14

Another volley of sparks rained down from the overhead incandescent lamp.

Ashton’s angry, pain-filled shout echoed from the other room.

Straining against the straps binding me to the chair and flushed hot with the effort, I collapsed in another crying fit.

The small, barred window high in the wall cast shards of light across the bare room. From the low angle of the shadows, I guessed late afternoon approached. After I refused to answer his questions, Riley politely excused himself, and moments later I heard the first of many heart-wrenching sounds from Ashton.

That I screamed and begged for him to stop did nothing to end Riley’s questioning. Finally, overcome, I wept, only to shout again when I could not take it anymore. I hoped the weakening sound of Ashton’s voice was the result of my imagination. Eventually, all sound ceased and I held my breath, listening. Apart from the creak of wood from the subtle but constant sway of the building, I could not make out the muffled voices.

Hoping to stave off another wave of tears, I gazed around the dank room, but that only caused it to feel as if were closing in. I shut my eyes. Ashton’s tortured expression when Riley’s man hit him with the lightning stick flashed in my thoughts, and I struggled to get to him.

He’d risked his life to help me, nearly getting shot out of the sky by my own hand on that rooftop, and all I’d done in return was deliver him to his torturer. I railed against my foolhardy actions and screamed Riley’s name once more. Footsteps just outside vaulted fear into my throat and I tugged at the bindings again. A sliver of light streaked across the dark floor as the door opened. Silhouetted by the glow behind him, a figure stood at the threshold.

“You’ll tear that delicate skin of yours,” his voice drawled.

I squinted to see, my pulse hammering.

Sheriff Sebastian Riley emerged from the shadows, his smile both enticing and dangerous. Tall and lean, he circled me like a predator. Watching with striking green eyes, his dark copper hair fell to the collar of his long, brown duster. The lock of hair brushed his brow and he flipped it back with a snap of his neck. From his burnished coloring to the swagger that jangled the buckles on his boots, everything about him seemed to embody Outer City’s outlaw nature. Older than me by a few years, he had the bearing of someone who’d seen much. The fact that he was, by Ashton’s account, The Law, gave credence to the wildness of the sky territory.

“W—what did you do to Ashton?”

“I had a conversation with him.” Riley’s head tilted and he caught my gaze. “One I tried to have with you, earlier.”

Unwilling to admit the fault I felt, I simply stared back.

He crouched down to eye level. “Are you willing to talk with me now or do I have to go back to work?”

“Please, may I see him?”

“You may,” he said and smiled politely as if I’d asked for a piece of cake. I found it strange that someone so cordial could be so barbaric. “And what will you do?”

“I’m sorry?” Baffled, I blinked, unsure how to answer. “See if he is well, I suppose.”

Riley’s raucous laugh echoed through the small room. “You don’t know what to do at all, do you?”

“I just said…” the words died on my lips.

He moved closer, his face suddenly serious. “You’re very proper. Very proper and very pretty,” he whispered. “I can see why he looks at you as he does. There’s no one like you up here.”

“I do not understand your meaning, Sheriff Riley.”

“Oh, you do like him, don’t you?” Riley undid the straps at my wrists and I realized a gear work glove encased his left hand. The fingers worked with the metal hinges that whirred as he gripped my upper arm and jerked me from the chair. “We’ll see how much.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“Convince him to talk or I’ll start in on you.”

I stumbled on unsteady legs out the door, stopping in my tracks the moment I saw Ashton.

He dangled in the center of the jailhouse, his wrists cuffed into chains that hung from the ceiling. Head lolled forward, a wave of dark hair obscured his face. He did not move, his body slack on boots that barely skimmed the floor.

A lawman stood next to the wall, the lightning stick in his hand trailed a blue spark on the ground.

“Ash!” I ran to him, trying to support his weight.

He moaned, his eyes swimming as he strained to focus.

“He’s fine,” Sebastian drawled and pulled a lever on the wall.

The chains broke from the ceiling bringing Ashton down almost on top of me as he slumped to the floor. I went with him, struggling to break his fall.

“Charlie?” He groaned, shook his head, and blinked as if coming out of a deep sleep. His gaze cleared and he brought his palms up, cradling my jaw. The chains clinked as he looked at me with relief. “You’re still here.”

“Of course, I am.” Sniffling, I tried to keep from falling apart. “I am so sorry…so sorry…”

“Shh,” Ashton whispered, his thumb brushing a tear from under my eye. “They don’t have you. You’re here.”

“Ugh,” Riley intoned.

I shot him an irritated look just as he rolled his eyes and tossed me a brass ring of keys.

“Free him and get over here.”

I helped Ashton to his feet and unlocked the cuffs, worried at the weak shaking in his hands. Burn marks traced angry red lines along his neck.

The lawman with the wand stood motionless as he watched us.

I set the keys on the counter, but Ashton caught my hand.

His jaw worked as his gaze fell to the marks on my wrists. He leveled a gaze at Riley, his anger palpable. “You had her bound?”

“I’m fine, Ash.”

“Yes, Ash,” Riley said with a smirk as he raised a gun and pointed it at me. “Listen to Charlie.”

“You have no cause to treat her like this. I deserve your anger, not Miss Blackburn.”

Riley lifted his gloved hand, flexed the mechanized fingers, and nodded. “Yes, you do. And by default, your lovely lady here for having the misfortune of following you back in to my city.”

“Then a trade. Her for me. The Security Force and Governors surely—”

“You have no room for demands here,” Riley snapped, his face going slack with anger. “You may be able to weather questioning, but I doubt she can.”

My heart stuttered, fear flooding me.

“Tell me what your father knew about the Tremblers.”

“My father? He was…they took him,” I stammered, unsure of how to appease Riley.

“I have it on good authority that Colonel Blackburn of The Order knew and had information about what is happening. You are his only child. Now tell me what he discovered.” Riley slammed his hand on the counter. “Tell me what I need to do to stop this.”

“I don’t know!” I shouted back, my nerves frayed beyond caring for propriety. “I would tell you if I did.”

“She doesn’t know,” Ashton said evenly.

“How can you not know what is happening out there?” Riley asked, his face genuinely perplexed. “All the Governors, the Energy Consortium Barons, even the legendary Order are all after what your father knew, baby Blackburn.”

“What exactly did my father find out?” I looked from Riley to Ashton, confused. “The Governors and The Order? How can they have the same aim? I thought The Order was separate from governments…they…they topple kings.”

Riley’s raucous laugh caught me off guard. “Surely you jest.”

“I—I don’t understand.” I looked to Ashton.

“Oh, you haven’t told her?” Riley clicked his tongue. “You didn’t let her know that despite noble ideas, The Order has long favored the side with the most gold. They have a hand in trade, cargo, even manufacturing. They’ve long ceased being a benevolent Order.”

“Lies,” Ashton shouted. “Not all within the Order are corrupt. Not everyone sinks to your level, Riley.”

“Do you deny that those in your ranks carry out orders designed to topple leaders not compliant with the Order’s demands of tribute and position for their members?”

“No…they…” I shook my head, confused. “Ashton?”

“The Order of the Sword and Scroll seek to establish stability for—”

“Stability!” Riley snapped. He turned to me. “Not freedom. Stability ensures their influence remains strong. If stability comes in the form of a crushing government, a mad king, or even a group of colonists committing treason, they do not care. Clearly, The Order has chosen the Peaceful Union over Lizzie’s violence-fueled Defiance group. In this instance, I do not blame them.” His words clicked everything into place.

All my tangled thoughts were finally clear. In that moment, I realized my father didn’t just mistrust The Order, he’d changed allegiance. Now I knew the reason why he’d refused to meet with a fellow agent. Why he sent me to find Collodin and not Ashton. He never meant to turn over any information to The Order or by extension, the Governors. My father believed The Order and Union were somehow to blame for what was happening. It was why he endeavored to help Lizzie and the Defiance group. My gaze fell to Ashton. My father knew he could not serve them both and had chosen.

What would happen, and there was no doubt now, when Ashton had to choose?

“Our Lancelot treads a dangerous ledge,” Riley’s lip curled as he spoke aloud my very thoughts. “How much can you truly trust him?”

“Mr. Wells is trying to find the truth. We both are.”

“Charlie, stop,” Ashton interrupted. “Do not tell him anything.”

“And so is Lizzie!” I shouted over Ashton. “I heard them talking and they both want to know.”

“If you truly believe that then you are more naïve than I thought,” Riley snapped. “Whoever finds out what is happening will rule the people, baby Blackburn. In this day, it is information and outrage that moves the masses. First, it was droves of scared survivors clamoring to feel secure again that enabled this crushing rule over them, and now it is the downtrodden laborers who scream for their piece of New Societies’ riches.”

“But if the end result is stopping…”

“Stopping?” Riley scolded. “I’m the only one who wants to stop this.” He strode around the bar toward me, leaning into my space as Ashton tensed. “Fear and panic, Charlie. They are powerful. Prove this sickness is a result of Defiance bombs and the populace will scream for their heads. Prove it is the something else…the vapors in the wasteland…anything else, and the Peaceful Union tightens its grip on everyone and everything in their reach.”

“Surely, it is in the best interest of everyone to stop this blight of monsters.” I looked to Ashton, whose glare offered no answers.

“The Order would use it to influence their own gain,” Riley continued. “Isn’t that right, Mr. Wells?”

“He twists the truth, Charlie,” Ashton muttered.

Confusion clouded my thoughts. Uncertainty tangled my tongue. I did not truly know Ashton’s mind or his intensions. I only knew that he was loyal and unmovable in his aim to serve his masters. I thought about what Lizzie said. That he and she differed on what was just and I found myself questioning every conversation, every altered attitude of Ashton’s. How he could turn from cavalier to callous in the same breath to persuade me to comply with his wishes. I’d known him for such a short time yet all he’d done since I met him was try to prevent me from getting the journal to Collodin.

My father, an honorable man my whole life, did not trust The Order. I believed, then, that neither should I. But I would not make the same mistake with Riley. I could not trust him either. His violence and abduction of us could attest to that.

“I claim allegiance to no one. Not The Order and not Defiance.” I covered my trembling lips with my fingers. “I—I was at a beautiful ball, and then all this ugliness started. I don’t know what’s happening. I don’t know what you want from me. I only want my father back!” I collapsed into sobs.

Riley’s withering gaze stayed on me. He made no move to either comfort or confront me further.

A quick glance at Ashton’s raised brow told me he did not truly believe my display of waterworks, but he remained silent.

“Your father gave you no information?” Riley said finally. “Nothing to pass on to anyone?”

“Leave her alone,” Ashton growled. “She doesn’t know what her father discovered.”

“But you have an idea?” He turned to me and brandished the lorgnettes I’d altered. “The mind that did this is not a sniveling debutante.” He shook me by the arm. “Now, tell me what you know.”

“Stop,” Ashton shouted.

“Fine,” I yelled as I yanked from Riley’s grip. “My father found out something, but I don’t know what it is. It’s…it’s undecipherable.”

“What does that mean?” Riley snapped.

I wiped at my face angrily, my hands shaking as I adjusted the leather bodice and avoided Ashton’s gaze. “It means, the more you shake and scramble my brains the less likely you’ll find out.”

“This is not a game,” Riley said, his voice edge with steel as he flexed his mech-glove. “Lives are at stake.”

“I know that,” I said evenly. I was so tired. So scared. I was at my wit’s end. “My father’s life, in particular. I can’t do anything about these monsters until I get him back.”

“Monsters?” Riley bellowed, making me jump. “They are more than monsters. Just because you don’t sit next to them at the opera or at your fine dances doesn’t mean they matter less than your precious father.”

“But I need him to—”

“I need answers.” He didn’t let me finish; instead, he grabbed me by the shoulders, the anger pulsing as he glared at me. “What did your father discover?”

I shook, feeling the flare of pain from Riley’s mech-glove as he exerted pressure.

The guard with the lightning stick tightened his grip, his beady eyes on me, but I could not hand over the journal. Not to anyone but Collodin. I was sure of that.

Ashton watched me in silence, his gaze brushing my bodice where the journal remained hidden.

“I—I didn’t understand what he said,” I answered truthfully. “The security soldiers burst in and my father threw me out a window.”

“He what?” Riley blinked rapidly. “You want to test my resolve?” Riley’s face flared red and he yanked me toward him. “These monsters are not for you to bargain for your father.”

“Riley, don’t.” Ashton stepped forward, trying to stop him.

In an instant, the lawman was there with the lightning stick. The prod connected with Ashton’s chest delivering a jolt.

I screamed as his head whipped back, his body going rigid with the shock. “Stop, just stop.”

“I’ll show you what you allow to continue with your silence.” Riley took me by the elbow, propelling me across the floor.

Ashton slumped to his knees, his dark gaze finding mine as he looked up.

Riley pulled me to a barred door, heaved up the lock, and flung it open.

In the soft glow of an ambient lamp, the cage in the corner of the room shook violently.

I screamed, stumbling back, but Riley held me in place. Horror engulfed me as I took in the quivering limbs of the half-naked man. He snarled and lunged at the bars with pale, blue-tinged skin. The smell of rot and filth blasted from his mangled face as he gnashed his ruined teeth at me. An anguished wail tore from him as every muscle in his body convulsed, sending his jet black eyes rolling into his skull.

The floor tilted underneath my feet, the buzz in my ears overwhelming as I started to lose my grip on consciousness.

“Don’t faint,” Riley yelled, shaking my arm. “You look. Look at him and tell me you still want to keep silent. Something is doing this. Something is turning innocent men into this!”

“I—I don’t…” I couldn’t speak, my mouth working around words I could barely get out. “What…what is that?”

“A Trembler. There’s more every day and your father found out why. I don’t care about ancient orders or new-found rebellions. This is about real people; fathers and husbands, and…” Riley’s voice broke. “and friends. Forget about allegiance and promises, Miss Blackburn, and tell me what I need to know.”

“I—I never spoke with my father about any of this. Please!” Horrified and scared beyond all reason, I did not know who to trust. I only knew what I saw in front of me; a gnashing, writhing creature in pain. I looked back at Ashton, his anguished expression stripping me to the bone. He knew something. More than what he had told me.

“Do not say another word, Charlie,” Ashton breathed.

“Ash?” The look on his face made my blood run cold. He did not hesitate to forfeit my father to the Union Security Soldiers. Ashton was a trained spy who had never been anything but steadfast in his mission to get my father’s journal to his superiors.

The idea that I could persuade him or win him over was naïve and reckless.

“I heard when they took him, he gave you something. Information,” Riley snapped. “What did he tell you? What do you know?”

“No, Charlotte.” Ashton held my gaze.

I wondered now, at Lizzie’s words. She’d asked me if I thought I was able to trust Ashton. As if she knew the cost might be too steep to weather.

“Well, Miss Blackburn?” Riley raised the gun to my head. He pulled back the hammer and the sickening click of the tumbler sent my stomach lurching. “He will never betray his Order. Will you?”