Graduation Day (21 page)

Eventually sleep comes. As always, in my dreams I see the faces of those who died during The Testing. I see those who have fallen since, too, as well as the faces of students back home who I know might suffer the same fate if I fail. In the middle of them all is Enzo. His burned hand reaches out to me as Stacia appears behind him. I jerk awake with the image of Stacia's unreadable smile etched firmly in my mind. It is only the sight of Tomas next to me that allows me to lie back and relax enough to sleep again.

When next I wake, small beams of sunlight peek through the windows. They bathe the room in a pale glow. For a moment I smile. Then I realize Tomas is not on the blanket beside me. I sit up. Both our bags sit next to the ratty sofa. Seeing them makes me feel better as I get up and go in search. I find him standing next to a freshly cleaned counter in the kitchen, cutting up apples he must have taken out of my bag or brought from his own residence. When he sees me, a smile lights his face.

I take the apple slices he offers and realize the counter is not the only thing Tomas has cleared. The broken table has been removed and the floor has been swept.

“I couldn't sleep, so I decided to tidy up a bit and check out the place, since we might be here for a while.”

We both know most likely we will not be here long at all, but it is nice to pretend if just for a moment that we can relax. That this is our house. That we are eating breakfast at the start of a typical day.

“I ran the water in this sink for about five minutes. That seems to have flushed out the worst of the rust buildup. I was worried the noise would wake you. I'm guessing you didn't sleep very well.”

I put a hand to my hair and smooth it down. “I look that bad?”

“No.” Tomas tucks a strand of wayward hair behind my ear. “But I had trouble sleeping. I figured you might have, too. Yesterday was hard.”

I take Tomas's hand. “Today will be harder.”

His fingers tighten on mine. “I know.”

We sit on the blanket in the living room with the list of names, the apple slices sitting on a chipped but clean plate between us. I treat my leg wound with more ointment. I'm glad when I see it is not as swollen as yesterday, and rewrap it with a fresh bandage. Then, in between bites of apple, I explain what Raffe told me about the people on the list.

Tomas takes a pencil and crosses out the names that I have indicated, leaving the other five. “These are the ones we have to find.”

“I think that Raffe's father and Professor Chen have information we need.”

“What kind of information?”

I explain about Raffe's sister's disappearance and his search for her and the other students who were Redirected from the University program. “I think The Testing candidates from the first two rounds of tests were Redirected to the same place as Raffe's sister. If we get these officials to tell us what they know, we might be able to find them.”

As much as I want to end The Testing, I am equally determined to find those who have not lived up to Dr. Barnes's standards. My eyes glance at the bracelet on my wrist. I no longer have a use for it, but I have yet to take it off. I may have need of it again, and it reminds me of something Ian said on the day I moved into the Government Studies residence. He said the scales of justice symbolize the need for government to balance humanity and kindness with law and justice. Maybe if I find some of the Redirected students alive, it will balance the deaths I have been and will be responsible for.

Taking the recorders out of my bag, I explain, “I think Professor Chen and Official Jeffries know what happens to the Redirected candidates. If we encourage them to talk, we can record the conversation.” That evidence might not sway Dr. Barnes's most ardent government supporters to end The Testing, but it will give us what we need to find Raffe's sister and everyone whom Dr. Barnes sent away. “Once we record what they know, we'll restrain them. The president and her Safety officials can be in charge of them after we have completed our mission.”

Tomas's eyes darken. “If they are as connected to The Testing as the president believes, keeping them alive isn't an option. Not if we want The Testing to end.”

“It has to be.”

“Because one of them is Raffe's father?”

“No.” Because watching Enzo in agony and seeing Kerrick die has taught me something valuable. While I'm capable of doing what is necessary, I'm not Dr. Barnes. “These officials have failed their country, but it's not up to you and me to determine their punishment. If the president and the leaders of the Debate Chamber want them to be killed for their participation in and perpetuation of The Testing, they will have to be the ones to do it.” I have no doubt that the president will arrange for them to die, but their blood will not be on my hands.

“And what about the other three?” Tomas asks. “Do we detain them, too?”

“No.” The apple feels like lead in my stomach. “For them we have no choice. Symon's hold on the rebels is too strong. Even if the Debate Chamber voted to remove Dr. Barnes and end The Testing, the attack Dr. Barnes and Symon have orchestrated would still happen. Who knows how many would die if that were allowed to take place? Zeen could be among them. If we want to end The Testing before Symon and Dr. Barnes have a chance to cause more death, we have no other choice. They have to be killed.”

Our eyes meet. In Tomas's I see the resolve that matches my own. “Then let's figure out how to do it. I brought some things I think will help.”

We empty our bags and lay our supplies on the floor. The apples, rolls, crackers, and cheese we put in the kitchen. Then we assess the rest. If Tomas is surprised by the weapons and explosives I've brought with me, he doesn't show it. However, while he is willing to handle the guns, he avoids looking at the knives and flinches when I touch their handles. I move them to the side so he will not have to be reminded of Zandri every time he sees them.

Some of the items Tomas brought with him I expected—clothes, food, water, and the radio I adjusted for him. But I'm surprised to see specimen containers filled with plants, a mortar and pestle, two small burners, and matches. When he sees me blink, Tomas smiles. “I wasn't sure what we would need, so I grabbed a bunch of plants from the lab before I walked out the door.”

I pick up the containers and look inside. “They leave this stuff lying around your residence?” While I understand the need for Biological Engineering majors to have easy access to the genetic materials they are asked to work with, some of the plants, like the Purple Poppy or the Pokeweed Roots, have properties that should be kept under lock and key.

“Some of it.” He shrugs. “My guide is in the advanced classes that study the best ways to negate the deadliest of the mutated plants. He prefers to work in a makeshift lab he created in one of his rooms instead of at the stadium. Our head of residence gave him special permission to take plants out of the greenhouse and work with them there. I went to his rooms to ask a question and had Kit drop by to distract him. While he walked her back to her rooms, I grabbed a few things out of his bag.”

Tomas and I separate the samples based on properties. There are three plants that will kill when ingested, two that are used most often as sedatives, and several that will be useful if any of us are injured.

I place the deadliest of the samples in the corner of the room. Then I take a seat next to the rest of the pile to figure out how to get the answers we need and eliminate Dr. Barnes, Professor Holt, and Symon—all in the next twenty-four hours. Raffe said that he and Stacia would join as soon as they found a way off campus. If we need them to bring supplies, we have to let them know in time to retrieve the message.

“Zeen will have to eliminate Symon.” My chest tightens as I realize that I still haven't heard from Zeen.

“Even if he does,” Tomas says, “that leaves the four of us to question two on the president's list and eliminate two others, all in one night.” Tomas looks at the array of materials next to us and frowns as he contemplates the difficulty of the task. “I guess we need to think of this like a mathematical proof. We understand the question. Now we have to list everything we know about the subjects, our skills, and the obstacles we face. Maybe then we'll find a way to solve it.”

Easier said than done. There are too many variables: the extra Safety official patrols; our unfamiliarity with areas we will have to visit; no estimate on how long it will take to achieve our goal when we reach each location. It's an impossible equation with our current numbers.

While Tomas goes to the kitchen to grab rolls and water for lunch, I hear a series of clicks. Zeen. I pick up the Transit Communicator, take a deep breath, and press the button.

“Zeen.”

“Cia.” Just hearing his voice brings emotions I've held at bay to the surface. But I cannot let him hear me sound weak or scared or he will come find me. As much as I want to see my older brother, I need him to stay where he is.

“How are the rebels reacting to the postponing of the president's proposal?”

“According to Symon, everything is going forward as scheduled. If the president really did postpone making her stand on the Debate Chamber floor, word hasn't reached us. The attack is still being planned for the end of this week.”

Which means we have to complete our mission before then.

“Anticipation of the attack has emotions running high around here. That's why I haven't been able to contact you. This is the first chance I've had to warn you. You need to get off campus. Part of the attack is going to happen there. I don't want you caught in the crossfire,” Zeen says as Tomas walks into the room.

“Already done,” I say. “Something happened last night.” I shake my head. This isn't the time to talk about Enzo. “Tomas and I were able to get off campus and are currently hiding while we wait for some of our friends.”

“Good. That's good. If you stay where you are until after—”

“I'm not staying here. The president has asked me to help end The Testing and save the rebels and I'm going to try. But I can't do it without you.”

“You shouldn't be involved in this, Cia.”

“Are you kidding? I went through The Testing. I became involved in this the minute they chose me to come to Tosu City. There are things I've been asked to do that I hate, but I'll do them because the alternative is even worse. You can't stop me. But you can help me. Where is Symon now?”

“He's meeting with his team leaders. Ranetta wants to start deploying the attack groups of her rebel faction around the city tonight so they'll blend in. They don't want anyone to question their presence before Friday, when the attack begins.”

Tomas takes the Communicator and asks, “Can you get close enough to Ranetta to talk to her?”

“Tomas? I would think if anyone could talk Cia out of this you could.” When Tomas says nothing, I give his arm a squeeze. “Ranetta's pretty busy right now,” Zeen continues. “I doubt she has time for someone like me.”

“If you find a man named Dreu Owens, I bet you can convince him to get her to make time for someone from Five Lakes. He's Magistrate Owens's son, and we have reason to believe he's working with the rebellion. Find him and he might be able to help you stop the attack or get you close enough to permanently remove Symon.”

“We need you to eliminate Symon, Zeen,” I say before my brother can reply. “None of us will be able to get close enough to kill him. We can take out Dr. Barnes and the others on the list, but Symon controls the direction of too many of the rebels. You have to take charge of his removal. Otherwise who knows what will happen next.”

Tomas and I look at each other as the silence on the other end stretches on. “Zeen?” I ask quietly. When he doesn't answer I say his name again. “Are you there?”

“I'm here. Dad used to talk about Dreu. He liked to follow Dad around to learn how to engineer new plants. Dad said I rivaled Dreu in the asking-questions department. If Dreu's here, I'll find a way to enlist his help. If not, don't worry. I'll kill Symon myself.”

I close my eyes as feelings storm through me. Relief that Zeen will help. Pride that he is no longer speaking to me as if I am a child. And sorrow for making my brother vow to take a life.

I want to thank him but the words stick in my throat. How do you thank someone for promising to kill? I know that by doing so Zeen could die, and if he is successful, it will forever change his own life.

Swallowing hard, I tamp down the tears and focus. “We're waiting for the rest of our team to arrive. If everything works out, we'll begin our attack tonight.”

“Then I'll try to be ready on my end. Signal me three times if you're starting your assault. With luck, I'll have found Dreu and will be in touch before then. And Cia . . . be careful.”

“You too.”

The Communicator crackles for a moment and then there is quiet. Worry festers deep in me when I think about the danger Zeen is in.

Since we still don't know how many of us will be working to find our targets, I concentrate on one problem we are certain of. The extra Safety patrols that are traveling the Tosu City streets. As Tomas and I discuss this, I look at our supplies and have an idea. Since they have been instructed to keep an eye out for me, Tomas, and anyone we are with, the best way to go unnoticed is to make them think they have already found us.

Putting the three explosives containers I removed from the president's storage room in front of me, I explain my idea. The Safety officials will have been told about the explosion in my room. If they hear an explosion somewhere in the city, I'm betting they'll feel compelled to look for me nearby. We just have to make sure that the explosions occur in an area far away from our targets and that we are gone before they detonate.

For the next few minutes, Tomas and I go through the house looking for items we can use to make a timing device for the bombs we plan to build. A timer is trickier to create than the switch I used in my first bomb. That switch was manually operated. This device requires a remote so whoever places it has time to escape the blast. While I have never attached a timing mechanism to an explosive, I've helped my father create timers for irrigation systems. The principle behind them is the same and not all that complicated, but I'm not sure we have access to all the components we need.