“They will return for you, Lena. You shine as bright as the Sun, and they want your light. They would do anything to possess it. They will come.”
Lena jumped at the faint knock at Gloria’s door. At a Keresan word from Gloria, a boy of about twelve entered from the deep of night. Lena recognized the Keresan words for one man, “ishk hachtzeh.” Reyes? Back again already? Was she already bringing unwanted guests to the Kewa? Gloria and the boy spoke for a moment before she turned to Lena.
“There is a man who says he is a friend come to warn you of danger. He says it’s important that he speak with you.”
Lena waited. One didn’t just get up and go when Gloria was speaking. Gloria held her gaze for a moment. When the woman spoke again, she spoke quietly, like always.
“You have to make a decision soon.”
“I know,” she said. “And I know I should go away somewhere. But this is my home. It’s all I know.”
“Fear of the unknown is a reason to go, not stay.” Gloria’s voice had taken on a chiding tone. “If you stay, it should be because you love a place, not because you’re afraid to move on.” She slid her hand along the tabletop. “If you’re going to stay because you’re afraid, then you might as well go live with them in their city. Everyone there stays because they are afraid.”
“I won’t go back to the city. Life isn’t worth living under their rules. I’d rather die.”
“So. You would die for freedom. What would you live for?”
Lena stared at Gloria. She could feel her brow furrowing. “I don’t—for the same thing?”
“No. You said you would die to be free. If you are given a choice, if you must choose between freedom in death and the life they offer, what would make you choose to live? Figure that out, and you will know what is really at stake. You will know why you must return.”
Lena’s brows rose almost to her hairline. She wouldn’t return to the city. She opened her mouth to say so, but it was too late. Gloria pursed her lips in the direction of the door.
She rose to her feet as Gloria nodded at the boy. Lena followed him out, giving herself a moment to allow her eyes to adjust to the dark. The boy waited for her in the middle of the narrow road. When she moved forward, he trotted off into the night. She quickened her steps to keep up, arms going around her own body to ward against the cold. When they turned onto the Pueblo’s main road, she could see the twin beams of a car’s lights, the silhouettes of armed Kewa warriors to either side. She shook her head at the waste of energy.
It wasn’t the Volt. Not Reyes. She hissed silently at the quick flit of disappointment through her belly before the man behind the wheel leaned out.
“Ace!” She sped up, jogging the final distance to the car. He unfolded himself from the front seat, relief spreading across his face with his smile.
“Lena!” He bent down to pull her up into his arms and shake her like a rag doll. “Damn, girlie, you’re going to be the death of me.”
She laughed as she pulled away. The laughter faded at the worry on his face. “What are you doing all the way out here? And at this hour? Do you want agents knocking on your door?”
He cocked a brow at her and rubbed a hand across his bald head. “I’ve already got agents dropping my name. Yours, too.”
Her eyes closed. She shook her head. “Ace, I’m sorry. I never meant to bring trouble on anyone—”
“You didn’t bring any trouble on me. And even if you had—” he flicked the tip of her nose and then pulled her back in for another hug “—you know you’re worth every minute.”
She wrapped her arms tight around his waist and leaned her head into his lower chest. She regretted, not for the first time, that she and Ace could never be together. She wasn’t the correct gender. Other than her father’s, his were the only arms she’d ever felt safe in. Now the Council had found Ace, too.
“What happened? They didn’t bother you at work, did they?” She tipped her head back to look up at him. He worked for Wallace & Aceves Imports, also known as the Dragonfly House, one of the most powerful trade groups. They had their fingers in all nine Council Zones. They were powerful. They were also paranoid.
“No.” He shook his head and wrinkled his forehead. “He found me at the Piece of Asp.”
“He?” She knew who before Ace even answered.
“Uh huh. Beautiful, dangerous man. Likes expensive tequila. And pain-in-the-ass redheads. You know him?”
“Reyes.” Lena rolled her eyes. “He does not like me, I promise. He came out here to arrest me.”
Ace reached out to gently grasp her chin and pull her face up. He examined her with a familiar, searching look. “Oh, hell no. Lena. No. Not that man.”