Who was listening to Carrick and me outside the cabin door tonight?
We run up six flights of stairs, trying to be quiet as our shoes hit the metal, and reach the rooftop. Bahee is ahead of us all, standing at the high-security door entrance, holding it open. Everyone runs inside and down a corridor. I start to relax at seeing the size of the door, a big steel shield from the Whistleblowers, and the wall beside it covered with all kinds of security keypads and locks. Safety is in sight.
Evelyn runs in ahead of me. When it’s my turn, Bahee blocks the entrance.
His smile has vanished, his eyes are cold behind the tinted glasses. He holds on to the door handle tightly.
“Bahee?” I say, a nervous tremor in my voice.
“Remember, you brought this on us. You should never have come here.” And he slams the door in my face.
TWENTY-FIVE
I’M LEFT STANDING on the rooftop in absolute shock, while an army of Whistleblowers streams into the compound below. Their red suits are gaudy and warn of danger; it’s like they bleed into the courtyard. They’re dressed in their riot gear, with their black helmets and shields. What do they think is going to happen? A shoot-out? And then I realize it’s all for the media. To show the public just how dangerous Celestine North is.
It’s too late for me to hide anywhere now; I’m completely exposed on the rooftop, all they need to do is look up. I’m surrounded. There’s no way of getting down off this roof, not alive anyway.
The Whistleblowers climb the metal fire escape, and the first feeling of panic consumes me. It’s over. After all this, it’s over. But then a hatch opens in the ground beside me and a head pops up. I leap away and retreat to the corner, thinking it’s a Whistleblower.
“Come on!” Leonard says impatiently, nervously.
I have one second to judge his honesty. I curse myself for not going with Carrick when I had the chance. He’s the only person I trust. I hear the Whistleblowers’ boots on the metal stairs. Leonard’s face is open and honest; Carrick said I could trust Leonard. I trust Carrick. Granddad said don’t trust anybody. I trust Granddad. My head spins.
With no other options open to me, I take a leap of faith and hurry toward him. He’s standing on a ladder and offers me his hand. I take it and lower myself inside while Leonard shuts the hatch quickly and silently above us. We are in a narrow passage, I’m not sure if it’s for ventilation or heating, but the air is tight and it’s close. We’re crouched down, hunched over.
Leonard holds his fingers to his lips to keep me quiet, but he doesn’t need to tell me that—I’m terrified, and I know he is, too, from the sound of our short breaths in the tight space. We hear the Whistleblowers’ boots clambering around above us trying to figure out the magic act: How did Celestine North disappear?
My heart pounds, and sweat glistens on Leonard’s brow; I can smell the fear emanating from him. People I love have surprised me by hurting me, and it’s been the people I’ve least expected who have redeemed and restored my faith. It never ceases to both break my heart and amaze me. Juniper could probably have predicted this, she always understood people and situations so much better than I did. If she was watching me from anywhere she’d probably be saying, “Now you’re getting it, Celestine!”
The heavy footsteps above us are circling, scurrying around in panic, all order lost, like a trail of ants that have lost their scent. I didn’t know the hatch was here until it opened, the outline faint and flush with the surface. I’m hoping they won’t see it, but they’re Whistleblowers—they’re trained to see everything; they don’t miss a trick.
“They won’t be able to open it from up there,” Leonard whispers, his hot breath on my neck. “They can’t gain access from outside.” He points to the panel on the ceiling, which opens with the swipe of a security key card. “But it’s only a matter of time until they try to find their way to us from another angle.”
The stomping on the hatch ends and we begin to hear pounding on Bahee’s door instead. I think of Carrick’s parents, Cordelia, little Evelyn, and Mona, all huddled inside, thinking they were safe.
You brought this on yourself. I direct Bahee’s words back at him angrily. Bahee, the peace-loving leader. If he has orchestrated this search to get rid of me, then it’s his fear of change that brought greater change than I ever would have, and will inevitably hurt the people he loves the most.
“Bahee locked me out of the room,” I whisper to Leonard. “Could he have called the Whistleblowers? I don’t get why he’d risk his own safety.”
“I’m not surprised.” He shakes his head angrily. “Lizzie always thought Bahee was a creep. She couldn’t stand him. I’m sure it was him.”
And at that, I am surprised by how little I have learned after all. I fell for Bahee’s nice-guy act.
I feel that I owe Leonard something.
“I asked Mona about Lizzie,” I whisper, and despite what’s happening above us I have his full attention. “She said that Lizzie told you she was Flawed, that you didn’t want anything to do with her, and she ran away heartbroken.”
“That never happened,” he says, hurt, angry.
He says it too loudly. I push my hand to his mouth. His eyes are wide and he nods quickly, understanding, keen to continue our conversation.
“I told you,” he whispers, “I knew she was Flawed all along. Or I suspected. Her brand was on her chest. She was funny about me touching her…” His face goes beet red. “I wouldn’t have cared; I would never have let her go. I wanted her to confide in me; I kept bringing up the fact that I’m against the Guild, trying to make it easy for her to tell me. Why would Lizzie tell Mona that?”
I frown, trying to work it all out, but I can’t. Was Mona lying to me? I don’t know her well enough—I don’t know anybody here well enough, but even so, that idea of her feels wrong.
I shake my head. “I don’t know. But we’ll find out,” I say, determined.
The Whistleblowers’ footsteps retreat back down the fire escape.
“Thanks for your help, Leonard. I appreciate what you’ve risked.”
“I’m just following your lead. During the trial you said you helped the old man because it was the right thing to do. Compassion and logic,” he says. “I’m voting the Vital Party.”
I smile.