people running from the deadly force. And here I am, waiting for it.
The Pearl begins to slow, controlled by my fingertips. I pull it closer, every inch causing more somersaults in my heart. No one else can feel this. Nobody else ever will.
Before I know it, I’m holding the green orb in my hands. I stare into the deep waves of energy. It’s been awhile since I’ve been able to luxuriate with a Pearl like this. My heart swells with the healing warmth of it. This is better than sleep.
I survey the horizon, half expecting Alkine or Madame to jump out and steal the Pearl. Instead, Bobby’s voice cuts the silence of the night.
“I didn’t want to mention it,” he whispers, “but I knew I saw you catch one last spring.”
I turn, still holding the glowing orb.
His mouth hangs open in astonishment. “I’ve never seen one so close.”
“Duck,” I say, and toss the Pearl into the air. It casts a wide arc behind me. Bobby hits the ground. I close my eyes and feel the path of the Pearl through the sky. When it’s high enough, I break it.
“Christ almighty.” Bobby stands and shields his eyes as a firework of energy blazes through the darkness. It’s brightest at the center and dissipates as it streams toward us. By the time it reaches my skin, it’s only a tingle. Like feathers brushing against me.
I grit my teeth and whisper to myself. “Please come back, please come back.”
I spin and watch the Drifter shoot into the air, away from us. “Damnit.” I kick the dirt. “They never come back. Never when you need them.” I turn to Bobby. “I think it must be instinctual or something, like caged animals. They just wanna get as far away as possible.”
His eyes are wider than ever now. He carefully brings himself to his feet, shaking his head in disbelief. “You-” He chokes on his words. “What-” I’ve never seen him tongue-tied.
“There’s a lot you don’t know,” I say. “A lot nobody does. Pearls aren’t what they seem.”
He looks toward the sky. “I guess not.”
My shoulders slump. “We’ve got a fight on our hands, from all angles. I don’t even know if I’m helping or hurting.” I lift up my shirt.
Bobby gasps as he stares at the markings scrawled across my chest. “Who did that?”
I point to the sky. “One of those. But not a good one. At least, I don’t think so.”
“You’re freaking me out, man.”
“I know.” My gaze falls to the ground. “Be thankful, Bobby. Stay here. Stay where it’s simple.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
I turn and trudge back to the lookout tower, still abuzz with the energy. “You will,” I whisper. “If we can’t stop this, everyone will.”
– Another hour and my eyes fly open.
The door to the room hangs ajar. A thin figure stands just outside, staring in.
I bolt up, slamming my head against an overhanging piece of wood. The others wake around me, in varying levels of disarray. The fan blades continue to whir, giving the tight space a loud hum.
I keep my eyes locked on the boy.
The eyes.
Two pools of crimson pin me to the ground. Theo stretches an arm to lean against the doorframe. Moonlight illuminates his face as he moves closer. His expression is vacant, but his eyes are unblinking. They’re all I can focus on. His head tilts slightly to the side.
Bobby jumps down from the second level. “Who the heck-”
Theo opens his mouth as if to speak, but says nothing.
It stops Bobby cold.
Arm back at his side, Theo lurches away, moving into the open like a zombie.
Eva sits up. “What’s wrong with him?”
“There was enough tranquilizer in those darts to keep him down.” Cassius stands. “I don’t understand.” He moves toward the door, watching Theo continue his steady pace away from the lookout tower. It’s like he’s taunting us. Daring us to follow him.
Cassius steps forward. I stand and grab his shoulder.
“Don’t go out there. You saw what he did to Morse and the others.”
“I’m not gonna let him.” He yanks from my grip and steps outside.
“Cassius!”
He ignores me. I glance back at the others before deciding to follow him into the darkness.
Theo’s eyes continue to pierce the moonlit Fringe landscape-pinpricks of red. He moves backward faster now, but never once looks away.
Cassius kicks up dirt in his relentless pace toward the boy. I stay a few steps behind.
Cassius’s left arm flies into the air. At first I think he’s giving me some sort of signal. I open my mouth to call out, but before I can say a word, something lifts his entire body from the ground and flings him to the side like a piece of trash. He hits the dirt several yards away. I back up as Theo’s eyes lock onto mine. My bracelet trembles. I reach over and pull it down to my side, right next to the cube of metal in my pocket.
Theo freezes. His arms lay limp at his sides. He takes short, repeated breaths. “I am already here,” he says. His eyes pulse against a backdrop of stars. “You… your brother, your friends. Everyone. They’re too late.”
I pull my bracelet behind my back. “Who are you?”
His lip trembles. “That Ridium around your arm. Your parents thought they were saving you. They were only buying you time.”
I lean in, trying to get a better look at his expression.
“Are you… are you Matigo?”
“No.”
“Then what-”
He closes his eyes. When they open again, the red flashes away. His mouth falls open. “Help me.”
I stare at him, fighting to understand what it is that I’m seeing. It’s like a switch flipped and he’s a different person again. He’s a twelve-year-old. A kid.
I take a step forward. “What do you mean?” Before he can respond, Cassius pulls himself to his feet.
Theo turns and notices him. His eyes widen. He pushes the hair from his face and balls his fists. Cassius does the same, coupled with torrents of fire that burst from his hands in bright explosions before the Fringe air swallows them up. Theo nearly loses his footing at the sight of it. He looks up to the stars, then back at Cassius. “How did you-”
Rather than finish his question, he turns and sprints away. I move forward but Cassius darts in front of me, blocking my way. “He’s mine,” he whispers. “Wait here. I’ll be back.”
“But-”
He takes off without another word. In seconds, he’s almost out of sight.
To hell with waiting. I take a deep breath and head after him.
33
Cassius watched Theo disappear into the darkness. The kid ran with incredible speed and endurance for someone who, moments before, had been staggering around.
He didn’t look back to see if Fisher had followed. He couldn’t lose Theo. If the stunners weren’t having effect any longer, Cassius needed to end this. Nobody could run for long in the Fringes without passing out, even at night. The kid would eventually run out of steam. He had to.
The ground sloped until it became a gentle hill of dry vegetation and boulders-hundreds of hiding places for nasty critters. Cassius remembered struggling through this same landscape in search for Fisher. Only back then, he’d been on his last legs. It was amazing what an old can of fruit could do.
He whipped through a row of prickly bushes, scraping his ankle but refusing to let it slow him down. All the time, he kept his eye on the small figure below him. Then he had an idea.
