CHAPTER

37

Leaving Home

the twentieth year, third month

When the boarding announcement for his flight came over the terminal speaker, Niko thought, It’s not too late. He could still walk out of the airport and go home, admit he’d made a mistake and ask for his uncle’s forgiveness and his place back in the clan. He’d summoned all his angry determination and righteous defiance to face down his parents with his decision. Now, however, an unsettled feeling was rolling around in his stomach, and he was more afraid than excited.

He took out his passport and boarding pass. “I guess this is it,” he said.

His uncle Anden walked him to the gate. Neither of them spoke. Anden was the one member of the family with whom Niko could always be comfortably silent. Often throughout his childhood, when his mother had been struggling through her long recovery from brain injury, Niko and his siblings had been cared for by their aunts and uncles. Anden was Niko’s favorite relative. Uncle Anden would let him read for hours, take him to the park to feed the ducks, or rent movies they would watch together. He asked only a few questions and listened to the answers without lecturing. Unlike other adults, he didn’t ferry Niko around on a schedule, or begin conversations with, “When you grow up and get your jade…” No one else in the clan was like Uncle Anden, so he didn’t expect anyone else to be like him.

As they embraced at the gate, Anden said, “Promise me you’ll be careful. You’re not leaving Kekon as a student, the way I did. You’ll be wearing jade into dangerous situations, far from home.”

The look of worry on Anden’s face made Niko feel more guilty than any amount of shouting or blistering disapproval from his parents. “I promise, Uncle,” Niko said. “Thanks for letting me stay at your place. I hope it wasn’t too much trouble for you and Jirhuya.”

“Of course it wasn’t,” Anden said, but he was looking around, scanning the passing travelers hopefully. He rubbed his bare wrist, as if wishing for his jade and sense of Perception. Niko knew that Anden had gone to the house and argued with the Pillar. Anden hadn’t said anything about it, but Ru had. Ru had come over to the apartment and said a lot of things last night, spilling his feelings out like marbles as he begged Niko to change his mind.

“But why, Niko? Why would you throw away your position like that?” Ru had been distraught with bewilderment. “I know the pressure must be a lot to handle right now, but everyone in the clan is rooting for you to become Pillar.” As usual, his brother exaggerated, certain that what was indisputable to him must be the truth.

Niko had turned away from the pleading expression. “I’ve never been in charge of my own life, Ru. Da tells you to study what you want in college, to become whatever you want to be. He’s never once said that to me. What makes anyone think I even want to be Pillar?”

Ru grabbed him by the shoulders, turning him back around. When stirred by strong belief, he was easily the more righteously angry one. “If I hadn’t been born a stone-eye, I’d do my best to become the Pillar, no matter how hard it was or even if I thought I might like to do something else.” His eyes bored insistently into Niko’s. “Think of the difference you could make, of all the good you could do for so many people. The clan affects the lives of millions. It needs a Pillar who’s strong and smart. How can you just… run away from that kind of responsibility?”

Niko stepped back, pulling roughly out of his brother’s grasp. “I’m not running away.”

“Then come back home with me right now,” Ru exclaimed. “We’ll talk to Da together. I’ll back you up. So will Jaya, and you know how good she is at getting her way. We’ll convince Da to let you go to college part-time while you work toward becoming a Fist. Like what Ayt Ato was doing—if he can do it, you definitely can, you’re a lot smarter. You just need a change, and then you’ll feel better about everything, I know it. We can go to Jan Royal together, like we planned.”

When Niko gazed at him, unmoved, Ru went from cajoling to accusing. “How could you not even tell me what you were thinking? What happened to brothers sticking together?”

Niko shook his head sadly. “We’re not kids anymore, Ru.”

The disappointment and naked hurt that had swept over his brother’s face had curdled Niko with shame, but he wouldn’t let it show. Ru was the only one who could’ve changed his mind, who could’ve broken his resolve. So he’d had to harden his heart.

Niko picked up his suitcase. He hadn’t packed much. Where he was going, he didn’t expect he’d have much room for personal belongings anyway. Two weeks of orientation at GSI headquarters in a town called Fort Jonsrock in northeastern Espenia would be followed by three months at one of the company’s training compounds. After that, he would be on a two-year work contract and could be sent anywhere in the world.

Anden stopped his fruitless glancing around and turned back to Niko with apology in his eyes. “I tried, Niko.” His shoulders sagged under the weight of resignation. “I—”

The unmistakable smooth warmth of the Pillar’s jade aura materialized in Niko’s Perception two seconds before Hilo walked up behind them, his hands in the pockets of his jacket. The expression on his face was unreadable, although his eyes were tired.

“Andy,” he said, “let me talk to my son alone.”

Anden looked between the Pillar and Niko. Wordlessly, he put a hand on his nephew’s shoulder and gave it a supportive squeeze. Then he touched his forehead to the Pillar in expressionless acknowledgment and walked away, back through the airport terminal.

“Take a walk with me,” Hilo said.

“I’m about to get on a plane.”

“It’ll only take a minute,” his uncle said, with such familiar parental authority that Niko obeyed. They walked farther down the terminal. Niko wanted to act rude and angry. The Pillar knew he’d been staying at Anden’s place. If he’d wanted to talk, he could’ve shown up at any time earlier, instead of at the last minute, with the flight about to depart.

But he’d shown up, in the end.

“Does Ma know you’re here?” Niko asked.

“Yes,” Hilo said.

So his mother was still furious at him. Otherwise, she would be here as well. Everyone knew the vengeful reputation of Kaul Hilo, but Niko understood that his mother was the one who was less forgiving, who could carry a longer grudge.

“You’re not going to change my mind,” Niko declared. “It’s too late for that.”

“It’s too late for a lot of things.” Hilo stopped and turned to face his nephew. He handed Niko an envelope. “I’ve given you back access to your bank accounts. There’s a calling card in the envelope, and a list of phone numbers—the Weather Man’s branch offices in every country where we have them, and contact numbers for Green Bones overseas who are part of the clan or are our allies, who’ll help you if you need help. Only if you really need it. Otherwise, you’re on your own. ”

Several conflicting impulses came into Niko’s mind but he couldn’t form any of them in words. He wanted to disdainfully reject his uncle’s gesture and hang on to the emotional advantage, but that seemed a childish thing to do. He wanted to relent, to say something that would make things right between them before he left, but that felt like admitting defeat. Niko had never been good at responding to his feelings in the moment, so he said nothing.

The final boarding call was announced. He put the envelope in his inside jacket pocket. “I’d better go,” he mumbled.

Hilo cupped a hand roughly around the back of Niko’s head, pulling his nephew close, and spoke in a low declaration. “I would cut Jim Sunto’s throat and burn his company to the ground if I thought that would stop you.” His grip tightened fiercely on the back of Niko’s neck. “But I know it’s not about that. I love you enough to see that you have the right to hate me. Just remember, I only ever made the decisions I thought were best for you.”

His uncle let go. His jade aura receded as he walked away through the streams of people.

Hilo stepped out of the airport and got into the passenger seat of Lott’s Lumezza FT Scorpion as it pulled up to the curb. They drove to an airport hotel and went up to a guest suite on the fifth floor. Vin Solu, the new First Fist of Janloon, was in the room along with Hejo, the First Fist of White Rats, and one of Hejo’s tech experts. Three young men were seated around a table covered with small gadgets, listening as Hejo and his technician explained each of the items. At Hilo and Lott’s entrance, the men stood hastily and saluted the Pillar. “Kaul-jen,” they murmured in unison.

Hilo looked them over. Two of the young men were Golden Spiders from the Kekonese army: a man named Dasho whom Hilo did not know, and Teije Inno, a remote cousin of the Kaul family. The third young man was a junior Finger named Sim. All of them had been quickly but carefully chosen by the Horn. They each wore a little jade, five pieces at the most, and fit the profile of lower-ranked Green Bones looking to better their fortunes. Each had applied separately and been offered employment by GSI. Packed suitcases and bags sat on the floor near their feet.

“Niko’s on his flight,” Hilo said. “You’ll all be leaving on different ones over the next day.”

Lott withdrew an envelope from his pocket and handed out airplane tickets to each man, along with credit cards and cash. Hilo surveyed the various items on the table, several of which had been opened up to show their workings: hidden cameras built into travel alarm clocks and pens, audio recorders inside cigarette lighters, bugs that could be planted inside rooms, and most ingeniously of all, recording devices concealed within or behind jade watches, earrings, and pendants. Those had been the most expensive and difficult to create, but were also the most likely to go undetected. GSI recruits could bring their own personal jade and wear it as they liked, and no one would dare to touch or closely examine another man’s jade.

“You’ve learned how to use all this stuff?” Hilo asked.

Hejo’s tech expert, one of three that specialized in outfitting the clan’s White Rats, said, “They’re all pretty straightforward. They can be easily discarded if necessary, and except for the jade, none of it can be traced back to No Peak. Once you get to any new location, use the credit cards we gave you at any bank or ATM, or call one of the contact numbers. We’ll know immediately where you are. If you’re caught, we have solid cover stories in place to prove that you’re being paid to gather information by investigative journalists working for the Janloon Daily.”

Hilo said to the three men, “Don’t worry. You’re infiltrating an Espenian company, not the Mountain clan. If you get caught, they won’t kill you. They probably won’t even cripple you or beat you badly. They’ll only fire you and sue you, and that’s no problem, we can handle that. You’ll be fine so long as you don’t act suspicious or tell any outright lies. Sunto’s Perception isn’t anything like Vin’s.”

Sim asked uneasily, “Won’t he be worried about White Rats?”

The Pillar made a face. “Sunto’s convinced that Green Bones are eager to flee the clans to join his company. After the talk we had in his office on Euman Island, he expects me to whisper his name and for any attack from No Peak to come from head-on. After you’re gone, you’ll all be officially condemned by the clan as shameful traitors. Remember that your families will know the truth. Send us whatever information you can, but the main thing is that you watch Niko.” His nephew was a godsdamned fool, but there was no way under Heaven that Hilo was going to lose him in some stupid foreign war. “So long as my son is alive and well, and you’re sending us whatever information you can, the money will keep going to your families.” More money than GSI was paying, and more importantly, things that GSI could not provide: loan forgiveness for Dasho’s parents, college for Teije’s sister, an expedited heart transplant for Sim’s niece.

Lott said, “Do you all understand what’s being asked of you? If so, kneel and pledge your word to the Pillar.”

Together, the three men lowered themselves to the carpet of the hotel room and raised their clasped hands to Hilo in salute.