"This way," Broden whispered as he pulled the tree branches to the side.
Despite Miles' heavy jacket, I shivered and leaned against Broden, our arms pressing one another. When we first met, we only got this close when we had to—on a bus, in a crowd, at school. Then, before I knew it, I found myself always next to him, fishing in the fall or checking the acres one extra time for fun. But that had been during the day, when his eyes looked like honeyed almonds. In the dark, his copper eyes gleamed like the gate, a law waiting to be broken, and I couldn't look away from the unfamiliarity of my best friend. Not until he focused beyond the leaves. When his jaw locked, he army-crawled through the congested space near the tree trunks. I followed his swift movements, careful not to fall off of the rocky ledge and into the parking lot below.
The manmade cliff was a decoration for the offices we had trespassed in, but now I understood why Broden had chosen the spot. The cliff hung directly over the main road across from the lumberyard, and separated streetlamps left wide patches of darkness on the asphalt. We could dart across without exposure. How he had known was beyond me.
"Stay as close to me as possible," Broden said in a perfected low tone, and he pointed at three tiny trees in front of us. "I'm going to yank the branch back. You have to jump first, so I can hold it back for you." The conversation made my head spin. "It's not a long fall," he promised with a meek smile.
My fingernails dug into the cool dirt. Leaves crunched beneath my feet. I could barely breathe.
Broden's index finger moved from the ledge to the road. "I'll jump after you, and then I'm taking off. Keep up," he ordered, even though he knew I was a fast runner. Probably faster than him. "Do exactly what I do, and don't hesitate. Got it?"
I nodded, and the branches tugged at my curly hair as if to hold me back. I ignored them.
"And Sophia?"
I turned to my best friend, close enough to touch foreheads, and his eyes briefly searched mine. "Yeah?" I breathed. His fingers skimmed the cuts on his brow. It was then that I realized his black eye was slowly fading.
"We—" Broden paused to look over the street. "We can't make mistakes." He reached up for the last branch. "Understand?"
I nodded, and he yanked the branch back. "Then, go."
I sprung forward and jumped before I had a chance to glance at the ground. Miles' sweater rippled against the wind as air exploded into my lungs. The drop was higher than I was expecting, and I yelped as I hit the ground. My feet slid beneath me. I tumbled. I came to a stop on my back, looking up at the star-dotted sky above me, breath knocked from my lungs. Before I could stand, Broden dropped out of the sky. He recollected gracefully and darted into the streets without hesitation.
I staggered, pulling up grass and dirt as I raced after him. The grass beneath my feet turned to asphalt in seconds. We were darting across the street—only one yard apart—when Broden leapt toward the sidewalk. He disappeared into the blackness, and my heart slammed into my ribs.
I had seconds to make a decision.
My eyes shot back and forth, desperately searching for my friend, but I only saw the dark field in front of me. Suddenly, without catching sight of him, I fell into a storm ditch. My feet slammed against the drain, and my hands sprung up in front of me before I slammed into a concrete wall.
The sound of my panicked breath echoed around the tunnel with a hiss, but Broden's soft chuckle is what I focused on. He had known we would fall from the beginning.
He patted my shoulder. "You did good," he praised me in-between breaths.
I side-glared at him. "You could've warned me about the second drop, you know." The drop had to be over six feet because it covered his head.
"I thought you'd enjoy a surprise."
"The first drop was surprise enough," I mumbled, leaning back to survey my leg. My knee was scraped, and my jeans were ruined, but I was okay.
Broden glanced at his watch. "We have to go."
He followed the drain as the concrete curled under the fields. I followed him without questioning his directional capabilities, and his speed increased with every turn. He kept looking at his faulty watch, and I was beginning to suspect the silver jewelry wasn't as broken as he wanted it to seem.
"Do you think the patrolman saw us?" I asked, quickening my pace to stand next to him.
He climbed up from the drain to a dirt trail. When I joined him, he answered, "He's caught us once."
Apparently, Broden had done this before, numerous times, and not alone. My only question was a stereotypical one—Why?—but I didn't have enough information to ask yet. If I had learned anything from my father, it was that most people didn't offer information, and if you're going to ask for it, you better know they will answer. At this point, Broden was keeping his mouth shut, even if I pried it open. If I wanted an honest answer, I would have to wait for a better opportunity to begin an interrogation.
Broden slowed down, his free hand tightening on the backpack. "Listen, Sophia," he whispered as the dirt trail turned into a hooked, gravel path. We were closing in on the lumberyard. "This whole situation— Miles is right when he says you shouldn't be involved."
"It can't be that bad."
"It is." He angled his face away, but I had already seen his expression: the mixture of contempt and dread. My concern peaked. Before I could speak, though, we neared the last curve. Sounds of rushing water surrounded us. "Don't speak. Don't do anything rash. Just let me talk to Noah, and then I'll get you out of here, and we never have to think about this again."
I nodded, but doubted he saw me. His stride turned into a march as we made our way around the corner. The trail ended at a river. A bridge arched over it, enveloping us in shadows. Full of rainwater from the previous storm, the creek rushed over rocks and logs, and I gaped at the site. Considering I was never near the lumberyard, I was oblivious to the beautiful bridge. In fact, I was shocked by it. This area wasn't a park. It was an abandoned forest. To see a manmade creation in isolation made every alarm in my body go off.
Unfazed, Broden walked in front of me, and I managed to tiptoe behind him. Gravel beneath my feet disappeared and reappeared as clouds soared across the sky, covering the moon only to conceal it again. One second, I could see the glittering water in front of me, the next it disappeared. I kept pushing forward, allowing my ears to be my eyes. The running water was soothing, but Broden's voice was defensive when he spoke.
"Noah."
My neck snapped up as I stared at my best friend talking to the shadows beneath the bridge. It wasn't until I stepped closer that I saw who he had addressed.
Noah leaned against the stone wall, tall and lean, but his eyes focused on Broden with a stillness that pulled me in. He seemed familiar somehow. I squinted, but his black t-shirt blended in with the darkness. If I weren't closer, I wouldn't have been able to see him. The only light part about him was his hair, blond and frayed, yet it hung over his forehead like a masquerade mask. The last time I'd seen anyone that disheveled in the State—
My heart stopped.
Broden's old friend—the one Miles seemed terrified of—was the same person I had encountered in the forest behind my house. The stranger who had my address in his hands.
I stepped back, hoping to hide behind Broden.
Broden, though, moved toward him. "It's me."
Noah stepped forward, and the darkness fell behind his shoulders like a cloak. The lights above lit up his face—his angled cheekbones, his tense brow, his lips—and now I had no doubts. He was as exposed as we were, but his gaze shattered any safety in our shared risk. Noah's eyes had flashed. Cat-eyes. He had taken tomo, recently.
I pulled my hands out of my pockets, preparing to run or fight. Taking tomo could get you killed in this country, but getting caught with someone taking it was just as bad, if not worse. They'd kill him and interrogate us. Some would consider him the lucky one.
"Broden..." I started, but he ignored me.
He yanked the black bag off of his shoulder and threw it at Noah. The boy caught it swiftly, too swiftly. He had probably seen Broden throwing it before Broden even knew he would throw it. That was what tomo did to a person. They could see everything, even the future.
Noah's all-seeing gaze flashed yellow once more before his stare focused on Broden's arm. "What the hell happened to you?"
Broden's sweater completely covered his injured arm, but Noah somehow knew.
"What do you think?" Broden spat, before throwing the recorder at him.
Noah caught that too. He slid it into his jeans pocket. "Where's Miles?"
"Watching the car."
Noah's expression remained stoic. "I saw the Jeep. You're working for the State nowadays?"
Broden gestured toward me. "The car's hers."
Noah slowly leaned to the right to get a good look at me. I held my breath, expecting the worst, but his attention quickly returned to Broden.
"How have you been?"
"Better," Broden answered. "They let me out of military school, but it looks like I'm back in."
"I'll get you out."
"There's no getting me out this time."
Noah shifted to the side, and his gaze focused somewhere far away from the park. He looked as if he was mentally transporting himself elsewhere, somewhere that didn't have this moment in existence, somewhere that was completely still. He had done the same thing when he faced me only a few days prior. He wasn't the type to care about his exposed back. At least I knew that about him.
Broden wound his hands anxiously. "Why are you back?" he asked, and Noah's jaw locked, as if he were holding his words back. Broden sighed heavily at his friend's silence. "There's a reason."
"I need it back," Noah snapped. "I need the tomo back now."
"What?" Broden's voice rose. "No way, I'm not giving it to you. Forget it."
Noah's eyebrows raised beneath his long hair. "So, you kept it?"
Broden had broken my father's first rule—never offer information—and he was already dealing with the repercussions.
"Noah—" Broden dug his feet into the gravel. "Border patrol knows you're here. Phelps knows. He's looking for you."
"He's looking for someone," Noah corrected, his voice dancing with amusement. "They don't know who."
My father's conversation flickered through my memory. Phelps had brought my dad back to look for someone who had illegally passed through the regions. Phelps was looking for Noah, my dad was looking for Noah, and Noah was looking for tomo.
Broden was right. The situation was bad.
"I need it," Noah continued, crossing his arms. "I'm not going to use it, but I need it back."
Broden raised his chin. "I don't believe you."
"You really think I came the whole way here just to use it myself?" Noah challenged.
Broden glared. "You seem to be using it now."
"That's besides the point."
"Then what are you doing with it?"
"I'm going to be boarded up in the military hostiles as some kid from the Boise Region," he changed the subject. "Nate Harper. That's my name."
"Nate Harper," Broden stuttered over the false identity.
"Looks like we'll be in school together again." Noah touched the concrete wall behind him as if to remind himself where he was standing. "I shouldn't be here for long."
"So, you're not staying."
"Is that a surprise?" he asked in a low tone.
"No," Broden admitted, "I guess not."
Noah ran a hand through his blond hair, and his bangs stuck up. Neither of the boys spoke. For a moment, we were buried in the sound of the rushing water, cool and calm. I didn't dare move, as if moving would suddenly bring Noah's attention to me. I didn't want him to recognize me if he hadn't already.
Whatever was going on here—crossing the border, military school, and tomo—I didn't want to believe Broden was involved with someone like that. Even worse, I wanted to believe that Noah wasn't either. If he was, then why was my address involved?
Broden held his splinted arm. "Does your dad know?"
"He's the one who sent me," Noah answered, monotone.
"You're not telling me something," Broden growled, suddenly enraged. "Do you realize how much trouble you're in? How much trouble you could get me in? Miles in? Anyone in?"
Noah's green eyes squinted into the same predatory glare he had when I snatched up his paper in the forest. "I'm not here to be lectured."
Both tensed, and their eyes moved over one another as if they would start fighting at any second.
"I'm not giving the tomo to you," Broden said.
Noah's fingers danced on his thigh as if he was contemplating his next move. His movements were faster than they should've been. Even worse, I recognized his stance from my father's training. He, like my father, was trained for combat.
When he stepped forward, Broden stepped back, but Noah laid his palm out sideways. He wanted a simple handshake.
"It was good seeing you," Noah said, his watch flashing moonlight into my eyes. Aside from the black color, Broden's watch was a replica of Noah's.
Broden hesitated, but he forced himself to step forward. I fisted my hands to stop myself from pulling Broden back. I doubted Noah wanted a handshake. If anything, I expected him to crush Broden's face into the ground. But the only thing that crunched was the gravel beneath their feet as they shook hands.
They locked eyes, and then Broden let go. He spun around and walked toward me without any trouble. When his hand landed on my arm, he nudged me. "Let's go."
We started walking when I whispered Broden's name, but I had to grab his arm to get his attention. I had to tell him about the forest. "Wait."
Broden pulled away from me. "Don't talk yet." His voice was tight as he continued to walk, but I froze, hearing Noah's footsteps behind us.
I spun around just in time. Noah stood only a foot away. Much closer than before, closer than the forest too. Now I could see the shadows lingering beneath his eyes. His long lashes. The dark freckles on his cheeks. He halted when I met his gaze with a glare. How did he get so close? I hadn't heard him approach.
He smiled, flashing his palms in peace. "It was good seeing you again, Sophie."
"Sophia," I corrected my name without thinking. It was automatic, and now I was the one who had broken my father's rules.
"I like Sophie better."
I glared. Noah clearly remembered me, and my name. I had to remind myself that he also knew where I lived.
Broden marched to my side. "You two know one another?"
I turned my glare on my best friend. "It's not like that—"
"Not exactly, anyway," Noah completed my sentence like we were the ones with a history.
"Keep her out of this," Broden snarled, his face creasing in places I had never seen before. His violent past suddenly seemed like the present. All of the stories I had heard from Lily had become real in only a flash. He was preparing to attack.
Noah's smile never faltered. "You're the one who brought her."
"Not to meet you," Broden growled.
Noah shrugged anyway.
Broden paled. "You"—he shoved a finger into his friend's chest—"You planned this."
"I saw it," he corrected, referring to his tomo-use.
Chills ran up my spine. Noah had wanted me here, from the beginning. He had seen me. I latched onto Broden's arm, my nails digging into his skin.
Noah studied my grasp with a slight frown. "I want my stuff."
"No."
Noah looked away from my hold to focus on Broden. "Fine, then," he spoke as he turned around. His broad shoulders shifted beneath his black T-shirt as he stretched like a lion under the sun instead of a boy under the moonlight. "I'm sure someone else could always help me," he said, glancing over his shoulder, his green eyes meeting mine.
All I could think about was my house, my home that no longer seemed safe. My father was rarely in the Topeka Region, and Lyn worked almost every day, leaving me alone. My only protection was Argos and my weapons, and Noah hadn't been frightened of either one. Not in the slightest. And now, he had a knife. One of my father's knives.
Broden stepped in front of me, blocking me from Noah. "What do you want?"
"Your help," he answered. "I need those drugs." He sounded borderline apologetic. "I have to get them."
Broden paused, but ended his pause with a firm nod. "Leave Sophia alone, and I'll help you."
Noah leaned over to see my reaction. I leaned over to hide from him.
"Meet at the ravens," Noah instructed. "3:21 a.m." It was the second time I had heard them use some sort of code that night.
Broden read his watch and agreed. As soon as he confirmed it, Broden grabbed my arm. He dragged me behind him as he marched up the trail. Stones crunched, and powders from the gravel floated up like a fog. My heart pounded in my ears, and we reached the top of the trail in seconds, but I turned back to look. I half-expected the stranger to follow us, but Noah was standing on the path. His hands in his pockets, his eyes flashed yellow through the blackness. Intense as it was, he was frozen, and his lips settled neither into a frown nor a smile. It wasn't until his cat-eyes disappeared that he lifted his hand in a slight wave. I bit my lip to keep myself from screaming at him.
"Sophia," Broden shook my arm as if he had sensed my stare.
"I'm okay—"
"Stay away from him." He led us over the concrete. The cuts above his brow seemed to bleed beneath his stressed stitches.
When I didn't respond, he stopped us and spun around to face me. He grabbed both of my shoulders, forcing me to look at him. "Promise me that you'll stay away from him—and from me."
My jaw dropped. "From you?" Memories of pranking Lily, baking bread, and running through the woods hit me. Broden was sometimes my only company when my family was away. His mom and dad worked at the hospital too, after all. Loneliness was something we shared. Now he wanted me to be truly alone. "I can't—"
"He can't find you then," he said, oblivious to the fact that Noah knew exactly where I lived. "Promise me."
My eyes traced over Broden's injuries, wondering how Noah had known about them. Tomo didn't show the past. It only revealed the future. Obviously, he was watching, but we had no way of knowing what he had seen. I still didn't know who had hurt Broden, and he was my best friend. But what sort of best friend was he?
In the two years I had known Broden, I hadn't seen his anger, but he had snapped in seconds under Noah's presence. On top of that, they were involved with tomo, a drug I hadn't even seen. But I did know one thing. Noah wouldn't stop himself from talking to me. He had my address for a reason, and whether Broden told him to leave me alone or not, I doubted that Noah would keep his word. If anything, I needed to know who Noah was in order to protect myself from him, but Broden wouldn't tell me anything. I would have to learn it on my own.
"I promise," I said, knowing I wouldn't be able to keep any promise at all.