23 DAYS UNTIL THE AUTUMNAL EQUINOX, MORNING
I missed Rives terribly. Part of me was gone. I’d ripped it out myself, trying to protect us both. Since Nil had emptied its memories in my head, I avoided Rives as a matter of course; it was just too much.
Better for Rives to get used to life without me, I reasoned. Because my end was written; there was no other choice. I didn’t need the Sight to know that. The future I desperately wanted with him was never going to happen. And because of that, being around Rives brought more pain than I could handle. His strong presence, his familiar touch, his knowing gaze that set me on fire—all were a stark reminder of what I’d already lost.
Now I sat alone at the edge of White Beach, trying not to think. Near the trees, a giraffe munched on a branch. He looked so content, so at home, probably because he’d never leave.
Like me.
A few yards from the giraffe, the leaves rustled. The giraffe stopped its chewing, ears pricked.
Black fur gleamed in the sun, muscles rippling. The green shifted, revealing paws and whiskers and eyes like slits. A panther, powerful and predatory.
He crouched ten yards away, at most.
I sat motionless, hoping the giraffe would pull out a kick or some other survival trick in its giraffe arsenal of defense.
The panther slunk forward, eyes glittering; the giraffe turned toward the cat. In one fluid move, the panther brought down the small giraffe in a clean kill. I watched it happen as if it were a movie. I knew the island would protect me, because it needed me.
Curling into a ball, I covered my ears with my hands until the giraffe fell silent, its death cries blending with those in my head.
“Skye.” Molly’s gentle touch on my shoulder brought me back. “Are you okay?”
I opened my eyes. Molly knelt beside me. “Skye?” she repeated. She gently wiped tears from my cheeks.
I blinked. “Yes?”
“We’ve been looking for you. Rives is beside himself. He went to the Arches thinking that you might be there. I know you’re struggling with—” She paused, her voice softening. “The weight of knowledge,” she finished. “I can’t imagine how difficult this is for you. But running away isn’t the answer.”
“I wasn’t running away.” Was I?
The panther was gone. The giraffe’s carcass lay on the sand, partially obscured by the trees.
“Okay,” Molly said calmly, “you weren’t running away. But disappearing without telling anyone where you’re going isn’t good. We should get back. There’s a panther in the area, and some wild dogs too. It’s safer in the City. I don’t like you being here alone.”
I had a flash of Dai on the beach, alone. He’d died, alone. Somehow I knew my hunch was true.
“They buried Dai, didn’t they?” I looked at her. “Davey and Thad. And James. They buried him at South Beach.”
Molly nodded.
“Do you know why he had a fever?” I didn’t wait for her to answer. “Because he cut his leg on the rocks when he fell out of the gate, and the cut got infected. He never had a chance.”
I looked back at the ocean. “No one arrives sick. Did you know that? The island doesn’t transfer bacteria or viruses, just the DNA in its pure form. And the island prefers Americans, because we’re the ones who dropped the bombs. Pain for pain. The wild gates are drawn to us.” I closed my eyes. Too much. I know too much. I was a walking Nil encyclopedia.
“Okay,” Molly said again. “Good to know.”
“Is it?” I asked. I wasn’t certain.
We ran into Chuck and Davey halfway down the beach, heading north.
“Good morning, ladies.” Davey grinned. “The Chuckster and I are guava hunting.”
“There’s a panther up there,” I said, realizing I’d forgotten to tell Molly. “It just got a giraffe so I don’t think it’s hungry, but just wanted to let you know.”
Davey did a quick 180. He’d no sooner spun when the breeze stalled. Twenty yards out, a gate shot into the air, glittering in the noon sun.
It would roll north in seconds.
“Chuck, go,” Molly said, her quiet voice commanding. “You’ve done what you came to do.” Then she grabbed my hand and Davey’s. “Run!”
We ran. Out of the gate’s way, as Chuck sprinted straight for it.
And then he was gone.
We had twenty-three days left.