banter between us.
I couldn't help but laugh. “You believe in soul mates?” I didn't. I couldn't. It wasn't that I thought there was anyone else out there for me. Joshua was all I ever wanted. It was more to do with the idea that only one person could be right for someone. I didn't buy into it.
“I'm guessing you don't.” his smile faded.
I shrugged, gesturing towards the antique book as he sat back and let me read to him.
Nearly an hour had passed, and I glanced over at Josh, closing the book in my arms. “You never did tell me how you managed all this.” Joshua took the book from me, putting it on the table beside us. “Let's just say, I owe someone a favor.”
“One heck of a favor,” I murmured. “Do you think you'll be able to pay him back for all the books?” There was no possible way we could afford it. Maybe one or two but not the fifty or so he had on the shelf. It was astonishing.
Joshua leaned in, kissing me. “When the war is over and the world is finally righted and just,” he grinned, “I've managed to secure myself a job.” I frowned, confused. “The printer in town would like me to come work for him.”
“As payback for the books?” I guessed. I had no idea there was a book printer in Shadow!
Joshua laughed. “No. I reprinted all these for him. These are the originals but the newer copies are in his store.” My jaw must have dropped. I couldn't believe it! We'd been here a few months, but still, how had Joshua found the time to reprint dozens of books? It was a mystery to me. “Don't look so surprised,” he laughed. “We all have special abilities now.”
“Yours is book printing?” Every day I learned something more about Joshua. I didn't care about his special abilities or talents that the Mindonsiphan had done to us. What mattered to me was deep down who he was, that he would do this for me.
There was a knock at our front door and Joshua glanced back at me as he stood up. “You rest here. I'll see who it is.”
“Okay.” I nodded, putting my feet up on the sofa. Joshua headed for the door. I couldn't see who it was from where I sat. I waited patiently, surprised to see our council members coming inside, all of them. “Hey guys?” I noticed everyone but Hazel and figured she was resting at home.
“Sorry for the interruption,” Cate announced. “We wanted to hold a meeting and since you shouldn't be out of bed, we thought we'd bring the meeting to you.” She took a seat on the sofa beside me. Of all the people in the council, she was the last one I wanted to sit next to. I knew I should have been thankful she came to my rescue, but I didn't want to have to owe her anything.
“Meeting?” I asked, glancing at the Chancellor. “Why today?” It wasn't our usual meeting time. “What's going on?” I asked. I moved my legs to sit up and Joshua grabbed a seat beside me.
Elsa grabbed a seat on the floor, making herself at home. “We had a visitor this afternoon after the drones flew overhead. There's no word yet about Jaxon, Margo, and Mason but Thena was hit.”
“Thena?” I asked.
Cate sighed shifting uncomfortably on the sofa. She picked at her fingernails, staring down at her lap. “Yes, that's where Mason and I come from. One of the five cities.”
“Oh.” I slowly began to understand. “Who was the visitor? How did they get here? I thought no one knew where we were.” I didn't entirely understand what was going on.
Chancellor Collins grabbed a seat on the chair opposite us. “Taron is a member of Thena's high council. All council members have a vague understanding of Shadow’s location. We don't hand them a map per se, but we do tell them how to get here. Should the need ever arise.”
I glanced at Joshua, remembering the night months ago when we were recruits. We had snuck out and caught Chancellor Collins conversing with a stranger at night, from a car. We had learned the stranger was my uncle, my father’s younger brother who lived in Fora. I still hadn't visited him. I didn't know if I ever would or even, if the time came, what I'd say. That hadn't bothered me nearly as much as the fact he had come into town and left without hesitation. I was beginning to understand how. Perhaps, my uncle had been a member of Fora's high council. “Where is Taron?” I asked, glancing at Chancellor Collins.
“Right now he's at the recruits’ center.” Chancellor Collins remarked, “I'm not crazy about keeping him there permanently. After we clean up your old living quarters, we may let him stay in your old home.”
I nodded, unsure how to feel about our home belonging to a stranger. I knew it wasn't our home anymore. The house we sat in was where we belonged. I glanced at Cate. “Do you know Taron?”
Cate sighed. Her eyes were red and I wondered if she'd been crying earlier. “Yeah, everyone knows him.”
The Chancellor folded his hands together over his lap. “I've been considering all our options this afternoon, but I think it's in everyone's best interest if we devise a search and rescue mission for Thena. I want to send Cate and Aidan to retrieve any survivors from the site.”
I glanced at Cate, realizing now why she was so upset. It wasn't just her old home that was destroyed but the people she loved and cared about. Her family lived in Thena, and they were likely dead. “Aidan?” I scoffed. “Why can't you send me?” I wanted to help. I was tired of training and practicing for what? To sit around when help was actually needed.
“Out of the question.” Collins shot me a pointed look. “You know you can't go.”
“I'm fine!” I rolled my eyes. “This,” I gestured to the fact I was cooped up on the couch, “isn't permanent. I can get around okay. Besides, Cate
“I need you?” She repeated, catching my stare. Her eyes were red and slightly swollen and she held her breath, refusing to cry in front of us.
“Yes,” I was adamant, “I can help.”
Chancellor Collins glanced at Aidan. He hadn't said a word, giving no indication of whether he wanted to travel to Thena or not. “What do you feel up to, Aidan?”
Aidan shuffled his feet as he leaned against the wall. “I'd rather not go into the Gravelands, if I have a choice.” He lifted his head, his gaze locking on me. Was he actually trying to help me out? Or was he doing this because of his own fears? I didn't care the reason; it was a chance for me to be a part of something bigger.
Cate sniffled and wiped a few stray tears with the back of her hand. “Someone has to come with me.”
“Someone will, I will,” I repeated forcefully, staring at Collins as I pushed myself into a sitting position on the sofa. “I'd like to come, to help those in Thena and be better prepared for whatever awaits us in the Gravelands.”
Maya heaved a sigh and finally spoke up. “There are others with more training, but I think it would be good for Olivia to gain a little freedom. Besides, if we're expecting her to fight, she should know what she's fighting for.”
Was she seriously batting for me? “You can count on me.” My eyes lit up from excitement. “What about sending Sydney too?” I wasn't trying to suggest Sydney could replace me, not after Maya offered me exactly what I wanted. However, neither of us was a doctor.
Collins sighed, “We can't risk Sydney being gone. She's too valuable to the community right now. Cate's been trained as a nurse,” he informed me. “She had training back in Thena, and she spent time interning with Sydney. She's plenty qualified.” His gaze turned towards the other council members. “Does anyone have any objections?”
Joshua cleared his throat, “I do.” I elbowed him hard in the ribs to shut up. He didn't so much as look at me as he stared at Collins. “If Olivia is going, I want to go with her.” I breathed a sigh of relief. At least he wasn't fighting the decision.
Collins ran a hand across his forehead, clearly frustrated. “You can't, Joshua. I need you here. There are things you're responsible for and the entire community needs your help. Besides, her safety is dependent on you being in Shadow.”
“How is that possible?” I scoffed. I hated that they wanted to separate us. It was like Haven all over again. Except I knew this was my choice, wanting to go to Thena. No one had imposed the decision on me.
“Olivia's right,” Joshua acknowledged. “I go where she goes, we're a team.”
“Team or not,” Collins gritted his teeth, trying his best to keep under control, “Shadow may be under attack if Joshua leaves.”
