Expiration Date (Books 1 and 2)

35 Cinderville

Erik~~

It's morning when we arrive in Cinderville, North Carolina. I made a stop at one of my safe houses to switch cars and gather a few extra supplies.

Vienna sits up in the seat, rolling her shoulders back. "Turn right." She's remained mostly silent throughout the trip, speaking the most once we reached the city.

I follow her instructions, taking a turn at a light and onto a street that features the backs of small buildings on either side of the road. Vienna directs me where to park.

Cinderville seems to be the kind of place you live when you first move out; the place where you'll find thirty options for brunch, but where only ten of them do bottomless mimosas, so in the end you really only have five options because the other half skims on the champagne. All that to say this is not the place one would expect to find a rebel base. I don't know where one would even put a rebel base in Cinderville, North Carolina. The newer looking buildings are few and old buildings don't always make for the best of fortresses.

I follow Vienna into a gym that looks like it doubles as a taekwondo studio based on posters on the windows. As we walk in, the woman behind the desk looks up, her eyes alighting with recognition.

Nearly knocking over her chair, she stands. "Tresais."

Vienna holds up her hands. "It's all right, Edna."

I nod. Would a smile put her at ease or would that look suspicious? I've never pictured rebels doing a lot of smiling. They hate the Society too much to waste time on such things.

My family.

There's no going back after this. If I want to turn back, it has to be now.

I'm not happy with the Society though. I haven't been for a long time. I . . . I need this. I need to be doing something to push forward my goals.

The Society has gotten away with terrorizing others for too long. It's time they realize they can't continue to rule with fear.

"Is Thomas here?" Vienna asks Edna.

My head snaps toward the Beta's ex-lover. She didn't mention Iris's uncle. But then again, I'm sure there is more than one rebel named Thomas.

Edna picks up a corded phone and holds it to her ear. "I'll tell him to come up."

Vienna pulls me into the room with the gym equipment, treadmills, ellipticals, weights, and more. Metal benches are pushed against the wall—I'm sure put there for breaks and now are soaked in sweat. Edna is the only employee I see around, and while there aren't any patrons here, there could have been a few or many people here earlier wanting to get in some exercise before work. I sink down onto one of the benches, hoping Edna wiped this thing down.

The wall across from us is a mirror, and it shows just how tired my eyes look. I'm still in my clothes from dinner, wrinkled but professional. Vienna changed into a pair of sweats I packed from my room, but fresh clothes don't hide the remnants of the dungeon. Dirt, dust, and grime are smeared into her skin and hair. Before a brush passes through her hair, she will need to condition it, no matter how oily it looks.

I tap my foot against the blue mat that makes up the floor. "So this Thomas . . ."

She drags her eyes from the mirror to my face. "Yes?"

"Is it Iris's uncle?"

"Iris doesn't have family."

I forgot we kept that secret.