Stronger (3 page)

I bite back a scream and spin around, throwing my skinny arms up defensively.

“Whoa! Easy!”

I recognize the voice and I instantly still. It’s Ty. My brother is here, his green eyes watching me. “I think we’re on the same side.”

I slink back toward the shadows, trying to hide my face in the darkness. “Ty?”

His eyes narrow. “You know who I am, huh?”

Of course I do. I would know him even if I weren’t his sister. “I do.”

We stare at each other. I haven’t seen him in years and now twice in one night? I swallow. “Are you an Orion spy?”

“No. Are you?” He runs his hand through his shoulder length dark brown hair. “Come into the light where I can see you.”

Ty’s face is clearly visible, lit by the perfect purple sphere of the full moon slanting through the slotted window.

I remain in the shadows. “No, I’d rather the next great warrior not be able to identify me.”

Only in my cell of the rebels would I dream of talking so openly and defiantly to a Val.

Without warning his hand darts out and grabs me, dragging me forward into the moonlight. I struggle against his iron grip, but it’s useless. He pushes my pink hair back from my face and tilts my head up. Our eyes meet and his mouth falls open. Hope takes flight in my chest. He knows it’s me!

“You’re a Deb.”

The hope crashes.

“So?” I meet his gaze. His eyes widen, surprised by my lack of respect.

He drops his hand and wipes it against his pants like my weakness could leak into him.

“I just didn’t know that…”

“That a Deb could be useful?”

“Would be brave enough to join the rebellion.”

I fold my arms across my chest. “It’s our planet too.”

He looks away from me. “I know.”

People would be horrified if they saw us like this. A Deb and a Val talking like we were equals. Debilii are never allowed to interact in such a way with one of the Valudis. It could mean death for a me, and public shame for Ty.

Clearing my throat, I look around. “The others aren’t here?”

“Not yet; I was the first and you the second.”

“How long have you been in the resistance?” I ask.

“A few years. You?”

A few years? Are my parents part of it? Did Uncle Charlie tell them I’m alive? I want to ask but I can’t. He repeats his question.

“A lot longer than that.”

Ty watches me through narrowed eyes. “How old were you when you joined?”

“Five.”

His eyes bulge. “Five?”

I nod. And then so does he, his finger absently tracing the new scar running across his knuckles.

“Nice scar. Did you get it from digging through the debris when that Deb factory collapsed?”

“Some of the glass cut me when I moved it. Up here too.” He slides his sleeve up to show off the pale ridge decorating his muscular arm.

“How much tougher is it?”

“Not too much. I’m a little bit harder to cut now, that’s all.” He shrugs and pulls his sleeve back down. Ty already sports a collection of scars most warriors would envy. Only one Val at the school has more.

“I heard Bryant has a new scar, too.” I wish I could see it in person, and wonder what it must feel like.

“How did you hear?” he asks, the corner of his mouth tugging his lips into a reluctant smile.

I sigh, my cheeks flushing. I decide to be honest; I’m not ashamed. “I’m a member of his fan club. Yours too.”

Ty’s lips tremble. “Don’t believe everything you hear. Half the stuff the feeds run is fiction.”

“So he doesn’t have a new scar?”

He rolls his eyes. “Yeah, he does, from the fire at the orphanage. He keeps holding his hand over open flames, testing his new higher tolerance. It has every girl at the academy tripping all over him.”

“That’s not new,” I say, laughing. “There’s always a group of girls following him.”

“How would you know?” Ty’s eyes widen. “Do you work at the academy?”

I nod. “In the greenhouses, and once a week in the Information Center.”

“Oh. I don’t remember seeing you.”

I shrug. Most Vals never really look at us, and wouldn’t remember us if they did. “Anyway, I wanted to let you know how great I think it is that you and Bryant helped at the factory. A lot of Vals wouldn’t…” I stop, realizing I’m pushing the conversation too far.

Thankfully he changes the subject. “You thinking of getting a warrior-tat of Bryant’s new burn?”

Warrior-tats are pricey, but most Debs have them. For the price of a meal, a Deb can give their own unblemished, non-healing skin the glamour of a scar, a way to emulate their Val heroes, if only for a few weeks. Pay a few credits more, and they’ll use expanding ink in the henna tat to give it the texture of a real scar. “Maybe.”

I wipe at my nose.

The wooden floor groans as Ty adjusts his stance. “You’re bleeding.”

“Yeah.” My shoulders slump.

He doesn’t say anything. He knows what it means. “How did it happen?”

“I was in the wrong section and a Val caught me.”

“Doing something for the rebellion?”

“No,” I say. “I was being stupid, visiting someone’s grave. You gave me a few hours longer to live, stopping Lee the way you did.”

Ty’s jaw tightens. “That was you?”

I nod slowly. “Thank you. For helping.”

“Sorry I didn’t do more.”

“It was enough. I—” My words cut off at the sound of footsteps and I slip back into the shadows. Ty motions for me to stay low and moves closer to the door.

He draws his sword, holding it at the ready until the five quick knocks let us know it’s another member of the rebellion. A female Val scientist, still wearing her lab coat, pokes her head in, looking around cautiously before entering. I’ve worked with Jena before. Her glossy black hair is cut into a bob and she’s almost as tall as Ty.

Two men in their fifties follow close behind her. From the looks of their expensive clothes, they’re both landowners, clearly too old to still defend Earth in our war with the Musks. It must be nice to be a retired Val Warrior, getting to actually own land. Though Jena can’t be a warrior—females never are—her work as a scientist will award her a few acres when she retires someday.

Ty leads us to a backroom lined with rows of shelves where we could hide in case of a raid. He lights an old fashioned lantern. It’s too risky to use the overhead lights.

Jena pushes her glasses up on her nose. “Who’s coming tonight?”

“Since we’re a new cell, I’m not sure.” Ty pushes aside a rusted toolbox and sets the lantern on the dusty shelf. “It could only be the five us.”

One of the retired Warriors calls the meeting to order. “Let’s start then. Any new information?”

Ty shakes his head. “The school has been quiet.”

“Anything new in the labs?”

Jena shifts from foot to foot. “Nothing.”

None of them look at me, not even a glance. I might be part of the same fight but I’m still a Deb, a second class citizen. I kick at the splintered wooden floor. “I found another termination list.”

“You?” Ty asks.

“It’s always me. I’m always the one who gets the list.”

“But it won’t be for much longer,” he says. The others are staring at Ty, not giving me their attention. “She’s dying. We’ll need to get another Deb into her role.”

Jena’s lips twist. “There
isn’t
another one. It took years to train her and teach her to read.”

Ty jerks back. “You can read?”

I drop my chin in acknowledgment. It hadn’t taken years to train me, but Charlie never corrected that particular rumor. “I have to read to hack into the system.”

I show him my signacom, then type in my password. Pressing my personal device against the tablet Jena brought with her, I transfer the data, then quickly delete the list. My device is scanned every day. I can’t risk getting caught with anything of value.

Jena takes the tablet from me and quickly scans the list. “There are two immediate terminations scheduled. The first is Zachary Collins.”

“Zachary Collins?” I shouldn’t be shocked that a decorated war hero who took a Musk hoof to the chest rescuing his troop is on the list to be killed, but I am.

“He’s becoming too popular.” Jena looks back to her tablet. “We need someone to take him to our associates.”

“I’ve seen him before at the academy,” I say. “Maybe I can…”

Ty steps forward, the floor squeaking beneath him. “He won’t be at the school. He only visits there occasionally. Besides, he wouldn’t listen to a Deb. I’ve met him a few times. I’ll take the assignment.”

“You’ll have to find him quickly.” Jena taps her device. “He’ll be at Warrior Headquarters this evening, running drills for a troop shipping out tomorrow. Will you be able to reach him there?”

“It shouldn’t be a problem,” Ty says. “Some of us at the academy are allowed over into that part of the facility. I’ll go as soon as we finish here.”

Jena nods. “The next name on the list is Carlos Mendoza.”

I gasp. Carlos Mendoza is one of the kindest Vals I’d ever met. On more than one occasion I’d seen him share his meal with a hungry Deb. “Why would they kill him?”

“They probably don’t like his politics,” Jena says.

I dab at my nose and raise my hand. “He’s almost always near the greenhouses first thing in the morning. I can get to him.”

“Would he listen to a Deb?” Ty asks.

One of the landowners snorts. “He might be the only Val who would.”

Jena looks at me. “He’s your assignment. Here’s his info.” She taps her tablet and sends the file to my signacom.

“I’ll save him,” I promise, already planning how to approach him.

“Anything new in town?” one retired Warrior asks the other.

“Well, I received a message this morning from—”

The pounding on the door has us all—except Ty—scuttling to hide behind the shelves. Ty turns off the lantern as I hear the door in the front room open. A large silhouette fills the doorway.

“Who’s there?” Ty squints into the darkness as he walks away from us. “Bryant?”

Bryant
? I slide a dusty bottle aside to peek around at Bryant. My mouth goes dry as he steps into the moonlight. Bryant Donovan. My eyes drink in the sight of him and my stomach flips like it used to when Ty would toss me over his shoulder.

Bryant’s coal-black hair is buzzed short, revealing the scars on his neck, and his belt looks like it’s made of fur. Rumors say it’s from the pelt of an escaped panthacat that tried to make him its lunch. He’s taller than I remember; the video clips on the tiny screen of my signacom don’t do his strong arms and broad shoulders justice.

“I was walking by and saw the light. I wanted to make sure there weren’t any squatters here,” Bryant says.

Nope, no illegal squatters. Just a group of rebels planning to overthrow the government.

Bryant salutes Ty and the movement reveals a thick ropy burn on the underside of his arm, a bumpy band that breaks up the smoothness of his flesh. I’ve heard about it, but seeing it in person makes my heart beat a little quicker. And it’s just one of many on his beautifully embellished body, each mark a physical testament to his bravery, and each injury making him physically stronger, closer to becoming the perfect, invincible warrior.

And more beautiful.

“What are you doing out here?” Bryant asks.

Ty gestures toward the empty room and I duck. “I was waiting for Penny, but that tease never came.”

Bryant slaps his back. “Didn’t I warn you about her?”

Ty laughs and I’m surprised Bryant doesn’t notice how strained it sounds.

They badmouth Penny, and talk about some training exercise from the day before as they head out the door. With an internal sigh I stare after them until Bryant’s wide shoulders disappear into the night. With his strength, scars, and grace it’s no wonder he has fan clubs and a constant stream of girls circling him. Every female Val whether scientist, store keeper, or pampered princess wants to claim him. But I noticed him first.

It started with him rescuing my doll from Ty’s clutches. That’s where he got the scar above his left eye. It’s still my favorite one, part of the daydreams I’ve harbored about him since childhood. But those daydreams wilted after today’s feed. Now he’s Starburst’s. If only he knew the truth.

I sometimes wonder… if Uncle Charlie hadn’t killed me, would I have had a chance to win Bryant’s heart? As much as I wish the answer were yes, it’s not. He might not have cared I was a Deb when we were children, but he would now.

The rest of us leave without saying a word, slipping out one at a time. When I step outside, I can still make out my brother’s form in the distance. It was a blessing that I saw Ty tonight before I died. He even talked to me. I’d delivered one last termination list and saved another batch of people.

I should probably head for bed but I don’t want to waste what precious time I have left sleeping. If Uncle Charlie weren’t away on some assignment, I would risk visiting him and getting to say goodbye. I’m keyed up and wanting to do something. But there isn’t much I can do this late at night and I don’t have any information… except that Zachary Collins, hero of the Musk Wars, will die soon. Ty’s supposed to meet with him tonight. Will chasing Bryant off delay him? Before I even realize it, I’m walking to Warrior Headquarters.