the Mill workers will be coming back here. Don't
worry, we won't hurt anyone unless we have to."

     "Why
do you need me here? Why was it so important for Colden to bring me back?"

     "You
should get a good's night rest. You can sleep in my bedroom, I'm pulling an all-nighter,"
Dunstan replied.

     He
clearly wasn't going to answer my question, and I was too tired to argue with
him. I turned to leave the room.

     "By
the way Naomi, you're never going back there. We're your family now."
Dunstan closed the door behind me and he and Colden stayed in there talking for
a long time.