Ruben presses the needle into my raw flesh, and I hiss below my breath as he pulls the thread through. My eyes settle on his face, examining the scruffy facial hair and the way his brows furrow deeper than they used to. His gaze flicks up, meeting mine.
"So how did this happen?" he asks, blotting fresh seeping blood with the gauze.
Blowing out my cheeks, I dive into the story, from the moment Ruben and the others left the Red Movement, to the hallucination experiment, to getting the prisoners out, fighting the Red soldiers and jumping on the train. As he winds a bandage over the sewn wound, I also tell him about Terra and how the bullet meant for me found her instead.
Ruben pulls a chair up to the bench in what I understand is his physician office. "You say that Edward will retaliate. Do you have any idea what that could involve?"
"I don't know, Ruben. See, my first objective was to take the prisoners to safety. Now, we have to bring him down before he can capture more."
He nods, leaning forward and planting a soft kiss on my forehead. "I think you are incredibly brave, Elle."
I smile sadly and reach out, gently brushing the back of his hair. "How has your head been?"
He bites his lip. "Not the best. I get headaches on and off every day. My mood still changes."
"So, you're still an asshole?"
He snorts. "Yeah, unfortunately, the wall didn't seem to knock that out of me. Sorry."
I laugh and he helps me to my feet. Together, we make our way out of his office, through the hallways of the palace, and into his room. I pad across the floor, averting my attention to the sky waning from yellow to indigo to blue. In the looming distance, a malicious storm brews, flashing its angry teeth and howling its abuse. I turn around and Ruben stands by the door, staring at me.
"Did you really jump onto the back of a moving train?" he asks, taking a step closer, pupils so large there's only a ring of green.
"Yeah, I almost didn't make it." I fiddle with the bottom of my shirt.
He shakes his head, a smirk tugging at his lips. "You're stupid," he says, taking another step.
I open my mouth to protest but he barrels on, continuing forward. "You're impulsive. You're hot-headed. You're fucking infuriating. And you're the person I love most in this life."
He cups my face and presses his lips into mine, kissing me deeply, desperately. I kiss him back, breathing in his sweet scent. We fall back into the wall and our lips and tongues become wild. His mouth moves from my lips to my jaw, to my neck, sucking at the skin and setting my stomach on fire. My hands tug at his shirt, pulling it over his head. Ruben gently guides me to the bed, lowering me onto it and climbing on top of me, lips never leaving my skin. That's when the image of Terra's body crosses my mind and I flinch. He pulls away, tilting his head, brows furrowing.
"What's wrong?"
"It's okay," I say. "I'm okay." Shaking the gruesome image away, I grab Ruben's face and bring his lips back to mine.
Tomorrow, we will bury Terra. But for tonight, I bury myself in Ruben's beautiful soul and body.
---
The soft tune of a flute dance in the air as my friends and the freed prisoners gather around the cemetery. A grave has been dug into the earth. Luna gently touches my wrist and smiles as I glance at her. A noticeable sheen of sweat coats her forehead. The horse and cart carrying Terra arrive and with the weight of grief pushing me into the ground, Luna and I grab either side of the casket. With the help of two other prisoners, we walk Terra down the path and to her grave. We place the casket beside the grave and step back into our place, Luna coughing into her sleeve. Ruben gently holds my hand. The flute continues its melody as we sing hymns and recite prayers. Then finally it is my turn to speak. Ruben squeezes my hand in reassurance before I step forward, facing the small collection of friends and the escapees.
"I didn't know Terra for long," I begin, drawing in a breath and gathering my wits. "Not long enough to even know her full name. However, I did know that she was brave. She didn't take any nonsense. Terra was not meant to die that day. I was. And I will forever be in her debt."
All through my speech, Luna continues to cough raggedly, sending alarm bells blaring in my head. The funeral director, wearing a black suit begins lowering the casket into the grave as we sing another hymn. Finally, one by one, we scatter flower petals over her casket. Just as the funeral director begins one last prayer, Luna collapses. Her body convulses as her coughs intensify, her face flushed crimson. Everyone rushes around her, and I push my way to the front, yelling her name. I'm vaguely aware of Ruben saying he's calling for an ambulance. My blood turns icy as an animalistic shriek rips from Luna's mouth, followed by red, oozing from the corner of her lip. She yanks at her hair, yells out once again and then her head smacks against the grass. Her body twitches violently. Then, she stills.
The cemetery holds its breath, while the birds hide in the trees and we stand there in shock.
When I was young, my mother refused to speak of the drown virus. Perhaps for fear of Sneya somehow hearing. Hardly anyone talked about it. It was as if mentioning the name alone would cause illness. And no wanted to risk such a gruesome death. But no matter how much we tried to avoid it; we've all seen what it can do to people.
About a year after our parents were banished, Isabelle and I witnessed a lady collapse, much like Luna today. Within minutes, armed Tranquility patrolmen were dragging her corpse into the back of a cart. We were sent away by the Tranqs with the threaten of a bullet. In the days that followed, Isabelle avoided me, ignoring my questions, much like our mother. But as I grew, I understood the severity of these deaths. Although rare, the drown still took lives. Only the lives of the Convex, however, never the Concaves.
The warm weight of Ruben's arms brings me comfort. He presses his lips against my temple, murmuring, "I love you," into my hair.
My heart throbs with anguish as I close my eyes and a tear spills from my cheek, falling heavily onto Ruben's chest.
"Ruben, I fear I have brought the drown back into the city," I whisper, scrunching the sheet in my fist.
"I fear so, too."
"All I had in my mind was trying to get those poor people away from Edward." I tilt my chin up so I can see his face.
"I know, Elle," he says. "I think we should quarantine the people you brought here. I can test them individually for the virus with a blood test."
"Like the one you did for me the day we met?" I can't help but smile, remembering how hot-headed and naïve I was.
He chuckles. "Yes. The day you gave me all that lip." He gestures a talking mouth with his hand. "Unfortunately for me, I still haven't heard the end of it."
We laugh together and I bury my face deeper into his chest.
"Ruben," I whisper after a few moments silence.
"Yes?"
"What are we going to do with the ones who have positive blood tests?"
He's quiet for several beats while his heart beneath my ear hammers away. "That, Elle, is a scary question."
The following morning, Ajax gathers the escapees into the medical centre of the palace. For the past few days, they have been staying in a hotel near the palace while Ajax organises homes for them. They've staggered around the room, sitting in various places when I walk in. Eyes that once held admiration for me, now peer back at me with a hint of scepticism.
"Why are we here?" one boy asks. He looks a few years younger than me, with curly sandy hair.
"As you know, Edward Mallory potentially exposed each one of you to the drown virus," I say, drawing in a breath and collecting my wits. "Each of you will be asked to get a blood test so that we can see who most at risk is and set up a care programme for you."
"You mean a hospice until we die," the same boy counters back.
I sigh, biting the inside of my cheek. "Look, Luna died from the drown. The virus is likely among us and we want to reduce the number of causalities. I apologise for not being the hero that you all need with everything pre-planned. I'm just an impulsive girl from the Convex sector and I will do my best to help you all."
There is a buzz of chatter which dissipates when Ajax steps up next to me, offering a warm smile to the escapees. "Okay, so I will call you each up one at a time for a routine blood test by our physician Ruben Chander." He pauses, glancing down at the clipboard in front of him. "Orion Duke," he reads.
The curly haired boy stands reluctantly, hands balled at his sides, lip curled. He skulks forward and follows me down the hallway to Ruben's consult room. Just as we arrive, Orion turns around and his eyes meet mine, narrowing. "Some of your people aren't happy with you."
"What do you mean?"
"You've created a problem for yourself. You're no longer the dearly beloved hero, Elle."
That's when Ruben opens the door, wearing a white coat and a beaming smile, which leaves his eyes when he notices the confusion on my face.
"Orion Duke, right?" he asks, keeping on task.
"Yes," he replies.
Ruben gestures for him to enter and as Orion crosses the threshold, he pauses before following him in. His gaze locks with mine and he tilts his head questioningly. I shake my head just enough to let him know I'll tell him later.
"Okay, Orion, how are you today?" he merges right back into a physician and closing the door behind him.
Drawing in a breath and gathering my wits, I spin around and march back to Ajax in the waiting room. I tap his shoulder.
"Hey, can I talk to you in private?" I whisper, keeping my gaze hardened. He nods once and leads me out of the waiting room and down the hall of the research wing of the palace. Ajax opens the door to a room, and we cross the threshold. At once, I realise that Ajax has brought me to the room where Doctor Hatchman took my blood for the second time after the first test came back inconclusive. The mirrors covering the left walls give it away.
"Okay, what's up?" Ajax says voice lowered.
"The first patient, Orion Duke, said something to me just as I delivered him to Ruben," I say, absently fiddling with my hands.
"Well, what did he say?"
"He told me that I've created a problem and implied that people don't like me anymore," I hesitate with my words, unsure how to place them.
Ajax ponders for a few beats and then says, "Well, he's only been in the Floodgates a few days. I can't imagine he's heard much."
I gnaw on the inside of my cheek thoughtfully. "He might have heard things in the Red Movement, or perhaps word spread to his city."
"It's likely that people are afraid you've brought the virus back in a number uncontainable."
I glance at my reflection in the mirror, briefly remembering the first time I stood in front of this wall when I was an angry, hot-headed mess trying to rebel against Lord Sneya. Looking back at Ajax, who stares at me carefully, I say, "Do you think I did the right thing, getting those people out of the Red Movement and bringing them here?"
He bites his lip, chest puffing out as he draws in a deep breath. "I see why you did it at the time, you were just trying to help those people."
"But do you think I did the right thing, Ajax?" I press, heat creeping into my cheeks. "I need to know."
He sighs heavily. "Yes and no, Elle. As I said, you did the right thing helping those people. However, it may have caused us a huge problem."
Glancing back at my reflection, I smooth down my curls and sigh. "We should probably head back to the waiting room."
Ajax nods and we head back to the waiting room, only to find Ruben hastening down the hallway. "He has it," Ruben says. "Orion Duke has the drown."
Ajax curses. "Have you told him?"
"Not yet." He runs a hand through his hair and his jaw clenches nervously.
"Okay, let's keep it quiet until everyone has been tested," Ajax says firmly. "That way we can determine the scale of the problem. In the meantime, we should keep him quarantined."
Ruben nods and turns on his heel, marching back to his consult room. The hours pass by painfully slowly. One by one, I lead each person in the waiting room to Ruben's consult room. Of the 55 escapees, Ruben determines that 41 of them have the drown virus.
---
Later that evening, after settling each infected person into a separate room in the research wing, Ajax, Ruben and I finally go to our rooms for the evening. Ruben manages to fall asleep quickly that night, but my mind is a whirlwind of thoughts and for once, the warmth of his chest doesn't coax it to silence. Pressing a gentle kiss to his bare shoulder and then his forehead, I shift out of the bed and quietly pull some clothes on. I step into my shoes, deciding that a brief walk around the garden under the stars might help.
Closing the door behind me and pacing down the hall and through the dimly lit palace, I wonder what we are going to do to these...let's face it, sick people. Do we just provide them comfort until they ultimately die a violent death? Seems ironic. Or do I reach out to Edward Mallory to see if we could work together to save these people?
By now, I've reached the gardens. The sliver of the moon casts fingers of light onto the flowers and hedges, forming haphazard shapes across the grass paths. In the otherwise silent night, my ears pick up the distinct sound of a pair of footsteps. That's when someone slams heavily into me, knocking me to the ground. The assailant grapples to pin me to the grass but I struggle against them. They wear entirely black attire, including a mask that covers their head. As I attempt to throw my knee into their stomach, they slam my shoulders into the ground, locking me in place with their weight and ceasing my movements with a knife to the throat. Furrowing my brow, I scrutinise the brown eyes through the slits in the mask.
"Who are you?" I ask, feeling the tickle of the blade on my skin.
They don't respond. The brown eyes bore into my own.
"Fine, what do you want?" I press, feeling a shift in their weight on me and, at once, calculating a way out.
I thrust my knee upwards, slamming it into their crotch which sends the assailant yelling out and collapsing to the side, the blade narrowly missing my flesh. As they writhe in pain, I reach forward, grip the top of his mask and yank it off his head.
The tell-tale ginger hair makes me gasp.
Killian.
****
Thank you so much for being so patient, life has been crazy and stressful lately. So I hope you enjoyed this extra long chapter. Let me know what you think!
~ Emma