Wings of the Walker - CoraLee June Page 0,133

asked, I needed to know. I craved to understand their dynamic .

"I stopped loving Jacob when I almost killed him. A love like that is too destructive," she replied, and I agreed. Unrequited love made even the best of people toxic and bitter.

We made our way towards an abandoned building with boarded up windows and trash scattered along its red-brick exterior. I recognized that we were in one of the many towns that died when X hit, and I noticed a rusted sign that indicated the city was called Tombstone; a fitting name for such a ghostly place. We stopped the transport, and Jules cloaked the outside so that no one could easily find us. We made our way inside the abandoned building and were greeted with dusty mismatched furniture, rat droppings, and the smell of rotted food. Once Tallis saw us, he waltzed forward and grabbed Jules’ face. She looked distressed, and he examined every square inch of her.

“I’m fine, no need to make a big production of it,” she snarled in response, causing Tallis to smirk then look at me.

“It pleases me to see that you both survived the trip,” he said in his smoky voice. I noticed how close he stood to Jules.

“Please tell me you have a plan to get them back, Tallis,” I begged while pinching my thigh through the thick material of my Galla-style dress. I felt dirty and exhausted but was eager to rescue my guys, now. I lacked the know-how as well as the training to ambush a heavily guarded facility, but I felt reckless and desperate. I wanted my family back.

“I have a plan, but you’re not going to like it,” Tallis said while rolling up his sleeves, revealing his forearms. I noticed Jules swallow in appreciation. There was definitely something between them. I could almost feel the sparks cracking throughout the room. “Maverick briefly explained emperorLackley's purpose for abducting them, and I think our best move is to let the rest of the world know,” Tallis explained. He poured me a glass of water and handed it to me .

“Who is going to believe a Walker and a Scavenger?” Jules scoffed while crossing her arms and rolling her eyes. “If emperorLackley even thinks there's a rebellion on his doorstep, he’ll go on a killing spree.”

“I don’t think so. I think he’ll be too busy worrying about the mass of people wanting to kill him,” Tallis said with a mischievous grin. “And it won't be a Walker and a Scavenger telling the world, it will be the beautiful, tear-stained face of Cyler and Maverick Black’s baby sister,” Tallis said with a smirk.

"You want to put my face on a rebellion?" Jules shrieked, evidently not fond of this idea.

"It'll provide the distraction we need to keep emperorLackley busy; it might even get him killed, there will be a lot of angry people at his doorstep. Once all hell breaks loose we'll swoop in to rescue them," Tallis argued.

"I . . . don't think I'm the right person to do this," Jules countered. I watched their battle with interest.

Tallis moved even closer to Jules, and I blushed at the intensity that burned between them. "If you want to be the person you're destined to become, you must decide on what kind of person you want to be, Agapimenos." The nickname rolled off his tongue, and I wondered what it meant. "You are the person that's going to be strong and stand up for what’s right. You are going to save your family," he whispered. Jules' eyes wavered in exhaustion.

"I don't want to be anything," Jules argued. "I'm here to get my life back."

"Whatever you say," Tallis replied with a knowing grin as if he saw Jules as wholly for the broken, grieving mess she truly was.

"Fine, so, what now?" Jules questioned while shrugging off Tallis’ intense gaze.

"Now we tell the world," I answered, and both of them turned towards me.

Jules brushed her hair but didn't remove the evidence of her tears; she smudged dirt creatively on her cheek that made her look like she just came out of battle. Tallis was right, Jules was dramatic and manipulative enough to pull this off. The entire Empire would feel sympathetic towards her.

I made quick work of manufacturing a dark backdrop to our video, furthering the dismal tone we wanted to evoke. "You'll need to show fierce anger while juggling vulnerability, Agapimenos ," Tallis said while getting his tablet ready.

"Whatever," Jules replied. Fear rippled through her