Nil Unlocked (32 page)

I was damn lucky to be alive. And seriously grateful.

Skye’s hair shone gold in the streak of moonlight, spilling across her hands tucked under her head. She didn’t look like the lethal badass that she was; she looked like a regular girl. But not average. Nothing about Skye was average. Even sleeping, she looked like the kind who’d turn your head in a pair of jeans and T-shirt. Here on Nil, in island threads, she was the kind who was seriously messing with my head.

I wondered whether she was here for me or Paulo.

I hated that I cared.

That gate in the lava field had thrown me. It was a message from Nil, delivered with the subtlety of a volcanic eruption.

Check your rules
, it said.

Pay attention. Look around.

All I saw was Skye. Lying beside me. Squeezing my hand. Saying good-bye. Having the clarity to
say
good-bye. Me, I’d just stood there, shocked that it was good-bye. Shocked that it was my noon.

But it wasn’t.

And as insane as it sounded, thank God it wasn’t. Because I wasn’t done with Nil, not by a long shot. And I wasn’t done with Skye, either. There was something about her that kept pulling me back. Something that made me
want
. Something that made me ache.

What are you afraid of?
I’d asked her once. She hadn’t asked me the same question. But I knew the answer now. I was terrified of the pain I’d felt when I’d buried Talla.

It wasn’t a risk I wanted to take.

The end is already written,
Maaka had said once.

Is Skye my middle, or was that Talla? And are my end and Skye’s the same?

With a deep breath, I cleared my head. Of Maaka and Nil and muddy futures I couldn’t see. Then I sat up. In the far bed, Paulo slept hard. His leg boasted a three-prong splint, Jillian’s solid handiwork. He was sleeping, not moaning. And not dead. Good signs all around.

“You scared the crap out of me, you know that?” Skye’s soft whisper drew my eyes. Hers were open now, trained on me with an intensity palpable despite the dark. “And not just me. Jillian and Dex were
so
upset. You’re going to get an earful from them, just wait.”

“Let me guess. Dex called me a bloody idiot.” I grinned.

“Well, it fit.” She bit her cheek and looked hard at me. “Promise me you won’t do that again. If you’re not careful, the third time could be the charm.”

“I hear you.”

“Don’t just hear me.” Skye sat up. Our faces were centimeters apart. “Promise me,” she whispered. “Promise me you won’t drink that awful tea again.”

“I promise,” I said. Now that she was awake, I saw how tired she looked. Guilt hit me hard.

“Have you slept?” I asked.

“A little,” she said, glancing away.

“Liar, liar, pants on fire,” I whispered.

“I’m not wearing pants.” She glanced back at me, a smile lifting the corner of her mouth. “I’m wearing a skirt.”

I closed my eyes to the visual that threatened to undo me. “Right.”

“Rives.” Skye’s voice was abruptly serious.

I opened my eyes to hers.

“I’m really glad you’re okay. Those ten minutes were the worst of my life. Don’t ever do something like that again.” Her gaze had reverted to fierce.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “But Paulo. They set his leg okay, right?”

“Right.” Skye sighed.

“How many days was I out?”

“Almost three.”

Same as last time
, I thought. I wondered when Paulo would wake.

A quiet moment passed. Long, but not uncomfortable.

Out of the dark, Skye said, “I’m sorry about Talla.”

I sucked in air, having trouble finding some. “Me too.”

Another long pause. The ocean’s rumble filled the gap.

“Did you love her?” Skye asked.

I leaned back down and cradled my head in my palms. “I think I could’ve,” I answered finally. “But I never got the chance.”

“I’m so sorry,” Skye said. She slid back down, too, propping her head on her hand.

Neither of us spoke.

“Did you know that she saved Miya?” I asked.

“No.” Skye’s whisper was soft.

“She did. Miya was being chased by a wolf. Talla saw Miya running with the wolf after her, and Talla chased them both. She caught up with them and attacked the wolf. It bit her arm during the fight, clean through to the bone. Dislocated her shoulder, too.” I fell silent. “She died from the infection. And we didn’t have the tea to help her then. I think it would’ve eased her passing.”

I realized I wasn’t clenching my fists. The pain had eased, but I still felt the scar. I always would. Bart wasn’t worthy of a mention.

“That’s awful,” Skye said.

“It was. But sometimes I wonder what Miya’s destiny is. Why Nil chose her. Miya’s brilliant—like Jason, but different. He’s got the mind of an engineer. He wants to go to the Naval Academy and fly jets. But Jason says Miya wants to be a surgeon.” I stopped, surprised at the info I was spilling. Maybe that’s what happens when you sleep for nearly three days. Pent-up words burst out like water.

“She makes the nets, right?” Skye asked.

“Right.” I thought about all Miya had done. “She’s so much stronger now than she was when she first came.”

“Most people are,” Skye said quietly.

I rolled over to look at Skye. Her insight was spot-on. “You know what Maaka said? He told me the island only tests those with the strength to survive. It sounds like a crock, but sometimes it fits. Then again, it doesn’t guarantee survival, either.”

Skye studied me in the dark. “Sounds like a Nil truth.”

I nodded. “Number five. Tomorrow’s not a given, especially here.”

“Or anywhere, really,” she murmured.

I wondered if she was thinking of her uncle.

“Can I ask you a personal question?” I said.

Skye nodded.

“What happened to your uncle?”

“What happened to him or how did he die?” she asked.

“Both, I guess.”

She was quiet for a long moment. “He was base jumping off the Sydney Harbor Bridge.” Her voice was so low I strained to hear it. “His parachute malfunctioned. It opened too late. He hit the water so hard it knocked him out, and then his chute dragged him under. He drowned.” She glanced at the cheetah pelt covering her legs. “Since I read his journal, I can’t stop wondering whether he was jumping to feel fear or feel alive. Because the last line of his journal reads
I fear nothing
.” She lifted her eyes to mine. Hers looked slightly haunted. “Is that a Nil truth, Rives? That everyone leaves here different? That everyone leaves here fearless? With no regard for living?”

“No.” My whisper was firm. “I mean sure, everyone who leaves is different. How can you not be? Every experience changes you in some way. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. That’s more of a life truth than a Nil truth. But no, I don’t think Nil makes everyone lose their fear. Sharpens it, maybe. Makes you figure out what’s really worth fearing.”

The ghosts in her eyes retreated into the past.

“How many Nil truths are there?” Her lips relaxed, almost into a smile.

“Ten.” The number popped into my head without thinking.

“Seems to be a popular number here.” She quirked her eyebrow. I knew she was thinking of the deadsleep tea minute count. I thought of the number sequence on the cavern wall: 3-2-1-4. A strange island ten. “True.”

“You want to know something?” Skye tipped her head, as if she were trying to see the sky. “My birthday is February tenth. I’ll be eighteen.”

Something inside me twisted.

“Want to know something weirder?” I said. “My birthday is December tenth. I just turned eighteen a few weeks ago.”

She looked surprised. “For some reason I thought you were older.”

I grinned. “I get that a lot.”

She yawned.

“Go back to sleep, Skye,” I said quietly, getting up, careful not to step on her as I moved. She was just that close. “I’m gonna get some food. I’ve slept enough for the night.”

“Try not to eat anything starting with the word
dead
,” she said dryly.

“Sushi for me then.” I grinned. “And keep an eye on your boyfriend.” I pointed to Paulo.

Skye picked up an empty coconut cup and threw it at me. I caught it one-handed and smiled. “Thanks. I’d forgotten where I left my cup when I passed out.”

With a groan, she flopped back onto the bed. “You’re impossible,” she grumbled.

I had the oddest visual of Skye lying on top of me. In bed.

Out of my head, Nil
, I thought.

Outside, Dex wandered around the firepit, a halfhearted watch in progress. He looked as exhausted as Skye. To my surprise, he wasn’t on watch alone. Jillian sat by the firepit, her chin resting on her hands.

They both looked up at once.

“Welcome to the land of the living, Rives,” Dex said, waving his torch. “What’s on your agenda today? Lion wrestling? Traipsing around active lava vents? Noshing on dodgy berries?” Dex raised an eyebrow.

Jillian walked up and stuck her finger in my chest. “Are you trying to go out in a blaze of stupid? Do you have a death wish? What’s going on in here?” She tapped my forehead, hard. “What were you
thinking
?”

“I was thinking you needed to set Paulo’s leg,” I said. “And you did, right?”

Dex’s jaw hardened. “Bloody hell, Rives. Yes, we set the poor bloke’s leg. And yes, he’s still out. But the risk.” He swallowed, his Adam’s apple convulsing. “Jills nearly had a stroke, not to mention Skye. The three of us sat around, counting down the minutes, waiting to see if the next breath would be your last. A Nil nightmare, that was. Never again, mate.” His voice shook.

I nodded.
Never again.

Jillian’s eyes narrowed. “So do you?”

“Do I what?”

“Have a death wish.”

“No.”

“I wish I could believe you.” She searched my eyes, then sighed. “Would you please give up the damn tea?”

“Done,” I said.

“Really.” Dex’s tone was droll. “Just like that.”

“Just like that.”

Jillian stared at me, like she was trying to figure it out. To figure
me o
ut. “Okay, well, good.” She paused. “You should know Skye never left your side. I think you freaked her out pretty hard. I don’t think you should put her through that ever again. When she wakes, you should tell her you’re sorry.”

“Already did,” I said.

“Excellent,” Dex said, walking over. Jillian gave me a long, searching look as Dex handed me his torch. “I relinquish the job of Leader to its rightful owner. I’m bloody exhausted, and you’ve slept enough for the two of us.”

“See you in the morning,” Jillian said quietly. She still studied me like an equation she was working to solve. With a yawn, she followed Dex. They disappeared into Natalie’s old hut, his hand gently touching the small of her back as he let her go first.

Interesting
, I thought.

Another possible Nil shift while I slept.

Alone, I paused to listen, breathing in the Nil night. No chirps, no howls, just steady waves booming onto shore. Above me the moon hung high. Waxing gibbous, if I remembered my astronomy correctly. No crescent.

Skye would know
, came the thought.

I walked over to the Wall. Skye’s name stood out, the last one carved. Four letters, etched forever.

Somehow her name on the Wall made her presence more real—and more fragile. More frightening. Like Nil had finally laid claim to Skye, like her uncle twenty years before.

I scoured the Wall for Rika but came up empty. She never made it onto the Wall.

But she’d been here, I knew.

Like Maaka.

I didn’t have to look to know his name wasn’t on the Wall.

How many others came and went but never touched the City? And more importantly,
why?

CHAPTER

44

SKYE

DAY 15, MORNING

I woke to face an empty bed. Rives was gone. But I knew he was alive, awake, and more like himself.

I hoped he’d keep his promise.

Jillian swept into the hut with a pitcher and cup as I yawned. “Breakfast,” she whispered, grinning. “We come bearing food.”

Dex followed, carrying a platter of baked fish, roasted pineapple, and coconut chunks that smelled like heaven. “With all that staring at half-dressed men, you must be famished.” He winked.

“Ha,” I said, glaring weakly at Dex.

He laughed as Jillian punched him playfully. “Stop,” she scolded. Dex caught her fist and kissed it with a grand bow.

Blushing, Jillian turned to me and frowned. “Skye, you’re starting to look worse than he does.” She waved her hand toward Paulo. “You need to eat, and then sleep.”

“I’m okay,” I said. “I really did sleep last night. Promise.”

Jillian raised her eyebrows. “Okayyyy.”

Dex set the plank beside me on the bed. “Any sign of life from our guest?” He tilted his head toward Paulo.

“None. When do you think he’ll wake up?” I asked. “Rives woke up in the middle of the night.”

“I know,” Jillian said. “But as for Paulo, no clue. He’s hurt, his body is healing, so does that make the tea last longer or be absorbed faster?” She pulled on one of her braids. “But I’m not surprised that Rives woke first. Pound per pound, he got a slightly lighter dose.”

I thought about that. “I don’t know. I think Rives drank more; I remember his cup being slightly fuller.”

“Idiot,” Dex muttered.

Rives stuck his head in and grinned. “You need me, Dex?” His green eyes twinkled.

“We all do, mate. Preferably alive.” Dex gave Rives a pointed look.

“At least he’s done with that awful tea,” I said.

Dex looked at me curiously. “Is he, now?”

I nodded. “He promised me last night he wouldn’t drink it again.” I glanced at Rives. Lounging against the doorframe, arms crossed but relaxed, he watched me, a hint of a smile touching his lips, his eyes holding that look that gave me chills. The one that said we were alone even when we totally weren’t.

“Skye?”

I whipped my eyes to Jillian.