“How did you…” Lisa's eyes went wide and her words trailed off.
Jaxon turned, his eyes staring at her sharply. “You can't tell anyone. If you do, I'll see to it Craynor knows you put the body on the front lawn.”
“I promise, I won't say anything.” Lisa was adamant.
My eyes widened as I heard the door slam shut. “Jaxon, get out of here.” I hissed. He hadn't been seen and I could feel Governor Craynor coming.
“I can't leave you,” Jaxon answered.
“Neither was this.” I shook my head. “You're no good to me locked up or dead. Get out of here. Come back and find us when it's time. Two weeks from Saturday,” I gave him a stern look before he vanished into thin air. When the hell had he learned that trick? I hated being the last to know everything!
“Jacqueline! Lisa!” Craynor's voice echoed as he walked up the front lawn. “What have we here?” The color from the fire danced across his angered face. “Both of you inside! You're lucky I don't have you and your families killed for this display.” He gripped my arm along with Lisa's, dragging us back inside the Governor's mansion. I refused to glance back towards the open expanse of land and trees that lined it a few hundred feet away. Jaxon was probably watching from there, waiting for his next move. I imagined what it would have been like to get away, to go home or even to the rebel alliance where he was sheltered during the night. I knew Craynor would stop at nothing to find us. He'd raid every home, trash every building until he got what he wanted: us. We were better off giving in, letting him think he won. It was about strategy and preparing for the winning move.
CHAPTER 23
Nearly two weeks had passed since arriving in Genesis. Once again I'd been under arrest, but this time it was house arrest. I hadn't seen Jaxon since the night of Anita's death. I hoped he'd gotten away and that Craynor hadn't known there was a third person. Lisa had been locked in another room. Neither of us had contact with one another, and I could only hope she kept this secret.
From my room, I glanced at the clock, doing my best to keep an eye on the time. I could hear the music down below and the constant chime of the door. Guests had been arriving for two hours straight for the Governor's Ball but there had been a lull during the past forty-five minutes. Everyone must have arrived.
I could hear a rumble of thunder in the distance. I didn't know if it was the rebel alliance or a storm coming, but was there a difference? My room had no windows: it was impossible to know the weather. I hadn't seen sunlight since I arrived in Genesis. I hoped after today I'd be free again. I heard a set of swift footsteps, and I stood up from the mattress, heading for the door. “Jaxon?” I hoped he was here.
“We need to get you out of here.” It was Jaxon's voice.
Relief flooded my face. “How?” I asked, watching from inside my room as the lock glowed an eerie shade of orange and red before it crumbled.
Jaxon pushed open the door. “Let's get out of here.”
“What about Lisa?” I asked as we headed down the corridor, careful not to be seen.
“She's not in her room,” Jaxon answered. “She was released earlier this week to tend to the mansion. She helped prepare for the ball. I have no idea where she is. We don't have time.” He gripped my arm and opened the front door. Rain was coming down in buckets.
“Great,” I muttered, knowing there was little choice but to get wet. “It's time?” I knew the answer without having to ask. The rumbling grew louder. It wasn't thunder but a loud plane, a drone flying overhead. It had to be Joshua.
“Now!” Jaxon's eyes widened and he pulled me with him. The glamour disappeared as fear overtook my mind and Jaxon's glamour wavered too as he dragged me out the door and into the rain. We ran as fast and as far as we could from the lawn of the mansion just as fury dropped from the sky. I felt my body thrown to the ground and Jaxon's on top of me, covering my body as best he could. I felt the intense wave of heat scorching my skin but not physically burning me. Flames billowed up into the sky and smoke rose faster as the rain slowed to a halt. I heard the siren then, the alarm system built in case of an attack or raid on Genesis. I never remembered it actually being used or even tested but clearly it worked. “Jaxon, we have to move.” I tried to push his body off mine, knowing that if we were outside and there were any survivors, they'd know we were involved. How else would we have been lucky enough to escape? “Jaxon?” I rolled him off me and moved to sit up.
“Go, Olive,” he groaned in agony, pain etched across his face as he gripped my hand. “Go find your mother.”
“I can't leave you.” I stared down, my hands trying to heal him. From a distance I heard the roar of another plane, or was it the same one? I couldn’t be certain.
“No.” he gripped my hand, his strength wavering. “They'll see; they'll know who we are. You can't do that.” We'd already risked so much in front of Lisa. I knew he was right but I didn’t agree with him. The engine of the drone grew louder as another bomb dropped, this one on the medical center. I felt the ground quake and I covered Jaxon's body with my own. Thankfully we lay far enough away from the second explosion that no debris hit us.
“I can't let you die!” The words left my lips before I meant them to. Maybe you were supposed to pretend to be strong, to not let someone dying know they weren't going to make it, but I'd be damned if I would let Jaxon die on my watch.
“You have to.” I could see onlookers in the distance through the smoke. Neighbors came outside, curious to the commotion and the evident bombing onf their town. The heavy sound of boots against pavement reminded me that I would be caught if I didn't move.
“I'm sorry, Jaxon. I'm so sorry.” I wanted to stay, I needed to help, but then we'd both be dead. I left him there, on the front lawn beneath the towering smoke and just a few feet from the rubble. The smoke sheltered me long enough so I could maneuver away from the Governor's mansion without being seen.
Knowing night would quickly fall, I edged my way through town, doing my best to remain unseen. The glamour had disappeared and I was too exhausted to raise it back up. I needed sleep and I only had one place I could go—Jaxon was right—home.
CHAPTER 24
I reached my mother's house and felt my hands tremble as I knocked on the door. There was a long moment, a heavy pause, before she opened it. “Olive!” she gasped, throwing her arms around my body. “You're alive!” I felt her tense at the sound outside as gunfire erupted. “Quick, get inside,” she ushered, shutting and locking the door behind me. “I've been so worried about you. You're okay though…?” Her thumb stroked the dirt from my cheek, only managing to smudge it further.
“I will be.” I nodded. “Things are different Mom, outside the walls.” I didn’t know how to explain it to her without giving too much information. Some secrets I wasn’t sure were ready to be told.
She closed and secured the blinds. “Have a seat,” she insisted, gesturing to the sofa. I waited until she returned to the living room before I sat down. “What are you doing back here, Olivia? You know you shouldn't be here.”
“I know.” I saw the look of concern, the worry in her eyes, the wrinkles on her forehead as her lip quivered. She pulled me into her arms, embracing me. “Even so, I'm glad you're back.”
I didn’t tell her it wasn’t for good, though she must have known considering our current situation. “I need help: allies.” I stared at her, hoping she knew someone in Genesis who would be willing to stand alongside and fight with the rebel alliance.
She frowned. “I may know of a few, but Olive,” she paused, “don't get yourself into any trouble.” I tried not to laugh at her request. “Come with me.” My mother led me into her bedroom. I hesitated by the doorframe, the room so familiar, too familiar. Everything in Genesis looked the same, every home, every room—the furniture, the bedding. It made my stomach turn as I remembered being arrested in my own home. “Olive.” My mother quickly
