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Three large black vans parked in front of our line of houses Monday morning. I recognized them immediately as the same vans that carried criminals Outside to be exiled. My stomach revolted at the thought of climbing into them. What if this was all a big trick? What if I had somehow gotten everyone in trouble with my actions? Were we all being exiled?
No. Of course not. My nerves were playing tricks on my mind. Anticipation about what lay ahead was literally driving me mad. I paused on the sidewalk, taking a deep breath to clear my mind. It was all going to be fine. I pushed the file folder tucked under my shirt up closer to my body and tried to believe my little mental pep talk.
Edgar stopped beside me and placed his hand on my shoulder. “You okay?” he asked.
I gave a gentle nod and continued with him toward the van. Edgar had grown a lot over these last several weeks and seeing his newfound strength gave my legs the push they needed to propel me forward. He reminded me that there were good people in this city who needed to be protected. Frank couldn’t do it and the current Leaders certainly couldn’t do it. It would be up to us—the new Peacemakers and Leaders to really make some progress.
My muscles physically relaxed as the vans turned toward the Center gates. We rolled through in single file, driving on to the city hall. My roommates stared out the windows in awe. They’d never been to the Center before. It had such a commanding atmosphere, bringing almost a sense of reverence throughout the van. I shifted in my seat. Reverence wasn’t the right emotion for this place.
The Classen City news crew greeted us as we stepped onto the sidewalk in front of the giant white columns of the building. Several cameras were set up around the entrance, some pointed at us, others at the news reporter. I spotted the same news anchor who reported my story the week before and ducked to avoid being seen. Margo and I exchanged looks, and she gave me a reassuring nod.
As students climbed out of the other two vans she made her way over to Lennie, who greeted her with a cheerful grin. His grin stretched in surprise from ear to ear when she took his hand and walked toward the entrance with him. Georgia stalked just a few feet behind them. Her skin may as well have been green with the jealousy radiating from her pores. Green wasn’t a good color for her.
I hovered near the back of the crowd, trying to blend in with the faces on either side of me. Once inside the doors, I’d need to find some way to separate myself from the others. The students wouldn’t be a concern. They were all so distracted by the beautiful architecture and design of the building to even notice anyone was missing. It was the cameras I was worried about. Well, the cameras and Emmaline. She’d set her eyes on me the second we parked, and she was reluctant to look away, even when other Leaders greeted her.
The halls were crowded with a flurry of excitement. Mr. Saxon wasn’t kidding when he said this trial was going to be huge. I’d never seen so many Leaders in the same place at the same time before.
As my classmates were shuffled forward toward the courtroom, I hung back enough to get behind Mr. Saxon and ducked quickly around the corner. A tall man with a brown leather briefcase and a woman with loud heels were walking the same direction. I tried to fall in step with them, attempting once again to simply blend in with my surroundings. But I didn’t make it four steps before a hand wrapped itself around my upper arm.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Emmaline’s skin was so taut across her scowl I thought it might rip.
“I was looking for the restroom. I forgot to go before we left. I guess I got caught up in all the excitement.” I shrugged innocently.
She looked me up and down, as if she might find some sign flashing to tell her that I was a liar. I sucked in my belly, hoping the edges of the file folder wouldn’t give me away. The folder wasn’t flashing, but it would surely be a sign that I was up to something if Emmaline saw it.
Her grip lightened and she gestured forward with her head. “It’s at the end of the hall to the left. I’ll walk you down there and wait for you to finish.”
So much for sneaking away. We walked in silence toward the end of the hall and I hoped Margo was having better luck. She had to somehow find a way to touch Justice Hines. Even just a brief brush against her arm would be better than nothing.
The ladies room was clean and bright with light flooding in from a window on the far side of the room. I leaned against the cold tile wall and pulled the file from under my shirt. I’d worked so hard to put everything together, it was a shame to let it go to waste. Maybe Emmaline would be able to take a look and get the message to Justice Hines. She wasn’t a Peacemaker herself, but surely she had some sway over this particular case. And the law was definitely on Frank’s side if they looked closely. But could Emmaline be trusted? Probably not.
The door swung open as I was flipping through the pages I’d put into the folder and I heard a gasp.
“No way. Claren Greenwood? Is it really you?”
I looked up to see a woman in her twenties gawking at me from the other side of the bathroom. There was something familiar about her, though I didn’t think we’d ever met.
“It’s really me,” I said.
“I can’t believe it. You’re famous around here. I’m Britt Palmer, by the way.”
She reached out to shake my hand and a light clicked on in my head. This was too good to be true.
“Hi, Britt. You look so familiar. Have I seen you around here before?”
She grinned sheepishly. “I was the clerk in your brother’s trial.”
“That’s right! You work with Chief Justice Hines, right?”
She nodded, her smile fading.
“Well I am so glad I ran into you. I found this folder here on the counter when I walked in, and I’m pretty sure it must belong to her. It has details about the case.” I held the folder out for Britt to see. She paused, uncertain of whether or not she should accept.
Not wanting to pressure her, I set the folder on the counter and shrugged. “Maybe not. I’ll just leave it here. I’m sure she already has everything she needs. Hopefully whoever left this will remember and come back for it.”
I washed my hands and checked my reflection, pretending not to care whether she took the folder or not. It worked. After hesitating for just a moment, she joined me at the counter.
“I don’t know if it’s hers or not, but I won’t risk her missing it.” Britt slid the folder under her arm. “I better run this up to her right now. Thanks, Claren. You really are a great addition to Classen City. Maybe I’ll even get the chance to work for you one day.” She smiled and exited without using the facilities.
Maybe my luck was changing after all. I tossed my paper towel into the trash can near the window, but movement outside caught my attention. The glass was etched for privacy, obscuring a clear view, but I saw several distinct shapes bobbing along the edge of the wall below. If I had to guess, I’d say they looked like the tops of heads. I held my breath, listening as carefully as I could, and my pulse started to race with excitement.
Was it mine? Or was the excitement coming from whoever was outside? The walls were thick so I couldn’t hear anything, but I was sure there were people sneaking around outside, and they were heading toward the courtroom. Not wanting to miss a second of whatever was about to happen, I pushed open the door and dashed back into the hallway a little too enthusiastically.
I ran right into Emmaline. She frowned, obviously feeling my excitement. There was no way she didn’t notice. We were too close and I was too worked up. I’d forgotten she would be waiting out there, and my icy wall was not prepared to block my affect. It was still a puddle of warm water splashing around my stomach and making me feel ill as I stared into Emmaline’s flaming eyes.
She shook her head and grabbed my arm. I immediately felt the effects of her projection, coursing through my veins like a drug. I felt sleepy and calm and affectionate toward the kind woman that Emmaline was... She really was thoughtful, and it was so nice of her to take me under her wings... I owed her my life.
“What’s going on, Claren?” she asked sweetly.
I wanted to tell her everything. I wanted to tell her about my plan, about the notebook and Margo. She’d probably want to know about the people I saw moving around outside too. Maybe she could help them.
Or maybe not. Strength built up from my core and I began to resist her projections. Emmaline was powerful, but I knew her games. She wouldn’t be able to overcome my resolve. Not today, Rattlesnake.
I blinked, focusing on my own emotions rather than those she was pushing into me. “Nothing is going on. Why do you ask?”
The corner of her mouth twitched. She was really angry. Too angry to fully hide it from me. Or maybe I just knew her well enough now to see it. Her hand on my arm probably wasn’t helping her block much either.
“I know something’s going on. And I expect you to tell me right now.” Her voice was firm again, her eyebrows drawn together tightly.
Her grip tightened as well, pinching my skin uncomfortably through my sleeve. The clock on the wall ticked casually behind her. I nodded towards it.
“There’s nothing going on, like I said. But if we don’t get moving, we’re going to miss the trial. I don’t want to get locked out of the courtroom.”
She looked at the clock and sighed loudly. “Come on.”
Still holding my arm, we marched quickly through the halls toward the courtroom. It was packed, but once again a bench was reserved for Emmaline and me at the front of the room. My heart was racing, probably bruising the inside of my ribcage with its force as we slid into place.
The side doors opened and in walked Frank, surrounded by four angry looking Protectors. His head hung low, and he didn’t bother to take in his surroundings at all. He may as well have been waving a white flag. There was no fight left in him at all as he took his seat.
Not a minute later Britt walked in, shooting darts at me with her eyes. Uh-oh. She’d obviously tried to give my folder to Justice Hines. Hopefully she didn’t mention my name.
Reaching her position at the front of the room, she turned back toward the crowd. “All rise for Chief Justice Martha Hines.”
Georgia’s mom looked like the Grim Reaper as she glided into place behind the bench. Her eyes were burning like a wildfire, and just the sight of her brought a chill clear to my bones.
As we stood, I turned my head to make eye contact with Margo a few rows back on the opposite side. She gave me a quick, small shake of her head. Her eyes were puffy like she’d been crying, but they weren’t sad. They were full of terror. It was very different from Georgia’s prideful eyes and smug smile right beside her.
I turned back toward the front of the room, sure that my eyes shared Margo’s terror.
“Take your seats.” Justice Hines waved her hand in front of her like she was swatting a gnat. Then she looked pointedly at one of the cameras stationed on the far right. “We’re going to make this quick.”
She pulled a folder from her desk—not the one I’d handed to Britt—and pulled out a sheet of paper. “This case is fairly cut and dry. Frank Dalton, you have been accused of treason, and I find you—”
The side doors slammed open before she could finish her sentence, and in poured eight or ten strangers in dark clothes. They had bandannas pulled up across their faces so that only their eyes were visible under their snug wool hats. Each set of outstretched arms held a gun, and whether they were stun guns or actual firearms I couldn’t tell.
“Stop them!” Justice Hines yelled from the front of the room, but the Protectors were too slow.
Six of the strangers circled Frank and his guards, whipping the Protectors across the face with their pistols and slamming them with elbows. One threw a punch, knocking a Protector to the floor before he could pull his own gun. The final guard was advancing on a lone man, and I held my breath as I prepared to watch one of the strangers go down.
But a shot was fired from across the room—a stun, thankfully—and the guard hit the ground instead. Before I knew it, all four Protectors were on the floor and Frank was being pulled out by his arms. But Frank didn’t resist. The strangers had to have been rebels from the Outside. And evidently the Outsiders had a violent side.
The man who fired the stun was shorter than the others. His broad shoulders bounced slightly with a wild, victorious laugh. He approached the bench where Justice Hines was scrambling for something, and then he turned and looked right at me.
I’d recognize those hazel eyes anywhere. They mirrored my own. They were crinkled in the corners, and I could imagine his grin under the bandanna. But how did he get here?
Justice Hines stood tall again behind him, drawing my attention to her imposing figure. Her arms were held perpendicular to her black gown, straight as an arrow, and the weight of a thousand elephants crushed my chest as my lungs pushed my brother’s name through my lips.
“CATO!”