Caroline had been referring to the Realm, and not Jack and my family.
‘You drugged your husband?’ I said, trying to control my anger.
‘I drugged you, too,’ she whispered. ‘The milk … the dinner. But it didn’t work.’
That explained why I had been so sleepy. ‘My body temperature is much higher than the average Mage. I’d burn off any drugs you added.’
‘I didn’t think about that. I’d hoped you’d be unconscious, so I could send a message to the Realm.’
It was amazing, really, the lengths a mother would go to get her child back.
‘Look … I know you’d do anything to get your son back, Mrs. Greenwood. Really, I understand how you feel-’
‘You have no idea how I feel!’ she sobbed. I heard her lean against the door, and slide down it.
‘My sister is a human,’ I confessed. ‘The Realm took her a couple of months ago. That’s why Jack and I visited you the first time … we were heading to Concord City to get her back.’
‘Did you … did you find her?’
‘Yes,’ I said. ‘We got her back … but … but she wasn’t the same afterward. They changed her. She doesn’t know who I am, or who she is, even.’
‘But you’ve got her?’
‘In a way, I suppose. Her memories are gone … or locked away, or something.’
‘Her memories? You don’t think-’
‘I’m sure Jaime is fine,’ I lied. Just because I’d taken Korra Waterson’s memories, and forced Alastor Newman to leave the city, did not mean that humans were not being processed.
‘How’d you do it?’ Mrs. Greenwood asked. ‘How did you get her back?’
I scoffed. ‘Why do you think there is a bounty over my head? I broke the law. I took her back through force.’
I heard Mrs. Greenwood chuckle through her tears. ‘Would you do it again, knowing what you know now? If you knew that the Realm would issue a warrant for your arrest-’
‘I’d do it again. Of course I would. She’s my sister.’
There was silence for several minutes. I leaned my head against the locked door, and sighed.
‘Is it true what the posters say?’ she asked suddenly. ‘Are you the leader of the human alliance?’
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Why the hell not? Sure, I would be the leader of the human alliance, if that’s what the Realm wanted to accuse me of.
‘Mrs. Greenwood, I want to free humans like your son.’
‘You can get Jaime back?’
I didn’t want to give her false hope, but how else would I get out? I could always set the house on fire … but this was Jack’s father’s house, too.
‘I can try.’
The door swung open, and Mrs. Greenwood was beaming at me.
Chapter Seven
The Unrecognisable City
‘I thought I was going to have to burn the door down,’ I said, relieved that Mrs. Greenwood had unlocked it.
‘Avalon, I’m so sorry-’
‘It’s fine. Let’s just forget about it, okay?’
‘No, you don’t understand,’ Mrs. Greenwood said with wide eyes. ‘You have to leave … right now.’
‘Why?’
‘I … I sent a message to the guards.’
‘You what? When?’
‘When you were bathing.’ Mrs. Greenwood looked at me imploringly. ‘I’m sorry … I want Jaime back so badly … I’d do anything.’
I was both furious and saddened by Mrs. Greenwood’s decision to alert the guards of my whereabouts.
‘Please,’ Mrs. Greenwood said, putting her face in her hands. ‘Just go … before I change my mind.’
I put a hand on her shoulder. ‘You’re doing the right thing,’ I said.
‘Where will you go?’ she asked.
I did not want to tell Mrs. Greenwood where I was going. What if she changed her mind, and told the Realm in exchange for her son? No, I couldn’t risk it. Besides, even I didn’t know where I was going.
‘I’m not sure,’ I said. ‘There’s nowhere for me to go. I don’t have any friends or family-’
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Someone was knocking on the shop door, downstairs.
I froze, staring wide-eyed at Mrs. Greenwood.
‘They’re here,’ she said, gazing down the hall with a wanting expression. Looking back at me, she said, ‘Get out of here.’
I dashed back into Jaime’s room and retrieved my rucksack, the ridiculous silk nightdress offering no support. Flinging the bag over my shoulder, I ran into the hall, where Mrs. Greenwood waited for me. The banging on the door downstairs continued.
‘How do I get out?’ I asked. The Greenwood’s apartment had only once entrance – through the shop front, but that wasn’t a likely option at the moment.
‘The bathroom window,’ Mrs. Greenwood said hesitantly. She wrung her fingers together, glancing over her shoulder. I could tell she was questioning her decision to let me go.
Squeezing past her, I slipped into the bathroom and found the tiny window above the tub. It was several feet above my head, but if I stood on the edge of the bath, I might be able to reach it. It was small, but I was slim enough to slide through.