“No,” Catherine said firmly.
“It has to be me. If they are reluctant, it’s the only way to persuade them to join us.” Rose spoke as though she had decided this ages ago. But because it was Rose, and because everyone wanted to protect her, voices rang out in protest across the room.
“Too dangerous.”
“You can’t be harmed!”
“We will find another way.”
Even Miss Rao was shaking her head in disapproval.
I was torn clean in two. It would help, of course, to have Rose there, but the desire to wrap her in blankets and keep her safe forever was overwhelming.
But my glorious sister, who was secretly at least as stubborn as I was, calmly insisted. “I know you want me safe, but this is what I want. I couldn’t live with myself if you were all captured or killed, or if everyone in the Society was trapped there for the rest of their lives. I want to go.”
Whether or not Rose ever went to medical school and became a doctor, she would always want to help people. It made the decision easier for me.
For Catherine as well, it seemed. “Then if it’s what you want to do, you should do it.” Catherine’s clear, firm voice cut through the grumblings.
And as my sister’s jaw dropped a little, I realized something about Rose’s power. It wasn’t just the amount of exposure that affected how we treated her. Part of it was who we were. It was why Mr. Hale’s and Camille’s love manifested itself as selfish and possessive. Why the murderous Mr. Jarsdel was quite eager to kill for her. Why our protective mother was so strict with us. And why Catherine and I agreed to put her at risk if it’s what she wanted.
Though my sister said nothing, I had the feeling she realized this, too. Her eyes looked different, hope brightening the blues. I could swear I watched Rose fall further in love at that moment.
“Really?” she asked.
“Of course.” Catherine looked almost puzzled. “I want you to be happy.” Her voice trailed off and she blushed as she realized the others were looking on, bewildered.
“I am going,” Rose announced again, more firmly, still smiling at Catherine.
“She is going,” Catherine repeated, before dropping her smile and fixing the rest of us with very stern stares. “So we better come up with a plan that keeps her safe.”
Chapter Twenty-One
THE TEN OF us stood gathered on a rooftop, staring at the Tower of London, the Thames resting between us. The city lay shrouded in shadows at three in the morning. The sky sat starless, and silence blanketed the river. It felt like the world was closing its eyes and taking a deep breath.
With my opera glasses, I swept my gaze over our target. The White Tower was the one brightly lit building, standing tall in the center of the inner ward, taunting us. It was surrounded by smaller buildings and houses and then an inner wall and an outer one. I could barely make out anything else beyond the general shapes of the battlements and towers, but Arthur and William could apparently hear and see straight to the heart of the castle.
“It’s as Miss Lewis said, ’e’s in the White Tower,” Arthur said, pointing to the tall keep. “Sleeping.”
“And ’e’s got Braddock and Kent a floor below, chained up,” William said with a cringe. “A couple guards watching them, I see.”
“But only a few along the outer wall. No one watchin’ the Traitors’ Gate,” Arthur added, pointing to the half-hidden boat entrance.
“Get through there, break a small hole in the inner wall, and you’ll find the rest sleeping in those houses,” William said, making it sound like a simple trip to the market.
“Could Mr. Pratt be creating an illusion?” I asked.
“He’s not good enough to hide all those people, even enhanced,” Miss Chen said. “Too much movement to keep track of everything.”
“And we can see through them,” William said.
“Good.”
“That doesn’t mean I don’t think there’s a trap,” Miss Chen clarified. “I would like it on the record that there will probably be one.”
“As long as we can sneak Rose inside,” I said, watching Miss Rao’s thick fog over the Thames grow even thicker. The black river was much more daunting in person than on a map, but I had to keep reminding myself that it was better to approach from the dark river than the well-lit streets north of the tower. Rose just needed a moment to speak to the Society peacefully, to sway them before they were ordered to kill us.
“Is everyone ready?” I asked.
Our group slowly came together on the corner of the rooftop. Miss Rao and Miss Chen nodded to me. Emily gave Laura a big hug and promised to bring her brother back. Mr. Adeoti gave me an encouraging smile and wrapped a ribbon around my wrist so he could record the adventure in case I died, which he assured me I definitely wouldn’t. Rose handed her medical bag to Catherine, and they spoke softly in shadows at the far corner. Before Rose turned to join us, Catherine pulled her back and gave her a gentle kiss, and my heart leaped. I bit my lip against a smile, praying that we could keep Rose safe so this would be their first of many.
In pairs, Emily floated Miss Rao, Miss Chen, Rose, and myself down to the ground before following herself. Silently, we made our way to the embankment. Clouds covered the moon, their outlines glowing gray and blue in the sky. The water was a mirror image with patches of fog floating along the surface. Silhouettes of masts and docks matched the spires and towers along the skyline.
We found a skiff nearby, locked to a dock, rolling with the steady tide. Miss Chen broke it free, Emily adjusted the sail with a wave of her hand, and Miss Rao’s gentle wind came in from behind. We crossed the quiet river, not a word passing between us. The sound of a distant ship horn echoed. The water kept time with its gentle, rhythmic splashes. Thunder rumbled across the Thames as Miss Rao eyed the sky, setting dark clouds in place over the tower in preparation for her lightning strikes. Emily stood at the bow, ready to maneuver around any obstacle that might suddenly appear in the thick fog. Miss Chen closed her eyes, deep in meditation as she tried to raise her powers as much as she possibly could.
About halfway across, we veered rather close to a small boat. Drunken men who had decided to end their night with a trip down the river. Even through the haze, their eyes slowly settled on Rose. “’Ey, girlie,” one managed before his jaw snapped shut, courtesy of Emily.
Another tried to charm us, and she quieted him, too. I held a finger to my lips, a message that the third sailor apparently could not comprehend.
“Now listen here—”
And Emily flung him overboard, which quieted the rest of them.
As they faded into the fog, trying to pull their friend out of the water, I breathed a sigh of relief. Only a little farther and—
A blast of water surged out of the river, coiling around my arm like a tentacle. It wrenched me halfway out of the boat, but Emily reacted quickly, seizing me telekinetically by my other arm, pulling me back in. More tentacles of water slithered out, wrapping around our boat, hugging it like an affectionate octopus. Before they could crush the wood to pieces, the tentacles burst apart into harmless splashes of water, thanks to Miss Chen’s gaze. Miss Rao’s winds increased, pushing us faster toward the tower.
Unfortunately, there was plenty more water between our destination and us. A giant wave emerged, slowly blocking our view of the tower. Behind it, Mr. Seward rose up atop a spire of water, looking entirely drenched and grumpy, like I imagined Poseidon might.
“Was he sleeping down there?” Emily asked.
“We’ll see soon enough,” Miss Chen said. “I can’t break that wave. It’s absurd.”
“Then we’ll use it against him,” I said. “Miss Rao, can you—”