Uprising (22 page)

“I want to go tomorrow tonight. We’ll be well rested by then.”

William looked up. I knew he didn’t like this plan, so his words surprised me. “You’ll need Nics for cover, and my ability would be useful as well.”

I opened my mouth to shut him down, but stopped myself. His ability
would
be useful, and if I expected him to let go of his protective nature around me, then I owed him the same.

***

It was dark when Alex landed us some distance away from The Institute, but the city lights made the night glow. The plan was to approach on foot from a few blocks away. We didn’t know what to expect inside the building. Cool night air chilled my lungs as the five of us walked without speaking. The sound of the once familiar city seemed newly foreign. It was louder than I remembered, the noise of so many people and cars creating a busy chaos. I fed off the energy.

I watched the building as we got closer. To anyone else it was nothing special, but I saw beneath its cosmopolitan camouflage. It was dangerous, unstable. It stared down at me with a thousand eyes, night windows that could be hiding anything behind their shadowed panes.

I expected to feel nervous, doubtful even. Instead I felt alive, like my life finally had purpose. Tonight I’d prove that I could make a difference, or at least bring justice to the lives that were lost. Blood pulsed so fast in my chest it almost tickled, and for once it wasn’t fear that quickened my heart. It was the rush.

Wait
. Kara’s voice was hesitant. We all stopped. Cars passed by without notice as Nics hid us beneath her shield, and Kara stood there in silence for a moment, eyes closed.

What is it?
I asked, the thrill of the mission still egging me on.

They’re watching from the windows. Lookouts.
Though the words were in my head, they were hurried and tense.

“Should we go back?” William asked.

“No,” I answered. “We have to try. They shouldn’t be able to see us.”

Kara shook her head.
They know we’re here.

Nics’s dark brow pulled together, and adrenaline made my blood pump faster.
How?
I asked. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

They’re waiting to see what we do. Keep walking. Slowly.
I turned to lead the group, keeping my eyes forward as Kara spoke.
It’s Claudia
, she said.
She’s of Selene. Nics can’t manipulate the Moonlight. Not for her at least. She has power over it.

So we’re not hidden?

My eyes darted back and forth across the building hoping to catch sight of something suspicious.

Not to her
, she answered.

The building grew taller as we neared it, rising up like a giant, frightening and monstrous. I’d been overly confident, foolish, for thinking we’d get in without a fight.
Help me out here, Kara
, I said.
What’s she thinking? What’s our best move?

I waited for an answer as I kept on, but I didn’t get one. Instead, I turned around to find Kara stopped behind us, staring up into the night sky like nothing else mattered.

“What is she—”

“Don’t look,” William whispered. He shot a hand out to cover my curious eyes as they lifted upward. “It’s the moon.”

We lost Nics next. Her gaze became fixated on the glowing orb above her, as if she were hypnotized by its light. Before I could react, Kara’s body jerked as a soundless bullet sank into her arm. Then another to her thigh, and her knee buckled beneath her.

“Kara,” Alex yelled, and he was there to catch her as she fell. Her eyes stayed locked on the moon. No scream. No reaction.

I panicked. I couldn’t move. Things were falling apart. If it wasn’t for William’s hand in mine, I would have been next. He pulled me toward Alex, and grabbed Nics by the arm. “Get us inside,” William said to him, and seconds later I was blinded by the white world of the upper air.

I was grateful for the nothingness, the absence of oxygen, the silence. It meant we were safe. No one could touch us.

But the moment was brief, and when my eyes could see again, they found the barrel of a gun in a dimly lit hallway.

“Don’t move,” the woman said, but even if I wanted to I couldn’t. Almost instantly I felt sick. Her ability, whatever it was, was crippling me by the second. Someone collapsed to the floor behind me, and William fell to his knees at my side. It didn’t take long before I recognized the feeling. Hunger. Thirst. To the point of pain. I felt the burning need throughout my body. I had no strength, no will, no life left in me. She was starving us. I hit the ground before I realized

I was falling. Too weak to stand.

“Stop,” William pleaded, hardly able to get the word out. “Give me the gun.”

I watched from the floor, hoping William had the strength to get a hold of her. All he needed was a moment of power. Just a moment.

She didn’t move. With her hand settled on the radio on her waist, she stared back, indecisive.

“Please,” he whispered.

Her lips moved gradually into a smile. It had been enough. With every breath I felt the relief come as the harsh feeling of starvation dissipated. William held his gaze strong, until we’d all risen to our feet.

“The gun,” he said, holding out his open hand. She handed it to him willingly. It was large. Not a handgun. William pointed it at her, and she looked wounded, but didn’t retaliate. “Is there anyone in there?” He gestured to a closed door to the left of the hallway.

“No,” she said, unable to look away from him. “Open it,” he commanded.

Only then did I begin to hear Kara’s moans as she breathed through clenched teeth.

“What happened?” Nics asked, helping Kara into the safety of the dark office. “I don’t remember any of it.”

“Yeah, you weren’t much help either,” Alex scoffed.

Both William and I ignored the question as she laid Kara out on the floor. “Sit there. Don’t talk or move,” William told the woman. He looked back at me. “What do you need?”

“Just something to soak up the blood, so I can heal the wounds.”

William slid his shirt over his head.

“Here.” He handed it to me and found the small tear in Kara’s jeans where the bullet had passed through, his fingers ripping it wider.

“Ready?” he asked her.

She nodded, and I pressed the black cloth against her wounded leg. She covered her mouth and clenched her jaw to keep from screaming as I dug for the bullet. It was messy. Too deep. I couldn’t get it.

Kara let out a breath, and her head fell back against the floor.

“Just let me try again,” I said as I examined the wound. “I can do it.” I’d practiced this over and over again in training, but never under this much pressure. My heart was beating fast. I hadn’t realized how much I’d come to care about Kara. I felt her pain as if it were my own. Every second she writhed and moaned made my stomach ache with regret.
I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Kara.
I dug deeper as she cried out, unable to hold back.

“Elyse,” William interrupted. “Maybe you could give her something. Just enough . . .”

I looked at him confused at first, but he glanced at my left wrist with reason. Maybe I could knock her out long enough to remove the bullets.

“I don’t know. What if I—”

“Do it,” Alex demanded. His eyes never faltered from her face, and something in them was desperate.

Just a drop. She nodded, and I moved closer to her, pressing the buttons on my bracelet. She opened her mouth, and I let the blood hit her tongue. As soon as she was out I felt thankful I could give her such quick relief.

I moved back to her leg, trying to find the hard metal in her fleshy thigh. I couldn’t see through the blood, so I focused on Nics’s feet. She moved nervously, shifting her weight back and forth, rocking her body without realizing it. She couldn’t look away from the woman against the wall.

“You want me to try?” William asked.

“I got it.” I found the bullet with my fingers, carefully pinching them around the slippery surface, and threw it to the floor. I unlatched the bracelet and placed it on my other arm, pressing the buttons without hesitating. The blood ran over the open flesh sealing the wound with fresh skin.

“One more,” I whispered, moving on to her arm. I’d just gotten the bullet out when Nics stopped me.

“Elyse,” she said. “Hang on.”

“Someone’s coming.”

The room went quiet. As I lifted my eyes, I recognized something. The books. The desk. This was the room where I’d spoken to Adrianna in my vision. The excitement I’d felt before found its way back into my chest.

“Maybe it’s her,” I whispered.

Footsteps. Murmurs. William held a finger to his lips, his brow cinched as he tried to make out words through the walls. He reached for my hand and nodded at Nics to make contact with Alex.

“Wait.” I stopped him. “What if it’s her?”

William looked at me. “What if it’s not?”

Our eyes stayed connected for what seemed like minutes. Only when the door knob began to twist did we look away from each other. I squeezed William’s hand as we waited. Then something hit me. This wasn’t how it was in my vision. Things were different. I was alone. No blood on my hands, no darkness outside the windows. This wasn’t it. I was wrong.

“Go,” I shouted as the door began to open. “Go now, Alex!”

The last image burned into my eyes and followed me even as we were surrounded by white. Christoph’s face glaring back at me, hungry for his prize. If we’d taken a second longer we’d be trapped, unable to use Alex as an escape. I’d been so stupid.

I waited for the caves to appear, for the air to fill my lungs, but it didn’t come. The emptiness pressed in on me, the nothingness stole my breath, trapped me in a timeless prison. Air. I needed air. I felt my unseen body thrash with panic. Were we stuck?

Alex!
I had no voice in this void. No body I could see. No control.
Alex!

My heart hammered. My chest fought for life. This was it.

I felt the ground before I saw it, hitting hard from high up. My teeth sank into my lip as my mouth hit the dirt, and I tasted blood on my tongue. The white surroundings had released me, but my pupils let in too much light. Everything was pulsing and blurry from lack of oxygen. I heard the rest of them fall beside me with gasps and groans. I wasn’t the only one stuck in the nothing for too long.

“William,” I said, squinting as my eyes adjusted.

“You’re okay. We’re okay.” I crashed into his chest.

“Did you see him?” I asked, wiping the blood and dirt from my lips. “I was wrong. I’m sorry. It wasn’t how I saw it. Things were different. If I—”

“What things were different?” he asked. I could see him now, and his soft eyes settled my trembling hands. When I didn’t speak he held me closer. “We got out. That’s all that matters.”

As I looked around I recognized the crevice Kara had summoned me to at Lenaia so many months ago. At least we were home.

“What the hell was that, Alex?” Kara complained, suddenly conscious. She sat on the ground nearby clutching her still wounded arm in her hand.

“He took my ability away mid-travel,” Alex answered, his face unable to let go of the shock. “I thought it was over. We were dead.” He disappeared and reappeared in seconds. “I don’t know why, but he must have given it back.”

“We were already gone. He wants us alive,” William said. “Alive?” Alex asked, pacing in the small space. “Why?” The idea seemed ridiculous to him, but he didn’t know what we knew.

“It’s none of your business,” I snapped. I moved toward Kara, trying to busy myself with healing her wound. I didn’t want to get into this right now.

“Okay.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “Now I really want to know. Why would he want any of us alive, Elyse?”

“It doesn’t matter. We’re out,” Kara answered. She closed her eyes as the healing blood sealed her wound. “Thank you.”

“It’s really great that you’re all so happy we’re breathing,” Alex’s voice raised with each word. “But does anybody else realize that we came back with nothing? It was all a waste.”

“At least we tried,” I said, sitting down next to Kara in the dirt. I hated him for being right.

“Well, I’m sorry,” Nics said, hands on her hips and scowling. She’d been so quiet, I’d forgotten she was there. “It was my fault. Take somebody else to protect you next time.”

“Nics!” I called after her, but she squeezed through the crevice opening without looking back.

Alex’s eyes moved back and forth between William and me. “You two know something.”

“Yeah, well, it’s private,” William answered for me.

“Nothing’s private anymore. This is ridiculous.” He turned to me. “I should never have listened to you when you said go.” He kicked the wall in front of him causing pieces of rock to fall to the ground. “He was right there. I could have killed him.”

“Then why didn’t you?” I challenged him.

“I don’t know,” he yelled, but his eyes gave him away. They drifted toward Kara, as she rubbed her freshly healed arm. There was something more in the way he looked at her. Then, as though he had called out her name, she glanced up, speaking something to him silently. “It’s just . . . killing him is the only way to get my father back.”

I stared at him in shock. “He has your father?”

“Yes and no.” He shook his head, uncomfortable opening up. “Christoph claims he has my sister.” His lips pulled down in disgust. “So my father does what he says. In exchange for her life.”

“But
you
left,” I said, not understanding.

“His arrangement was with him. Not with me. I stayed for my father, until I realized he was never going to give her back.” His voice was quiet, but all of us were silent as he spoke. He’d never said a word about anyone in his life until now. “My dad, he still has hope, but . . . why would Christoph give her up? Not when he has a messenger in his back pocket.” He took a deep breath and looked around, like he just realized he was speaking aloud and not to himself.

“We all have our reasons for wanting him dead,” William said, grabbing Alex’s attention. “And he will be. Trust me.” I wondered what his reason was. His brother’s death, his need for our baby, the war, me?