As I watched, another figure appeared in the doorway. The lean hips and straight shoulders identified him as male, but the fires were on the opposite side of the camp, and the shadows hid his face. He disappeared within, and then reappeared, and without a word to Billy headed straight toward me, cutting through the cemetery. He stopped at the last cross in the line and placed one hand gently on the wood.
I ducked as low as I could and held my breath. If I ran now I’d be seen.
A few seconds later another man came from the woods, moving quietly, but with purpose. More imposing with his height and muscular chest, he stopped at the edge of the woods, out of view from the shed. For a moment I felt a sharp need to call out a warning, but then the first man turned away from the grave marker and joined him, clearly having expected his arrival.
It was as good a time as any to make a quick exit, but something inside urged me to follow, and soon I was stooping behind a thicket of brush, ten feet away. The crosses watched over silently, the only witness to my eavesdropping.
“It’s not going to jeopardize the mission. We’ve already verified what the girl said. A quick extraction, that’s all we’re talking about.”
The slighter man had to be DeWitt; I recognized his voice but not the anxiety behind it. The second man responded with something I couldn’t make out, though I strained my ears to catch it. As far as I could tell there were only two people, not the whole council that Three’s leader had spoken of earlier.
I felt sure he was talking about sending a team out to rescue the prisoners. Still, I didn’t know what other mission he spoke of, or what girl had given him information that would need to be verified. My mind raced through everything I’d told him, just in case.
“The injuries could be substantial,” argued DeWitt.
I was reminded of our injured, left at the mini-mart miles up the coast. Hopefully they could hold on until we could reach them.
“There’s still time. Please. I thought you of all people would understand.” I held my breath as DeWitt’s voice rose. A shadow paced in front of the door and I ducked lower, the sharp leaves of the bush cutting into my hands.
This wasn’t the DeWitt I recognized from the radio room, or the one who had addressed his people this morning. Something had scared him. I wondered again who he was speaking to that had such control, and why anything he did required asking permission.
A second later a branch broke beneath my hand and both voices paused. Wincing, I crawled backward, behind a tree, but the two men were now coming my way. My heart was hammering. DeWitt already suspected me of having something to do with the fallen resistance posts. If he caught me sneaking around outside a meeting, he would never believe I was innocent.
“Did you hear that?” DeWitt asked.
I didn’t wait another second. I turned and ran straight back to the dorms.
CHAPTER
11
EARLY morning found us packed inside the cafeteria. The council was convening before breakfast and we were summoned to hear an important announcement. After Tucker’s last report, and the radio broadcast of Truck’s death, I couldn’t help but feel nervous waiting with the others. If ever Three would respond, the time was now.
I stood in the back near the exit beside Rebecca. Not everyone was accounted for; the children had been gathered and taken to the south wing, and Sean and some of the field workers had been summoned early to pack rations for some team heading to the interior. None of the fighters had come from the camps below. I kept my eyes pinned on the door, wanting to be the first to see Chase should he arrive.
The rain that had begun late in the night had yet to let up. It came in a constant sheet, dripping through the roof in a dozen different places. A familiar uneasiness spread through my muscles. Even with so many absent, this many people packed close together could not be safe.
Finally, Ms. Rita, Panda, and the man with the red hair who’d captured us in the grove arrived and sat behind a long table erected near the entrance to the kitchen. Dr. DeWitt followed closely behind them and even from across the room his exhaustion was apparent. He rubbed both hands over the stubble of his jaw and nodded to someone standing in the front.
“I feel bad for him,” Rebecca whispered. “You know his family was killed by the MM.”
“I know he supposedly killed a bunch of soldiers,” I said.
Rebecca lowered her voice. “It was a routine inspection. Word is things got out of hand when the soldiers found the Article Violators hiding in their basement. The wife and daughter tried to run, and…”
“And…” I prompted, leaning close so that no one standing nearby could hear.
“They didn’t make it. So the doctor, you know, finished it. Not without a fight though. That’s how he got all the scars on his face.”
Rumors usually only had bits of truth, if any at all, but what Rebecca had heard seemed possible.
I twisted my necklace around my finger, thinking of my own arrest. If Chase hadn’t been there, I might not even still be alive. I closed the memories from my mind and scanned each of the other council members’ faces and figures, trying to determine who DeWitt had met last night. None of them were right. The other person had obviously been male; Panda was too short, and the redhead was too thin. The only other person I knew was missing on the council was the old man with the eye patch, and he didn’t fit either.
“All right,” started DeWitt. He raised his hands and the room silenced. “In light of recent events, we’re suspending all regular business for the present time.”
I found myself looking for Billy, and wondering again what he’d been guarding by the cemetery last night.
“Another of our posts was attacked yesterday, making three in this week alone,” continued DeWitt. “Prisoners were taken. Our sources tell us that in a little over two weeks, the Chief of Reformation plans to celebrate this series of victories with a party at the Charlotte base. It will be his first public appearance since his unfortunate recovery last month.”
A grumble rose from the audience—it was a sick man who celebrated the deaths of others by throwing a party. As voices lifted in anger, a memory from the Wayland Inn came to the forefront of my mind: gathering around a radio while we learned of an assassination attempt on the Chief of Reformation’s life. It had been the first time I’d heard about Three.
DeWitt raised his arms to silence the crowd.
“It will also be our first public appearance. As we speak, our teams are already being deployed to Charlotte, as well as other key FBR bases, to await instructions. The details of this mission will be kept highly confidential until our people reach their destination so as not to put anyone at unnecessary risk. In addition, we’ll observe a radio silence effective immediately to limit the chances the FBR will receive any outgoing signals. Incoming transmissions will continue to be monitored.”
The air in the room grew thick and heavy, and soon I realized I hadn’t breathed in too long. I gasped shallowly, one thought alone burning into my mind.
Chase.
DeWitt was planning on sending him into a warzone. He might already be gone. I needed to find him. Find him and figure out what we would do next—run, or hide, or fight with the others. Whatever it was, we would do it together. I would not let him go again.
A cold hand gripped mine and I turned to meet Rebecca’s bright blue eyes.
“It’s going to be fine,” she said. “It can’t be as bad as it sounds.”