The Coalition (Book 1)

Chapter 8

"Shai!" The desperation in the voice gripped Shai and forced her into consciousness. Sileas was leaning over her with dripping wet hair plastered to her face. She had Shai's upper arms gripped in her thin hands and every time she shook Shai, her hair sent little rivulets of water down her delicate face.

"Wake up, Shai!" Sileas's voice had developed an edge of urgency. Shai struggled to sit up. A strange heaviness filled her head like it had been packed with wet sand.

"Shai!" Sileas kept shaking Shai like a rag doll. How does such a small girl possess such strength?

"I'm awake, Sileas. Sorry, I just... I..." She pushed her friend away and swung her legs slowly over the edge of the bed. Every movement felt like she was under water.

Sileas pulled Shai into the living room. "I went to get Aliah's help but he wasn't at the Boys' Houses."

She handed Shai a cloak, then stood by the fire rubbing her hands together. "It would've taken me forever to wake up the Mothers. Aliah was the best one to help but since he wasn't there I had to come back to get you."

Shai threw the cloak onto a bench then stood in front of Sileas, arms crossed. "What are you talking about? Help for what? And what do you mean you came back? You were already here."

Sileas touched Shai's arm, her eyes wide. "Shai, I didn't stay here. I left after you went to bed. I... broke into the Chapel and waited in the dark for the Leader to open the vault. I only wanted to look at the Book. Maybe even touch it. But... after a while no one came so I went to the vault. It was open and there was the Book... just lying there." She stopped, and Shai wanted to scream at her. 

 What was Sileas thinking? It was the worst infraction.

"Oh, Sil. Tell me you didn't touch it."

"I just wanted to peek. To see it up close. But once I saw it I couldn't help it. I looked in it. I saw names... of course, and the infractions but I saw something else... pictures."

"Pictures? Of what?" Shai wrapped her arms around herself as she shivered. She didn't want to hear anymore but couldn't help wondering what Sileas had seen. Everyone at some point had dreamed of looking in the Book. Wondering if their names and infractions were really written there. "Why would there be pictures in the Book when no one's allowed to show individuality or creativity through drawing or painting or..."

"I don't think whoever drew them was trying to break the Law of Equality. The pictures were like... I don't know. I can't explain it. But beside every person's name there was a small picture. Lots of people shared the same one. On the pages I looked through I counted seven different pictures. And I saw your name, Shai. But your name had the only picture that was different. It looked like this." Sileas held up her hands and linked her thumbs and forefingers together, interlocking them. "There were three circles joined together like this."

Shai sucked in a breath and felt her fingertips go numb. Sileas' description resembled Shai's birthmark. Her secret mark that both frightened her yet made her feel special. Like her Old World dreams and visions of the boy with the beautiful eyes. She'd been careful her whole life to keep her birthmark secret.

"Anyway, I was looking at the picture beside your name when someone came into the Chapel and startled me. I ran but he caught up to me. I couldn't see his face clearly under his hood but I know it was Aliah. He gave me this then took off. I think he wants to recruit me!"

Sileas held out a thin cream-colored piece of parchment. It was folded into quarters and when Shai opened it, her thumb smudged the water-spotted ink.